The eldest sister-in-law became rich by farming in the mountains

When the shopkeeper heard that it was a family recipe, he didn't ask any more questions and asked with a smile, "So, young lady, are you here to see a doctor or to buy medicine?"

Xu Yingtao: "I want to buy some aniseed, Sichuan cinnamon, bay leaves, cardamom and other medicines. Do you have them?"

In her time and space, these spices first appeared in pharmacies in the form of herbs, and then gradually became popular as seasonings. Xu Yingtao was not sure whether these things existed in this era, so she had to try her luck.

Unexpectedly, the shopkeeper answered straightforwardly: "Yes, how much do you want, young lady?"

Xu Yingtao was overjoyed and asked about the price again.

When Xu Yingtao learned that these spices cost at least a hundred coins per pound, she almost bit her tongue.

Fortunately, she asked about the price in time, otherwise she would have almost said something stupid like half a pound of each.

Jiang, who was following behind her, raised her hand to cover her heart.

In the end, she only paid five cents for each of the above spices, and dozens of copper coins were reduced from her purse.

When settling the bill, Xu Yingtao suddenly remembered something and asked the shopkeeper, "Do you happen to have chili peppers for sale in your clinic?

This is the food she wants most right now, besides grain and meat.

Although dogwood can also replace chili pepper, it is much inferior to chili pepper in terms of aroma, color and spiciness. Otherwise, in her time and space, dogwood would not have been quickly abandoned by the people after chili pepper was introduced.

The shopkeeper looked puzzled: "Chili pepper? I've never heard of that."

Xu Yingtao was a little disappointed, but she was mentally prepared. She was about to pay the bill and leave when she heard the shopkeeper change the subject: "But there is a kind of spicy food. I wonder if it is the chili pepper that the young lady mentioned."

Xu Yingtao raised her eyes in response, and her originally dim eyes suddenly brightened up: "Please, shopkeeper, bring it here for me to have a look."

The shopkeeper didn't mind the trouble. He walked to the medicine bowl not far away, grabbed a handful of chili peppers from the second-to-last compartment and walked over: "Look, young lady, is this the chili pepper you're looking for?"

Xu Yingtao looked at the dried red peppers in the shopkeeper's hand. She felt as if she had seen her relatives and was so excited that she wanted to cry.

As someone who grew up in a province rich in chili peppers, chili peppers have long become a dietary habit and taste memory for her, firmly rooted in her soul.

After all, what she wanted to eat was not the chili pepper, but the nostalgia for another time and space, the homesickness.

In the end, Xu Yingtao generously bought two taels of chili peppers and spent another twenty cents. This was only because the shopkeeper saw that she bought a lot and gave her a small discount.

After leaving the pharmacy, Jiang seemed to want to say something but hesitated, and finally just let out an imperceptible sigh.

Forget it. She is not a wicked mother-in-law and would not do anything to oppress her daughter-in-law. Besides, the money was earned by the eldest daughter-in-law, so she can spend it however she wants.

After buying food and spices, today's shopping mission is mostly completed.

Next, Jiang and Xie Bai witnessed Xu Yingtao buying two kilograms of pork, one kilogram of salt, one kilogram of maltose, and one kilogram of soy sauce and vinegar, and the mother and son were completely stunned.

Before the money in the purse had even warmed up, only a few copper coins were left.

Only Xie Li stared at the two pounds of fat pork with green eyes. If she could eat raw meat, she would have taken a few bites in the street.

Xu Yingtao felt a little regretful. If sucrose wasn't too expensive and she didn't have enough money, how could she have settled for maltose, which was less than half as sweet as sucrose?

After counting the ten copper coins left in her purse, Xu Yingtao waved her hand and said, "There isn't much money left anyway, just spend it all."

Jiang felt dizzy and immediately held her forehead: "Xiao Bai, A Li, help me up."

The two younger ones quickly supported Jiang on the left and right.

Xu Yingtao was stunned: "Mom, what's wrong with you? Do you want to go to the clinic?"

Go to the clinic? That would cost more money!

Jiang stood up straight and forced a smile: "It's okay, I'm just a little tired."

Seeing that she didn't look like anything was wrong except that she was malnourished and had a sallow complexion, Xu Yingtao didn't force her and went straight to the porcelain shop that sold bowls and plates, and finally bought ten large coarse porcelain bowls.

Today's purchasing mission finally came to an end.

On the way back, the worried mother and son duo didn't know whether they had figured it out or accepted their fate. In any case, the clouds of worry on Jiang and Xie Bai's faces gradually dissipated, and were replaced by the joy of harvest.

That's right, who wouldn't want to eat delicious food? Xu Yingtao smiled triumphantly.

Her arbitrary purchasing pattern today was intentional. Among these three women, one has no opinion, one is a money-grubber, and the other is heartless. If she really asks for their opinions on everything, I'm afraid nothing can be advanced.

The family went there early in the morning and arrived at the village entrance before noon. They were afraid of gossip from the villagers, so they took a long detour to go home.

However, before they even stepped into the yard, Jiang was frightened by the familiar figure in the yard and her face turned pale. The brother and sister also shrank back as if reflexively.

Xu Yingtao followed the direction of the mother and her two children's gaze and saw a strange old lady standing in the yard.

The old lady was not tall. She carried a basket and wore a gray-brown shorts. Her face was full of wrinkles and her cheeks were deeply sunken. She looked fierce and not someone you would mess with.

Xu Yingtao frowned.

Although I didn't know him, it was obvious that he had bad intentions.

"Mom, why are you here?" Jiang asked in a trembling voice.

The person who came was Jiang's biological mother, Mrs. Cao.

Mrs. Cao not only looks fierce, but she is also a fierce person.

As soon as he opened his mouth, he shocked several people.

"Why don't you die outside? How come you remember to come back?" Mrs. Cao glared at Jiang fiercely and completely ignored everyone else.

She had been waiting in the yard for the whole morning and was already getting impatient.

Xu Yingtao suddenly understood. No wonder the mother and her two daughters were like mice seeing a cat when they saw the old lady before. It turned out that she was really an evil old lady.

Jiang tried to remain calm and ease the atmosphere, saying with a smile: "Today is a market day in town, I took the children to sell hemp ropes, how come you have time today..."

But Mrs. Cao interrupted her impatiently: "Give it here!" She said as she stretched out her hand towards Jiang.

Jiang looked bewildered: "Mother, what do you want me to get?"

"You are still pretending!" Mrs. Cao's eyes widened with anger, "Silver!"

Jiang's eyes were full of doubts: "Mother, you also know the situation of my family. Let alone silver, we can't even get together a few copper coins."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Cao spat on the ground and sneered, "You are such a heartless person. I haven't seen you for a few years, but you have become much smarter. Don't try to fool me! Where is the pension money issued by the government? Hand it over quickly!"

Nowadays, unlike later times, news spreads extremely slowly. It was only yesterday evening that Old Mrs. Cao received the news of the death of her son-in-law and eldest grandson.

If it wasn't for the fact that it was almost dark and the two villages were far apart, she would have wanted to rush over to ask for money right then and there.

Jiang felt a bitter taste in her mouth. She opened her mouth, but her throat seemed to be blocked by something and she couldn't say a word.

"No pension!" Xie Bai clenched his fists, his nails almost digging into his palms, and gritted his teeth, "The government only exempted our family from three years of agricultural taxes. Other than that, there is not a penny!"

"Bullshit!" Mrs. Cao cursed, with her hands on her hips. "A few years ago, a man from Gaojia Village fell into the river and drowned while serving in the army. The government paid him five taels of silver as compensation. Two people from your family died this time, so you should have paid at least ten taels. Don't think that I, an old woman, can be fooled!"

Jiang's eyes were red and her voice was choked with sobs: "Mother, my husband did not serve in the army, and Xiaobai did not lie to you. The government really did not give any pension money this year. If you don't believe me, you can go to the county government to inquire."

If they had received pension money, their family would not have fallen to the point of eating wild vegetables for every meal.

Xu Yingtao was a little anxious and angry.

Now, all they carry on their shoulders and backs are food and meat. If the old woman sees these, she will make a big fuss.

But the old woman was like a roadblock, blocking their way into the house. Now even if they wanted to hide these things, they had nowhere to hide.

Thinking of this, Xu Yingtao's eyes gradually became fierce. If this old woman really dared to try to rob her, she would fight back!

They are almost starving to death now, so how can they care about respecting the elderly and loving the young?

Suppressing her anger, Xu Yingtao tugged at Xie Bai's sleeve and whispered something to him.

Xie Bai understood, threw the backpack to the ground, and said, "Mom, I have to pee urgently, go pee first!"

Before he could finish his words, he disappeared.

Xu Yingtao put the basket on the backpack, covering the food and seasonings inside.

Mrs. Cao was only concerned about getting money, and she didn't care at all where her grandson went.

Seeing that the forceful approach didn't work, Mrs. Cao rolled her eyes and suddenly changed her strategy, launching a tender offensive.

"Hey, Erya, I know your family is in a tight spot, but it's not easy for your brother to find a wife. A few days ago, a family finally found a young girl. In addition to asking for a 10-liang betrothal gift, they also insisted that our family build a new house before they would marry. He's your own brother, you can't just ignore him."

Her tone softened, as if she was really thinking about Jiang. "I'm not greedy. Eight taels of silver is a lucky number. I promise you that I will leave a room for you when the new house is built. If you can't make it in Nanxi Village in the future, you can return to your parents' home, and the children will have a place to stay."

"Mom, you are forced to do this. If you didn't have to, how could you have the audacity to come to you? Besides, Xiaobai is still young, and there is no man to support you at home. If there is any disturbance in the village in the future, you will have to rely on your brother to stand up for you. If you help your brother, you are actually helping yourself. As a family, we should support each other."

Mrs. Cao had a worried look on her face and spoke in a mournful tone, completely lacking her previous domineering attitude.

Xu Yingtao rolled her eyes as she listened.

But after all, she is Jiang's biological mother, and she can't curse her rashly.

Jiang was so upset that she almost burst into tears, but for some reason, the image of Xu Yingtao arguing with Chen flashed through her mind, and she forced herself to hold back the tears.

She resolutely protected Xie Li and Xu Yingtao behind her, and her tone was rarely firm: "Mother, our family is in financial difficulty and we really can't afford to pay. Please go back. From now on, no matter how our family is doing, Zhuzi will not be bothered to worry about it, and I will not cause any trouble to your family. The funeral has not yet passed, and on Zhuzi's big day, I will not go back, so as not to disrupt the joy!"

When Mrs. Cao heard this, her not-so-big eyes almost popped out of their sockets. How dare her second daughter, who had always been submissive, disobey her? !

Furious, she rolled up her sleeves and rushed towards Jiang.

"You are such a loser, you have become so capable! How dare you talk back to me? I will skin you alive!"

Jiang was caught off guard by this sudden attack. The unbearable memories before her marriage instantly flooded into her mind. For a moment, she even forgot to dodge. A slap mark instantly appeared on her face, and half of her hair was also scattered.

"Fuck, I can't stand it anymore, let's go!"

Xu Yingtao was the first to come to her senses. She took a quick step forward and pushed Mrs. Cao, causing her to stagger.

Xie Li also suddenly bent down and lowered his head. Before anyone could react, he rushed straight into Mrs. Cao's stomach like an angry calf.

Mrs. Cao had just managed to stand steady when the yellow-haired head suddenly hit her stomach hard, almost making her vomit out her dinner.

"Oh my god, what a heartless family, how dare they..." Mrs. Cao's facial features were twisted into a ball due to the pain. Before she could finish her words, her eyes were attracted by the greasy pork belly in Xie Li's backpack.

Regardless of her stomachache, Mrs. Cao took out the meat and pointed at Jiang and cursed, "You ungrateful bastard, you actually lied to me and said you didn't have pension money. How can you afford meat without pension money? Hand over the money quickly!"

Jiang pulled Xie Li over and protected her behind her, trembling and not knowing how to explain.

Mrs. Cao became even more arrogant, and said in a somewhat arrogant tone: "You have to take this silver today, whether you want to or not, or I will burn your house down, and no one will have a good life!"

As she spoke, she picked up the basket she had placed under the eaves and put the pork in without hesitation.

This action completely touched Xu Yingtao's bottom line. She said coldly, "I advise you to return the pork to me. It's the pork from the village chief's house. You can take it if you want. Two catties, fifty cents in total. Give me the money."

Xu Yingtao opened her palms, imitating Mrs. Cao's gesture of asking for money.

Mrs. Cao looked at her as if she had seen a ghost, and blurted out: "Where did this little girl come from? How could the pork from your village chief's house come here? Do you really think I'm easy to fool?"

Xu Yingtao smiled but didn't smile: "Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I am your eldest granddaughter-in-law. It's not surprising that grandma doesn't recognize me. After all, you are a busy person and you won't come to visit me for no reason. Even if you come, you only recognize money and not people."

Mrs. Cao was so angry that her face turned red. Just as she was about to curse, Xu Yingtao continued, "I know you are anxious, but don't be anxious yet. The pork you put in the basket was bought with borrowed money to honor the village chief's family. My father-in-law has borrowed money from the village chief's family for medicine over the years. Now the interest is compounded, and it is at least ten taels of silver. Now our family can't pay back the money, so we have to give some benefits from time to time to curry favor with them. Don't you think this is reasonable, grandma?"

"Ten taels?!" Mrs. Cao widened her eyes, thinking that the consumptive patient was truly a nuisance. If she had been given this money, her family would have been able to build a new house long ago!

"That's right." Xu Yingtao sighed, "The village chief's family came to our house every now and then to collect debts. We really had no choice but to borrow money to buy these two pounds of meat. Since you want to take it away, you have to leave the money for the meat. Isn't this too much to ask?"

Mrs. Cao's face immediately fell: "What a joke! I have never heard of a mother who eats a bite of meat from her daughter's family and has to pay for it."