The White-Bone Demon of the Farm is as rich as a country

The group of people left in a hurry, and the yard suddenly became quiet. The two children then walked up to Ru Yue, and seeing that their sister was injured so seriously, they cried out "wow".

The two children, usually so well-behaved and sensible, burst into tears with swollen eyes because of her serious injury. Ru Yue felt distressed and blamed herself. How could she be so greedy that she scared the two children like this just for a little more money? But now, she was so weak that she really didn't have the energy to comfort them.

Chu Ning'an came over, pulled them into his arms, and whispered a few words into their ears. "Are you serious, brother-in-law?" An Ping asked in surprise.

"Shh! Don't be anxious, you will know in a moment." Chu Ning'an did not feel that she was being followed or monitored, but she could not be completely sure that those people did not leave spies here. Everything was still important to be safe and secure. She picked up Ru Yue and carried her into the hut and put her on the bed. Ru Yue's injury was fake, but her weakness was real.

Chu Ning'an closed all the doors before bringing the two children back to Ru Yue. He used his body to block any prying eyes from outside before poking Ru Yue's bleeding wound in front of An Ping's brother and sister. Ru Yue couldn't help laughing at his nervous and childish behavior.

"Sister, I'm really fine. The injuries on my body are fake, but I will indeed be bedridden for a few days. Now that you two know the truth, what should you do? If others ask you, I don't need to teach you what to say, right?"

The two children blinked their big eyes and nodded vigorously.

Three or five days passed in a flash, and Ru Yue's "injury" had almost healed. After dinner that day, the family of four sat around the fire and chatted.

"Now that we have money, it's time to plan what to do next." Ru Yue suddenly became serious. "I have a few things in mind. Let's discuss them together. You can also share your ideas."

"I'll listen to my sister." The two children said in unison.

Ru Yue patted the two little ones' heads and said, "You're very good, but I want to hear your own ideas." Worried that they didn't understand what she meant, she smiled and said, "Let me tell you my idea first. We have money now, but we can't just sit back and enjoy it all. I've told you before that saving money is not a long-term solution, and increasing revenue is the hard truth of development. So I plan to open a food workshop to do business. As for the food I want to make, I will make some for you to taste in the next two days. You can also tell me what you want to do, and we can discuss it together to see if it is feasible?"

"Sister, if you want to open a workshop, you need someone to help you. I will help you." Anping replied without thinking.

"I can do it too. I can help my sister." Ruxue was also busy expressing her opinion.

Chu Ning'an looked at them in silence. Ru Yue's words just now shocked Chu Ning'an again.

Ru Yue knew they didn't understand what she meant, so she patiently explained the life she had planned for them. "Chu Ning'an, I hope you and Anping can go to the academy to study and take the imperial examination in the future. Of course, it depends on what you like. I won't force you to do anything you don't want to do."

"Sister, studying costs a lot of money. I know you have money now, but I don't want you and Xue'er to suffer because of my study." The shadow of the old Meng family's hardship and suffering hurt this sensible child. Ru Yue felt distressed. What a sensible child!

"Sister knows you are sensible, but first tell me whether you like reading and whether you want to read?" Ru Yue guided him step by step.

The little one stared into her sister's eyes, pursed her lips and nodded.

"Your study will be the greatest help to me. How big my business will be in the future depends entirely on how high your official position is." Ru Yue looked at his bewildered expression and continued, "I don't want to make a fortune by colluding with officials, but I must have the protection of the government to expand my business. If you can reach the highest position in the government, I can expand my business to all four kingdoms. If you can only become a county magistrate, then I may only be able to open a shop in the prefecture and county to make a little money. You know, among the scholars, farmers, merchants and artisans, merchants are the lowest class. Without a stable backer, the better the business, the less we can protect it."

Chu Ning'an hadn't expected Ru Yue to be so lucid and see the world so clearly. He also knew that Ru Yue's words weren't just for An Ping, but for him as well. Perhaps it was more for him. An Ping was still young, still years away from the imperial examinations, while he was not. Ru Yue must have seen some of his foundation and was creating a path for him.

"I think your elder sister is right. We should take a long-term view. Only if we can enter the officialdom can your elder sister feel at ease and boldly do what she wants to do." Chu Ning'an understood Ru Yue's meaning and made his own decision. "I have been enlightened since childhood. Before I was exiled, I have studied hard for more than ten years. I can study hard and help you in the remaining half of the year. I will be able to take the Tongsheng examination in February next year. If nothing unexpected happens, I should be able to take the provincial examination in April. However, this year is the autumn examination year. If I don't take the special examination, I will have to wait three years to take the autumn examination."

"Sister, I understand. I will also go to the academy to study, and help you make money with your business while studying. After I pass the imperial examination, I will be your backer." Anping understood her sister's good intentions and no longer worried about the cost of money.

"I don't need to study, I can help my sister with things." Xiao Ruxue said happily.

"Yes, our little Xue'er is still young. She can help her sister for the time being. When Xue'er grows up and knows what she likes, she will send her to learn."

"Uh-huh..." Ruxue nodded rapidly in response to her sister's words.

"Then there's the issue of our housing. You're both going to the academy, so where should we settle down?" Ru Yue raised another pressing question. "If we stay in the village, we'll have to buy this land and build a house. Or we can just move to town or the county to make it easier for you two to study."

The two children knew nothing about this and could only watch their sister and brother-in-law make the decision.

"Ru Yue said before that she wanted to open a workshop. I wonder what kind of food she wants to make?" Chu Ning'an did not give any ideas directly, but asked a question that Ru Yue had mentioned before.

"There are two kinds of food I'm talking about. One is sauce, which can be sold all year round, and the other is dessert, which is more suitable for cooling off in the summer." Ru Yue didn't hide anything and directly stated her plan.

"If I remember correctly, there was a market in town yesterday, so there are still nine days until the next market. If it's convenient for Ruyue, you can make these two kinds of food and we can take them to the market to sell them. It won't be too late to make a decision later." Chu Ning'an told his three siblings about his idea.

Ru Yue was very satisfied. She knew Chu Ning'an was always a thorough thinker, and his analysis today was even more thorough. It seemed her entrepreneurial plans would soon be put on the agenda.

The next morning, Ru Yue rushed to the town with her big bamboo basket on her back and came to the grocery store. Because she always bought a lot of things every time she came, the owner had already recognized her and hurried forward to greet her when he saw her come in.

Ru Yue didn't bother to argue, just told the boss the quantities of what she needed and asked him to pack them. The only items she didn't have were Sichuan peppercorns and fermented black beans. The boss hadn't even heard of them. It seemed like these two items weren't even available in this dynasty. Ru Yue had no choice but to buy 20 kilograms of black beans, planning to make her own fermented black beans when she got home. As for the Sichuan peppercorns, she'd probably have to ask Ah Ling to find some.

Everything is easy to make, except that the fermented black beans take time to ferment. There are only eight days left until the next market, so it's a bit rushed. Fortunately, it's summer and the temperature is high enough, so it should still be in time. Ru Yue doesn't waste any more time.

On the way back to the village, Ru Yue walked to a remote place and saw that there was no one around, so she hurried into the space. She asked A Ling to help her pick a few large pieces of saltpeter on the mountain in the space, and also picked three or four kinds of fruits and brought them out. She thought of making some fruits for her family to taste when she got back, but when she thought about not having milk, she simply made fruit smoothies instead.

Ru Yue got busy as soon as she got home. She took a large wooden basin to wash the black beans, and then soaked them all. She estimated that they would be ready for steaming in the evening. She also soaked some red beans, thinking of making some candied beans and red bean paste syrup in the afternoon.

When she had some free time in the afternoon, Ru Yue asked the two little ones to wash the fruits while she started to put the soaked red beans into the pot to cook the red bean paste syrup.

The afternoon sun was particularly hot. Chu Ning'an didn't want to let Ru Yue warm herself by the stove, so he took the initiative to take over the task of making the fire. Ru Yue sat under the straw shed and watched the three people busying around. She felt particularly satisfied in her heart. Perhaps this is what they call a peaceful life!

An hour passed, and the bean paste should have been cooked. After taking it out of the pot, Ru Yue crushed a piece of it. It was just the right degree of softness. She scooped some out and put it in a basin, and added a large bowl of sugar to marinate it. Seeing this, several people felt distressed and puzzled. Ru Yue did not explain much, but just smiled mysteriously.

The remaining red beans in the pot were soaked in the soup. Ru Yue had already added a lot of white sugar and began to stir it vigorously. The soft and glutinous red beans gradually broke into pieces and mixed with the red bean soup, slowly becoming a light red mortar, which was very beautiful and mouth-watering.

Ru Yue took a large wooden basin, added half a basin of water into it, and placed a ceramic jar in the basin, also filling it with water. She gave the saltpeter to Chu Ning'an and asked him to smash it into pieces.

Everything was ready. Chu Ning'an helped her add saltpeter little by little into the wooden basin, while she kept stirring the water in the pottery jar. "Oh my God, it's frozen, sister, it's frozen!" Anping shouted excitedly.

After a while, Ru Yue had stirred the water in the ceramic pot into fine smoothie. Since there were no beautiful cups at home, Ru Yue spread a layer of smoothie in the bowl, then a layer of fruit, then another layer of smoothie, and continued to put fruit. She repeated this several times until the bowl was full of smoothie and fruit. Finally, she poured a full layer of red bean syrup on it. Everyone was drooling at the sight of it, and couldn't wait to taste it after it was done.

"Sister, it's delicious!" Xiao Ruxue squinted her starry eyes and praised her elder sister generously.

Anping didn't say anything, but nodded while eating, giving his sister a thumbs up in silent praise.

Chu Ning'an was as elegant and calm as ever, but a happy smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

After finishing a bowl of smoothie, everyone was very satisfied. "How about this fruit smoothie?" Ru Yue started to do the questionnaire survey.

"In the hot summer, a bowl of this soup is very relaxing and refreshing." Chu Ning'an was the first to give his evaluation.

"I've never eaten anything so delicious. Give me a bowl and I won't even want to eat."

"So do you think this can be used as a livelihood?" Ru Yue continued to ask.

"This smoothie is certainly popular in the summer, but it's cold and shouldn't be consumed too often. Once summer is over, I'm afraid even fewer people will eat it," Chu Ning'an explained. "Also, it's a rare commodity. It's fresh, but it's also quite expensive. Ordinary people only buy it occasionally to try, and it's mostly consumed by the women of wealthy families."

Ru Yue nodded repeatedly in appreciation. This was indeed a drawback of cold drink sales. If there was a way to overcome it, it would definitely be profitable.

"What you said is right, so I don't plan to make this food myself. It would be better to cooperate with others. We can come up with the recipe and at most add some raw materials. In this way, we can save costs and expand it in the shortest time, so that it won't be easily eaten by the other party." Ru Yue said her thoughts.

"Who do you want to cooperate with?" Chu Ning'an hit the point again.

"Don't be impatient, let's see the response first. My other food can't be made right away. The weather will be hot for at least three months. We can treat this smoothie as a temporary business. If we make it every day and sell it in town, it will be a considerable income. If we find a suitable person in the meantime, we can also cooperate with him." Ru Yue said the well-thought-out plan.

Seeing that she was confident, Chu Ning'an did not ask any further questions.

It was not too late yet, so Ru Yue made another big bowl and asked Chu Ning'an to accompany her to take it to He Erkui and his wife to try. She also borrowed a large winnowing basket from them to dry the fermented black beans.

"It's so hot and there's still ice to eat. Sister Ruyue, how did you do that?" He Erkui had just returned from working in the fields, and he felt so refreshed after swallowing a bowl of smoothie.

"Even if I give you food, it won't stop you from asking." These new things can be exchanged for money, so how can you ask casually? Erkui's wife scolded her boss and explained, "Your brother Erkui is just quick-witted, don't take it seriously!"

"Sister-in-law, what are you talking about? This is a skill he learned in the capital city. He made it today because it's so hot to cool down and try something new. He thought that if it tastes good, he could make a living from it in the future." Ru Yue explained the details of this thing in detail so that no one would ask too many questions and it would be difficult to explain.

"This thing is delicious. If it were in the city, young girls and wives would buy it to cool down and satisfy their cravings. This business can be made." Erkui's wife said.

"Then let's take advantage of sister-in-law's good wishes and go to the town to try during the market day." Chu Ning'an knew Ru Yue's plan, so he helped her to avoid any possible problems.

"By the way, I have made clothes for you, and I also used the extra fabric to make a pair of shoes for you each. You can take them home and try them on. If you find anything wrong, come back and see me." Erkui's wife was afraid that asking too many questions would make Ruyue and the others suspicious, so she quickly changed the subject.

"Okay, thank you very much, sister-in-law." Ru Yue took the clothes and gave the wages for making the clothes to Erkui's wife. Then she and Chu Ning'an returned to the straw hut with the borrowed winnowing basket.