The Leisurely Life of a Peasant Woman in the Tang Dynasty

As soon as the sky was light, Tang Youyou got up. She walked out of the room very quietly, afraid of waking the sleeping children. The yard was quiet, with only a few early birds singing happily on the branches. Tang Youyou took a deep breath. The golden light and the strange energy that surged from her palm yesterday still made her feel incredible.

She quickly walked to the corner of the yard, picked up her hoe and basket, and headed straight for the fields where she had worked yesterday. The morning mist had not yet dissipated, the ridges of the fields were wet, and the air was filled with the fragrance of soil. As Tang Youyou walked, she recalled everything that happened yesterday. She vaguely felt that the stone hit by the hoe must be extraordinary.

Arriving in the fields, Tang Youyou searched carefully and finally found the stone under a crooked willow tree. The stone was small, dark red in color, with a bumpy surface, and looked very ordinary. Tang Youyou tried to touch it with her hand, but suddenly felt a warm breath coming from the stone, as if something was about to break out of the ground.

Could this be the secret of the golden finger? Tang Youyou's heart was shocked. She carefully put the stone into her pocket and decided to go home first and test it secretly at night.

Over the next few days, Tang Youyou worked in the fields as usual during the day. At night, after the children fell asleep, she would sneak out to the fields and shine the golden light from her palms on the crops. To her surprise, the golden light seemed to have the magical effect of accelerating plant growth! Vegetables that originally took a month to mature now grew lushly in just a few days, and some even had flower buds.

Tang Youyou was ecstatic, as if she saw the dawn of hope. However, the truth would eventually come out, and her secret actions still attracted the attention of her daughter Tang Wan.

"Mom, what have you been busy with at night lately?" That night, Tang Youyou was about to go out, but was stopped by Tang Wan.

"No...nothing, Mom just couldn't sleep, so she got up and walked around." Tang Youyou answered guiltily, not daring to look her daughter in the eye.

"But, I clearly heard you leaving several times, and..." Tang Wan hesitated, her eyes full of doubt, "And today I saw that our vegetable garden seemed... seemed different from others..."

Tang Youyou's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that her daughter had discovered her secret? She took a deep breath and decided to keep it a secret from her for the time being, and then tell her the truth when the time was right.

"Wan'er, I promise you, I didn't do anything bad. I was just... just trying a new way of farming." Tang Youyou squatted down and gently stroked her daughter's hair. "Don't tell anyone about this for now, okay?"

Tang Wan nodded, seemingly understanding, but her eyes, as she looked at her mother, were still filled with curiosity and inquiry...

After Tang Wan left, Tang Youyou felt a mixture of emotions. She knew she shouldn't have kept it a secret from her daughter, but now was not the time to tell the truth. She had to proceed with caution to ensure the secret of the Golden Finger remained hidden.

The next day, Tang Youyou got up early as usual and prepared to go to the fields to work. As soon as she reached the door, she heard a noise coming from outside.

"Look! The vegetables in Tang Jin's field are taller than mine!"

"Really or not? I don't believe it!"

"If you don't believe me, go and see for yourself!"

Tang Youyou's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly opened the door and walked out. She saw Tang Jin standing on the edge of the field with a few friends, pointing at the vegetables in the field and gesturing excitedly.

"My mother's vegetables are amazing! They grow fast and well!" Tang Jin said proudly, "Look, these cucumbers are almost as long as my arms!"

"Tang Jin, does your mother have any secret?" a friend asked curiously, "Can you tell us?"

Tang Jin scratched his head. How could he know the secret? He only knew that ever since his mother secretly went to the fields that night, the vegetables in the fields had grown rapidly.

"I...I don't know either." Tang Jin stammered, "Anyway, my mother is very powerful!"

Seeing this, Tang Youyou hurried forward and pulled Tang Jin behind her.

"Little kid, don't talk nonsense!" Tang Youyou said in a serious tone, "I'm just more diligent than you, so the vegetables grow better."

"Really?" the friends asked doubtfully.

"Of course it's true!" Tang Youyou said solemnly, "If you don't believe it, you can get up early and go to bed late to take care of your vegetable garden. Maybe it will grow as well as mine."

After hearing this, the friends felt that what Tang Youyou said made sense, so they stopped asking questions and went home.

Tang Youyou breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, she arrived in time, otherwise the secret would have been lost. She warned Tang Jin a few words, asking him not to reveal the family affairs to others, and then took him to work in the fields.

However, what Tang Youyou didn't know was that their conversation had been overheard by someone passing by. That person was none other than Zhao, the owner of the town's restaurant...

Shopkeeper Zhao hummed a little tune along the way, feeling quite cheerful. Business at the restaurant had been booming lately, especially with the newly introduced seasonal vegetables, which were in extremely high demand. He was already thinking about where to find more fresh vegetables, so he could capitalize on the current market trend and make a profit.

As he reached the village entrance, he spotted a lush green vegetable patch in the distance, which was particularly eye-catching. As he got closer, he was even more amazed. The vegetables in the patch were all juicy and plump, more plump and tender than anything he had ever seen before.

"Wow, whose vegetable garden is this? The crops are so good!" Shopkeeper Zhao couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

Tang Youyou, who was busy in the fields, heard this and looked up. Seeing a well-dressed middle-aged man, she guessed something in her heart.

"My lord, you are too kind. These are just some ordinary vegetables." Tang Youyou responded modestly.

"Ordinary? Madam, don't be so modest. I've seen countless vegetables, and the ones in your garden are the best I've ever seen!" Shopkeeper Zhao said, bending down and carefully examining them. "Look at this cucumber, so fresh and green, so juicy. And this tomato, so red, so sweet."

The more Shopkeeper Zhao looked at the vegetables, the more satisfied he became. He had already made up his mind that he would buy all of them!

"To be honest, my lady, I'm the owner of Zuixianlou in town. I'm passing by here today and I'm looking for some high-quality vegetables." Shopkeeper Zhao stated his purpose directly. "I want all the vegetables from your garden. What do you think, my lady?"

Tang Youyou was secretly delighted. This was a rare opportunity! She asked calmly, "I wonder what price the shopkeeper is planning to offer?"

"Don't worry, madam. I, Zhao, have always been honest in doing business." Shopkeeper Zhao said as he quoted a price that was 20% higher than the market price.

This price was already a pleasant surprise for Tang Youyou. But she knew very well that the more times like this, the more she couldn't show too much eagerness.

"Shopkeeper, the price you gave is indeed fair," Tang Youyou said with embarrassment, "but I plan to keep these vegetables for my family..."

"Madam, how do you think about this?" Shopkeeper Zhao naturally understood Tang Youyou's concerns, so he added another 10% to the price, "I'll buy them all and won't lower the price. How do you think?"

This price was far beyond Tang Youyou's expectations, but she still didn't agree immediately. She hesitated for a moment, as if weighing the pros and cons.

At this moment, a sarcastic voice suddenly came from behind, "Hey, isn't this the wife of Tang San's family? What's going on? Is she hooking up with a rich man?"

Tang Youyou looked back and saw a fat man with big ears and a face full of flesh, walking towards them aggressively with several servants.

The man who came was none other than Mr. Liu, the landlord in the village, who liked to oppress the people and force them to buy and sell things.

Tang Youyou's heart suddenly sank, and an ominous premonition came to her mind...

Mr. Liu swaggered up to Tang Youyou, squinting his eyes as he looked her up and down, his tone contemptuous: "Hey, isn't this the wife of Tang San's family? What, is she hooking up with a rich man? She's dressed so well, if you don't know her, you'd think she's some noble lady!"

Tang Youyou suppressed the anger in her heart and replied coldly: "Mr. Liu, you are joking. I am just working in my own fields. How can I be considered a sugar daddy?"

"Hmph, stop pretending!" Mr. Liu pointed at the vegetables on the ground, his greedy eyes undisguised. "Tell me, how much do you want to sell these vegetables for? Just name a price, and I won't bargain!"

Seeing this, Shopkeeper Zhao immediately understood something. It was clear that Mr. Liu was trying to take advantage of the situation and force the sale! He was about to speak when Mr. Liu glared back at him.

"Manager Zhao, I advise you to mind your own business!" Mr. Liu said in a sinister tone, "There's nothing in this village that I, Liu, can't do!"

Although Shopkeeper Zhao was angry, he didn't want to get into trouble, so he had no choice but to shut his mouth.

Tang Youyou looked at Mr. Liu's ugly face, her heart filled with disgust. She knew that if she didn't agree to his request today, she would probably have no good days in the future.

"Mr. Liu, you know that these vegetables were grown by me with great effort. If you want to buy them, you should give me a fair price, right?" Tang Youyou tried her best to suppress the anger in her heart and tried to reason with Mr. Liu.

"A fair price? Humph, I'm fair!" Mr. Liu said arrogantly, "One price, five cents a pound. Will you sell it?"

Five cents a pound? This is simply robbery! Shopkeeper Zhao just offered ten cents! Tang Youyou was so angry that her whole body was shaking. She gritted her teeth and was about to refuse when Mr. Liu suddenly reached out and grabbed her wrist.

"What? You don't want to? Don't refuse a toast and then drink a forfeit!" Mr. Liu said viciously, "If you know what's good for you, just obey me, otherwise..."

As Mr. Liu spoke, he squeezed his hand hard. Tang Youyou felt a sharp pain in her wrist and her face turned pale in an instant.