My delicate husband

Guo Ge'er came back and was not in a good mood. Even though Lan Euan made new food, he still felt depressed.

"What's wrong? You're not happy even eating candy?"

"I'm not Lin'er's best friend anymore."

"Did you have a fight?"

"No. Angel, I can't tell you."

Lan An asked Guo Ge'er if he still planned to do the chili oil business. Guo Ge'er immediately became more cheerful and told Lan An about his plan.

"Okay, have you got the jars? Then I'll teach you how to make chili oil. Start by making 50 bottles and selling them. I'll also let you handle the winter melon and peanut business."

"Haven't you picked it yet?"

"Brother Xu and Brother He have arranged for people to pick them. It will probably be picked in the next two days."

Lan Euan did not delay and spent half a day teaching Guoge how to make chili oil. Because soybean oil was more expensive, the chili oil was finally priced at 88 wen per can, which could normally last for half a month.

Lan An also soaked two large jars of pickled peppers and made some chopped peppers. It was quite tiring, but it was only tiring this time. Aunt Li and Xue Ge'er had learned how to do it, so Lan An didn't care about it anymore and just left it to them from now on.

It was the first time that Brother Xu and Brother He had hired children from the resettlement housing to work; in the past, Brother Guo had been the one who came more often. They explained their purpose, and Sister Xi warmly welcomed them.

After a while, they selected a group of radish heads to pick peanuts, and asked them to pick the watermelons themselves, because some were not ripe yet, and they planned to pick the ripe ones first.

After receiving the notice, the aunts also started to harvest their own peanuts and winter melons. They did not expect the yield to be so high. Brother Han also explained how to eat them, and everyone liked them very much.

Lan An planned to take Zhang Xiaomo to go boating. He guessed that Zhang Xiaomo would like this kind of elegant activity. However, before going out, Lan An had to arrange everything at home. Now he just had to wait until the peanuts were harvested before he could go out.

Lan An planned to go out and play for two or three days. He asked Bai Lu for a long time before he found out that there was a manor in Yunling County called Shuiyunjianhe Manor. It was full of lotus flowers and you could take a boat ride. There were also some fruit trees planted there. Many wealthy literati and scholars loved to go there. It was not far from Lotus Village and it only took three hours by carriage.

"An An, what are you thinking about? I called you but you ignored me."

"I'm wondering about the peanut production. Brother Xu and the others should also be looking for children from resettlement housing to help."

"Does An An like children very much?"

"No. I just don't think they're annoying. I didn't believe good things happen to good people before, but because of you, I do."

"An An, are you looking forward to our child?"

"If it's like you, I'd like it."

"An An, I like your little self too."

Lan An thought about Zhang Xiaomo's child, a child belonging to their blood. Lan An should be looking forward to it, but he cannot take away Zhang Xiaomo's love, otherwise he will not want it.

"An An, shall we go for a walk in the back mountain?"

"Brother Xiaomo, you can't go in, and you can't hunt, you have to promise me."

"Okay, promise An An."

There were only the two of them at home. Everyone else had gone to the fields to harvest things. Lan Bo closed the gate, held Zhang Xiaomo's hand, and strolled slowly along the village road.

It's June now, not too hot, and there are not many people on the village roads. The villagers are all working in the fields, the women and the elderly are weaving bamboo baskets at home, and the children are usually cutting grass or collecting firewood. There are really no people as leisurely as Lan An and Zhang Xiaomo.

Along the way, the two of them attracted a lot of attention. Everyone in the village envied Zhang Xiaomo for marrying such a good husband. The men in Lianhua Village all had a good impression of the boy from Yunshen Village because of Lan An. Some of them had already engaged to the boy from Yunshen Village and were just waiting for the autumn harvest to get married.

The two came to the back mountain and happened to see Lin Ge'er and a man coming out of the back mountain hand in hand. Lan An was worried and gave them a few warnings, after all, there were still dangers in the back mountain.

Brother Lin was a little panicked when he saw Lan An, but he felt relieved when he saw that the other party was just worried about his safety. However, Zhang Xiaomo guessed that it must not be that simple, but he would not interfere.

"Brother Xiaomo, Brother Lin is indeed Aunt Wang's brother. He looks quiet, but he's actually quite courageous."

"An An, let's go in and see if there's any rabbit. I want to eat cold rabbit."

In the end, the two of them went in and caught four rabbits, which were quite fat. Zhang Xiaomo offered to help, but Lan An didn't want him to get tired, so he carried the rabbits all the way by himself. His hands were sore when he came back. The villagers on the road were envious when they saw them. They also saw that they just couldn't catch them, because they didn't have as good archery skills as Lan An.

When the two returned home, Brother He was home alone, apparently keeping accounts. Lan An didn't care. He put the rabbit into the kitchen and started to act coquettishly with Zhang Xiaomo, asking him to help him massage his hands.

Brother He was also having a headache. He calculated the family's recent expenses and didn't know how to ask Lan An for help.

Just two days ago, Lan An spent more than three taels of silver on entertaining guests. They spent more than ten taels on daily necessities, and more than one tael on food. Guo Ge'er also spent more than three taels on business. In less than half a month, the family expenses were almost twenty taels, which was equivalent to the expenses of an ordinary farmer for several years.

"Ang'er, this is half a month's expenses, take a look."

Brother He spoke with courage, ready to face Lan'an's scolding.

"Yeah, I know."

Lan An handed the account book back to Brother He and looked at him with some confusion.

"Any thing else?"

"Anger, have you looked at this account book carefully?"

"I saw it and remember it in great detail."

Zhang Xiaomo probably understood what Brother He meant, so he took the account book and took a look. Sure enough, his guess was correct. He sent Lan An away, asked him to go to the inner room to get a book, and said a few words to Brother He.

"Brother He, just record your expenses normally. If there's anything you can't finalize, ask me privately. An An isn't sensitive to money and doesn't like trouble. As long as it's spent normally and reasonably, it doesn't matter if there's a little more."

Brother He also understood. Lan An had given him fifty taels of silver before, and he thought it was enough for a year's expenses. Now it seems that he underestimated the strength of his boss.

"Brother Xiaomo, shall we go to the courtyard to read?"

"Okay, I'll listen to An An."

Brother Man came back with a load of peanuts and watermelons. Lan Euan was a little surprised because the peanuts had been picked and looked to be about one day old, and the watermelons were about seven or eight days old.

"Ang'er, these are from our fields. The fruit from other aunts' fields are still being harvested."

"Okay, pick out thirty kilograms of good peanuts and two kilograms of good winter melons and send them to Brother Xia."

Without Lan'an's instructions, Brother He started to select. He even gave some to the villagers on his own initiative. He was worthy of being taught by Bai Lu, as he had a good grasp of the ways of the world.

"Anger, will you deliver to the resettlement housing as well?"

"Send it. Don't ask again."

Brother Man went back again and brought back two kinds of peanuts and six kinds of winter melons. The others also came back with him.

As soon as Guo Geer got off the ox cart, he walked towards Lan Eucalyptus, also with an anxious look on his face.

"Anger, I didn't pay the aunts for this, so I don't know the price."

"Peanuts are ten cents a pound, and winter melons are eight cents a pound. Tomorrow we'll go to the county town, and I'll go with you. I'll teach you how to sell them."

Guo Ge'er found Brother He and asked him to help count the money, and then he went to give the money to the aunts.

"Brother He, you will be the one to collect the money for Guo'er's business from now on. He won't be able to handle such a large amount."

Brother He nodded, and Lan An nestled in Zhang Xiaomo's arms. He was a little sleepy.

"An An, do you want to go back to your room?"

"No need, Brother Xiaomo, I'll make you some rabbit later."

"An An, can't we do it tonight?"

"No, once every two weeks."

"I feel I'm in good health, I don't need it, An An."

"Wait a few days. Aren't you looking forward to the surprise I have prepared for you?"

"Okay, An An, don't keep me waiting too long."

Lan An and Zhang Xiaomo were being affectionate with each other while the other people in the family were picking peanuts. Guo Ge'er quite liked it. In the past, it was just him and Brother Xu who did the work, but now they were working together as a group, which was really nice.

"Brother Guo, you seem to be in a good mood."

"Brother Xu, are you unhappy?"

"not bad."

"That's right, finally we are not the only ones being tortured."

"Are the eldest and youngest bosses lovestruck?"

Everyone looked at Brother He, gave him a look, and let him figure it out for himself.

"Why do you think there is a side yard, and why are we here?"

Although the group of people were complaining quietly to each other, they were all grateful in their hearts. They had met countless people and seen the warmth and coldness of human nature, but this was the first time they had met such an easy-going boss who really treated them as family.

"Is it time to pull out the tomatoes in the field?"

"Anger will probably ask me to hire someone, so we should save some money and do it ourselves."

"Okay, I'll go get it pulled out in the next two days. I have nothing to do recently anyway."

It took the group two hours to pick out about 30 pounds of good quality peanuts, and they also chose the rounder and larger winter melons.

Aunt Li made dinner, and Lan Euan also made a cold rabbit. It wasn’t too spicy this time, but it still tasted good.

Brother Man had not returned yet, so Lan An asked Aunt Li to leave some food for him alone. After dinner, Lan An took Zhang Xiaomo for a walk and coaxed him for a long time before he finally took the medicine.

"An An, can you please not drink?"

"No, dear, just hold on for the last few months."

At night, the two were lying on the bed chatting, and Zhang Xiaomo suddenly spoke

"An An, I want to send Guo Ge'er to the county town to attend a girls' school."

"Why? You don't like him doing business?"

"No, he's old and needs to understand some physiological knowledge. Neither you nor I are suitable to teach him. We should hire a professional to teach him."

"Okay, I'll listen to Brother Xiaomo."

On the second day, Lan An got up early for a rare occasion and said that he would take Guo Ge'er to the county town to do business. Although he was reluctant to get up, he still got up with difficulty.

"Brother Xiaomo, I'm getting up."

"An An, kiss."

It was still early, and Lan An coaxed Zhang Xiaomo to sleep a little longer, but Zhang Xiaomo still helped Lan An to tie up her hair before going to sleep.

When we arrived at the hall, Aunt Li had already prepared tomato and egg noodles. Everyone used large bowls, and Lan An only had a small bowl.

After dinner, everyone loaded peanuts, winter melon, and chili oil into the car. Except for Brother Xu, Aunt Li, and Brother Han who stayed at home, everyone else took a carriage to the county town with Lan An.

Lan'an spent 30 cents to rent a large stall. The surrounding vendors were also very enthusiastic when they saw Lan'an and his companions. Lan'an asked them to move their things off the carriage.

Guo Ge'er and Xue Ge'er picked out some good ones and placed them on the stall. Lan Euan cut a winter melon and gave it to the people around to taste. He also asked Brother Man to take out the boiled peanuts and distribute them to the guests around. He looked at the chili oil and asked Brother He to go to the stall next door to buy two steamed buns.

There was no need for Blue Eucalyptus to shout, everyone took the initiative to ask the price and was ready to buy.

"These are peanuts, 15 wen per pound. Buy five pounds and get one free. Half of this winter melon is 50 wen, and a whole one is 100 wen. Take whatever size you want. This chili oil is 88 per can, 168 for two cans. You can dip it in steamed buns or noodles. You can try it."

Lan An demonstrated it and then passed it to Guo Ge'er and Xue Ge'er, and the two of them cooperated very well.

Maybe it’s because the weather is hot, or because the blue gum melon is too cheap. Usually, one costs several taels, but now it’s so cheap and tastes good, so the villagers are buying it like crazy. No one buys half a melon, but one or two, and some even buy ten or so.

Peanuts sold well, but most of the buyers were from wealthier families. Fortunately, the quantity was small, and there weren't many left after two hours.

The chili oil sold unexpectedly well and was sold out in a short time. Many people didn't get one. Lan'an asked Brother He to remember the number of people and come back the next day to buy more chili oil.

In less than three hours, all the peanuts were sold out except for some leftover peanuts. Lan'an planned to take the remaining peanuts home to eat, so the group packed up and returned to the village.

"Anger, why are winter melons sold so cheaply?"

"Brother Guo, these aren't really cheap. Not many villagers in our Lotus Village are willing to sell them. I'm not growing them to make money, I just want your brother to eat them. If I sell them at a lower price, I'll consider it a good deed. It's also a way to accumulate merit for your brother. Besides, don't we make a lot of money?"

"Angel, I know."

"Brother Guo, I support your love of doing business, but you have to make sure that you have a clear conscience for the money you earn."

Everyone in the car was surprised by Lan An's answer. In this world, no businessman would not want to make more money, considering that they had sold themselves for a few taels of silver.

"Brother Guo, I'm not a good person, but I hope you can earn more money from the rich."

Everyone in the car was deeply shocked, and at the same time, they became more sincere towards Lan An. If they had met Lan An at the beginning, things would not have been so difficult for them.

When they got home, Zhang Xiaomo was reading a book in the courtyard. Lan An walked over and hugged him. He liked this feeling and liked Zhang Xiaomo waiting for him to come home.

Brother He calculated the money and found that he had sold a total of 750 taels and 500 wen. Everyone was a little surprised that it was so much. Lan Euan calculated the cost and found that he could make about 15 tael and wen from one acre of peanuts and about taels from one acre of watermelon. It seems that growing fruits is really profitable.

"Anger, our winter melons are priced the same as others. We can't earn a hundred taels per acre."

Everyone gasped, but Lan Euan was not surprised. After all, Xiaozi's watermelons were priced sky-high compared to those in China.

In Chuqi Kingdom, watermelons are eaten by the nobles, and blue eucalyptus is also produced with black technology, so it is so cheap. Once it leaves Yunling County, the price will increase five to ten times.

"Zhang Xiaoguo, you'll be 12 soon. I plan to send you to the girls' school in the county."

"Brother, can I not go?"

"Brother Guo, I've discussed this with your brother. We know there are some things you need to understand at your age, but it's not convenient for your brother and I to teach you."

"Anger, can I still do business?"

"Sure, you just need to study for two months."

Although Guo Ge'er didn't want to learn, he still agreed. He was just curious about what he was going to learn, as even An Ge'er, who was so capable, didn't know it.

Since Lan An had nothing to do at home, he couldn't wait to take Zhang Xiaomo out for a trip. This could be considered a real date for them.

Lan An explained some household matters to Brother He and Brother Xu, and deposited the money earned today with Brother He for household expenses. After giving Brother Guo a few words of advice, he went into the room to pack some things, mainly Zhang Xiaomo's medicine and snacks, as well as some clothes for changing, and of course books were also indispensable.

After packing, Lan An asked Brother Man to send him and Zhang Xiaomo to Shuiyunjianhe Manor, and told him to come and pick them up at noon three days later. Guo Ge'er also wanted to go, but shut up under the death gaze of the two of them.