Golden Branch

"Nine Lady, I wish you a happy new year and great fortune!"

Wang Mian ran to Wang Heng to wish her a happy new year, holding a kumquat tree that she had carefully cultivated for two or three months.

"Big orange and big profit?"

Wang Heng found it curious and tilted her head to ask, "Does it mean auspicious?"

This is the first time I heard someone say this. Although it is a bit strange, I feel inexplicably festive.

Especially the orange tree that Wang Mian brought. It was only about one foot tall, but it had lush branches and leaves and was full of fruits.

It is winter when everything is silent. The flowers and trees in the yard have long since withered, and the fruits have long since disappeared.

There were some stored fruits in the kitchen warehouse, but most of them had lost moisture, and their appearance and taste were far inferior to fresh fruits.

The pot that Wang Mian brought was different. It was fresh, with emerald green leaves, golden fruits, and a strong fruity aroma.

"Yes! Good luck! Good luck!"

As for puns, they have been widely used on the Internet in later generations.

Wang Mian was grateful for Wang Heng's help and protection. Since he embraced the golden thigh of the little girl of the Wang family, Wang Mian not only changed his own destiny, but also benefited his whole family and the entire Wang Family Temple.

Half a year later, Wang Mian is no longer the dark, thin and short peasant girl on the official road.

Wang Heng's reward allowed Wang Mian to earn his first pot of gold.

With the protection of the Wang family, Wang Mian was able to successfully run the tofu shop business.

After several months of nourishment, Wang Mian grew taller, his face and body became more plump, and his hair was no longer dry and sparse.

Her overall complexion may not be comparable to that of the pampered Wang Heng, but she already looks like an eight-year-old child.

At first glance, you wouldn't think she's only five or six years old.

Of course, the most attractive thing about Wang Mian is her eyes, which are always so bright and shining, as if there is infinite power in her small body.

And her temperament is also not humble, nor arrogant, she always has a noble attitude of "equality for all beings" towards others.

This kind of nobility is different from the "nobility" of aristocratic families, but it does not seem abrupt.

When facing Wang Heng, she was polite and grateful, but still able to maintain her own self.

She doesn't dare to say "all beings are equal" all the time, but when she deals with people, people can feel it unconsciously.

This is the reason why Wang Heng likes to be with Wang Mian.

When two girls play together, they are not master and slave, not noble lady and untouchable, but friends!

"It's too late this year. Otherwise, I could have sent Jiu Niang some 'Persimmon Ruyi' and 'Ping Ping An'."

Wang Mian put down the kumquat tree and said with a hint of regret.

Alas, in ancient times, supplies were so scarce.

Apple... uh, it already exists, and it's now called Ringo.

However, ringo and apple are not exactly the same species.

The apples of later generations are the result of hundreds and thousands of years of domestication and improvement.

The texture and taste of apples are far inferior to apples.

In fact, it’s more than just Apple.

It’s Chinese New Year, and Wang Mian habitually wants to get some snacks for the New Year. Apart from anything else, the must-have melon seeds for the New Year are a must.

Then, Wang Mian became depressed - poor Zhou Dynasty, there were no sunflowers!

Without sunflowers, there would be no sunflower seeds.

Without sunflower seeds, her Qia Qia, multi-flavor, caramel... can't be made even with the recipe!

After feeling depressed, Wang Mian cheered up and decided to settle for the next best thing: if there were no sunflower seeds, there must be pumpkin seeds and watermelon seeds, right?

Turns out, there was no pumpkin either!

Only watermelon seeds.

Watermelon was also a relatively rare and precious fruit in the Zhou Dynasty.

If she hadn't hugged Wang Heng's thighs tightly, she wouldn't even be able to see the watermelon!

Wang Mian: ...Ahhh, no wonder all the senior time travelers were so eager to go to the New World.

This is not only a golden finger for time travelers, but also a necessity in life.

Many of the ingredients that later generations have become accustomed to originated from that place.

If you don't go there, in ancient times, you won't be able to eat chili peppers, potato chips, or even melon seeds... I'll just have to reluctantly use watermelon seeds instead.

"Nine Lady, here's my new snack—plums and melon seeds!"

Wang Mian lovingly took out a small cloth bag from his sleeve pocket.

The cloth bag was not big, only the size of Wang Mian’s palm.

When she picked up the cloth bag, there was a faint rustling sound inside.

When Wang Heng heard the word "snacks", she immediately became interested.

She left the kumquat tree and stared at the cloth bag with her big round eyes.

Wang Mian carefully opened the drawstring and showed the contents to Wang Heng.

"Is this the seed of the winter melon?"

"Correct!"

Because watermelon seeds are also seeds, Wang Mian is reluctant to "waste" them.

She brought a lot of melon seeds home from Wangjiazhuang, but she didn't dare to fry them all. She saved the seeds and only took out a small bowl to make snacks.

After making them, Wang Mian didn’t “taste” any of them herself - she was afraid that she would not be able to control herself and eat all the melon seeds one at a time.

This is a small gift for Jiu Niang.

The longer Wang Mian lived in the Great Zhou Dynasty, the more he understood the cruelty of reality.

Without the help of a "noble person", she would not be able to accomplish anything even if she was a time-traveling woman with countless "secret recipes".

For example, Wang Mian is now extremely eager to organize a fleet to go overseas and to the New World.

However, this problem could not be solved by Wang Mian relying on the few hundred copper coins he earned from the tofu shop and the pig farm.

Firstly, a few hundred strings of cash was a huge fortune that ordinary people could not earn in their entire lives, but it was not enough to build a treasure ship.

Secondly, in ancient times when the classes of scholars, farmers, artisans and merchants were clearly divided, money could not solve real big problems.

"Oh, if only Jiu Niang were a little older!"

If Jiu Niang were an adult, Wang Mian's plan to go to sea would be much smoother.

However, there is no need to be afraid just because they are not adults. Wang Heng is young, but she still has parents and... the little bully.

The little bully is not very old, but he is very popular.

With a single order, all the cows that were forbidden to be slaughtered according to the law would be immediately turned into beef and sent to him.

The Lou family also has military power.

In troubled times, anyone with a gun can be a king.

The power of the little bully of the Lou family can definitely make it easy for Wang Mian to realize his plan.

Unfortunately... this person is arrogant and has a bad temper.

Except Jiu Niang, this naughty kid Lou Dalang doesn't care about anyone.

Wang Mian is not an ordinary child. He has an adult soul living in his small body.

Therefore, she could feel that Lou Dalang's eyes when he looked at her were filled with the arrogance and contempt of a man in a higher position.

Tsk, the noble young master simply looks down on a lowly peasant girl like her.

Wang Mian complained in his heart once again: Wow, online novels are all lies!

Who says that a time-traveling woman can attract the powerful and wealthy by using a little trick?

The class gap is like a chasm.

Time travel is not enough to fill this huge gap.

Dealing directly with Lou Dalang was not going to work, so Wang Mian had to "save the country in a roundabout way" - through Jiu Niang, to arouse Lou Dalang's interest, and then...

Thinking of Lou Dalang, Wang Mian said, "By the way, where is the young master of the Lou family?"

Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year. According to custom, shouldn’t families who know each other wish each other a happy new year?

The person Lou Dalang likes the most and is closest to is Wang Heng.

Even if there was no custom of New Year's greetings in the Zhou Dynasty, Lou Dalang, this naughty kid, was a rebellious person who would act according to his heart and would not care about any rules or customs.

What he liked was playing with Wang Heng.

It doesn't make sense. Wang Mian is here, but there is no sign of Lou Dalang.

Wang Heng took the cloth bag and was cracking the melon seeds according to the method Wang Mian taught her.

Hearing Wang Mian's question, he was stunned for a moment, "Brother?"

It would have been fine if Wang Mian hadn't reminded her, but after she reminded her, Wang Heng finally reacted.

Yes, brother hasn’t come yet!

They are all children, without the red tape and social interactions of adults.

Playing is the serious thing.

But Lou Dalang didn't come. Could it be that his stepmother was making things difficult for him?

When drinking Tusu wine in the morning, Wang Heng was a little worried. She had heard about the incident at the Lou family ancestral hall from Aunt Zheng.

I also know that Lou Dalang already has a formal name: Lou Yu.

Although Wang Heng didn't quite understand the meaning of this name, when she saw Zheng Ai's faint smile, she knew that this would not be a good thing for Lou Dalang.

Is there something else besides the name?

Is this why my brother didn't bother to look for her?

Wang Heng was holding a plum and watermelon seed, her chubby little round face looking a little dazed.

When Wang Mian saw this, she misunderstood. She thought that her sudden mention of Lou Dalang had made Jiu Niang suspicious.

After all, her relationship with Lou Dalang was really not good.

They are not even friends, so how can they take the initiative to greet each other?

Wang Mian quickly made an excuse for herself: "It's like this, Daju Dali, I have two pots in total."

"One pot is for Jiu Niang, and the other one I want to give to the young master of the Lou family!"

"...Well, the young master ordered 500 kilograms of meat from the pig farm. He's a big customer of ours!"

It’s the New Year, so giving a gift to a client’s father is also a form of “reciprocity”.

Wang Mian is not making excuses.

Wang Heng didn't think much about it. She threw the melon seeds in her hand back into the cloth bag and stuffed the bag into the small bamboo basket at her waist.

"Where's Daju Dali? Let's go and give good luck to brother!"

Since you are worried, you might as well go to the Lou family manor and take a look.

Perhaps, she can also help Lou and Lou Yu.

I couldn’t help him last time, and “I will support you” seemed like a joke.

But Wang Heng always remembered the favor of the person who delivered the letter.

Especially during the Chinese New Year, she received New Year gifts sent by her mother, which made her feel more and more how lucky it was to be able to get in touch with her mother.

And this is all thanks to Lou Yu.

She must repay this favor.

……

"What? Jiu Niang, what did you just say?"

Wang Mian tilted her head back and looked at the high courtyard wall. She could hardly believe her ears.

"I say, let's climb the wall!"

Wang Heng was plump to begin with, and her winter clothes were extra thick. She was wrapped in layers and layers, looking like a ball.

At this moment, the ball said something that shocked Wang Mian greatly.

Wang Mian lowered his proud head, turned around, and looked Wang Heng up and down: How can you climb the wall when you are so round? Roll over?

Ah, that's not the point. The point is—

"Jiu Niang, you've been led astray by Lou Dalang!"

It's true that those who keep company with vermilion become redder, those who keep company with ink become blacker. It's only been a short while, and my well-behaved, Buddhist little friend has actually, just...

Wang Heng had her own considerations. She was worried that Lou Yu was under the control of his stepmother.

If she went in through the main gate openly, she would not be able to see the real situation at all.

What's worse, she couldn't even see Lou Dalang, and was sent away by the lady of the Lou family.

There's no way. She's young and has no elders around her, so she's not considered a serious customer.

The other party just lied to her and then directly "sent her away", and Wang Heng had no way to deal with it.

So, let’s just climb over the wall.

By sneaking into the Lou family manor, she would be able to meet Lou Yu and even help him.

"It's okay! Climbing the wall should be fun, otherwise, brother wouldn't climb the wall every time!"

Wang Heng left the maids and servants a few steps away. She huddled together with Wang Mian to chat, and the two of them were not so polite in their conversation.

Wang Mian even dared to whisper that Lou Dalang was "Mo", the source of all evil who led the good little lady astray!

Wang Heng didn't mind. She also whispered her thoughts: "A Mian, I've actually wanted to give it a try for a long time!"

"Brother also taught me how to climb walls. I never had the chance before. Let's try it today?"

Wang Heng became more and more interested as she talked. She rubbed her chubby, white and tender hands, tilted her head back, and estimated the height of the wall.

The courtyard wall of Lou's manor is similar to that of Wang's manor, both are about ten feet, or about three meters high.

Wang Heng is 1.3 meters tall, and after half a year of nourishment, Wang Mian has also grown to a little over 1.3 meters tall.

She is a head taller than Wang Heng.

If the two of them were stacked together, they would be about two meters four or five. If they stretched out their arms—

Wang Heng calculated secretly, mumbling to herself.

Wang Mian: ...My dear, this is not just a simple math problem.

But, but I am weak and cannot support your heavy body.

Although Wang Heng didn't say who was on top and who was on the bottom when the two of them were stacked, how could Wang Mian, who had lived two lives and was physically older than Wang Heng, bully a child?

Besides, even if Wang Mian could do this shamelessly, the Wang family servants who were a few steps behind him would not agree.

Therefore, Wang Mian had to act as a ladder to lift Wang Heng up.

But, but she really can't hold it up. Saying "a thousand pounds" is a bit of an exaggeration, but with Wang Heng's little flesh on her body, it must be at least 70 pounds.

After several months of care, Wang Mian's small body only barely reached 60 kilograms.

You want to support a dumpling with just a toothpick?

Wang Mian said: Jiuniang, I can’t do it!

Wang Mian's calves couldn't help shaking just thinking about it.

"Well, Jiuniang, if you really want to climb the wall, you should pick a taller one!"

Wang Mian forced a smile and tried to persuade Wang Heng.

Wang Heng blinked. "Of course we need the troops to carry it. They're tall and strong..."

Amian, did you misunderstand?

Haha, she was just talking casually. She would never bully Amian, a little bean sprout.

Wang Mian: ...Am I being "teased" by Jiu Niang?

Wang Heng waved her hand and called the leader of her troops, asking him to choose someone from the seven or eight followers to help her and Wang Mian climb over the wall.

Tribe leader: ...

Although he was surprised by the young master's order, as the most loyal servant, he still obeyed the order respectfully.

If the little girl wants to climb the wall, then go ahead and climb it...