Traveling through time as a peasant girl, buying a husband and raising a child

Thinking about selling candied haws, of course they need packaging, and Mu Jiaojiao's first reaction was to reduce costs.

So she took Xia Zhao to a lotus pond not far from the house to pick a lot of lotus leaves, washed them and brought them back, preparing to use them to wrap candied haws when selling them.

Mu Jiaojiao picked up a bunch of candied haws, wrapped them in lotus leaves, and placed them in the kitchen, ready to leave them for that little bastard Xia Xiao.

Then she picked up the tattered basket from yesterday, put the candied haws in it, carried the basket on her back, called Xia Zhao, and went to Hexi Town.

Because they arrived early, the gate at the entrance of Hexi Town had just been opened by several guarding soldiers.

As soon as the soldiers opened the door, they saw Mu Jiaojiao and Xia Zhao, mother and son, selling candied haws at the town gate. They were thinking that the mother and son were really early.

Mu Jiaojiao's candied haws are rosy in color and the hawthorns are large. The quality is very good.

Passersby asked about the price and found that Mu Jiaojiao only paid three cents for a string, which was very affordable.

Families with children and ample money bought one or several strings to take home.

Mu Jiaojiao and her son Xia Zhao worked together very well in selling candied haws. Mu Jiaojiao was responsible for wrapping the candied haws with lotus leaves, while Xia Zhao was responsible for counting and collecting money.

Finally, as the sun rose higher, the candied haws were almost sold out, with only about four or five strings left. Mu Jiaojiao didn't buy any more.

She wrapped up the rest and prepared to send them to the guards.

As for Xia Zhao, he was very happy after calculating that he had earned 500 coins today. He had no idea about money before, but today he realized how difficult it was to make money.

From Mu Jiaojiao's observation, these soldiers were dressed the same.

But the tall man among them, who was dark-skinned but had regular and three-dimensional features, was their leader.

So Mu Jiaojiao packed up the things she needed for the stall and walked straight towards the man with the candied haws.

"Big brother guard, you've worked hard today. Here are a few strings of candied haws left over from our sale. Brothers, please take them home and satisfy the cravings of your children."

Mu Jiaojiao said as she handed over the candied haws.

"Young lady, you are too polite. We cannot accept things from the common people."

The man did not accept it and refused, saying that people's lives are even harder these days.

They naturally realized that the candied haws made by this mother and son were so popular that they must tasted great.

But what's the point of taking the candied haws that someone else worked so hard to make? You can't accept it.

"Don't be polite, bro. It's not worth anything.

Thank you for your hard work in the sun. You work hard for the people and for our safety.

This is just a small token of my appreciation, I hope you guys can accept it."

Mu Jiaojiao's words warmed the hearts of the soldiers. Although the candied haws were not worth much money, they couldn't resist the fact that this young lady was good at talking.

"Since it's so kind of you, young lady, I'll accept it on behalf of everyone. Thank you very much, young lady."

Seeing that he couldn't refuse, the leader of the soldiers accepted the candied haws, and after thanking them, he distributed them to several soldiers. After receiving the candied haws, the soldiers all smiled kindly at Mu Jiaojiao.

"My name is Zhao Wu. May I know what your name is, young lady?"

The leader of the soldiers, Zhao Wu, asked Mu Jiaojiao. He admired Mu Jiaojiao very much.

Although Mu Jiaojiao had her face covered, her frail figure gave her a delicate look, unlike an ordinary village woman. He curiously asked her name.

"Brother Zhao Wu, I'm just a village woman, you can just call me Madam Mu."

"It's Madam Mu. Thank you for the candied haws."

Zhao Wu bowed again to thank Mu Jiaojiao. He had a younger sister who loved sweets, but sugar was too expensive.

His monthly salary was only one or two taels of silver, which was only enough to cover the expenses of his family of two siblings. He rarely had access to sweets.

Nowadays, candied haws, which are made with complicated processes, are even rarer.

"Brother Zhao Wu, you're welcome. It's just a worthless snack."

"My youngest son and I were in a hurry to buy some food, so we left first."

"Okay, Madam Mu, take care."

After Mu Jiaojiao finished speaking, she gestured to several soldiers, then took Xia Zhao's hand and left.

"Why are you giving these little soldiers candied haws?"

After the guards disappeared from view, Xia Zhao asked Mu Jiaojiao curiously.

"Don't look down on any small person. Give them the respect they deserve. It may sometimes have unexpected results."

"And think about it another way: the reason we can now sell candied haws in peace and stability and walk around this town in peace is all because of these soldiers.

They guard the world with their lives at the border, in the desert, and at the city gates.

Therefore, whether you are a citizen of the Great Yu Dynasty or the monarch, you should give these soldiers the respect they deserve, understand?"

Mu Jiaojiao did not respond perfunctorily or impatiently to Xia Zhao's questions, but answered them carefully.

She didn't care whether the five-year-old Xia Zhao could understand the patriotism in her words, and she told him everything anyway.

As for Xia Zhao, he also felt that Mu Jiaojiao's words were enlightening.

Xia Zhao was precocious and intelligent. What he heard most since childhood was that the common people and the citizens in the cities were all subjects of the Dayu Dynasty, and as the superiors, they had to manage and rule them well.

This was the first time someone told him that he should give the insignificant people the respect they deserve.

It was also the first time someone told him that soldiers defended the country and guarded the territory, and both the people and the king should be grateful to them.

Mu Jiaojiao didn't know that what she said today would play a big role in Xia Zhao's future behavior.

After the little episode, Mu Jiaojiao took Xia Zhao to the largest teahouse in Hexi Town, which was called Tianxia Diyilou.

He found a seat by the window and sat down, ordering a cup of Yulong tea for himself and a cup of chrysanthemum tea for the little guy Xia Zhao.

The mother and daughter drank tea and listened to books comfortably.

Xia Zhao had a much greater change in his opinion of Mu Jiaojiao because of what Mu Jiaojiao had said to him before.

He didn't ask much about Mu Jiaojiao's behavior of drinking tea and spending money indiscriminately in the teahouse. He felt that his stepmother might have her reasons for doing so.

Mu Jiaojiao did have her reasons for coming here. Teahouses are usually places where people from all walks of life gather, making it the easiest place to get information.

The mother and daughter drank tea for almost half an hour and listened to the storyteller talk for half an hour about the heroic and glorious deeds of the then King Jin.

Mu Jiaojiao sighed, "One general's success is built on the sacrifices of thousands of soldiers!"

"Humph, becoming king or prime minister inevitably requires sacrifice."

Xia Zhao also listened with great interest, his eyes full of admiration. He somewhat disagreed with Mu Jiaojiao's feelings.

Mu Jiaojiao was surprised that Xia Zhao could say such a thing. In her eyes, children of four or five years old were old enough to play in the mud. Although children in ancient times were precocious, there should not be much difference.

But she still underestimated Xia Zhao. This boy was not only precocious but also precociously intelligent!

So she stared at Xia Zhao for a while, wanting to find out what was special about this boy!