Rebirth: Making a Fortune in Ancient Times

When the father and son returned home, Liu had already prepared dumplings and was sitting at the table with Xia Yu, waiting for them. The family happily ate the dumplings. They hadn't eaten meat in a long time, and although there was a lot of chives mixed in, it was still very fragrant. This was also the first time Xia Yu had eaten meat since coming here, and she was so hungry she almost wanted to swallow her tongue. She must work hard so that she could eat meat every day, Xia Yu thought to herself.

Meanwhile, back at the old house, Liu was tasked with distributing the dumplings. She gave fifteen to Grandpa Zhang, fifteen to each of her two sons, and ten each to Changsheng, Changyuan, Qinghe, and herself. Wang and Li each gave eight, Chunyu and Qiuyu each gave five, and Dongyu, being too young, received two. After distributing them, three dumplings remained. Liu looked around and ultimately gave one to Grandpa Zhang and the other two to her two grandsons. As for the steamed buns that had been placed on the table, aside from the ones Zhang Youtie took, Liu gave one to each of the men in the family; the rest were locked away in the cupboard.

That's how Liu was. Everything in the house was geared towards the men. She herself didn't eat much, even though she got two more dumplings than her two daughters-in-law. Wang and Li couldn't say anything against it. And as long as it didn't interfere with household chores, Liu didn't interfere with their private needlework for pocket money and didn't require them to hand it over. So each of them had their own savings. Therefore, although Liu was sometimes sharp-tongued and severely favored sons over daughters, she was still considered better than many mothers-in-law in the village.

After dinner, Xia Yu went to the backyard and found the spot where Chang Yun had just planted the chive roots. She scooped a ladleful of diluted space water from the water tank and sprinkled some on the roots. If these chives could take root in the backyard, the family would have another type of vegetable to eat when food was scarce.

Back in her room that evening, Xia Yu locked the door. She then entered her spatial dimension. Actually, she didn't have much to do there; she just wanted to take a look around. Tomorrow, after selling the *Anoectochilus roxburghii* in town, she needed to find a way to buy some seeds. She couldn't just keep growing wild vegetables and *Anoectochilus roxburghii* in her dimension; she wanted to grow other plants too. But how to get these things out was her biggest worry. The mountain didn't have everything; how could she turn what she grew in her dimension into money?

Emerging from the space, Xia Yu tossed and turned in bed for a long time before finally falling asleep, still carrying this question in her mind.

The next day, after breakfast, Liu told the brother and sister that she would be going to the fields with their father that day. She told them to watch the house and not to forget to lock the door when they went out to play.

"Mother, when I went up the mountain to dig for chives yesterday, I also dug up some *Anoectochilus roxburghii* (a type of orchid). I'm thinking of selling it in town," Xia Yu said to Liu Shi.

“No, you two are too young. I don’t feel comfortable letting you go to town alone. If the beggars take you away, you’ll never be found again,” Liu Shi objected as soon as Xia Yu finished speaking. Zhang Youtie behind her also looked disapproving.

"Mother, I'll go get my older brother in a bit. We'll all go together; he went to town alone," Changyun said.

"Then go to the old house and ask your older brother if he's going. If he's going with you, I'll agree," Liu said, looking at her son with some suspicion.

"Okay, I'll go to the old house now." As soon as he finished speaking, he ran off.

"You go to the field first, I'll wait at home for a while," Liu said to Zhang Youtie.

"Well, why don't you go with the child? There's not much work to do in the fields right now; I can manage on my own."

"Okay, you can go now."

Xia Yu, who was standing nearby, understood that they could definitely go to town today. Either her older brother and older brother would accompany them, or her mother would take them herself. Seeing her mother pick up the needle and thread from the basket and sit at the table waiting for Changyun to return, Xia Yu went to divide the golden thread lotus in the basket into two other baskets, and took the opportunity to add a lot of space to the basket with the newly taken-out lotus.

Less than fifteen minutes later, Changyun and Changsheng returned, panting heavily. Upon seeing Liu Shi, Changsheng said breathlessly, "Third Aunt, I accompanied Changyun and Xiaxia to town. I've been there alone before, so don't worry."

Seeing that Changsheng was really going, Liu gave him a few instructions and took ten coins from the house to give to him, saying: "Buy something to eat if you get hungry in town, and take a ride if you see an oxcart."

"Oh, I know, Third Aunt. My mother gave me a few coins when I told her I was going to town. That's enough for us to eat. You can take this money back." As she spoke, she took out the money from her pocket and showed it to Liu.

"Take it, listen to your third aunt. When you get to town, you and your younger siblings can buy whatever you want to eat," Liu insisted that Changsheng take the money.

Changsheng accepted the money when Liu insisted, thinking he would bring it back to Changyun later. Xia Yu brought out several baskets, directing her two brothers to each carry one, while she carried one herself. Liu watched her siblings walk away from the courtyard gate, then took her farm tools and went to the fields.

On the way, Changyun asked Xia Yu curiously, "Little sister, why do I feel like there's more golden thread lotus than you brought back yesterday? You only carried back one basket yesterday, but now you've filled three baskets and they're still so full."

Xia Yu didn't want to answer her brother's question because she didn't know how. She just mumbled a few random words to appease Chang Yun. Chang Yun didn't hear what his sister said and wanted to ask another question. But Xia Yu had already turned to talk to Chang Sheng.

This time, the group didn't take the oxcart. Chatting and laughing along the way, they traveled at a fairly fast pace, arriving in town after about half an hour. There was no market day, so the town was less crowded than yesterday. Having been there before, Xia Yu and Chang Yun easily led the way to Baohetang. The young apprentice named Sanqi, seeing them arrive, confirmed they were still selling *Golden Thread Lotus* and immediately led them to the backyard they had visited yesterday. He then ran to fetch Manager Li to take a look.

Shopkeeper Li saw that it was the same brother and sister who had come yesterday, but with a slightly older child beside them, and realized they had come together. He emptied the golden thread lotus from the basket and examined it in his hand.

"Oh my, where did you find so many golden silk grass plants? They look even better than yesterday's." As she spoke, she randomly checked a few more plants, then plucked a leaf and chewed it.

"Hmm, not bad, even better than yesterday. I won't lie to you, old man, today's quality is so good, I'll give you twenty-five coins a pound, what do you say?" Manager Li asked with a smile.

"Thank you for taking care of my son, Manager Li," Changyun replied on behalf of his sister, having received a meaningful glance from her.

"Okay, good. Sanqi, weigh them. I have something to do. After you're done, go to the counter and get the money for the siblings." He then prepared to leave.

"Manager Li, please wait a moment," Xia Yu called out.

"Oh, little girl, is there anything else?" Manager Li asked kindly.

"Manager Li, I'd like to ask, if I come to sell this kind of herb again in the future, will you still buy it?"

"Yes, we'll take it all, as long as you have it. Don't underestimate our small shop; we have other shops in both the county and the prefectural city. Just deliver it with confidence."

"Can we dry these herbs at home before delivering them? How much do they cost if they're dried?" Xia Yu asked.

Manager Li pondered for a moment and said, "Dried herbs are also acceptable, but you must wash off the dirt and dust, remove any weeds, and deliver them whole before drying. The exact price will depend on the condition of the goods, but I guarantee my price will be fair."

"Okay, Manager Li, don't worry, we will definitely clean the herbs thoroughly before drying them. We can't be careless with medicine." Xia Yu assured Manager Li earnestly.

Manager Li agreed with Xia Yu's words, gave a few more instructions, and then went to get busy, leaving the rest to Sanqi.

Changsheng and Changyun helped Sanqi weigh the golden thread lotus on the ground. It weighed a total of thirty-nine jin, at twenty-five wen per jin, for a total of nine hundred and seventy-five wen. Sanqi took a string of cash from the accounting office, counted out twenty-five wen in front of them, and handed the rest to Changyun. Having learned from their previous experience, Changyun wasn't surprised this time, but Changsheng, who was there for the first time, was stunned. He hadn't expected it to sell for so much money!

Changyun handed the money to Xia Yu again. These herbs were dug up by his sister, so the money should also be hers. Xia Yu counted out seventy-five coins from the string of coins and put them on her person. She put the rest in the basket and covered it with a cloth. Actually, she had already transferred the string of coins into her spatial dimension when she covered it with the cloth; carrying it in the basket was heavy and unsafe.

After saying goodbye to Sanqi, the group carried their baskets and left. Xia Yu slipped two coins into Sanqi's hand before they left. Sanqi was a little amused and exasperated by the two coins, but he accepted them nonetheless. He had mentioned this to his master, who simply told him to keep them and gave no further instructions.