Rebirth: Making a Fortune in Ancient Times

No one told Liu how Qinghe's matter was resolved, and Liu didn't deliberately inquire. Everyone has their own fate; she was too busy with her own affairs to worry about her sister-in-law, with whom she didn't have a good relationship.

The day after the Zhang family gathering, Liu brought her father, brother and sister-in-law, nephews and nieces, fishmonger Sister Wu and her son, daughter-in-law, grandchildren, pork butcher's parents, boatman, boatwoman, and cart driver. Dozens of people from the old house also came, and the whole family had a lively day. Because everyone knew each other from humble beginnings, there weren't many formalities, making the atmosphere much more relaxed and casual.

Liu abandoned the same attire she had worn the day before, opting instead for a simple silver hairpin in her dark hair and a light cotton dress, prioritizing comfort. Her appearance was simple and straightforward. If one ignored her fair complexion and well-maintained hands and only looked at her clothing, she would simply be considered a well-off peasant woman.

That evening, Grandpa Liu's family didn't go home, but stayed at their daughter's house for two days. The village's performance wasn't until tomorrow, and it had been many years since the two opera troupes had performed together. Not only the children were interested, but even the adults wanted to join in the fun.

That evening, Zhang Youtie, Liu Shi, Liu Shi's family, and everyone in the old house—men, women, and children—gathered in Zhang Youtie's garden and set up several tables to eat hot pot.

Hot pot was originally only available in winter, but over the years, Zhang's restaurant has expanded to offer hot pot broth year-round. Therefore, many restaurants no longer restrict the time of day for hot pot; it's available whenever you want.

To ensure the quality of her hot pot broth, Xia Yu's family built a special ice cellar to keep it from spoiling during the summer. Initially, it was only built for hot pot broth, but Xia Yu later discovered its uses, storing meat, fruits, and vegetables in the ice cellar. Especially in the summer, she also used the ice cellar's low temperature to make cold drinks and shaved ice.

The fruit drink I mentioned earlier was actually a fruit tea made by boiling various fruits, adding white sugar, and then chilling it in an ice cellar for a while. When you drank it, it was incredibly refreshing and cooling. For the past two summers, the Zhang family had relied on this kind of cold drink to beat the heat. But now, with the temperature difference between day and night increasing, Madam Liu specially changed the fruit drink from an iced one at noon to a slightly chilled one.

At this moment, although everyone eating hot pot was sweating profusely from the spicy taste, a sip of the slightly cool fruit drink immediately reduced the spiciness in their mouths.

"This life is probably better than even the gods." Brother Liu took a bite of hot pot mutton, then a sip of fruit drink, and sighed contentedly.

Hearing Brother Liu's words, Zhang Youtie laughed heartily, raised his wine glass, and addressed his brother-in-law.

"Brother, let's have another drink."

"it is good……"

Sitting at another table behind Brother Liu, Sister-in-law Liu overheard the man's words and, fearing he might say something foolish while drunk, quickly found an opportunity to go to his side and give him a word of advice.

"Drink less, don't get drunk later."

"Hey, sister-in-law, we're at home. If you're drunk, just go to sleep. My brother and I are going to drink to our hearts' content today," Zhang Youtie said to Sister-in-law Liu with a smile.

“Sister-in-law, let’s eat our food and let the men drink. It’s rare for us to get together, so let’s be happy.” Wang came over and pulled Sister-in-law Liu back to sit down in a chair.

The moonlight, like water, shone coldly on the bustling Zhang family garden. The night was already a bit chilly. The men continued drinking, while the younger children, having already eaten their fill, went off to play. Their mothers carefully draped fine cotton outer garments over them.

Seeing the scene of dressing the child, Madam Liu thought of her own children far away, and a wave of sorrow washed over her. She wondered where Changyun and Xiaxia were now? Had they managed to buy suitable clothes in the capital? Were they cold?

The two people being nagged by Madam Liu sneezed simultaneously. Nineteenth Sister took a thin cotton cloak from her bundle and draped it over Xia Yu.

"Miss, young master, let's talk about this tomorrow. It's getting chilly now. Be careful not to catch a cold," Nineteen advised the two.

Xia Yu rubbed her slightly uncomfortable nose, took another breath, and it didn't seem blocked. She then smiled and said to Chang Yundao...

"Mom must be missing us! Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence that we sneezed at the same time!"

"Yes, I think so too." She finished speaking, gazing at the moon hanging in the sky, her voice filled with longing.

"I wonder what my parents are doing right now?"

He was followed by silence; both of them missed their parents. After a while, Changyun finally spoke to Xia Yu.

"Go back to sleep. Remember to cover yourself with a thick blanket tonight, the weather here gets cold earlier than where we are."

"Okay, I know, brother. Nineteen took good care of you. Remember to wear more clothes so you don't catch a cold." Xia Yu felt much warmer wrapped in the cloak that Nineteen had just draped over her shoulders.

After exchanging a few more words, the brother and sister parted ways and went to their respective rooms to rest. They had been traveling by carriage for three days, staying at the post station for the first two nights. This time, they hadn't reached the post station and had to stay at the only inn in the town. The inn was too small and crowded with so many people in the mission. Even so, there wasn't enough room. Therefore, Murong Fu spent money to rent several houses in the vicinity for the mission members to stay in.

At this time, Changyun Xia Yu and Shen Luo were living separately in a small courtyard with their respective groups. Originally, Grand Tutor Li wanted to stay with the children. However, there were still some matters to discuss in the delegation, and he was worried that his presence would disturb their rest, so he stayed in the same courtyard with the two deputy magistrates.

The next morning, before even getting out of bed, Xia Yu felt a chill. Nineteen came in with clothes she had just warmed by the fire, and seeing Xia Yu awake, smiled and said...

"Miss, your clothes are still warm, please get up."

Xia Yu looked closely and saw that both of them were wearing padded jackets. Nineteen was also holding a padded jacket for herself. She asked with some confusion.

"Is it already that cold? You're wearing a padded jacket?"

"It rained last night, and the temperature is much lower today than yesterday. It would be bad if we caught a cold while out and about."

Hearing her say that, Xia Yu didn't say anything else. Even under the covers, she could feel that the temperature was indeed much lower today.

After getting dressed and washing up, the group had a simple breakfast in the courtyard. Then, Xia Yu, along with two maids, used the host's grain to make dozens of flatbreads and rice porridge, which they packed into earthenware pots. They also boiled a dozen or so salted duck eggs from the host's house and took them with them.

This was the lunch they had prepared for the group. They would build a fire, add some water, and heat the porridge in an earthenware pot. Eating these flatbreads and salted duck eggs with the porridge would be better than just drinking plain water. Before leaving, Xia Yu placed a ten-tael silver ingot in the homeowner's salt jar. This was considered payment for the earthenware pot and food.