Rebirth: Making a Fortune in Ancient Times

Zhang Youtie and Liu arrived at the old house. Liu went into the kitchen to help cook, while Zhang Youtie went into the main room to talk to the old man.

"Third sister-in-law is here!" Sister-in-law Wang greeted Liu warmly.

"Qiu'er, go and get a small stool for your third aunt to sit on." Since Li's hands were full, she instructed her daughter to get a stool for Liu.

"Mother, eldest sister-in-law, second sister-in-law, you've all started?" Liu greeted them with a smile. However, the old lady Liu, who was kneading dough, seemed not to have heard Liu's words. She glanced at Liu but didn't say a word.

Knowing the old lady's usual temperament, Liu was not angry. At this moment, Qiuyu brought over a stool, and the two sisters-in-law warmly invited Liu to sit down next to them. Liu chose a more spacious place to put the stool down, went out to wash her hands, rolled up her sleeves, and then came back in to sit down and begin picking vegetables.

Seeing Qiuyu squatting next to Li Shi, helping to pick vegetables, Liu Shi smiled and said to the little maid, "Qiu'er, where is your little sister?"

"Third Aunt, my sister is sleeping in the room." Qiu Yu's voice was soft and gentle, which softened Liu Shi's heart. She also felt a lot of pity for Qiu Yu. Old Mrs. Liu was too biased towards boys, and the daughters in the old house usually did a lot of work and were often scolded.

Li turned to look at her daughter and smoothed her slightly frizzy hair: "Go play, your aunt, your auntie, and I are enough for you here."

Qiu Yu listened to her mother speak, then looked up at Liu Shi and saw that her grandmother was kneading dough with her head down, and she couldn't see the expression on her face. She nodded to her mother and then went out to play.

"Sister-in-law, where's Chunyu?" Liu asked, her hands still busy with her work. "Mom just sent Chunyu to the village to buy wine. Dad said your family bought a cow, everyone's happy, and we can't have dumplings without wine today." Wang was also happy about Zhang Youtie's family buying a cow. After all, the two families planted and harvested their land together every year; otherwise, the three sons' family had over twenty mu of land, which the two of them couldn't possibly manage. Ever since their old cow died, every planting season, the men in the family were exhausted like dogs. Her own son, Changsheng, had started helping out in the fields for the past two years. Every time she saw the blisters on his hands and the cuts on his shoulders and back from pulling pears, her heart ached and she would cry. Now, things were better; the three sons had bought a cow, so the work in the fields would be a little easier.

After selecting the vegetables, Wang was in charge of chopping the meat in the kitchen, while Li and Liu took the freshly selected vegetables out to wash them, drain them, and then returned to the kitchen to chop them. Because there were many people, there were a lot of vegetables mixed in with the meat. After kneading the dough, Liu stood aside and watched her daughters-in-law work. If she saw anything she didn't like, she would say a few words with a stern face. None of the daughters were new to the family, and they knew their mother-in-law's personality, so they didn't say much to her. The more they said, the more they would be scolded. They just did whatever she said.

Liu and her sisters-in-law were all working in the kitchen, but they hadn't seen their sister-in-law, Qinghe, come over. Liu wanted to ask why Qinghe hadn't come, but remembering how her sister-in-law usually treated her, she gave up the idea. Because Liu was present, the women didn't dare speak too loudly, and quietly discussed going to the market in town in a few days. They planned to have Zhang Youtie take them, so they wouldn't have to get up before dawn… As they were chatting quietly, something Liu said offended her. She slammed the water ladle she was holding into the basin on the ground, splashing water all over Liu and her sisters-in-law's feet. Looking up and seeing Liu's gloomy face, they didn't dare speak, just silently continuing their work.

In the main room, Old Master Zhang and his three sons sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) chatting. The atmosphere there was much warmer. Their conversation drifted to watermelons. Zhang Youtie mentioned wanting to go to the county town the next day. Old Master Zhang immediately understood his third son's meaning, simply telling him to eat more dumplings and drink less alcohol that night, and to help his third son out. Qinghe, who was doing chores on the kang, hadn't heard what her father and brothers were saying, only the word "watermelon." She looked up at Zhang Youtie and said, "Third brother, can you buy me a watermelon when you go to the county town? I haven't had enough today, and this one is so sweet, I want more!"

For Zhang Youtie, getting a watermelon for his daughter was no problem; the house was overflowing with them. He was about to agree when he heard Old Master Zhang say to Qinghe, "What are you eating? Do you think watermelons are easy to come by? You're such a grown woman, all you do is eat and do no work. Your mother and your three sisters-in-law are cooking in the kitchen, and you don't even go help them!"

"Dad, why are you nagging me again? I'm just sewing shoe soles!" Qinghe felt wronged. What did he mean by saying she wasn't doing anything? Wasn't she doing something right there?

"You've been working on those shoe soles since the New Year, and you haven't finished a single one in months. By the time your feet grow bigger, you might not even be able to finish them!" Now, Grandpa Zhang can't stand hearing Qinghe ask for food. He's worried, but his wife can't seem to see her daughter's problems.

Hearing her father speak ill of her in front of her older brothers, Qinghe felt she had lost face. So she threw the work she was doing into the basket and stubbornly went out.

Seeing his sister leave angrily, Zhang Youtie said to Grandpa Zhang, "Father, it's not hard for Qinghe to eat melons. It's not like she really has to spend money to buy them. Why do you have to get angry with her?"

Zhang Youjin knew why his parents had argued that morning, and seeing his father yelling at his younger sister again, he sat silently to the side like a quail. Zhang Youyin, however, knew nothing of the argument, only that his sister had gone to their room to try and steal watermelon, and although she hadn't eaten any, she had taken Qiuyu's hair tie. Hearing his sister asking his younger brother for watermelon again, he said irritably, "Third brother, don't spoil her. Look at her, does she even act like a girl? Her waist is as thick as a barrel, she doesn't like to work but eats so much. I wonder how she'll find a husband in the future."

It has to be said that Zhang Youyin's words struck a chord with the old man. Finally, someone could see his daughter's true situation and even dared to speak so frankly. "Second son, why didn't you say this in front of Qinghe?" Old Master Zhang asked his second son.

Hearing his father's words, Zhang Youyin suddenly felt a tightness in his body. Did his father not like him talking about his youngest daughter like that? How could he have been so careless with his words, saying such things in front of the old man?

"Second son, since you've seen your sister's shortcomings, why don't you say them to her face?" After waiting a while without hearing his son's reply, Grandpa Zhang asked again.

Zhang Youyin looked up at his father's expression and, finding that he wasn't angry, boldly said, "Why didn't I say it to her face? The problem is, would she even listen? She's gotten so fat, and she doesn't even care. What can I do?"

Hearing his father and second brother's conversation, Zhang Youtie carefully considered the issue they were discussing. His sister did seem rather robust, unlike typical girls. While other girls stood there delicately, Qinghe looked like a tower. Actually, it wasn't just Zhang Youtie who felt this way; Zhang Youjin also realized his sister's problem. He finally understood why his father was angry with Qinghe.

To put it bluntly, it's a case of loving someone deeply and being very strict with them. His father is worried about his sister's future.

Qinghe stumbled into the kitchen. Her father had been arguing with her all day, and she felt like crying whenever she saw Liu. Liu was making dumplings when she suddenly saw her precious daughter come in with tears streaming down her face and was startled. "Qinghe, what's wrong? Why are you crying? Tell your mother if someone bullied you."

As he spoke, he gave his three wives a fierce look.