Travel to the mountains and make a fortune in silence

“Qing’er, this is your fourth great-uncle’s house, the one in the middle is your third great-uncle’s house, and the one over there is your second great-uncle’s house.” Zhou Shi said, pointing to the other two courtyards from the entrance of her fourth great-uncle’s house.

"Grandma, I understand." The uncles' houses were easy to find, since there weren't many families in the village who could afford such a large courtyard.

It shouldn't be. Originally, Wang Qing'er thought her family's courtyard was quite nice, but after seeing the courtyards of her uncles, she realized that her family's was just a courtyard.

"Qiaoyun, Qiaoyun." Seeing that the gate was open, Zhou walked directly into the courtyard.

The courtyard was all decorated, with red silk cloth, red lanterns, and big red "double happiness" characters hanging everywhere, creating a very festive atmosphere.

"Hey, sister-in-law, oh, Mu Yan and Qing'er are here too! They're such rare guests. Come on in, come on in!" Fourth Aunt Qiaoyun came out of the main hall and saw Mu Yan and Wang Qing'er following behind Zhou Shi. She was very happy and wanted to welcome them into the house.

"Qiaoyun, we've come to bring some dowry for Muxia. Let's go to Muxia's room first."

There's a custom in the village that when adding makeup to a bride's dowry, one cannot go into the main hall or other parts of the house first. One must go to the bride's room to add the makeup before going to other places to sit down and drink tea.

"Alright, alright, let's go to Xia'er's room. She just said she was bored at home and wanted to go out to play. Her mother and sister-in-law are in the room with her."

A daughter who is about to get married cannot go out freely during these few days; she must stay at home and wait for relatives who will come to add to her dowry.

If the dowry attendants arrive and the bride is not in her room, it is considered unlucky.

"Xia'er, your great-aunt, your aunt Mu Yan, and your sister-in-law have come to do your wedding attire." Fourth Aunt Qiaoyun called out as soon as she reached Mu Xia's courtyard.

"Aunt, you've arrived! Oh! Is this Mu Yan and Qing'er?" It was Mu Nan's fourth aunt, Ming Wanqing, who came out to greet them.

Seeing Mu Yan and Wang Qing'er following behind Zhou Shi, Zhou Shi was slightly surprised, as they had never met before.

Behind her followed a beautiful and graceful young woman, wearing a green stand-up collar short-sleeved shirt and a light pink silk gauze long skirt with gold embroidery.

A shy expression appeared on her face, and she softly called out, "Auntie."

Wang Qing'er looked at her and thought that this must be the bride, Mu Xia.

Luckily, she wasn't wearing her green stand-up collar cardigan today, otherwise we would have been wearing the same thing. I wonder if people here care about these things.

There was also a young woman holding a child, who should be Mu Xia's sister-in-law. The chubby child in her arms should be Mu Ya Ya, the good friend Yao'er mentioned last night.

"Auntie, come in quickly. Xia'er was just saying she was bored. Now that you're here, you can chat with her." Ming Wanqing warmly invited them into the house.

The group entered Mu Xia's boudoir, which was decorated similarly to Wang Qing'er's room at her maternal grandparents' house.

They're all decorated in pink and delicate colors; it seems all girls are the same—they love these pink accessories.

Several maids from my uncle's family helped take the brocade boxes from their hands and arranged them neatly.

Then someone brought up tea and snacks.

Only then did Mrs. Zhou introduce the people. After exchanging greetings, the group sat down to drink tea.

"Aunt Xia'er, this is a dowry for you. Do you like it?" Mu Yao took out a small brocade box from her bosom and handed it to Mu Xia.

"Okay, thank you, Yao'er." Mu Xia smiled and opened the brocade box. Inside was a pair of pink silk begonia flowers, with a pink pearl inlaid in the center.

This was something Wang Qing'er bought when she went to the county town last time. She bought a lot that time, and when she came back, she casually let a few girls pick some of their favorites to take home.

I remember that Mu Yao picked out two pairs herself back then, but I never expected that she would bring out a pair to give to Mu Xia today.

This little girl is so sensible.

"Little Yao'er not only knows how to add makeup to Aunt Xia'er, but she also knows that Aunt Xia'er likes pink. Hahaha, this child is so adorable." Ming Wanqing said with a smile as she looked at the pair of pink begonia silk flowers, and hugged Yao'er into her arms.

"Thank you, Yao'er, Auntie likes it very much." Mu Xia carried the brocade box to the dressing table, put the silk flowers on her head in front of the mirror, looked at herself from left to right, and then sat back down in the chair with satisfaction. It seemed that she really liked it.

"Sister Xia'er, we have some too." Mu Qin and Zi Tong each handed a brocade box to Mu Xia, which was full of silk flowers, all of which Wang Qing'er had bought from the county town.

I had just sold some He Shou Wu and had some money. I couldn't control myself and bought too much. I just had it wrapped up because I liked it. It cost me several taels of silver.

Unexpectedly, all the maids used the money to add to Muxia's makeup.

"Thank you, I love them all." Mu Xia was telling the truth. She could tell at a glance that the silk flowers were bought in the county town and were not cheap. She could only buy one or two each time she went there.

Although the Mu family's uncles had some wealth, it wasn't as good as before; now they just ran a private school in the village.

In the first few years, there weren't many children. Now, although there are more children, it can't compare to the academy in the county town before the refugee fled.

At first, I thought about opening an academy in the county town, but as a newcomer with no connections, it would be extremely difficult to open an academy. In the end, I decided to open a private school in the village first.

They acquired some more land, and were able to make ends meet, but they tried to save on household expenses wherever possible.

My second great-uncle's family did open a bookstore in town, but business wasn't very good; they were just barely making ends meet.

The three families are now outwardly strong but inwardly weak. On the surface, they have large mansions, maids and servants, and carriages for going out.

In reality, it didn't even have as much money as Wang Qing'er had.

"Xia'er, your sister and nieces made you happy with just a pair of silk flowers. Your sister-in-law has even more good things for you," Zhou said to Mu Xia with a smile.

Gifts from peers can be opened and viewed in person for the joy and celebration, while gifts from elders can only be opened and counted after the person has left, and must also be recorded in the account.

"Oh, my sister-in-law has one too?" Mu Xia really didn't expect that, after all, they had only met for the first time today.

Not only was Mu Xia puzzled, but her fourth aunt, Ming Wanqing, and Mu Xia's sister-in-law Liu also looked puzzled.

They all assumed that Zhou had brought them some dowry and was taking them along to get acquainted with the family.

"Silly girl, why are you still standing there? Hurry up and open it to see what auspicious things your sister-in-law has given you." Usually, when peers give gifts, it's things like hair ornaments and hairpins that girls like.

Wang Qing'er picked up two brocade boxes, one large and one small, from the table and handed them to Mu Xia, saying with a smile, "Xia'er, congratulations on marrying your ideal husband."

"Thank you, sister-in-law." Mu Xia was a little shy after being told this, and happily thanked her as she accepted the brocade box with her head down.

"Let me hold this for you. Open it and take a look. Wow! Your sister-in-law's gift is quite generous." Ming Wanqing took the brocade box and held it in her hands, teasingly laughing.