Falling into the mortal world

"Qingqing, why did you buy all those jars? We don't have enough room at home," said Mother Lan with a troubled expression.

Lan Qingqing glanced around the yard and, not seeing any jars, asked curiously, "Mother, where did you put those jars?"

"Those three large cartloads of jars, do you think we can fit them all in our yard?" Mother Lan said speechlessly.

Lan Qingqing said somewhat embarrassedly: When I bought it, I forgot for a moment. Mother, where did you put the jar?

"It's been placed in the new house over there. Xiao Tian, ​​stay there and keep watch tonight," said Mother Lan.

Lan Qingqing went to the new courtyard next door and saw that everyone in the family was tidying up there. The walls between the front and back yards hadn't been put up yet, but the houses inside were almost finished. Lan Xiaotian arranged for the jar to be placed in the north wing, which was already built, so it wouldn't be a problem for the jar to be there.

A well was dug in the yard, making it easier to get water. Feng Caidie and Lan Xiaoya swept the ground clean, while Lan Xiaotian used a long bench to make a makeshift bed. Soon, Lan's mother came over with bedding. The bed was made up in no time.

After finishing their chores, the family went home for dinner. Mr. Lan's leg was much better now, but he still couldn't get out of bed and walk around. Leaning on his cane and with one leg in a splint, he slowly walked towards the yard. Seeing the group coming from the new house, he asked, "Is everything ready over there? Perhaps I should go and keep an eye on things tonight?" Mr. Lan was a little worried.

Lan Qingqing said with a smile: Dad, you can rest assured with so much wine at home!

Mr. Lan thought about it and agreed. There was still a lot of wine in the house, which was valuable. If thieves were to target it, it would be troublesome. So he said, "I'd better stay home and guard it. We'll block the door with wooden boards at night so it won't be cold at night."

"I understand, Father," Lan Xiaotian said.

After the family finished eating, they went about their own business. Now, the Lan family works by the light of oil lamps every night. It's just that the Lan family lives far from the village, otherwise the villagers would definitely say that the Lan family is squandering their wealth.

After finishing his meal, Lan Xiaotian hurried to the new house. He was worried about not having anyone watching over him there, since many villagers had seen the oxcart enter the village.

Just to be safe, let's keep an eye on things from here for now!

Lan Qingqing looked at the hawthorns; each one was processed very well, with no rotten fruit, and they were all cleaned thoroughly.

Lan Qingqing first took out fifty jars, and in the evening, several people started washing the jars. With more people, they washed them faster. Since Lan's father couldn't walk back and forth, he sat on a stool and helped wipe the jars clean.

With so many people, the fifty jars were cleaned in no time. Corks also needed to be prepared, since the jars must be sealed tightly, otherwise the wine wouldn't taste right.

After finishing their work, the family went to bed. That night, the Lan family's new house did indeed attract some petty thieves from the village. Seeing someone inside, they quickly slipped away. These were just petty thieves; they weren't that bold. After all, if someone broke into a house at night and was beaten to death by the homeowner, the authorities wouldn't care.

The entire village had witnessed Lan Jia's fighting prowess. Naturally, they didn't dare risk being discovered while stealing, so they quietly slipped back under the cover of night.

Before dawn, the Lan family got up to make tofu, usually around one or two in the morning. They worked until three or four in the morning, when the sky began to turn gray, no longer pitch black and dark. Lan's mother extinguished the oil lamp, which had been used up very quickly lately. She still adhered to the principle of saving as much oil as possible.

Soon Aunt Li came over to work. Lan's father took a piece of wood and started making a stopper. Lan Qingqing saw him sitting on the stool, just working, so she didn't pay him any more attention. It's boring to leave someone lying in bed with nothing to do.

Today is a day off. Lan Xiaoyu is coming back today, so Lan Qingqing asked Lan Xiaotian to pick her up. She went to Yu Ji's to see if the furniture she ordered could be made.

As soon as Lan Qingqing arrived, the waiter had been looking out the door for a while. When he saw Lan Qingqing coming over, he hurriedly called out to the chef inside: "Master, she's here."

Hearing the shouts outside, the people inside rushed outside. Lan Qingqing was a little confused and didn't know what was going on.

When Master Zhang saw Lan Qingqing, he went up to her and asked: "Are you the girl who came to order furniture yesterday?"

Master Zhang didn't sleep well all night, constantly studying those blueprints. Those designs opened a new door for him. Previous designs were too outdated; every single one of Lan Qingqing's designs was incredibly innovative. Master Zhang was so excited he couldn't sleep all night.

Lan Qingqing, puzzled, replied: Yes. Is there a problem?

"No problem," Master Zhang hurriedly invited the person into the shop, and the waiter, quick to notice, brought tea. Lan Qingqing was a little confused. This master and apprentice were too strange. Lan Qingqing got to the point and asked, "Can you make these furniture pieces?"

Master Zhang quickly replied: Don't worry, I can do it.

Lan Qingqing then asked: How much silver will it cost to make this?

Master Zhang said: According to the young lady's requirements, it will cost at least three hundred taels. The rosewood she chose is top-quality wood.

Lan Qingqing found the price acceptable and said, "Okay, let's do it this way. But could you make the shelf first? I need it."

Master Zhang picked up the blueprint for the shelving unit. The shelving was very simple: nine shelves, eight feet long and nine feet high. The most important thing was that it could bear weight, so any sturdy wood would suffice. The requirements weren't high.

"We can finish this the day after tomorrow. Once it's done here, we'll send it over to the girl first," said Manager Zhang.

"Okay, once it's ready, just take it to Lan Dashu's house at the end of Pear Blossom Village," Lan Qingqing said.

Lan Qingqing handed over a deposit of one hundred taels. The rest would be settled after the work was completed.

Master Zhang said nonchalantly, "It's alright, I can pay after it's finished." Master Zhang indicated that not paying a deposit was fine, as he was very interested in the designs and wanted to see what they looked like as soon as possible.

Lan Qingqing still handed over the deposit. "It's alright, you can rest assured, and I can rest assured too."

Master Zhang took the deposit and hurried off to select the timber. The clerk wrote out a receipt. Lan Qingqing took the receipt and put it away.

Lan Qingqing arrived at the shop just in time to go home and have dinner with everyone. Lan Xiaotian took Lan Xiaoyu and then returned to the shop. When Lan Xiaoyu saw her eldest sister, she quickly got off the donkey cart and called out: "Eldest sister."

Lan Qingqing felt a warm feeling in her heart as she watched Lan Xiaoyu run towards her so lively.

Lan Xiaoyu ran to Lan Qingqing's side and said, "Big sister, I haven't seen you for so long, I miss you so much."

"Big sister misses you too," Lan Qingqing said with a smile, gently pinching Lan Xiaoyu's nose.

The food at the academy is terrible. Lately, Lan Xiaoyu has become picky about food because of all the good food at home.

Lan Qingqing said with a doting expression: "Big sister will cook you something delicious when we get back."

"Yes," Lan Xiaoyu said with a smile, "Big sister is still the best."

Lan Xiaotian came over and said, feigning jealousy, "Only eldest sister is good, second brother is not."

Lan Xiaoyu quickly waved her hand and explained: No, no, Second Brother is the best too.

The two were amused by Lan Xiaoyu's cute appearance, and the meals at home had been very good for a while.

Lan Xiaoyu has also grown up to be chubby and healthy. However, she has clearly lost weight since visiting the academy recently.

Lan Qingqing decided to make some delicious food for Lan Xiaoyu to take to the academy. The child was growing at this time, and if she didn't get enough food at the academy, her body wouldn't get enough nutrition.