A blessed wife leads her husband to wealth and prosperity!

Uncle, I can tell you really enjoy your job, so why don't you continue?

I overheard something outside the door, apparently because they weren't making enough money. To be honest, blacksmithing can earn just as much as farming! How come you're the one who's…

Madam, I understand what you mean. Logically speaking, blacksmithing is more lucrative than farming. However, I don't want to do anything dishonest, so I can't argue with them.

Can you tell me what happened?

It's nothing. There are only two blacksmiths in our village now. Before, I was the only one doing this job. Later, a young man came back from outside the village and also started doing blacksmithing. There are only so many businesses in the village, not enough to support two people.

The young man's products were cheaper than what my family sold, so naturally everyone bought from him. Gradually, my business became unsustainable.

Bah! It's all because Cui Erliang is a heartless man. The stuff he makes can't compare to what we make. His stuff is cheap, but he's dishonest. He mixes things into the molten iron, making his stuff light and brittle. Those fools are greedy for cheap prices and don't know the difference between good and bad stuff.

Cuifen, don't talk behind people's backs. Forget it, let's just mind our own business.

You're such an idiot, you don't even know how to fight back when people bully you.

As Li Cuifen came out of the house, she couldn't help but think about this man again. If it weren't for the guests in the courtyard, she would have really wanted to give him a good beating.

Lin He'er understood the woman's meaning: Cui the blacksmith was forced to quit because of malicious competition from his fellow villagers.

Auntie, do you feel that Uncle has less work and isn't earning enough money? If the pay were right, would you let Uncle continue doing blacksmithing?

Madam, it's not that I necessarily want this man to stop blacksmithing, it's just that my husband is honest and hardworking, and he never loses money when he does work. We earn our money honestly. Since we can't learn from others and make money against our conscience, we might as well not do it and just honestly farm.

Auntie, I understand how you feel, but this job is in a hurry. I made an agreement with the client, and if I can't finish it, I'll have to pay them a lot of money.

I'm also in business. Could you let your uncle take this job? Don't worry, this is quite difficult to obtain, so the pay will naturally be different from ordinary jobs.

How about this: if your family takes this job, I'll give Uncle three taels of silver as payment. What do you think?

How much? Say it again? Li Cuifen heard the lady say something like three taels of silver.

I'll give you three taels of silver as payment for your work. Would you like to take this job?

"Yes, we must accept it. Husband, you must agree to Madam's request." Li Cuifen hurriedly pulled her husband along.

Madam, isn't the wage a bit too high? I've never received so much money before when I'm doing this. No, no, one tael of silver will do.

"What are you saying, sir?!" Li Cuifen was extremely anxious seeing her husband refusing to give away money. Three taels of silver was enough for her eldest son to get a wife.

Uncle, one tael of silver is not enough to do justice to your craftsmanship. You haven't even seen the blueprints yet. Once you see them, you'll know that the silver I'm offering you isn't too much.

Furthermore, this is our first time working together, so this three taels of silver is just a token of my sincerity. If you agree to this and accept my money, you must do a good job, otherwise I'll lose money to others, and you'll have to compensate me as well.

"Yes, yes, madam, don't worry, my husband will definitely do a good job for you." Li Cuifen glared at her husband before replying.

I'll give you a deposit of two taels of silver first. Take a look at the drawings, and if you have any further questions, you can ask me now.

"Yes, madam. Let's sit down inside and talk." Seeing that his wife had agreed to the task for him, Cui Tiezhu hurriedly invited them into the main hall to chat.

An hour had passed since they left Cui Tiezhu's house, and the two had been discussing the zipper for a long time. Since it was something they had never encountered before, Cui Tiezhu asked Lin He'er many questions.

Knowing that this thing was to be made of copper made him even more careful. The material wasn't cheap, and even though it could be melted down and remade if it was damaged, there would still be some loss. He had to be careful.

When the two reached the village entrance, they boarded the oxcart that was waiting nearby and headed straight home.

After going back and forth, they arrived at the shop, and it was lunchtime.

"Cao'er, haven't you eaten yet?" Lin He'er asked hastily when she saw Cao'er still watching the shop in front.

Madam, you've already eaten. You haven't eaten yet, have you? The shop wasn't busy just now, so I had Brother Meng cover for you in the front for a while while I went to the kitchen to cook.

"You can just eat in the backyard," Cao'er replied, her expression somewhat unnatural.

Good, it's good to have someone watch the house; we can have a hot meal when we come back.

Lin He'er returned to the backyard and saw that Meng Xing had already bought the wood to make the box.

It's a huge piece of wood, and right now this person is using tools to peel off the bark.

You've worked hard, Mengxing. Have a meal and rest for a while before you continue.

Is the lady back?

I'll process this wood first; you can go about your business.

Alright, Lin He'er went back to her room. Madam Li set out the food, and after eating, she watched Meng Xing do some work in the courtyard before going to take a nap.

When I woke up, it was already dark outside the window. Meng Xing was still fiddling with the wood in the yard. I thought to myself, "I slept really well. Despite all that noise, I didn't wake up at all. I was really tired, so I slept soundly!"

I got up and went out of the room. Now I saw that there was no place to put my feet in the yard. The yard was full of tree bark and sawdust.

Granny Li, find a burlap sack. Let's fill it with the bark and sawdust from the yard that we don't need, and take it to the kitchen to start a fire.

After hearing the lady's instructions, Li came out of the kitchen to tidy up the scraps. Lin He'er tiptoed to the shop in front.

"Cao'er, go back to the backyard and rest. I'll watch the shop for a while." Lin He'er took over from Cao'er, leaning over the front counter and flipping through the account book page by page.

I hadn't looked at the ledger for several days, so I picked it up and flipped through the pages. I saw that the daily sales volume was basically the same.

We still need to bring in more new products. After reviewing the account book, Lin He'er wondered if her mother had received the letter she had sent.

The Lin family's daughter, Madam Lin, received a letter from her daughter yesterday evening. She had someone read it to her and learned that her daughter had already found a house in the city and was just waiting for her to go and see it before making a decision.

I had already made plans, so receiving this letter didn't seem surprising. My land has already been leased to a family I know, and the two families have agreed that I will come back to collect the rent on time every year.

The house was entrusted to the village chief's family for safekeeping. The old village chief never expected that the Lin family, consisting of only a woman and two children, could have made it out of the village, and he was filled with emotion.

My family packed our bags a few days ago, and we're just waiting for tomorrow to rent a car from a horse-drawn carriage company to go to the county town.