A family with three widows, after severing ties with relatives, she became wealthy and married into

The oxcart swayed and rattled as it left the county town, and three women took out flatbreads from their baskets and began to eat lunch.

Tian Tian didn't bring any pancakes. She had originally planned to buy some, but she forgot because she was thinking about increasing manpower.

I ate breakfast before 5 a.m., and it's still like this...

I'm really hungry.

She touched her belly, thinking she should just hold on a little longer.

"Young lady, are you hungry?"

At that moment, the woman sitting next to her noticed her movements.

She tore off a small piece of the pancake in her hand and gave it to Tian Tian, ​​saying, "Here, have a little something to eat."

The other two women, seeing this, also tore off a small piece and gave it to Tian Tian.

"Little girl, you can eat."

Tian Tian was quite surprised. She was too embarrassed to reach out and take them, so they all just handed them to her.

"Thank you, aunties."

Their pancakes were unleavened and a bit hard.

But Tian Tian was happy.

While munching on a pancake, Tian Tian asked Zhang Fusheng, "Uncle Zhang, what does Auntie do at home?"

"What else can I do? Take care of my elderly mother at home, tend to the two acres of land, and feed the chickens."

"Autumn is coming soon, the harvest will be over, and then there won't be much to do."

The three women retorted, "How could nothing be wrong? We're gathering firewood, pickling vegetables, and planting winter vegetables."

"I have some chores I'd like to hire someone to do, from 7 AM to 5 PM each day, fifty coins a day, including lunch."

From 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., five hours, ten hours in total.

Zhang Fusheng and the three women all turned to look at Tian Tian.

"Should we have a woman do it?" Zhang Fusheng asked.

Tian Tian nodded, "Yes, please have the lady do it."

The three women pointed to themselves one after another, "Girl, can we do it?"

Tian Tian smiled and said, "Of course!"

She wouldn't have brought it up in front of them if she didn't want them to do it.

"However, I also have requirements."

The three women looked at Tian Tian expectantly.

"What happens in our house must be kept absolutely secret!"

"No one else... must know this except yourselves."

"Why?" the woman asked, puzzled.

Zhang Fusheng knew, "Why ask why? That's Miss Tian's business, of course we can't tell anyone."

"And another thing," Tian Tian said upfront, "There are four people in our family, three of whom are widows. People in the village say we're cursed and bring bad luck to our husbands."

She glanced at the three women; their reaction wasn't as intense as the villagers', but she still made it clear, "If you have any reservations, then don't come."

A woman waved her hand, "What's there to be taboo about?"

The other two chimed in, "That's right. In this world, everyone has to die sometimes. The most important thing is to make money and live a good life."

When they reached the fork in the road between Qingliu Village and Liushu Village, Tian Tian called for the carriage to stop.

"Uncle Zhang, please take them to my house tomorrow, and then take me to the county."

*

Carrying the contract from Manager Dong, Tian Tian passed by Liu San Niang's house and called her and Daya along.

Back at his home, he called Lu Tao, Tian Xiang, and Tian Jinghe over.

Everyone gathered in the courtyard, looking at her. "Tian Tian, ​​what's wrong?"

Seeing everyone's bewildered looks, Tian Tian reached into her clothes...

She winked mysteriously, then swiftly pulled a contract from her bosom. "Ta-da... guess what this is?"

While the others remained bewildered, Tian Xiang, with her sharp eyes, spotted the words on it: "A supply contract?"

"Sweetie, have other people bought our bean curd sheets?"

Tian Tian nodded heavily and handed the contract to Tian Xiang.

Tian Xiang eagerly took it; she could read, but only to a limited extent.

However, having been married into Chuxing Restaurant for several years, she had come into contact with many supply contracts, so she did not read them line by line, but quickly looked at a few important data points.

"A thousand catties of bean curd sheets?!"

"Thirty-day delivery period..."

"Dong Xiangyang, the manager of Anzhou..."

"A thousand catties?!" Liu Sanniang and Lu Tao exclaimed in surprise, "So much?"

Tian Tian took out the silver given to her by Manager Dong, "This is the deposit."

"So much...can we finish it all?" Lu Tao and Liu San Niang both thought of this question after their initial surprise.

They also had to supply 40 jin of goods to Fulai Restaurant every day.

Before Tian Tian could speak, Lu Tao and Liu San Niang muttered to themselves, "It's okay, as long as we can make money, we can just work a few more hours every day."

Tian Tian asked helplessly, "Right now it's 1,000 jin, but what if someone wants 2,000 jin or 3,000 jin? What? Are Mother and Aunt planning to stop sleeping altogether?"

Lu Tao and Liu San Niang exchanged a glance and asked in unison, "Then...how do we do it?"

"I ordered twelve more square pots."

"They also asked Uncle Zhang, who drives an oxcart, to help find four aunties from Willow Tree Village to come and help."

"Fifty coins a day, lunch included, from morning to evening."

“Your mother and aunts have worked so hard for so long. When those other aunts come over, your mother and aunts will teach them for a couple of days. Once they get the hang of it, you can all take a break.”

Lu Tao rubbed her body with her hands, "Rest? This... Mother won't rest..."

Tian Tian sighed and put her arm around Lu Tao's shoulder. "Mom, we earn money so that we can live a better life."

"Why work yourself to death when you can hire someone to do it for a small fee?"

Lu Tao looked at Liu San Niang, "This..."

Liu San Niang was also a little reluctant to part with the fifty coins she earned, but she was more open-minded than Lu Tao.

"Sweetie's words make sense..."

"Mom," Tian Tian persisted, "we're not completely idle. We can think of other ways to make money."

"And winter is coming soon, so we need to prepare early."

"We left the Tian family home with nothing—no clothes, no bedding, nothing at all!"

"They're still sleeping on the floor."

"How are we going to survive winter? Are we going to just hold onto our money and wait it out?"

"Can silver provide enough food and warmth?"

Tian Tian's exaggerated words made Lu Tao burst out laughing.

"You kid..."

"Okay, okay, I'll listen to you."

Lu Tao grabbed Tian Xiang's hand, then Tian Tian's, and Tian Jinghe pressed against her...

"Once the aunties we hired have learned how to make bean curd sheets, Mother will go to the county to buy some autumn and winter fabric, and then find someone to make a bed..."

Just as the group was chatting and laughing, several horse-drawn carriages arrived at the village entrance.

"Where did this carriage come from?"

"Who are you looking for?"

"Hey, who are you looking for?"

The lead driver stopped the carriage and replied, "We're looking for the Tian family in Qingliu Village."

"The Tian family? Looking for the Tian family?"

"Who goes there? Looking for the Tian family?"

Which Tian family are you looking for?

Zhao Jinhua asked loudly, "Who in the Tian family are you looking for? There are several Tian families in our village."

The driver said, "We are looking for two young ladies, Tian Xiang and Tian Tian."

Zhao Jinhua squeezed through the crowd, "Are you delivering beans? Are there 2,500 jin of beans?"

The driver nodded, "I'm here to deliver beans, 2,500 catties."