The Rebirth of a Farm Girl from a Military Family and a Cannon Fodder Princess

Jiang Shichang pointed at his wife with trembling fingers: "So, so that's how you see Zisu? You, you're so short-sighted! Zisu is a very fortunate child. It's a blessing for Chun'er to marry such a wife! Besides, I only mentioned it briefly, and you got so angry? Even if you disagree, we can communicate properly. I didn't say that Chun'er has to marry her! She's such a good girl, such a principled girl. Maybe she wouldn't even be interested in Chun'er!"

The second wife cried, "That's right, that's why I got sick! If you had been nicer to Chun'er and hadn't had this thought, I wouldn't have gotten sick!!" It was all for the best that Zisu didn't like Chun'er; she wouldn't have to worry about her anymore!

Jiang Shichang was so angry that his chest ached. He stormed off. For the first time in twenty years of marriage, he slept separately from his wife at home. He went to his study in the outer courtyard and studied the account books by lamplight until the early hours of the morning. Only after the first rooster crowed did he finally fall asleep on the bed in the study.

There was nothing on the bed except a pillow and a sheet. Luckily, it was autumn, not winter, and he was physically strong enough. Otherwise, he would have suffered quite a bit.

Even so, he caught a cold when he woke up in the morning and sneezed several times in a row.

"What's wrong? Did you catch a cold? Why don't you stay home and rest for the day?" The second wife asked with concern, feeling a little guilty. Last night, she had angered her husband and caused him to catch a cold.

"No need, I'd rather go to work than get so angry I'll die!" Jiang Shichang said calmly as he finished the last bite of his steamed bun, then got up and left.

The second wife was choked half to death, her chest heaving violently, clearly very angry.

Seeing this, Hua'er couldn't help but sigh, "Mother, it's not that I'm criticizing you, but you can't even approve of Sister Zisu, who is such a good person. Besides, Father only had an idea; he didn't insist that my eldest brother marry Sister Zisu. What are you doing? You're treating Sister Zisu like a monster, and you've even developed a mental block because of it. No wonder Father is angry! Not to mention Father, even I'm quite angry. I think Mother is not only biased but also a bit unreasonable!"

Oh, Sister Zisu is such a good person. If only I could become her sister-in-law! That way, she would have another confidante, another family member she could completely trust, and another person to rely on!

Mother, why don't you like Sister Zisu? Before, didn't you admire and like her a lot? Why did your attitude change so drastically when it came to making her my sister-in-law?

This change is happening faster than turning the pages of a book!

Zisu was completely unaware of the changes in the second wife.

At this moment, with five days left until the Mid-Autumn Festival, she is focused on developing new types of mooncakes. Before the last time she made festival gifts, she only made two kinds of mooncakes, which she felt were too few in variety, and the taste seemed to be able to be improved further.

During this time, she became completely absorbed in researching mooncakes. She completely forgot about things like gathering wild game or hunting. Every day, aside from practicing martial arts in the mountains for an hour, she devoted almost all her time to making mooncakes.

Two days before the Mid-Autumn Festival, she finally developed more than a dozen kinds of mooncakes with excellent taste and beautiful appearance. There were plum blossoms, peach blossoms, wild chrysanthemums, lotus flowers, roses, and several kinds of cute little animals.

Over a thousand of these mooncakes were made.

Zisu approached Li Mao: "Brother Li, could you please do me another favor and send these mooncakes to the capital as soon as possible?"

Li Mao: "You flatter me, young lady. It's not hard at all to drive a carriage there. Besides, it's what I should do!"

This time, Zisu gave Li Mao thirty taels of silver: "This time, take your uncle and aunt with you! Spend the Mid-Autumn Festival at your uncle's house, take a good day strolling around the streets, and see the lanterns in the capital. Don't rush back!"

Uncle Li and Aunt Li have lived in Beijing for over twenty years and have many relatives and friends there. It's time to visit them.

"Thank you, young lady, ten taels of silver is enough!" Li Mao didn't take that much silver, but only took two five-tael ingots.

When Li Mao returned home and told his parents, his mother couldn't help but wipe away tears of joy: "The girl is so young, yet she is very mature in her dealings with others, and she is also kind and righteous. She is a girl who is one in a million!"

It's such a pity, young lady! If only the master were still alive! Putting aside everything else, it would be very difficult for her to catch the eye of those officials' wives when it comes to finding a husband in the future!

This time, she, her husband, and son went to the capital to have a serious talk with her uncle and persuade her daughter to move into the city as soon as possible. Otherwise, she would be seen as a country bumpkin! Once labeled a "country bumpkin," she would likely only be able to marry a countryman or a merchant in the future!

Madam Jiang looked down on Zisu, but in Madam Li's heart, Jiang Chun was never really on her mind either. Madam Li hoped that her daughter could marry into a noble family or a scholarly family.

In Madam Jiang's eyes and heart, her son was perfect in every way; in Madam Li's eyes and heart, Zisu was also perfect in every way. It seemed that there was no man in the world who was good enough for their daughter!

******

Yu Zhe couldn't help but sigh deeply after hearing what Aunt Li said.

Aunt Li's concerns were also his concerns. However, Zisu was passionate about the mountain village life in Xiaoshitan and unwilling to settle in the cage-like capital city. What could he do? His niece was straightforward and lively, and only by staying in Wuliping could she live the life she wanted.

Or perhaps, marrying into a wealthy and powerful family is not her destiny.

Well then, let her be! Actually, marrying a good young man from a modest family might not be such a bad thing. As long as the young man is devoted to Zisu, cultured and knowledgeable, and can get along well with Zisu, that's fine!

Isn't the point of marriage to find a partner with whom you can rely on and care for each other? If you marry a son of a wealthy family, that man will inevitably have multiple wives and concubines, and Zisu definitely won't be able to handle that.

Yu Zhe shared his considerations with Aunt Li and comforted her, saying, "Let it go. Zisu is a girl with her own opinions. She wants to make her own decisions about marriage. We, as elders, will just help her make the selection. As for what kind of family background she wants to find, let her decide for herself!"

"Very well, then, Uncle, you must help the young lady choose the right one." Since Lord Yu has said so, what else can she, as a servant, say?

In terms of knowledge, she was far inferior to Lord Yu; in terms of concern, Lord Yu might not have been as concerned as she was. Moreover, the young lady didn't like others interfering in her affairs, so she naturally prioritized the young lady's wishes.

Since her son returned safely from Yi County, the girl had freed the three of them from slavery, making them free citizens. However, in her heart, the girl was still her master, someone she would serve to the death for.

Hua'er received the mooncakes and couldn't stop smiling once again.

Princess Yue'er was the same; she was cheerful all day long.

The princess ate the mooncakes and was overjoyed, praising them highly.

The second wife felt a bit annoyed and couldn't help but grumble. She no longer praised Zisu but instead felt a bit disgusted by her.

******

Some time ago, Shangguan Zhihua spent a lot of money to bribe a servant in the Jiang family, instructing the servant to pay close attention to everything between the Jiang family and Zisu.

Rumors were circulating that the menu and tofu at Good Days Restaurant were all thanks to Shangguan Zisu. Xiao Fan had deliberately leaked this information to her.

Shangguan Zhihua was furious. If Zisu hadn't "intercepted" her, she would have been a major contributor to the success of Shili Xiang and a lucky star for the Rong'an Prince's mansion. In that case, she would at least be a concubine, not a lowly maidservant. She would also be more important to Xiao Fan, and after successfully giving birth to a healthy son, she might even be promoted to a secondary consort!

However, all of this was ruined by Shangguan Zisu! It was all her fault; this jinx seemed to be specifically designed to bring her bad luck! In this life, she and Shangguan Zisu were sworn enemies, destined to fight to the death!

Zisu received a letter from the Eldest Princess and learned of Shangguan Zhihua's intentions, and couldn't help but scoff. "Such hypocrisy! If your family weren't plotting to kill my mother and brother, why would I stand in your way of wealth and power? Besides, the tofu and the recipe are both products you, Shangguan Zhihua, have plagiarized from the future. Therefore, I've already sold them to the Good Days Restaurant, and you have absolutely no right to object!"

Besides, if you hadn't harbored ill intentions in my past life and used me as a laborer and free laborer, how would I have been able to develop tofu in this life? I wouldn't have been able to come up with those recipes either. So, this is all retribution.

As the saying goes, you reap what you sow; you get what you sow.

Zisu intensified her training of the five boys and five girls. She didn't expect them all to become top-tier experts, but at the very least, they needed to be third-rate. That way, if someone tried to assassinate them, they could at least fight one person with five of them. Otherwise, all her hard work would have been wasted!

Zisu thought for a moment, then took Li Mao and Xiangli and wandered through the villages in the surrounding area, buying more than a dozen orphaned children, ranging in age from three to twelve. In addition, she bought a family, a middle-aged couple with two boys and a girl of about ten years old.

The drought, coupled with the pandemic, has left many people homeless and their families broken apart.

The people Zisu bought were all desperate and struggling to make ends meet.

Since there weren't enough rooms, Zisu asked her sixth grandfather to arrange for the construction of a row of five houses, which, together with the houses previously purchased for the orphans, formed a courtyard house named Zhongchengju.

The manager of Zhongcheng Residence was a fifteen-year-old boy named Shugen. He was the oldest person in Zhongcheng Residence, while the youngest was only three years old and named Niba. Niba was Shugen's younger brother and also Yi-ge'er's playmate. He played with Yi-ge'er during the day and went back to Zhongcheng Residence to sleep at night.

In addition, Zisu also selected a five-year-old child named Duanwu to be Yu Han's playmate and page.

Tree Root, Mud, and Dragon Boat Festival were among the first three people to be bought. Zisu observed them for a long time before selecting them as the manager and playmate, respectively.

Tree Root has some talent for martial arts and has already achieved some success. Two young, strong men without martial arts skills are no match for him. With proper training, he will surely become a top master in time.

Niba and Duanwu also have some talent for martial arts, but they are still young. Zisu instructed that they should not train at a high intensity for the time being. Every day, the two of them studied literature and martial arts with Yi-ge and Han-ge, practicing martial arts for half an hour in the morning and half an hour in the evening.

Zisu personally instructed the four children in martial arts. Every month, Shen Laihui would stay at Xiaoshitan for two days to focus on instructing Zisu, Yi Ge'er, and Han Ge'er in martial arts.

In late autumn, when Zisu went hunting and practicing martial arts in the mountains, she discovered a large patch of wild strawberries. Seeing the wild strawberries reminded Zisu of the strawberries cultivated by Shangguan Zhihua in her previous life. The people of the Western Liang Dynasty called these wild strawberries "wild sour fruit," but the strawberries cultivated by Shangguan Zhihua were not so sour; they were sweet and sour, with more sweetness than sourness, and they were very delicious.

Zisu knows exactly how to cultivate strawberries.

Because in her previous life, Shangguan Zhihua had often assigned her "specific tasks." From planting and fertilizing to building greenhouses, she had done it all.