Even in a famine, there's no panic; the eldest sister has stockpiled plenty of money and grain.

Jiang Anliang and Song Shi were both doting parents, but no matter how much they loved their children, the private school wouldn't accept girls, so they couldn't send them to school.

Song knew some characters and taught her two sisters to recognize some when she had free time.

But those were just commonly used characters, less than a hundred in total.

Jiang Lu's eyes lit up when she heard about recognizing characters.

"Sister, is it alright?"

Jiang Lü's brother-in-law was a scholar, so how could she not have wanted to learn to read before?

However, most women these days are uneducated, and there is a gender distinction between her and her brother-in-law, Ji Yanwen.

In previous years, some traveling opera troupes would come to the village to perform. The plays included stories of two women vying for one husband, as well as tales of sisters sharing one husband.

Fearing that her older sister might misunderstand her feelings for her brother-in-law Ji Yanwen, the young girl avoided getting close to Ji Yanwen whenever possible, and dared not mention anything about him tutoring her.

"Why not?"

“Your brother-in-law is just sitting around doing nothing anyway, so let him teach you to read, it'll help you pass the time.”

Jiang Lu cheered and happily went to tidy up the teaching area for Ji Yanwen.

Jiang Songwen only half understood what he was hearing, but he knew what reading meant.

Thinking of his older cousin Jiang Songzong, who was a scholar, the little guy couldn't help but tense up, straighten his back, and become serious.

"Sister, learn well."

Big sister, I will study hard.

His illness was considered cured, but not completely. Doctor Liu said that his body was no longer in serious condition, and now he could only recover slowly.

Jiang Bai is more inclined to believe it's a psychological issue for the little guy.

Fortunately, she has no problem with basic self-care and simple communication.

"Alright, let's have Ah Wen study hard and earn an imperial title for our elder sister in the future."

Jiang Bai was happy to coax him. It was just a casual remark, but the little guy took it to heart and made it his lifelong goal.

Ji Yanwen is now able to get out of bed and walk around. Since waking up, his health has been improving day by day.

Despite losing so much blood and being extremely weak, he refused Jiang Bai's offer to hunt wild game to replenish his strength, saying that he was still observing mourning and could only rely on rice porridge for nutrition.

Are you feeling better today?

The red spots on his face had faded, revealing his fair skin.

His pretty-boy appearance really does make him look like someone who lives off a woman.

"much better."

"You really don't need my help with the work in the fields?" he asked.

"No need, it's only a small plot of land, my uncle can manage on his own."

Free labor is free, so why not take advantage of it?

Ji Yanwen, however, was not as optimistic as she was, saying, "There's a lot of work to do in the fields. No matter how capable your uncle is, can he finish it all?"

"Besides, the other villagers don't know he's been enslaved. They see him helping you with chores every day, while you sisters haven't even offered him a drop of water. Don't ruin your reputations for nothing."

Jiang Lu will be twelve years old next year, which is the age when she should be getting married.

Don't let this prevent you from finding a good husband.

Jiang Bai hadn't expected that far ahead, and frowned upon hearing his words.

"You have a point."

Selling her uncle into slavery is a shameful thing to say. If the clan chief finds out, he might make her release him and restore his freedom.

Instead of doing that, it would be better to offer some benefits.

"Let's not talk about him anymore. Er Ya and A Wen are not young anymore. I was thinking that while you are recovering from your injury, why don't you teach them to read?"

"Alright."

Ji Yanwen thought for a moment and nodded in agreement.

After discussing the education of their two children for a while, Jiang Bai went into the kitchen, took out the yams, wiped off the dirt with a damp cloth, and put firewood on the stove to roast them.

"Is this really edible?"

Jiang Lu had never seen this before and was somewhat suspicious.

Seeing Jiang Bai scoop out a piece, peel it, and put it in his mouth, the little girl's expression changed, and she quickly stopped him.

"Sister, I've never tried this before, let me try it first!"

If it's poisonous, poison her first.

Jiang Bai, unaware of her inner thoughts, assumed she was just curious and quickly fed it to her.

Jiang Lu's eyes lit up; it was soft and sticky.

Seeing that Jiang Bai had peeled another yam and was about to feed it to Jiang Songwen, Jiang Lu quickly pushed Jiang Songwen away and ate the peeled yam herself.

"Sister, this is so delicious! I've never eaten anything so good before."

Her cheeks were bulging from eating, but she looked at Jiang Bai nervously.

I was afraid she would peel one out again.

Jiang Bai was stunned for a moment. She had never seen Jiang Lu snatch food before. In the past, whenever there was food, she would always give it to her older sister first, then to her younger brother Awen, and finally to herself.

After carefully recalling her previous actions, Jiang Bai asked slowly, "Er Ya, are you afraid this thing is poisonous?"

So she ate it first, even taking the pieces that she had peeled for Jiang Songwen.

Jiang Lu blushed slightly and lowered her head as if she had made a mistake.

Thinking of something, she quickly looked up again and explained, "Sister, it's not that I don't believe you, I just..."

"I know you're just worried, since you've never seen this before, so you thought you'd test it on yourself first."

Jiang Bai knew perfectly well that this young girl's heart and soul were filled with thoughts of her family.

As her family, she feels very lucky.

Jiang Bai smiled, picked up another peeled one, and put it in his mouth.

Jiang Lu opened her mouth, but ultimately did not stop her.

Jiang Bai knew that yams were edible and not poisonous.

Jiang Lu had no idea.

Although the food tastes delicious, who knows what will happen after eating it?

So after Jiang Bai ate it, the little girl stared at her nervously, while Jiang Songwen kept a straight face and looked unhappy.

Both older sisters ate delicious food.

He did not.

The baby is upset.

Even though his face didn't show much expression, you could still tell what he was thinking.

Jiang Bai looked at him with amusement. After waiting for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, neither of them showed any signs of being poisoned. She couldn't help but smile and look at Jiang Lu: "My dear sister, are you relieved?"

Jiang Lu's face turned red again, and she mumbled an apology.

"There's nothing to apologize for. You did the right thing. But next time, let your older sister do the poison testing."

While stuffing the peeled yam into Jiang Songwen's mouth, whose eyes were full of longing, he comforted Jiang Lu.

Jiang Lu agreed outwardly, but inwardly she thought that if there really was a next time, she should do it herself!

Jiang Bai was unaware of the little girl's complicated thoughts. The siblings ate fresh roasted yams, but they didn't forget the patient in the room.

After finishing his meal, before it got completely dark, Jiang Bai packed some yams and yam beans and headed towards the village head's house.

Jiang Lu and Jiang Songwen became her little shadows, eagerly following behind her.

Jiang Bai had no choice but to take them along.

The door to the house was locked as usual, so Ji Yanwen was... locked inside again.

I'm devastated. Ever since we got married, he's been like a sheltered young lady who never leaves the house, staying home all day long.

Their feelings were complicated and hard to describe. When Jiang Bai and her siblings arrived at the village head's house, it was mealtime for them.

"Is Bai girl here?"

"Oh, Er Ya and A Wen are here too? Have you siblings eaten yet? Come sit down and have something to eat with us."

The village head's wife greeted them warmly.

Of course, it is very impolite to go to someone's house during mealtime in the village. Only the shameless would actually sit down and eat when someone invites you to eat, so Jiang Bai waved his hands repeatedly to refuse.