Chapter 286: Different Water
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Mr. and Mrs. Liu watched the scale closely and initially saw 53 pounds. Su Fengmao had undercharged by one pound, which Su Binglan had arranged. It looked good on the surface and made others feel comfortable.
There were three sacks of sweet potatoes, which totaled 162 pounds. After calculating the cost, it was 320 copper coins, which was very cheap. The Liu family could make more noodles now and earn quite a bit more.
Mrs. Liu said, “Hey, we feel embarrassed that you guys always charge us less.”
Su Fengmao said, “We’re in-laws, so there’s no need to worry. You guys are living good lives, which makes Yinyin happy.”
At that moment, Shen Qiuhua took two bowls of warm water from the house and handed them to Liu Yinyin’s parents. “Here, drink some water. You two hurried here and probably didn’t have time to drink.”
Mr. and Mrs. Liu did not argue and drank the water. Indeed, they had been busy all day and did not have time to hydrate themselves. Still, they felt energetic on busy days because they could earn money. It was better than having nothing to do and panicking.
Mrs. Liu gave her daughter the money for the sweet potatoes while Su Fengmao and Mr. Liu loaded the sweet potatoes onto the oxcart. After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Liu Yinyin’s parents left.
Liu Yinyin looked at the door and looked at her parents’ figures. She felt reluctant to part with them. She missed the days when she was by her parents’ side.
However, she grew up, married, and had children, so she could not always see her parents. She missed them from the bottom of her heart.
Liu Yinyin felt relieved because she knew her family’s days were improving and that her sister-in-law and brother treated her parents well. Therefore, she sincerely thanked Su Binglan. She could not describe how happy she felt.
Mr. and Mrs. Liu sat on their oxcart and waved at their daughter. “It’s cold outside. You should go back in the house.”
“I will!” Liu Yinyin waved back at her parents as she became teary-eyed.
She knew she had a good childhood because of how carefree she was. She reminisced about her parents being young, but now they had gray hair on their heads. Looking at them aging did not feel good to Liu Yinyin.
Mr. and Mrs. Liu sat on their oxcart and went off. The two could not help but turn and look back at their daughter. They only reluctantly looked away when they could no longer see Su Teng Village.
Mrs. Liu wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes and sighed, “I know we’re from the neighboring village, but we still can’t bear to part with Yinyin.”
Mr. Liu was also reluctant to part with his daughter, but as a man, he could not show it—instead, he comforted his wife, “Yinyin is doing well, and her in-laws are good people. The whole family is, so we should feel happy for her.”
Mrs. Liu composed herself and sighed again. “Yes, we should be happy. Yinyin and Wenzhe are running their tofu business together, and their lives will only keep improving.
“Also, Yinyin told me last time that Xuexuan loves to study and is good at it.
That’s a good thing.”
Mr. Liu said proudly, “The Su family is famous throughout their village and ours. Some time ago, Fengmao came to our village to buy eggs, ducks, and chickens. Everyone knew about it.
“Most villagers envy us because our daughter has married a Su family member, and she can enjoy a good life.”
Mrs. Liu smiled at the thought of that. “You’re right. Everyone envies Yinyin and us. Our villagers laughed at us in the past because the Su family was in poor conditions.”
“No matter what others say, we must live our lives well. If we do that, no one can laugh at us,” Mr. Liu said.
Mrs. Liu nodded. “Yes, that makes sense. Yinyin said their tofu factory would be huge. They might not hire many people at the start, but they will in the future. They may even hire people from surrounding villages.
“Since Willow Village is close to Su Teng Village, some of our village folk will probably want to go there.”
After some thought, Mr. Liu said, “They might come to us when the time comes, but we can’t be foolish and make decisions for the Su family. That’s something we shouldn’t ask about.”
Mrs. Liu said thoughtfully, “Of course, I know that. We can’t pretend we know about that for our reputation.”
However, she seemed to have sensed something and said, “Also, did you notice how delicious the Su family’s water is? It was so sweet and refreshing to drink.”
“Yeah, I felt it too. It was different from the water in our house. I felt extremely refreshed after drinking the water from the Su family’s house,” Mr. Liu seconded.
“Me too! I was exhausted just now but not anymore after drinking their water. I felt very energetic.”
Su Wenwu went to Li Dazhuang’s house. He was still awake, chopping firewood in the yard under the moonlight since he had nothing to do recently.
He wanted to store enough firewood for the winter to heat the platform because he did not want his grandmother to catch a cold. Li Dazhuang was not afraid of the cold, but he feared his grandmother would be unable to withstand it.
When Su Wenwu arrived at the door, he saw Li Dazhuang chopping firewood. Sounds of chickens and ducks also echoed in the yard. He knew Li Dazhuang’s family had many ducks and chickens.
He heard from his mother that Old Madam Li was a good worker when she was young. Old Madam Li was diligent and knew how to live while taking good care of the house inside and out.
Li Dazhuang’s parents were still around when he was a child, so his family had a better life. However, things changed when his parents passed, and his grandmother became ill.
“Dazhuang?”
Li Dazhuang was chopping firewood when he heard someone’s voice. He thought he had misheard, but he instinctively turned and saw Su Wenwu. He was stunned and dropped the ax he was holding.
‘W-Wenwu?”
Su Wenwu said smilingly, “Yeah, it’s me.”
Li Dazhuang was so excited that he forgot about the ax that fell to the ground and almost hit his foot.
“Hey, be careful.”
Li Dazhuang happily welcomed Su Wenwu into the yard. “I was just thinking about you, and you came.”
The two were best friends when they were kids. They had been busy with their own things all these years but still picked up where they had left off when they met again.
Su Wenwu laughed loudly, “Why did you think about me? We’re you thinking about all the dumb things we did when we were kids?”
The two went up the mountain to dig for eggs and fish in the river when they were young. They even troubled the dogs in the village, and the dogs chased them off. Thinking back to their childhood, it was pretty great.
“Come in, come in.”
Meanwhile, Old Madam Li looked at the eggs in the house. The heated platform was hot, so it would be easier to hatch them into ducks and chickens if she put the eggs near it.
She would gather duck and chicken eggs every once in a while and sell some to Su Fengmao. Then she kept the rest and incubated them.
The family had large chicken and duck coops in their yard that took up almost half of the space. That was also something Old Madam Li had set up for her grandchildren.
They had many ducks and chickens to lay eggs, and the family would earn money by selling them. Even if Old Madam Li was no longer around, her grandchildren could still eat their fill.
She was on the heated platform with Li Erying while her grandson was peeling corn. They trio looked out through the window when they heard the commotion outside..
