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墨書 Inktalez
Xiao Lihua knew that if her family became wealthy, there would definitely be envious eyes on them. The villagers wouldn't say anything, but those from the Xie Family Old Residence would certainly come to take advantage of them. This was not a guess; it had already happened. When her family bought a house and prepared a decent meal to invite people over, it attracted the Li Family and Auspicious, who rummaged through everything. After they bought cattle and sheep, there was another uproar, and later, the matter of repairing the bridge brought the Wang Clan to their doorstep.
Xiao Lihua recalled that in the farming novels she had read, such situations often occurred. If one brother became wealthy and did not help his family members, he would be criticized. Moreover, jealousy would amplify such accusations, and if it got serious, it could tarnish one's reputation.
Three people make a tiger; if rumors spread too much, even a good family could be labeled as heartless and ungrateful.
Once, Xie Youshun and Xiao Lihua discussed this situation. Xiao Lihua said that if there were a way to help everyone improve their lives, then they wouldn't be envious of them anymore.
Xiao Lihua had not forgotten this matter. She thought that her family's wealth would indeed provoke envy and hatred. Even if they helped the Village repair a bridge, it probably wouldn't completely extinguish the flames of jealousy. Therefore, it was best for everyone to earn money together.
The prosperity of a village could also benefit individuals. For example, people from Shangqiao Village felt superior when facing those from Xiaqiao Village. When marrying off daughters or chatting with others, mentioning their village name as a wealthy one could earn them respect.
Sometimes people's hearts are not inherently bad, but they can become harsh and indifferent due to financial pressures. Xiao Lihua liked living in this place; she wanted to turn this village into a harmonious one and live peacefully with its people. Moreover, most villagers were simple and kind-hearted, and she was happy to help them.
Because of this thought, Xiao Lihua felt delighted when she came up with a way to help everyone earn money and immediately shared her idea with Xie Youshun.
Xiao Lihua's idea was that since the villagers raised pigs, if they sold the method for making Cured Meat to Huaheng and ensured that Huaheng prioritized buying pigs from Xiaqiao Village without lowering prices at any time, then the villagers could feed their pigs more. As long as they worked hard, every household could become a pig-raising household and surely make money.
Once the villagers had money, coupled with the bridge repair project, they would definitely be grateful to them and no longer envy their wealth.
After hearing Xiao Lihua's plan, Xie Youshun thought she was truly wonderful.
"Wife, you really are like a living Bodhisattva."
"Can a Bodhisattva be your wife? Stop saying such things; are you silly?"
Xiao Lihua felt a bit shy and speechless at Xie Youshun's praise. She thought that while her actions were indeed aimed at helping the poor villagers of the Village—after all, the impact of forced labor on her had been significant—her greater motivation was to distance herself from the people of the Xie Family Old Residence. Once they started making money from raising pigs, she wanted to see what reasons they would have left to come begging for favors. Since it could help them earn money, the villagers could join in as well; after all, if the Cured Meat business succeeded, there would be a huge demand for pork.
Xie Youshun thought about it too; while a Bodhisattva couldn't be his wife, he still felt that his wife had changed for the better. He wondered how those who once doubted his wife's intentions would react now—what kind of ghost could be so kind-hearted? Even if she were a ghost, he would accept it.
Xie Youshun looked up at the sun obscured by clouds and said, "I really hope winter comes soon."
Xiao Lihua knew that Xie Youshun wanted to eat the Cured Meat she made. This man was actually a foodie; in fact, not just him, she wanted to eat it too.
When they returned home, Shitou and Muto immediately fell in love with the two rabbits. They leaned against the bamboo basket, watching and even reaching out to touch them.
Xie Youshun made a nest for the rabbits, laying bricks on the ground to prevent them from digging holes and escaping. He enclosed them securely and applied some healing medicine he had originally gotten from Wang Dashan to their legs, wrapping it in cloth. Thus, the two rabbits settled in.
Since the rabbits arrived, Shitou and Muto shifted their attention away from the cattle, sheep, and chickens, treating the two rabbits like treasures and inviting their little friends over to see them.
Shitou and Muto had become the envy of the children in the Village. They wore clean new clothes and each had a small bag filled with treats and toys. They also carried a couple of coins with them, while most of the village children didn’t have any money. They could go to the Village grocery store to buy things they liked; two coins were definitely a significant amount of money in the eyes of children.
When the children came to see the rabbits, Xiao Lihua washed some wild fruits she had picked for them to eat. At their request, she also told them a story about the Monkey King.
Xiao Yue clapped her hands and said, "Auntie tells such wonderful stories! Shitou and Muto are so lucky; they can listen to stories every day and have so many fun things to eat and play with. Auntie, you’re amazing! I want to be like you when I grow up."
Dog Egg snorted from the side.
Copper Coin put her hands on her hips and said, "Dog Egg, what are you snorting about? Auntie is great; weren’t you just listening to a story too?"
Dog Egg shouted loudly, "My mom says she’s a bad person."
"My mom is not a bad person! She even built a bridge for Village! My mom is a good person! Your mom is the bad one!" Shitou clenched his small fists and glared; in his heart, his mother was doing wonderfully.
"Your mom is a bad person; she built a bridge but wouldn’t let my grandpa cross! She’s definitely a bad person!"
Dog Egg shouted loudly. His mother took him back to his grandpa's house, where they said he couldn’t cross the bridge. They told his mother to find a way and even got angry at her. He asked his mother why his grandpa couldn’t cross the bridge, and she said it was because Shitou's mother wouldn’t allow it. So Shitou's mother was a bad person.
A group of children was shouting there, and Xie Youshun and Xiao Lihua listened. They exchanged glances, thinking that the people from Shangqiao Village really wanted to cross this bridge, and their thoughts were quite naive.
Dog Egg eventually ran away; he couldn't handle so many children and left in anger.
What Dog Egg said got out, and the children's mouths could talk. They went home to ask their elders if Stone's mother was a good person, repeating Dog Egg's words. The villagers naturally said that Xiao Lihua was a good person, and then they looked down on Zhang Shuitao, as someone with such influence had told others in the village that they were determined not to let the people from Shangqiao Village cross this bridge.
Zhang Shuitao was criticized for this matter.
Then something else happened in the village related to Wang Dashan's family. Sister Zhu's son, Big Tiger, was mischievous and set fire to the tail of their donkey. The donkey got startled, broke free from its rope, and ran wildly in the street, almost trampling someone. Fortunately, Wang Dashan pushed the person out of the way but ended up getting bumped and twisted his waist.
The physician examined Wang Dashan and advised him to rest; now a strong laborer in the family couldn't move. Zhang Lianxiang already had a grudge against Sister Zhu, so this time he wouldn't let her off easily. He blocked her front door and yelled at them to pay compensation.
"We have no money; take my life instead. My donkey was running on the road; how did it end up hitting him? It's his own misfortune," Sister Zhu said. Upon hearing Zhang Lianxiang demand one tael of silver, she refused to pay. Zhu Da didn't want to pay either; one tael of silver required him to slaughter many pigs just to earn it back. So he let his wife make a fuss while Big Tiger hid away.
Zhang Lianxiang was furious and called for the village chief to mediate. The village chief told Sister Zhu to compensate.
Sister Zhu pitifully said, "Village chief, I want to pay, but we have no money! We had some money, but it all went to labor duties. Besides, since their man got injured saving Simpleton's child, they should ask Simpleton's family for compensation! Why come to us?"
Simpleton was angry; today his sons and daughters-in-law were all out, leaving him at home watching the child. If anything happened to his grandson, how would he explain it to his sons and daughters-in-law? Hearing Sister Zhu say that made him want to hit her if she weren't a woman. In the end, he lost his temper and scolded Sister Zhu fiercely. He had just recovered from an illness and was panting after scolding her. The villagers quickly comforted him and criticized Sister Zhu.
The village chief sternly told Sister Zhu not to argue and said if she didn't compensate, they would give Wang Dashan the donkey.
Zhu Da panicked upon hearing this; that donkey was valuable and couldn't be given away.
Sister Zhu thought for a moment and said, "We have no money; how can we give them such a valuable donkey? How about this: my sow just gave birth to piglets; I'll give you five of them, which should be worth one tael of silver. Just let them have that as compensation."
Five piglets for one tael of silver was indeed very cheap, making people doubt it. Sister Zhu was known for being greedy; why would she voluntarily let others take advantage today? There must be a reason behind it.
Zhang Lianxiang pointed at Sister Zhu and scolded, "These piglets are hard to raise in this hot summer! Your family can't keep them alive, right? Now you're giving them to us, thinking we're fools? No way, give them to Silver!"
Everyone agreed that it was indeed difficult to raise piglets in the summer. Since Sister Zhu offered them voluntarily, they certainly thought she had that in mind. The crowd looked down on her even more.
Sister Zhu, exposed, remained unfazed and simply stated that she had no money to offer, only the piglets. Naturally, Zhang Lianxiang refused, and tensions nearly escalated into a fight. It was the village chief who intervened. Zhang Lianxiang went to check on the piglets and found them a bit wilted but still eating, so she agreed to take them. However, she was still very angry and sought comfort from Xiao Lihua.
"Li Hua, you have no idea! I really want to scratch that smug look off her face, but since she won't give money, she definitely won't part with them; she's as stingy as they come. It's really frustrating to have to take these piglets."
"Sister-in-law, don't be upset. As long as you can keep those piglets alive, Sister Zhu will surely regret it later. And it will be a big regret."
Xiao Lihua smiled as she thought about how unlucky Sister Zhu was. Just when she was planning to teach Cured Meat to Huaheng this winter so that the pig farmers in their village could earn more than in previous years, Sister Zhu went ahead and sold the piglets cheaply to Zhang Lianxiang. It seemed Heaven couldn't stand by and watch her bully honest people.
Xiao Lihua informed Zhang Lianxiang that there would be a large demand for pork at high prices this winter. Upon hearing this, Zhang Lianxiang was delighted and eagerly asked how Xiao Lihua knew. Xiao Lihua brushed it off with a few vague words, and Zhang Lianxiang didn't press further but resolved to take good care of her pigs at home.
Yumiang also learned about this and considered raising a couple more pigs.
Late summer and early autumn were known for frequent rains; one heavy rain followed another, causing the river's water level to rise significantly. People stayed home enjoying the rare leisurely time.
After the rain stopped, people from Shangqiao Village arrived. Soon everyone in Xiaqiao Village learned some news that made them laugh joyfully.
The author has something to say: Thanks for the landmine from Wumengsheng.
Thanks for the landmine from Laomingxia.
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