Sang Zhixia lowered her head, focusing on the noodles in her bowl, and said lightly, “If you want to eat, do it yourself. I happened to make extra noodles today, but whether I’ll make them again in the future is uncertain.”
It was one thing for Third Uncle’s daughter, Xu Yanran, who was only eight years old. But Second Uncle’s two sons—Xu Minghui at sixteen and Xu Mingyang at ten—both followed their parents’ example, holing up in their rooms without showing their faces, neither speaking nor working, yet still putting on airs as young masters, contentedly waiting to eat without contributing.
Even three-year-old Xu Mingxu knew to help dig for wild vegetables—what gave them the right to eat without working?
She had never enjoyed the privileges of a wealthy family and had no intention of serving such people!
As Sang Zhixia’s illness improved, her temper flared unabated. Seeing this, Xu Ao silently picked the poached egg from his own bowl and placed it in hers.
“You’re not fully recovered yet. Eat more.”
Xu Wenxiu, looking at the half eggs in Xu Mingxu and Xu Jinxi’s small bowls, mustered rare courage to support her: “You should rest properly. After eating, go lie down. I’ll wash the bowls.”
The eldest branch stood united, and Sang Zhixia’s reasoning was hard to refute.
The Old Madam wanted to say more, but the cooked noodles were right beside her. They hadn’t starved her—what could she say now?
The Old Master gazed meaninglessly at the poached egg in his bowl, lowered his eyes, and said, “What’s all this noise during mealtime? Those who aren’t hungry can go back to their rooms.”
Sang Zhixia raised an eyebrow and smiled in agreement: “True enough. Dreams have everything anyway—it’s not like they’re missing this one meal.”
With the Old Master setting the tone, any further discontent had to be swallowed with grim faces.
Second Aunt and Third Aunt, who had insisted on staying away from kitchen smoke, rolled up their sleeves with stern expressions. After several flustered attempts, they finally managed to ladle the noodles from the pot into bowls.
But where Sang Zhixia’s noodles had been distinct and chewy, theirs turned out like porridge—a mushy, unpalatable mess.
When everyone had finally gotten their meal, the resentful Second Aunt Xu gritted her teeth and said, “Xu Ao, I heard you went out to earn money? Where’s the silver you brought back?”
Second Uncle Xu, his stomach filled with noodle paste, added coldly, “Household expenses are managed by the Old Madam. Any money brought back cannot be kept privately.”
The Old Madam shot a dark look at Xu Ao, her meaning clear without words.
Just as Sang Zhixia’s brow twitched and she prepared to interject, another egg landed in her bowl.
She had only put two eggs in Xu Ao’s portion—one earlier, one now—and both ended up in her bowl.
“You…”
“I’m full.”
Xu Ao waved his hand behind his back toward her, picked up Xu Jinxi who hadn’t learned to use chopsticks yet, and began feeding her while saying calmly, “I was just about to mention that.”
He glanced indifferently at the crowd watching him like hawks and said unhurriedly, “Today I went with some villagers to find work. I can earn six copper coins a day.”
One egg could be sold for one copper coin—a day of grinding his shoulders raw only earned him six eggs.
Sang Zhixia suddenly found the eggs in her bowl hard to swallow, but Xu Ao’s tone remained even.
“I asked around. They still need more workers. Who’s coming with me tomorrow?”
With this shift, the problem was distributed to everyone. The initially aggressive Second Aunt Xu stared in astonishment: “What do you mean by that?”
“What else could I possibly mean?”
Xu Ao wiped little Xu Jinxi’s mouth and said, “Second Aunt, there’s no such thing as a free ride in this world.”
“Since we’ve ended up here, we must adapt to the rules of this place.”
Ignoring everyone’s livid expressions, he continued calmly, “Zhizhi is right. Grandfather and Grandmother have toiled their whole lives and shouldn’t have to labor anymore. It’s only right for the eldest branch to support them, but the rest of you can’t expect the same.”
“The food we have now won’t last much longer. Winter is coming soon, and staying warm and fed will become real challenges. Lying around all day won’t keep anyone alive.”
Supporting the elders and taking care of the younger siblings and his wife were responsibilities he couldn’t shirk.
But his responsibilities didn’t extend to additional unrelated people.
Seeing everyone remain silent with grim faces, Sang Zhixia chimed in with a smile, “Grandfather, do you think Xu Ao’s words make sense?”
Don’t want to respond?
Then let’s bring in someone with weight—we must take this chance to settle the matter thoroughly today!
The Old Master gave her a deep look but didn’t speak.
Sang Zhixia wasn’t discouraged and continued leisurely, “Xu Ao earns just six copper coins a day. How can that possibly support so many people?”
“But if Second Uncle and Third Uncle also start working, that would be eighteen coins a day—barely enough to keep the family fed.”
To show she had no ulterior motives, she added earnestly, “Each branch contributes one laborer to earn money, while the rest share the household chores. Isn’t that fair and just?”
Meals are eaten together, so work should be done together too.
This principle holds true no matter when or where.
The Old Madam opened and closed her mouth repeatedly, unable to refute, and finally turned to the Old Master with a dark expression, “Old Master, this…”
“It should be so.”
The Old Master closed his eyes briefly and said hoarsely, “Second Son, Third Son, you’ll go with him starting tomorrow. From today onward, every branch must contribute people and effort to both indoor and outdoor chores.”
The eldest branch had set an example in everything; the second and third branches couldn’t freeload excessively anymore.
Otherwise, this already fractured family would fall apart sooner or later.
Sang Zhixia, seizing on the Old Master’s stubborn refusal to split the family, struck decisively. Having achieved her goal, she wisely said no more.
Second Uncle Xu, suddenly assigned a task, looked extremely displeased.
“Father, Xu Ao is willing to do rough labor, but how can I do such work?”
“I’m used to being crude and haven’t found lighter work yet,” Xu Ao replied with a faint smile. “But Second Uncle, you’re welcome to try. If you can find some refined, effortless job to earn money, I’ll handle the rough work alone.”
“You—”
“I’ll go!”
Third Uncle Xu, who had always been in poor health, said with a dark expression, “What’s the big deal about earning money? Everyone pitching in sounds fine to me!”
“Xu Ao, I’ll go with you!”
Xu Ao nodded agreeably, and Third Uncle Xu turned and went back to the rear room.
It was a rare meal without porridge, yet the atmosphere grew heavy by the end.
Claiming she had cooked the meal, Sang Zhixia stopped Xu Wenxiu from volunteering to wash the dishes and dumped the remaining chores on Third Aunt instead. She then gestured for Xu Wenxiu to take the children back to their room.
Just as Xu Ao handed over his meager six copper coins to the Old Madam and returned to the west shed after brewing Sang Zhixia’s medicine, he saw her measuring his outer garment.
His throat tightened, and he asked hoarsely, “What…”
“Perfect timing.”
Sang Zhixia tossed him an old garment she no longer intended to wear, confirmed the positioning, and said, “I couldn’t find scissors. Help me tear this into palm-sized fabric scraps.”
Xu Ao didn’t understand what she was trying to do, but his hands moved swiftly nonetheless.
By the time he finished tearing the old clothes, Sang Zhixia had already picked up her needle and thread.
She layered the torn fabric scraps and meticulously stitched them into the inner lining of his black outer garment, precisely reinforcing the shoulder area.
“You don’t have many clothes. If they all wear out, we’ll have to spend money on new ones. Adding thickness makes them more durable.”
“Though this stitching might affect the fit slightly. Would you try it on later?”
Xu Ao hadn’t expected her to notice such details. After a stunned pause, he turned his head away and said, “Alright.”
Pretending not to notice his discomfort, Sang Zhixia bit off the thread and got straight to the point: “From what you’ve said, the work you found through Brother Wu is temporary? It won’t last long?”
Xu Ao absently rubbed the mended garment and said, “Probably about a month. Winter comes early here – once it gets cold, we can’t fire the kilns anymore.”
Kilns?
Black coal mines don’t require firing.
The special clay in the northwest produced famously fine cyan bricks.
Considering only the shoulders of Xu Ao’s clothes were worn out, he was most likely working at a brick kiln.
So the Young Marquis really went to move bricks for quick money.
Having reached this conclusion internally, Sang Zhixia maintained a natural expression and said, “Even after this month ends, it’s not a sustainable solution. I’d like to discuss something with you.”
“After you finish this busy period, how about we switch to a different way of earning money?”
Xu Ao looked surprised. “Switch paths?”
“You already have an idea?”
Sang Zhixia smiled mysteriously. “Naturally.”