Jiang Yingying took a sip of soup and nodded. “Mom, this work is quite laborious, but it’s not too much.”
Li Xuelian sighed. “Is this clothing business of yours reliable? What can you exchange it for? Yingying, I’m afraid we might end up with nothing but losses…”
The family was already poor. Although this money was Yingying’s personal savings, every cent of common folks’ money was earned through sweat and blood!
Jiang Yingying knew she couldn’t hide the truth from Li Xuelian, so she decided to be straightforward. “Mom, exchanging goods isn’t illegal now. Besides, policies change quickly—who knows when free trade might be allowed? We have to get ahead of things to make money!”
Li Xuelian didn’t understand these matters and was full of worry. “Listen to your mother—if it doesn’t work out, don’t force it!”
She only knew that Jiang Yingying had bought some fabric, but she had no idea how much or how much money had been spent.
If she found out that over ten yuan had been spent in total, she would probably demand they stop immediately.
Just the two yuan for labor costs had kept her up half the night in distress.
But her daughter-in-law had already made the arrangements and hired people. Stopping it now would only make Yingying lose face.
Thinking this, Li Xuelian continued, “And Yingying, I know needlework too! Why hire someone else? Besides, you’re paying Xiaoyun a wage? How does that make sense? She’s your sister!”
Jiang Yingying smiled, her eyes curving like crescent moons. “Mom, no one should work for free, right?”
Li Xuelian still couldn’t get over that one yuan. “Don’t let Xiaohua come tomorrow. I’ll work with you all later—it’s raining today anyway, and we’re just sitting around at home!”
Jiang Yingying gently squeezed her rough, cracked hands. “Mom, you should rest properly! When I earn some money, I’ll buy you hand cream and a new set of clothes!”
Tears welled up in Li Xuelian’s eyes. Her eldest son had died young, her second son was quiet as a clam, and her only daughter never knew how to say comforting words.
This daughter-in-law was truly a little warm jacket sent from heaven!
Shen Yao watched as she cheered up his mother, feeling slightly irritated. If they were to divorce in the future, his mother would surely be heartbroken.
But…
He glanced at the relentless rain outside, threw on his cloak, and headed out.
Li Xuelian called after him, “A-Yao, it’s pouring! Where are you going?”
Shen Yao waved his hand without looking back. “Mom, I have some business to attend to. Don’t worry about me.”
“That child!” Li Xuelian muttered under her breath before turning back to Jiang Yingying. “Go ahead with your work. I’ll clean up here.”
Jiang Yingying didn’t refuse. She was never much good at household chores anyway—if she were to wash dishes, nine out of ten would probably break…
Inside the room, Shen Xiaoyun was instructing Xiaohua on the details of sewing. “These are clothes for wealthy people. They have high standards—not only do the stitches need to be tight, but they also have to look neat!”
She then pointed to the drawing Jiang Yingying had left on the table. “See this? This is the pattern. Sew according to this. If there’s anything you don’t understand, make sure to ask. Don’t keep quiet and mess it up—that would be trouble!”
Xiaohua carefully memorized the instructions and studied the pattern, unable to hold back her admiration. “This clothing design is really beautiful!”
Shen Xiaoyun lifted her head proudly. “My sister-in-law came up with this!”
After she finished speaking, her small face darkened. “I’m warning you, Xiaohua, I’m only letting you help because I consider you my best friend! If these designs get leaked, I’ll cut ties with you!”
Xiaohua hurriedly nodded. “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone!”
Jiang Yingying laughed cheerfully this time. “Alright, let’s get to work quickly and try to get as much done as possible today! Let’s begin!”
Outside, the heavy rain poured down, but the three girls worked with bustling enthusiasm.
Jiang Yingying was very articulate and skilled at giving compliments, making the two sixteen-year-old girls beam with joy. Even the usually quiet Xiaohua couldn’t help but break into a rare smile.
In the neighboring main room, Li Xuelian, who was weaving baskets with Shen Qinghong, felt both heartache and pride. “Don’t you think our daughter-in-law is kind-hearted? Even Xiaohua is earning a yuan for her work—isn’t she just pitying that girl?”
Shen Qinghong also smiled. “Xuelian, our son really married the right one! Other families might want to laugh at us, but I think they’ll be green with envy!”
Li Xuelian lifted her head proudly. “Of course! Where else in the surrounding villages could you find someone as beautiful as Yingying? She’s sensible, caring, and her words are so sweet…”
As she spoke, she remembered something and instructed Wenqin, “Go, bring some sweetened water for your aunts and cousins!”
And this sugar—it was Yingying who bought it!
Xiaohua was truly skilled at her work. Her needlework flew like the wind, even faster than Shen Xiaoyun’s.
What stood out most was that, although the girl rarely spoke, she was incredibly perceptive. Jiang Yingying had only casually mentioned the decorations, but after watching for a while, Xiaohua could not only make them herself but also create variations.
Jiang Yingying couldn’t stop praising her. “Little sister Xiaohua is truly amazing! I’ll have to rely on your help a lot in the future!”
She then glanced at Shen Xiaoyun and added, “And I’m even luckier to have a sister like Xiaoyun—beautiful, kind-hearted, and she even brought me such a capable helper!”
With one sentence, she complimented both girls.
The two young girls, feeling shy, lowered their heads and worked their needles even faster, as if one person could do the work of two…
Jiang Yingying smiled faintly and secretly checked her Green Tea System.
What she saw shocked her—in just two days, her luck points had already reached sixty-seven!
Taking advantage of a bathroom break, Jiang Yingying immediately started exchanging points. “I haven’t eaten meat for a day, and I’m craving it. Let’s exchange 10 luck points for meat ingredients!”
As for the remaining points, she planned to use them three days later when selling clothes, converting them directly into wealth points!
The system emitted a familiar yet strange sound. “Host, please note: stand in an open area and prepare to receive your reward.”
What in the world?
Jiang Yingying was stunned. Why was this different from last time? Could it be that the meat would just appear out of thin air?
Full of doubt, she stepped out of the bathroom. Since it was still raining outside, she was wearing a bamboo hat.
Suddenly, she heard a sound resembling a bird’s mournful cry, and then something fell from the sky, knocking the bamboo hat right off her head.
Jiang Yingying let out a frightened scream, followed by the familiar ding of the system in her mind.
“Exchanged item has been delivered. Please check, host!”
Inside the house, Li Xuelian, Shen Qinghong, Shen Xiaoyun, and Xiaohua all rushed out upon hearing the noise, with even the children Wenqin and Wencong following behind.
Then, everyone was dumbfounded.
There, in the heavy rain, stood Jiang Yingying, completely drenched, with a large wild goose clinging tightly to her pants leg, crying mournfully…
Li Xuelian quickly took off her own cloak and draped it over Jiang Yingying. “Oh dear, you’ll catch a cold in such heavy rain!”
Only after saying this did she look at the object on the ground. “What… what is this?”
Shen Qinghong stepped forward, picked up the goose, and watched as it let out two mournful cries before dying on the spot…
Just like that?
Shen Qinghong examined it carefully for a moment before suddenly bursting into laughter. “This goose must have gotten drenched in the rain during its flight, lost its strength, and fell to its death!”
Shen Xiaoyun was stunned for a moment. “So… can we eat it?”
Li Xuelian slapped her thigh. “Oh my goodness, didn’t I say it? Yingying is our family’s lucky star! Why did this goose have to fall right on Yingying of all places? When I came over just now, it was even clinging to Yingying’s leg!”
Only Jiang Yingying was cursing inwardly.
System, are you delivering meat or trying to kill me?
If it had landed directly on her head, wouldn’t it have crushed her to death?