“No worries, I have it all figured out,” Lu Meiyu said as she walked toward the stalls with the two little girls.
There were many vendors, but most looked a bit listless.
It was understandable—this year’s harvest was poor, and everyone felt a weight on their hearts.
As soon as they arrived, the vendors greeted them warmly.
“Sister-in-law, come take a look! These beautiful clothes are cheap and durable…”
“Selling shoes! These are handmade by my wife, very affordable!”
Lu Meiyu’s eyes immediately turned to the cloth shoe stall, which had all sorts of sizes.
“Do you have shoes for these two little girls?” she asked.
“Of course.”
Xiaoxuan couldn’t help but ask the price first: “How much per pair?”
The vendor smiled: “Little girl, these cloth shoes are eight wen per pair.”
Actually, not expensive at all—just eight wen.
The sisters tried on a pair each, all in black or gray coarse cloth, nothing fancy—just the right length and size mattered.
“You need to make sure they fit just right. Don’t buy ones that are too long; walking will be uncomfortable, understand?”
Lu Meiyu pressed on Xiaoxuan’s toes to check. Sure enough, the pair she picked was a bit long.
“Mom, I thought a longer pair would last longer.”
Xiaoxuan lowered her head, blushing as if she had done something wrong.
“I knew you’d think that way. Don’t worry—if they’re too small, your sister can wear them,” Lu Meiyu comforted her. Xiaoxuan brightened up and chose a properly fitting pair.
“We’ll take three pairs, give me a discount.”
The vendor was happy: “Three pairs, twenty-one wen.”
Lu Meiyu nodded and didn’t bother haggling over one wen. Every wen was hard-earned.
Compared to others, she considered herself lucky in earning money.
She also picked out her own pair and paid the twenty-one wen without hesitation.
Xiaoxuan whispered: “Mom, all the coins we made today are gone.”
Xiaowei added: “No, sister, we also spent money on the ox cart.”
Xiaoxuan’s expression darkened: “Then we’ll walk back. Mom, I’ll carry the basket.”
“No worries. We still have silver. Didn’t you forget that I earned silver by giving directions?” Lu Meiyu easily cheered the two girls up.
“Do you know how much one tael of silver is?” she asked.
The sisters shook their heads: “We just know it can buy a lot of things.”
Lu Meiyu considered explaining that one tael of silver equaled a thousand wen—but could they even comprehend a thousand wen?
It would be hard to explain.
Thinking this through, she realized it was time to give them some basic financial education.
“Anyway, don’t worry. I have a plan for money matters,” she said.
This sense of security needed to be given from a young age.
Otherwise, children growing up constantly anxious would carry too heavy a psychological burden to live happily.
While taking the ox cart, they spotted someone selling traditional baked flatbreads.
The old-fashioned baking pan was interesting: the dough was placed in, the pan flipped a few times, and the bread was ready.
Two wen with sugar, one wen without.
Lu Meiyu bought three with sugar—one for each of the girls and one for herself.
Though the sisters initially looked reluctant at spending, the delicious taste quickly erased their hesitation.
“So tasty, with sugar inside, sweet and warm.”
“Sweet and warm,” Xiaowei repeated after her sister.
Lu Meiyu was very satisfied. She had eaten such flatbreads once or twice as a child, then never again—probably too old-fashioned and phased out in the city.
She hadn’t expected to find them here.
The sugar inside was a bit sparse, which made sense—sugar was precious and couldn’t be used lavishly.
Naturally, their flatbreads attracted the attention of village women, who once again criticized them for “living wastefully.”
But Lu Meiyu didn’t care. Even the two little sisters, having been scolded so often, no longer felt shy—like they had done something wrong but were now used to it.
Lu Meiyu secretly laughed; a thick skin is built over time.
Sometimes, having a thicker skin makes life much easier.
Especially in this village, full of tough people—thin-skinned ones would be bullied.
Back home, Lu Meiyu reflected: earning money from this land was truly slow.
A few jin of vegetables for one wen, all carried painfully to town to sell!
But there was no other way to earn money—what else could be done?
From villagers’ gossip, working in town or the county as a laborer or servant would earn a few hundred wen per month.
Those options were clearly not under consideration.
Life in the village was relatively comfortable, and since she didn’t farm herself, the workload wasn’t too heavy.
She ate a flatbread to fill her stomach, not very hungry, and quickly started cooking for the two girls.
It was remarkable—she had never raised pets in her previous life, yet here she was a mother!
Luckily, the two girls were already several years old; if they were infants, she probably would have collapsed.
At this point, all three needed nutrition. Lu Meiyu didn’t think about saving money and bought three eggs and half a catty of meat from the space convenience store.
Chili fried with meat, zucchini scrambled with eggs, stir-fried spinach.
Life was indeed flavorful!
The two girls had grown accustomed to their mother’s generosity and knew she disliked hearing complaints about “waste.” They obediently ate heartily, which pleased Lu Meiyu even more.
After the meal, Xiaoxuan washed the dishes as usual, while Lu Meiyu prepared to go up the mountain again.
“Mom, we have silver now. The mountain is too dangerous…”
Xiaoxuan, lacking a sense of security, still urged caution.
Her concern made Lu Meiyu pause—what if something happened to her on the mountain?
She found a small, inconspicuous gray cloth, wrapped up the one tael of silver along with twenty copper coins, and brought Xiaoxuan to the woodshed.
“Xiaoxuan, I’ll hide this silver and coins here. If I don’t return for a while, you’ll still have money to use. Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon. Keep this secret—you and only you, not even your sister.”
Hearing this, Xiaoxuan became even more anxious: “Mom, I don’t want silver. Don’t go to the mountain. We have silver and food now, and soon we’ll harvest sweet potatoes and rice. Let’s not go to the mountain.”
She was terrified her mother would leave so much money with her, as if she wouldn’t come back.
“Mom, you’re not going to abandon me and my sister, right? I don’t want silver. We can eat less…”
Lu Meiyu exhaled deeply—ah, these little girls…