“Doing business?” Mother Xu stared at him in disbelief. “You said you’re doing business with who?”
Xu Ming’an took a few deep breaths and said excitedly, “With Little Sister! You have no idea how amazing she was in town today. Just those three jars of honey alone, and with that silver tongue of hers, she sold them for seven hundred wen!”
Madam Zhou looked at Xu Ming’an suspiciously. She had long known there was a troublemaker in the family, and sooner or later, he would lead everyone else astray.
One gambler in the Xu family was bad enough. If there were two, that would be a disaster.
Mother Xu’s eyes lit up. Quickly setting down the wild vegetables she was carrying, she said happily, “Really? I’ve always said your little sister was clever since childhood. I never imagined she had a talent for business too! I’ll go tell your father right away. Good thing he had that dream!”
Madam Zhou held back for as long as she could before finally blurting out, “Second Brother, at least make your lies believable. We should be thanking heaven if Little Sister manages not to squander money. Making money? Don’t tell me you’ve been sold off and are still helping count the money afterward.”
“Big Sister-in-law, it’s true!” Xu Ming’an’s face turned red with anxiety as he hurriedly defended himself.
“Hmph. I’ve been married into the Xu family for ten years. Maybe I don’t know everything, but I certainly know exactly what Xu Mingzhu is capable of. If she can really make money, then I don’t deserve to be her sister-in-law anymore. From now on, she’ll be my elder sister instead!”
Just as the words left her mouth, a sweet and gentle voice came from outside the courtyard gate. “Mother, Sister-in-law, you’re back?”
Lifting the hem of her skirt, Xu Mingzhu stepped out of the kitchen with a faint smile. “I got lucky and earned a bit of money today. I bought some meat and coarse rice. Come inside and eat.”
As everyone stepped into the house, a rich, mouthwatering aroma of meat mixed with hot, fragrant oil rushed toward them, instantly stirring their appetites.
“Heavens!” Mother Xu exclaimed. “That smell of meat, it’s actually coming from our house!”
On the table sat a large basin of golden pork cracklings. Beside it sat glossy, cooked meat, and a bowl of coarse rice sat at each seat. Swallowing repeatedly, she said with heartfelt satisfaction, “Never in my wildest dreams did I think we’d see a day like this!”
Xu Ming’an became even more smug. “That’s not all. Little Sister bought a whole lot more meat. You should’ve seen how she bargained while selling honey in town today. It was an eye-opener! If she’d come to her senses earlier, our family would’ve had more wealth than even the richest landlords in Qingzhou.”
Embarrassed by his praise, Xu Mingzhu quickly changed the subject. “Mother, Sister-in-law, Second Brother is exaggerating. I only earned seven hundred wen today, and I spent over four hundred wen on meat and spices.”
After a pause, she continued: “A long time ago, someone who owed money to a gambling den couldn’t repay the debt, so they gave me a recipe for braised dishes as collateral. It’s been so long that my memory of it is a little fuzzy now. I only made a small batch to try it out. Everyone, have a taste. If you like it, I’ll go into town tomorrow and sell braised meat to earn money properly.”
“How is that possible? People in the village have bought honey before. It only sold for a few wen.” Madam Zhou suddenly interjected. “If you’re going to lie, at least do some research first. Are you brother and sister still not going to tell the truth?”
Xu Ming’an’s lips were practically dry from all his explaining, yet Madam Zhou still refused to believe him. Helpless, he spread his hands and left the matter to Xu Mingzhu.
“Big Sister-in-law, this is the money from selling the honey.” Seeing the situation, Xu Mingzhu stopped arguing. She reached into her robes and pulled out a hefty stack of copper coins. With a loud clatter, she poured them onto the wooden table. “Big Sister-in-law, the money is right here. If you still don’t believe me, there’s nothing more I can do.”
She then picked up a string of one hundred coins and handed it to Mother Xu, her voice soft and gentle. “Mother, keep these one hundred wen. I’ll carry the rest with me. It’ll be useful for making change and maintaining cash flow when I set up my stall tomorrow.”
Mother Xu stared at the real copper coins on the table, then looked at her sensible, filial youngest daughter. Her voice trembled with delight. “All of this… is for me?”
Xu Mingzhu smiled. “You’re my mother. Of course the money your daughter earns should be given to you.”
Mother Xu’s smile was so wide she could hardly close her mouth. She wished she could run outside right that very moment and let all the villagers see that her daughter was far from an ignorant good-for-nothing. On the contrary, she was both capable and filial.
Gently weighing the coins in her palms, she admired them for a moment before stuffing them all back into Xu Mingzhu’s hands. “Mingzhu, Mother is already overjoyed by the thought. You keep the money. Everyone says business is hardest at the beginning, and this is exactly when you need funds. How could I take it?”
Knowing her mother’s disposition well and understanding that she was genuinely thinking of her, Xu Mingzhu deliberately adopted the clingy, coquettish manner she used to have.
“Mother, please just keep it. Otherwise, if I’m carrying this much money around and fail to control myself, what if I become muddleheaded again and run off to the gambling den like before? That would be terrible.”
The moment those words left her mouth, Mother Xu stopped hesitating entirely. She immediately took the money, tucked it into her pocket, and pressed a hand tightly over it. “Fine, fine. Mother will keep it for you. Whenever you need money in the future, just come to me. I’ll return every single coin without keeping even one.”
“Mother, you can’t accept it. We haven’t even figured out where this money came from yet.” Madam Zhou still refused to believe that Xu Mingzhu could earn money. Even if she had, it must have been ill-gotten gains from a gambling house.
Mother Xu became furious as soon as she heard that and pointed at her while scolding: “Eldest Daughter-in-law, didn’t you hear what the brother and sister just said? This is money earned from selling honey. If you dare spout nonsense again, you can go back to your maiden home tonight!”
Reprimanded in front of everyone, Madam Zhou’s face alternated between red and pale. In the end, she closed her mouth, though the way she stared straight at Xu Mingzhu made it obvious she still didn’t believe her.
“Sister-in-law, since you don’t believe me, then take another look. At least the food on this table is real, isn’t it? Let’s eat first.” Xu Mingzhu helped Mother Xu sit down and placed a bowl and chopsticks in her hands. “Mother, eat. Try my cooking.”
Xu Ming’an had long been driven restless by the aroma of meat. The moment Mother Xu sat down, he quickly claimed the seat beside her and stared eagerly at the dishes on the table.
Madam Zhou’s gaze was equally glued to the feast of rich food before her, her emotions a tangled mess. The fresh meat was real. The crispy pork cracklings were real. Not the slightest bit fake.
Xu Mingzhu looked up at her and invited her warmly. “Sister-in-law, sit down and eat with us.”
Pressing her lips together, Madam Zhou awkwardly replied, “All right.”
Though she still put on a stubborn front, the aroma of the food had already left her nearly dizzy with hunger. She thought to herself that Xu Mingzhu had squandered the family’s savings in the past and even wasted her dowry. Eating a few bites of this girl’s meat dishes hardly counted as taking advantage of her.
Mother Xu shot her a glare. “Didn’t you say the money came from a shady source? Then why are you eating? Go eat your wild vegetables instead.”
After saying that, she picked out the meat and pork cracklings first and placed them into Xu Mingzhu’s bowl. “Mingzhu, thanks to you, your mother gets to eat meat too. You’ve worked hard. Eat first, and eat more.”
“Mother, there’s plenty. Enough for everyone. Let’s all eat.”
Mother Xu then took out a large bowl and piled it high with food before handing it to Xu Ming’an. “Take this to your Uncle Song’s family. Tell them it’s your little sister showing filial respect to the two elders after earning some money.”
Xu Mingzhu quickly interrupted. “Don’t mention me. Just tell them it’s food from our family.”
The Song family had never forgotten the Xus whenever they had something good. Now that the Xu family had food to spare, it was only right to share. Xu Mingzhu had thought of doing so herself earlier, but when she remembered how things would turn out in the future, she had forcibly suppressed the idea.
Since Mother Xu had brought it up first, however, she could hardly object.
“But Mother, we’re about to eat,” Xu Ming’an complained unwillingly, chopsticks already in hand.
“Then hurry up and go.”
“All right, all right!”
Seeing that Mother Xu was angry, Xu Ming’an grabbed the bowl and ran off at top speed. As he disappeared, his anxious voice drifted back through the air: “Make sure you wait for me before you start eating!”