“Mother, I’m feeling much better. From now on, I can go out to eat on my own.”
Li Xiuyun rose cautiously from the bed, reaching out to take the things from her mother-in-law’s hands.
“What matters most right now is your health. Rest well for a month or so. There’ll be plenty of times in the future when we’ll need you.”
Wu Yulan set the porridge on the table. Noticing some dirty clothes nearby, she picked them up and carried them out.
“Mother… I’ll wash them myself.”
How could Li Xiuyun dare let her mother-in-law wash her clothes? She hurried after her.
Hearing their conversation, Wang Guiqin quickly reached out and took the clothes.
“Younger sister-in-law, I’ll wash them. It’s just a few pieces—I’ll have them clean in no time.”
Wu Yulan hadn’t intended to wash them personally anyway. Rather than spend time doing laundry, she might as well catch a couple more fish to sell.
“Let your elder sister-in-law wash them. Just remember her kindness in the future.”
Wang Guiqin nodded repeatedly.
In the past few days, her mother-in-law had been treating them better and better. She had to be filial and make sure her mother-in-law saw her sincerity.
Li Xiuyun said nothing more. When Wang Guiqin had been in confinement, she had helped wash her clothes as well.
The sisters-in-law had always supported each other.
“Alright, drink your porridge first.”
“Yes!”
Wang Guiqin responded and followed behind her mother-in-law into the main hall.
On the table were bowls of vegetable and lean pork porridge. Afraid they wouldn’t dare serve themselves more after finishing, Wu Yulan had used large sea bowls for each portion.
“Alright, once you finish eating, get back to your chores!”
At Wu Yulan’s command, everyone obediently lifted their bowls and began drinking.
The children’s eyes sparkled. These past few days felt like a dream—not only could they eat their fill every day, but there was meat at every meal.
They looked at Wu Yulan, all silently hoping Grandma would continue treating them this well tomorrow.
Among them, Chun Ni’s gaze burned the brightest.
Wu Yulan noticed and tilted her head toward the girl. “What’s wrong? Not enough? Want another serving?”
Chun Ni shook her head. “Grandma, can you not turn back into how you were before?”
“The grandma now is so good. You let us eat until we’re full every day.”
Looking at Chun Ni’s thin, sallow little face, Wu Yulan cursed the old hag in her heart several more times.
She wanted to promise the little girl that she would let her eat her fill every day from now on. But she wasn’t sure if she could continue living in this old woman’s body forever. What if the original owner suddenly came back one day…
Just as Wu Yulan felt helpless, a message popped up on the system panel.
“Host, rest assured. The original owner committed many evils and her lifespan has ended. From now on, you are Wu Yulan.”
Seeing this, Wu Yulan finally relaxed.
She crouched down and ruffled Chun Ni’s dry yellow hair. “Grandma promises not to go back to how I was before. As long as I’m alive, everyone will have enough to eat.”
“Really?” Chun Ni looked up, eyes full of hope.
Wu Yulan met the child’s sincere gaze and smiled softly. She held out her hand. “Pinky swear.”
The little hand hooked around the big one.
Chun Ni’s clear voice rang out, “Pinky swear, hang on a hook—no changing for a hundred years!”
“Alright, Grandma promises I won’t change!”
…
After breakfast, Wu Yulan took her fishing rod and bait, bringing Da Lang and Er Lang to the riverside.
“Grandma, don’t we need to dig for earthworms?”
Song Er Lang tilted his head in confusion as Wu Yulan pinched off a lump of bait and tossed it into the river.
“This is fishing bait. Everyone uses earthworms. When fish eat too many of the same thing, it doesn’t feel fresh anymore.”
Song Da Lang nodded in sudden realization. “No wonder I couldn’t catch anything before!”
“Here, you two take a rod and try.”
Wu Yulan handed them each a fishing rod and showed them how to attach the bait.
Song Er Lang stared at the barb on the hook in puzzlement. “Grandma, why is this hook different from the ones we’ve seen?”
“This is a barbed hook. Once a fish bites, the barb makes it harder for it to escape.”
Wu Yulan kept working, tying another hook onto a small wooden stick for herself.
Hearing that fish wouldn’t easily escape with the barb, Song Er Lang’s eyes lit up.
“That amazing? I’ll try!”
He hurried to a deeper corner of the river and lowered his hook in, staring intently at the float.
However, after waiting a long time, there wasn’t the slightest movement.
There was no movement on Wu Yulan’s side either.
Fish had their biting times. Sometimes they bit; sometimes they didn’t. Wu Yulan had already prepared herself to catch nothing, so she wasn’t disappointed.
“Ah! I’ve got one!”
Song Da Lang’s cheerful voice rang out from the grass.
“Big Brother, I’m coming!”
Song Er Lang grabbed the net and ran over.
Before long, the two brothers came back grinning, carrying a carp weighing over two jin.
“Grandma, this hook really is amazing! Once the fish is on, no matter how it struggles, it can’t get away!”
Song Er Lang’s face was red with excitement as he held up the fish.
“It’s not as magical as you say. Sometimes fish still get away.”
Wu Yulan knew the boys were inexperienced. They might not have seen this kind of hook before, but the wisdom of the ancients was beyond imagination—this kind of hook must have existed long ago.
With their first catch, the brothers were fired up, diving into the grass eagerly.
They had truly found a school of fish—one after another was hooked.
In less than an hour, both buckets were filled to the brim.
“Let’s go. Take the fish home and keep them in the water vat first, or they’ll suffocate!”
Wu Yulan picked up the heavier bucket and headed home.
To her surprise, the two brothers were quite strong. Working together, they could carry the other bucket.
After returning home, Wu Yulan drew a vat full of water from the well in the courtyard and placed all the fish inside.
Once the fish were settled, the three of them picked up the buckets and headed back to the river.
Just after they left, a horse carriage arrived at the front gate.
“Excuse me…”