Early the next morning, Hua Wanxi entered the bathroom to check whether the bowl from yesterday was still there.
At a glance, she saw it still sitting steadily on the sink.
Delighted, she walked over, picked it up, and took a sip. The temperature was exactly the same as when she had placed it there yesterday.
Great! That meant she could store her own things in here!
Everything she had taken out yesterday had already been automatically replenished. After washing up, she left the bathroom and saw that the two little ones were awake. She quickly took them to clean their bottoms, changed their diaper pants, and then carried them out to feed them.
The babies were changing every single day. They were already able to smile at her. Although they were not her biological children, she had given birth to them herself in this world, and she had long since treated them as her own. Seeing their innocent smiles, her heart softened completely.
Jiang He returned home later than usual that day. He had brought more soap with him, and since he would be supplying it daily in the future, he was worried that relying only on Shopkeeper Zhang might allow him to gain control over them. So he personally went to knock on the doors of several wealthy households in the area.
Both Jiang He and his brother Jiang Chi were quick-witted. He had always been interested in business, but previously had neither capital nor opportunity. Now, with his second sister-in-law’s products, he wanted to make things more stable.
Because he sold to multiple families, he returned later than usual. It took more than two hours by ox cart to travel from town back to the village, and he had even arranged with Old Jiang, the cart driver, to take his cart every day from now on—successfully negotiating a one-copper discount per trip.
He returned home carrying an empty basket. Wang Shi greeted him immediately.
“Husband, why are you back so late today? I’ve saved dinner for you—wait a moment!”
Jiang He put down the basket, casually washed his face, and sat down to explain what had happened that day.
Then he took out the silver from inside his inner pocket and placed it on the table—86 taels in total, dazzling the entire family.
“Wow! So much silver!” Jiang Wenwan couldn’t help but exclaim. In both her lifetimes, she had never seen so much money.
“Shh! Keep your voice down!” Mother Jiang said carefully. She went to close the main hall door tightly. Although it was already dark and no one would be outside, it was still better to be cautious.
Father Jiang was also shocked. He had never expected that something as simple as soap for washing clothes could sell for so much money.
While eating, Jiang He said, “Wang Shi, later take the silver to my sister-in-law. There’s a total of 86 taels—we’ll keep 8 taels.”
Eight taels!
Their whole family worked hard farming all year, and even after selling surplus grain at the end of the year, they would only earn a little over ten taels. Now they could earn eight taels in a single day—something they had never even dared to imagine before.
“Oh my heavens! Are we going to live a good life now?” Wang Shi covered her mouth in disbelief.
“It’s all thanks to Hua Shi. She always thinks of us when she has good things—you must help her more in the future,” Mother Jiang said. She had already changed her attitude toward Hua Wanxi and now felt she was a good daughter-in-law.
“I understand, Mother!” Wang Shi picked out 8 taels and placed them on the table. She then carefully put the remaining silver into a basket, covered it with cloth, and sneaked out cautiously.
Mother Jiang happily held the 8 taels of silver. “Since we now have income, we should eat better. Eldest son, tomorrow buy two jin of meat when you return, and also some cloth and cotton—we’ll all make new clothes for the New Year!”
“Alright, Mother!” Jiang He smiled, all his fatigue gone.
Jiang Wenwan also felt relieved. Now that the family had money, they should be able to stockpile grain before next year’s disasters.
Mother Jiang was about to hide the silver when she saw the basket placed by the door.
“Oh dear, this Wang Shi—always so careless! She even forgot to take the basket back. How will we carry the soap tomorrow?”
She instructed Jiang Wenwan, “Wenwan, take the basket over and come back with your mother later.”
“Yes, Grandma!”
When Wang Shi arrived at Hua Wanxi’s home, she handed over the 78 taels of silver from the basket and finally relaxed. Carrying so much money had made her nervous the whole way.
“So much!” Hua Wanxi was surprised. She had originally thought it would only sell for around 50 taels.
Wang Shi looked proud. “It was all thanks to your uncle’s cleverness. He sold them separately to several wealthy households, and they all rushed to buy them! The total was 86 taels. We already kept 8 taels.”
The town was relatively prosperous, with many wealthy families, so unusual goods sold easily.
86 taels meant she should have received 8 taels and 6 qian, but Hua Wanxi did not want to take even that small advantage, since she was already taking the larger share.
She took out one tael of silver and placed it in Wang Shi’s hand.
“Sister-in-law, this is a little private money for you. I know the family silver is usually kept by Mother-in-law, and it’s not easy for you to get spending money. Keep this for yourself—you can use it to buy things for the children.”
Wang Shi was surprised she was given an extra tael of private silver. She originally wanted to refuse, but remembering what Hua Wanxi had said before and sensing her sincerity, she gratefully accepted it, deciding to treat her even better in the future.
At that moment, Jiang Wenwan came in carrying the basket. She saw her mother and second aunt still chatting and realized they had forgotten the basket.
Wang Shi slapped her forehead. “Look at me—I got so excited I even forgot the basket!”
Hua Wanxi couldn’t help but laugh.
“Second sister-in-law, does anyone in the village know how to weave baskets? I’d like to ask someone to make a few.”
“We do! My father can make them. Not just baskets—he can make all kinds. He used to sell them in town, but there were too many sellers and prices were driven too low, so he stopped. How many do you need? I’ll tell him when I get back.”
After thinking, Hua Wanxi said, “About twenty. Also tell your uncle to bring back a few large jars, and buy more bowls and plates.”
She needed containers for cooked food and water. She didn’t dare request too much yet and planned to prepare more after her confinement period.
“Alright, I’ll remember. Second sister-in-law, quickly put the soap in.”
Wang Shi handed her the basket and waited for her to load the goods.
Hua Wanxi was already prepared. She had stored all the soap in a cabinet. In front of them, she opened it and began placing the soap inside one by one.
Wang Shi wisely did not look closely and instead pulled Jiang Wenwan back, standing at a distance.