Second Uncle Jiang was good at calculating, and he quickly ran the numbers in his head.

If they sold thirty catties of soybeans worth of tofu in a day, the net profit would be 480 wen!

What did 480 wen mean?

The eldest son worked in the city doing hard labor—backbreaking and exhausting—yet only earned 32 wen a day.

Even so, there were still many people scrambling for such work.

A porter carrying heavy loads for four or five hours a day would only make 37 or 38 wen.

Compared to that, making tofu, no matter how tiring, was well worth it.

Even though malt sugar wouldn’t sell in large quantities, the profit margin was high, and it didn’t require too much labor.

Their family and Fifth Brother’s family didn’t have many strong laborers…

After a brief moment of contemplation, Jiang Yang spoke, “Third Brother’s family has more people and strong laborers. Third Sister-in-law has a sharp tongue—she should have no trouble selling tofu. I think their family can take on the tofu business.

Fifth Brother’s family has mostly teenage boys—no one wants to hire them for outside work, but they sure can eat. I’ve looked after them before, and his eldest son and Da Tao have some small, irregular jobs in the city, meaning they have a fixed monthly income. So, our two families should handle the malt sugar business together.”

Shen Qing thought Jiang Yang’s arrangement was very reasonable.

After spending the past two days with them, she noticed that Jiang Ying and Jiang Daliang were straightforward and outspoken—definitely not shy about talking to people.

Third Sister-in-law Zhao Mingyue was even better at socializing, so the three of them had no trouble selling things.

However, Fifth Brother’s family was the complete opposite.

Every single one of them, from the men to the women, was as quiet as a teapot boiling dumplings—introverted to the core.

They could work hard in silence, but asking them to go out and sell things was like asking for their lives.

Since they couldn’t manage a business on their own, they had to work alongside Second and Third Brother’s families.

And since those two families had two strong laborers who weren’t being utilized, it made sense for them to pair up for the malt sugar business.

“Alright! Then once you gather everyone, I’ll teach them all at once?”

Jiang Ying swallowed hard, still processing how lucrative this business was.

Yet her sister-in-law was so willing to hand it over, and her father actually agreed?

Even though her sister-in-law had her own money-making skills now, there were five brothers in the Xiangdong family.

When they split up in the future, each household could have its own craft, meaning this skill would eventually belong to someone else…

Jiang Yang raised his hand with a serious expression. “Wait, let me make something clear first. On behalf of Third and Fifth Brother’s families, I want to establish an agreement with you.”

Shen Qing looked at him in confusion. “…Didn’t we already settle things? As long as your three families are in agreement, what else is there to discuss with me?”

“This is your skill. No matter how you learned it, it belongs to you. Today, you are generously teaching us, and we are not the kind of people who take advantage of others.

So, after deducting costs, the profits from tofu and malt sugar will be split 50-50 with you.” Jiang Yang stated firmly.

Hearing “50-50,” Shen Qing immediately objected.

“No way! I’m just giving you the recipe. From sourcing ingredients to production to selling, I won’t be involved at all. I won’t be spending a single wen or lifting a single finger, so how could I take half the profits?”

She still had the most lucrative skills in her hands.

Tofu and malt sugar were hard work—real, physical labor that earned every coin through sweat and effort. How could she take a cut of their earnings?

Jiang Ying chimed in, “Sister-in-law, your recipe is the most important part! Even with a 50-50 split, just from tofu alone, you’d still be earning at least a hundred wen a day! A hundred wen is something we couldn’t earn even if we worked ourselves to the bone. You deserve a share of the profits!”

None of them feared hard work—only the inability to make money.

Skills like these were extremely rare.

Families who possessed such knowledge passed them down for generations, guarding them tightly.

No one would ever share them so freely, except for their sister-in-law.

Seeing Jiang Yang’s firm stance and Jiang Ying’s unwavering support, Shen Qing knew they wouldn’t budge on the idea of giving her a share.

She compromised, “Fine, let’s meet in the middle. I’ll take a cut, but just 20%. If you don’t agree, I won’t teach.”

Jiang Ying was so moved she nearly cried.

Their sister-in-law was truly too kind.

How was this a compromise?

She had actually taken multiple steps back!

Jiang Yang saw that Shen Qing was determined and let out a sigh. “Alright, it’s settled then.”

Once he got back, he would make sure their three families remembered Shen Qing’s kindness and found a way to repay her someday.

Shen Qing continued, “Making tofu involves grinding soybeans, boiling the liquid, coagulating it, straining, molding, and pressing. We’ll split up the tasks. You go gather your people. Third Sister-in-law’s family can start by grinding the soybeans. I have lime at home—I’ll go fetch some and stop by Carpenter Guan’s place to order some wooden tofu molds.

As for the malt sugar, there’s no rush. When you get home, soak the wheat in water. Tomorrow at this time, take it out and leave it in a cool place to sprout. Water it two to three times a day. I’ll check on it in four days and decide the next steps.”

That would give them time to get the tofu business up and running first.

“Got it! I’ll go call everyone right now!”

—

When Shen Qing returned home to get the lime, she saw that Jiang Yu had already taken a hot bath and changed into clean clothes borrowed from Guan Li.

The bonesetter Jiang Xiangdong had hired had arrived.

He examined Jiang Yu and said, “Fortunately, there’s no fracture. However, I can’t say for sure whether there are any bone cracks. If you want, I can prescribe a bone-healing ointment to help it recover faster.”

Jiang Yu was about to shake her head, worried about the cost, when Shen Qing cut in, “Yes! Doctor, how many applications would be best?”

It took a hundred days to recover from injuries like these.

Even if it wasn’t a full fracture, a bone crack couldn’t be ignored—especially since they would be fleeing in two months.

If her leg wasn’t fully healed, how could she travel?

What if there was an attack from desperate refugees?

Her life could be in real danger!

The old doctor stroked his beard and said, “Her injury isn’t severe. Three applications will do. In about half a month, it will mostly heal. In a month, she should be able to walk normally, and in two months, she’ll be as good as new.”

Shen Qing let out a breath of relief. “I’ll go get the money.”

Jiang Xiangzhong, seeing that the diagnosis was complete, spoke up, “Mother, the travel permit for Little Aunt has been issued. Who should keep it?”

Before Shen Qing could answer, Jiang Yu hurriedly said, “I’ll keep mine with Sister-in-law, just like the rest of you.”

Since Shen Qing had a secure storage place, she had already planned to keep all the permits together for safety.

Seeing Jiang Yu’s trust, she accepted it without hesitation.

Once inside her room, she quickly stored the permit away and retrieved some silver.

After paying the doctor, collecting the lime, and placing the order with Carpenter Guan, Shen Qing wasted no time in heading to Second Uncle Jiang’s house.

But as she arrived, she overheard an argument—

“Village chief, in the past, we let it slide when you protected her just because she was your niece-in-law. But now, she’s committing adultery and ruining her reputation! Precisely because she is your niece-in-law, you should be handling this more strictly!”

“Zhou Chuncao, watch your mouth! Who are you accusing of adultery? Who are you claiming has a ruined reputation?”

“Yingzi, I know you always defend your in-laws, but think about your deceased brother! If she cheated on him, isn’t that bringing shame upon your entire family?”

“Not to mention, what about your nephews and nieces? How will they face the world? How will they hold their heads high?”