Chapter 29: The First Month of Managing the Household—A Loss of 10 Yuan!

When Madam Zhao was in charge, she almost always made two pairs of shoes every month, sometimes even sewing a set of clothes.

Why? Because the household had more than a dozen people.

Over the course of a year, each person needed at least two new pairs of shoes—that was over twenty pairs, which couldn’t all be done at once.

So she spread the work out month by month.

In the two or three months before New Year, she doubled production to make sure everyone had new clothes and shoes for the holiday.

Since this had been the tradition under Madam Zhao’s management, Xia Lan also reluctantly pulled out another 5 yuan for clothes and shoes.

But that left her with only 4 yuan of the 30 yuan allowance.

She thought if she spent carefully, maybe buying meat twice, she could get through the month. After all, the grain had already been handled.

From here on, it should have just been routine.

But Xia Lan was far too optimistic.

Within a couple of days, one of Qian Ertian’s cousins got married, and another family friend’s son had a baby. Both required gift money.

And the 4 yuan worth of eggs she’d bought—barely forty in total—disappeared within a week when divided among over a dozen mouths.

Even “sparingly,” that meant a few scrambled eggs here and there, or a boiled egg each.

If they had eaten freely, half would’ve been gone in a single day.

After the gift money and the eggs, Xia Lan was left with only 2 yuan.

In less than ten days, the entire monthly 30 yuan allowance was gone.

Her heart ached.

But she couldn’t let the family go without some meat or eggs, or everyone would think she wasn’t doing as well as Madam Zhao.

So she gritted her teeth and spent the last 2 yuan on more eggs.

But some weren’t satisfied.

Zhao Dongdong, Madam Zhao’s youngest, was mischievous. At the table he piped up, deliberately stirring trouble:
“Second Sister-in-law, when my mother was in charge, we ate meat every few days. How come it’s been so long without meat now?”

“I want meat, meat!” one of the children from the eldest branch chimed in.
“Grandpa, I want meat!”

Children knew how to read the room—and they always appealed to Grandpa, the true authority in the house.

Even Father Qian frowned.
“Second daughter-in-law, if I recall correctly, the only time we had meat since you started was right when I gave you the allowance. It’s been half a month—it’s time for meat again.”

He thought it was just an oversight.

But Ertian knew the truth. The 30 yuan was already gone.

They had fought so hard to win control of the household budget, but they couldn’t be expected to subsidize it with their own money.

So Ertian admitted it awkwardly:
“Father, the 30 yuan is already spent. We had to buy cloth for clothes and shoes, give gifts, and we’ve been eating well—every other day we’ve had fine grain.”

“How is that better? We used to eat meat every few days. Now it’s been half a month without it!” Zhao Dongdong rubbed his cheek dramatically.
“I think I’ve even gotten thinner.”

Thinner? Hardly—he’d put on weight.

Ever since Xia Lan took charge, he’d been eating even more. He even stopped eating at the school canteen, taking food from home instead to “save money.”

He’d fill up at dinner, then sneak an extra bun to eat the next day. Why spend his own money when there was free food at home?

What? Already out of money?

In all the time Madam Zhao managed, this had never happened.

Sure, she also had to cover gift money, clothes, and shoes. But unless someone needed half a year’s tuition or had a serious illness, she never once asked for more.

Qian Sanya stepped in, smoothing things over.
“Father, maybe Second Sister-in-law didn’t pay attention to the details. We used to eat fine grain every four or five days, but now it’s every other day. That’s why the spending is so high.”

Father Qian’s face darkened, and he pulled out another 5 yuan.
“If you can’t manage, then don’t. Take this 5 yuan and buy meat for the family.”

“I understand,” Xia Lan said, embarrassed.

But the troubles didn’t stop.

The youngest needed notebooks and pens for school.
Qian Daniu’s son begged for snacks.
One day it was cooking oil gone, the next it was salt.

By the end of the month, not only had Xia Lan failed to save a single cent, she had overspent by 5 yuan.

With the 5 yuan Father Qian had given specifically for meat, she had effectively lost 10 yuan in her very first month of management.

Yet neither she nor Ertian planned to give up the budget.

They told themselves the mistakes were just inexperience—too much fine grain, too many eggs, too many gifts.

Surely next month would be better.

But Madam Zhao, shrewd as ever, was already planning.

The second month was the lead-up to New Year.

That meant gifts, visits, new clothes, new shoes, and all the festival supplies.

She could already foresee Xia Lan losing even more.

Meanwhile, as the weather grew colder, Cheng’s time in the fields dwindled, and he spent more time at home.

And since Zhao Qianqian had her cousin covering shifts, she too stayed home often.

The newlyweds had more time together, and their relationship deepened.

Even if Qian Sanya wanted to stir trouble, she had no chance.

So instead, she turned her sights to Zhou Wen, the man destined to be a high official.

Once she married him, she’d have plenty of ways to deal with Zhao Qianqian.

And as for Cheng—she had already squeezed 150 yuan from him in broken engagement costs and another 50 yuan under the guise of saving his life.

That profit alone was enough for now.