Rongrong had slept in for a long time and, upon waking, noticed that the sunlight was already slanting onto the bed.

She quickly got up, rubbed her eyes, and attempted to get out of bed, only to find a small hand resting on her arm.

Turning her head, she saw Yuanbao’s peaceful sleeping face.

Yuanbao slept soundly, his mouth slightly upturned in a smile.

His closed eyes and long lashes made them look even longer against his fair face.

Such a heavenly child—how could he be her son?

Rongrong felt emotional and her nose began to tingle with the onset of tears.

However, since she had cried so much earlier, she couldn’t shed any more tears now, despite the urge to.

“Rongrong, Rongrong, are you up?” Grandma Xue called from outside the door.

“Yes,” Rongrong answered softly, got out of bed, pulled the blanket over Yuanbao, and went to open the door.

Seeing Rongrong with red, swollen eyes, Old Lady Xue’s heart ached. “What happened? Don’t be afraid. Tell Grandmother. If it’s too difficult here in the capital, we can always return to our hometown.”

Rongrong closed the door and helped her grandmother to sit in the courtyard.

Just as she was about to explain, Fei Cui stepped forward and said, “Don’t worry, Old Lady. This is all my fault. Earlier, I mentioned my background to Miss Rongrong, and she was moved to tears by my story.”

Hearing Fei Cui’s explanation, Rongrong quickly nodded in agreement.

At this moment, her smile was genuine and natural.

Old Lady Xue, seeing this, felt reassured.

Rongrong’s demeanor didn’t seem like someone who had been wronged.

Instead, she appeared cheerful, with even her hair seeming to radiate joy.

“You’re always so soft-hearted. You used to cry whenever you heard the neighbor killing pigs.”

“Grandmother, please don’t tease me,” Rongrong said, taking out the key Fei Cui had given her earlier and placing it on the table. “Now that we have more people in the family, I’ve rented the courtyard next door as well. We’ll sort things out later, and you can move in there.”

“You’ve rented the courtyard too? Is the rent more expensive now?”

“It doesn’t matter. I’ve already paid.”

Old Lady Xue wanted to object but, hearing that Rongrong had already paid, she could only acquiesce.

“Yuanbao will be having dinner at home today. I need to see if there are any other ingredients left.” Although the house had meat and vegetables, Yuanbao was used to fine dining.

Even a single dish like soup required five or six types of ingredients.

He had eaten a lot at noon because he was trying something new, but he couldn’t keep up this way for every meal.

So she planned to go out to buy more ingredients.

Seeing this, Xue Xiaoshan took up a basket and followed Rongrong out.

Rongrong was happy to have Xue Xiaoshan accompany her, especially since she planned to buy a variety of items.

She had noticed earlier that while the house had chicken and pork as she requested, there was no fruit and the vegetables were just the cheapest cabbage and radishes.

The spices she had bought earlier were used up, and they hadn’t replenished them.

The kitchen only had basic salt, soy sauce, and sugar.

Her grandmother and second brother were used to being frugal, so Rongrong decided to buy additional items at the market.

The siblings left and headed straight to the vegetable market.

At this time, most of the markets in the capital had already closed, and only the largest market in the city center was still open.

The location of Wutong Lane was convenient, so Rongrong didn’t call for a carriage and walked along with Xue Xiaoshan.

“Rongrong, about Yang Tong…” Xue Xiaoshan hesitated for a moment before finally speaking up.

“What is it?” Rongrong asked.

“He came to our home several times while you weren’t there.”

Rongrong realized that Xue Xiaoshan had misunderstood, so she explained, “He is a friend I met in the capital. Once, while we were discussing storybooks, he asked me to help revise a manuscript that had been rejected by the publishing house. I came back today with the revised manuscript. If he comes again, you can give him the manuscript for me.”

Xue Xiaoshan looked enlightened. “So that’s what happened. I’ll let Grandmother know. Last time Yang Tong came over, Grandmother stopped him and talked to him for a long time, asking about the family and whether he was married.”

Grandmother did that…

Rongrong found it both amusing and embarrassing. “Please explain the situation to Grandmother. If she behaves like this again, don’t let Yang Tong visit next time.”

Xue Xiaoshan also laughed. “By the way, Yang Tong asked me to pass on a message to you!”

“What’s the message?” Rongrong asked.

“He came to our house that day to say that the book had been sold and he was there to give us the payment. I was confused at the time and didn’t dare to take his money, so I sent him away.”

“Sold? Is it ‘The Cold Mountain Record’?” Rongrong was overjoyed upon hearing this.

Yang Tong had mentioned that ‘The Cold Mountain Record’ had been rejected by several publishing houses.

Rongrong had only helped with the editing a little, and it had been sold?

Could she really have this talent?

Rongrong was delighted, and perhaps she could indeed make money writing stories.

Xue Xiaoshan frowned as he thought. “I don’t remember the book title exactly, but it seems to be ‘The Cold Mountain Record’.”

Seeing Rongrong so happy, Xue Xiaoshan also smiled. “If he brings the payment next time, should I accept it?”

“Yes, accept it. Did he mention how much it was?”

“I didn’t note it down, but it should be around ten taels.”

Rongrong nodded and casually asked, “How much money do we have saved up now?”

Seeing Rongrong inquire about the finances, Xue Xiaoshan quickly calculated the account for her. “Last time, you made five cured hams, and Chunxing and I took them to the Hui Bin Restaurant. The shopkeeper gave us fifty taels of silver, which I immediately exchanged for a banknote at Xinglong Bank. Previously, you also gave thirty taels for household expenses. However, Grandmother spends a lot on chicken, so we have only twenty-two taels left. In total, we have seventy-two taels, which I’ve kept. You can have it when you return home.”

Seventy-two taels…

If used all at once, it would certainly cause problems for the household’s livelihood.

But if added to the money from Yang Tong, it would be fine.

With a firm decision, Rongrong said, “Elder Brother, do you know Zhenzhen?”

Zhenzhen?

Remembering the beautiful girl who had knocked on the door that day, Xue Xiaoshan’s face immediately turned red.

“Zhenzhen came to see Grandmother that day and also bought a lot of supplements.”

“Zhenzhen is my closest friend from the Jingning Marquis’s residence. When I redeemed myself, she used her savings to help me.” Rongrong explained, “Zhenzhen lost her family when she was young. When she was sold to the Marquis’s residence, she signed a death contract, so she needed one hundred taels of silver to redeem herself.”

Xue Xiaoshan had never thought that the money Rongrong earned was meant for him.

When Rongrong wanted to use it to redeem a friend, he naturally had no objections.

“But how are we going to make up the remaining twenty or so taels?” Xue Xiaoshan had worked a few days of odd jobs in the capital, earning much more than in the countryside, but supporting their grandmother’s daily chicken diet was still beyond his means.

If all the money were spent, their grandmother might end up back eating only vegetables and buns every day.

“Don’t worry. I have a bead here that was a reward from a previous employer. I’ll bring it to Er Ge later, and he can pawn it for me. Last time, I pawned a similar bead and got thirty taels. That should be more than enough.”

Xue Xiaoshan felt guilty and didn’t know what to say.

The family’s good life depended entirely on Rongrong.

Expressing thanks seemed insufficient and couldn’t make up for all her contributions.

The two arrived at the market.

Although there were still stalls set up, most of the fresh vegetables had already been sold in the morning.

Rongrong bought two jin of oranges and selected some vegetables that could be stored, like eggplants, pumpkins, and mushrooms.

She also bought pig’s trotters and carp. After buying these, they went to a spice shop to get some spices like fennel, star anise, and Sichuan pepper before heading home.

This back-and-forth took quite some time. Rongrong sorted out the ingredients for dinner and gave them to Chun Xing and Fei Cui to prepare.

She then handed over the manuscript to Xue Xiaoshan.

“These are the manuscripts of ‘The Dragon Maiden’ from Yang Tong. Just tell him that I think it’s pretty good and there’s nothing much to change.” Rongrong said, pulling out another thin stack of manuscript. “This is the ending I wrote for ‘The Dragon Maiden’. Ask Yang Tong to take a look. He’s an expert in writing, so please have him help me refine it.”

Yang Tong’s original ‘The Dragon Maiden’ would definitely sell if taken to the bookstore.

Rongrong’s ending was just a little experiment to satisfy her own curiosity.

She wanted to hear Yang Tong’s opinion.

Xue Xiaoshan, who could read, carefully noted Rongrong’s instructions and put away the two stacks of manuscripts.

“Brother, I heard today that you and Grandmother plan to rent a shop to open a bun stall?” Rongrong asked.

“Yes,” Xue Xiaoshan acknowledged.

As an older brother, he had hands and feet and couldn’t keep relying on his sister.

He needed to find a livelihood.

“I’m in a hurry to redeem Zhenzhen, so the shop plan will have to be delayed for a few months.”

Xue Xiaoshan smiled, “It’s no problem.”

He had inquired earlier that shop rents in the capital were very expensive, especially in the prime location of Wutong Alley.

Renting a shop near home would quickly deplete the money Rongrong had saved.

Therefore, he abandoned the plan and decided to start with a stall.

If the buns sold well, he could save more money or borrow from Rongrong to open a shop.

This seemed safer and wouldn’t waste Rongrong’s savings.

But he kept these thoughts to himself. If the stall didn’t work out, he wouldn’t mention it to Rongrong to avoid making her worry.

While the siblings were talking, Rongrong’s gaze fell on the mark on Xue Xiaoshan’s wrist.

Seeing Rongrong staring at his wrist, Xue Xiaoshan raised his hand for her to see.

Rongrong realized she had been staring and lowered her head, her cheeks reddening, “Er Ge.”

Xue Xiaoshan smiled and touched the scar himself.

“It’s nothing. Sometimes I also look at this scar. It’s so round and in such a strange spot. Sometimes it still hurts.”

“It still hurts after all this time?” Rongrong was surprised.

Xue Xiaoshan nodded, “Occasionally, but it’s not unbearable. It only hurts for a moment and then it’s fine.”

The scar had been there when Rongrong first came to the Xue family, which meant it had been twenty years, and it still hurt!

“Elder Brother, should you see a doctor?”

Xue Xiaoshan dismissed it, saying, “It’s just a minor injury; there’s no need for such trouble. I’m used to it by now.”

Feicui, sitting nearby and peeling mushrooms, unexpectedly spoke up, “Some injuries and illnesses don’t manifest quickly; by the time they do, they might be beyond remedy. Young Master, you should consider seeing a doctor.”

Feicui had never been one to speak up in the past, so both Xue Xiaoshan and Rongrong were surprised by her sudden intervention.

Noticing that Feicui was giving her a meaningful look, Rongrong was puzzled, wondering if there was some connection between Xue Xiaoshan and the Eastern Palace.

Feicui had mentioned coming to assist with another matter for the Crown Prince; could it be related to Xue Xiaoshan?

Feicui wasn’t a bad person, so Rongrong, seeing her earnestness, nodded. “Although the scar is minor, Elder Brother should not take it lightly.”

Seizing the opportunity, Feicui continued, “Miss, why don’t you ask the doctor who treated the old lady last time to check on Young Master? That doctor seemed very skilled and could likely help with Young Master’s unusual ailment.”

To invite Doctor Qin to examine Xue Xiaoshan?