Madam Sun’s face was full of disappointment.

Her sister-in-law had taken the lanterns that her daughters had painstakingly picked without paying a single penny.

If they didn’t earn any money tomorrow, wouldn’t those eleven coins be wasted?

Thinking of this, Madam Sun suddenly froze.

If she were running this business, she certainly wouldn’t spend money hiring people to help pick lantern grass.

That meant her sister-in-law was making more money than she had imagined.

“Big Aunt bought Brother Sidaan some delicious pastries…” Donghua licked her lips and said, “She also bought a lot of fabric. Four Elder Brothers is going to have new clothes soon…”

Buying meat, ducks, pastries, and fabric—it must mean she earned at least a hundred coins.

A few months ago, when her husband went to town to carry heavy loads, he only earned twenty copper coins a day!

A thought surfaced in Madam Sun’s mind.

She spoke slowly, “Dashan’s wife is pregnant and can’t move around easily, and those boys are not careful with things. Sister-in-law must be too busy handling the food business alone. I’ll go help her tomorrow…”

As soon as she spoke, Old Madam Zhao knew what she was up to and scolded her impatiently, “Why are you so shallow? Instead of eyeing other people’s money, you should focus on your own work… You seem quite free, huh? Tomorrow, go and pull out all the weeds in the fields!”

Madam Sun’s face turned green.

The Zhao family hadn’t split up, and the three households’ fields were still combined.

Just the rice paddies alone covered more than twenty acres.

Pulling out all the weeds? That would kill her!

At the break of dawn, Madam Sun was woken up by Old Madam Zhao to weed the fields.

As she stepped outside, she saw Zhao Da’s ox cart arriving at the village entrance.

Shortly after, Cheng Wanwan took the four boys out and got on the cart.

Madam Sun stood on the field ridge, gritted her teeth, and headed toward the end of the village.

In the courtyard, only Wu Huiniang was at home.

All four boys had gone with Cheng Wanwan to sell ice jelly at Hekou Town.

Wu Huiniang was sitting in the hall, cutting fabric.

After cutting a piece of cloth, she shifted uncomfortably, her face slightly flushed.

Last night, in the middle of the night, her mother-in-law had suddenly called her out and handed her two palm-sized cloth pads, telling her to wear them to prevent gynecological diseases.

She didn’t know what gynecological diseases were, but she knew she had to listen to her mother-in-law, so she put them on.

It was indeed more comfortable, but she wasn’t used to it. She kept twisting and adjusting her sitting posture.

“Cluck cluck!”

“Quack quack!”

The chickens and ducks in the yard suddenly squawked in alarm.

Wu Huiniang quickly put down her work and stepped outside, only to see Madam Sun pushing at the courtyard gate.

She hurried forward and opened the gate. “Third Aunt, what brings you here?”

Madam Sun entered, her eyes scanning around.

She first counted how many ducklings there were, then walked straight into the hall, immediately spotting a bolt of dark blue homespun fabric on the table.

She forced a smile. “Dashan’s wife, you’re making clothes?”

Wu Huiniang answered frankly, “Dashan’s clothes were all left from when my father-in-law was alive. He hasn’t had new ones in years. Mother-in-law is thoughtful and asked me to make him a new set.”

“These are the lanterns Chunhua and Donghua brought yesterday, right?” Madam Sun noticed a basket of lanterns in the corner of the hall. She casually walked over and picked one up. “It’s strange, isn’t it? These lanterns don’t look special at all—how do they turn into delicious and beautiful ice jelly? Dashan’s wife, teach me.”

Wu Huiniang immediately became alert but kept a calm expression, maintaining her usual soft and delicate demeanor. “Third Aunt, I’m not sure either. Mother-in-law didn’t let me get involved.”

Madam Sun pressed on, “Do you boil these lanterns in a pot, or do you dry them and grind them into powder? You must know that much, right?”

Wu Huiniang continued shaking her head, refusing to say a word.

Madam Sun had no choice but to use her ultimate trick: “If you tell me the ice jelly recipe, I’ll split the profits with you. However much I earn, you get half. That money will be yours alone—your mother-in-law won’t have any control over it.”

Wu Huiniang still remained silent.

“You’re so stupid!” Madam Sun lost her patience and scolded, “With your mute personality, no wonder your mother-in-law controls you completely. Everyone in the village knows she mistreats you. You’re pregnant, yet you’re still washing clothes, stoking the fire, and working like a servant… Now that your mother-in-law can make money, she’s going to be like the Queen Mother of Heaven, and you’ll just be stuck suffering!”

Wu Huiniang lowered her head, glanced around, then picked up a broom and started sweeping at Madam Sun’s feet. “Third Aunt, please step aside, I need to sweep. Move, move…”

Holding the broom, she directly swept Madam Sun out of the house.

Then, she slammed the courtyard gate shut.

Madam Sun was fuming with rage.

“Yucai’s wife, what are you doing here?” Aunt Wang from next door returned from the fields and called out. “There are two young men from Guihua Village at the village entrance. They seem to be your relatives. The patrol team didn’t let them in since they looked strong and capable, but they asked someone to inform you.”

The patrol team of Dahe Village was becoming more organized. If a single outsider came, they could be allowed in after questioning.

But if two or more came, they had to wait outside for someone to verify their purpose.

Madam Sun walked to the village entrance and saw her two nephews from her maiden family.

“Aunt, Grandma sent us to borrow grain,” the older nephew got straight to the point. “All the crops in Guihua Village have dried up. Grandma said our whole family has to rely on you this year.”

Madam Sun felt her scalp tingle.

There were nearly twenty people in her maiden family—if they were counting on her, who was she supposed to count on?

She snapped, “The crops in Dahe Village didn’t dry up, but they’re still growing in the fields! Where am I supposed to borrow grain from? Wait until the harvest, then we’ll talk!”

By then, lending out ten pounds of grain would be enough to show she still cared about her family.

The sun gradually climbed higher.

Cheng Wanwan and her four sons finally arrived at Hekou Town.

She reminded Zhao Da once again, “Uncle Da, we’ll meet at the city gate just before noon. Don’t leave without us!”

If she didn’t have the ox cart, she’d have to walk back home on foot. That would be exhausting. If she had to do this every day, she’d rather quit the business.

Zhao Da naturally agreed. He could earn ten copper coins for transporting the mother and her four sons back and forth.

Last night, Cheng Wanwan and Wu Huiniang had used two pounds of stone flower seeds to make three large tubs of ice jelly, which would yield over 350 bowls.

The academy alone couldn’t consume that much, so she decided to try selling at the dock first.

Hekou Town’s dock wasn’t large, but it was bustling with people.

As soon as a boat docked, laborers rushed up to load and unload cargo.

Some carried goods away, while others finished their work and waited for the next job.

The crowd was constantly shifting.

Cheng Wanwan found a few discarded wooden planks, set up a makeshift low table, and began calling out to customers.

There were no buildings or trees by the river, and the scorching sun beat down relentlessly. The laborers, eager for relief, stripped to their waists to work.

The moment they heard someone was selling ice jelly with free samples, they immediately gathered around.