Chapter 61

Jiang Wan guessed that they were probably on a small island. Lian Yue had previously told her at the dock that there were numerous islands, big and small, around the fishing village. Some islands could only be seen at low tide, remaining submerged when the tide was high. Those types of islands were perfect for gathering seafood. Once she taught her aunt to make oyster sauce, she definitely wanted to ask Brother Lian Yue to take her to explore a nearby island.

After studying with her uncle for a few days, Xiao Yuanzi would also go to the school, and the two families had grown closer, so Jiang Wan could make small requests more comfortably. Lian Yue noticed Jiang Wan’s look and remembered how curious she’d been with her questions last time, so he could pretty much guess what was on her mind. However, he didn’t have time to discuss it with her now; if he didn’t leave, his grandmother would start nagging him.

“Grandma, you take care of Xiao Wan and the others; I’m off to Lian Qiao’s house for a bit and will be back soon.”

“Hey! That cheeky boy!” Lian Yue’s grandmother sighed helplessly and led the two sisters to the backyard. In the fishing village, houses typically had a small toilet and vegetable patch out back. Behind Lian Yue’s house, there was a small patch of garden, with the rest of the area fenced off and a small shed for raising several chickens and ducks.

“Xiao Ning, Xiao Wan, do you want to pick the chickens and ducks yourself, or should I choose for you?”

“Please choose for us! Everyone in the village says you raise the best chickens and ducks, so the ones you pick must be good.”

“Alright, alright, I’ll choose for you,” Lian Yue’s grandmother said cheerfully as she went into the pen and skillfully picked out the two large chickens, three chicks, and three ducks Jiang Wan wanted, tied their wings with dry straw, and carried them out. Combined, they were quite heavy, but luckily she had brought a basket.

“Grandma Qian, do you have a scale?”

“I do, I do.” Lian Yue’s grandmother fetched a scale and weighed the chickens and ducks separately.

“The two hens weigh eleven pound, and the ducks weigh fifteen pound. Our village’s egg-laying hens are a bit expensive—fifteen wen per pound. The female ducks are cheaper, twelve wen per pound. The three chicks will be thirty wen. Altogether…”

The elderly woman was a bit confused after doing all that math, so Jiang Wan quickly calculated the total.

“Three hundred seventy-five wen in total, Grandma Qian. Please double-check.”

“No need, no need. Three hundred seventy-five wen is fine,” Grandma Qian replied, already having developed a trusting fondness for the Yin family. She believed the children wouldn’t cheat her.

While counting out the money for Grandma Qian, Jiang Wan reflected. Just half a month ago, no one in the village even wanted to interact with her family, but now everyone treated them with respect. Most people’s change of heart was because her uncle was going to be the village teacher.

The power of knowledge—it’s effective in every era, she thought. She should focus on learning to read, too. Her cousin would be back to her own room tonight, so it was a perfect time to ask her mother to teach her.

The sisters took the chickens and ducks and walked along the canal path home. At that time of day, plenty of people were by the canal, some relaxing, others washing dishes. Later in the evening, a group of men would come to bathe in the canal. The sisters walked lightly, and, with the gentle babble of water in the canal, no one noticed them unless they greeted someone.

“Ah Xiang, why can’t girls learn to read?”

“It’s always been like that—only men can go to school.”

“But I heard some young ladies in wealthy families can read and write, which means girls can learn too.”

“Well, that’s because we were born in a fishing village. If you want to be born in a rich family, that’s for the next life.”

The sisters passed by those young women, and they couldn’t help but look back. The girls were in the bloom of youth, but their faces showed little vitality, only weariness. They longed for knowledge, but society’s constraints on women meant they could only envy the boys. Growing up doing housework and then marrying early, spending their lives working in someone else’s household, they were trapped in the small village, living a life they could see the end of. If they were lucky enough to marry a kind man, they might have a good life; if they were less fortunate, their lives would be ruined.

Jiang Wan’s mind raced with thoughts. She felt that she and her mother had come here for a reason. But for now, she needed to get their family settled. First, they had to make money; once they had money, problems would be easier to solve.

Without saying another word, the sisters headed back home. At this moment, Song Wenhui had already fenced off a small area in the courtyard with sticks to serve as a temporary pen for the chickens and ducks. Tomorrow, she’d buy a few mud bricks from the neighbors and build a sturdier pen. She hoped the chickens and ducks would lay plenty of eggs for the family.

“Auntie, where’s my mother?”

“She went back to the stone house; someone came by asking her to make some medicinal pills,” her aunt replied.

Jiang Wan nodded. Seeing there was nothing else to do in the courtyard, she let her aunt and uncle know she was heading back as well. Yin Ning was reluctant to part from her cousin, but was also a little excited because, with her cousin gone, she could light a lamp and work on embroidering a handkerchief at night. For the past few days, she had been sharing the stone house with her cousin and aunt, and aside from one night finishing her embroidery, her cousin wouldn’t even let her bring needlework into the stone house, insisting she only work in the daylight. She knew her cousin was looking out for her, but the family was short on money, and she wanted to earn a bit more to help. Once the family was more financially stable, she’d obediently refrain from doing needlework at night.

Yin Ning watched her cousin walk up to the door of the stone house.

Only then did she turn around. She took the fire striker from the stove, ignited some dry grass, and then lit the oil lamp. Returning to her small room, she set the oil lamp in place, then quickly ran out to wash up before slipping back into her bed to start embroidering the handkerchief. But just as she picked up the needle, there was a knock at the door.

“A-Ning.”

“Mom, come in; the door’s not locked.”

Yin Ning thought her mom wanted to have a private chat since she hadn’t slept at home in a few days. But as soon as her mother came in, she took away the needlework and handkerchief from Yin Ning’s hands—along with the oil lamp.

“Wanwan mentioned that doing embroidery by oil lamp at night can ruin your eyesight. I’ll take these; you can finish it tomorrow in daylight.”

Yin Ning: !!!

She thought no one would stop her now that her cousin was gone, but who would’ve thought that little trickster had actually enlisted her mother to keep an eye on her!