Chapter 4 Selling Food

“It’s going to hurt more and more now, bear with it.”
“Alright.”

The man’s originally cold and clear voice had turned hoarse. His hands trembled slightly—it was hard to tell whether it was from enduring the pain or from excitement.

A few minutes later, fine beads of sweat had formed densely on Fu Wencheng’s forehead, eventually dripping down onto his clothes.

“All done.”

Ming Leyao didn’t immediately remove the silver needles. Instead, she pulled out a small knife and searched around the room until she found an enamel basin. Not caring what it was normally used for, she placed it beneath Fu Wencheng’s feet. With a quick flick of her hand, she sliced open both of his big toes—foul-smelling, dark blood spurted out.

She stood quietly to the side, watching his feet. Only when the blood color gradually began to look normal did she pull the needles out. Then, she inserted a few around the soles of his feet, instantly stopping the bleeding.

This miraculous scene made Fu Wencheng’s pupils dilate sharply for a moment before settling back into calm.

“Thank you.”

His hoarse voice, imbued with a deep, masculine charm, made Ming Leyao’s heart flutter uncontrollably.

“You paid, I treated. It’s only fair.”

“Then… am I… cured now?”

“Oh, there’s still some residual poison. It won’t harm your body, and your system can flush it out on its own—but that’ll take time. Using medication would be faster. Just that…”

“I’ll have to pay again?”

“Now you’re getting it.”

“Alright. What medicine do you need?”

“This kind of medicine, I’ll need to get it myself. I can’t trust anyone else when it comes to my patients.”

Fu Wencheng automatically interpreted “my patients” as “my people”… The tips of his ears turned slightly red. Luckily, it was dark inside, so Ming Leyao didn’t notice.

“It’s hard to leave the production team, but I trust you’ll find a way?”

“Mm. Give me a couple of days. Wait for my message.”

“Alright. In the meantime, do some light movement inside, don’t overexert, and drink lots of water to flush out toxins.”

“Got it.”

“Then I’m off. Get some rest.”

Ming Leyao left decisively, leaving Fu Wencheng sitting on the bed, his cold, dark eyes turbulent with emotion.

Early the next morning, Ming Leyao was fast asleep on her hard wooden bed when the wooden door was suddenly slammed open from the outside with a loud bang, startling her upright.

She glanced at the door panel lying on the ground and then at Ming Hongdou, who swaggered in proudly. Ming Leyao’s fists clenched.

Damn it. Disturbing someone’s sleep should be punishable by death.

“What are you doing? Don’t you have any manners? Ever heard of knocking before entering someone’s room?”

Ming Hongdou was stunned by the verbal barrage.

“What? Cat got your tongue? Just gonna stand there like a dumb wooden post?”

Her rising irritation brought out her northeastern accent.

“Get lost. Now.”

“You… Ming Leyao… you… Grandma wants to see you in the main house.”

She turned and fled, her retreating figure looking a bit panicked.

“What’s that old witch up to now?”

Grumbling to herself, Ming Leyao took her time putting on clothes, folding her bedding, and washing up. Only then did she slowly stroll toward the main house.

She lifted the curtain—and wow. The place was packed.

Even her fourth uncle, who usually didn’t mix with the other brothers, was here, his face full of anger.

“Grandma…?”

Ming Hongdou was curled up in the old lady’s arms, sobbing dramatically.

“Oh my, our little princess finally decided to show up? Mother, better hurry up, wouldn’t want to disturb her precious rest.”

Her second uncle, Ming Li, spoke in a tone dripping with sarcasm. Ming Leyao glanced at him and let out a small snort before turning to the old lady.

“Grandma, what did you call me for?”

“You worthless girl! Eating my food, living under my roof, not lifting a finger—and you still have the nerve to bully my Hongdou? Looks like you don’t want to stay in this house anymore, do you?”

“Grandma, with all due respect, aren’t you afraid my parents might come back at night and ask why you’re mistreating their daughter?”

“I…”

The authorities may have condemned old superstitions, but many from the older generation still held a bit of fear toward ghosts and spirits. When Ming Leyao mentioned her deceased parents—who hadn’t returned because she craved snacks that night—the old woman visibly shuddered.

“And by the way, Ming Hongdou knocked my door clean off its hinges. I’m not paying to fix it.”

Now Ming Hongdou was the one shuddering.

Grandma might spoil her, but when it came to money, the old lady was ruthless.

Sure enough, the next second, a torrent of scolding rained down on Ming Hongdou.

“Enough! Let’s get to the main point—we’ve still got a lot of work left in the fields.”

“Fourth, no one asked you. Sit down and stay quiet.”

“Then why call me here in the first place? I’m leaving.”

“Stop right there!”

The old lady shoved Ming Hongdou aside, adjusted her clothes, crossed her legs on the bed, and swept her cloudy eyes across the sons in the room.

Yes—only the sons.

She believed daughters-in-law had no right to be part of family meetings. So whenever something important was discussed, no women were allowed.

(One can only wonder what the old man thinks of being excluded from his own family’s decisions…)

“There’s not much food left in the house, and your cousins are at the age to marry—they all need money. We’ve already done our duty raising you for all these years. You’re eighteen now. Time to stand on your own two feet.”

“Grandma, are you saying you want to divide the family?”

“Sister, Grandma has loved you all these years. But now the family really needs the money—can you bear to take more from us and make her worry herself sick?”

“Don’t make it sound so righteous. All these years, I’ve earned the most work points, eaten the least, and you’ve still been taking my 20 yuan annual support stipend. Spending my money while pretending to be generous—now you dress it up as ‘letting me be independent,’ but the ugly truth is you’re kicking me out because I’m injured and no longer of any use to you, right?”

“Sis, how could you think like that? You… you’re really breaking Grandma’s heart.”

“Oh, drop the act, Ming Yuehe. Every year when Grandma gets my support money, she buys you and Ming Hongdou new clothes. Don’t you have the slightest idea whose money you’re spending?”

Ming Leyao had always hated moral blackmail, and she had no patience for people who pretended to be innocent while being rotten inside. It was clear now—these two traits described the entire Ming family perfectly.

The room went dead silent. Ming Shi and Ming Li’s faces didn’t look good. They hadn’t expected that after being hit on the head, Ming Leyao would become this tough. Fourth Uncle, however, gave her an approving nod.

Then he said, “Mom, Big Brother, Second Brother—if you want to look good, you better be willing to bleed a little. Just sitting here talking dryly won’t get you the outcome you’re hoping for.”

Ah yes, Fourth Uncle was still Fourth Uncle—blunt as ever.

“Fourth, this matter needs to be decided by Mom. Don’t interrupt.”

“Pfft, with all the time you’ve wasted yapping, I could’ve already earned three work points. Work points mean money, mean food. You’re wasting food here, don’t you know? And waste is shameful.”

The old lady was practically seething from being lectured by her own son. She wanted to scold him but couldn’t very well say wasting food was right, could she?

So instead, she turned her eyes toward her eldest son. Ming Shi gave her a subtle signal, and the old lady understood. She said, “You’re my own granddaughter. Of course I care about you. How could I possibly send you away with nothing? You were just too impatient and didn’t let me finish.”

“Well then, I’d love to hear what it is Grandma wants to give me.”

“Back when we were splitting land, our family had more people, so we got an extra residential plot. Originally, we built a house there for your eldest uncle’s marriage. But your uncle is so filial—he didn’t want to move far from me, so he never lived in it. That house is yours now.”

Ming Leyao searched the original host’s memories and remembered there was such a place. When she was little, she visited with her parents. The yard wasn’t big, the mud-brick house didn’t even have window panes, and the surrounding neighbors were few and far between. Still, it wasn’t a bad spot to settle down.

“Mom, how about giving her some food too? Leyao’s still injured and can’t work yet. Since you love her so much, surely you wouldn’t let her starve, right?”

The old lady: “……”
This son… might as well disown him.

No matter how reluctant she was, Ming Shi wanted to salvage his reputation quickly. He firmly believed that even if Ming Leyao left now, she’d eventually come crawling back—and when that happened, he could demand double for what he “gave” her now.

He kept sending pleading glances at his mother until she finally relented and agreed to give ten extra jin of food. Of course, it wasn’t fine grain—just coarse grain.

Ming Leyao didn’t care. Her space (storage dimension) was stocked with more than enough. Once she was free, she could eat whatever she wanted.

With the village leader and some respected elders present, the matter of the family split was quickly resolved. Ming Leyao didn’t want to spend another second with these people. She packed her things, ready to head off into her newfound freedom.

But just as she was about to leave, a strange feeling struck her. Why had the old lady agreed to split her off so easily? In her earlier excitement, she hadn’t thought it through—but now that she had calmed down, it seemed fishy. That old woman must be up to something.

She quickly put her things down and crept up under the window of the main house, eavesdropping on the conversation inside.

“Mom, tomorrow you can start chatting with people, talk about how hard it was to raise Ming Leyao, and make sure they know how ungrateful she is—that we had no choice but to let her go.”

“Alright, I understand.”

“Mom, make sure you act heartbroken. My reputation depends on you.”

“Don’t worry. As your mother, I’ll definitely deliver.”

After hearing this, Ming Leyao sneered, picked up her things, and walked away without looking back.