The embroiderers at Li’s Embroidery Workshop were allowed one day off per month.

Tomorrow happened to be Madam Yu’s rest day.

In the evening, after the family had finished their supper, they all sat down together to go over their finances.

Qin Rong took out a delicate, antique-style jewelry box from her inn-space.

She made up a story that she had bought it from a shop and brought it out.

The jewelry box was made of camphor wood and had two layers.

So far, Qin Rong had only used the bottom layer.

Madam Yu smiled and said, “Let’s tally up the books today. I’ll go first.”

With that, she took out all her money. “Here I’ve got 810 copper coins. My monthly wage is 600 coins, and the remaining 210 coins are tips I received.”

“I’ll go second!” said Qin Yue. “I earned 180 coins from making decorative knots. Here, Mother, you can have them. The extra 10 coins came from doing some tasks for Big Sister—she gave them to me.”

Madam Yu smiled. “Since your big sister gave them to you, you can save them up. Consider it your personal stash.”

“Alright!” Qin Yue beamed with joy. Though it wasn’t much money, it was hers to manage freely. Having some money gave her confidence.

It was Qin Rong’s turn.

She brought over the jewelry box and said, “These past days, except for the rainy ones, I’ve set up my stall every day. After deducting the costs, I made 2 taels and 1 qian of silver. Another tael came from selling shrimp powder and salted bamboo shoots, and I earned 210 copper coins from the custom order Lord Zhuang gave me. All in all, I made 3 taels of silver and 310 coins this month. There are 2 taels and 8 qian left in the box—the missing amount was spent on household expenses.”

Qin Rong never skimped on herself, so the meals at home during this period had been quite good.

You could see it on their faces—each member of the family looked noticeably rounder.

Qin Yi didn’t fully grasp what Qin Rong said, but Madam Yu and Qin Yue were both wide-eyed. “You earned that much?!”

Qin Rong laughed. “It’s not that much. I’m thinking that once I’ve saved enough, I should open a shop. Relying on a street stall means being at the mercy of the weather. If it rains, the ingredients go to waste.”

Madam Yu was proud of her daughter’s capability. “A’Rong is right. You earned this silver yourself. Since you plan to open a shop, then you should keep it.”

What she said made sense.

The household hadn’t lacked for anything lately, and all four of them looked healthier and more energetic.

Qin Rong had been working hard every day, waking up early and going to bed late.

Since the money was earned through her own labor and she also covered most of the household expenses, it wouldn’t be right to ask her to hand it over.

Moreover, Qin Rong’s age was approaching marriageable years.

Given their current situation, arranging a marriage might be somewhat difficult. Saving more money would only help.

As for the other two daughters, there was still time to build up a decent dowry.

After tallying their finances and chatting for a bit, the girls went to bed.

Qin Rong also went to rest early—she was going up the mountain tomorrow with Yu Dashan and Yu Xiaoshan.

The wild hills outside town were a bit far, so Qin Rong woke up early.

She planned to make scallion-stuffed rolls to bring along.

She had already prepared the ingredients the night before—spring roll wrappers, fried dough sticks, and eggs—so all she needed to do now was cook them.

She placed a thin stone slab over the charcoal stove.

Since she hadn’t found a flat-bottomed pan in this era, she had asked her uncle to find her a flat stone by the river.

Once the slab was heated, Qin Rong poured oil on it and first reheated the fried dough sticks.

Then she added more oil and laid the spring roll wrapper flat on the hot stone, cracking an egg on top and spreading it out with chopsticks.

The golden egg fused with the milky-white wrapper.

Qin Rong moved quickly—adding the fried dough stick, brushing on sweet sauce and spicy sauce all in one go. She folded the wrapper in half and pressed it flat with a spatula.

After a few repetitions, a batch of fragrant scallion-stuffed rolls was ready.

Qin Rong wasn’t fond of scallions, so she didn’t include any.

She made over twenty rolls in total, wrapped ten in oiled paper and placed them in her bamboo basket, and left the rest in the pot, covered to keep warm.

To prepare for the trip up the mountain, she had also bought a water pouch from the general store. After filling it with hot water, her preparations were complete.

At this time, it was still dark outside.

Qin Rong carried her basket and headed to the docks, where Yu Dashan and Yu Xiaoshan were already waiting.

“A’Rong, let’s go,” said Yu Dashan.

The three of them boarded an ox cart.

Since the mountain was far, they planned to ride the cart to a rest stop at the base.

There was a tea house there, which had become a common resting point for donkey and ox carts due to the amount of foot traffic.

After agreeing on a pickup time with the cart driver, Qin Rong and the Yu brothers headed into the wild mountain.

“I made breakfast. Try some,” said Qin Rong once they arrived at the mountain base, handing them the rolls.

Yu Xiaoshan had already caught a whiff of the delicious aroma in the cart, but he hadn’t asked about it out of courtesy.

Now, he couldn’t hold back anymore.

He took a roll and took a big bite.

The flavor of egg and sauce exploded in his mouth—it was rich, fragrant, and satisfying.

He eagerly took another bite and finally tasted the chewy fried dough stick. “So good! Sis, what is this?”

“It’s called scallion-stuffed roll,” Qin Rong said with a bright smile.

Yu Dashan had interacted less with Qin Rong and was a bit reserved.

But with the first bite, all of that vanished—he could only think of one thing: this roll was delicious.

The three of them ate and rested a bit before heading into the mountain.

By the time they reached the wild bamboo forest, the sun was already high.

Yu Dashan and Yu Xiaoshan set down their baskets and grabbed their tools to dig for bamboo shoots. Qin Rong wandered a bit nearby and spotted plenty of shepherd’s purse and Indian aster (Malantou).

The Indian aster was a bit old, but the shepherd’s purse was still tender.

Qin Rong crouched down and began foraging.

After clearing one patch, she moved to another and found quite a few mushrooms on the ground. In no time, she had picked a small basketful.

She hadn’t expected this wild mountain to have so many mushrooms.

Once dried and ground into powder, they made excellent seasoning.

Even more surprising, Qin Rong discovered a patch of wild Chinese toon (xiangchun).

This was a true delicacy—great for mixing with tofu, stir-frying with eggs, or making cold dishes and wraps. It could be eaten fresh, pickled, or sautéed.

Harvesting the toon leaves took some time. After placing them carefully in her basket, Yu Xiaoshan came over.

“Sis, we’re about done digging.”

“Alright, let’s head back then.”