Ning Shu didn’t plan to use a scale to weigh the dried bamboo shoots.

She didn’t want anyone outside of Lin’s family to know about them.

Plus, when you take pictures and list items online, the weight is displayed automatically.

There’s no need for a scale.

Ning Shu poured out all the dried bamboo shoots, piled them together, and took a photo.

The displayed weight was 528 catties and 3 liang.

Ning Shu wrote down the weight and then took out some of the bamboo shoots to make it an even 528 catties.

She divided them into 264 portions, each priced at 25 yuan, labeled as “Aged Bamboo Shoots.”

After listing them online, Ning Shu didn’t pay much attention to them and just wiped herself down before going to bed.

Even though she had napped in the afternoon, she was still tired and fell asleep as soon as she lay down.

The next day, Ning Shu woke up naturally.

With nothing else to do, she checked the app first.

Checking the app daily had become as routine as eating.

Just when it was almost time for lunch, Zhang Qinfang arrived. “Third Sister, it’s time for lunch.”

Ning Shu replied, “Coming.”

Ning Shu was actually quite curious about the food from the second branch.

After all, her impression of Zhang Qinfang wasn’t that of a generous person.

However, when she arrived at the house and saw the dishes on the table, she was taken aback.

There were chickens on the second house’s dining table.

Oh my, did Zhang Qinfang specifically kill a chicken to entertain her?

Indeed, she did.

Zhang Qinfang had a bet with Qian Aifen.

The old Zhang Qinfang used to disdain flattering Ning Shu, but with Haicai falling ill, Ning Shu sending money, and then the couple from the first branch sending Haicai to the army, Zhang Qinfang realized the importance of Ning Shu’s relationship.

If they needed help in the future, who else could help them if they didn’t maintain a good relationship with Ning Shu?

Then, when Ning Shu brought Haicai back, Zhang Qinfang saw how well he was taken care of, which made her realize again.

So, when entertaining Ning Shu this time, Zhang Qinfang went all out.

Just like the first house, she slaughtered an old hen.

If you want to plow the fields, you have to invest.

She understood this principle.

“You go ahead and eat the meat, Third Sister.” Zhang Qinfang was enthusiastic during the meal.

The number of people at lunch was the same as the number at the first house’s dinner yesterday.

Apart from Ning Shu, Lin’s parents were also present.

Zhang Qinfang treated Lin’s parents well too, much better than during the property division.

Only when they split did they realize how tough life was.

They also knew that Lin’s parents were financially comfortable.

If she didn’t treat them well and let some benefits slip through their fingers, she wouldn’t be able to take care of the second house.

“Sister-in-law, don’t be polite. I’ll eat.” Ning Shu said so, but she only ate a piece of meat.

Although Zhang Qinfang had killed a chicken, and there were many dishes, her culinary skills were lacking, and the food wasn’t delicious.

Plus, she wasn’t lacking meat to eat, but she noticed that the nieces from the second house all looked thin, so she decided to leave a little bit more for them to eat.

Zhang Qinfang had a severe preference for boys over girls.

Although she was better than many parents who mistreated their daughters, she was unwilling to spend money on the girls’ education if Lin’s parents didn’t cover it.

She even thought that when the girls grew up and got married, the dowry should be saved for her sons.

But Lin’s parents were still healthy, and the girls from the second house were already teenagers.

By the time they were ready to marry, Lin’s parents should still be around.

As long as they were there, Zhang Qinfang wouldn’t have the final say in the girls’ marriages.

After having a good lunch, Ning Shu stayed for a while and then went to Lin Xiaohan’s house.

“Sister, are you home?”

Lin Xiaohan’s Mother had just reheated the leftovers from the morning.

When she heard Ning Shu’s voice, she hurriedly went out. “Yes, yes, Ning Zhiqing, come in quickly.”

Ning Shu walked in with a smile. “You haven’t eaten yet?”

“Not yet. Xiaohan and Xiaoshi went to collect firewood. I’m waiting for them to come back.

Have you eaten? If not, you can eat with us. The dishes aren’t that good, though. Ning Zhiqing, please don’t mind.” She felt a bit embarrassed.

She did want to invite Ning Shu for a meal, but there was nothing good enough at home to entertain her with.

“I’ve already eaten. Sister, don’t bother. I came over to talk about the dried bamboo shoots. I’ve weighed them, and it’s a total of 528 catties and 3 liang. I’ll just round it down to 528 catties.”

“So much?” Lin Xiaohan’s mother thought she had only weighed 526 catties.

But she didn’t weigh them all at once; she added them up gradually, and she erased a few liang each time.

That’s why it was only 526 catties.

“Let’s round it down to 520 catties then. The extra few catties can be considered as a gift for your family.”

Ning Shu said, “No need. We have to calculate this properly. And it’s not a one-time deal. We’ll continue in the future. 528 catties, 1 cent per catty. I’ll give you 52.8 yuan, let’s round it up to 53 yuan.”

Lin Xiaohan’s Mother was stunned to hear that she would receive 53 yuan.

She barely managed to save 10 yuan from her year’s worth of work points, so she never expected to earn so much just from dried bamboo shoots.

However, she hesitated, “Are dried bamboo shoots really worth that much? This… It’s only worth a few cents per catty.” She felt embarrassed to accept 1 cent per catty from Ning Shu.

Ning Shu said, “Sister, you also know that if I were eating them myself or giving them away, I wouldn’t charge so much for dried bamboo shoots.

So, by selling them to you for 1 cent per catty, I still make a profit. Don’t be polite with me. This shows that your character is good. If it were someone else, they would want to charge more.”

And these dried bamboo shoots were listed on the app for 25 yuan for 2 catties per portion.

If all 264 portions were sold, it would be 6600 yuan.

In fact, 25 yuan for 2 catties of dried bamboo shoots was cheap.

Generally, you could sell a catty for 20 yuan.

The reason she priced them so low was because they were aged dried bamboo shoots.

Actually, in terms of taste, there isn’t much difference between aged dried bamboo shoots and this year’s dried bamboo shoots.

It’s just that some customers might mind, so she lowered the price.

“Since you put it that way, then I won’t hold back.” Lin’s Xiaohan’s Mother felt emotional.

Ning Shu was really a good person.

Regardless of how much profit she made, if someone else were to buy the dried bamboo shoots, they would probably only pay a few cents per catty.

Ning Shu’s conscience was truly commendable.

Ning Shu continued, “I’ll still need dried bamboo shoots in the future. If nothing unexpected happens, I probably won’t come back this year or next year. It will have to wait until the year after next.”

Lin Xiaohan’s Mother hurriedly said, “No problem. I’ll dry and store them like this time.”

The dried bamboo shoots this time were indeed well-preserved.

Ning Shu had checked, and they were all dried thoroughly, without any moisture.

In fact, the reason why the dried bamboo shoots weren’t moist was because Xiaohan’s Mother often took them out to dry.

She felt that since Ning Shu was willing to give them money, she couldn’t cut off this source of income.

Besides, she also wanted to do things with integrity and not embarrass Ning Shu.

Ning Shu and Lin Xiaohan’s mother chatted for a while, and they eventually talked about the Zhuang family.

Lin Xiaohan’s mother said mysteriously, “Do you know? Xiaopang’s mother remarried.” Her voice was very low, afraid of causing trouble.

Ning Shu knew about this. “My mother-in-law mentioned it to me. When she called me two years ago, she mentioned that Xiaopang was sent away by his mother and then his mother remarried.”

Lin Xiaohan’s mother nodded. “We don’t know if Xiaopang was really sent away by his mother. It’s just speculation. Actually, before Xiaopang pushed Haicai, his mother was secretly looking for someone. But at that time, she didn’t make up her mind to remarry. Later, when the incident with Xiaopang pushing Haicai happened, your eldest brother and sister-in-law reported it to the police, and since Xiaopang was gone, Xiaopang’s mother couldn’t stay here alone. So, she made up her mind to remarry.”

“Is that so?” In Ning Shu’s impression, Xiaopang’s mother was quite energetic, so she never expected her to remarry.

Judging by Xiaopang’s mother’s age, if she were to remarry, it would definitely be someone who was divorced with children.

Wouldn’t life be tough with her as the head of the household? Remarrying with in-laws and stepchildren, wouldn’t life be even harder?

Of course, this was just her speculation. Xiaopang’s mother’s remarriage might also turn out well.

“What’s the condition of the man?” Ning Shu was quite curious.

She had been in the army for over two years and hadn’t gossiped with anyone, so she felt quite stifled.

Now that she suddenly heard such gossip, it was quite interesting.

“He’s a divorced man with children, but he doesn’t have in-laws to take care of. The man reportedly has a stable job.”

Lin Xiaohan’s mother continued “I’m not sure about the specifics. Since Xiaopang’s mother remarried, she hasn’t visited us again. Their family’s self-cultivated land is now being farmed by Xiaopang’s uncle.”

“How much self-cultivated land does their family have?” Ning Shu asked.

“Although Xiaopang is speculated to have been sent away, his household registration is still here, and so is his self-cultivated land. Plus, Xiaopang’s grandparents, although they were sent for reform, their self-cultivated land is still here too. In total, they have about six fen.”

“However, how can life be good after remarrying? Anyway, I wouldn’t want to remarry. With two obedient and sensible sons at home, life will be easy once they grow up. But if I remarry, what if it doesn’t turn out well?”

Plus, even if the remarriage turned out well, it wouldn’t be as comfortable as being the mistress of her own house like she is now.

Lin Xiaohan’s mother, who had suffered at the hands of her mother-in-law, would never consider remarrying.

Actually, when she first separated from her family, there were people who tried to persuade her to remarry, but she resolutely refused each time.

Over time, no one mentioned it anymore.

“Everyone has their own way of living.” Ning Shu chatted with her for a while longer until Lin Xiaohan and Lin Xiaoshi came back, then she went home.

Back home, Ning Shu kept busy for the afternoon.

She cut several stalks of sugarcane and neatly prepared each section with the peel intact.

She planned to take some to the army, not for the children to eat, but for her own cultivation there.

When the sugarcane sprouted, she would plant it in the army’s fields.

When she was almost done, Lin’s mother came to call her for dinner.

Being alone, Ning Shu had no intention of cooking, so she ate dinner and the next day’s breakfast at Lin’s parents’ place.

After breakfast, she left in the ox cart.

Lin’s mother was afraid she’d be bored alone on the road, so she accompanied Ning Shu to the county town by ox cart.

She left only after Ning Shu boarded the train.

Since she was there anyway, the old lady also took the opportunity to visit her daughter, bringing along some vegetables and snacks.

From her hometown to the army base, and then enduring three days on the train.

As soon as the train arrived at the station, Ning Shu hurriedly got off with the sugarcane on her back.

As she looked around, she heard Er Bao’s loud voice calling out, “Mom… Mom’s here!” He even jumped up and waved at Ning Shu!