Nanny Qin looked at Qiao Xin with a gaze full of curiosity.

A mother-in-law who meticulously planned every step for her daughter-in-law’s future—this was rare, not just among the poor but even among noble families.

Qiao Xin neither put on airs as a mother-in-law nor showed any disdain for her daughter-in-law’s inexperience.

Instead, she patiently guided her, hand in hand.

Any woman who could marry into this family must have been truly blessed in a past life!

As much as she envied them, she also felt a sense of relief.

This was good.

With things as they were, her own days here would likely go much smoother.

..

After having a deep conversation with her daughter-in-law and entrusting their guidance to Nanny Qin, Qiao Xin completely let go of household matters and devoted all her energy to reclaiming the farmland.

Land reclamation was an extremely labor-intensive task.

They first had to clear the tall trees from the barren land, then cut firebreaks for controlled burning.

After that, they had to dig up roots and stones, apply fertilizer, and till the soil before they could even begin planting.

The straw sandals they wore were not well-suited for working in the fields.

After only a few steps, their soles would be weighed down by thick clumps of mud, slowing their movements.

Farming was a repetitive process—monotonous and exhausting.

At first, Qiao Dalang and little Qiao Renyi swung their hoes with great enthusiasm.

Sparks flew when they struck stones. But as they continued hacking away, the hoes in their hands grew heavier, and before long, their arms ached with fatigue.

Qiao Xin worked ahead, clearing trees and rocks.

Xu Shi, Zhang Shi, and Granny Shi dug the soil, while Nanny Qin led the children to gather weeds and roots.

Even with such a large group working together, they managed to clear only two acres of land in an entire day.

Qiao Xin realized she had severely underestimated the cost and difficulty of reclaiming land.

There were no machines here—everything depended solely on manual labor.

No wonder the government wasn’t worried about refugees taking over abandoned land. The cost of clearing it was far beyond what most people could afford—far higher than simply renting land!

Qiao Wulang, exhausted and sore, could barely lift his arms.

During a break, he held up his scratched hands, pouting and on the verge of tears.

“Grandmother, my hands have run away from home! They won’t listen to me anymore!” he whimpered.

Qiao Xin burst into laughter, pulling the little one onto her lap.

She gently applied ointment while massaging his hands.

“Don’t worry,” she comforted him with a smile. “Grandmother will bring them back for you!”

As she ruffled the little one’s hair, she glanced at her family still toiling in the field and sighed inwardly.

This wouldn’t do.

She needed better tools and extra hands.

They couldn’t afford to waste all their time on this.

After all, they still had a hundred acres of land in the south of the city!

Looking at the exhausted group, Qiao Xin made up her mind.

“That’s enough for today. Everyone, go back and rest. I’ll head to the city to hire some workers. With the men away, we won’t get much done on our own.”

That night, she gathered the family for a brief meeting.

“Second daughter-in-law, you’ll come with me tomorrow to visit our second son. Get everything ready tonight. We’ll see if we can hire some workers while we’re there.”

Nanny Qin suggested, “My lady, have you considered purchasing servants? With the Qiao family’s current status, it’s time to start training our own household staff. Not only do we need people to manage the farm, but in the future, when the young masters become officials, they’ll need trusted aides as well.”

Qiao Xin hadn’t thought about this before.

She had only planned to hire temporary workers or long-term laborers. Buying servants hadn’t even crossed her mind.

But Nanny Qin had a point—it was time for the Qiao family to start cultivating its own people.

After a brief moment of thought, she said, “Nanny, come with me to the city tomorrow. I’ll need your help selecting the right people, and you can also teach these two young women how it’s done. From now on, I’ll leave the management of our staff to you.”

Nanny Qin didn’t stand on ceremony and nodded in agreement.

Thus began her “rehired” career in the Qiao household.

Hearing that they were going to the city, Dalang, Erlang, and Sanlang all turned their eager eyes toward Qiao Xin, their gazes brimming with anticipation.

The older girls, having learned some manners by now, didn’t dare voice their wishes.

They merely glanced at Qiao Xin now and then with their big, expectant eyes.

In contrast, little Qiao Sanniang, Qiao Silang, and Qiao Wulang, being younger and unbothered by shyness, openly grinned and clung to their grandmother, calling out sweetly, “Grandmother, Grandmother!”

Qiao Xin surrendered under their onslaught of affection.

With a warm smile, she scooped up her little granddaughter and ruffled the boys’ hair.

Seeing how thin they still were after an entire winter, she waved her hand and declared, “Fine, everyone’s coming!”

Xu Shi hesitated.

She worried that bringing so many children along would make it difficult to get things done and offered to stay behind to watch the house.

Qiao Xin dismissed her concerns. “They’re all going. We can’t favor some over others just because they’re young. Besides, our house in the city is ready. Aside from our second son, no one’s seen it yet. This is a good chance for everyone to get familiar with it. If we can’t make it back by nightfall, we’ll have a place to stay.”

Xu Shi wasn’t entirely reassured.

The village had recently seen an influx of newcomers, and she was worried about theft.

Granny Shi stepped forward. “Let the lady go. I’ll stay behind—I’m not good on my feet anyway. I can keep an eye on the house.”

“That works,” Qiao Xin agreed.

..

The next morning, before dawn, the household was already up and preparing for the trip.

The family’s ox cart had been readied by Old Mo, and the ox, well-fed, stood lazily in the yard, swishing its tail.

Xu Shi and Zhang Shi wrapped each child in a rabbit-fur hooded scarf.

The hoods had long, drooping ears for decoration, and the ends of the scarves had built-in pockets.

When the children tucked their hands in and pulled down, the ears would stand upright, making them look like lively little rabbits.

Qiao Xin had designed these based on styles from her past life.

Granny Shi and the daughters-in-law had sewn them from rabbit pelts, making both child and adult versions.

The boys’ scarves had tiger ears instead of rabbit ears—just as playful but more suited to their style.

Everyone in the family had a set, even Nanny Qin.

She found the warm, fluffy hand-coverings fascinating and cherished them so much she initially hesitated to wear them.

Qiao Xin chuckled. “No need to be so careful, Nanny. The rabbit fur is from our own stock—we didn’t spend a coin on it. But if you refuse to wear it and end up catching a cold, I’ll have to spend money on a doctor!”

Nanny Qin knew Qiao Xin was joking and stroked the soft fur with admiration. “Even in the capital, I’ve never seen designs like these! Any young girl would love them. Have you thought about selling them?”

Qiao Xin shrugged. “I did, but poor families wouldn’t afford them, and the wealthy would just have their seamstresses copy the design and make even better ones. They wouldn’t bother buying from us. So why waste the effort?”

If only there were patent laws in this era, she thought, she’d have filed ten or twenty patents already!

Nanny Qin considered this and realized Qiao Xin was right.

She chuckled. “I really was being foolish!”