Wutou might be doing a little better, but Daya doesn’t stand a chance; if she doesn’t get beaten, that would already be considered very lucky.

Hearing this, the couple finally didn’t refuse.

However, when they looked at Zhang Zixuan, their brows remained furrowed.

“What’s wrong?”

“Fourth Brother, you can’t continue living like this,” Zhang Zifu said earnestly.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Zixuan was momentarily stunned, clearly not expecting his third brother to say such a thing.

But then, after thinking about it, it seemed only natural.

Out of everyone in the old house, only his third brother truly treated him with sincerity.

Thinking this, Zhang Zixuan softened his tone and said:

“You don’t need to worry about us, we have enough to eat. Take these and bring them back for the children to eat.”

After saying this, he turned to go back into the house.

He had only taken a few steps in his wheelchair when he saw Jian Xiu standing at the door.

From her stance, it was clear she had been standing there for some time.

Zhang Zixuan didn’t know, but as an experienced special agent, Jian Xiu had actually woken up as soon as he got up quietly.

She knew he didn’t want to wake them, so she pretended to still be asleep.

But upon hearing the conversation at the door, her curiosity got the better of her.

She wanted to know who would come looking for him so late and was also worried about him.

“Xiu’er, about that rice from earlier…”

“I’m not blaming you. You didn’t do anything wrong, so there’s no need to apologize,” Jian Xiu interrupted, walking over to push his wheelchair into the room.

Her meaning was clear—she didn’t want him staying outside doing work any longer.

“Xiu’er, I’m not tired. Besides, it’s still early, I want to peel some more bamboo shoots.”

“You peeled late last night, and if you don’t rest, you’ll be tired tomorrow and won’t be able to peel as much. That means you’ll end up working more. It’s better to rest now so you can do more when you’re energized tomorrow.”

With that, she gently helped Zhang Zixuan into bed, her firm tone leaving him no room to argue.

“You said those pig organs were good last night, right? Tomorrow, I want to take some dried bamboo shoots and bring them to Yuexiang Lou.”

Before he could settle in bed, Jian Xiu spoke to Zhang Zixuan again.

Her tone was like an arrangement or instruction, but no matter the tone, it carried a sense of finality.

“Yes, be careful! If the price isn’t too high, you can try negotiating with them,” Zhang Zixuan replied softly.

He never imagined that his previously timid wife would one day become so decisive.

Now, the whole family was being supported by her.

But she didn’t complain; on the contrary, she managed the family very well.

At this thought, Zhang Zixuan felt even more guilty.

The next day, before dawn, Zhang Zixuan was already in the yard.

Although he had wanted to peel more bamboo shoots the night before, he had fallen asleep soon after lying down.

When he woke up early, he found it strange, not understanding why his sleep had been so restful recently.

“Mother, are you going to the county today?” Liutou asked Jian Xiu.

“Yes, do you want to come with me?”

“No, you go ahead, Mother! I want to dig some more bamboo shoots,” Liutou said with understanding.

“Alright, then. You all go ahead! I’ll be back early. After you finish digging the bamboo shoots, just pile them up on one side. I’ll carry them back when I return, okay?”

“Okay, okay! Mother, be careful!”

Jian Xiu responded with a light “Mm,” then looked at the dried bamboo shoots she had left by the fire.

Seeing they were completely dry, she placed them into her basket.

She also added the remaining pig offal and the several pounds of pork she had left.

Without a fridge, if she didn’t sell the pork soon, it might spoil.

She left a few pounds in a wooden basin, placing them in the mountain spring water. That way, it could last a few more days.

Given the current weather, she couldn’t make cured meat, or else she would have done so.

Thinking this, she realized she’d need to raise a couple of pigs.

In the past few days, they had collected pig feed from the back mountain, where there was more than enough compared to what they normally gathered.

But Jian Xiu knew that the so-called pig feed wasn’t necessarily the pigs’ favorite.

In fact, it wasn’t the best for raising pigs.

The best feed was actually the water vegetables, which people often dismissed and considered to be bitter.

During the apocalypse, many people fed their pigs water vegetables, though they needed to be boiled first, ideally with a bit of rice bran.

That way, the pigs wouldn’t get sick, wouldn’t have worms, and would grow faster.

But where would she raise the pigs?

She didn’t want to keep them in the yard like in the old house, where chickens, ducks, and pigs were all crammed together.

That made the whole yard stink, and it was unbearable.

“What are you looking at?” Zhang Zixuan, noticing his wife looking around, couldn’t help but ask.

“I’m thinking of buying a few piglets to raise.”

Not far off, Qitou, who was getting ready to leave, overheard and excitedly said:

“Great, Mother, go buy some! I’ll go gather pig feed every day and make sure the piglets grow big and healthy.”

Jian Xiu: “…”

Hearing this, Zhang Zixuan immediately understood what Jian Xiu had been looking at.

He then suggested, “If you really want to raise pigs, we can ask Zhiyong and the others to help us build a pigpen. After all, this land is ours now, isn’t it?”

“Right, how did I not think of that?”

When they divided the family, Old Liu had given them the land deeds for the area at the end of the village.

Although the land wasn’t worth much, if they settled here, they could build houses on it.

She hadn’t planned to stay in the thatched house forever.

The spring season was still bearable, but once winter came, it would be freezing cold during the day and even worse at night.

It seemed like she needed to plan carefully.

Thinking about it, even though she hadn’t earned much yet, there were already countless places where money was going to be spent.

With a helpless shake of her head, she began to head toward the village center.

As soon as she stepped out the door, she saw Huang Chunzhi and Lin Xia walking toward her.

In the morning, Zhang Zhiyong needed to drive the ox cart, and Zhang Haifei had to go to the fields, so they had arranged for just these two to come over in the morning.

In the afternoon, Zhang Zhiyong would return with Zhang Haifei, and the two of them would come together.

“Jian Xiu, hurry up! Zhiyong is leaving a bit earlier today. I told him to wait for you under the banyan tree in the village center.”