101 Have You Thought of Starting a Business?
"When I sold the ginseng, the merchant I met gave me the chilis. He said it was produced overseas."
Seeing the shocked faces of Aunt Wang and Wang Erya, Lin Xiaoyue continued, "he said that the locals in his country use chilies to cook, so I took the opportunity to try it out. I didn't expect it to taste so good."
"I see…" Aunt Wang said.
Knowing that it was a foreign ingredient and that Lin Xiaoyue probably didn't have much, Aunt Wang did not ask Lin Xiaoyue for more chili.
Lin Xiaoyue wasn't in the mood to talk too much about chili with her. She quickly changed the topic to building the house.
Aunt Wang and Wang Erya had already agreed to come to the Liu family to help with cooking. They were very grateful to Liu Shi and Lin Xiaoyue for taking care of the Wang family and giving them a job.
After listening to the two of them, Lin Xiaoyue once again realized how difficult it was for rural women to earn money in ancient times.
It was common for the men in the family to go to town to work, but it was difficult for the women to find work. And even if they could find work, they couldn't leave because they had to take care of the family.
"Have you thought about starting a small business in town?" Lin Xiaoyue asked.
After all, Daishi Village wasn't too far away from the town. There were families in the village who had businesses in town. There were usually street vendors.
"We need capital to do business and I'm worried that we might lose money. It's better to work at the dock. One can earn more than 100 wen a day, which is a net profit." Aunt Wang said.
As she spoke, she looked at Liu Shi with envy.
"I don't have your mother's skills. Otherwise, I could work at home to make up for the family expenses."
After trying a few times, she had given up. The embroidery workshop's requirements were too high, and it was really difficult for her to meet them.
She didn't want to earn money by doing embroidery anymore. Now, she came to Liu Shi every day just to see if her daughter had the talent.
Lin Xiaoyue looked at her mother.
Her mother immediately looked at her with a smug expression.
Lin Xiaoyue quickly shook her head and avoided her mother's gaze.
Then, she saw Wang Erya also look at her mother with envy.
Seeing that her mother was looking at her, as if she was going to persuade her to learn embroidery again, Lin Xiaoyue quickly got up from the stool.
"Uh, Li Xiao seems to be coming. I'll go ask him if he wants to go hunting with me."
Then, before Liu Shi could say anything, she ran away.
Liu Shi raised her hand and wanted to stop her daughter, but she sighed and helplessly let her go.
Aunt Wang was amused by Lin Xiaoyue. "Your daughter is different from us. She is as good as a man! You don't have to worry about her."
Liu Shi looked at her daughter again. "I wonder who she took after?"
That made Aunt Wang laugh.
Lin Xiaoyue didn't hear her mother calling her, and she was relieved.
She quickly walked towards Li Xiao.
"I'm going into the mountains to hunt, do you want to come with me?" She asked Li Xiao with a smile.
Li Xiao paused
He recalled the two bows and some knives he saw when he was moving the things from the house to the shed.
"Yes."
After coming to the Liu family, he and Qing'er had spent a lot of the Liu family's money. It would be good to go to the mountains to hunt some prey and exchange them for some money
Thus, the two of them went to the shed to get their bows and arrows and went out.
Liu Shi looked at the back of the two people leaving and sighed in her heart.
T/n:this is the end of Part One.
102 Entering the Mountains
It's good that Li Xiao was there. Her daughter would be safer with someone to accompany her into the mountains.
After entering the mountain, Lin Xiaoyue wanted to test Li Xiao's ability, so she didn't make a move and only watched him.
Li Xiao didn't let her down. As long as the prey was not far away from them, he would never miss.
The two of them walked up the stream and easily caught seven or eight prey.
When they reached the pool, Lin Xiaoyue did not plan to continue walking.
Ju Yi washed her face with water, then took off her shoes and soaked her feet in the water.
The weather was too hot. If Li Xiao wasn't there, she really wanted to go into the pool and swim.
Li Xiao was stunned when he saw Lin Xiaoyue's actions. When he saw Lin Xiaoyue's tender white feet, his face turned red again, and then he quickly looked away.
Then, he couldn't help but glance at the little feet that were kicking in the water.
"Cough…" after looking at it for a moment, he coughed lightly to remind her that he was still there.
Lin Xiaoyue turned around and looked at Li Xiao.
"The water is cool, aren't you going to wash up?" She even asked him with a smile.
Li Xiao could only feel his heart beating twice as fast.
"You're not allowed to show your feet in front of others in the future."
Lin Xiaoyue paused
Li Xiao instantly realized what he was implying.
Then, he did not look at Lin Xiaoyue anymore. He walked to Lin Xiaoyue's side and turned around. He looked as if he was helping her cover up.
Then, Lin Xiaoyue burst into laughter.
What a prude…
Li Xiao heard Lin Xiaoyue's laughter and felt a little annoyed.
There weren't many restrictions on women in the countryside, but wasn't it too frivolous to show her feet in front of men?
He thought that Lin Xiaoyue might have done this before. Her fair and delicate feet might have been seen by other men before, and he felt like killing someone.
"Aren't you going to put on your shoes?" Li Xiao said in a low voice.
The past was the past, but now that she was his woman, he would never allow anyone to see her feet in the future.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled and glanced at Li Xiao's side profile. Seeing that he was annoyed, she was inexplicably happy.
"The weather is so hot, I just want to soak my feet for a little longer."
Seeing that he was about to speak, Lin Xiaoyue smiled again.
"Hehe, unless you help me put on my shoes."
He stopped when he heard that.
Then, he turned around and ignored Lin Xiaoyue's teasing gaze. He squatted down and picked up Lin Xiaoyue's shoes.
Lin Xiaoyue's face turned red when her feet were picked up by Li Xiao and then wiped with his clothes.
"Ahem…I'll do it myself." Lin Xiaoyue quickly pulled her feet back, wiped her wet feet on her pants, and then put on shoes.
Li Xiao did not stop her. He squatted down and looked at Lin Xiaoyue, who was blushing, and his mood quickly became better.
"Uh, we've rested enough. Let's go back now." Not daring to look at Li Xiao again, Lin Xiaoyue looked at the forest and said.
"Yes."
He picked up the prey on the ground, hung it on his body, and left.
Lin Xiaoyue touched her nose and followed.
When they reached the front mountain, they met a few villagers because they had returned early.
A few villagers saw that Li Xiao was carrying a lot of prey. Since they did not know Li Xiao, they asked Lin Xiaoyue about it.
Lin Xiaoyue only said that Li Xiaow was part of her family and that he caught all of them.
103 Someone's Here Again
Some people heard that the Liu family had bought a son-in-law and immediately guessed that Li Xiao was him.
When Lin Xiaoyue and him walked further away, they started discussing.
"He seems not bad. He is tall and strong, and he seems skilled at hunting. Hmm, the Liu family has good taste…"
Li Xiao didn't know about this.
After returning to the Liu family, he handed the prey to Lin Xiaoyue to clean them up. Then he went into the mountains to chop wood.
An hour later, he came back with four bundles of firewood and a pheasant.
Lin Xiaoyue was impressed.
She confirmed that Li Xiao did not transmigrate. He was a native of this era. Well, it was very likely that this was his boss' previous life.
He was different from her. He didn't have any special abilities. To be able to catch so much prey with his own ability, he must be very skilled.
When Lin Xiaoyue was done dealing with the prey, Uncle Sun came with the cart that they needed.
She paid the money and was about to send Uncle Sun away when the village chief came with the helpers.
To Lin Xiaoyue's surprise, the village chief's eldest son, Li Gengtian, and grandson, Li Laishun, were also here.
After explaining the situation to everyone and confirming the time for work, everyone left.
Everyone sighed. The Liu family had really made it this time. Those who wanted to see them fail were going to be disappointed…
Dinner was ready. Lin Xiaoyue went to the village chief's house to send a bowl of braised meat and a pheasant to thank him for his help.
He did not refuse. After eating the duck blood curd and meat that Lin Xiaoyue gave him yesterday, he was full of anticipation for today's dish.
Zhang Shi was also more friendly to Lin Xiaoyue this time, not only because her husband and son were going to help the Liu family, but also because Lin Xiaoyue had sent food over.
The whole Li family, like the Wang family, liked the dishes sent by Lin Xiaoyue very much. Zhang Shi also asked Lin Xiaoyue about the chili.
Lin Xiaoyue told her the same thing she told Aunt Wang. Zhang Shi knew that Lin Xiaoyue did not have much, so she did not ask further.
At night, the Liu family gathered around the table to eat.
Seeing Xiao Qing's longing look, Lin Xiaoyue finally allowed him to try a few pieces of braised meat.
It would have been better if he didn't taste it. After tasting it, Xiao Qing almost swallowed his tongue into his stomach.
If his uncle had not glared at him when he picked up the fifth piece, he would not have stopped.
He decided that he would quickly recuperate so he could eat meat again.
That night, the Liu family went to bed early.
In the middle of the night, Lin Xiaoyue was woken up by a soft sound.
Releasing her spiritual power to investigate, Lin Xiaoyue immediately detected that Li Xiao was outside the shed, and he was holding someone.
Realizing that something might have happened, Lin Xiaoyue quickly got out of bed.
Then, she gently opened the door and walked out.
At this time, the insects were chirping non-stop outside. Looking in the direction of the village, it was peaceful.
Lin Xiaoyue walked to the back of the shed.
Just as she turned the corner, Li Xiao quickly reacted.
He subconsciously wanted to attack, but then he recognized that the person was Lin Xiaoyue.
Li Xiao's killing intent instantly dissipated.
At this time, the legs of the person he was holding were trembling, and his whole body was shaking.
It was too scary. He barely made it and was caught by this man.
He didn't want to attract more attention, so he didn't make a sound.
However, he realized that he was no match for this man at all. The man's gaze just now was so scary, as if he wanted to kill him.
104 Thrown to the Back of the Mountain
"Fourth Uncle Lin?" Lin Xiaoyue saw the thief's face under the moonlight.
When Li Xiao heard Lin Xiaoyue calling him uncle, his hand on his neck loosened a little.
"Yes, I'm her uncle. Save me!" Fourth Uncle Lin didn't care if Lin Xiaoyue found out.
This person wanted to kill him. If he fell into Lin Xiaoyue's hands, at least he would not die.
He was regretting it now.
He shouldn't have listened to his second sister-in-law. She said that as his younger brother, he could marry his sister-in-law. Now, not only did he not get the person and money, but he also suffered such a big loss.
Lin Xiaoyue frowned.
"How did you catch him?" As she walked towards the two of them, he asked Li Xiao.
"I found him sneakily rummaging through the house over there, and then he came to the shed." Li Shao said.
"No! I… I couldn't sleep, so I came to visit you."
Feeling the grip on his neck tighten, he shivered again. "I'm sorry! I won't do it again. I won't dare to come here again. Let me go this time, okay?" He quickly begged Lin Xiaoyue for mercy.
He had no choice, he was a coward.
The slave that the Liu family bought was too scary. He seemed vicious enough to kill him.
This wretched girl was also a ruthless person.
The entire Lin family had suffered at her hands. This time, he was caught red-handed in the middle of the night. If she were to shout, the entire village would probably know that he was a thief.
If she wanted to, she would have sent him to court.
Lin Xiaoyue's eyes flashed with disgust.
"Hmph, it seems like you turned a deaf ear to my previous agreement with your father?" Lin Xiaoyue looked at her uncle coldly.
Fourth Uncle Lin's heart trembled.
Then, she looked at Li Xiao, "I don't think I'm going to disturb everyone at this hour. Can you tie him up, and throw him into the mountains?"
"I saw a few wild wolves at the back of the mountain. Let's see if they will eat him." Her expression was calm, as if she was talking about the weather.
Fourth Uncle Lin's heart turned cold. He couldn't care less about being discovered and opened his mouth to call for help.
However, before he could make a sound, he was knocked out by Li Xiao.
Lin Xiaoyue gave Li Xiao an appreciative smile.
"My fourth uncle has always been a brainless person. I don't know if he came here on his own or if he was ordered to."
"Reporting to the authorities is too much trouble. It's not good for our family's reputation. We can only give him a small punishment."
Li Xiao looked at Lin Xiaoyue.
He wasn't sure if there were wolves in the mountains, but there were definitely fierce beasts. Is this a "small punishment"?
Lin Xiaoyue smiled at Li Xiao. "I'll have to trouble you to make the trip. Just tie him up and throw him to the back mountain."
Most of the fierce beasts were in the deep mountains, and the back mountains were not so dangerous. When he woke up, he probably wouldn't dare to provoke their family again.
Of course, if his luck was really bad and the heavens wanted to take him away, then he could not blame her.
She wasn't alone anymore. Li Xiao was by her side. Even if she really killed Fourth Uncle Lin, she wouldn't be that worried.
"Yes." Li Xiao responded and then went to find a straw rope.
Efficient and decisive, this girl was more interesting than he thought.
After Li Xiao left with Fourth Uncle Lin, Lin Xiaoyue returned to the shed to rest.
At this time, Liu Shi and Lin Xiaozhi were still sleeping sweetly and had no idea what was happening outside.
Lin Xiaoyue went to bed and continued to sleep.
They were only woken up by the heavy rain when it was almost dawn.
105 The Head of the Family
She used her spiritual power to check the other shed and made sure that Li Xiao had returned. Only then did Lin Xiaoyue feel relieved.
She was glad that Li Xiao had built the shed and allowed them to move out of the house. Otherwise, they would not be able to sleep in this heavy rain.
Liu Shi also woke up.
She got out of bed and found some clothes to cover Lin Xiaoyue and Lin Xiaozhi to prevent them from catching a cold due to the rain and the drop in temperature.
"It's a good thing that Xiao'er set up the shed, otherwise we would be in trouble in this storm," Liu Shi sighed.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled and patted the bed, signaling her mother to come back and continue sleeping.
"The sun is not even out yet, so you can't cook at this time. Come back and sleep for a while more."
The stove was built in the open, so it couldn't be used if the rain didn't stop.
Fortunately, all the kitchenware had been kept in the shed last night, so she didn't have to worry about getting wet.
"Yes." Liu Shi responded.
She got on the bed and leaned against the head of the bed, next to Lin Xiaoyue.
Her sleepiness was gone, so she chatted with her daughter.
"It's probably not easy to walk in such heavy rain. Are we still going to transport bricks today?" Liu Shi asked.
"Yes. We have to bring them back in advance so as not to affect the construction progress." Lin Xiaoyue smiled and looked at Liu Shi. "Summer rain comes and goes quickly. When the sun comes out, the ground will soon dry up. It won't be too bad."
"Only the road out of the village might be muddy. Even if there was a storm on the main road, it would not affect us too much."
Liu Shi nodded.
"Go to the town today and buy some cloth for me to make two bed sheets and two thin quilts." Liu Shi looked at Lin Xiaoyue. "The weather looks hot, but it's still a little cold when it rains at night. Qing'er is still sick after all."
"Sure."
It was rare for her mother to say she wanted to buy fabric.
In the shed next door, Li Xiao and Xiao Qing, who were lying on the straw, had also woken up.
Xiao Qing was sleeping beside Li Xiao, so he wasn't cold. When he heard the voices from next door, his eyes moistened.
Li Xiao's expression was normal, but his heart felt warm.
Aunt Liu really treated them as family.
The storm finally stopped after daybreak.
Lin Xiaoyue let Liu Shi rest and went out of the shed to start a fire to cook.
Li Xiao checked the condition of the shed and then went to the old house to look at the ox.
After he left Fourth Uncle Lin in the mountains last night, he felt that it was going to rain, so he moved the ox and the cart to the old house.
Therefore, it did not suffer much even though there were pools of water in the house.
When the ox was brought out, Li Xiao was still thinking that he had to build a shed for the ox.
Since she was in a hurry to go to town, Lin Xiaoyue only fried ten eggs and then cooked a pot of noodles.
Each of them had a bowl of noodles with two eggs and Lao Gan Ma seasoning. It was a satisfying meal.
After the meal, Liu Shi cleaned the table and washed the dishes.
Lin Xiaoyue brought her prey with her and rushed to town with Li Xiao on the ox-cart.
After the heavy rain, there was indeed mud on the road.
Fortunately, there weren't many people leaving yet, so it wasn't that difficult to pass through.
When they arrived at Qingshi Town, Li Xiao sent Lin Xiaoyue all the way to the back kitchen of Ruyi Restaurant. After he told her that he would pick her up on the last trip in the afternoon, he then went to the brick kiln in the west of the city to transport bricks.
Lin Xiaoyue entered Ruyi Restaurant and exchanged her prey for money.
After that, she greeted Liang Chengcai and went to the street.
She had an appointment with Liang Chengcai at 10 o'clock, so she had more than two hours to walk around town.
Lin Xiaoyue wanted to understand the town more, so she went to the dock this time.
106 The Multiplication Table
The dock in Qingshi Town was quite big. Lin Xiaoyue stood by the river and watched. She found that there were at least ten ships unloading cargo.
There were still ships behind that had not docked. They were either waiting in line to dock or merchant ships that were passing by and preparing to dock.
Lin Xiaoyue observed for a while and found that there was only one main road leading to the town from the dock. Traveling merchants, coachmen, and laborers all had to pass through this road.
Because there were many people coming and going, there were stalls set up on both sides of the main road to do business, mainly selling food and groceries.
Perhaps she had missed the working hours at the dock, these stalls did not have much business at the moment.
Lin Xiaoyue observed for a while before returning to town.
Then, she went to the market to buy some meat and vegetables, and then to the fabric shop to buy the cloth that Liu Shi asked her to buy.
After checking the time, she returned to Ruyi Restaurant.
At 10 o'clock, Lin Xiaoyue started to teach Liang Chengcai.
Lin Xiaoyue first checked the homework she gave him yesterday. After finding no mistakes, she praised him.
Then, she started to teach Liang Chengcai multiplication.
"Multiplications are a simple method of finding the sum of additions. We often use multiplication in our daily lives."
"For example, if I sell to Ruyi Restaurant, wild rabbits are 15 wen per catty. 3 catties is equivalent to three 15 wen, and 4 catties is equivalent to four 15 wen. However, if we use multiplication, 3 catties is 15 wen multiplied by 3, 4 catties is 15 wen multiplied by 4 and so on. 100 catties is 15 wen multiplied by 100, so you don't have to add 100 times."
Lin Xiaoyue wrote out the addition and multiplication formulas on the paper.
Then, she explained to Liang Chengcai the definitions of product and multiplication symbols.
Then, she asked Liang Chengcai to solve the problem by multiplication.
After making sure that Liang Chengcai had mastered it, she started to teach Liang Chengcai the multiplication table.
"This is the 9×9 table, my secret to quick calculation. I'll teach you how to memorize it now."
"Your homework for today and tomorrow is to memorize the 9×9 table, and you must be very familiar with it."
"Yes!" Liang chengcai's eyes were filled with excitement. He felt that he was about to learn some amazing knowledge again.
"Good." Lin Xiaoyue responded.
Then, she pointed at the multiplication table she had prepared and started to teach Liang Chengcai how to recite it.
After that, Lin Xiaoyue only taught him twice before letting Liang Chengcai read it himself.
Then, since she had nothing to do, she drank tea and ate some snacks at the side, watching Liang Chengcai read and memorize by himself.
Looking at Liang Chengcai's serious expression, Lin Xiaoyue suddenly felt proud.
She could now more or less understand why teachers liked diligent and studious children before the apocalypse.
A waiter from the kitchen came to inform Lin Xiaoyue that her family had arrived.
Lin Xiaoyue's face lit up. She put down the cake and immediately got up from the stool.
"That's all for today. Just memorize the 9×9 table for the next two days, and we'll continue the day after tomorrow."
Liang Chengcai quickly got up as well.
"I'll send you out." He hurriedly said.
He was very curious about Ms. Lin's family, wondering what kind of family could raise such a woman.
He had seen Ms. Lin's mother before, but unfortunately, he had not been able to speak with her. He wondered who her other family members were.
In addition, Ms. Lin had been teaching him for several days, so he should be polite and send her out.
"No need. Good luck!" Lin Xiaoyue picked up the basket and walked out.
107 You've Got the Wrong Person
Liang Chengcai was stunned.
He didn't understand what "good luck" meant.
Then, he saw that Lin Xiaoyue had not finished the pastries on the table. He quickly took a piece of paper, packed the cake, and went after her.
He soon saw a tall man at the door of the backyard.
He saw Ms. Lin, whom he admired, rush toward the man like a rabbit. Then, she looked up at the man, her eyes almost shining.
Liang Chengcai was a little shocked by Lin Xiaoyue's reaction, and he felt a little sour in his heart.
Was he Ms. Lin's big brother, or…
It should be her big brother. With his physique, he looked like a hunter from the mountains.
Thinking of this, Liang Chengcai made up his mind and walked forward.
"I'm Liang Chengcai. Nice to meet you, big brother Lin." Liang Chengcai said and bowed to Li Xiao.
Li Xiao paused.
Then, he quickly put the basket that Lin Xiaoyue gave him on the ox-cart.
Then, he looked at Liang Chengcai unhappily, and then frowned at Lin Xiaoyue.
Lin Xiaoyue suddenly felt a little guilty.
She had never told Li Xiao that she was teaching a young man.
However, she suddenly remembered that he didn't ask her. Was he blaming her?
"You've got the wrong person. My surname isn't Lin." Li Xiao said in a deep voice.
Liang Chengcai's heart trembled, and then he almost didn't dare to look at Li Xiao.
He seemed to have a bad
"Cough…he's not my brother, Mr. Liang. This is Li Xiao, my future husband." Lin Xiaoyue quickly said. As she spoke, she even moved closer to Li Xiao.
She realized that this made Li Xiao happier.
Liang Chengcai's face turned a little pale.
"I'm sorry…." He quickly bowed to Li Xiao again.
"Hmm." Li Xiao actually responded.
Then, Liang Chengcai quickly felt that he looked as if he was bowing to someone who was of higher status than him.
"Let's go," he said. Li Xiao didn't pay much attention to Liang Chengcai and said to Lin Xiaoyue.
After he finished speaking, he did not wait for Lin Xiaoyue and got on the ox-cart.
Lin Xiaoyue looked at Liang Chengcai, a little embarrassed, and then quickly followed Li Xiao to the ox-cart.
Then, without waiting for Liang Chengcai to say anything, Li Xiao rode the ox-cart away.
Liang Chengcai stood in the same place for a long time. When the ox-cart was out of the alley, he realized that he didn't give out the pastry in his hand.
Looking at the pastry in his hand, Liang Chengcai had a bitter smile on his face.
Then, he turned around and returned to Ruyi Restaurant.
Lin Xiaoyue had been observing Li Xiao after she got on the ox-cart to see his reaction.
Unfortunately, this man didn't show any reaction. He just looked straight ahead as before, as if she didn't exist.
In the end, Lin Xiaoyue couldn't hold it in anymore and said to Li Xiao, "Liang Chengcai is the accountant at Ruyi Restaurant. He's the one I'm teaching."
He didn't respond and continued to look forward.
"When I was selling to the restaurant, he found out that my calculation skills are very good and fast, so he suggested that I teach him."
"I'm not teaching him for free. He is paying me 50 taels of silver. He even promised to give me 20 taels of silver as a thank you gift after!" Seeing that Li Xiao was still ignoring her, Lin Xiaoyue quickly said.
This time, Li Xiao finally had some reaction.
"I'll think of a way to earn money." He said in a deep voice.
Lin Xiaoyue paused
Then, she blushed, grabbed Li Xiao's arm, and leaned on him excitedly.
Did he mean to support her?
Li Xiao's body stiffened, but he did not pull away.
108 Fourth Uncle Lin is Alive
"Sit properly." He suppressed his emotions and said in a deep voice.
He looked around and found that there was no one around.
"Li Xiao, you're the best!" Lin Xiaoyue said coquettishly.
She realized that he was reserved.
The way Lin Xiaoyue called his name seemed to be charged with electricity, and it quickly passed through his limbs and bones.
Then, he spent a lot of effort to suppress the restless emotions in his heart and made Lin Xiaoyue sit properly.
Lin Xiaoyue was cooperative this time and smiled at him.
Hehe, it's fun to mess with him. What if she couldn't control herself and wanted to continue?
"In the future, you're not allowed to behave this way with others." Li Xiao said in a deep voice as he looked forward.
This time, he was not angry, but he did not dare to look at Lin Xiaoyue.
Her gaze was too piercing. He actually felt a little uncomfortable.
"Yes, only to you, since you're my future husband!" Lin Xiaoyue said loudly.
Li Xiao's heart trembled again.
This girl was completely different from the other girls he had seen before…
For the rest of the journey, Lin Xiaoyue became a chatterbox again.
Li Xiao would reply from time to time, and the atmosphere finally returned to normal.
When he got home, there were already many bricks and wood in the courtyard.
Carpenter Sun moved his equipment over. In half a day, he had already processed a lot of wood.
Li Xiao rode the ox-cart to transport the bricks, and Lin Xiaoyue carried the basket back to the shed to help Liu Shi cook.
At this time, Liu Shi had already finished making rice and was preparing to cook the dishes.
When she saw Lin Xiaoyue return, she immediately assigned the cooking task to Lin Xiaoyue.
Lin Xiaoyue did not decline. She put down the basket and started to get busy.
In the few days before the construction team came, the Liu family did not provide meals. Lin Xiaoyue did not make it complicated and simply made three dishes and a soup. It was paired with the buns she had bought in town, and the family had a meal together.
In the afternoon, Li Xiao was building the cowshed, and Lin Xiaoyue was helping him.
After the muddy road became dry again under the scorching sun, Li Xiao drove the ox-cart into town after 4 o'clock to continue transporting bricks.
Lin Xiaoyue entered the mountain with her chopper.
Later on, there would be more than 20 people in their house every day. The firewood in the house would be consumed very quickly.
She had to chop more firewood before the fire started.
While chopping the firewood, Lin Xiaoyue also caught a few hares and brought them back.
Then, Lin Xiaoyue heard about the Lin family on the way.
It turned out that someone had seen Fourth Uncle Lin coming down from the mountain early in the morning.
He was drenched in sweat and looking like a ghost. He didn't even greet the person and just ran back to the Lin family.
"What do you think he did in the mountains last night?"
"Who knows? It was very strange. When I ran into him this morning, he ignored me when I called him. He fell down, got up, and continued to run, as if someone was chasing after him." Another person said.
"It can't be that he's possessed, right?"
"Not sure. I heard that he fainted when he went back and hasn't woken up yet." He lowered his voice.
"Are there any ghosts in the mountain?"
"Don't scare yourself. Even if there is, it wouldn't dare to come out in broad daylight. But we'd better go back earlier in the future."
…
Lin Xiaoyue smiled, and she quickened her pace.
She had almost forgotten about her fourth uncle.
109 Liang Chengcai is Leaving
After spending a night in the mountains and getting caught in such a heavy rain, he was still alive. He was really lucky.
"I hope he'll be smarter after this…"
When she got home, Aunt Wang was also there.
She was also gossiping about the Lin family with her mother.
Seeing Aunt Wang happily telling her mother about the Lin family's misfortune, Lin Xiaoyue couldn't help but laugh in her heart.
It seemed like the Lin family was hated by many.
The days passed by quickly. Jiang Dahe came over in advance and arranged some things for Lin Xiaoyue before leaving.
Lin Xiaoyue was going to tell Liang Chengcai that she had to reschedule the class.
However, Liang Chengcai told her that he was about to leave Qingshi Town. He hoped that Lin Xiaoyue could take one day to teach him all the speed calculation methods.
Hence, Lin Xiaoyue had to rush to give Liang Chengcai a lesson the day before the construction started.
When she arrived at Ruyi Restaurant, after Liang Chengcai paid Lin Xiaoyue for the prey, he delegated work to his successor. Then, he went to the room next door with Lin Xiaoyue.
"You're leaving so urgently?"
"Yes, I am leaving tomorrow."
Then, he took out a silver note from his sleeve and handed it to Lin Xiaoyue.
Lin Xiaoyue was stunned.
"This is the gift I promised to give you. The extra 30 tables can be considered as a housewarming gift."
"Thank you." Lin Xiaoyue accepted it graciously.
It would be a waste not to take it.
Liang Chengcai looked a little disappointed.
"Let's start." He finally said.
"Yes."
First, she asked Liang Chengcai to recite the multiplication table, and then she asked him some questions.
When she found that Liang Chengcai was really good at answering the questions, she nodded in satisfaction.
"You have a good grasp of it."
"You can start with the vertical multiplication."
As Lin Xiaoyue spoke, she taught Liang Chengcai how to do vertical multiplication.
Liang Chengcai marveled at the ingenuity and magic of the algorithm.
He could already recite the multiplication table proficiently, so it was not a big problem for him to learn the vertical form of the multiplication table. He quickly mastered it.
"Next, there are three properties of multiplication. The commutative property, the associative property, and the distributive property." Lin Xiaoyue continued.
The more he learned, the more amazed Liang Chengcai was.
When it was lunchtime, they almost forgot to eat.
He was still concerned that Lin Xiaoyue was hungry, so he asked the kitchen to send some food over.
While eating, Liang Chengcai suddenly remembered the question that Lin Xiaoyue left for him a few days ago. It was the question that required him to sum from 1 to 100.
"Ms. Lin, you said last time that you would tell me the answer to the sum of 1 to 100 after I finished learning multiplication. Can you tell me now?" He was really curious and wanted to make sure that he had not made a mistake.
"What's your answer?" Lin Xiaoyue looked at Liang Chengcai with a smile.
"5,050." Liang Chengcai reported the number.
Lin Xiaoyue nodded, "that's right."
"How do you calculate it?" She asked Liang Chengcai.
"Using the associative property of addition. After I calculated the result, I used an abacus to verify it." Liang Chengcai said, embarrassed.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled.
"Have you thought about using multiplication?" She looked at Liang Chengcai with a smile.
Liang Chengcai paused.
After thinking for a while, he shook his head.
What did it have to do with multiplication?
"Going from 1 to 100 is equivalent to going from 0 to 100. What is the sum of the first and the last number?"
110 The Construction Begins
"100." Liang Chengcai immediately said.
"Then what about the sum of the second and the second-to-last numbers?"
"Also 100!" Liang Chengcai's eyes lit up.
"Therefore, according to the distributive and associative properties, the final equation becomes fifty 100, leaving only 50 unmatched!" He said in surprise.
Lin Xiaoyue nodded. Her eyes were filled with admiration.
He understood with just one hint, so he must be very smart.
"That's amazing! I had to calculate for half a day to get the answer, but according to your method, the result can be obtained so quickly!" Liang Chengcai was so shocked that he stood up.
"Young lady, you're so talented!" He saluted Lin Xiaoyue.
Lin Xiaoyue waved her hand.
"I also learned it from someone." She said humbly.
The crystallization of thousands of years of wisdom, of course it's awesome in the eyes of ancient people.
This was only the curriculum for the lower grades of elementary school. Other than addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, there were also powers.
She had almost forgotten about the more difficult ones such as geometry, probability, calculus, and linear algebra.
"May I know who your master is?" Liang Chengcai's eyes flashed as he asked Lin Xiaoyue.
Lin Xiaoyue paused.
Then, she looked at Liang Chengcai with no smile in her eyes.
Liang Chengcai froze. "If it's not appropriate, please forget that I asked." He hurriedly said.
"Hmm." Lin Xiaoyue responded. She ignored Liang Chengcai's question.
Her master? A 21st-century math teacher.
Of course, she couldn't tell him that.
After the meal, Lin Xiaoyue rested for a while before continuing the lesson.
In the afternoon, they mainly did some practice questions. Lin Xiaoyue gave Liang Chengcai more questions until Li Xiao came.
Liang Chengcai wanted to see Lin Xiaoyue off, but Lin Xiaoyue didn't let him. She hurriedly said goodbye to him and left.
Liang Chengcai hesitated for a moment when he thought of the last time he met Li Xiao. In the end, he gave up on chasing after her.
Forget it. Even if there was no Young Master Li, he and Ms. Lin were impossible…
"Young master." At this moment, a shop assistant came to him.
"Tell fifth uncle that I'll go immediately." As he spoke, Liang Chengcai started to clean up the papers on the table.
These things were valuable, and he wanted to take them with him.
The next day.
The construction of the Lin family's house had finally begun.
More than 20 people came and began to measure and lay the foundation.
Lin Xiaoyue asked Li Xiao to stay behind to work with the construction team. She then handed the ox-cart to Wang Shuanzi and asked him to help transport the bricks from town.
In less than a day, Li Xiao had become familiar with everyone.
Because Li Xiao did things quickly and was strong, everyone praised the Liu family for their good taste.
With Li Xiao dealing with the workers, Lin Xiaoyue was much more relaxed.
She was now mainly in charge of purchasing and helping Liu Shi and the others cook.
The workers were all full of praise for the food.
There were three meals a day. There were eggs in the morning, and meat for lunch and dinner. They were never provided such good food when they worked in town.
After eating, and with Li Xiao's help, the work progressed quickly.
In the blink of an eye, the skeleton of the Liu family's house had been completed.
It was another sunny day.
It was close to the end of July, and the summer heat was getting stronger.
The workers were resting after lunch.
Lin Xiaoyue let Liu Shi rest, while she, Aunt Wang, and Erya cleaned up the dishes.
"Uncle Jiang came to see me just now. From tomorrow onwards, we'll have everyone start work an hour earlier in the morning, get off work earlier in the afternoon, and start work later in the afternoon." Lin Xiaoyue said as she did the dishes.
111 Cold Glutinous Cake
She missed the detergent from before the apocalypse. Here, they could only use hot water and wood ashes to wash the dishes and remove the oil.
As wood ashes were too difficult to use, they basically only boiled water to wash the dishes at home. Every time she finished washing the dishes, there would be oil on her hands.
What was even more unbearable for her was that the villagers of this era mainly used wood ash to wash their hair and shower.
She still had a small amount of shampoo and soap left in her interspatial ring, otherwise, she would have a hard time.
However, this was not a long-term solution. When the house was built and she was not so busy, she wanted to make some honey locust shampoo and soap.
Well, perhaps she could also sell them.
Lin Xiaoyue made a note in her heart.
"Okay, then we'll start cooking early tomorrow." Aunt Wang said.
"Thank you, Aunt Wang."
They had to serve so many people every day. She had to prepare a fire, cook, and boil water. Her mother wasn't used to doing these things, so she wasn't as nimble as Aunt Wang and Wang Erya.
She would also be called away by others from time to time to deal with other matters. Aunt Wang and Erya were basically in charge of the kitchen.
"No problem! It's not like we did it for free!" Aunt Wang said with a smile.
She was willing to help the Liu family. Even if it wasn't something related to cooking, she would still lend a hand.
It was not only because of the high salary and good food provided, but also because of the relationship between them and the Liu family.
Their entire family was able to earn money and ate well by helping them.
In these ten days, she felt that she had put on weight.
Lin Xiaoyue wanted to continue chatting with Aunt Wang, but she saw Li Xiao coming over with a bucket.
"The water is almost empty, we need to boil another pot." He walked to Lin Xiaoyue and put the empty bucket aside.
"Alright! Please boil another pot of water." Lin Xiaoyue looked at Aunt Wang.
"Sure!" Aunt Wang replied.
Then, Lin Xiaoyue turned around and went into the small shed, and then brought out a pot used to boil water.
After putting the pot on the stove, Aunt Wang started a fire.
Lin Xiaoyue was about to scoop water into the pot, but Li Xiao went up and lifted the water bucket, pouring the water straight into the pot.
Lin Xiaoyue did not stop him. She stood at the side and smiled at Li Xiao. She gave Li Xiao a thumbs up in her heart.
Aunt Wang also smiled at the two of them. When she looked at Lin Xiaoyue, her eyes had a teasing look.
Previously, Lin Xiaoyue would blush. Now, her skin had become thick. Not only did she not feel embarrassed, but she also returned a smile to Aunt Wang.
Li Xiao felt uncomfortable being stared at, so he turned around and picked up two empty buckets.
"I'll go get two more buckets of water." After saying that, he quickly left.
"Hehe, you have good taste." After he was more than ten meters away, Aunt Wang smiled at Lin Xiaoyue.
"I agree." Lin Xiaoyue nodded her head playfully.
Then, they laughed.
They continued working in the kitchen. Lin Xiaoyue used her sleeve to wipe her sweat.
She thought to herself, "it would be great if I could have a bowl of shaved ice."
Then, Lin Xiaoyue's eyes suddenly lit up.
Ice was very difficult to get in the past. However, it's not impossible for her to make some cold glutinous cake.
Looking at the lime used by the construction team not far away, Lin Xiaoyue's eyes lit up.
When she was a child, she often watched her grandmother make cold glutinous cakes. Later, when she was older, she even made some with her grandmother. In the summer, they sold them at the market, and business was very good.
112 Huge Expenses
The glutinous cake was cold and refreshing, and it was one of the most delicious snacks and desserts in summer.
Thinking of this, Lin Xiaoyue was determined to make them.
"Aunt Wang, does anyone in our village have a stone mill?" She immediately asked Aunt Wang.
"There's one at the village chief's house, why?" Aunt Wang asked with a smile.
Lin Xiaoyue's eyes lit up.
"I just thought of a cold snack. I think I can try making it."
"What snack is it?" Before Aunt Wang could ask, Wang Erya asked.
"Hehe, you'll know tomorrow."
She had to bring back two catties of brown sugar when she went to town the next day.
The next day.
Lin Xiaoyue and Wang Shuanzi took the ox-cart to town early in the morning.
First, she went to Ruyi Restaurant to sell some prey. Then she went to the market to buy some vegetables.
After buying the ingredients, Lin Xiaoyue went to the grocery store to buy two catties of brown sugar.
Then, she carried the basket and walked out of town.
She didn't wait long before she saw Wang Shuanzi riding the ox-cart back. She got on the ox-cart and returned to Daishi village with him.
When they got home, Lin Xiaoyue gave the things she bought to Liu Shi, and then began to prepare the ingredients for the cold glutinous cake.
She had to try it.
If it worked, she could go to town to sell them after the house was built.
Ever since their family started building the house, the family's daily expenses had increased greatly.
In order to build a better house, she didn't ask Uncle Jiang to save on the bricks. As a result, she increased the number of bricks ordered from the brick kiln.
The house was only half built. Excluding the 60 taels of silver she paid to the construction team, the cost of the materials, the workers' wages, and the daily purchase of food, she had spent more than 80 taels of silver in total.
However, in addition to building a house, she was also planning to build a heated bed, a stove and lay stone slabs on the courtyard and every room. These expenses would not be a small number.
In addition, when the house was built, there would be a need to add furniture and some other things to the house. By then, she did not know how much money she would have to spend.
It was also fortunate that Liang Chengcai had given her 50 taels of silver as a thank you gift before he left, so she had the confidence to let Uncle Jiang go all out.
However, even so, when the house was built and everything was settled, she would not have much money left.
Now that it was the middle of summer, and she and Li Xiao had hunted too much in the mountains, it was no longer so easy to hunt.
She had thought about it. Hunting, in a sense, also depended on luck, so she had to consider doing business and finding other ways to make a living.
For example, selling cold glutinous cake while the weather was hot.
In the future, when she grew sweet potatoes, potatoes, and chilies, she would have more opportunities.
There was a large population in Qingshi Town, and the people in town were willing to spend money. In addition, there were many merchants coming and going, so the business environment was actually not bad.
Lin Xiaoyue took a wooden bucket and went to get the polished rice from her interspatial ring.
Seeing that not only was there not much polished rice left, there was also less than half a bucket of coarse rice left in the bucket. Her face was filled with helplessness.
In order to not attract attention and save costs, their family had been eating coarse rice all this time.
However, they had to feed more than 20 people a day, and most of them were young men who did physical work. The amount of coarse rice they consumed every day was also not a small amount.
It seemed that she would have to go to the grain store again tomorrow.
In addition, their family used to consume a lot of refined rice every day. Previously, she had calculated that the food in her interspatial ring could last until next year, but now, she was afraid that they wouldn't be able to last that long.
113 Grinding Rice into a Pulp
She had to earn money to buy food and make sure that her family's quality of life would not decline.
It wasn't easy for her to escape from the apocalypse, and she didn't want to live a bitter life anymore.
Lin Xiaoyue gave herself a pep talk. She gritted her teeth and took out more than three catties of polished rice.
Then, she scooped some water into the bucket and washed the polished rice twice. After that, she added water and soaked the rice.
After processing the rice, Lin Xiaoyue took another bucket of water. She also took a small amount of lime and mixed it into the water.
Then, she looked at the time before going to help Aunt Wang and the others.
The few of them were curious about what Lin Xiaoyue was doing, but Lin Xiaoyue smiled and said to keep it a secret. She told them to wait until she's done.
Seeing that Lin Xiaoyue was not willing to say anything, everyone could only wait.
After more than two hours, Lin Xiaoyue went to check on the soaked rice again.
She realized that the rice could be crushed with her fingers and knew that it was almost done.
Hence, she went to the village chief's house.
It was Zhang Shi who opened the door.
Knowing that Lin Xiaoyue was here to borrow the stone mill, Zhang Shi immediately took Lin Xiaoyue there and even offered to help her.
"Thank you!"
Then, with the help of Zhang Shi, she washed the stone mill and prepared to grind the rice pulp.
"Oh, this is refined rice! Yue'er, what are you preparing to do with this?" Zhang Shi asked Lin Xiaoyue while helping her.
After eating the dishes sent by Lin Xiaoyue twice in a row, she really admired Lin Xiaoyue's cooking skills.
Could the rice pulp be used to make dishes?
"Hehe, previously in the town, I happened to hear a merchant talking about a snack called cold glutinous caked, which is cooling and delicious. I bought some refined rice and brown sugar to try it out." Lin Xiaoyue said with a smile.
The method of making cold glutinous cake was actually quite simple, but it wasn't something that could be learned just by watching.
If she hadn't seen her grandmother make it in her previous life, and later on, tried it herself, even if she knew the process, she wouldn't have been able to make it well.
The two most difficult parts were the treatment of the lime water and the control of the fire during the boiling process.
The ratio of lime water must be precise. Otherwise, the cold glutinous cake made would not be delicious at all. It might even cause diarrhea.
And if too little lime was put in the water, it would not coagulate.
Also, it was extremely important to control the heat.
After the rice pulp was added to boiling water, it cooked quickly, and then it would stick to the pot.
Once it was burnt, the entire pot would be considered useless.
Although the cold glutinous cake might not be burnt, it would smell bad.
Therefore, she really wasn't worried about others seeing how she made them. Ordinary people couldn't learn it just by watching.
"Oh, really? Can I try it afterwards?" Zhang Shi said with a smile.
Hearing that Lin Xiaoyue was just trying it out, Zhang Shi did not ask for specific steps. She was going to wait until it's done.
"Sure, if it's a success, I'll send some over to you." Lin Xiaoyue said cheerfully.
"Hehe, I knew you were a good girl!"
Not long after, the rice pulp was done.
Lin Xiaoyue cleaned up the stone mill before bidding farewell to the Zhang family and going back.
Back in the kitchen, under the curious eyes of the three people, Lin Xiaoyue took out a filter cloth and filtered the top layer of the lime water.
114 Let It Cool in the Pond
Then, she poured the filtered water into the pot and placed it on the stove.
"Aunt, can I trouble you to help me boil this pot of liquid?" Lin Xiaoyue smiled and said to aunt Wang.
"Sure!" Aunt Wang agreed.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled, then went to the stream to wash the bucket and the rice.
When she came back, the water was about to boil.
"Please lower the fire a little. Next, change to medium fire." Lin Xiaoyue said.
"Alright!" Aunt Wang smiled and did as she was told.
Lin Xiaoyue used a big wooden spoon to stir the ground rice pulp. Then, she stirred the water in the pot while pouring the rice pulp into the pot.
She mixed them together and slowed down the speed of stirring.
Soon, the rice pulp in the pot began to become sticky, and its color changed from white to a pale yellow.
Lin Xiaoyue continued to stir the thick rice pulp in the pot slowly. When the mixture began to bubble, she asked Aunt Wang to lower the heat.
When the small bubbles in the mixture turned into big bubbles, she quickly asked Aunt Wang to put off the small fire.
Then, she stirred it a few more times. When she felt that it was almost done, Lin Xiaoyue wrapped the two pot handles with the loofah she used to wash the dishes and moved the pot away from the stove.
She took the cleaned wooden bucket and put the cold glutinous cake batter into the wooden bucket.
She only filled half of the bucket, and Lin Xiaoyue poured the rest into three big bowls.
"Just like this, it's done?" Aunt Wang saw the warm batter that Lin Xiaoyue made, and her eyes were filled with curiosity.
It looks like rice paste. Is it delicious?
"Not yet. I still have to put them in cold water to cool them down and wait for them to coagulate." Lin Xiaoyue said with a smile.
Then, she went to the small shed and took out the largest wooden bucket in the house.
"Erya, help me carry the cold glutinous cakes. Let's put them in the stream to cool them." Lin Xiaoyue looked at Wang Erya.
"Alright, Yue'er!" Wang Erya hurried forward to help.
So Lin Xiaoyue and Wang Erya took the cold cakes to the stream.
In order to collect water to wash clothes, Li Xiao had dug two large ponds in the stream.
Lin Xiaoyue chose one of them and put some water into the big wooden bucket. Then, she put the big wooden bucket into the pond. She put the small wooden bucket with the cold cakes and three big bowls into the big wooden bucket.
In order to prevent mosquitoes and dust, Lin Xiaoyue also found a piece of cloth to cover the big wooden bucket.
At this moment, Lin Xiaozhi and Xiao Qing also came out to watch the fun.
When Lin Xiaoshi heard that his sister was making cold glutinous cakes, he couldn't concentrate on studying with Xiao Qing in the shed.
That's right, after more than ten days, Xiao Qing's illness was almost fully recovered. However, his body was weak, and the Liu family didn't dare to let him do anything.
It was Xiao Qing who was bored and saw that Lin Xiaozhi had the potential to be a top student, so he proposed to teach Lin Xiaozhi how to read.
Lin Xiaoyue and Liu Shi agreed and left Lin Xiaozhi to Xiao Qing. This was great. Not only did the child have someone to watch over him, but he could also learn something.
"When can I eat it?" Lin Xiaozhi's eyes stared at the big wooden bucket in the pond and he swallowed.
Xiao Qing was also looking at it with a curious look in his eyes.
"Let's wait for an hour." Lin Xiaoyue laughed.
They were actually edible once they cooled down, but they would taste better if they stayed in the pond for a while.
"Let's go. Don't stand here. I have to go prepare for dinner." Lin Xiaoyue stood up and said to the three children.
115 Delicious
Wang Erya was 13 years old, Xiao Qing was 12, and Xiaozhi was 5. In her eyes, they were just children. She, on the other hand, had almost become their leader.
The three children listened to her and left.
However, they would look over from time to time, waiting for Lin Xiaoyue to say that the cold cakes were ready so they could eat.
After lunch, Lin Xiaoyue, Aunt Wang, and the others washed the dishes and cleaned up the temporary kitchen.
Then, she went to check on the cold glutinous cakes.
Wang Erya volunteered to go with her.
Lin Xiaozhi also asked her to wait for him and went after them.
Xiao Qing, on the other hand, was a little more shy. He didn't follow them this time, but stood by the shed to watch.
When they reached the stream, Lin Xiaoyue pulled the big wooden bucket over and took off the cloth covering it.
Seeing that the cold cake had completely solidified and looked yellowish, a smile appeared on her face.
"Done, we can take it back now."
"I'll take the small bucket!" Wang Erya said immediately.
"Me too, I'll get the bowls!" Lin Xiaozhi chimed in.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled.
She handed the cloth covering the big wooden bucket to Lin Xiaozhi and gave the small bucket to Wang Erya. She carried the big wooden bucket and the three big bowls of cold glutinous cakes in the big wooden bucket and walked behind them.
When they returned to the shed, Liu Shi and Aunt Wang also surrounded her.
Xiao Qing was still too shy to approach, but he stood not far away, watching.
"Wait for me to mix it with brown sugar water before eating."
Lin Xiaoyue said as she took some brown sugar and added hot water to the bowl.
Then, with a stir of the chopsticks, the brown sugar water quickly dissolved.
Lin Xiaozhi and Wang Erya looked at the brown sugar water and could not help but swallow.
The brown sugar water already looked delicious…
Lin Xiaoyue smiled and pretended not to see their expressions..
She took a spatula, cut a piece of cold glutinous cake, and put it in a small bowl.
Then, she used a larger spoon to scoop the sugar water and poured it on the cold cake.
The cold glutinous cake was coated with brown sugar water, instantly looking even more delicious.
"I'll try it first." Lin Xiaoyue smiled and said.
Then, under everyone's gaze, she picked up the small bowl, used a small spoon to scoop the cold cake and ate it.
It was soft and refreshing, and the taste was very good.
Lin Xiaoyue took a bite, then a second bite. She quickly finished the cold cake in the bowl.
"I want to eat too!" Lin Xiaozhi couldn't help but pull Lin Xiaoyue's pants.
Wang Erya also swallowed her saliva and looked at the cold cakes on the table.
Xiao Qing, who was not far away, was also looking at the cold cake.
"How's the taste?" Aunt Wang looked at Lin Xiaoyue with eager eyes.
"Hehe, not bad," Lin Xiaoyue replied with a smile.
"Aunt Wang, mom go get some bowls and give everyone a piece."
"Sure!" Liu Shi and Aunt Wang quickly responded.
When the bowls were brought over, Lin Xiaoyue kept a large bowl of cold cake for herself, and then let the three split the remaining cake on the table.
Lin Xiaozhi was the first to get the cold cake and exclaimed that it was delicious.
Xiao Qing was the second. After taking a bite, his eyes lit up.
Wang Erya, on the other hand, held back. She didn't start eating until they had distributed the cold cakes and sent them to the workers resting under the shade.
"This is really delicious!" Wang Erya felt that she had never eaten such a delicious dessert before and said to Lin Xiaoyue in admiration.
116 How About Selling Cold Glutinous Cakes?
"It really does taste good! It didn't look like you used a lot of rice, but you actually made so much. It's just that brown sugar is a little expensive." Aunt Wang also ate with a smile on her face.
"I think it's okay. I didn't see how much sugar was added just now." Liu Shi added.
"Hehe, it's fine as long as you like it!" Lin Xiaoyue was very satisfied with everyone's reaction.
"I'll sell them in town for 5 wen a bowl, what do you think?"
Liu Shi and Aunt Wang paused.
Even Wang Erya, who was at the side, stopped eating the cold cake.
"You can try! This cold cake is delicious and can relieve summer heat. It can be eaten by both adults and children!" Aunt Wang said excitedly.
"But isn't 5 wen a little too expensive? A bowl of noodles in the west of the city is only 7 wen," she continued.
Liu Shi nodded.
"4 wen for a bowl is definitely possible!" She was also a little excited.
Her daughter kept saying that she wanted to start a business. Was she referring to selling cold glutinous cake?
This thing was indeed novel and delicious, and the cost was not high. Perhaps it would really work!
"Then 5 wen for a bowl and 8 wen for two bowls." Lin Xiaoyue said.
She had confidence in the cold cakes she made. The market in the western part of the city was very crowded. It was not just the farmers outside town who liked to go there to trade and buy things. As things there were cheap, many people in town would go too.
If she were to sell them at 5 wen per bowl and 8 wen for two bowls, there must be a lot of people willing to try it.
As long as they were willing to try, she was confident that most people would become her returning customers.
The cold cakes were sent directly to be sold after they were made at home. If the customers wanted to buy some, she could directly cut it up and put it into the bowl, and then add some brown sugar water.
She only needed to bring some bowls and spoons, as well as the water and bucket to wash the dishes. When the customers finished eating, the bowls and spoons could be immediately washed and reused.
Besides, they had an ox-cart at home, so maybe they could bring a small table, a few small stools, and so on. This would attract more attention.
"Calculate the capital first." Liu Shi said to Lin Xiaoyue.
Aunt Wang also looked at Lin Xiaoyue with excitement.
She was looking at the cold cakes. Although the polished rice and brown sugar were expensive, it did not need much to make so many cold cakes. Anyway, she felt that it was profitable.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled and said, "I used about 3 catties of polished rice. The polished rice in the grain store was 8 wen per catty, which was 24 wen. A catty of brown sugar was 12 wen, so this little bit of sugar water probably only cost 4 wen. So, excluding the firewood and labor cost, the total cost of these cold cakes is 28 wen."
"I estimate that these cold cakes can be divided into 45 bowls according to the size I just cut. Even if it's 4 wen per bowl, it's still 180 wen."
Aunt Wang's eyes lit up.
"Wouldn't you be able to earn 152 wen if you sell all of them?!" She quickly said.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled and looked at her, a little surprised at the speed of her calculation.
"This is based on 4 wen per bowl. If it's 5 wen per bowl, it's a total of 225 wen!"
Aunt Wang's eyes flickered. "Wow, then the profit is 197 wen!"
Liu Shi was also very surprised. Even 152 wen was good, let alone 197 wen! It was almost the amount of money a strong man would have to work hard for a day to earn.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled. "There are so many people in town. 45 bowls won't be enough."
As soon as she said that, their expressions changed.
117 The House is Completed
Just then, Lin Xiaozhi walked over.
"Sister, I want more!" He went to Lin Xiaoyue's side and handed the bowl to her.
Lin Xiaoyue looked at Lin Xiaozhi and then saw Xiao Qing holding his bowl and looking at her.
"Aunt." She called out shyly.
He had actually called her aunt before, but grandmother Liu had not allowed him to do so.
And because of his uncle and aunt, he couldn't call her sister, so he could only call her aunt.
"You can bring it over too." Lin Xiaoyue smiled and said.
This child had always pretended to be mature, but today, he had the temperament of a child.
After that, Lin Xiaoyue turned around and gave Lin Xiaozhi more cold cakes.
"This is the third bowl. You can't add more after you eat it." He added it and handed it to Lin Xiaozhi.
"I know, sister." The child replied with a smile and walked away with the bowl.
In fact, he was already full. He just wanted to continue eating because he thought the cold cake was delicious. It was fine if she couldn't eat it today. Anyway, her sister knew how to cook. Next time, she could just ask her sister to cook.
After Lin Xiaozhi left, Lin Xiaoyue gave Xiao Qing more cold cakes.
"Your body hasn't fully recovered yet, so don't add more in this bowl." He instructed.
"Yes, aunt." Xiao Qing's face was red as he took the cold cake that Lin Xiaoyue handed over.
Then, he left.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled. She was about to continue talking to Madam Liu and Madam Wang about what happened just now when she saw a worker coming over.
Several workers saw that there were still cold cakes on the table, and after asking, they also added a bowl.
Then, more workers heard that there were cold cakes to eat and came over.
In the end, the cold cakes were naturally not enough. Lin Xiaoyue told everyone that she would make more in two days, and everyone left.
After everyone had finished eating and put back their bowls, Lin Xiaoyue, Madam Liu, and the others began to clear the bowls and wash the dishes.
The bowl of cold cakes was not oily and could be washed clean with clear water. It was simple.
After they left, Madam Liu and Madam Wang discussed with Lin Xiaoyue about selling cold cakes. Both of them thought that this business could be done.
"I'm just thinking about it. I don't have the time to do this now even if I'm building a house at home." Lin Xiaoyue looked at Madam Liu and aunt Wang.
"That's true. The most important thing right now is to finish building your house." Madam Wang agreed.
"You little girl, you're quite capable!" Then, he gave Lin Xiaoyue a thumbs up.
"Hehe, thank you for the compliment, Auntie!"
After washing the dishes, Lin Xiaoyue went into the small shed and took out the big bowl of cold cakes that she had previously kept.
Then, he added some brown sugar water and sent it to the village head's house.
Time flew by. Under the Liu family's infinite expectations, the Liu family's house was finally completed 18 days later.
Because Lin Xiaoyue had very high requirements for the interior of the house, the entire construction period was seven to eight days longer than expected. The original twenty-odd days of construction period was reduced to thirty-two days.
The construction team took an extra 30 taels from Lin Xiaoyue to help her lay out the indoor brick bed, stove, as well as the green stone slabs in the room and the courtyard.
Including the expenses for bricks and stone, Lin Xiaoyue did a final calculation. From the start of the construction to the completion of the house, their family had spent a total of three hundred and twenty taels of silver in the past month.
Her mother had taken out all two hundred taels of silver, while she had a total of one hundred and twenty taels.
Before building the house, including the 50 taels that Liang chengcai gave her, she had about 137 taels of silver in her hands at that time. During this period of time, she went to Ruyi Pavillion to sell wild animals almost every day and made some money. After deducting the cost of building the house, she still had about fifty taels of silver in her hands.
Just then, Lin Xiaozhi walked over.
"I want more!" He went to Lin Xiaoyue's side and handed the bowl to her.
Lin Xiaoyue looked at Lin Xiaozhi and then saw Xiao Qing holding his bowl and looking at her.
He looked at her shyly.
He had actually called her "aunt" before, but Liu Shi did not allow him to do so.
"Give that to me." Lin Xiaoyue smiled and said.
This child had always pretended to be mature, but today, he was a child again.
After that, Lin Xiaoyue turned around and gave Lin Xiaozhi more cold glutinous cakes.
"This is the third bowl. You can't have more after this." She put some into the bowl and handed it to Lin Xiaozhi.
"I know." He replied with a smile and walked away with the bowl.
In fact, he was already full. He just couldn't stop because he thought they were delicious. Anyway, his sister knew how to make them. Next time,he could just ask her to make more.
After Lin Xiaozhi left, Lin Xiaoyue gave Xiao Qing more cold glutinous cakes.
"Your body hasn't fully recovered yet, so don't eat anymore."
"Yes." Xiao Qing's face was red as he took the cold glutinous cake that Lin Xiaoyue gave him.
Then, he left.
Lin Xiaoyue smiled. She was about to continue talking to Liu Shi and Aunt Wang when she saw a worker coming over.
Several workers saw that there were still cold cakes on the table, and asked for more.
Then, more workers came over.
Finally, she ran out of cold glutinous cakes. Lin Xiaoyue told everyone that she would make more in two days, and everyone left.
After everyone had finished eating and put back their bowls, Lin Xiaoyue, Liu Shi, and the others began to clear the bowls and wash the dishes.
The bowls were not oily and could be washed with just water. It was simple.
After they left, Liu Shi and Aunt Wang discussed with Lin Xiaoyue about selling the cold cakes. Both of them thought that it was a viable business.
"Let's think about this first. We don't have the time to do this now." Lin Xiaoyue said.
"That's true. The most important thing right now is to finish building your house." Aunt Wang agreed.
"You are quite capable!" Then, she gave Lin Xiaoyue a thumbs up.
"Hehe, thank you for the compliment!"
After washing the dishes, Lin Xiaoyue went into the small shed and took out the big bowl of cold cakes that she had previously kept.
Then, she added some brown sugar water and sent it to the village chief's house.
Time flew by. The Liu family's house was finally completed 18 days later.
As Lin Xiaoyue had very high requirements for the interior of the house, the entire construction period was 7 to 8 days longer than expected. The original 20 or so days of construction period was increased to 32 days.
The construction team took an extra 30 taels from Lin Xiaoyue to help her set up the heater, stove, as well as lay the tiles in the room and the courtyard.
Including the expenses for bricks and stone, Lin Xiaoyue did a final calculation. From the start of the construction to the completion of the house, their family had spent a total of 320 taels of silver in the past month.
Her mother had taken out all 200 taels of silver, while she had a total of 120 taels.
Before building the house, including the 50 taels that Liang Chengcai gave her, she had about 137 taels of silver at hand at that time. During this period of time, she went to Ruyi Restaurant to sell her prey almost every day and made some money. After deducting the cost of building the house, she still had about 50 taels of silver left.
118 A Private Villa
It seemed like a lot, but she had not paid for the furniture by Uncle Sun. She estimated that she would have to spend more than 20 taels for them. In addition to other miscellaneous expenses, she really could not afford to spend more money.
Lin Xiaoyue understood now. Renovation was not much cheaper than building a house.
Fortunately, the house was built quite beautifully, even exceeding her expectations. This was the only comfort she had.
During the construction, many villagers came to watch and sighed at the sight.
Now that the house was built, there were even more people coming to see it.
Even the village chief came to take a look. After the tour, he said that the Liu family's money was well spent.
The main gate opened into the front courtyard and surrounded the big tree.
There was a cellar on the left that was made of bricks that stored raw lime that was left from the construction.
In addition to the cellar, there was also a shed in the yard. Lin Xiaoyue was going to buy some jars to make pickles there.
Before building the house, Jiang Dahe and Lin Xiaoyue had a discussion and made some adjustments to the layout of Lin Xiaoyue's room.
On the left of the living room was the kitchen, followed by the woodshed, the livestock room, and the toilet. On the right was the mill, then the utility room and two bedrooms.
Then, a small courtyard and a side door were added to the left side of the house which allowed people to enter the kitchen, the woodshed, and the livestock house from the side door.
This was so that the kitchen could lead to the stream to get water, deliver firewood, and the ox-cart could go in and out easily.
The kitchen and the mill were the most spacious of the rooms.
As for the kitchen, Lin Xiaoyue referred to the stove in her grandfather's house in her previous life and asked the construction team to build a stove with two stove burners.
One was for stir-frying vegetables, while the other was for making rice.
There was a hole behind the stove to put a small pot, which could be used to boil water.
No matter which burner was lit, the water in the pot could be heated up.
There was a big space in front of the stove, and she could put a lot of firewood.
Behind the stove, next to the wall was a chopping board that was about the same width as the door and up to 3 meters in length. There would be a lot of space for preparing food. Then, there was a water tank and the cupboard.
There was still more space on the right side of the stove.
Lin Xiaoyue's plan was to get Carpenter Sun to make 2 rows of shelves to store the extra pots and other kitchenware.
Then, she moved the small table they had into the kitchen.
As for the mill, it was now a large, empty room.
Lin Xiaoyue found a stonemason to make the stone mill, but she had not gone to retrieve it.
That was basically the front yard.
Then, one could get to the backyard of the Liu residence by walking through the small corridor between the kitchen and the living room, or the corridor between the mill and the living room.
The bathroom was in the back next to the kitchen, and behind the bathroom was the toilet. There were a total of 6 bedrooms around which were quite big. With a screen partition, each room could be further divided into 2 rooms.
Lin Xiaoyue also designed the landscape with a few flower beds. She was ready to go to town to buy some wintersweet plants. It was a place for family members to relax.
The Liu residence was surrounded with high walls and large tiles, and it was extremely private. As it was quite far from the other houses in the village, it looked like a detached villa.
119 Preparing to Move
Liu Shi asked someone to check the date. In 3 days would be the auspicious day to move into the new house.
Of course, the Liu family would not be idle these few days.
They would do some cleaning for the house, and then move all the things and furniture that they bought into the house.
The money in Lin Xiaoyue's pocket was still flowing out rapidly.
Those who worked at the Liu family before came to ask when they would hold a housewarming party.
Liu Shi originally thought that they didn't know many people, and they had spent a lot of money to build the house, so she didn't want to do it.
However, Lin Xiaoyue agreed to the housewarming party.
"This is a big event for us. We should have a good time!" Lin Xiaoyue said to Liu Shi.
"But…" Liu Shi was worried that the family did not have enough money.
"Don't worry, mom. Other than the village chief's family, Aunt Wang's family, and those who came to help with the construction, we won't invite anyone else. There shouldn't be many who show up uninvited, so we should be able to prepare just 6 or 7 tables."
"I'll go into the mountains and hunt. There will be meat dishes," Li Xiao said.
He knew that she wanted to build a relationship with the villagers.
"It's already the middle of summer. Won't it be difficult to hunt?" Liu Shi looked at Li Xiao.
During the construction of the house, Lin Xiaoyue and Li Xiao went into the mountains to hunt from time to time so that they could sell them for some money to cover the costs.
However, no matter how many animals there were in the mountains, there was still a limit. It was not as easy to hunt now as it was in the early summer. Recently, she noticed that they didn't have a good yield.
"There's not many wild animals in the back mountain, but there's still quite a lot if we go deep into the mountains." Li Xiao said.
After the number of animals had decreased, he thought of going deep into the mountains.
However, the journey into the deep mountains was longer, and the situation was more complicated, so the round trip would take a lot of time. He didn't have time then.
Now that the house had been built, he could help earn some money.
"No, it's too dangerous in the mountains." Liu Shi said immediately.
Li Xiao didn't reply.
After coming to this family, Liu Shi treated him and Qing'er with sincerity.
Lin Xiaoyue also did not reply.
After she paid for the furniture and bought some other things, she would not have much money left.
After the autumn harvest, the academies in the town would recruit new students in early October. She was planning to send Xiaozhi and Qing'er to the academy.
She really didn't want to give up on hunting.
Seeing that the two of them didn't reply, Liu Shi knew what they were thinking.
"Since there are not many animals in the mountains now, don't go there anymore."
"Don't you want to sell cold glutinous cakes? Try that." Liu Shi said.
Lin Xiaoyue's eyes flashed with hesitation, and then she nodded.
"Alright, mom."
Forget it. She was confident that she could enter the deep mountains, but it was hard to say for Li Xiao.
The mountain road was difficult to walk on, and there were many beasts in the deep mountains. Li Xiao didn't have any special abilities or an interspatial ring for storage, so it was actually quite dangerous for him to go.
It was early August, and the temperature in Diashi Village would usually drop in late October. Then, it would quickly enter winter in mid-November. Even if they continued to hunt in the mountains, they wouldn't be able to do so for long.
It was better to plan and look for other ways to make a living.
Hearing Lin Xiaoyue's response, Liu Shi was relieved.
Then, he looked at Li Xiao.
"Yes, aunt." Li Xiao finally said.
"Don't think about anything else these few days. When you're free, go and pick up more firewood. The woodshed is big, so we don't have to worry about not having enough space. The party will be held the day after tomorrow, and it will need a lot of firewood." Liu Shi said.
"Yes." Li Xiao responded.
120 Party
"There aren't many people and there's no need to hire a chef for the party. When we were building the house, just the two of us plus you and Aunt Wang could serve 20 to 30 people, and that's before we had a proper kitchen."
"After we move, our kitchen will be big and easier to operate. It shouldn't be a problem to deal with 6 or 7 tables of people." Liu Shi said.
"Or, I'll go ask Aunt Jiang tomorrow and see if she can bring Xiaohua to help us."
In addition to Aunt Jiang and Xiao Hua, there would be six people in the kitchen. They should be able to handle it.
"Alright, we'll decide on the menu tomorrow. I'll be in charge of buying the ingredients." Lin Xiaoyue said.
This was the first party since she came to this world, and she was looking forward to it.
"I'll arrange the table, chairs, bowls, and chopsticks." Li Xiao added.
During the construction period, he had gotten familiar with the other families, so he just needed to go and borrow tables, chairs, plates, and chopsticks in advance.
"Yes. You can go out, Yue'er and I will be at home." Liu Shi added.
The family discussed the details of the party before resting.
Finally, 3 days later.
Before dawn, Li Xiao and Lin Xiaoyue rode the ox-cart to town.
They bought the items according to the list and rushed back to Daishi Village before 9 o'clock.
Then, Li Xiao lit the firecrackers.
Liu Shi, who was wearing new clothes, brought her family, who were also wearing new clothes, into the house with firewood, rice, oil, and salt. It symbolized bringing wealth into the family.
After a quarter of an hour, Liu Shi and the others put away the things they had brought in and came to the door to welcome the guests.
Only then did Aunt Wang, Wang Erya, Wang Shuanzi, Aunt Jiang, and Xiaohua enter.
Following that, they were preparing the food.
Li Xiao and Wang Shuanzi took the things from the ox-cart to the kitchen and then went to the front yard.
There was still some time before lunch, and it was still the busy season for farmers. The Liu family thought that not many people would come early.
They didn't expect that not long after they entered the house, some women arrived with their children
These people were curious about the Liu family's residence, and they were here to help.
The salary that the Liu family paid the workers to help build the house was not low, and they earned quite a bit of money working for them.
Moreover, the Liu family treated them very well. No one could find any fault with the food they provided.
The workers had a good time here, so they told their families when they returned.
Hence, they volunteered to help the Liu family during their housewarming.
Soon, a lot of people came to the kitchen. Seeing that Liu Shi didn't have much to do, Aunt Wang suggested that she go out and entertain the guests.
"That's right, mom. We'll keep an eye on the kitchen. Go ahead and give Li Xiao some guidance. There are many people in the village that he doesn't even know." Lin Xiaoyue also said.
Liu Shi was a little hesitant.
"Qing'er is recording the guests' gifts. Why don't you help him? He doesn't know anyone, so you can introduce them to him." Lin Xiaoyue said again.
Only then did Liu Shi agree.
"Alright, I'll go then." She finally left the kitchen.
When she left the kitchen, someone immediately greeted and congratulated her.
Liu Shi smiled and went to where Xiao Qing and Lin Xiaozhi were.
She saw Xiao Qing holding a pen and recording the details of the guests' gifts. Then, he and Lin Xiaozhi invited the guests to come inside.
They were respectful, gentle, and polite, and they received the guests' compliments.
Liu Shi was once again amazed by Xiao Qing.
This child really looked like a young master from a noble family.