Chapter 56

The village was buzzing with joy. Everyone was talking about how they could now find work close to home.

Qishan Village might one day be as bustling as the city, with its own lively market streets and shops.

The Li mother and daughter had been observing for many days. Try as they might, they couldn’t figure out Xiao Wanling’s recipes. Their hearts were full of envy, and they became even more determined to stay.

Xue Cui had lost the ten taels of silver she had. She wanted to borrow money from her family.

Old Lady Liu thought that since her three sons were in the army and her daughters-in-law could earn money, it was only right to help out Xue Cui a little.

But as soon as she brought it up, the sons and their wives all went back into their rooms and closed the doors, leaving Old Lady Liu shouting in the courtyard, “Defu! Dean! You won’t even listen to your own mother?”

She ran to complain to Xue Zhengyang, “We haven’t even divided the family yet, and everyone’s only thinking about themselves! You need to say something to them.”

The old man was perfectly clear about the situation. They’re growing wings—it’s only a matter of time before the family splits. “If you want to help Xue Cui, figure it out yourself. You know exactly how much money I have.”

When it came to giving up her own money, Old Lady Liu was reluctant. She turned to persuade Xue Cui to marry. “You’re still young. Find someone to marry. How much can you really earn on your own? More than ten families have moved into the mountains; you should go out and meet people.”

After working so hard, being told to give up made Xue Cui feel resentful.

Old Lady Liu shrugged. “I don’t have any money! Do whatever you want.”

Since her sons and daughters-in-law didn’t respect her, and Xue Cui wasn’t reliable either, she could only count on her eldest grandson. She was thinking that once Xue Cui got married, they could give her room to the eldest boy for studying. Now that the family could afford it, he had already gone to the academy in town.

The Zhang family had the restaurant business; the Jin family had the cloth shop. After buying a dyeing recipe from Xiao Wanling, they produced fabric that was even sent into the palace and traded overseas with places like Tianzhu. More importantly, they could get seeds that Xiao Wanling needed.

The Prince of Jin was planning to campaign against the Prince of Qi after the New Year, so Shen Qing had to train new soldiers daily.

Bun shops, pastry shops, snack stalls—shops kept opening one after another. The government handled the storefronts, Xiao Wanling provided the recipes, and she received a 2% cut from the profits.

Now that she had some free time, Xiao Wanling focused on experimenting with recipes and farming.

After training, Shen Qing would wash up and come find Xiao Wanling. She was in the greenhouse picking chili peppers, and her shoes were caked with mud.

Shen Qing walked behind her, lifted her in his arms, carried her to a chair outside, took off her muddy shoes, and replaced them with pink embroidered ones.

Xiao Wanling pulled out a pair of black boots from behind the chair like a magic trick. “I made these for you!”

Shen Qing smiled happily. “You’re not fooling me. I embroidered all your shoes myself!”

Xiao Wanling lifted her skirt and raised a foot to inspect them. The mandarin duck design was exactly the same as the one on the shoes Shen Qing had given her.

Only then did she realize he had secretly made the shoes for her. She threw herself into his arms with a grin. “They look amazing! Shen Qing, even if you can’t hunt or fight anymore, your needlework alone could feed our child.”

Shen Qing held her by the waist. He liked making shoes for her and watching her delight when she wore them. He also liked seeing her all dressed up.

As the New Year approached, by the fifteenth day of the twelfth month, all shops had closed. The only headache was bookkeeping. Thanks to Xiao Wanling’s hands-on teaching, Jiang Ting could read the delivery forms and handed in the ledgers early.

Sister-in-law Lu still couldn’t tell the difference between milk tea and snow fungus soup. She only recognized numbers one to five, which was already simplified and personalized teaching from Xiao Wanling.

Just looking at the different teas gave her a headache. Suddenly, Lu Dahai came rushing in. “We need to go home! Haven’t even bought New Year’s goods yet, and the New Year’s only half a month away!”

Sister-in-law Lu replied, “No time, I’m off to collect debts!” She slammed the ledger shut and walked out, with Lu Dahai chasing after her.

He had loaned out all their money and household goods and now came to her to prepare New Year’s stuff. Everyone in the village praised him, while she got the bad rep of being stingy.

Xiao Wanling said, “Shen Qing, bring the ledgers home.”

“Yes,” Shen Qing replied, loading dozens of account books onto the cart and taking home all unused ingredients too.

He locked the shop and carried Xiao Wanling into the cart. They sat side by side.

Xiao Wanling said, “I heard they’re paving this road with bluestone.”

Shen Qing nodded, “I heard too. When you first opened the teahouse, the ground turned to mud whenever it rained.”

He used to carry her in fear of ruining her shoes.

Xiao Wanling looked at his rough hands. Who would’ve thought he’d become so good at embroidery? She thought of the two sets of clothes she’d made for him with messy stitching. “Women usually make clothes for their husbands. Don’t you mind that I haven’t done that for you?”

Shen Qing said, “You manage the shop and carry a baby—it’s hard enough. I can do the rest. You just rest.”

Xiao Wanling’s heart melted. She leaned on his shoulder, arms around his waist. “Shen Qing, you’re so good to me.”

Shen Qing moved closer. His smile didn’t fade the entire ride home.

He kicked open the courtyard door, set her down in the sun, then grabbed a basket and went into the greenhouse to dig up some fresh ginger. “What do you want to eat?” he asked.

“Cluck, cluck—” a hen jumped out of the coop and pecked at the vegetables.

“Chicken soup,” Xiao Wanling replied.

Shen Qing looked away. “Let’s keep the hen for eggs to nourish you.”

Eggs could also be used for fluffy red bean mousse, which Xiao Wanling craved too. “How about some milk tea and red bean cake?”

In the cowshed were the dairy cows Shen Qing had bought. With his strong arms, he whipped egg whites until they stood up in stiff peaks. The red bean paste was ready, and once it was done, he called Xiao Wanling into the kitchen.

He closed the kitchen door and lit a brazier—it was warm and cozy. Xiao Wanling took off her cloak. Shen Qing brought over the cake. She took a bite, and he popped the rest into his mouth.

Drinking milk tea, Xiao Wanling smiled genuinely, heart full of sweetness. After she finished, Shen Qing ate all the leftovers too.

He brought out a ladder, climbed onto the roof, and replaced the glazed tiles on the neighboring room. With the new tiles, even without windows open during the day, the room was bright. They made it the living room.

All of Shen Qing’s clothes had been moved into Xiao Wanling’s room. According to him, he had to be there to pour her tea at night, carry her to the outhouse, and keep her from falling in the dark.

Xiao Wanling blushed, remembering how he insisted on scrubbing her back.

With less physical activity, she walked around the courtyard for exercise. She smelled chicken soup and wondered what Shen Qing was up to.

He called from the kitchen, “Wanling, chicken soup’s ready!”

She walked over and saw a whole chicken in the pot. “You killed the egg-laying hen?”

She had planned to keep it, but it did smell amazing.

Shen Qing replied, “I bought it from Aunt Wu.” He tore off two drumsticks and placed a bowl of soup in front of her. “Eat.”

Delighted, Xiao Wanling drank the whole bowl and praised him endlessly. “You’re amazing! You could open a restaurant!”

Shen Qing grinned, revealing perfect white teeth. He wiped her mouth and finished off the rest.

That night, after bathing her and tucking her into bed, Shen Qing suddenly said, “Give me some money; I want to buy meat.”

Xiao Wanling saw his guilty look and knew he was up to something. She took out two hundred wens from a chest and handed them over.

Shen Qing’s eyes followed her every move. He had already searched all her hiding spots and only found the daily earnings. After a few days, the previous wens would mysteriously disappear. “How much have you saved?” he asked.

Xiao Wanling thought a moment. “A few thousand taels. We’ll need 200 to buy a house in town for the birth. Then a doctor, furniture, baby clothes and toys, and someone to wash diapers so there should be enough.”

Shen Qing mentally took note. He had learned to read many characters, only struggling with a few like “toy.” Not knowing how to care for a pregnant woman, he went to ask Aunt Wu and the village head’s wife. That’s when word got out—Xiao Wanling was pregnant. The villagers congratulated Shen Qing with big smiles.

Aunt Wu was genuinely happy for her but also a little worried. “So Director Xiao won’t open her shop next year?”

Shen Qing answered, “Only the teahouse will be opened. The rest will be handled by the government.”

He would help manage the store when free, so Xiao Wanling wouldn’t get too tired. Remembering what she said, he added, “Any women who want long-term jobs can register at the marketplace. There’s someone there every day.”

Aunt Wu hurried to tell the village women. Everyone went to the marketplace and saw two tables set up with officials recording names.

They lined up happily. But then someone went up to an official, put a pouch of money on his shoulder, and the official packed up his writing tools and shouted, “We’re full for today—come early tomorrow!”

Aunt Wu, Cheng Qiao’er, and Sister-in-law Lu exchanged looks and could only plan to return early the next day.

At dawn, Aunt Wu finally got to the front.

The official gave her a once-over. “Name, age?”

She answered everything and asked, “When can we start?”

The official frowned impatiently. “Answer what I ask. Next!”

A man offered the official wine and said, “The big officials are gone now—help us out. Men are stronger than women. Besides, there are nearly a thousand women in the village. You’ve got to pick and choose!”

Aunt Wu, Gu Yaofang, and Sister-in-law Lu were all rejected. The three of them went to find Xiao Wanling.

Xiao Wanling was surprised. Her hiring policy was clearly written—priority for women from the two villages and one mountain.

Aunt Wu needed to pay for her child’s schooling, Sister-in-law Lu supported her family, and Gu Yaofang had no money and was bullied by Old Lady Liu. Xiao Wanling saw how hard life was for these women. Chancellor Fu and Master Zhi had already left Jin City, and she wouldn’t be able to find them until after the New Year.

She said, “Come work at my teahouse first. Pay will be the same.”

Aunt Wu was moved to tears. Thinking of the officials’ arrogant faces made her angry. “They only gave jobs to their own sons-in-law and brothers; these were some of those jobs women could do!”

As Director of Agriculture, Xiao Wanling could assign farmland freely but had no real authority. She took a deep breath and swallowed her anger. “Fine! Make a list of everyone who got turned away. I’ll handle it.”

Smiles returned to Aunt Wu and Gu Yaofang’s faces. They left cheerfully, eager to share the good news.

Sister-in-law Lu glanced at Shen Qing. Xiao Wanling asked Shen Qing to step aside. Only then did Sister-in-law Lu speak. “I want a divorce.”

Divorce wasn’t unheard of for village women. Like Xue Cui, who had her maternal family, she could still stay in Qishan Village.

If Sister-in-law Lu divorced, someone like Lu Dahai, who gave away all their belongings, would leave her with nothing.

Xiao Wanling asked, “Are you sure?”

Sister-in-law Lu nodded slowly. “I’ve thought it through. If Lu Dahai doesn’t change, no matter how much I earn, it’ll never be enough. And I can only do so much.”

Xiao Wanling noticed a shadow outside the gate. “Where will you live?”

Sister-in-law Lu said, “I’ll build a grass hut if I have to!”

She had completely given up on Lu Dahai. Seeing Xiao Wanling made her realize that women didn’t have to rely on men.