When Lin Moli returned home with that handful of "precious seeds," her steps felt like she was walking on cotton. She was already planning all the way home. Once she planted the seeds and the vegetables grew as lush and green as those on the hill behind Lin Wanqiu's house, she would sell them at the town market. With the money she earned, she would first buy herself a new piece of cloth to make a flowery blouse, and then some face cream to use on her face—she was sure all the young wives in the village would envy her. The more she thought about it, the more beautiful it seemed. She didn't even notice Old Lady Shen peeking at her from outside her house as she passed by.

"Jasmine, where have you been so late?" Old Mrs. Shen leaned closer, her eyes darting over Jasmine's pockets. "Did you go to Lin Wanqiu's? Did she give you something nice?"

Lin Moli's heart skipped a beat. She quickly clutched her pocket tightly, but pretended to be nonchalant: "No... I didn't give anything, we just chatted for a while." She didn't want Old Lady Shen to know about the seeds—with Old Lady Shen's personality, if she found out, she would definitely snatch them away, and then she wouldn't earn a single penny.

But Old Mrs. Shen wasn't so easily fooled. She grabbed Lin Moli's arm, her tone laced with threat: "You little rascal, are you hiding things from me? Let me tell you, that widow Lin Wanqiu has been acting strangely lately; she's definitely hiding something good. If you know anything, tell me right now, or else..."

Lin Moli's arm ached from being gripped so tightly, and she felt both scared and angry. She knew that Old Lady Shen was not someone to be trifled with, but she couldn't bear to part with the seeds, so she could only vaguely say, "It's really nothing... it's just... Lin Wanqiu planted some vegetables on the back hill, saying they could be sold for money."

"Green vegetables?" Old Mrs. Shen's eyes lit up. "What kind of green vegetables are so precious? How much can they sell for?"

“I don’t know either,” Lin Moli pretended not to know. “She didn’t explain it to me clearly, just said that the seeds were very rare.”

Grandma Shen immediately had an idea—Lin Wanqiu must have hidden some good seeds and didn't want to share them with her! She let go of Lin Moli's arm, planning to go to the back mountain tomorrow to see if there were any good vegetables, and if so, she would try to get some. Seeing that Grandma Shen wasn't asking any more questions, Lin Moli quickly took the opportunity to slip away, afraid of being bothered by her again.

Back home, Lin Moli didn't even eat dinner. She took a hoe and cleared a small patch of land in the backyard, carefully planting the "special seeds." She even took a small bowl of water from the only half-bag of cornmeal she had and poured it on the soil—she thought that watering with cornmeal would surely make the seeds grow faster and better. Only after doing all this did she go back to bed satisfied, dreaming of selling the vegetables and seeing herself wearing her new floral jacket.

Little did she know, Lin Wanqiu was sitting on the edge of her own kang (heated brick bed), gazing at the moonlight outside the window, a mocking smile playing on her lips. She took out a packet of ordinary vegetable seeds from her spatial storage, plotting in her mind—tomorrow morning, she would go to the back hill and plant the ordinary seeds next to the "special seeds." Once Lin Moli's "vegetables" sprouted, she would "kindly" remind her, making her look foolish in front of Old Lady Shen.

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, Lin Wanqiu carried a bamboo basket and a hoe, heading towards the back mountain. As soon as she reached the vegetable garden, she saw Old Lady Shen lurking suspiciously near the edge, carrying a burlap sack—clearly intending to steal some vegetables. Lin Wanqiu sneered inwardly and deliberately coughed, "Old Lady Shen, what are you doing on the back mountain so early? Are you here to help me water the vegetables?"

Grandma Shen was startled, and the sack in her hand fell to the ground. An embarrassed look appeared on her face: "I... I was just passing by and wanted to take a look at the crops in the field."

"Really?" Lin Wanqiu walked over, picked up the sack, and deliberately opened it to look inside. "This sack looks pretty new; it doesn't seem like something you'd use while passing by. Old Mrs. Shen, you wouldn't be trying to steal my vegetables, would you?"

Old Mrs. Shen's thoughts were exposed, and her face flushed red and then turned pale, but she still stubbornly retorted: "What nonsense are you talking about! I am your mother-in-law, your things are my things, what's wrong with me taking some vegetables? You dare to accuse me of stealing!"

"My things are your things?" Lin Wanqiu sneered. "Then let me ask you, last year when the brigade distributed grain, you took my share. Why didn't you say that was my stuff? And my dowry, you pawned it. Why didn't you say that was my stuff? Old Mrs. Shen, don't try to play dumb with me. These vegetables are the result of my hard work in growing them. If you dare to touch even one, I'll report you to the brigade and let the whole village know that you stole!"

Old Mrs. Shen was speechless, both angry and frightened. She knew Lin Wanqiu was different now; she dared to stand up to her and even dared to complain to the village committee. She could only pick up the sack and leave, cursing, "You wait! I won't let this go!"

Watching Old Lady Shen's retreating figure, Lin Wanqiu smiled slightly. She knew Old Lady Shen wouldn't let it go, but at least for now, she wouldn't dare steal vegetables anymore. She turned around and began cultivating a small plot of land beside the vegetable patch, planting ordinary seeds. She even deliberately stuck a small wooden stick next to the ordinary seeds, with the words "Experimental Field" written on it—she wanted Lin Moli to think that these were her newly planted "special seeds," to arouse her greed.

After finishing all this, Lin Wanqiu carried her bamboo basket home. Just as she reached her doorstep, she saw Lin Moli standing at the gate, her eyes constantly glancing towards the back mountain, clearly wanting to check on how her seeds were growing. Lin Wanqiu pretended not to notice her thoughts and smiled, saying, "Cousin, is there something you need so early?"

Lin Moli quickly looked away, her face showing anxiety: "Sister Wanqiu, I... I just wanted to ask when the seeds you gave me yesterday will sprout? I planted them yesterday and watered them with cornmeal water, they should grow quickly, right?"

Lin Wanqiu chuckled inwardly, but feigned surprise: "Cornmeal water? Cousin, how could you use cornmeal water to water them? Those seeds are very delicate; plain water is fine. Using cornmeal water will burn the seeds!"

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