Just as Sun Miao'er expected, the claim that the land was fertile was just a lie to deceive the villagers. They were all from the same village, so how could it be that her land was blessed?

The corn in Aunt Ge's yard grows so well, all thanks to the good seeds.

“This seed was passed down to me by my family; no one else has it. My family is a well-known farming family in the area. If I hadn’t something to rely on when I married into Fushui Village, I would definitely have been bullied.”

The golden, yet shriveled and stiff corn seeds radiated a dazzling light.

Although there is plenty of pig feed, it is not considered high-quality feed. Piglets can barely survive on pig feed, but grain feed is more reliable for them to grow big.

With land, there's no worry about seedlings; with seedlings, there's no worry about them growing.

The two thanked her repeatedly, took the corn seeds home, and before they left, Aunt Ge repeatedly warned them not to reveal the secret of the cornfield.

"That old scoundrel Lai, he does nothing but these ridiculous things all day long. He doesn't even want to take care of his own son. Who will clean up his messes after he's gone?"

Even from a distance away from the Sun family home, Sun Miao'er could hear Jin's mocking and unpleasant curses, the target of which was none other than Old Madam Sun.

"I'll clean up for Grandma!"

Sun Miao'er rushed forward and stood in front of Old Lady Sun, looking fierce.

A cold smile appeared on Jin's lips. "Well, you little brat, I knew you were faking illness. You were able to speak this morning, but by the afternoon you were like a living dead!"

Grandma Sun pounded the ground with her cane, tears streaming down her face, "What a misfortune for our family! What a misfortune for our family!"

Sun Miao'er was completely bewildered. Although Jin Shi was usually a bit domineering, she wouldn't go so far as to curse her mother-in-law in the courtyard. It would be a laughing stock if others heard it.

"Don't forget, your younger brother Xiao Ning is still working outside. If you don't know what's good for you, I'll make him work as a slave for the rest of his life."

Sun Xiaoning used to be Sun Miao'er's weakness. Whenever Sun Miao'er wanted to rebel, Jin would bring up Sun Xiaoning. It was Jin who brought people to take Xiaoning away back then, so Sun Miao'er had no idea where her biological brother was now.

Things are different now than they used to be.

“I can take care of my younger brother myself, so I don’t need to trouble you, Auntie.”

Sun Miao'er's words left Jin speechless.

Just then, Xiaoman shouted from the kitchen, "Mom, the porridge on the stove is burnt!"

"I'll settle this score with you later!"

Sun Miao'er helped her grandmother up from the ground. "Grandma, what happened?"

Grandma Sun's brother was a scholar, and her father was a private tutor. They were born into a scholarly family. Grandpa Sun's family had been practicing medicine for generations and were highly respected in the village. However, in his old age, he lost his reputation and was humiliated to such an extent by his daughter-in-law.

A myriad of sorrows welled up in my heart, yet I knew not where to begin expressing them.

A long sigh was heard, "Your second uncle is back."

"He's drowning in debt, saying he gambled it all away in the city, losing all his wages and still not enough to pay it off. Now he's come home asking for money, but his second son's family has no money, so they're coming to me for it. But where would I get any money? They've already squandered all my savings for my funeral!"

Hearing this, Sun Miao'er felt a pang of sadness. If her father were still alive, perhaps she and her grandmother would have someone to rely on, and her mother wouldn't have gone mad and disappeared without a trace.

"I had two sons and two daughters in my life. Your father was such a filial and sensible child. It's all my fault for being such a useless old man. I doted on my youngest son and spoiled Yuanhu like this! But God had to take Yuanyong away. God is so unfair. It would have been better if He had taken this old man away too!"

Overwhelmed with grief, Old Mrs. Sun no longer knew what she was saying. After all, she had been suppressing her emotions for too long, and when she learned that Sun Yuanhu was in debt, it was as if she had been struck by lightning.

Sun Miao'er couldn't even find the words to comfort her. "Grandma, don't say that. You still have Miao'er. You have to watch Miao'er get married, and watch Xiao Ning and Xiao Man get married and have children. You will definitely live to be a hundred years old."

"You've taken after your father's honesty and understanding nature. I'm really worried! I'm afraid you'll be taken advantage of by the second son's family!"

The past cannot be retrieved.

"Grandma, don't think about those sad things. Right now, why don't we let Second Uncle go out and hide for a while? Anyway, our Fushui Village is remote, and people from the city may not be able to find our home."

Chai Yuanhu is in debt and urgently needs money right now. Those two are only interested in profit; perhaps it would be better to…

Sun Miao'er plotted in her mind and "borrowed" a copper coin from Old Lady Sun.

As the sun was setting, inside the Jin family's house.

The candlelight made Sun Yuanhu's sorrowful face even clearer. Jin had vented her anger and thrown a tantrum, but after calming down and racking her brains, she still couldn't scrape together ten taels of silver.

Sun Yuanhu's annual wages amounted to only three taels of silver.

"Ding~ Tsk"

Jin's keen hearing immediately picked up on the information about the money; she was all too familiar with the sound of the copper coin falling to the ground.

It came from the courtyard.

Peeking out, I saw Sun Xiaoman squatting on the ground, fiddling with a copper coin.

"Well, you little rascal, you've been hiding money from your mother!"

Jin strode forward, snatched the copper coin, and clutched it in her hand. Then she thought for a moment, "Wait a minute, where did you get this copper coin?"

Sun Xiaoman squatted on the ground, gazing longingly at Jin Shi, and said frankly, "I found it outside."

"Where did you find it?"

Jin's eyes lit up; indeed, there's always a way out.

Sun Xiaoman rested his chin on his hand. It wouldn't hurt to lie to his mother again for the sake of the corn. After all, his mother's actions during the day were really too much. Even he knew how to respect the elderly and care for the young, but his mother didn't.

"In our family's medicinal herb field, my sister took me to weed today. While I was digging, I found a copper coin, and it looked shiny."

Something shiny? Could it be silver?

"You should go back to sleep early, does your sister know?"

Xiaoman shook her head, "My sister doesn't know."

Back in the inner room, Jin told Sun Yuanhu about Xiaoman's experience. Sun Yuanhu was overjoyed. "I knew the old man had something left behind. I said he had been a doctor all his life, how could he not have any savings? It turns out it was buried in the ground! No wonder, the old man treasured those medicinal herb plots like treasures when he was alive, he wished he could live in the ground every day."

"Old man, I'm sorry, but you're the only one who can help your son right now. You cherished me the most when you were alive, so you wouldn't be stingy with this little bit of money, would you? Don't worry, I won't take more than I should!"

Before leaving home, Sun Yuanhu muttered to himself to the ancestral tablet in his home, "With this money, I'm sure I can win back all the money I lost before!"

"Sister, they're gone!"

After quietly keeping watch, Xiaoman informed Sun Miao'er.

This only costs one penny to clear land for your own family, doesn't it?

Consider it as Sun Yuanhu going to fulfill his filial duty to Old Man Sun.