"Only warlords, wealthy merchants, and vendors can afford meat. We local residents can't afford meat all year round. We're lucky if we can have porridge."

Qiao Lian'er frowned. If their mountains hadn't been developed and occupied, if their fields were still there, like the common people of the Central Plains, how could they not even be able to afford a meal of meat?

They have been deprived of all their resources for survival, and even so, those warlords and wealthy merchants still want to drive them away forever.

She didn't know how to comfort the brother and sister, so she just patted Xida's head and said, "Everything will be alright."

Fearing they would get lost, the brother and sister escorted them out of the shantytown, where Qiao Lian'er learned even more information.

Their father was killed by falling rocks from the mountain, and their mother also suffered from serious health problems, including difficulty breathing, and suffocated to death. The local witch doctor opened her heart and lungs and found them filled with dust.

“There are too many children who have lost their parents, not just the two of us.” But Suo was afraid that Qiao Lian’er would think he was complaining, so he shrugged and said indifferently.

"As long as a person has a breath left, they must live well. As long as they are alive, there is hope."

After seeing the guests off and returning home, Danso pulled his sister into the house, holding a torch in his hand.

"Sida, close the door."

Sida did as instructed, but Soe asked his sister to come closer and open her clenched hand.

Upon seeing the gleaming gold, Xida's eyes widened instantly, and she covered her mouth.

"Brother, where did all this money come from?"

"It was given by Miss Shui and Young Master Bai. They are the most generous guests. I just ran errands for them and did some translation, and this is all they gave me."

"So I'm grateful to them for letting you cook more porridge."

Xida picked up the gold and looked at it, even taking a bite to confirm: "Brother, we have money now, so we can put more oil and more rice in it from now on."

“This little money can support us for a long time. You don’t need to go up the mountain anymore. I’m afraid you’ll get hit by a rock, and I’m also afraid you’ll get the same disease as your mother.”

"What should I do? I can't just do nothing; the money will eventually run out," Xida thought seriously.

"How about this, you go around and maybe you can find some gems. You can work for those people, and at most you'll make enough to live on in a day, but gems are different."

"I heard that twenty years ago, someone found a ruby, the size of half a duck egg, worth a million taels of silver."

Eight-year-old Xida didn't know what a million taels of silver meant; it was money that one could never spend in a lifetime.

She nodded: "Okay, then I'll go try my luck."

The next morning, after coordinating with Dansuo, Qiao Lian'er went to several warehouse areas and picked out the stones she had her eye on the day before. She got a total of eleven stones, which means that the most valuable rough stones were all in her possession.

Each piece is worth over ten thousand taels of silver. If processed into jewelry, the profit can be increased two or three times.

She rented a small cart and pushed the stones out of the warehouse area.

As she was leaving, she felt someone staring at her again. She turned her head and saw it was still Uncle Yin.

His rough, dark arms were still wrapped around her, his gaze fixed on her, revealing no emotion.

Qiao Lian'er turned her head and asked Dan Suo, "Who is this Uncle Yin?"