Because of money issues, Chen did not actually finalize the shop in town; she simply publicized the fact that she wanted to buy a shop.

If things don't come to a final decision, the whole family will lose face, so Mrs. Chen is determined to get it done in one go.

So, casually mentioning the Niu family's recent wealth in the village, someone said, "I heard they're planning to open a restaurant in the county town."

She didn't know that the Niu family wanted to open a commercial street, not just a restaurant.

"Their family has really struck it rich."

Some people in the village envied it, and naturally, some became jealous.

"Niu Li's family, aren't your eldest and second sons getting married? You've worked by their lake for so long, and your family even did them a favor, didn't they lend you any money?" "If you ask me, they should at least treat you like servants, but they treat you two like slaves." "If it were me, I'd go borrow some money from them; they definitely wouldn't refuse."

In the Great Zhou Dynasty, men in the common people would spend a lot of money to marry.

Women from prestigious families aspire to marry into wealth and status.

The custom of demanding betrothal gifts was prevalent among the common people, resulting in a large number of sons-in-law marrying into the family. Little Tan was reluctant to marry off her son.

Ms. Tan was somewhat tempted by this, and besides, she wasn't going to refuse to pay it back.

Chen was quite proud. The young Tan had lent money to the impoverished Niu family when Shen Yu suffered a postpartum hemorrhage. This favor could not be refused.

As soon as Xiao Tan asks the Niu family for money, all those who have had good relations with the Niu family or have only a casual acquaintance with them will go to the Niu family to borrow money.

Others might not be able to borrow it, but if Xiao Tan borrows it, she will definitely succeed. If the Niu family lends it to Xiao Tan and not to others, they will surely offend many families.

If others can borrow, she can borrow too.

Ms. Tan had previously felt embarrassed and thought it would be awkward to borrow money, especially since her husband had taken on the job of being a bricklayer for the Niu family.

Construction will begin on the third day of the third lunar month.

"Aunt Tan, how much money do you need to borrow?" Niu Cuihua asked.

Madam Tan blushed and said, "One hundred taels."

For ordinary families, the betrothal gifts consist of one tael of gold, five taels of silver, a box of copper coins, a box of gold thread, a box of colorful clothes, a pair of wild geese, and a set of gold and silver jewelry.

Marrying a daughter-in-law costs seventy or eighty strings of cash, which is equivalent to twenty or thirty years of savings for an ordinary family.

The Tan family still had twenty strings of cash in savings, which they had accumulated over the past two years while working for the Niu family.

Her wages and Niu Li's wages combined wouldn't even amount to 100 strings of cash in three years, which was far from enough to cover their wages.

Shen Yu listened to Xiao Tan's words and felt a little troubled. In the clan, it was mostly a matter of you helping me and me helping you, but if the person who needed to help you was too evasive, it would become a termite nest that could easily drag things down.

Even within a clan, there are many who fear your poverty and want to borrow money, while also being envious of your wealth.

However, the Tan family, as well as the Niu Xiaocao family, the Niu Yaba family, and the old clan chief's family, were different from other families. When she suffered a difficult childbirth and postpartum hemorrhage, only these few families offered a helping hand.

However, many families didn't seem to care about her coldness. If she offended them all, she might find it difficult to gain a foothold in the clan.

The most unpredictable thing in this world is the human heart.

Chen Yu said:

"Sister Tan, you know that my family is also short of money."

Ms. Tan felt a pang of anxiety upon hearing this.

Just then, a group of six or seven people arrived outside, including some of their friends. "Madam Shen, I heard that your family is going to build a restaurant. I knew before that your family had become rich, buying those three shops, raising fish, and building courtyards. I didn't know your family could even build a restaurant!"

"Our Niu family is truly blessed to have such a esteemed patriarch! And don't forget to ask us too, we'd like to borrow some money from you for our son and daughter's weddings."

Chen Yu's expression gradually darkened.

Xiao Fubao and Niu Cuihua listened, and Niu Cuihua frowned slightly and said:

"Uncles, aunts, grandfathers, and grandmothers, my family is short of money right now! I'm afraid we can't lend you any!"

One of the men had a sullen face:

"How did we treat you when your family was poor? Now that you're successful, have you forgotten your roots?"

If the person who threw the tantrum were someone like Madam Tan or Li Sheng, who were close to her family, Shen Yu wouldn't be angry. But the person yelling at her was named Niu An, and they were just casual acquaintances with her family, not to mention any favors they had done for each other.

“I told you, my family doesn’t have any money. We need to build a house, and we’re short of money for that. If we don’t lend you any, how dare you act so arrogantly in my house! Why should I lend you any money?” Chen Yu said.

People rarely saw Shen Yu get angry, so they were quite surprised and it took them a while to come to their senses.

Hearing this, Madam Tan felt slightly uncomfortable, but she didn't show it. She simply said:

"Don't be angry, little sister, we just won't lend it to you! We just won't lend it to you!"

With that, he walked out first.

"Fine, don't lend it then! Humph!" The newcomers also stormed off in a huff.

Little Fu Bao closed the door.

Niu Cuihua patted her chest, relieved that her mother wasn't being unreasonable, but offending people like this was still not an option.

Little Fu Bao said:

"Mom, sister, I have an idea!" "Aren't we short of money? They're asking us for loans, right? We can borrow money from the villagers too."

Chen Yu didn't quite understand.

Niu Cuihua was the first to realize, "Xiao Fubao must want them to invest in a pickled vegetable business!"

Little Fu Bao nodded.

The Niu family's pickled vegetable shop wasn't particularly large, but the people of Niushan Village weren't very wealthy either; in fact, they were still poor. So, using their money to run a pickled vegetable business and distributing the profits according to custom was the best way to help the people of Niushan Village.

They don't need to invest much capital themselves, yet they can still make money, which they then use on the commercial street.

Moreover, the pickled vegetable shop her family rented would only be open for a maximum of three years.

After hearing the exaggerated descriptions given by the group, the old patriarch of the Niu family came to discuss the matter with Niu Da, saying:

“Niu Da, I know that you and your wife are not as ungrateful as they say. Tell me what the real reason is.”

When Niu Da returned, he heard about this from Chen Yu and said:

"Actually, our family isn't building a restaurant, but a commercial street. Li Sheng's brother told him that the commercial street would cost at least 60,000 to 70,000 taels of silver to build! And our family doesn't even have one-seventh of that amount."

"Oh dear, you're kidding! You're short so much money, even a money exchange wouldn't be able to lend you that much!" "Is there really no room for negotiation on this loan?"

The elder clansman said.

Niu Da thought for a moment and said, "My youngest daughter has come up with an idea that can help them. I'm hoping Uncle Clan Chief can put in a good word for me and run some errands." He continued, "I'm thinking of borrowing their money to start my family's pickle shop business."