On the way back, Li Xiangjian refused to let Yan Qingqing walk, as she was exhausted after most of the day. So she sat on the handcart.

On the way, Li Xiang'an hesitated for a moment before asking, "Mother, I think you can buy two sets of pig offal today. We can process one set today, and when we go out to do business tomorrow, my sister-in-law and the others can process it at home."

That way we won't have to rush home so much.

Yan Qingqing knew that her son had the best business sense, and she wanted to as well, but the weather was getting warmer.

In ancient times, there were no refrigerators, and meat products, in particular, spoiled very easily. If someone got sick from eating them, it would be a huge problem.

So Yan Qingqing patiently explained to Li Xiang'an and instructed him, "Erlang, you must always remember that when you can't clean up the mess for your actions, never be greedy for credit or act rashly. Otherwise, you will only harm yourself and others."

Li Xiang'an was very convinced and felt that he should learn more from his mother in the future.

Li Xiangjian walked very fast, saving almost half the time compared to when he came.

Yan Qingqing and the others arrived home around 3 p.m.

Yuan Huiniang and the others helped unload the cart, and they couldn't help but feel happy when they saw the empty wooden barrels.

Li Yueniang asked happily, "Mother, you're back so early. Is our business doing exceptionally well?"

Before Yan Qingqing could answer, Li Xiangjian proudly replied, "Of course, our family's braised offal is delicious, and our stews are also very popular."

They even give away soup for free; it's no wonder it's so popular.

When Li Xinniang saw the pig offal that Yan Qingqing and the others had bought, she brought over the wood ash she had prepared beforehand and started working.

Yan Qingqing sighed. How could the original owner not have seen such a good girl?

Yan Qingqing naturally wouldn't let Li Xin's mother do the work herself, so she instructed several of the younger children to help.

With many hands making light work, the pig offal was quickly cleaned up.

Then Yuan Qingqing called a few more children into the house. Since everyone had participated in the work, they should naturally share the fruits of their labor.

The group stared wide-eyed at Yan Qingqing as she poured out a table full of copper coins.

They seemed to have never seen so much money before, especially since they earned it themselves. How much is that?

In fact, Yan Qingqing had a good idea of ​​the amount; it was probably around 1,200 wen, which was a little over one tael of silver.

This figure represents a huge income for their family.

Yan Qingqing saw the children staring at the coins and said with a smile, "What are you standing there for? Come over and count the money."

Li Xiangkang asked cautiously, "Mom, can I touch this money?"

Yan Qingqing laughed and said, "Of course, otherwise how would you help your mother count the money?"

Li Xiangkang was immediately delighted, thinking that his mother was really generous. Before the family was divided, let alone them, even his parents had a hard time getting a single copper coin.

So the children happily helped Yan Qingqing count the money, but Li Xiangkang couldn't count past twenty.

The larger ones were better, but none of them exceeded 100.

Yan Qingqing sighed and rubbed her forehead in exasperation; she truly hadn't expected things to turn out this way.

It seems that from now on, we will not only have to teach them how to be good people, but also how to learn.

In the end, Yan Qingqing had to do the counting of the money herself, which made the other children extremely envious.

As Yan Qingqing counted the coins, she said to the group, "From today onwards, you will all learn to do accounts and learn to read. This way, you won't be easily cheated in business or in your interactions with others."

Yuan Huiniang asked cautiously, "Mother, can I learn it too?"

Yan Qingqing replied matter-of-factly, "Of course. In the future, when our family makes a lot of money, you will be the lady of the house. How can you manage the family business if you are not literate?"

Once you learn all of these, managing farmland and shops will be much easier.

With just a few simple words, Yuan Huiniang was filled with fervor. She seemed to see scenes of herself managing the family property.

Li Xiang'an, who was standing to the side, was also very excited. If he could learn these skills, even if he had to work as an accountant for someone else, his life would be worthwhile.

But given our family's situation, how could we possibly have spare money to learn those things?

Li Xiangjian said directly, "Mother, these are things that only the teachers at the academy know. Although we can make money selling food, we need much more money for studying. If we were like my uncle, I would rather not be literate."

Of all the children, if one were to ask who was the most sincere, it would undoubtedly be the third son. Although he was a bit simple-minded, Yan Qingqing felt that this was the innocence that should be present at his age.

Yan Qingqing looked at him and said, "The family's current situation makes it impossible to send you to school, but if I have time, I can teach you."

"I haven't been putting up with this all these years for nothing. Your uncle, relying on his few years of schooling, likes to show off. I've memorized all those words and even those poems."

Yan Qingqing didn't want to hide it anymore and pretend to be stupid, but she also needed a reasonable explanation for why she had so many. Li Chengye from the first wife's side was the best excuse.

Although she had mentioned it to Yuan Huiniang and the others before, they probably didn't take it to heart.

Now that all the children are home, she's repeating it again, which can be considered as paving the way for her to learn to read and write.

Yan Qingqing multitasked, chatting and counting copper coins at the same time, and the final result was about the same as her estimate.

After deducting today's purchases, there are still 1,256 coins left.

At this rate, they'll earn over thirty taels of silver a month, and it won't be long before they can build a new house.

Of course, Yan Qingqing would not be satisfied with earning such a small amount of money in a month, but she was not aiming too high either. She wanted to solve her current poverty problem before planning for future development.

Yan Qingqing thought for a moment and then said, "Everyone has put in the effort, so they should get a corresponding reward."

This is what Mother is thinking: everyone involved in the family business will receive a monthly wage, though the exact amount is yet to be determined. Mother can give you a heads-up: each person will receive no less than one hundred coins per month.

You can keep this money yourselves and use it as you see fit.

The group was stunned to hear how generous Yan Qingqing was; all they had to do was help her family, and she would give them one hundred coins a month.

Of course, this amount of money is nothing to wealthy families, but it is an astronomical sum for these poor children in mountain villages.

In the village, if a child had two or three copper coins, they were considered a wealthy family.

Yuan Huiniang was the first to change her mind and said, "Mother, we are already very satisfied with the good food and drink we have. Why would we need to ask for more wages?"

Besides, our family is planning to build a house and send our fourth brother to school, all of which require money, so the money can just stay here with Mom.”

Li Xin's mother and the others also expressed their unwillingness.

Yan Qingqing was both amused and exasperated. This child was too sensible, which wasn't a good thing. Look at how she couldn't even pay the wages.

However, Yan Qingqing still insisted on paying them wages, because a horse needs to be well-fed to run.