Granny Liu glanced at her and asked suspiciously, "You don't mean you're thinking of having another baby, do you?"

Zhou Nianmei was both amused and exasperated by her mother-in-law's words. "Mom, why would I have any more children? Raising one child is already exhausting enough, let alone another? I might as well just take them and starve."

She never thought raising a child was too expensive; she thought it was just a matter of feeding him.

But now, seeing how the third son and his wife raise their child, she understands that there's a big difference between intensive and lenient parenting. Both are children of the Xu family, but one is like someone who grew up in a big city, while the other is like a wild child.

She was a mother herself, and naturally wanted to give her child the best of everything. She didn't know much else, but the only thing she knew was that since they didn't have that much ability, they should concentrate their money and efforts on raising one child, which would surely have some effect.

“It’s not that I don’t want you to have children, nor that I’m afraid to help you take care of them. But with the family planning policy being so strict now, and your first child being a son, there’s no need to take the risk, is there?”

Granny Liu was speaking the truth. She had been through it all and knew that abortion was more harmful to the body than childbirth. There were always a few unlucky women in the surrounding villages who got caught and died just as they were about to give birth. Who could they complain to?

"Mom, I know what's good for me. Now that the third brother has taken care of the children's schooling, Fengjuan and I will use this time to tidy up the house. I also planted some vegetables, which I need to leave to Auntie San to watch over so they can pick and eat them later, and not let them go to waste."

"Alright, you can do whatever you want. But have you told the boss yet?" Granny Liu suddenly remembered that she hadn't informed the boss and the others.

"Oh dear, that's true. I've been so busy preparing that I don't even know what tomorrow will bring. I need to call him right away so I don't end up with nowhere to stay."

Zhou Nianmei knew that her husband's current place was occupied by about ten people. If they were to move there, they would definitely have to live separately, which would require renting another place in advance.

Xu Mingri was completely bewildered when he received the call from his wife. "Why didn't you tell me sooner? You didn't even discuss it with me before deciding to bring the child to the city for school?"

"What's there to discuss with you? You can't do anything about it anyway. The third one has already been taken care of. You can rent a place here, and Fengjuan and I will come with the two kids in August. We'll cook for you while we're at it."

"That's fine. You don't know, we've been eating whatever's convenient lately, and we really miss home-cooked meals."

Xu Mingri gets excited when he talks about this. Food is the most important thing for people. If you don't eat well, you won't have the energy to work. It would be even better if Nianmei could come and cook.

Zhou Nianmei raised an eyebrow and said directly, "We're not working for free; you have to pay us." Don't even think about making them work for free.

Xu Mingri paused, then continued, "Of course. I'll talk to them when I get back, and I'll tell you the specific salary later."

Although they formed their own unorthodox renovation team with his second brother, they still had to discuss things with others, since money was involved, and they had to consult with his wife, which made things even more sensitive.

Xu Mingri hung up the phone and went back to work. Everyone was cooking noodles and eating them! A pot of noodles in plain water, with homemade pickled vegetables, and that was another meal.

"Brother, is something wrong with sister-in-law? Did Fengjuan have any message for me?" Xu Minghui put down his chopsticks when he saw his brother return. He hadn't called home for quite some time and was still missing his family.

Xu Mingri glanced at him and said, "Don't worry about it anymore. In a while, we'll be able to see each other every day."

"Tomorrow? What does that mean? Does it mean we won't be able to keep this job for long?" The villagers asked hurriedly when they heard this. This was a matter of money, so of course they were nervous.

Xu Mingri looked at the crowd that had gathered around him, thought for a moment, and said, "No, my wife just called and said that she and Fengjuan are also taking their child to study in Tianshui City, and they'll take care of us two brothers while they're at it..."

"That's great! It's good that my sister-in-law and the others are here. They can cook for us while they're at it. I'm so tired of these lousy noodles. I feel like throwing up just looking at them." Xu Mingri was interrupted by an excited villager before he could finish speaking. It was like a pillow for someone who was sleepy. It was just the right time.

"Yes, yes, that's great! Did your sister-in-law say when she's coming? Of course, we can't let her work for free. We'll pay her a salary; a little bit from each of our salaries will be enough." This was the advice of someone with good judgment.

Xu Mingri had already decided on his way back that he didn't want anyone else to pay. Their wages were calculated on a daily basis, and he and his second brother were the ones who earned the lion's share, so there was no need for them to share the cost.

So he smiled and waved his hand, saying, "Then we'll have to deduct your wages. Mingri and I will give you the money. As long as you work hard, you'll definitely earn more and more money. Of course, while pursuing speed, we can't forget about quality. We want to build a good reputation and let more and more people know about us so that we can get more and more business."

"We definitely know that, so you can rest assured tomorrow!"

"Yes, don't you trust us to do the work? We're fast and good. The owners all praise us, saying we save them money. After all, some people's work takes three days, but we finish it in two days. They even said they'd recommend us to their relatives!"

"That's right. Nowadays, bricklayers, carpenters, and plumbers are all paid by the day. Some unethical people just dawdle and do two days' worth of work in one day. Isn't that a waste of other people's money?"

"Okay, okay, it's good that everyone understands. We can only gain the recognition of the homeowners because of everyone's hard work. If we do well this year, everyone will get a bonus at the end of the year."

Xu Mingri waved his hand and said directly, "Third brother is right. Timely encouragement is still necessary. People can't be stingy. Besides, he still wants to make his business bigger and stronger!"

"Wow, great! We knew we could do the right thing by following you two brothers, Mingri."

"Then we'll have to do more work. Oh dear, the noodles are going to burn. Let's eat the noodles first."

Xu Mingri and Xu Minghui exchanged a glance and smiled knowingly. With their wives and children by their side, life was becoming more and more hopeful.

...

At noon, the market was almost deserted. The hot weather dampened many people's enthusiasm for shopping, so everyone was dozing off in their shops. For a while, the only sound was the chirping of cicadas in the trees.

Chu Xiaoxiao came out of her own shop, shielded her eyes from the glaring sunlight, and then tiptoed towards Zhang Xuemei's shop.

"Xuemei, Xiaowan,"

Zhang Xuemei stood up abruptly and instinctively greeted, "Welcome! What would you like to order?"

Then, upon closer inspection, she saw it was Chu Xiaoxiao. She immediately deflated and slumped back into the chair. "It's you, Xiaoxiao! Aren't you sleepy? We're all so tired, we just want to lie down on the bed and go to sleep!"