Li smiled and said, "In my opinion, my third sister-in-law is just ungrateful. She has a capable daughter like Qibao, but she still finds fault with her. If she really dislikes Qibao, she might as well let me be Qibao's mother. I would be more than happy to do so!" Zhang also echoed.

Wang next to her smiled and interrupted, "Okay, let's stop talking about Qibao. Let's quickly make the cushions and pillows that Qibao mentioned and try out the results." After saying that, she picked up the cloth and started cutting.

The team cut the fabric into squares of uniform size, cutting the required quantity. Next, they stitched the two pieces together. Xu Huaer joined in, and seeing how deftly she threaded the needle, her seams not only straight but also uniform, Qibao couldn't help but sigh in admiration. Children in ancient times were truly remarkable. They were so skilled at sewing at such a young age, just as good as Wang Shi and the others. She was the only exception; her family wouldn't let her do it, fearing she'd get pricked by the needle.

Qibao praised, "Sister Huaer, you are so young, but you are so good at needlework. It's really amazing."

Xu Huaer was embarrassed by Qibao's praise and said, "My mother taught me this. I pricked my finger several times when I first started learning!"

Wang smiled and said, "Hua'er is good at needlework, does Qibao want to learn it too? It's time for you to learn some girlly skills. Otherwise, when you grow up and get married, you won't even be able to sew clothes. Wouldn't that be a joke?"

Qibao waved her hands and said, "Grandma, I don't want to learn needlework. I can't sit still. Besides, Qibao doesn't want to get married when she grows up. I want to stay with you all the time."

Zhang smiled and said, "What girl doesn't get married when she grows up? Wouldn't she become an old maid? Even if Qibao can't do needlework in the future, she can read and cook, right? If someone's family dislikes Qibao, it means they don't care about her. We won't look for such a family." Lin smiled and shook her head. Her family really doted on Qibao more than she, the mother, did not say anything.

After a while, all the cloth covers were finished, and the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law stuffed cotton into them until each pillow was stuffed full before sealing the last hole.

Qibao said, "Okay, grandma, let's put these on the couch and try them out to see if they fit." Wang nodded, and she and a few others put the prepared cushions and pillows on the chaise longue to try them out. It turned out that the size was just right. Several people sat on it and felt that it was very soft, especially when they put the pillows behind their backs and leaned against them, which was both comfortable and warm.

Zhang said, "It's really good. I feel like I don't want to get up after leaning on it. It's even softer than the bed we sleep on."

Lin said, "I was afraid that I would ruin these good things, but I didn't expect them to be so useful."

Qibao pouted and said, "Mom, you didn't believe me just now, but now you finally believe me. Mom, don't say that to me next time!" Everyone laughed when they heard that.

When they returned to the old house, they saw Grandpa Xu and his two sons coming back from weeding. They put the tools in the corner of the yard. The old man sat in the main room, drank a sip of water and said, "Second and third brothers, you will take some vegetables to the village chief and your uncle Dafu's house later. We have been busy these two days and there are not enough ox carts, so we borrowed them. It's only right to send something to express our gratitude." The two brothers packed two bags of vegetables and went out without saying a word.

After the Xu family had lunch at noon, Qibao taught the family members how to read and write. Now, the Xu family, young and old, all know a lot of words and can write them. Their writing is not very beautiful, but it is already very good. An hour passed quickly, and a few uninvited guests came to the house.

A carriage slowly arrived at the door of Xu's house. The drivers were two sturdy men in black. One of the men lifted the curtain and two people got out. One was Tong, the shopkeeper of Zuixianlou, and the other was a boy who looked only eleven or twelve years old. He was wearing a crescent-shaped white robe made of brocade, his hair was tied up with a white jade hairpin, and a round white jade pendant with a double fish pattern hung around his waist. He was dressed like a rich young man.

The young man got off the carriage, raised his eyebrows, glanced at the shopkeeper Tong next to him and asked, "Is this the house you are talking about? It looks like an ordinary farmer's house."

Shopkeeper Tong bowed respectfully and said, "Master, you don't know. Look at the newly built house next to us. It was built by this family. And this family is not simple."

The young man said, "Are you talking about that little girl? That's right. If she didn't have any outstanding qualities, she wouldn't have been accepted as a disciple by a master." He then looked at the Xu family's newly built house and continued, "Although this house is smaller than those in the capital, it is quite elegant. I estimate that it would have cost several hundred taels to build."

Shopkeeper Tong said, "I'm not too sure about this. After all, I have a cooperative relationship with our restaurant, so I haven't done any thorough research."

The young man said, "Well, go knock on the door!"

After receiving the order, Shopkeeper Tong immediately went forward and knocked on the gate of the Xu family's old house. Not long after, the door opened. It was Zhang who opened the door. When she saw that it was Shopkeeper Tong, she immediately smiled and said, "It turns out to be Shopkeeper Tong. Please come in." Zhang invited the person to the main hall.

When Mr. Xu saw that it was Manager Tong, he immediately stood up to greet him and said, "It turns out that it is Manager Tong who is here. Why didn't you notify us in advance so that we could prepare to entertain him?" At this time, the other people in the Xu family learned that it was Manager Tong who had arrived, and they immediately came to the main hall to greet Manager Tong. Zhang then stood up to make tea for the guests.

Mr. Xu asked, "How come Manager Tong is free today and comes to my Xu's house? Is there something going on?"

Shopkeeper Tong said, "Old man, I came here after lunch, and I really have something to do today." He then introduced the young man beside him, saying, "This is the young boss behind our Zuixianlou. I came here today because of the vegetables you grow."

The Xu family noticed this young man in luxurious clothes as soon as Shopkeeper Tong came in, but Shopkeeper Tong did not introduce him, so they didn't dare to ask. Now when they heard Shopkeeper Tong say that he was the behind-the-scenes boss of Zuixianlou, they all looked surprised and stood up to salute.

The young man gave him a false helping hand and said, "You're welcome, old man. My last name is Su Chenyu, so you can just call me Young Master Su. I came here today to see your vegetables. Would it be convenient for you to take me to your vegetable patch to have a look?"

Mr. Xu said, "It's convenient. I'll ask my eldest son to take Mr. Su over to have a look."

Uncle Xu immediately stepped forward and said, "Mr. Su, please follow me. My vegetable garden is behind the house." After that, he walked in front to lead the way.

Everyone came to the vegetable garden in the backyard. The garden was not very big, but it was full of various vegetables that were growing very well. Shopkeeper Tong had always seen the vegetables sent by the Xu family, and had never seen these vegetables growing in the ground. Now that he saw them, he looked at them carefully.

Su Chenyu went straight to the ground and squatted down to watch the growth of various vegetables. There were no less than five fruits on each seedling, some of which were ripe, while others were still green and unripe.