"No, madam, you underestimate me. My family used to be very poor, and I did farm work every day."

Leng Feng took the spoon from Wei Yuyan's hand that was used to cook chicken.

"Okay."

Wei Yuyan went along with him. As she walked out of the kitchen, she saw Wu Chen sitting in the courtyard drinking tea, looking like a refined gentleman.

This puzzled Wei Yuyan greatly. People fighting in the war must be covered in dust and dirt from the wind and sun.

How come his skin is still so fair? It's even fairer than Li Fu and the others. That's not normal.

"Drinking tea".

Wu Chen noticed Wei Yuyan's gaze and became somewhat uncomfortable, so he poured her a cup of tea.

Wei Yuyan didn't reply. She sat down, looked at the exquisite pastries on the table, picked up a piece, and took a bite.

Mmm~ What a unique flavor! This pastry has some sauce in the middle, I think it's plum sauce, it's delicious.

"How did you find this place today?"

Wei Yuyan became curious at this moment.

“In September, I asked someone to send a letter, but the old house collapsed just then, and he couldn’t find you.”

So when I got back today, I went to see Brother Lifu first. Sister-in-law Xiuhua brought me here.

Wu Chen explained that he hadn't abandoned them; it was just bad luck.

"oh……………".

What should Wei Yuyan say? If the messenger who delivered the letter in September found them, he wouldn't be coming back so soon.

I ate two pastries and drank a cup of tea. This expensive tea really does taste different.

The tea is clear and bright, with no tea leaves, and it's not bitter. It has a refreshing taste.

After eating and drinking her fill, Wei Yuyan felt awkward staying there with him, so she got up and wanted to go out to talk to Sister-in-law Xiuhua.

"Where to?"

Wei Yuyan got up and had just reached the door when Wu Chen asked.

"Go find Sister Xiuhua."

Wei Yuyan glanced at him with a puzzled look, then left.

Wu Chen originally wanted to say that he would go too, but looking at his legs, he realized that he couldn't go without the support of the cold wind.

When we arrived at Sister Xiuhua's house, the couple were looking at the fabric that Wu Chen had given them that day.

They're all good fabrics; I'm thinking of saving them to make clothes for the baby in my belly.

"Wow, this fabric is quite pretty, it's blue."

Wei Yuyan praised.

"Really? This is from your Wu Chen today. The fabric is so soft. We said we'd save it to make clothes for the baby in your belly."

Xiuhua's sister-in-law took Wei Yuyan's hand.

"Great, this color is nice, it suits both boys and girls."

Wei Yuyan nodded. This Wu Chen was quite good at stirring things up. It wouldn't be right to send a gift to Sister-in-law Xiuhua but not to Sister-in-law Zhang's family.

"Wu Chen came to our house today, which really startled us. We thought he had done something wrong."

Sister-in-law, it seems Wu Chen has made it big. Look, none of the things he brought back are vulgar.

"Now your good days have come, I'm so happy for you."

Sister-in-law Xiuhua was genuinely happy for Wei Yuyan; such a good woman shouldn't be let down.

"Yeah, he seems different than before, maybe he's made it big now."

Have you tried this pastry? It was delicious.

Wei Yuyan noticed a package of pastries on the table, which must have been given to her by Wu Chen.

"We haven't tried it yet, let's try it together."

Xiuhua's sister-in-law opened the packaging, picked up a piece, and gave it to Wei Yuyan.

Wei Yuyan didn't want to eat it at first, but seeing that it was different from the one at home, she took it and tried it.

"Wow, these pastries are really something else. This is the first time I've ever had such delicious pastries."

Sister-in-law Xiuhua also thought the pastries were exceptionally delicious.

"Sister-in-law, I think I heard from Wu Chen's attendant today that Wu Chen injured his leg."

Zhang Lifu still cares about his good brother.

"Yes, he must be injured. I didn't ask him what happened, but his attendants kept reminding him not to stand for too long."

Wei Yuyan wasn't interested in his leg, but she would still cook for him since he was injured.

Otherwise, I should really just take what's readily available.

"Sister-in-law, are you still angry with him?"

Xiuhua's sister-in-law whispered.

"Of course, needless to say, they've made it big outside but don't send money back sooner, leaving us at home eating meager meals."

"It was only in the second half of this year that our family's financial situation started to improve."

Wei Yuyan thought Wu Chen was really unreliable, even though he said he was good to his younger siblings.

Entrusting his younger siblings to a woman he'd only been married to for three days—wasn't he afraid the original owner would sell them off?

Fortunately, the original owner still had a conscience and stayed at home for a year before saying she wanted to leave.

In the end, he didn't make it and even died.

"Sister-in-law, as the saying goes, it's better to tear down ten temples than to break up one marriage."

Wu Chen, ever since I married into this family, has been a frequent visitor to our home. His character is impeccable.

Perhaps we should give him a chance to explain why he hasn't written back in the past two years.

Many others who went to war have returned, but he hasn't, which makes his family worry about him.

Sister-in-law Xiuhua felt that Wu Chen's character was trustworthy, and besides, he was now successful and could live a good life.

"I understand, Sister-in-law Xiuhua. I'll see how he performs."

Wei Yuyan never thought she would be married to him. It was only in name, and besides, she didn't think he was that great.

However, there was one who was alright. He gave me so many silver notes. Did he really trust me that much? Wasn't he afraid that I would take all the money and run away?

That being said, having so many banknotes in hand made me feel quite secure.

“I’ll go talk to him. Since it’s inconvenient for him to come over, it’s the same if I go over.”

Xiuhua, I won't be back for a while. I'm going to town from there.

Zhang Lifu needs to go to town early tonight, as he needs to sell steamed buns tomorrow morning.

"Okay, I understand."

Sister-in-law Xiuhua waved her hand and continued gossiping with Wei Yuyan.

"The new house will be finished soon, and the whole family will move in together. It's so comfortable."

Sister-in-law Xiuhua couldn't help but feel a little envious of her younger brother and sister-in-law's life.

"If you want to live in a new house, that's easy. It's not like you don't have that much money."

Wei Yuyan knew that Xiuhua's family had more than ten taels of silver in savings, after all, they had earned four taels of silver from selling ginseng last time.

"Your brother Lifu and I both think the house we live in now is pretty good, after all, we've only lived here for a few years."

It's such a waste to throw it away, but nobody wants to buy it. I wish someone would buy it.

Sister-in-law Xiuhua couldn't bear to give up the house.

"See if there are any families in the village that are splitting up, like families with several brothers. Maybe we can sell them."

Wei Yuyan thought there was no rush, and there were plenty of families in the village who couldn't afford to build new houses and didn't have enough room to live in them.

"You're right. We should pay attention to that. Who wouldn't want to live in a brick house?"