Chapter 113 Leaving Shushan County

Jiang Mi is a person who acts on her ideas immediately. Once she has a new idea, she will put it into practice right away. If she keeps putting it off, she will never succeed.

With Zhao Decai overseeing the water diversion project, Jiang Mi felt very relieved. She and Huo Ran returned to Shushan County, and upon seeing the villagers there, she immediately realized the difference between them and those in Linshui County.

"Although the villagers in Shushan County are poorer than those in Linshui County, they are much more honest and simple."

Having money is good, but you must not forget your original intentions.

Huo Ran looked at her with admiration. Jiang Mi not only had a brain, but also a kind heart, which was already very rare.

"Young Master Huo, thank you so much for today." Jiang Mi was escorted all the way to his doorstep by Huo Ran. Seeing that he still seemed reluctant to leave, she asked, "Are you going on another long trip?"

Although Jiang Mi didn't know what Huo Ran was busy with all day, she knew that Huo Ran must be doing something big, and his identity might not be just that of an imperial envoy. They were from different worlds.

"I'll be staying here for a while. By the way, how are the sweet potatoes growing?"

Speaking of which, the sweet potatoes have been planted for quite some time now. Jiang Mi calculated the time: "They should be ripe in about half a month."

Huo Ran nodded: "Then I'll have to trouble you."

"Honey, where have you been? Why are you only coming back now?"

Hearing the noise from inside, Jiang's mother came out and saw her beloved daughter. She told her two sons to keep a close watch on Honey, but Jiang Xuan had unexpectedly returned alone.

Jiang Mi was stunned for a moment. She had actually forgotten about Jiang Xuan, as she was only focused on the drought at the time.

Jiang Xuan looked embarrassed. He had wanted to go with them, but was stopped by Zhao Decai's guards. So he had to come back alone. Fortunately, with Huo Ran and the newly appointed magistrate there, Jiang Xuan wasn't too worried.

"Honey, I'm sorry, I lost you."

Jiang Mi was the one who felt apologetic: "Second Brother, you don't need to apologize to me. I forgot about you. I was so busy with my own things that I forgot you were here too."

Of course, Jiang's mother couldn't bear to scold Jiang Mi, but she complained to Jiang Xuan: "You too, you're like a block of wood. Why don't you go with them yourself? All you do is study, you can't even think straight."

"Mother, please don't blame Second Brother. It's not his fault." Jiang Mi tugged at her mother's sleeve and pleaded. Her mother couldn't bring herself to say anything to blame him and put the matter out of her mind.

"Young Master Huo, thank you so much for protecting my Honey and bringing her back this time. Would you like to come in and have a drink of water?"

If it were Jiang's mother before, she wouldn't have wanted Huo Ran to come in at all, let alone see him alone with Jiang Mi. Now she's become much more enthusiastic.

"No need, thank you, Auntie. I have other things to attend to, so I'll be going now."

Huo Ran glanced at Jiang Mi, then turned and left.

Seeing that Jiang Mi's eyes seemed glued to Huo Ran's back, Jiang's mother couldn't help but sigh.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Mi immediately snapped out of her reverie and asked, "Mother, why are you still sighing? I'm back perfectly fine, aren't I?"

Jiang's mother said, "If our family were wealthy and powerful, or even just had some official rank, my daughter could choose a better husband in the future."

Jiang Mi was puzzled as to why her mother suddenly said such a thing: "Mom, what are you talking about? The rich have their way of life, and the poor have theirs. Aren't we doing just fine?"

Jiang's mother smiled and said, "It's alright, you're right, we're fine as we are now."

Jiang Mi didn't understand, but Jiang Xuan and Jiang Zhi did. Jiang's mother wanted their family to have a higher social status so that Jiang Mi would marry into a higher social class in the future.

Even if Jiang Mi and Huo Ran are in love, they shouldn't face unnecessary difficulties and setbacks due to their different social statuses.

"Mother, don't worry. My brother and I will definitely study hard and earn a good reputation. Will my little sister have to worry about not finding a better husband?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang's mother felt even more relieved: "Good, your little sister's future depends on you."

Jiang Mi hugged her mother, who was full of energy. Once a person has a goal, life becomes clearer.

"Where's my older brother?"

Jiang's mother pointed to the kitchen: "Your eldest brother is cooking with your sister-in-law in the kitchen. Ever since he stopped working at the restaurant, he likes to hang around in the kitchen with your sister-in-law. A grown man like him, he doesn't even go out and find some work to do."

Jiang Mi rolled her eyes: "I think it's great that my brother is doing this. His skills are already quite good, and we have money now. I'll go ask him if he'd like to open a restaurant or an inn."

"Oh dear, what kind of shop can someone with that kind of brain run? It's a miracle he doesn't lose all his money."

Jiang's mother disagreed. She now felt that her daughter was more capable than any of her sons.

Jiang Yan also heard Jiang Mi's idea, and he hesitated: "I...can I do it? I have no experience at all. Even if our family is rich, we can't just squander it like this."

Jiang Mi comforted him, "What are you worried about, brother? I'm not afraid, so you have even less to worry about. Opening a restaurant and inn doesn't cost much. Even if you lose money, it's not a big deal."

Jiang Yan was still unwilling, so Jiang Mi asked Liu He, "Sister-in-law, what do you think? Why don't you try to persuade my brother?"

Liu He smiled shyly: "I don't know anything about these things, I just listen to your brother."

Jiang Mi sighed silently. Her sister-in-law was indecisive, but she had made up her mind.

“That’s settled then. I’ll go look for shops tomorrow and see if there are any suitable locations or houses. We’ll buy them directly. We’re going to leave Shushan County and go to bigger places in the future.”

"What? You're leaving Shushan County? Honey, where are you going?" Jiang's mother looked at Jiang Mi in shock, not knowing that Jiang Mi's ideas had become so outrageous after she went out for a while.

"Yes, Mother, don't you want to go out and see the world? If Second Brother and Third Brother become officials in the future, they will definitely go to even farther and better places. Won't you go and enjoy the good life with them then?"

Jiang Mi's words broke the Jiang family's train of thought. After a moment of silence, Jiang Cheng, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up.

"Honey is right. We can't stay in one small place forever. We have more money now than before. We can't just live off this little bit of money for the rest of our lives. What will happen to our descendants when the money runs out?"

Hearing Jiang Cheng say this, Jiang's mother said, "You've never even left the county town."

Jiang Cheng waved his hand dismissively: "Who said that? When I was a child, I went to other places with my grandfather. Many years have passed, but I still remember how well those people lived."