After getting up early, Haopo cooked some longan and red date water before going out to buy vegetables with a basket. As for breakfast, it was also very simple, a bowl of rice, a bowl of pickled vegetables and a portion of fish soup.

The family was not well-off, so they usually only had two meals a day. But Aunt Ding knew that her husband's studies were very laborious, so the family only had one meal in the morning and one meal in the evening.

Breakfast is the same as that of a farmer working in the fields, with rice and vegetables, so you won’t get hungry easily.

Grandma Ding Er drinks longan and red date water every day without fail. This is the lowest cost way to replenish qi and blood. Haopo caught two chickens and raised them. She would eat one of the leftover eggs every day. Grandma Ding Er is only two or three months old now, and not only is her life back to normal, but her complexion is also much more rosy.

Mi Niang wondered why her mother couldn't keep the baby during pregnancy in her previous life. The most important reason was that her body was too weak.

Now that I've moved out, at least every penny that Ding Erniang earns is my own. I feel much happier, have enough food and warm clothes, and my face looks rosy.

"Mi Niang, you have to drink the fish soup. Only by drinking it will you become smart." Aunt Ding Er still wanted to feed her daughter.

"Mother, I have eaten a lot. You can eat the rest by yourself. I'm full." It is the most difficult to appreciate the mother's kindness. You know, although Mi Niang lives by the Yangtze River, she doesn't like eating fish at all. But her mother thinks eating fish is smart. Her father will eat the fish head and eyes, but she will at most pick some meat from the belly to taste.

But Second Mistress definitely refused. She insisted on feeding her daughter even though she didn't want to eat.

To be honest, Mi Niang was plump and white when she was little. On the one hand, it was because she was not picky about food, and on the other hand, it was because of the doting of Second Grandma Ding. When she grew up and went out, she would still carry Mi Niang on her back, and if there was delicious fish or meat, she would make sure to let her daughter eat it to replenish her body.

"Good boy, come and have a bite. After you finish eating, I'll take you out to play today. How about that?"

When she heard that she could go out and play, Mi Niang was extremely happy. She had been in the city for so long, but she had never been out to play.

So, she drank the fish soup in no time. Seeing that her daughter drank it all up, Aunt Ding smiled and knew that everything was under control.

After the mother and daughter finished their meal, they said something to Ruan Jiading who was reading in the room and went out.

The area where they live is a very convenient place. There are many small stalls and shops at the entrance of the alley. There are also bookstores, teahouses and bars. Unlike last time, when the mother and daughter came secretly and didn't have time to look around, Mi Niang can go shopping seriously today.

"Mom, what is that?" She saw a woman take out a pile of glutinous rice and spread it out flat, then put diced radish, kelp and other side dishes on top, put half a fried dough stick in the middle, wrapped it tightly with cloth, and then packed it for the customer.

Mrs. Ding Er smiled and said, "It's called glutinous rice wrapped in fried dough sticks. When mom dyes the cloth in the next few days, I'll buy it for you after I sell it. Okay?"

Mi Niang shook her head: "I don't like to eat it. I just like the fish soup that my mother makes for me."

My daughter is really too sensible. How can a little girl not be greedy? When Aunt Ding was a child, she was beaten half to death by her aunt for stealing a candy.

This made Mrs. Ding feel even more guilty towards her daughter.

After buying some silk thread from a thread shop, Second Aunt Ding planned to make the most of her time to weave more cloth in the next few days, and then buy some delicious food for her daughter. It didn't matter if she suffered herself, but she couldn't let her child suffer the same way.

When the mother and daughter were about to go back, they saw Grandma Shu. Next to her stood another mother and daughter. Mi Niang looked carefully and realized that they were the young Zhou Furou and her mother Zhou Lishi. Zhou Lishi had given birth to five sons and one daughter, and everyone praised her for being very blessed.

What's more, Zhou Li and Ding Ernai's family are from the same village.

"Sister-in-law Ding, why are you here too?" Grandma Shu spoke first.

Mrs. Ding Er smiled and said, "My husband is going to take the imperial examination this year, so we moved here. Are you guys here too?"

Grandma Shu glanced at her sister-in-law and said, "My family is selling goods in the city, and I asked my brother and sister-in-law to come over to help. Fu Rou happened to be favored by Madam Zhang, so she is studying in the girls' school in the city."

Mi Niang glanced at the young Zhou Furou, especially at her feet. Is there really anyone who is so lucky?

For example, she had her feet bound before entering the palace, breaking her toes, but Zhou Furou was born with a three-inch golden lotus and did not have to suffer any hardship.

Just as Mi Niang was looking at Zhou Furou, Zhou Li was also looking at Ding Ernai. Zhou Li was two years older than Ding Ernai. At that time, her family rented the fields of the Lu family. When she was young, Zhou Li always remembered that the girls in the scholar's family were dressed neatly and brightly. She always remembered that their names were Erya and Sanya, and Miss Lu also had a nice name called Shujun.

It’s a pity that later on, the phoenix with its feathers plucked was worse than a chicken.

Mrs. Zhou Li married into a relatively well-to-do family, and she gave birth to five sons. She had already become the head of the family, and her life was prosperous. She also had a sister-in-law to help her, and the relationship between the two families was as close as one family. Looking back at Lu Shujun, her marriage was changed and she married a poor scholar. She was not very happy, and now she only has a girl.

This daughter is certainly good, just like Zhou Lishi loves her daughter like nothing, and has been looking forward to having a girl since the birth of her third son, but that is because she already has a son and wants a daughter. If she had been given the choice at the beginning, she would still choose to have a son.

This is not surprising, otherwise why do baby girls often drown on the riverside? It is because of the preference for boys over girls. However, when it comes to getting married, the number of women has dropped dramatically, and it is not uncommon for three brothers in a family to marry the same wife.

Therefore, to some extent, Mrs. Zhou Li still had a sense of superiority towards Second Madam Ding.

For example, although her daughter was from a farmer's family, she was born with good fortune. Not only did she give birth to a son with her aunt, but she was also appreciated by Mrs. Zhang, the wife of the provincial governor.

But Zhou Li was not the kind of person who would ridicule others at will. Although she was a village woman, she had been living too cautiously in the city these days.

Grandma Shu has made some money in recent years and has curryed favor with Grandma Gui and others in the clan, gradually gaining some status among the distant clans. But yesterday she handed two taels of silver to the clan elder, saying that this was according to custom and that the money would be used as a reward for the clan's successful sons and daughters, especially as the imperial examination was approaching.

But these have nothing to do with Grandma Shu. Her son is still young, and her husband is even less likely to become an official. You have to know that her husband Ruan Jiashu has a poor family background compared to other people in the Ruan family. Although Ruan Jiading is a poor scholar now, his grandfather was a county magistrate, which makes him one of the more outstanding ones in this branch of the Ruan family. If it weren't for the fact that Grandpa Ruan squandered the family business and ruined his son's industry, it would not have ended there.

But no matter what, Grandma felt that this money was very unfair.

Even if Ruan Jiading and Ruan Shiyi have achieved fame and success, it has nothing to do with her. If their family is not wealthy, they should start making money early. I really don't know what the clan thinks.

So, there was a hint of anger in his words: "Second Sister Ding, I think if Second Brother wins this time, you guys will have a hard time. Don't blame me for saying harsh things. If he doesn't win, at least do something to make life better for our family."

"I'll remember your wise words." Mrs. Ding seemed to be well-mannered and not angry at all.

Grandma Shu smiled and said, "I hope you don't blame me for being nosy. Oh, by the way, Mi Niang is almost seven years old, it's time for her to have her feet bound. I know a matchmaker who does foot binding. If Ding Ersao needs one, I can recommend one to you."

Mrs. Ding looked at Zhou Furou's feet and couldn't help asking, "Doesn't your niece have her feet bound?"

At this point, Grandma Shu looked as if she had hit upon something itch, and even Mrs. Zhou Li showed some pride: "Our Fu Jie'er was born with three-inch golden lotus feet, so there is no need to bind her feet."

After the two of them finished speaking, they looked at Mi Niang's feet intentionally or unintentionally.

Mrs. Ding Er suddenly realized: "So that's why. I was wondering why she seemed a little unsteady."

Mi Niang almost laughed out loud. Her mother was really too ugly. Her feet were as big as her age. Her mother was born with round breasts, but her feet were like a baby's. They even wobbled when she walked. How could she be pretty?

After hearing this, Grandma Shu was very angry: "Everyone knows that you love your daughter, but no matter how much you love her, you can't support her for her whole life. Which wealthy family would be happy if she didn't bind her feet?"

"Don't worry about that. Although my daughter Mi Niang was not born with any so-called auspicious signs or great fortune, she never dreamed of marrying into a wealthy family. Besides, I think that when choosing a wife, it is not necessarily about whether she has big feet or small feet. The most important thing for a girl is her virtue, speech, appearance and merit."

Normally, Second Mistress Ding rarely gets angry, but when it comes to her daughter's affairs, she rarely gets angry.

Mi Niang also looked at her mother with new eyes. It was a complete lie that bound feet could help a woman marry well. It was undeniable that bound feet could please men to a certain extent. In fact, men were too realistic. If you had a good family background and a lot of dowry, even if you had some physical flaws, they would still be eager to marry you.