next day

In the morning, Jiang Yuwei, Ning Zhao, and Ning Wan ate locust flower buns and took a few fried pastries with them before going to collect firewood. Jiang Yuwei was thinking that if they could find a suitable tree today, they could dig it up and bring it back to plant.

As soon as the three of them stepped out of the hospital gate, Ning Wan took Jiang Yuwei's hand and said:

"Mom, I recently discovered a great place. The leaves I picked there are loved by the cows, chickens, and ducks at home. I'll take you there."

Jiang Yuwei smiled and nodded, then followed behind Ning Wan. Ning Wan led Jiang Yuwei and Ning Zhao up the hill from the locust tree where she had placed the beehive, then around to the back of the mountain. There they saw a large area of ​​land covered with the same kind of plant. Jiang Yuwei frowned and said:

"Whose land is this? Why doesn't anyone take care of it? It's all overgrown with useless plants."

Ning Zhao looked around and pondered for a moment before saying:

“It should be Grandma Sun’s land. Her son went to serve in the army and never came back. She only has her daughter-in-law. Grandma Sun is always sick and can’t work in the fields. Her daughter-in-law makes embroidery to make a living.”

Jiang Yuwei looked at Ning Zhao in surprise and asked:

"Zhao'er, you know quite a lot."

Ning Zhao scratched his head sheepishly and said:

“I’m about the same age as his grandson, Gou Dan’er. We used to play together a lot when we were kids, so I know a bit about him.”

Jiang Yuwei smiled and nodded, then stepped forward to examine the newly sprouted leaves, frowning as she said:

"Is this mulberry leaf? No wonder Wan'er said poultry like to eat it."

As Jiang Yuwei spoke, she looked at the tree trunk again and exclaimed in surprise:

"No, this isn't a mulberry tree, it's a paper mulberry!"

In her previous life, Jiang Yuwei had seen a video blogger making paper from paper mulberry trees, so she immediately had an idea and pulled Ning Zhao and Ning Wan down the mountain.

Ning Zhao asked in confusion:

"Mother, are we not going to gather firewood anymore?"

Jiang Yuwei said with a smile:

"If we don't pick them up today, let's go buy land first, so you won't have to worry about not having enough paper to practice calligraphy, Zhao'er!"

Jiang Yuwei took the two children back to the courtyard and then said to Ning Huaizhi:

“Huaizhi, I’ve got my eye on those few acres of wasteland belonging to Grandma Sun behind the mountain. They’re very close to our little courtyard, and I want to buy them all.”

Ning Huaizhi looked at Jiang Yuwei's excited expression and laughed:

"This is the first time I've heard of someone being so happy about buying wasteland. Honey, if you want to buy it, go ahead. I'll do whatever you say."

Seeing Ning Huaizhi's support, Jiang Yuwei smiled, nodded, and went out to walk towards the village head's house.

As soon as Jiang Yuwei entered the village head's courtyard, she saw a girl about the same age as Ning Qiu cleaning pig manure in the pigsty. Just as she was wondering about this, Ning Qiu came out of the house.

"Sister Yuwei, what brings you here today!"

Ning Qiu happily stepped forward, took Jiang Yuwei's hand, and introduced her to Ning Daya, who was cleaning the pigsty:

"Big Sister Ya, this is Sister Yuwei. She's the one who always takes me to the market to do business."

Upon hearing this, Ning Daya quickly put down the sled, wiped her hands on her clothes as if she were very flustered, and whispered:

"Hello, Sister Yuwei. I often hear Ningqiu mention you."

Seeing this, Jiang Yuwei also laughed:

Hello, Daya.

Ning Qiu pulled Jiang Yuwei and walked into the house:

“This is my cousin Ning Daya from my uncle’s family. She has a hard life. She does all the dirty and hard work at home. Today, her grandmother came to ask her to borrow some pig manure from my house to water the fields. She was very envious when she heard that I can go to the market with you to make money. She keeps asking me about you.”

Jiang Yuwei smiled and nodded:

"I have come today to ask the village head for a favor."

Ning Qiu led Jiang Yuwei into the house, and the village headman, seeing that it was Jiang Yuwei, hurriedly asked her to sit down.

Jiang Yuwei smiled and handed the village head some dried venison she had prepared, saying:

"Village head, these are dried meats that I made myself. They are very delicious and have a warming and nourishing effect. You can eat some when you have time."

The village head smiled and accepted the dried meat from Jiang Yuwei's hand:

"Then I'll accept it. Yuwei's cooking skills must be excellent. What brings you here today?"

After Jiang Yuwei sat down, she said:

“Village head, you know that when we divided our family property, my husband’s family only gave us two acres of land, which are now enclosed in the backyard. I was thinking of buying some land near our yard so we could grow more things. We farmers still need to have our own land.”

The village head pondered for a moment and nodded, saying:

"What you say is true, but these are good years, who would be willing to buy land? Do you have a piece of land in mind?"

Jiang Yuwei took the tea that Ning Qiu poured for her and smiled:

"I've found a piece of land I like, on the back slope of the mountain in front of our courtyard. I heard Ning Zhao say that it belongs to Grandma Sun. It looks like it's been abandoned for a long time. I wonder if she's willing to sell it?"

The village head thought for a moment and then said:

"Yes, there are three acres of land belonging to the Sun family on that mountain. Speaking of which, they are a family with a hard life. They have no one left to farm, and much of their land has been abandoned. Now, only two women are left to depend on each other. The land is just lying there, so it makes sense that they are living a hard life. Come on, come with me to the Sun family."

The village head was a decisive person. He got up and was about to take Jiang Yuwei to the Sun family. Jiang Yuwei naturally wanted things to be done quickly, so she got up without saying a word and followed the village head out of the house.

Soon, the village head led Jiang Yuwei to the entrance of the Sun family's house. The courtyard was simply enclosed by a bamboo fence, and the house consisted of three small mud rooms. Grandma Sun was squatting on the ground pulling weeds in the yard. Although the Sun family's house was simple, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law kept it clean and tidy, making it look quite cozy.

The village head coughed a few times and called out:

"Ahem, the Sun family is busy, aren't they?"

Grandma Sun looked up and saw that it was the village head, so she quickly got up to greet him:

"Sigh, what can I possibly do with my current health? I'm just idly pulling weeds in the yard. What brings the village head here today?"

The village head stepped aside to let Jiang Yuwei, who was standing behind him, pass by and said:

"This is the eldest daughter-in-law of the Ning family. She hasn't been married into our village for long, so you probably don't know her yet."

Grandma Sun looked at Jiang Yuwei, who was smiling, and nodded, saying:

"Hmm, I don't know him, but I've heard of him. Judging from his appearance, he seems like a good kid. Come in and have a seat."

Jiang Yuwei followed the village head into the courtyard.

The village head didn't beat around the bush and asked directly:

"Has your three acres of land on the hill behind your house been abandoned for a long time?"

Grandma Sun pondered for a moment and said;

"That's right. I can't do farm work anymore, and my wife is busy with embroidery. We can't take care of the land at home. It's been abandoned for many years."

The village head laughed:

"I think it's a real shame that your land is lying fallow. Have you ever thought about selling it to get some money to improve your family's life?"

Upon hearing this, Grandma Sun's smile vanished. She gave the village head a serious look, then looked up at Jiang Yuwei sitting to the side.