Lu Yunxing hurriedly said that he could take care of the family, "Sister-in-law, I am also a man, I can take care of the family and Grandma."

Qin Xiaozhou thought the same thing. The boy was almost fifteen years old and should be trained properly. So he took out 100 coins and gave him a suggestion. "Now that the weather is getting warmer, the chickens and ducks have grown bigger. You don't need to put dry leaves in the chicken coop anymore. Just clean up the droppings every two or three days. Find some honest men in the village who have little land to do the work and pay them a little money a day."

“Oh, that’s a good idea.” Wang Lan quickly came up with a candidate. “The son of your grandmother Wang who lives at the edge of the village, named Wang Dahe, is a hardworking and honest man. He has little land, is poor, and his wife is sick. He’s only thirty years old and is suffering. His ears are already turning white. I think he’s a good candidate. I’ll talk to him tomorrow.”

Qin Xiaozhou wasn't familiar with the villagers. "As long as they are hardworking and honest, that's fine. There are many chickens and ducks, and we can't afford to lose one every few days. Also, whatever price we agree on is the price. Don't give money to others just because they are struggling. You can't give them your things either. If they know how to be grateful, that's fine, but be careful not to feed them ungrateful wretches. You also need to keep an eye on them and not relax your supervision of the workers."

Wang Lan nodded hurriedly, "Okay, whatever you say. How much is appropriate?"

This granddaughter-in-law is indeed someone who could run a pork shop all by herself; she's naturally more adept at being a manager than they are.

Qin Xiaozhou quoted 18 coins a day, a price she had carefully considered. Carrying heavy loads at the docks was 23 coins, not including food and lodging, and one would have to find a place to stay in the city. In the village, one could go home to eat and stay, and could take care of the house after closing the chickens and ducks in the evening. 18 coins a day was not a bad deal.

After deciding on the ownership of the chickens and ducks, he asked which fruits in the orchard were ripe. Lu Yunxing knew best and said that two mulberry trees facing the sun had a few purple berries.

She then instructed Lu Yu and Zhao Fang, "Tomorrow you will continue to deliver desserts to the wealthy families in the county town. Deliver caramel pudding and lotus flower pastries, and inform them of the address. Most importantly, spread the word that the store will open at the end of Chenshi (7-9 AM) the day after tomorrow. Tell them that each item is limited to thirty portions and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis."

The next morning, Qin Xiaozhou went to the orchard to check on the fruit. The loquats were slightly yellow, the apricots would ripen in another half month, and the peaches at the top of the peach trees had also turned a little pink.

After the sun came up, she began picking mulberries. There weren't many ripe ones, so she had to pick them from wherever she could find them. They would come in handy when she opened the gates tomorrow. She also kept an eye on the chickens and ducks, which were freed up to graze and catch insects by the river and on the hillside. The ducks could also eat small fish and shrimp in the river. In spring, not only does the grass grow, but the insects also grow very quickly. Lu Yunxing carried a ladder to catch insects for the fruit trees and threw it under the trees. The chickens flapped their wings and rushed to catch it. The chickens knew that following him meant they would get insects, so they kept circling around him, which was quite a sight in the orchard.

Wang Lan was stationed at the entrance of Qingzhugou. The ducks were swimming far away and always wanted to go out of the gully to the east. The area around the village there was all fields, and the winter wheat had already formed ears. In another half month, it would be ripe and ready for spring harvest and rice planting. If the ducks caused trouble, she would get scolded.

Suddenly, two sharp cries came from the edge of the Qingzhugou meadow. Qin Xiaozhou ran down the hillside to check. These chickens and ducks were precious. Something was moving in the meadow, making a rustling sound.

Qin Xiaozhou thought it was a snake or insect, so she picked up a bamboo pole to look, only to find a person behind the bushes, which startled her. "Who is it? Who's there?"

Wang Lan rushed over, "What's wrong?"

The man was startled and ran north from the ravine. Once he was out of the village, no one could see him. He was carrying a duck in his hand, and the duck was clucking.

"Holy crap?" Qin Xiaozhou shouted, "Duck thief! Stop thief!" He had been raising these chickens and ducks for three months.

Wang Lan grabbed a bamboo pole and headed north to block the person. She couldn't catch up because of her limp, so she could only curse, "Which heartless bastard is it that actually stole from our house?"

Qin Xiaozhou had lost weight, but he still couldn't outrun the man. Lu Yunxing ran down the other side of the hillside. Although he was thinner, he had been running fast in the mountains for the past two years. He ran down the north side of the hillside to intercept the man, pounced on him, and tripped him to the ground. The thief yelled, "Murder! Murder! Lu family's second son has murdered someone!"

Lu Yunxing was educated and could not stand such slander and distortion of the truth. "Brother Da Neng, you clearly stole from my house, how can you frame me like this?"

Wang Daneng is a man whose name doesn't match his character at all. He's a fine young man of twenty-four or twenty-five, but he wanders around the village every day. Years ago, he went to study in the county town and learned to gamble, losing all of his family's wealth. His younger brother and sister were taken away to pay off debts, and his mother died of anger. Only his father is still working hard at home to raise money to try to redeem his second son.

Wang Daneng had no money or food, so he stole things all over Wangjia Village. He didn't steal anything big, and the elders of the Wang family would just say a few words and that would be the end of it. But he became more and more reckless in Wangjia Village. Wang Daneng was gripping the duck's neck tightly with his right hand. The half-grown duckling was already dead, its head tilted to one side.

Seeing that they had caught the person, Qin Xiaozhou hurriedly shouted, "Quick, tie him up!"

Wang Daneng struggled, "No, you can't tie me up! Lu Lao Er, I'm going to report you to the clan elders! How dare you murder people from our Wang Family Village! You outsider are riding roughshod over the people of our village..."

Lu Yunxing was weak, and just as the thief was about to get up and run away, Qin Xiaozhou kicked Wang Daneng in the stomach, saying, "Did I ride you? Are you a cow or a horse? You can't be ridden by people! I've never seen anyone who thinks of themselves as an animal like you. Let go of this duck now."

Even if the duck dies, it's still hers. Damn it, how dare they steal from her! No matter if they're outsiders or from the village, none of that matters to her.

Wang Lan staggered over, and upon seeing the dead duck, she was furious. She cursed twice, startling the ducks on the riverbank, who scattered and clucked in all directions, creating chaos. Qin Xiaozhou forced the man to a tree not far from Qingzhugou. Lu Yunxing found a rope and asked, "Sister-in-law, are you sure you want to tie him up?"

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