"No rush, you can play for a while first." Song Tantan was much gentler with the little girl.

The girls hesitated, wondering what they would eat if they didn't work.

“There isn’t much open space in the yard. You should tidy up the yard, plant some things, and keep the house clean. The young lady can do some housework at home. In a couple of years, she’ll be asking for marriage. You need to take good care of her.” Such a big yard can’t be left unattended.

"They can just stay at home every day?" Ah Si is twelve years old this year, a young boy. If we take him out to train for a year or two, it will be easier to find him a wife then.

“Ah Si, we’re grown men, how can we compare ourselves to young girls?” Ah Zhu tugged at him, signaling him to say less.

Ah Si opened his mouth, wanting to say that he was still a child, so why was he already out looking for work? He had been studying medicine, so why should he set up a table to treat patients? But he didn't even know how to take a pulse; he was just a half-baked doctor. He was more suited to be a medicine boy.

"You dozen or so people don't need to eat every day, and you don't need to clean the house. Xiao Tao and Xiao Li will take care of cooking, so you can eat ready-made meals when you come back. Since you've planted vegetables in the yard, you'll save money on groceries. There are plenty of chores to do around the house, so don't think you're having an easy time."

Young girls are of marriageable age and shouldn't be allowed to show their faces in public like young men. It's not like we lack resources; we have houses and food, so there's no need for young girls to go out and do business to earn money.

Ye Moxun remained silent throughout the visit. Once he felt they had finished shopping, he pointed to a restaurant nearby and said, "Let's go in and have a meal."

Everyone's eyes lit up, and they were about to cheer when Song Tantan said, "This is the biggest restaurant in Fengcheng. The food here is very expensive. We don't have that much money. If we don't have money to pay the bill after we finish eating, are we supposed to pawn someone?"

"We can just buy some steamed buns to eat." Ah Si looked at Song Tantan longingly; he had been craving steamed buns ever since they passed the stall earlier.

He also craved candied hawthorns and pancakes, but he had no money. The journey from the village was too long, and he couldn't carry much food with him, so he ate half of it on the way.

"By the way, Tantan, can we sell the herbs and dried mushrooms we brought out?" If so, they would have some money.

Song Tantan curled up the corners of her mouth, patted A Si's shoulder with an expression that said, "You're pretty good, I have high hopes for you." "Of course, if the herbs are sold out, we can go to the mountains to collect them, but we'll probably have to go to the mountains outside the city. There probably aren't any in the city."

Ye Moxun rubbed his forehead and said calmly, "Stop joking. It's a rare opportunity for everyone to get out together. How much can it cost to treat them to a nice meal?"

Sigh, he doesn't like to carry money when he goes out. It's too heavy and a burden. Besides, he was going out with Song Tantan, who had plenty of money in her storage space, so he didn't bring a single penny.

If you want to go to a restaurant to eat right now, you have to be humble and subservient.

Song Tantan just wanted to express that money is hard to earn, and everyone should know how to spend money in a planned way and not waste it recklessly, especially Ye Moxun. This guy used to be a playboy, and if his bad habits come back, then he's doomed.

Even mountains of gold and silver wouldn't be enough for him to squander.

Ye Moxun had no idea that those words were directed at him. Anyway, he was determined to have a good meal at the restaurant. When he left Fengcheng last time, this restaurant was still under renovation. It opened a few months later and the business was pretty good.

It seems there are still quite a few wealthy families in Fengcheng. These are all aristocratic families and merchants who wanted to escape but failed to do so. Perhaps Duke took away at least half of their family fortune, but they were lucky enough to save their lives.

Unlike poor families, who were unable to farm properly and were oppressed by officials and soldiers, with all sorts of exorbitant taxes and levies that made it impossible for them to survive, they were forced to become refugees. They tried to escape Xifeng, but were killed by Duke's men before they even left the city gate.

Those who weren't killed barely managed to survive. They had to keep going even if they couldn't make ends meet, and they would rather die at home than flee. Running away meant certain death, so about two-thirds of the people of Fengcheng died.

More people survived in the suburbs and countryside. Soldiers didn't like to go to remote places, and even if they did, the farmers in the countryside were closer to the mountains, so they had more chances to escape and more people survived.

It's been almost half a year since Xifeng was pacified, but many people still don't dare to come into the city. They were terrified of being killed by Duke and the shadow of that tragedy is too heavy. Only the bolder people dare to come into the city to sell some vegetables, a few wild animals, or a couple of loads of firewood.

Back to Song Tantan, she made a few pointed complaints before walking into the restaurant. Actually, she also wanted to have a meal there. This was her first time visiting a grand restaurant since coming to this world, so it was very important. She wanted to invite her aunt and future uncle over as well.

"Ah Si, Chun Sheng, here's half a tael of silver. Take it and buy some of your favorite snacks. Also, go to the government office and call Master Song and Master Zhong over. Do you know the way?"

“Yes, we’ll go right away.” Ah Si snatched the silver and pulled Chun Sheng out of the restaurant.

The others looked on with envy; they wanted to buy some candy or something too, but they didn't have any money.

"Don't be envious, Chunsheng and Asi are the youngest. You are older than them. Just bear with it, the food will be served soon," Song Tantan said in a good mood, drawing out her voice, "Waiter, serve the food."

"Here you are, sir. What would you like to order? We have Eight Treasure Chicken, Braised Lion's Head Meatballs..." Actually, the waiter had been leading the way since they entered, but because there were many of them, he didn't take them to the second-floor private room, and instead led them to the lobby downstairs.

Song Tantan waved his hand and said, "Ten dishes on each table, the best and most expensive ones. If you have any pastries, bring out a few to try first."

"Yes, please wait a moment, sir. The pastries will be served shortly." And they really were served shortly; several plates of pastries were brought over in less than fifteen minutes.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!