Liu Junlan and several children were chatting enthusiastically outside.

Inside the house, Lin Weiming's ear was twisted by his wife.

"Ouch—it hurts... Honey, what are you doing?" Lin Weiming bent down to pull her ear, trying to appease her.

"I'm asking you," Xuefu asked with a stern face, "the money for all the purchases was paid by Young Master Liu, so where did you hide those ten taels of silver? Hand it over right now! You've really grown bold now, daring to hide your secret stash of money. I'll teach you a lesson!"

"No, no, no... Wife, I'll take it, I'll take it..." Lin Weiming snatched back his ears, disassembled an old bamboo chair he had brought from home, and poured out ten taels of silver from the chair legs.

I thought I could finally hide a large sum of money.

As it turns out, I was destined to be poor!

Xuefu: "..."

You're really good at hiding!

"You really didn't hide any other secret stash of money?" Xuefu squinted, not quite believing it. Seeing how skilled this guy was, it was clear this wasn't the first time.

"No, no..." Lin Weiming broke out in a cold sweat and quickly assured them, "No, really no! I haven't handled any money recently, where would I have money to hide?"

"Really?" Xuefu glanced at him coldly, clearly not believing him. She pointed and said, "These furniture pieces we brought from home are dirty anyway. Take them all apart and wash them. I'll watch!"

Looking at the pile of things he had brought home, Lin Weiming felt that it would take him a long time to unpack them.

Unfortunately, he was in the wrong first, and his wife discovered that he had hidden money, so now he has no choice but to obey.

"Oh... okay."

He had no choice but to fetch a bucket of water from the well and polish all the old furniture he had brought from home until it shone.

The four memorial tablets he brought from home were placed in a small room. Lin Weiming did not offer incense to them, but instead placed some of the snacks that Young Master Liu had given him that day.

The ghost they keep is different from other ghosts; it doesn't like incense, but prefers all kinds of snacks, much like a human.

Lin Weiming tidied up his son's study and then called out to his son to come back and study.

As soon as he shouted, Lin Zhongyuan rushed in, as if he had been given a whirlwind.

"Why are you running so fast? Why are you in such a hurry?" Lin Weiming asked curiously.

Lin Zhongyuan wiped the sweat from his forehead: "Dad, you don't know, this is the first time I've realized that being praised makes me feel guilty... Those aunties outside are too good at praising people."

Lin Weiming recalled the day he brought his daughter to buy a house, when he was also surrounded by a group of overly enthusiastic middle-aged women.

Is the specialty of their county just these overly enthusiastic aunties?

Lin Weiming didn't think much of it and continued packing his things.

Lin Zhongyuan lit the incense, and Master Cui quickly appeared before him. The master and disciple then resumed their pleasant study.

…

Liu Junlan learned from Lin Weiming that the half-acre of land in front of her house was also on her family's land deed. While chatting with the neighbors while holding Lin Wanyue, she was already thinking about how to make use of this half-acre vegetable garden.

Half an acre isn't a huge amount, but it's not small either!

Liu Junlan planned to take advantage of the remaining time to cultivate two plots of land for wheat or rice, and find a corner to plant some rapeseed. She also planned to utilize the marginal spaces, planting a few eggplants and peppers, a small row of green beans, and a few corn stalks along the roadside.

Growing these things is not difficult; she can finish it in no time. Although it certainly won't be enough to feed her family of eight, it will at least reduce some expenses.

After deciding what to do in the fields, Liu Junlan quickly joined in the conversation with her neighbors, asking where she could find work in the city.

To support five children, it's not enough to just sit around and do nothing; I need to find some work to earn more money.

Lin Wanyue was being held by Liu Junlan and felt a little sleepy, while Lin Diaodiao stood on the wall, looking at her pitifully.

Lin Wanyue yawned and slid off Liu Junlan's arms: "Grandma, I'm going to sleep."

"Okay, Wanwan, you go ahead." Liu Junlan was busy chatting and didn't insist that she stay by his side.

Although her Wanwan is only three years old, she is much more obedient than other three-year-old girls. She is also smart and clever, so she will definitely not be abducted by human traffickers.

As Lin Wanyue entered the courtyard, Lin Diaodiao immediately rushed onto her, squeaking excitedly.

Lin Wanyue was indeed a little sleepy, so she went into her room.

Xuefu had already taken out the bedding and mosquito net from the box for her, and said with a smile, "This young master of the Liu family is quite thoughtful, he even prepared these things, it's just that the color..."

Lin Wanyue looked at the room full of pink and didn't know what to say.

In an era when the textile industry was not very developed, it took Liu Shao a lot of effort to find so much light pink fabric.

The colors are just a bit too noisy to look at.

Lin Diaodiao jumped off Lin Wanyue's shoulder and quickly burrowed into the pink quilt, rolling around happily.

Since Lin Diaodiao liked it so much, Lin Wanyue could only reluctantly accept the glaring color.

That evening, the family ate their first meal in the county town in the main room of their new house.

During the meal, Liu Junlan said, "I heard there are two academies that are quite close to here. You and Zhongyuan can go and take a look at them tomorrow. You can study at the academy with the best teacher."

Master Cui floated over and said in a voice only they could hear, "I want to go and see too. Some people are all talk and no action. They have a great reputation outside, but their actual ability may not be up to par."

Lin Wanyue picked up a piece of braised fish with her chopsticks and felt that what Master Cui said made sense.

“Okay, I’ll go take a look tomorrow. However, there are more than two academies in this county. I’d like to visit the one that’s further away as well.” Lin Weiming remembered that An Yazi had said that there were only three famous academies in their county.

The two schools near Qingshuihe are not far from where they live now, making it convenient to travel between them. However, the two deans have conflicts, and the students are prone to getting together and arguing.

Zhujiao Academy is quite far away, but I've heard that the headmaster there is very learned.

However, the person who said this was An Yazi, and nine out of ten of his statements were false.

Lin Weiming didn't dare to believe it completely and planned to go and see for himself tomorrow before making a judgment.

“You’ve thought this through very well. Then let’s check out all three academies. I heard there’s a job opening for laundry workers; I’ll go see if I can get some work.” Liu Junlan nodded, satisfied.

“Mother, maybe you shouldn’t go. I’ll take care of making money. After I finish dealing with Zhongyuan’s schooling, I’ll find some work,” Lin Weiming said.

Xuefu chimed in, "Yes, Mother, let me go. You're getting old, it's time for you to enjoy your retirement."

"Don't say such things. We're all family, and we're all doing this for the good of the family. It's better for you to stay home and take care of the children than for me. I can find some work to do and lighten your burden." Liu Junlan disagreed with Lin Weiming and Xuefu's opinion and still wanted to find a job to earn some money to help them reduce their pressure.

Lin Weiming couldn't refuse her, so he had no choice but to agree.