Chapter 64 They really became family.
Cheng Wanwan stood at the gate of the courtyard.
She looked at Zhang Shi in front of her; like the original owner of this body, she was a widow from the village.
However, the original owner of this body had a terrible reputation in the village, but this widow was different. She spoke softly and got along with everyone. When the villagers talked about the widow, they couldn't help but praise her.
“Sister-in-law Zhao, you know how my family is. Three daughters and one son, all of them are begging for food. There are no men in my family, and I've raised them all by myself. I'm a few years younger than you, but I look older. Life has been really tough.” Zhang sighed. “Sister-in-law, could you help me out with your food business? I just need to be a helper. I'll pay you three or five coins a day…”
Cheng Wanwan's expression was indifferent: "Three or five coins a day is not as good as picking more lanterns. Two catties of lanterns are worth four coins. What's the point of coming here to work as an assistant?"
Zhang's face stiffened: "I...I just wanted to find a way to make a living, didn't I?"
Cheng Wanwan gave a lukewarm rejection.
The original body had never dealt with this widow, let alone her. How could she let someone she didn't know help her?
She turned and went inside, closing the courtyard gate and then the door to the main room, cutting off all sight.
Zhang was so angry she gritted her teeth. She offered to help out with three to five coins a day, but Zhao's sister-in-law refused, saying that her demands were too high.
It's just a little food, it's just a little money, do you really think you're going to become a rich man?
She turned to leave, but after only a few steps, an arm pulled her behind a big tree from the corner. She looked over and saw Zhao Fugui.
She broke free and muttered, "What are you doing, pulling and tugging? It's not even dark yet. What will people think if they see us?"
"What are you pretending for, you woman? Didn't you seduce me in the first place?" Zhao Fugui grabbed her chest and gave it a hard squeeze. "Go up the mountain or just find somewhere?"
Zhang held out her hand: "Give me the money, or I won't do it."
Zhao Fugui, cursing, pulled a coin from his waistband, then dragged Zhang into the field. Soon after, heavy breathing could be heard.
The sky gradually darkened.
Cheng Wanwan and the children are still busy. The past two days, they made three buckets of ice jelly, which kept them busy until the end of the 7 PM. Today, the workload has doubled, and they probably won't be able to finish until midnight.
Torches were lit inside the room as she carefully filtered the ice jelly. Zhao Ergou joined in, as the mother and son working together would make it faster.
Zhao Sanniu helped Zhao Dashan wash the ice jelly.
Zhao Sidan and Wu Huiniang peeled the agate seeds out of the lantern together.
While they were busy, they heard Zhao Sanniu exclaim, "Brother, what happened to your hand?"
Cheng Wanwan put down her work and went over. By the firelight, she was shocked to see that Zhao Dashan's palms were completely white from being soaked in water. Because he had used too much force, the skin on his palms had been rubbed open, revealing the white flesh underneath. The only saving grace was that there was no bleeding.
For those two hours, his hands were soaked in the water from the agarwood seeds, and the kid didn't utter a sound.
Cheng Wanwan pursed her lips.
The idea is wonderful: selling hundreds of bowls of ice jelly a day and earning a profit of one or two ounces.
But the reality is that the more they sell, the more tired the family becomes. Today is only the first day, and Da Shan's hands are already almost useless.
Zhao Dashan chuckled sheepishly, "Mom, I'm fine, it doesn't hurt at all."
Zhao Sanniu said, "Brother, go do other work. Leave this to me. I'm thick-skinned and can handle it."
Cheng Wanwan glanced at the wooden basin beside her, where there was still half a pound of stone flower seeds waiting to be washed, while Dashan and San Niu each had half a pound of seeds being washed in their basins.
If these tasks aren't finished, the goods won't be delivered on time tomorrow; she has never been a dishonest businesswoman.
"Dashan, you filter the ice jelly." Cheng Wanwan switched places with Zhao Dashan. "There can't be a single black thing in the ice jelly, so be careful."
Zhao Dashan was unwilling, but he could not disobey his mother's orders.
Cheng Wanwan put her hands into the basin of agarwood seeds. At first, she felt cool, but as she rubbed them, a slight pain began to spread to her palms.
She opened the online store and searched for plastic gloves. A pair only cost five coins. Wearing gloves to wash this kind of thing should prevent her hands from getting hurt.
She picked up the wooden basin and said calmly, "It's too hot in here. I'll go inside and wash myself."
Zhao Dashan quickly lit a torch and followed, saying, "Mother, let me do it. I'm used to doing this..."
He had just put down the torch when Cheng Wanwan chased him out.
She bought a pair of plastic gloves from the mall, and when she put them on and rubbed the area, she could no longer feel any pain. She quickly started scrubbing.
After washing the basin, she went out and carried the last half pound into the inner room, where she mechanically began to rub it with both hands.
This is not an easy job. Even with gloves on, my fingers are sore and my wrists are stiff and painful from repeating the same movement. Even sitting still causes back pain. After washing all the agar seeds, Cheng Wanwan could not straighten her back.
She carried the wooden basin out, and five pairs of big, dark eyes looked at her from inside the main room.
Zhao Dashan was filled with extreme self-reproach: "Mother, I'm so useless."
Zhao Ergou said, "From now on, this job can't be done by just one person. The three of us should take turns, one jin each, so our hands won't get hurt."
Zhao Sanniu nodded: "Leave this to us. We can't let Mother suffer like this forever."
Cheng Wanwan felt a warmth in her heart.
At first, she only saw her four sons as a responsibility and an obligation, but she never expected that they would actually become a family.
She will feel sorry for the injured children, and the children will be filial to their mother.
However, washing a pound of agate seeds a day may not show any noticeable effects, but after three or four consecutive days, your hands will definitely become white and peel.
The gloves were made of rubber, a product of this era, and she couldn't openly take them out.
If she were to do three catties of agarwood seeds a day, which required at least six separate washing sessions, she would surely become the first time-traveler in history to die from exhaustion.
As the market continues to expand, the amount of agarwood seeds washed daily will rise to five or ten jin (2.5-3.5 kg), and the workload will become increasingly larger.
Therefore, this work must be outsourced.
However, deciding who to hire is something worth considering carefully.
The family of six worked until almost midnight before finally finishing making the ice jelly they needed for tomorrow. Almost all six of them fell asleep as soon as they hit the bed.
"Ooh ooh ooh!"
The rooster, Da Hong, flew to the woodpile and crowed, waking up the sleeping Dahe Village.
Cheng Wanwan lay in bed, not wanting to get up at all. Her arms were sore and hurt when she moved them; she felt like her whole body was falling apart.
She glanced out the window; everything was gray and gloomy. It was still early, so she decided to take a nap.
She closed her eyes and continued sleeping until she heard voices outside the door, at which point she got up and went out.
It turned out to be Xia Hua. She was carrying a large basket on her back, filled with wild vegetables and weeds, and a basket in her hand filled with sow thistle. She dumped it all out in the yard, dragged a piece of dry firewood to sit on, and started chopping the wild vegetables. After chopping half of them, she threw them aside for the chickens and ducks to eat, and then continued chopping.
Cheng Wanwan walked over and said, "Xia Hua, that's enough. If you feed the chickens and ducks any more, they'll be stuffed to death."
Xia Hua looked up and said, "Auntie, this half is chopped up and saved for the chicken and duck to eat this afternoon. I'll finish it in a bit."
Cheng Wanwan sighed softly. Xia Hua was such an honest child. She had only agreed to prepare one meal for the chickens and ducks, but this child got up so early and actually dug up two meals' worth of wild vegetables. The two coins were well spent.
Adding more money is definitely not an option, so let's have Xia Hua stay for breakfast.
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