The three people and the donkey walked side by side on Baiyang Street, each lost in their own thoughts.
Qiu Yan thought about going to the market to welcome her second uncle back.
Qiu Dafu was thinking about his future livelihood and didn't know if the craftsmen's team had any work now.
Qiu Yumei felt down because of what had just happened.
However, her second brother's release from prison and the nine strings of copper coins she had asked for eased her unhappiness.
“Auntie, don’t think about it anymore. Since that wonton shop is deliberately making things difficult for us, why don’t we open our own shop and crush hers?”
“Xiaoyan, your aunt knows you’re focused on making money right now, but you also have to consider our own situation. Your aunt’s family can only come up with ten taels of silver at most. How can we open a shop with that?”
Qiu Dafu pursed his lips and remained silent, but he shared the same thoughts as Qiu Yumei.
Qiu Yan thought about it and realized that she was being a bit greedy, wanting to build a house and open a shop at the same time.
After thinking for a moment, she continued:
"We'll talk about the shop later. Let's just rent a stall on the street where the wonton shop is. Auntie can make wontons anyway, so let's open a breakfast stall. There are food stalls all around there. We can make each bowl one cent cheaper, so it should sell well."
After Qiu Yan said that, Qiu Yumei was eager to try, while Qiu Dafu was a little worried, "If that woman comes to cause trouble today, wouldn't it be a case of losing more than you gain?"
Qiu Yumei nodded in agreement, agreeing that her second brother's words made sense.
“We can’t be afraid to do anything just because we’re scared. Auntie, let’s go ask the stall owners tomorrow. Once everything is ready, we can start. Let’s do it together. We won’t sell at noon, we’ll just sell in the morning.”
Qiu Yan had too many things to do. Besides digging for medicinal herbs and learning how to process them from Old Man Zhao, she also had to visit Xingyue Tower from time to time.
Time was too much of a luxury for her.
Who wouldn't be tempted by making money? Qiu Yumei thought about it and agreed after considering her second brother's situation.
Qiu Dafu originally planned to continue his old business of building houses.
However, worried that his sister and niece might be bullied, he decided to stay with them for a while.
Qiu Yumei was initially hesitant about setting up an early morning stall to sell wontons, but after the decision was made, she found it increasingly feasible.
Afterwards, the three arrived at Caoshi.
Qiu Yan and Qiu Yumei bought some rice, flour, cooking oil, vegetables, meat, and also a few jars of wine.
Qiu Yumei said that her second brother had just been released from prison today, and as his younger sister, she felt it was necessary to buy a lot of food to celebrate.
Since she'd already gotten several hundred coins for free today, she had to pay for it.
Qiu Yan didn't argue with her aunt, it was a rare treat that her second uncle was released from prison.
Around 1:00 PM, Qiu Yan gave the donkey to Qiu Dafu, and Qiu Yumei drove her own oxcart, taking Qiu Yan back to her parents' village.
In the late afternoon, they returned to the old courtyard.
The village of Lingnan was in an uproar because of Qiu Dafu's appearance.
"Look, isn't that Qiu Dafu?"
"That's right, it's him."
"Has Dafu been released?"
"..."
Along the way, people greeted them.
The villagers are unaware of Yang's imprisonment; if they did, they would surely be in an uproar.
Soon, almost everyone in the village knew that Qiu Dafu had returned.
The neighbor, Mrs. Ye, was strolling at the village entrance with her two children when she saw Qiu Yan and Qiu Yumei driving an oxcart, while Qiu Dafu pulled his donkey step by step towards them. She rubbed her eyes.
Could I be seeing things? Is Qiu Dafu back?
Qiu Ling'er dashed out like a little firecracker, first calling out "Auntie," then throwing herself into Qiu Dafu's arms.
"Second Uncle, you're finally back..." The little girl started crying as she spoke, which made Qiu Dafu feel a pang of sadness.
"Ling'er, don't cry, your second uncle is back."
Ye confirmed that the person who came was indeed Qiu Dafu.
Qiu Dafu lifted Qiu Ling'er high in his arms, which made Gu Xiaoran envious, and she reached out her hands to Qiu Yan.
Qiu Yan hugged Gu Xiaoran, which aroused suspicion in Qiu Dafu and Qiu Yumei.
Qiu Dafu asked, "Xiaoyan, whose child is this?" He had never seen this child before.
When Gu Xiaoran heard someone ask him, he explained in a childish voice, "My dad's name is Gu Qian."
“This child isn’t from our village.” Ye explained Gu Xiaoran’s relationship with their family briefly, and Qiu Dafu and Qiu Yumei got the gist of it.
When Qiu Dafu saw that the once dilapidated old courtyard had been transformed and now had a warm, lively atmosphere, his only feeling was that it was truly wonderful to have a home.
Looking ahead, he always felt like he had no home.
However, the puppy in the yard didn't recognize him and barked a few times.
Upon his release from prison, he was covered in filth. Qiu Dafu walked a long way along the stream until he reached the mountains and forests. In a secluded shady spot, he carefully washed his body and hair, and immediately felt refreshed.
After washing up, he changed into the new clothes Qiu Yan had bought for him that day, and the unpleasant odor on his body finally dissipated.
Qiu Yumei went home without eating. She had come to the village today without telling her family, fearing they would worry if she returned late.
When Qiu Dafu returned home, the village chief had been waiting for him for a long time.
Zhao Shan and Qiu Dafu sat in the west room, discussing the various events that had occurred over the past few months.
Many villagers couldn't help but come in to ask questions, exchanged some polite words, and then left one after another.
With more people in the yard, the little puppy calmed down and snuggled into its doghouse, fast asleep.
Before long, the Wang mother and daughter also arrived.
When Qiu Yan saw them, she asked Wang Shi about it, saying that she wanted to find a woman to work at her house during the day for twenty coins a day, with wages paid monthly.
They are responsible for preparing three meals a day, doing laundry, cleaning the house, taking care of the children, and other household chores. They don't need to worry about grocery shopping.
After hearing this, Wang thought about it for a while, but there was no precedent for this in the village.
After thinking for a moment, her eyes flickered slightly.
"Qiu Yan, what do you think of me?"
Housework is what women do best. Since they live in the same village, she can also do her own housework and earn a good amount of money every month.
This is much better than her usual job of selling vegetables at the market.
Zhao Yuanyuan's body stiffened slightly. Wang Shi loved money, but she acquired it in a proper way.
Her mother was obsessed with money all day long, but she was reluctant to spend any on herself, instead spending it all on her father and her siblings.
Qiu Yan agreed without hesitation; she knew the character of the village chief's family.
Ye Shi quickly came to help, but Qiu Yan didn't want her to do heavy work. Ye Shi said it was fine, as the baby in her womb was less than three months old and it wouldn't interfere with her work.
She herself didn't think anything of it, but Qiu Yan and Wang Shi kept a close eye on her.
When Qiu Xu returned home that evening, he found the courtyard filled with noisy conversations. Looking back at the alley, he realized he hadn't gone the wrong way.
Upon closer inspection, one could see that the younger sister and Gu Xiaoran were sitting in front of the stove tending the fire, Aunt Ye and Sister Yuanyuan were washing vegetables in front of a basin, Aunt Wang was chopping meat on a cutting board, and the older sister was killing fish and slaughtering rabbits.
It seems like there's nothing joyous happening in his family.
When he looked inside the house again, he was completely petrified.
It turned out to be my second uncle who had returned, and he was sitting and talking with the village chief.
He ran quickly to find his second uncle.
Qiu Dafu also saw Qiu Xu, and the uncle and nephew embraced tightly. After many days of missing each other, they never expected to be reunited today.
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