Meanwhile, in a grove of trees not far from the village entrance.
Heavy breathing came from a couple inside, which gradually subsided and then returned to silence.
These two were Lin Gangzi and Liu Xiuhong, who had recently left the village.
After their passionate encounter, without even tidying their clothes, Liu Xiuhong lay on Lin Gangzi's chest and asked, "Brother Gangzi, are you really just going to leave like this?"
Lin Gangzi rubbed her smooth back with his hand and said, "If I don't leave, am I supposed to be scolded by these peasants every day? Bah! They don't deserve it. Once I get out and make a fortune, I'll see if they won't come to fawn over me."
Liu Xiuhong said, "Brother Gangzi, you clearly did nothing wrong, yet everyone is still cursing you like this. It's all the fault of Aunt Lin's family. Those people are only doing this to you because they're trying to curry favor with her."
Ever since she was severely reprimanded by Song Anxin for bringing duck eggs to get close to Song Anbang, she had harbored a grudge against Song Anxin. Later, the place where she brought the duck eggs changed, and she could no longer use the excuse of bringing duck eggs to see Song Anbang every day, let alone get close to him. Her resentment towards Song Anxin for ruining her plans grew even stronger.
If she could marry Song Anbang, she might even become an official's wife. Then she could see how envious those people in the village who mocked her for being a jinx would be.
Lin Gangzi probably saw through Liu Xiuhong's thoughts. He came up with a plan: if Lin Ershenzi's family was making things difficult for him, then his family shouldn't expect to have any peace either.
He touched Liu Xiuhong's face and said, "Xiuhong, you have such a beautiful face. If it weren't for these coarse, patched, and tattered clothes, how would you be any different from the young ladies of wealthy families in the city? You should be a lady."
He coaxed, "Don't you like that Song Tongsheng? I think you two are a good match. Here's an idea for you..."
Liu Xiuhong was overjoyed upon hearing this, but then she became a little timid: "Is this really okay? Can I really marry Song Tongsheng?"
"Xiuhong, you can't catch a wolf without risking your cub. I'm waiting to drink your wedding wine."
Although Liu Xiuhong was a little afraid of this method, and Song Tongsheng was not the same kind of person as Lin Gangzi, Lin Gangzi was right. If she didn't go all out, how could Song Tongsheng possibly get a chance?
Meanwhile, Song Anxin's family had already started having dinner. The atmosphere at the dinner table was still relaxed, and everyone could talk about anything. Because of this, Song Mei was also more relaxed, and no one was being overly cautious towards her because of her situation.
Old Bai really liked the atmosphere of this family, and Ah Si hadn't had anyone his age to talk to in a long time, so he could chime in on anything.
After returning from the ancestral hall that evening, everyone washed up, listened to the story, and then drifted off to sleep. The younger children even slept with smiles on their faces. Because the next day, their whole family would be going to the county town.
Firstly, it was to remove Song Mei's status as a slave; secondly, her family was going to squander such a large sum of money.
Everyone got up very early in the morning, especially Lin Fengyao, who was extremely excited as it was the first time his family had gone to the county town together.
The younger children were all in high spirits at the dinner table. After breakfast, Song Anxin took out some loose silver and copper coins and gave everyone one tael and five hundred copper coins.
She smiled and said, "From now on, everyone in our family will have a monthly allowance. You've all worked hard these past few days. If you need to buy something and don't have enough money, you can ask your mother."
Everyone was stunned when they saw the money in their hands. What did her mother say?! Monthly allowance! Does that mean they'll have it every month from now on? And it's even 1.5 taels of silver, which is 1,500 copper coins! Her mother is so generous!
They also knew that their family had received a lot of money as a reward, and their business had made a lot of money, but these were now insignificant to them.
Song Anbang looked at the money in his hand, completely bewildered: "Why did my sister give it to me too? How can I take my sister's monthly allowance?"
He was about to return it to Song Anxin.
Song Anxin pushed back, saying, "You helped pack the duck egg gift boxes and wrote blessings on the packaging. You also packaged the braised duck eggs every day... What household chores haven't you done? You've contributed a lot to your sister's business. Consider this your wages."
“Yes, Uncle, you’ve been working alongside us every day, so you deserve this money,” Lin Fengshou said.
Lin Fengyao said, "Uncle, we are family. You should have everything that our family has."
Both Lin Fengnian and Lin Fenghe indicated that the younger uncle should also be included.
“Anbang, just take it. Because of your sister’s family’s affairs, you haven’t had time to copy books lately. You also asked Fengnian and the others to give the money to Mother. You should buy some writing brushes, ink, paper, and books when you go to the county this time.”
When Song Anbang heard his sister say that, he realized he really had no money left, so he had no choice but to accept it. His sister was so good to him.
Song Mei said, "Mother, I don't need any money. I stay at home every day and don't need any money."
Lin Fenghe and Lin Fengyao also said, "We don't need the money either, Mother, you should keep it."
In the end, only Lin Fengyao's money was taken by Song Anxin. Lin Fengyao was still too young, and it was not safe for him to keep so much money in his hands. So Song Anxin left him ten copper coins so that he could buy some small things as he pleased. If he wanted to buy anything else, he could tell her.
As for Lin Fenghe, he's a steady young man. Once he starts studying, he'll definitely have his own stationery and books to buy, so she trusts him quite a bit.
She naturally confiscated Song Mei's money, and winked at her, saying:
“Meizi, you’re the head manager of our duck egg workshop, how could you not have money? Besides, you need to save some money for yourself.”
Song Mei smiled immediately. She was Song Mei now, and her mother was her own mother. She no longer refused.
And so everyone set off early for the county town with the oxcarts loaded with goods. Because there were so many goods, the two oxen and four carts were so crowded that there wasn't even a place to sit.
However, no one cared, and Song Anxin and her group walked, chatted, and joked their way to the county town.
After arriving in the county town, everyone went their separate ways. Lin Fengshou and Shi Tou Xiaohe went to deliver goods to the restaurant. After delivering the goods, they had to go out of town to buy pig offal.
After everything was done, Lin Fengshou would come to meet them in his oxcart, while Shitou and Xiaohe would take the goods back to the village in Uncle Lin's oxcart.
Song Anxin then took Song Mei and Lin Fengyao to stroll around. Lin Fengnian, Feng He, and Song Anbang were not interested in shopping, so they went to the bookstore. Lin Fengnian had heard from his mother that there were books on farming that were sold there, and he came here specifically to buy them.
The market was bustling in the morning, with vendors calling out their wares incessantly. Song Anxin noticed that tofu pudding was being sold.
"Tofu pudding, tofu pudding~ Delicious tofu pudding..."
The vendors loudly solicited business.
Seeing Song Anxin and the others, he smiled and said, "These two sisters-in-law, and young man, would you like a bowl of tofu pudding? It's freshly made and still warm."
Lin Fengyao looked at Song Anxin expectantly.
She laughed and said, "Okay, bring one bowl for each of us."
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