When Old Zhang heard this, his eyes widened. He never expected that there would be money to be made. Ten eggs for one coin. Ten duck eggs could be bought at any household in the village with a shout. This coin was practically free money.
But he only wanted to help his benefactor, so he quickly said, "Fengnian's mother, this is not right. How could I take your money? Didn't we agree to help each other?"
Song Anxin smiled and said, "This is a long-term business for me. How can I let you keep busy every day? You also have a family to live on, don't you?"
With this business, your granddaughter won't have to worry about eating random things when she's hungry. Uncle Zhang, if you have no objections to the cost, then it's settled."
Mr. Zhang was so grateful that tears welled up in his eyes. This benefactor wasn't asking him to help her; she was helping him.
After receiving his son's pension, he planned to buy an oxcart, not only to plow the fields—he and his wife were too slow at tending the land—but also to transport people from the village to the county to earn some money. However, no one in the village was willing to spend money on an oxcart.
With this business, he and his wife no longer had to worry about running out of money. He thanked them repeatedly. When Song Anxin returned after seeing Old Man Zhang off, he saw several children staring at him.
Lin Fengshou knew his mother didn't want him to work so hard, and he was very touched; his mother was truly too good to him. But he wasn't afraid of hard work, so how could he give money to others to do the work? That would be giving money away for nothing.
He said, "Mother, I'm not afraid of being tired. Let me go. If we save this money, our family can harvest a few more duck eggs."
Song Anxin knew what her second brother was thinking. She said, "Fengshou is not just about saving a few dollars. Sometimes it's not advisable to take on everything yourself."
She patiently explained, "Uncle Zhang has his own oxcart and can go to other villages at any time, while we not only have to borrow his oxcart, but we also have to be mindful of the time he uses it."
You have to deliver goods to the county, help your older brother tend the land, and study for exams. How much time do you have to spend on all of that?
If you insist on doing it your way, you'll not only exhaust yourself but also become less efficient. Sometimes, giving up some of your profits and delegating your work to others frees up time to do more meaningful things and reap greater rewards.
Lin Fengshou felt as if his mind had been jolted, his mother's words echoing in his head. He wanted to make money, to do business; this was his lifelong dream, one he had always thought was impossible, at most he could only do manual labor in the county.
But his mother's change gave him hope. He thought he could do things well with his little bit of cleverness, but his mother thought much more and saw further than he did. She seemed to be a born businesswoman.
Lin Fengshou now realizes that he still has a lot to learn from his mother, and he is also very excited because his mother not only teaches him to read but also how to do business!
Song Anxin watched as Lin Fengshou's eyes grew brighter and brighter, wondering what the kid was thinking.
The second son has the most potential to do business, but he lacks experience and hasn't seen much of the world, so he's prone to short-sightedness. Therefore, he plans to keep him by his side to learn and observe more, and he will also do his best to teach him what he can.
Of course, the others couldn't be left out either. She said to the boys who were sitting under the eaves busy winding hay, "I'm not just talking to your second brother, you all need to remember this too, understand?"
The boys nodded. In fact, Lin Fenghe had already understood his mother's intentions when she spoke to Old Man Zhang. He could also understand his second brother's desire to do things on his own.
In the afternoon, the whole family was washing salted duck eggs. Everyone washed them very carefully, after all, this was their first business. After the sun gradually cooled down, Lin Fengnian and Lin Fengshou went to the fields to weed and fertilize.
After washing and marinating another batch, it was almost evening. Zhang Mei went to the kitchen early to prepare the meal, while Song Anxin and Sister-in-law Lin were cleaning and finishing up the tools.
She said to Sister-in-law Lin, "Sister-in-law, don't cook dinner tonight. Let's eat at our house. Please don't refuse. Today is a celebration banquet for our family's first sale of duck eggs. Your family has put in so much effort, of course you have to come."
Hearing what Song Anxin said, Sister-in-law Lin couldn't refuse, so she went home, picked some vegetables from the field, and came over to help.
Song Anxin then asked Lin Fengyao to go to the field to call Lin Fengnian to come home for dinner early, and also to call Granny Han, Han Xiaohe, and Lin Shitou, since these people had helped a lot.
Song Anxin specially chose a male rabbit to kill and make braised rabbit meat, which is the children's favorite. Since Sister-in-law Lin was helping in the kitchen, Song Anxin could roast the rabbit meat outside without any worries.
Lin Fengnian and Lin Fengshou came back from the fields to wash their hands, while Lin Erxi, Lin Dongzi, Lin Fengyao, and a few others were playing with spinning tops.
"Hahaha... Feng Yao, I won!" Lin Erxi said triumphantly, holding the whip.
"Big brother, second brother, third brother, come help me quickly! Sister Erxi has already beaten me several times."
Upon hearing his fourth brother's summons, Lin Fengnian immediately joined the battle, while Lin Fenghe, seemingly oblivious, was reading a copy of the "Thousand Character Classic" under the eaves.
The Hundred Family Surnames were too easy for this kid; he memorized them during his spare time while working. Every time he was in bed before going to sleep, Lin Fenghe would grab him and ask him a lot of questions.
Song Anxin didn't want to discourage her child's enthusiasm for studying, which led to the child's learning progress becoming faster and faster.
Song Anxin saw that this silly boy only knew how to read books, and hoped that he wouldn't end up like her younger brother who was a student of the imperial examination and became dull from reading too much.
He then said, "Fenghe, why don't you go play with them too? Your eyes need a rest too."
Lin Fenghe refused: "Mother, I'm not tired. I still want to read more books. Is it okay if you interpret my statement this way?"
As she spoke, she leaned closer to ask Song Anxin for guidance.
Song Anxin was at her wits' end; this silly child must be completely absorbed in his books.
Just then, Granny Han arrived with Han Xiaohe and Lin Shitou. Granny Han greeted Song Anxin with apologies and brought some eggs from home. Song Anxin asked Zhang Mei to cook some for everyone to eat together.
Han Xiaohe and Lin Shitou saw everyone playing with spinning tops and immediately joined in. They also saw Lin Fenghe standing alone on the side and helped him over.
The group immediately started laughing and playing around, and the courtyard suddenly became lively. Someone suggested having a spinning top competition, with the winner being the one whose top spun the longest. Everyone agreed.
Upon hearing this, Song Anxin addressed the group of children in the courtyard:
"Alright, then I'll give you a little prize. Whoever wins first place will get a salted duck egg as a reward!"
A group of people immediately cheered and made their own pronouncements.
"I must get this salted duck egg!"
"You wish! I'm really good at spinning tops!"
"Ahhh, sis, please teach me the secret to spinning a top!"
"......"
And so a lively top-spinning competition began, and Zhang Mei and Sister-in-law Lin came out of the kitchen to watch.
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