Chapter 84 Sibling Cold War
Xiao Qi's silence was interpreted by Lin Yuesha as tacit agreement. She was furious and decided to ignore her stepbrother for the time being, and then complain to her parents when they returned.
What angered her was not only that her stepbrother had tricked her with a lucky charm, but also that he had given a stranger a dozen or so copper coins without asking.
What does the beautiful girl losing her money have to do with my family? She didn't steal the money.
A dozen or so copper coins, not much for the family, but not something that fell from the sky either. Her stepbrother gave them to her without asking her opinion.
Doing good deeds every day and spending money is fine, but if it brings trouble upon yourself, then it's not worth it.
It's better to mind your own business than to meddle in other people's affairs. How can you possibly manage to keep up with everything?
In any case, money should not be left in the hands of my stepbrother; he is the biggest spendthrift.
The brother and sister lived under the same roof, but neither spoke to the other. Lin Yuesha ignored Xiao Qi and counted the copper coins by herself, packing them into strings of one hundred.
Thirty catties of melon seeds were sold for more than one tael of silver, with a cost of about two hundred coins. The family made more than four times the profit in one go.
After Lin Yuesha finished calculating the accounts, Xiao Chenggui returned with Chen Shi.
The couple weren't carrying any bags, which shows that they have no trouble selling their spiced melon seeds.
“The spiced melon seeds were sold out half an hour ago, so your father and I went to the market and bought a big grass carp.”
Fresh fish are hard to come by in winter, so Mr. Chen got a bargain and paid several dozen coins for this one.
She planned to marinate the fish, fry it, and simmer it into a milky white fish soup. She would then place flatbreads on the iron pot, and the family would eat the flatbreads and drink the fish soup for nourishment.
Especially in the afternoon when it gets dark again, it might snow again in the middle of the night.
The stone house is sturdy and solid, so the family doesn't have to get up in the middle of the night to shovel snow.
Chen found it very convenient to live in town. If she wanted to buy something, she could just walk a few steps to the town, unlike in the village, where it was difficult to even leave the village when the mountains were blocked by heavy snow.
"Mother, my older brother and I have sold out too. We made eight hundred coins."
In the past, Chen Shi would never have dared to imagine earning so much just by selling melon seeds. When people lined up to buy spiced melon seeds, she was stunned for a while, and it was all thanks to Xiao Chenggui who collected the money.
Having earned so much in just one day, and with business expected to be even better before the New Year, Ms. Chen found herself even more motivated.
"Not only that, I also found a sales channel."
Lin Yuesha mentioned that when Manager Cai came to make purchases, her family would deliver the goods once every ten days or half a month, and she would have a fixed income every month.
Manager Cai is just one example. In the future, he will gradually expand his channels, accumulate wealth little by little, and do a stable small business.
If we make too many spiced melon seeds, we can supply them to grocery stores for resale.
“Then I will go back to the village tomorrow and tell your uncle that they made a lot of peanuts.”
Mrs. Chen was overjoyed and repeatedly praised the brother and sister for their business acumen.
The year-end is a good time to make money. Chen is full of energy and doesn't mind being busy or tired. He plans to go out and buy raw melon seeds to make the next batch.
We'll start boiling the sunflower seeds tonight. If we delay, the spiced sunflower seeds will be harvested a day later.
"Mother, I've spoken to the shopkeeper at the general store. The shop assistant will deliver the goods to our door before closing time."
While her mother, Chen, was cooking, Lin Yuesha secretly went out to make some preparations for the evening.
Xiao Qi looked at his younger sister's hurried appearance and a hint of doubt appeared in his eyes. He stood still and did not follow.
The afterglow of the setting sun painted half the sky red, and pedestrians hurried along the road. Lin Yuesha quickened her pace to get home.
Smoke curled from the chimneys of every house. As Lin Yuesha walked into the alley, she sniffed; her mother's fish soup was already simmering and flavorful.
"Little girl, where have you been? The grocery store clerk delivered the raw melon seeds."
Mr. Chen estimated that dinner would be served in about fifteen minutes.
"Mom, I'm just going out for a stroll."
Lin Yuesha made up an excuse to help her mother, Chen, pick up the bowls and chopsticks.
During the meal, Lin Yuesha remained silent, lost in thought.
Chen and Xiao Chenggui exchanged a glance, sensing that something was amiss. The little girl was usually very attached to Xiao Qi, and the two siblings always had something to talk about.
Now, the two are sitting across the table, eating in silence, neither paying any attention to the other.
"Little girl, did you and your older brother have a fight?"
Chen couldn't keep things to herself. She spoke her mind. We're all family. If there's a misunderstanding, we can clear it up. If we keep it to ourselves, it will become a problem in the future.
Lin Yuesha was very embarrassed when her cold war was exposed. She looked up at her stepbrother and then quickly lowered her head again.
"It was my fault that I made my little sister angry."
Xiao Qi was very frank and showed a good attitude in admitting his mistake.
"Little girl, your older brother has already admitted his mistake, why are you still throwing a tantrum?"
The stepson was mild-mannered, and Chen concluded that her daughter was unreasonable and unforgiving.
"Mother, my brother did nothing wrong, and I'm not angry."
Xiao Qi has always been a kind-hearted person, so regardless of right or wrong, his mother, Madam Chen, suspects that the problem lies with her, which makes Lin Yuesha furious and unable to express her grievances.
"Mother, let's earn more money so that you can propose marriage to my elder brother after the New Year."
Lin Yuesha narrowed her eyes and said with a forced smile.
She's petty and vindictive; you shouldn't offend her, even if it's Xiao Qi.
"Proposing marriage?"
Startled, Chen dropped her chopsticks. She looked at Xiao Chenggui and saw that he was completely bewildered and knew nothing about it.
"Where should we propose marriage? Has Tingyun found a girl he likes?"
Madam Chen sat up straight and asked earnestly. As a stepmother who had come from humble beginnings, many things were not so convenient for her. Marriage was a major event, arranged by parents and matchmakers; since Xiao Qi's biological mother was no longer alive, it was only right that she go to his home to take his place.
The stepson proposes marriage.
Xiao Chenggui had the same question and waited for Xiao Qi's reply.
"I don't know if my elder brother has taken a liking to her, but that Miss Xuan has taken a liking to him. She inquired about him with his classmates, they bumped into each other at the market, and she expressed her feelings, asking my elder brother to visit the Xuan family for the New Year."
Lin Yuesha avoided the main point and only talked about Xuan Yao's girlish thoughts.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Chenggui looked at his son with a smile. A son is meant to stay at home when he grows up, and he wanted to see what would happen.
"That……"
After a moment's consideration, Chen said, "Why don't we save up some money and buy Tingyun a small courtyard in town?"
It sounds like the woman comes from a well-off family. It wouldn't be good to make her feel too wronged if I married her.
As for the houses in the village, rebuilding mud houses won't cost much and can at least last for a few years.
"Father, Mother..."
Chen had already discussed the betrothal gifts with Xiao Chenggui. Seeing that things were getting more and more absurd, Xiao Qi sighed helplessly and clarified, "It's all a misunderstanding."
"I once helped Miss Xuan repair her carriage, that's all."
We're not familiar with each other, really not familiar. Xuan Yao and her older brother, Zhe Shan Zhu Tou, are both pig-brains, deluding themselves into wishful thinking.
"But that girl is in love with you..."
Ms. Chen hesitated. The other party suggested that her stepson go to pay New Year's greetings, which was almost an explicit suggestion.
"Mother, I am focused on my studies and have no plans to get married for the time being."
Xiao Qi was in a bind. His "good guy" persona had gone awry, and he needed to figure out how to fix it.
After much persuasion, Xiao Qi finally convinced his parents, but he was exhausted.
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