Having wasted so much time, and unable to visit the market, Xiaoli went straight back to find her father and brother. The group happened to meet on the way. Mo Qingshan breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that his daughter was unharmed. They went to the grain and oil shop, bought some grains and seasonings, and then went home.
This haul was exceptionally good; the wild boar alone sold for ten taels of silver, and with the pheasant and rabbit, it came to nearly twelve taels in total. Overjoyed, Mo Qingshan bought ten catties of flour and pork, planning to make dumplings at home.
After the dumplings were wrapped, Yun Yu Niang put them in two small wooden basins, covered them with clean cloths, put them in two small baskets, and handed them to Mo Yunxiao and Xiao Li, instructing them: "Take these to your grandparents and third uncle. Come back quickly to eat dumplings after you've delivered them."
Mo Yunxiao and Xiao Li agreed and went out together. Since their third uncle's house was a bit far away, Mo Yunxiao went instead.
This was Xiaoli's first time visiting her grandparents' house. When she arrived at the door, it was ajar. She picked up the latch, knocked on the door, and pushed it open to go inside.
The aunt came out of the kitchen, carrying a tray with the family's dinner: a large bowl of wild vegetables, a dish of pickled vegetables, and a pot of thin porridge.
"Xiaoli's here! What did you bring? Have you had dinner yet? I didn't prepare much, look..."
Xiao Li glanced at her aunt and was about to speak.
"You stingy thing, who wants to eat your meager dinner? Get out of my way." Grandma Mo came out of the kitchen carrying a basket of cornbread.
"Xiao Li is here. Is there anything I can help you with?"
"Grandma, my mom made dumplings. Have some for you and Grandpa." Xiaoli deliberately emphasized the words "you and Grandpa." She also glanced at her aunt.
Grandma Mo was both annoyed and amused by Xiao Li's quirky and mischievous behavior.
"You're so kind. You don't have to send it every time. Keep it for yourselves, so that some people don't get too full."
Hearing this, the eldest aunt blushed with embarrassment and carried the dishes into the house.
Grandma Mo took the small basket: "It's getting late, hurry home. I'll have Xiaoya bring the basket back to you tomorrow, otherwise you won't be able to see it clearly."
"Okay, Grandma, I'm going home now."
When Xiaoli returned home, Mo Yunxiao had just arrived at his doorstep.
☆
It's been raining a lot lately, and everyone's been staying home with nothing to do. Xiaoli is just waiting for the rain to stop so she can go up the mountain to pick mushrooms. Luckily, she can still manage her online space, grow some vegetables, and do some embroidery, so she's not too upset.
Another batch of vegetables was harvested from the space and stored in the warehouse next to the bamboo house. The grains and vegetables in the space are growing extremely well now, thanks to the water from the Spirit Spring River. The flowers along the river have also bloomed, and the saplings have survived and even blossomed.
After breakfast that day, a girl walked into the courtyard. She was thin and dark-skinned, with dry, yellow hair, an oval face, and big eyes. Her clothes were patched, but she was clean and neat.
"Xiaoli, are you home?"
Xiao Li peered through the window and recognized her as her best friend, Daya.
Yun Yuniang came out of the main room and greeted, "Da Ya, you've come to play with Xiao Li. Come in quickly, she's making knots in the room."
Daya walked into Xiaoli's room and smiled as soon as she saw Xiaoli: "Xiaoli, you've been very busy these days. We haven't played together for a long time. You look a little different."
Xiaoli's heart skipped a beat. Had she been found out? Composing herself, she smiled and asked, "What's different?"
Daya circled around Xiaoli, covering her mouth and laughing, "You've grown taller, you're prettier..."
"You little brat, Mo Daya, how dare you make fun of me! Just wait and see how I deal with you!"
Xiao Li grabbed Daya's arm and tickled her. The two girls laughed and joked for a while before sitting down to talk.
"Xiaoli, I really envy you. Your parents and brothers spoil you so much that they don't let you work in the fields or clean the pigsty. Now that your family raises rabbits, you have more money, your food is better, and you're even more beautiful. You're so lucky!" Daya said with envy, but not jealousy.
Xiao Li understood. There had been a lot of gossip circulating in the village lately. That's just how people are; they're not worried about scarcity, but about inequality. Fortunately, Daya is a good person, and she can tell whether someone is sincere or not.
"Da Ya, would you like to raise rabbits? Actually, it's quite simple to raise them. As long as you feed them well, although you won't get rich, you can still make a little money," Xiao Li said earnestly.
Daya was both surprised and delighted: "Can I do it? Won't it affect your business?"
Xiao Li nodded, then shook her head: "No, no, anyone can raise rabbits. They're meat, so of course there's no worry about sales. Rabbit fur and fur are useful too. As long as they're raised well, there's no worry about selling them."
"Da Ya, if you want to raise them, you can bring two rabbits home from my house. Rabbits reproduce quickly and have a large litter in just a few months." Xiao Li also told Da Ya some precautions for raising rabbits.
Daya listened attentively, silently vowing to treat Xiaoli even better in the future, since Xiaoli was also good to her. She was even willing to share the family business with her.
Daya was the eldest child in her family, with two younger sisters and a younger brother. Her parents had also separated from the family, but her grandparents were biased and only favored their youngest son. So when the family separated, Daya left with almost nothing and didn't even have a decent place to live.
It was only when the village chief couldn't bear to see it anymore that he gathered the villagers to build two and a half mud houses with thatched roofs. They lived in fear during heavy rains and strong winds, afraid that the houses would collapse one day.
I took Daya to the backyard to see the rabbit hutch, taught her some precautions and techniques, and then saw Daya, who was carrying two rabbits, out the door.
Daya returned home as if in a dream. Erya saw the little rabbit in her sister's arms and asked in surprise, "Big sister, where did this rabbit come from? Can I hold it? It's so cute!"
Daya came to her senses and carefully handed the rabbit to her younger sister, telling her to take good care of it. As she looked for a wooden bucket, she said, "Xiaoli lent this to me. She even taught me how to raise rabbits. Let's put it in the bucket first so it doesn't run away. Rabbits can dig burrows."
"When our rabbits have babies, we have to return two of them. We can't just take them for free. Er Ya, let's raise rabbits together and when we sell them, we can buy lots and lots of food and never go hungry again."
"Me too, me too, I want to raise one too!" Little Ya shouted.
Looking at her two younger sisters, Daya's heart was filled with hope: "Okay, okay, we'll raise them together."
When Daya's parents returned in the evening, Daya told them about raising rabbits again. Her father, Mo Erzhu, was also very excited.
"This is good news. Tomorrow I'll go to Qingshan's house to see how they make rabbit hutches. When I get back, I'll make one myself. You three should take good care of them and learn from Xiaoli. Daya, when you're free, help Xiaoli with some chores, like cutting pig feed. Our family is poor, and we don't have much to give back."
Madam Wu, the eldest daughter-in-law, nodded in agreement: "Young lady, Xiaoli treats you with sincerity, so you should also be sincere and work harder in the future."
"I know, Mom and Dad. Don't you know me? Xiaoli is my only good friend."
Daya also felt very lucky to have made such a good friend.
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