In the evening, Chi Xingyue had a special meal from the old lady - a bowl of oily and fragrant chicken soup and two chicken legs.
Chi Xingyue gave one to Shu Muyun and shared the rest with Ling Jiheng.
To be honest, the space was almost overflowing with chickens, ducks, geese and rabbits, and she didn't lack a bite or two of meat, but this was the old lady's approval, and Chi Xingyue ate it with relish.
Ling Jiheng was also filled with indescribable pride. His eyes were glued to Chi Xingyue the entire evening, making Erzhu feel uncomfortable.
After dinner, Chi Xingyue came out of the house. The wind blew her hair by her ears, and goose bumps appeared on her arms.
My nose was also red, but when I looked up, I saw a full moon, big and bright.
The stars twinkled around, dimming slightly against the bright moon, but faintly, one could sense the Milky Way.
The Ling family didn't hang many lanterns, but the moonlight was as frosty as ice, illuminating the ground brightly.
Chi Xingyue wanted to go out and admire the moon before it snowed, but before he had stood in the yard for long, Geng Suhua and Liang Zhijun came over, pushing and shoving each other.
In addition, there were several children.
Chi Xingyue asked Baozhu and Erzhu to take the children to the kitchen to eat, while she went to the west room to greet her aunt and her sister-in-law.
"Honestly, I'm embarrassed to bother you two at this hour. But my mind has been in turmoil all day, and I finally made up my mind to come and talk to you."
Chi Xingyue was a little curious. What was it that he wanted to talk to her about? Shouldn't he talk to her mother-in-law?
Just as she thought of this, Shu Muyun came over. It turned out that Ling Jiheng was afraid that the two would bully her, so he asked his mother to come over and take charge.
"Hey, are your sister-in-law and sister-in-law here? Have you eaten yet? How about asking Baozhu to make some noodles for you two?"
Liang Zhijun touched her nose awkwardly: "Second sister-in-law, we've already eaten. We're bored now, so we came to talk to Xingyue."
Shu Muyun sat down: "Well, it's been a while since we last talked. Come on, don't be polite, let's talk while we eat."
On Chi Xingyue's table were melon seeds, peanuts, peach cakes, apricot preserves, and hot tea.
This standard of living is many times better than theirs.
Geng Suhua was fine, as she could usually get some help from the old lady.
Liang Zhijun felt jealous. She had to take care of her husband and son every day, but her money was always going out and never coming in. Her life was extremely tight, and the smile on her face gradually became stiff.
Chi Xingyue sighed and poured tea for the two of them.
"Aunt, Third Aunt, just speak frankly. We are all family, there is no need to hold back."
Liang Zhijun slapped her thigh and said, "Since that's the case, Third Aunt won't be polite with you.
You also know that since we arrived in Qingshan Village, your third uncle and I have been either farming or going up the mountain, and we haven't made any income in a month.
I don’t know how long this winter will last. Your third uncle and I only have two hundred taels of silver to divide the family property. Ji Hao will have to get married in two years. I think about it, think about it…”
Liang Zhijun's voice became lower and lower as she spoke, and her face turned red with embarrassment as Shu Muyun stared at her.
I was afraid that if I said it out loud, the second wife would feel like she was taking advantage of them.
Geng Suhua didn't care about that and directly took Chi Xingyue's hand: "Aunt and your third aunt came here to ask if there is any way to make money?
Our Ling family is not what it used to be. Opening a shop would easily lead to gossip. Setting up a stall to do small business is nothing special.
Your Third Aunt and I don't ask for anything else, as long as we can earn a few dozen taels a month to support our lives!"
Shu Muyun exploded upon hearing this: "Sister-in-law, I think you've had it too easy. You don't even know what ten or so taels of silver means. Go ask the villagers, how many of them can actually earn ten taels of silver a year?"
Speaking of this, Shu Muyun felt sorry for his son and daughter-in-law.
Not only did he build such a big house for them, but he also gave each family two hundred taels of silver as a share of the income.
That’s not enough, he even wants to take Chi Xingyue’s idea for free. Even rich landlords don’t exploit people like this!
Since we are relatives, we should help each other if we can. Why are you making demands?
If they don’t earn that much money in a month, will they still blame Chi Xingyue for being selfish and not treating them as family?
Seeing her mother-in-law’s hands shaking with anger, Chi Xingyue quickly comforted her, “Mom, it’s okay, Auntie was just joking.
Let the men worry about making money, we women can't worry about that!"
Shu Muyun recalled what he had said to Ling Jiheng during the day, and his mood gradually calmed down. He nodded and said, "Yes, he can't even support his wife, he's so useless!"
Geng Suhua and Liang Zhijun's faces darkened as they listened to the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law's sarcastic and indirect criticism. However, they knew they were in the wrong and did not dare to speak.
After Shu Muyun completely recovered, Geng Suhua argued: "Sister-in-law, I just thought Xingyue was powerful. A random drawing can be sold for dozens of taels. If..."
"If there are any more drawings, they naturally belong to our second branch. What's the point of giving them to you?" Shu Muyun was very tough and not afraid of offending his sister-in-law at all.
Geng Suhua blushed: "I didn't ask for it for free, I just wanted to ask if there is any use for us. Just pay us a salary.
Otherwise, after a while, I won’t even be able to pay the servants their monthly allowance.”
This is really hard to say, but it is the truth.
When the family was divided, Ling Jiheng took the initiative to hand over the servants' indentures to their respective masters. Only the housekeeper's family and Nanny Chen's indentures were still in Chi Xingyue's hands.
It was also agreed at the time that each family would be responsible for the expenses of their own servants.
Although the monthly wages of maids and servants were reduced to one or two taels of silver per month after arriving in Qingshan Village, it was still a considerable expense for the first and third wives, and they were really stretched.
Shu Muyun also understood this, so he was not as resistant as before, but looked at Chi Xingyue with concern.
Chi Xingyue thought about it and nodded, "Let me discuss it with my husband!"
"Oh, okay, it was my aunt who was careless just now, Xingyue, please don't hold it against me."
Liang Zhijun also expressed her opinion: "Third Auntie is not good at speaking. If there is anything that makes Xingyue unhappy, just tell me directly and Third Auntie will change it!"
Chi Xingyue nodded and smiled as she saw the two elders off. Ling Weiwei, Ling Mingyue, and Ling Minghao were still a little reluctant to leave.
Shu Muyun looked at their backs and suddenly felt a little sad.
She had been strong-willed for half her life, never letting her sisters-in-law bow down to her. However, she never expected that after marrying a daughter-in-law, she would become one of the most powerful women in the Ling family.
She used to only talk about enjoying the blessing of her son, but now, she is enjoying the blessing of her daughter-in-law. Although it feels strange, it is really nice.
After Chi Xingyue returned, Shu Muyun happily returned to the east room. After scolding Ling Jiheng again, she whispered to Ling Weicheng.
Seeing his mother defending Chi Xingyue like this, Ling Jiheng felt very warm in his heart. He bowed to the two of them and left.
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