Cheng Yue said patiently, "Sister-in-law Xiangxiu, this is something we've already discussed, so please don't refuse."
Raising chickens and ducks involves a lot of chores. Besides feeding them and cleaning their coops, you also have to let the ducks roam freely. There's so much to do, how could it not be worth twenty coins?
Managing five hundred chickens and ducks isn't particularly tiring, but it's a demanding job and requires a lot of effort. Twenty coins a day is a reasonable amount.
Seeing Cheng Yue's firm tone and Chen An's smiling face, Zhao Xiangxiu knew that they had planned this together.
However, the thought of such a large sum of money is too hot to handle. How can I accept it?
She muttered shyly, "It's still too much. Men who do hard labor only earn thirty coins a day, while we women are almost making the same. And Cuicui is still just a child. Twenty coins a day is too much..."
Cheng Yue understood Zhao Xiangxiu's subtext and immediately said, "What's the difference between men and women? We all earn a living through our own abilities. Who says only men are allowed to earn more than us women? Sometimes women are much more capable than men!"
And Cui Cui too. What's wrong with kids? My three kids are all more capable than me. Doing good deeds is the most important thing. I think Cui Cui is much better than some adults!
"Just take it without worry. We've calculated everything carefully. I'm not some sucker; I'm not going to throw money at you for nothing."
Zhao Xiangxiu has a good personality, but her thinking is still old-fashioned. This is not surprising, since women in this era generally felt inferior to men.
Not to mention now, even in modern times, there are still many people with this kind of thinking.
She couldn't stand hearing things like "women should be this way" or "men should be that way."
How things should be is not defined by gender.
Chen An nodded in agreement, saying, "Yes, A-Yue is much better than me. I don't even know how to raise chickens and ducks."
Not to mention Zhao Xiangxiu and Cuicui, even Cheng Yue was amused. Chen An was practically admitting his incompetence with a very serious expression.
I didn't feel anything was wrong at all; I was even a little proud.
"Look at what Brother Chen An is saying. Everyone knows you are one of the most capable people in our village. You love your wife and your children. You can't talk like that."
Alright, we agree to the wages, so you can stop spouting nonsense. You've got plenty of fallacies out there!
Zhao Xiangxiu said helplessly, "If I don't agree, who knows what else these two might say."
Cheng Yue chuckled softly and continued, "We leave early in the morning, so you'll probably have to come earlier, and your work hours will be irregular."
You'll have to take care of your own meals, and I'm afraid you won't be able to get any rest each month.
That's just the nature of raising chickens and ducks; it's impossible to implement fixed working hours or a few days off per month.
Zhao Xiangxiu waved her hand: "What's the big deal? We all get up early every day. We can leave the household chores to those two boys and have some peace of mind!"
Eating is no problem either; we live so close by, my daughter and I can take turns going back to eat. We can even bring a flatbread with us.”
They're already getting paid so much, so what do they care about working hours or rest days? They can even dump their family responsibilities on others, since they still have two grown sons to take care of things.
From then on, she only had one thing on her mind: to help Cheng Yue keep the chickens and ducks safe!
Only by doing good deeds can you earn your wages with peace of mind. Only with wages can you have money for your son's dowry, money for your daughter's wedding, and money to live a good life!
She's not stupid; surely she understands this basic principle?
If she can't catch this windfall, her husband, who's buried in the ground, will probably be so angry he'll lift the lid off his coffin.
Cheng Yue thought for a moment, then said, "Sister-in-law Xiangxiu, you can handle the dyeing of the chickens and ducks yourselves tomorrow. Just apply it to the base of the wings where you can't see it."
Zhao Xiangxiu paused for a moment, then smiled knowingly, "Okay."
If this is left out in the open, won't everyone see it? What if someone really steals chickens and ducks? They might just go back and pluck their feathers and kill them right away, and then there won't be any way to deal with it.
But no one knew about this, so even if they stole it, they couldn't bear to kill it and eat it. They would take good care of their families, and that's how they found it.
“Aunt Cheng Yue, I think it would be best to raise two more dogs. We won’t be here at night, and you’re a bit far from there. If something really happens, you can at least hear some noise.”
Cui Cui, still reeling from the shock of receiving only twenty coins a day, immediately offered her advice upon hearing this.
Cheng Yue's eyes lit up. Cui Cui's words hit the nail on the head again. She wanted to have a dog, but she hadn't seen one since she came here, which made her think that no one knew about dogs.
"Cui Cui, do you know where there are dogs?"
“I don’t know, but my second brother does. Yesterday she went to my maternal grandmother’s house and heard that a family in that village had a litter of puppies, but they said they couldn’t afford to raise them and no one wanted them, so they had to throw them away.”
In the end, Cui Cui was still a little sad. Her second brother felt sorry for the puppy and wanted to bring it back yesterday, but there wasn't enough food for the people at home, so how could they feed the puppy?
If Aunt Chengyue could take them back and raise them, it would be a blessing for those puppies, and they could also guard the house.
Zhao Xiangxiu added, "They said they had three, which is really pitiful. If you want them, I'll have Zhuzi make a trip tomorrow. It's only been a day, there's no need to throw them away."
Cheng Yue nodded repeatedly, "Okay, then we'll have to trouble Zhu Zi."
How can you not want a dog? They're so cute with their fur, and if you take good care of them, they'll be the most loyal family members. With their current circumstances, having three dogs is nothing.
Besides, it's three lives at stake. Now that she knows, she certainly can't just stand by and do nothing.
Subconsciously, I always feel that having gone through this journey, I should have even greater reverence for life.
Zhao Xiangxiu sighed, "What trouble? It's nothing. I'll have him go first thing tomorrow morning!"
As they talked, it got dark. Since there was nothing else to do for the time being, Zhao Xiangxiu and the others went home.
When Liu Shuanzi and Liu Zhuzi returned from the fields, they found that their mother and sister were not there. After asking around, they learned that the two had gone to Aunt Cheng Yue's house. Only then did they feel relieved and start cooking coarse noodle and vegetable porridge.
Since they separated their households, they no longer distinguish between men and women when it comes to chores. Whoever has time can clean up. Mother and sister can work in the fields, and they can go into the kitchen.
The two brothers waited for quite a while before seeing their mother and daughter return with joyful expressions.
Liu Zhuzi had a feeling something good was going to happen, and he quickly stepped forward to ask, "Mother, little sister, why are you so happy?"
Zhao Xiangxiu looked around, then pushed him into the house, saying in a low voice, "Let's talk inside."
Liu Shuanzi scratched his head, puzzled, and asked, "Why are you being so mysterious?"
Cui Cui covered her mouth and chuckled. She couldn't wait to see her two older brothers' expressions; they were sure to be even more interesting than hers.
"What?!" Upon hearing Zhao Xiangxiu's words, Liu Shuanzi couldn't help but jump up, causing the stool to flip over.
"Mother, little sister, you're not lying, are you? Aunt Cheng Yue really paid that much?!"
Liu Zhuzi opened his mouth wide, his round face turning into a long one in shock, and he felt his face twitching uncontrollably.
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