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But it didn’t feel right to always stay at her daughter’s home, so Mother Xu decided to discuss with her son and daughter-in-law about using their own money to build a couple of houses at the market outside Dongchen Village, which would be more convenient in the future.

Of course, Xu Da and his wife did not object. But this land belonged to the Chen’s in East Village. Although the market outside the village was an abandoned no-man’s land where not even birds would defecate, they still needed to ask for the approval of Clan Leader Chen and Jiang Erlang if they wanted to build a house there.

Now that Jiang Erlang had returned, along with his nephew Jiang Jie, Xu Da immediately presented the congratulatory gifts that he and his wife had carefully prepared.

Their nephew had successfully passed the examination and became a scholar, and moreover, he had ranked third in the provincial examination. They were proud to be his uncle and aunt, and walked with their backs straight whenever they went out.

As soon as Yingbao and her brother returned to the village, they were surrounded by the villagers.

Of course, the main focus was on her brother, Jiang Jie.

Because of this, Jiang Dalang and Jiang Erlang arranged more than twenty tables of banquet, inviting the entire village to celebrate with a feast.

Clan Leader Chen even pulled Jiang Jie’s hand and sat him at their table, having a meal with the elders.

Mr. Wu and Zhou Wuchang were invited to sit at the head of the table, and Clan Leader Chen personally offered them a toast.

Even though Jiang Jie wasn’t from the Chen clan, he was still a member of Dongchen Village, and the news of him becoming a scholar made Clan Leader Chen even happier than when Chen Changping had passed the examination years ago.

Mr. Wu was a few years younger than Clan Leader Chen, not yet sixty, and he returned the toast when Clan Leader Chen offered him one.

Yingbao was having a meal with Jiang Wu, Yuanbao, Huzi, and Wei Zhan at another table when she saw Chen Zhao leading her younger brother, Chen Xu, to their table. They squeezed into a seat and Chen Zhao sat right next to Yingbao.

Chen Zhao served her brother some food first, then turned to Yingbao and asked, “Yingbao, would you allow me to be your maid?”

Yingbao opened her mouth in surprise, unsure of what had come over Chen Zhao.

Chen Zhao pulled on her and whispered, “Don’t look at me like that, I’m serious.”

Yingbao immediately shook her head, “No, your father is a scholar. He has an official title; I wouldn’t dare to accept your service.”

Chen Zhao pouted and muttered under her breath, “What does it matter that he’s a scholar?” He still didn’t care about her and their sisters.

While Yingbao was focused on eating, she suddenly noticed the five-year-old Chen Xubao looking at her. He was holding something in his hand which he then offered to her.

Yingbao ignored him and did not accept what he offered.

“Sister Yingbao, here,” Chen Xubao insisted and stubbornly put the object from his palm into her hand.

Yingbao looked down and saw it was a little green frog.

The frog was desperately puffing up its white belly, trying to escape.

She immediately handed the frog back to Chen Xubao, “I don’t want it, you keep it.”

It seemed that Xubao was different from his past life. Now that he was growing up, his features were becoming more and more dissimilar from the Chen Xu of her previous life.

Perhaps, this Xubao was not the same child from her past life because not only did their appearances differ, their ages were also different.

Realizing this, Yingbao felt slightly relieved. She reached out and fondled Xubao’s head, asking, “Are you going to school yet?”

Xubao shook his head and lowered it to touch the frog’s head with his finger.

Chen Zhao explained from the side, “Grandfather wants Xubao to start school next year.”

All of a sudden, Xubao looked up and said to his sister, “I want to go to school!”

“Alright, when we get home, we’ll tell grandfather and have you start school,” Chen Zhao comforted her younger brother.

After finishing the meal, Yingbao and her brothers went to Deer Garden to visit Youyou. Chen Zhao was trailing behindhand with Chen Xubao in tow.

Youyou was increasingly imposing in demeanor, and after seeing Yingbao, he raised his head and strutted towards her arrogantly.

Yingbao patted Youyou on the neck, stuffing a handful of tender golden ears into his mouth.

Wei Zhan, Yuanbao, Huzi and Jiang Wu also patted the deer, seeing that it lowered its head, they even lightly touched its fierce antlers.

The antlers were new, the previous set had already fallen off and were collected by Jiang Erlang and kept at home.

Chen Xubao also leaned in to pet the deer, casually calling Jiang Wu ‘brother’ while standing beside him.

Jiang Wu was quite familiar with him and even commanded youyou to lower his head so Chen Xubao can touch his big antler.

Chen Zhao grinned and said to Yingbao, “Xubao really likes Jiang Wu. He goes to the practice field every day to play with him.”

Ever since Jiang Wu saved Xubao’s life, the kid had clung to Jiang Wu like a tail, sometimes even sneaking over to the Jiang family to eat.

If it wasn’t for Chen Zhao calling him home, Xubao would have wanted to sleep with Jiang Wu every night.

Yingbao didn’t say anything.

After a while, Xubao followed Jiang Wu and a group of boys to the practice field. Chen Zhao then turned to Yingbao and said, “Yingbao, did you meet my father and Chu Man in the county town?”

Yingbao shook her head: “No.”

Chen Zhao hummed, angrily said: “Ever since Chu Man went to the county town, she often coerced my father to ask my grandparents for money. When my grandparents didn’t have money, she would ask my father and uncle. Now, we don’t even have money for Xubao’s schooling, and my grandmother is considering sending me and my elder sister to serve as maids in the Wei Family’s mansion in the prefecture city.”

Yingbao:

“I don’t want to go to the prefecture city as a maid.” Chen Zhao pouted, growing angrier the more she thought about it, “Chu Man is nothing but a harbinger of bad luck. Initially, my grandparents were counting on the Chu family to give my father some support, but not only they did not help, they also sent back a woman who splurges money.”

Yingbao: “Are you sure Chu Man is the one spending the money?” Would such a selfish person like Chen Changping allow his second wife to waste money recklessly?

“If it’s not her, then who else could it be?” Chen Zhao became furious: “Yingbao, if my grandmother insists on sending me to the prefecture, I might as well become your maid.”

Chuchu was originally Yingbao’s maid wasn’t she? She was able to earn three coins a month. She can do it too, and then she would have money for her little brother’s schooling.

At this point, Chen Zhao already had plans on how to spend those three coins.

Yingbao glanced at Chen Zhao, asking, “Are you short of money?”

Chen Zhao immediately denied: “No, why would I be short of money······”

Ignoring her evasive expression, Yingbao continued, “Actually, you can set up a small stall at the market outside the village and earn some money.”

If that is still not enough, she could grow mushrooms. But she would have to build a mushroom shed, steam and sterilize a nutrient base, meticulously cultivate the fungal inoculum every day, do a sundry of things like sun-drying the fungi, or build a kiln herself to dry the fungus. That is mind-numbingly complex.

Chen Changping probably considers this beneath him which is why he will not do these things himself.

After all, both the purchase of the fungus seeds and the selling of the final product have to be done through Jiang Erlang.

Chen Zhao blinked, “Set up a stall? What should I sell?”

Yingbao pondered for a bit, then told her about the sugar cakes that she learned to make in the confectionery shop, “You can make fried sugar cakes from flour and sesame sugar. The product doesn’t cost much to make, and it should sell well in this small market.”

Chen Zhao hesitated for a while, then nodded her head: “Okay, tell me how to make the sugar cakes, Yingbao. I’ll try making some.”

Yingbao explained to her how to make sugar cakes, and added: “However, it’s best if you fry them on the spot. Sugar cakes don’t taste good once they cool down.”

“Fry them on the spot? Wouldn’t that require a stove?” Chen Zhao was in a dilemma: “But my house doesn’t have a stove.”

Yingbao: “Isn’t that simple? Just hire the village stonemason to make a stove for you. If you feel that it’s too much trouble to drag around, you can just leave it at the market. Nobody is going to steal a stove.”

Dongchen Village has a community grindstone, which is left outside. Whoever needs it can just wash it and use it.