The Jiang family hadn’t had tofu pudding in days.

It was simply too much trouble.

Take today, for instance. With only one pot in the house, after making the brine, they had to transfer it, then boil water and steam the pancakes.

Once the pancakes were done, they still needed to strain the bean curd residue, boil the soy milk, and coagulate the curd.

Of course, steaming the pancakes could be done after boiling the soy milk.

But the two little ones still had to cut grass in the morning and couldn’t stay home waiting for the tofu pudding.

So these past few mornings, Ye Li would grind the soybeans for breakfast first. After they ate, the two little ones would head out, and he would then boil the soy milk to make tofu.

Now that Jiang Ji had returned, Ye Li didn’t grind the beans himself. He had the patience and energy to handle it.

Still, to save time, while he tended the fire for steaming the pancakes, he called Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya to filter the bean curd residue first.

When Jiang Ji finished grinding the last bit of soy milk and carried the wooden bucket into the kitchen, he saw Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya diligently squeezing the bean curd residue.

Jiang Ya held a burlap sack.

Jiang Mai scooped the liquid with a ladle and poured it into the sack.

Once full, both children worked together, squeezing and kneading the sack to force the soy milk out.

This task was simple, and Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya had mastered it quickly, working at a brisk pace.

Jiang Ji set down his wooden bucket and said to Ye Li, who was tending the fire in front of the stove, “Give me a sack. I’ll help too.”

“The sack is on the cutting board.”

Ye Li nodded toward the cutting board beneath the window, where a slightly larger burlap sack lay.

Seeing Jiang Ji pick up the bag, he grinned and said, “I’ll give you a coin’s worth of wages later.”

“…Why be so formal? You cook for this whole family, and I haven’t paid you wages either.”

Jiang Ji didn’t want that coin, so he mimicked Ye Li’s words from last night.

Hearing this, Ye Li felt a quiet joy in his heart.

Indeed, in his husband’s mind, he now considered himself part of their family.

That understanding was enough.

In a good mood, he said no more.

The steamed buns were soon ready. Ye Li placed them in a willow basket and began boiling soy milk.

Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya carried half the bean curd residue to feed the pigs and chickens.

Jiang Ji carried yesterday’s dirty laundry to the well, ready to wash it.

By the time Ye Li finished preparing the tofu pudding, the three brothers had finished their chores.

Dinner was served.

Having gone several days without tofu pudding, coupled with today’s rich, savory brine that rivaled the county town’s tofu stalls in flavor,

Ye Li’s appetite was ravenous, and Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya each polished off a bowl and a half. Their bellies were so round they couldn’t manage another bite of flatbread. The two youngsters rose from the table after eating, intending to grab their baskets and go cut grass.

Ye Li hurriedly called them back: “You two go to Second Uncle’s place and cut some chives. We’ll make egg and chive pancakes for lunch.”

Egg and chive pancakes?

Jiang Ya’s eyes lit up instantly: “Yes!”

Jiang Ji, standing nearby, hesitated, words on the tip of his tongue.

Wasn’t that too extravagant?

They’d just had meat yesterday, and now pancakes today…

But yesterday, Xiao Mai and Ya-ger had mentioned that the three of them usually ate bean curd residue corn cakes, garlic sprout tofu, and corn gruel for their daily meals, with only one egg each in the morning.

So today’s pancakes must be for him…

Uncontrollably, his narrowed eyes slid gently over Ye Li.

When his parents were still alive, returning from private school, his mother would gently mention plans for extra lunch treats while eating breakfast, just like Ye Li was.

He lowered his gaze, long lashes concealing the longing in his eyes.

Ever since his parents passed, these past years, he’d eaten at his second uncle’s house after private school.

His second uncle and aunt treated him as their own.

He was truly grateful to them from the bottom of his heart.

But this place—this somewhat dilapidated, low-ceilinged kitchen—was where he was born and raised.

After all these years, he found himself here again. Not only did he eat a delicious and satisfying meal with a calm heart, but he also felt as if he had drifted back to the past.

His nose stung slightly. Clenching the spoon in his hand, he fought to suppress the emotions threatening to well up.

He couldn’t let it show.

Otherwise, that fool would surely mock him.

He quickly finished the last of the tofu pudding in his bowl, setting it on the stove as he said, “I’ll head over to Second Uncle’s place too. I’ll ask about the fields.”

Hearing this, Ye Li felt a pang of guilt.

Ever since his transmigration, he hadn’t tended to the crops.

Beiyang County was mountainous with scarce arable land. Father Jiang had originally received eight mu of land, and the cheap husband received six mu after turning ten.

Father and son collectively owned fourteen mu.

Among these, two mu were prime fields, five were medium-grade, and the remaining seven were poor-quality land.

After Father Jiang passed away, these fields lay untended. The cheap husband leased out all five acres of medium-grade land.

The two acres of prime land and four of the poor-grade land were entrusted to Jiang Dahe, who cultivated them free of charge.

Jiang Dahe’s family had many mouths to feed but little land, making this plot a perfect fit.

Though he charged no rent, all three of them ate at Jiang Dahe’s table. Moreover, the young Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya needed constant supervision.

How could he let the Jiang family toil so hard for little gain?

Yet Jiang Dahe stubbornly refused to accept it for free, paying his cheap husband two taels of silver in rent each year.

Though two taels seemed high, it only covered the rent for the two mu of prime land. Jiang Dahe’s family effectively farmed the four mu of inferior land for free.

But his cheap husband was profoundly grateful.

The Jiang family also had to raise Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya!

As for the remaining three mu of inferior land, his cheap husband initially intended to lease it out as well.

But inferior fields were either far from water sources or lacked fertility. Charging higher rent meant no one would lease them—this area of Beiyang County had many traveling merchants and ample odd-job opportunities. Villagers from Yezaopo weren’t necessarily bound to farming.

Yet if the rent was too low, it wasn’t worth farming himself.

Though Mr. Cheap was always at the private school, Ye Daji had assured him that the Ye family would often come to help. Jiang Dahe also said it was only three acres—easy enough to tend to on the side.

So Mr. Cheap kept those three acres of poor-quality land, planting drought-resistant, high-yield corn and potatoes each year.

After paying taxes each year, the remaining harvest was entirely handed over to Jiang Dahe for daily rations.

But now it was only two acres—Mr. Cheap had sold one to fund his wedding.

After Ye Li arrived, he completely forgot about these two acres.

Truth be told, Ye Liang had reminded him a few days prior to weed the fields. Rain had fallen the day before his transmigration, so irrigation wasn’t needed now—only weeding.

But he pretended not to hear.

Grinding tofu each morning drained his energy for the entire day. When he had free time, all he wanted was to lie down.

Now, when his cheap husband was about to head to the fields, he merely responded with a simple “Okay,” not uttering a single extra word.

After Jiang Ji led the two children out, he washed the bowls and chopsticks, then began kneading dough.

First, he mixed bean curd residue with cornmeal.

Bean curd residue was a daily staple, so cornbean curd cakes were steamed every day.

Halfway through steaming the cakes, Jiang Ya and Jiang Mai returned carrying a large bundle of chives.

Jiang Ji hadn’t come back yet; he’d taken Jiang Dahe’s flatbed cart to weed the fields.

With Jiang Ji’s weeding, the two little ones didn’t go out to cut grass today. The field weeds—purslane, mugwort, and couch grass—were all favorites of the pigs.

Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya stayed home to help pick the chives.

The chives were quite abundant, so Ye Li prepared two fillings: one with chives and eggs, the other with chives and tofu.

After mixing the fillings, he began kneading the dough.

For pancakes, white flour was essential. The Jiang family’s grain came from Jiang Dahe, but white flour was scarce—less than three pounds remained. He poured it all into the clay basin and added a bowl of cornmeal.

Watching this, Jiang Mai couldn’t help but remind him, “Second Uncle doesn’t have much wheat left either. Harvest is still a month away.”

“It’s fine. I’ll go buy some from Aunt Qiumei this afternoon.”

Ye Li didn’t seem to care.

He could earn money!

The daily tofu sales were now steady at around ten catties. Today he made sixty catties of tofu, sold ten catties, and the remaining fifty catties could be fried into twenty-five catties of tofu puffs and large skewers.

For at least five wen per catty, twenty-five catties meant one hundred twenty-five wen.

Of course, that was under ideal conditions.

But it was close enough. The one or two catties, two or three catties they consumed daily at home wouldn’t make much difference.

Earning a hundred wen a day meant they could treat themselves to a hearty meal of white flour oil cakes without a second thought.

Seeing Jiang Mai hesitate to speak, he smiled and said, “Alright, alright. With me around, you and Ya-ger should eat and drink your fill. Don’t worry about it.”

Jiang Mai: “…”

Truthfully, he wanted to say that instead of spending this money on food and drink, it would be better to lend it to his brother so he could focus on his studies.

Once his brother passed the county-level examination, he would surely repay it.

But remembering how his brother-in-law toiled every morning until he was drenched in sweat, he scratched his head and swallowed the words about borrowing money.

His brother-in-law worked hard for every penny.

Besides, it had only been a few days—how dare he covet the fool’s money?

How terrifying!

With a guilty conscience, he rose and dashed out.

Jiang Ya sat motionless on the small stool, her little hands cupping her cheeks as she stared wide-eyed at the clay pot. “Brother Ye, can I tend the fire later?”

“Sure,” Ye Li nodded. “Then go grab some wheat straw to start the fire.”

Jiang Ya’s crisp voice echoed as she stood and dashed outside.

By the time Jiang Ji returned with a cart full of fresh grass, Ye Li had just finished frying the oil cakes.

Ye Liang arrived too.

Today, Ye Liang brought four pancake sandwiches: “Yi-ger heard Xiao Ji was back and asked me to bring some.”

He felt a bit embarrassed. “They’re selling like hotcakes, yet you haven’t even tasted them.”

Truthfully, he’d wanted to give them earlier, but Yi-ger wouldn’t part with them, insisting Li-ger could make them himself.

Last night, when he returned home, Li-ger insisted on letting him gnaw on a big bone, and only then did Yi-ger realize Li-ger had truly changed.

Then Jiang Ji returned. When he left town this morning, Yi-ger packed four pancakes for him to bring over.

Ye Li smiled. “Big Brother, you let us try the pancakes from the start. As for the red oil tofu puffs, I can make those myself. Why make you trek twenty miles just to bring them?”

“Sit down and eat. Today’s lunch is especially hearty.”

Seeing Ye Li show no sign of anger, Ye Liang breathed a sigh of relief.

Jiang Ji also said, “Brother Liang, we’re family—no need for formalities. Sit down and eat.”

Hearing this, Ye Liang happily exclaimed, “Alright!”

The five sat down at the table. Seeing the dishes spread out before them, their appetites were instantly whetted. They eagerly picked up their chopsticks.

Jiang Ji was tasting tofu puffs for the first time—since there were large bones yesterday, Ye Li had instructed Ye Liang to bring all the tofu puffs.

After swallowing a bite, he glanced across the table at Ye Li, puzzled.

How did this person manage to create such a delicious new dish?

But the question vanished as quickly as it had arisen.

He lowered his head and focused on eating his pancake.

Forget it. He wasn’t close with this person. If he asked, he’d likely get rebuffed.

With such delicious food before him, he wasn’t going to invite trouble.

After a hearty meal, everyone went about their tasks.

Ye Li fried the tofu puffs while Ye Liang tended the fire. 

Jiang Ji went out to weed the fields, and the two little ones headed out to gather firewood.

Once Ye Liang was sent off, Ye Li began heating water.

Well, since it was their wedding night, a bath was certainly in order.