Jiang Dahu’s mind, overwhelmed by immense joy, took quite a while to cool down. Once it did, he sensed something was off.

It wasn’t a holiday or any special occasion, and nothing major had happened—so why did Xiao Ji suddenly bring this up? He couldn’t help but ask, “Xiao Ji, why did you suddenly decide to mention this?”

Jiang Ji had been waiting for him to ask.

Jiang Ji explained, “Second Uncle, there’s good news I’d like to share with you.”

“Ye Li plans to team up with our family to set up a fried tofu puffs workshop. When it’s up and running, you, Auntie, Xiao Liu, and Yu-ger can all come work there—you’ll earn at least thirty wen a day.”

“Thirty wen? That much?!”

Jiang Dahu exclaimed in surprise.

Moreover, the idea of a workshop for making fried tofu puffs also shocked him.

His nephew-in-law actually planned to hire more people to make fried tofu puffs?

He really is the kind of person who would build a house without even telling Xiao Ji—what guts!

Sigh, with his nephew-in-law being so capable, it’s a good thing Xiao Ji became a Xiucai; otherwise, who knows how he would’ve been crushed under the weight of expectations at home. The thought flashed through his mind, and he quickly began calculating the wages in his head.

Thirty wen per person—that’s 120 wen a day for four people! That’s a lot of money!

It really was cause for celebration—to be able to provide such high wages for his family of four. A job this good would be hard to find even in the county town! But the wages were too high.

He was familiar with the process of making fried tofu puffs, so he said, “We’re all family here—there’s no need to pay such high wages. It’s not even hard work.”

“Hmm… Xiao Liu and Yu-ger will need to get married someday, and they’ll have to save up for their dowries. They can take the higher pay, but since your second aunt and I don’t have any expenses, there’s no need to pay us that much.”

Speaking of dowries, he couldn’t help but put his hands on his hips, a smile spreading across his face: “Xiao Liu will be seventeen after the New Year, and you’re already a Xiucai—shouldn’t we start looking for a husband for her?”

“Just look at Da Tong and his brothers—matchmakers come calling on them all the time. Why don’t we have a matchmaker keep an eye out for Xiao Liu, too?” 

“Given our family’s current circumstances, we’ll definitely be able to find her a good match. She might even end up marrying into the county town!”

Hearing this, Jiang Ji felt deeply gratified; his second uncle was finally starting to think about Xiao Liu and Yu-ger.

He smiled and said, “It’s precisely because we’re all family that we’re offering such high pay. Besides, Xiaoliu is planning to find a son-in-law, so the higher the wages, the more outstanding the young men who’ll be willing to marry into the family.”

“…Seek—seek a son-in-law?”

Jiang Dahu, who had been basking in joy, froze.

“Yes, she wants to find a son-in-law—someone hardworking and reliable—so that the couple can take care of you and Auntie in your old age.”

Thinking of the hardships Jiang Liu had endured over the years, Jiang Ji pressed his lips together. Such a fine young woman—since his second uncle hadn’t recognized her worth back then, he had to set the record straight now.

“She’s actually been thinking about finding a husband for her for a long time, but given our circumstances back then, what kind of man could she have found? That’s why, even though grinding grain was exhausting work, she gritted her teeth and persevered.”

“Because she wanted to earn money—she wanted the means to bring a son-in-law into the family.”

“Though she isn’t a son, what she’s done for you and Auntie—for this family—is no less than what a son would do. She’s willing to sacrifice her entire life to stay in this family and care for you and Auntie until the end of your days.”

“Second Uncle, she didn’t do this to prove anything—she was simply being dutiful, willing to sacrifice her entire life to care for you and Second Aunt.”

Jiang Dahu：“……”

Unconsciously, images flashed through his mind of the past half-year—how he’d come every morning to see Jiang Liu off to work. After seeing her off each day, he’d exchange a few words of small talk with Ye Li or Jiang Ji before leaving.

While they were talking, Jiang Liu would always quietly go to the kitchen to fetch the soaked beans, then begin grinding them. He rarely saw Jiang Liu grinding grain until she was drenched in sweat and gasping for breath.

But during the busy farming season, Jiang Liu would haul wheat, corn, and other grains home on a handcart. She’d single-handedly shoulder a sack of grain to load it onto the cart and store it in the granary.

And during irrigation season, she would run back and forth time and again, carrying water buckets on a shoulder pole…

Each of these tasks would leave her drenched in sweat and unable to straighten her back. Seeing Jiang Liu so exhausted broke his heart.

Although he longed for a son and missed one dearly, Jiang Liu was also his beloved daughter—one he’d raised from infancy, changing her diapers and tending to her every need—and she’d been obedient and sensible since childhood! But there was nothing he could do.

The family was poor!

He had to support Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya, and he also had to save silver for Jiang Ji; he feared that if Jiang Ji didn’t have enough money, he wouldn’t be able to continue his studies. He had no son either, so these chores could only fall on Jiang Liu, his eldest daughter.

Yet not only has Jiang Liu never once complained about the hardship or fatigue, but she’s also been considerate of him and Liang Erxiang. As soon as she saved up some silver, instead of setting it aside for her dowry, she insisted on buying a mule cart!

It turned out that Xiaoliu had long since conceived the idea of finding a son-in-law…

Given his family’s former circumstances, what kind of suitable suitor would be willing to marry into their household?! Xiaoliu truly intended to sacrifice her own happiness for the rest of her life to take care of him in his old age… What a wonderful daughter she was—such a wonderful daughter!

In an instant, emotions—tenderness, frustration, guilt, and regret—intertwined and clashed within his heart, causing his eyes to well up involuntarily.

“She—she’s a good girl, too. She’s been sensible since she was little, but I—I couldn’t help it… the things I said…”

He raised his hand to wipe his eyes and said no more.

He was a man with no sons of his own. In the future, when Xiao Liu and Yu-ger were both married off, and he and Liang Erxiang were too old to work, sick and bedridden—who would bring them a bowl of hot food then?

It was very likely that he and his wife wouldn’t even have a hot meal to eat, and they’d die of illness in bed, their bodies left to rot until someone finally discovered them! Just thinking about that scene filled him with dread!

He was absolutely terrified!

That’s why he spoke without restraint, blurting out those hurtful words right in front of Jiang Liu and Jiang Yu.

He was consumed by his own fear…

Thinking back on his behavior over the years, tears of regret welled up in his eyes. He wiped his eyes and remained silent, his gaze downcast.

Seeing this, Jiang Ji immediately said, “Second Uncle, Xiao Liu doesn’t blame you, and she certainly doesn’t hate you. She did all of this of her own free will. Back then, we were poor, and there was nothing we could do about many things. But things won’t be like that anymore.”

“From now on, you and Auntie can just sit back and enjoy a comfortable life.”

“I support Xiao Liu. No matter how good a marriage she might have, it’s no match for living comfortably in our own home. When the time comes, you and Auntie can live wherever you like. Whether it’s with me, Ye Li, or Xiao Liu and her husband, we’ll all take good care of you both in your old age and ensure you live out your days in peace.”

“Doesn’t that sound wonderful?”

That’s so wonderful.

Hearing those four words, Jiang Dahu felt like smiling. Indeed, how wonderful.

For over a decade, he’d lived in fear of having no one to care for him in his old age. But who would’ve thought that not only would his eldest nephew take care of him, but Xiao Liu would also find a son-in-law to do the same!

Suddenly, he had two options—how could he not be overjoyed?

He broke into a wide grin, but before the corners of his mouth could even turn up, tears welled up again. He… he had let Xiao Liu down!

Tears fell in a steady stream as he turned away, facing away from Jiang Ji, his heart aching terribly. Jiang Ji let out a soft sigh and said, “Second Uncle, I’ll go get the money from the main hall. I’ll be right back.”

Let his Second Uncle be alone for a moment to calm down.

He stepped out of the kitchen, washed his hands first, and then went to the west room. Pushing open the door, he saw Ye Li sitting at the table, flipping through his diary. As he walked toward Ye Li, he said, “Haven’t you read it many times already?”

“Just to pass the time.” Ye Li turned to look at him. “Is Second Uncle angry? What did you say to him?”

“He’s not angry—this is actually good news for him. Going from fear to suddenly having two choices, he’s very happy. You’re worrying too much.”

Jiang Ji came to a stop in front of Ye Li.

Earlier that morning, while taking a break to drink some water, he’d discussed with Ye Li how they should broach the subject with Jiang Dahu.

Ye Li thought Jiang Dahu would be angry, because it meant that all those years of pouring his heart and soul into the relationship had come to nothing—he wouldn’t have to provide for Jiang Dahu in his old age, and Jiang Dahu had given so much to the three brothers for nothing.

But he didn’t think so—it wouldn’t come to that.

Admittedly, Jiang Dahu’s selfless devotion over the years had indeed been motivated by a specific purpose.

But they were, after all, blood relatives—even without the goal of providing for his old age, Jiang Dahu would certainly have been willing to put food on the table for Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya. He just might not have been as devoted as he was now.

But Jiang Dahu was, at heart, kind and down-to-earth; back when his father was still alive, the two families had gotten along very well.

Besides, his years of sacrifice wouldn’t be entirely in vain. If Jiang Dahu were willing to live with him and Ye Li, they could all move into the new house—with Jiang Dahu and Liang Erxiang staying in the main hall.

However, the three rooms in the main hall are quite old and won’t last much longer.

But once the fried tofu puffs workshop is up and running, it will only take two months to save up enough money to build a new house. As long as Jiang Dahu and Liang Erxiang are willing to move in, he’ll build a new house.

His second uncle’s efforts had not been in vain. Ye Li asked curiously, “He didn’t get angry at all?” 

“No,” Jiang Ji shook his head.

“Then how did you talk to him?” Ye Li pressed.

“I just started by talking about the fried tofu puffs workshop…” Jiang Ji explained briefly.

Ye Li suddenly understood: “You played the emotional card, huh? You played that card well—no wonder.”   

“Emotional? The emotional card?” Jiang Ji raised an eyebrow.

“Ahem, no—you’ve cut right to the heart of the matter. You hit the nail on the head. You’re a pro.”

Ye Li gave him a thumbs-up.

Jiang Ji：“……”

He raised his hand to cup Ye Li’s face, first lowering his head to gently nuzzle her nose with the tip of his own, before saying, “My dear Fulang, I have no intention of shirking responsibility. Second Uncle won’t be angry.”

“He may have been loud all these years, but he hasn’t treated Xiaoliu badly.”

Hearing this, Ye Li raised an eyebrow.

This was a subtle way of urging him not to view Jiang Dahu through a biased lens. In truth, he wasn’t doing that anyway.

The main thing was that this situation might make it seem as though Jiang Ji was shirking responsibility, so he was worried that would be Jiang Dahu’s first reaction.

But just now, Jiang Ji had emphasized Jiang Liu’s filial devotion and the hardships he’d endured; now that Jiang Dahu was moved to tears and overcome with guilt, he surely wouldn’t be thinking about that anymore.

As for when he calmed down.

The couple had no intention of shirking responsibility; as long as Jiang Dahu could feel their sincerity, he wasn’t the type to make unreasonable demands.

With that in mind, he wrapped his arms around Jiang Ji’s neck and softened his tone: “My dear husband, I was wrong. I shouldn’t have made malicious assumptions about Second Uncle’s reaction.”

Hearing this, Jiang Ji smiled. “No need to apologize—it’s not that serious.” But as soon as the words left his mouth, he couldn’t resist kissing Ye Li on the lips.

On this matter, although he and Ye Li had differing views, there was no argument between them. This state of affairs truly delighted him.

Ye Li was unaware of Jiang Ji’s thoughts, but he was the sort of person who always admitted his mistakes. Since he had misjudged the situation, an apology was in order.

Now, seeing Jiang Ji lean in to kiss him, he smiled and shared a brief kiss with him. When it ended, they switched places: Jiang Ji sat on the high stool, and Ye Li sat on Jiang Ji’s lap.

Gazing at each other’s eyes and brows just inches away, they both broke into smiles at the same time.

Jiang Dahu needed time to compose himself, so they chatted idly and cuddled for a while, until Jiang Dahu’s shout echoed from the courtyard, and only then did the two rise from the high stool.

Jiang Ji went to the bottom drawer of the five-drawer chest to get some money, and then the two of them left the main hall together. Jiang Dahu had stopped crying, but his eyes were still red.

He took the two strings of coins without saying a word and walked straight out the courtyard gate. No sooner had he left than Jiang Mai and Jiang Ya returned, dragging a bundle of dry firewood behind them.

The reason they’d returned so late was, of course, that Jiang Mai had been trying to catch birds with his slingshot; unfortunately, his luck was poor, and he’d come up empty-handed again today. Jiang Ji told the two of them to help Ye Li prepare lunch, while he himself picked up his tile knife once more.

This time, he climbed up onto the scaffolding where Jiang Tong was working.

Ye Li was going to hold a meeting of the three families that evening, so he needed to discuss the workshop matters with Jiang Tong beforehand. Meanwhile, Jiang Dahu arrived home to find Liang Erxiang preparing lunch.

Jiang Liu and Jiang Yu were sitting at the entrance to the main hall, sewing padded jackets.

Seeing him come in, Jiang Yu called out, “Dad,” with a calm expression and asked why he was back so early today. Jiang Liu didn’t say a word; she just looked at him with a nervous expression.

He felt even more guilty.

Just look at how scared he’s made the children!

Holding the copper coins, he walked toward Jiang Liu: “Xiaoliu, it’s your father who’s let you down.” At those words, Jiang Liu immediately stood up: “Father?”

Standing nearby, Jiang Yu looked puzzled and set down the needle he was holding.

Jiang Dahu approached the two of them. As he drew closer, both Jiang Liu and Jiang Yu could tell he had been crying.

Just as Jiang Yu was about to ask, he spoke first, his face filled with guilt: “Xiao Liu, Yu-ger, please don’t take what I said earlier to heart. It was your father’s fault. No matter how worried I was before, I shouldn’t have nagged you so often. This matter is in no way your fault.”

“Rest assured, I’ll never say those things again. All these years, I’ve let you two down. Please don’t hold a grudge against me.”

“Raising you two is like raising… no, it’s better than raising a son. After all, as your older brother Li said, many sons forget their parents once they get married! You two are better than those kinds of sons!”

Jiang Yu：“……”

He looked at Jiang Liu in utter shock. What on earth was going on?

Has his father lost his mind?!

But Jiang Liu understood what was going on.

Jiang Liu’s nose tingled, and she felt like crying too: “Father, Yu-ger and I have never held a grudge against you.”

Her father was just a chatterbox; in reality, he never hit or scolded her or Yu-ger—he didn’t even reprimand them. Although he favored her older brother Ji and Xiao Mai, he never gave them all the good things to them while leaving her and Yu-ger empty-handed.

For instance, when the family bought meat, her parents would rather go without a single bite themselves than let the younger children go hungry. So, over all these years, though she’d felt wronged, cried, and resented things, she’d never truly harbored any hatred.

If she had harbored any hatred, she wouldn’t have wanted to take a husband and insist on staying in this family.

Jiang Yu, standing nearby, didn’t quite understand the conversation between his older sister and their father, but he, too, had never harbored any resentment. So he hurriedly added, “Father, I’ve never resented you either!”

“Exactly… what’s going on between you and my sister? Why are you bringing this up out of the blue?”

Hearing Jiang Liu and Jiang Yu’s replies, Jiang Dahu felt both happy and guilty. He explained, “Your sister wants to find a son-in-law to take care of me and your mother in our old age, and that’s when I realized just how wrong I’ve been all these years.”

“Find a son-in-law?!”

Jiang Yu was taken aback.

Hearing the commotion, Liang Erxiang, who had been standing at the kitchen doorway watching, was also startled: “Xiao Liu wants to take a son-in-law?!”

Jiang Dahu didn’t return with his mule cart until the hour of Shen.

He parked the mule cart at the courtyard gate and carried the pastries, candies, and dried fruits he’d just bought into the courtyard.

A full basketful—it cost him over seven hundred wen in total.

Peanuts were the cheapest, so he bought quite a few.

Ye Li had already finished frying the fried tofu puffs and was now frying fried dough snacks. Seeing him enter the kitchen carrying the basket, she said, “Thank you for your hard work, Second Uncle. Take a break and have a fried dough snack—they’re fresh out of the fryer.”

Jiang Dahu set the basket down on the dining table and waved his hand. “I’m not hungry. I’d already eaten at home before heading to the county town.”

“When Yu-ger heard that Xiao Liu was looking for a son-in-law, he started clamoring that he wanted one too. That conversation took up quite a bit of time, which is why I’m only back now.” 

“Yu-ger wants to find a son-in-law too?” Ye Li asked in surprise.

“That’s right, kids—they just do whatever comes to mind.”

That may be true, but a smile had already crept onto Jiang Dahu’s face.

If Jiang Yu were to take a son-in-law as well, that would mean one more person to take care of him in his old age! How could he possibly keep from smiling?

He’d been chuckling to himself the whole way as he drove the mule cart into town!

Ye Li could tell he was in a good mood, so she smiled and said, “Second Uncle, Yu-ger is only fourteen. If he wants to find a husband, let him. We’ll give him plenty of time to choose.”

“Once the fried tofu puffs workshop is up and running, he’ll earn one tael of silver a month in wages. Add that to the income from the century eggs, and I’m sure some handsome young men will be lining up at our door.”

Hearing this, Jiang Dahu couldn’t help but grin, baring his big teeth.

That was certainly true—with Xiao Liu and Yu-ger’s looks, he really wouldn’t set his sights on just any ordinary lad!

So he said, “What good is being handsome? It doesn’t put food on the table. Let’s pick someone sturdy—someone who can work!”

Ye Li chuckled at this and agreed, “Right, good looks aren’t much use. Strong ones are better. Let’s pick the sturdier ones.” Since the topic of the workshop had come up, he asked, “Second Uncle, so you, Second Aunt, Xiao Liu, and Yu-ger are all willing to come work here, right?” 

“Of course we are—why wouldn’t we? This work definitely has to be done by our own people.”

Jiang Dahu nodded.

“All right, then after work this evening, you, Brother Datong, and Uncle shouldn’t leave just yet. Let’s discuss it. If there are no other issues, once the new house is finished, we’ll move on to building the shed.”

Ye Li said.

“No problem!”

Jiang Dahu agreed.

With such a great opportunity, of course they should start as soon as possible.

Every extra day of work means an extra day’s pay!

He no longer thought thirty wen was a lot of pay; to find outstanding young men for Xiao Liu and Yu-ger, his family’s current financial resources were nowhere near enough!

He had to save up more money!

Jiang Dahu thought this way, and so did the entire Jiang Tong family.

Jiang Tong’s family had just built a new house, pouring almost all the silver they received as compensation from the carpenter surnamed Wang into it. Their savings were suddenly depleted, and this left them feeling extremely anxious.

If it weren’t for the “century eggs” to fall back on, it would be really hard for the three brothers to arrange marriages.

But while the “century eggs” required no effort or time to produce, it still took half a month to turn them into cash. During that time, the whole family had to work together making wind chimes. These little trinkets were simple to make and sold quickly; if they saved up a few dozen and handed them over to Ye Liang, they’d be sold out in two or three days.

Moreover, although the carpenter surnamed Wang was right there in town, the commotion last time had been so intense that even if he saw a business opportunity, he wouldn’t dare to copy them lightly.

Therefore, this business still held great promise.

However, once winter sets in and the out-of-town merchants and travelers are gone, this business will become much harder to sustain. Now that they have a workshop that allows the whole family to earn a steady income, they’re more than happy to have it!

Both families were on board, so the evening meeting among the three families went very smoothly and was wrapped up in just a quarter of an hour.

When Jiang Tong built his new house, he tore down the old courtyard, freeing up a large number of reusable mud bricks. With just those mud bricks from the Jiang Tong family, he could almost build the shed.

Every household makes these mud bricks; they cost nothing, just labor.

Ye Li had originally planned to buy some from fellow villagers—it wouldn’t have cost much. Now that Jiang Tong insisted on giving them for free, Ye Li accepted them with a smile.

The next day, after the ridge-raising ceremony, Ye Li called out to Jiang Fuzheng in the crowd and spoke to him about the workshop.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Fuzheng was delighted. Finding work in winter was difficult to begin with, but now he could earn thirty wen a day without even leaving the village—and all by standing by a wok, frying food, which required little effort and kept him warm!

This was a stroke of luck you couldn’t find even if you searched high and low!

Seeing that all the able-bodied men from Ye Li’s three households were busy building the house and had no spare hands, he called his own family members to go up the mountain to cut down trees to help Ye Li build the shed.

On Ye Li’s side, once the main beam was in place, the rest of the work proceeded quickly. It took the group only two days to finish the roof.

At this point, the main structure of the house was considered complete.

Back in those days, there was no cement or latex paint, so the walls were considered finished as is. Next, they just needed to level the floor, and then they could build the heated earthen bed.

Laying bricks on the floor was a simple job that didn’t require bricklayers or laborers; the family could handle it themselves at their own pace.

With a large family and a relatively small house, within two days, the floors of all five rooms were laid with blue bricks. Next, the kang builders could get to work.

This went quickly as well. They were all seasoned veterans with years of experience, and Ye Li’s requirements weren’t unreasonable—the kang was just a bit larger than usual, so there was no real difficulty.

While the kang builders were at work, the Jiang family set about erecting a shed on the west side of the new house.

However, before the kang was finished and the shed was completed, an autumn rain began to fall. The rain wasn’t heavy, but it fell on and off for two days, accompanied by a light breeze.

The light breeze blew many leaves off the jujube tree in front of the house.

By the time the weather cleared up again, the sun’s intensity had greatly diminished.

Winter was coming.

Ye Li was relieved that, thankfully, the house had already been built.

Now all that was left was to stock up on firewood to prepare for the winter.