68: Chapter 68: Discovered (1)_1 68: Chapter 68: Discovered (1)_1 Pei Qin had money in her possession, a fact that Lady Chen knew well, but to ask her for it still frightened her sowhat, so she signaled to Pei Wenlee with her eyes to approach Lady Zhu for it.
Seeing the signal, Pei Wenlee ran to find Lady Zhu, telling her that Pei Qin had lots of money on her, so much so that you could hear the coins clinking.
Lady Zhu was livid with anger and slightly afraid to confront Pei Qin, so she called Lady Fang over to speak, “Your family of five, eating and drinking at whose expense, you live like lords at ho and still hide ‘private money’!
When did such rules ever exist in Old Pei’s House!?”
As soon as Lady Fang heard this, she knew they were intent on prising away the little money they had in their hands.
Seeing Lady Zhu’s unfriendly gaze and with Pei Wenlee and Pei Wenbo staring at her, she rembered what Pei Qin had said and took a deep breath, “Mother accuses us of hiding ‘private money’, but you’ve searched our room several tis already, where have we hidden even one wen money!?”
“You…
how dare you talk back to !?
Who has searched your room, you are showing dissatisfaction with , your mother-in-law, and trying to sar my na!” Lady Zhu accused her outright of talking back to her mother-in-law.
“We haven’t hidden any ‘private money’, if mother doesn’t believe us, feel free to search again!” Initially, Lady Fang was very upset that Lady Zhu went through her cupboard, but over the years, she had beco numb to it.
Pei Wenlee pouted, “You definitely won’t find it in the house, because it’s hidden on us!”
However, Lady Fang was soft and uncooperative.
Pei Qin ca over and told Lady Fang to go back to the room to sleep, “Knowing the money’s on , co search if you dare!”
Lady Zhu indeed coveted the money on Pei Qin’s person, but Pei Qin was like a mad dog, ready to strike at the slightest provocation, and she was a bit scared to be hit as well.
Lady Fang followed Pei Qin back to their room.
After putting out the light and before going to sleep, Pei Qin took out two pieces of osmanthus candy, put one into Wendong’s mouth, and the other into Lady Fang’s, “Don’t talk!
Just eat!”
Wendong covered his mouth, the sweet scent of candy filling him with excitent and agitation.
Lady Fang opened her mouth to spit it out.
“We’ve all eaten it, finish it before going to bed,” Pei Qin whispered softly.
Lady Fang swallowed it down with tears.
After finishing the osmanthus candy, the mother and daughter lay awake for a long ti.
Pei Qin had already fallen into a deep sleep, snoring away.
The next day, San Ya still rembered what she’d been promised the day before, and after finishing her al, she ca over to massage her shoulders.
“Don’t knead, it hurts!
Just hamr it!” Pei Qin sat like a lord, enjoying herself, as her shoulders felt raw from carrying heavy loads the day before.
Pei Wenbo called out discontentedly, “Why haven’t you gone to the mountain yet!”
Pei Qin ignored him.
“Didn’t you hear !?” Pei Wenbo, having enjoyed a al of bamboo rat at without spending any money, was eager for another al the very next morning.
Pei Qin stated she wouldn’t go, and at fourteen years of age, aside from being naturally tall, she had not developed at all.
She was willing to work for money, but it couldn’t be too harsh.
There were the even younger San Ya and Si Ya, and Si Ya’s head wasn’t even as tall as Wenbo’s.
If they overworked, they wouldn’t grow anymore.
Seeing that she genuinely wouldn’t budge, Pei Wenlee and Wenbo pulled Pei Houli to go up the mountain, “If they can catch it, we surely can catch it too!”
Pei Houli still had carpentry work to do; he had no ti to climb mountains and catch rats.
He declared that rat at was no longer allowed and that he would not go hunting for it anymore.
Wenbo then made a fuss at ho, insisting on going.
Lady Zhu cursed Pei Qin for being good-for-nothing and lazy, feeding her was utterly useless.
Pei Qin remained indifferent, legs crossed like Er Lang, as San Ya hamred her shoulders and back, with a blade of grass dangling from her mouth.
She was contemplating the matter of dividing the households.
She now had savings of two taels of silver and the money from Sun Tiezhu’s sale of the coneflower.
With the sale of winter bamboo shoots and two catches of bamboo rats, it would be nearly enough to get her mother and siblings through the winter.
As for what to do next year, in the long winter ahead, there were bound to be other ways to make money.
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