Chapter 143: Chapter 142: Made Money

On the third day of the new year, Ling Chengyan delivered goods to her second cousin Wang Lianfa and his spouse. On the fourth day, Wang Lianfa took the goods out.

Zheng Xiaotian spent half the afternoon making paper boxes. When she saw that it was nearing noon, she cooked lunch on the coal stove. Her husband had brought a lot of New Year’s supplies from their home, including meatballs and fish fried by her mother-in-law, some fried chicken pieces, and black flour and cornmeal from home.

She cut a few meatballs, added some vermicelli, and stewed it with cabbage, while also sticking a few two-flour pancakes on the side of the pot. This is known in rural areas as “a one-pot meal” – it includes both dishes and staple food, convenient, quick, and most importantly, tasty.

However, when the meal was ready and the sun was already overhead, her husband still wasn’t back, making Zheng Xiaotian a bit worried: could he have been caught as a profiteer while shopping?

But in her current state, she didn’t dare go out, so she just paced around the courtyard.

Finally, she heard the sound of the courtyard gate and quickly went to greet her husband. Sure enough, it was Wang Lianfa pushing his bicycle into the yard.

“Are you okay?” Zheng Xiaotian asked worriedly.

Wang Lianfa was full of smiles, and upon seeing his wife’s expression, he quickly explained, “It’s cold, and there were a lot of people out around noon, sales were good, so I waited a bit longer… It’s fine, it’s fine, don’t worry.”

He said, stopping the bicycle and reaching to hold his wife’s hand, “Oh, your hands are so cold, have you been in the courtyard all the time? Let’s go inside, quickly… From now on, just eat once you’ve cooked lunch, I’ll reheat it on the stove when I get back, no need to wait for me. Let me tell you…”

Once inside, Wang Lianfa took off his satchel and handed it to his wife with a grin, “I was too busy to check, you help me count the money and see how much we sold.”

After saying this, Wang Lianfa cheerfully went to wash his hands and then put the cold food back on the stove to heat up.

The small change in the morning was prepared together by Wang Lianfa and Zheng Xiaotian, not much in total. When she pulled out a large handful of money from the satchel, her eyes widened with disbelief, staring at her husband: “How come there’s so much money?”

“Why, because I sold, of course! Otherwise, do you think I stole or robbed it?” Wang Lianfa joked in a good mood with his wife.

As they talked, Zheng Xiaotian was already sorting out several ten-yuan notes, along with five-yuan ones, and even more one and two-yuan notes, her hands trembling a little, “Did you really sell this much?”

Seeing her husband nod with a smile, Zheng Xiaotian suddenly let out a big sigh, “Hehe, hehe, great, great…”

Ever since she became pregnant with this child, she had been in a constant internal struggle. Even though she decided to keep the child, she was still anxious. Worried about not getting any land, worried that the family would lose their income and means of living… Even though they hadn’t split from the family, her father-in-law, mother-in-law, older brother, and sister-in-law were supportive of their decision, but if they really lost income, what would the family of four, no, family of five do?

Would they really be shameless enough to rely on their in-laws and elder siblings for support?

If that were to happen, even if the in-laws didn’t say anything, the elder siblings might eventually become dissatisfied. After all, everyone has a family to support, and it’s hard to blame them for feeling unequitable.

Thankfully, her husband was able to make so much money in one morning, securing their family’s livelihood. The weight in her heart finally settled.

Smiling, Zheng Xiaotian suddenly started to cry, her hands still clutching the sparse and neatly stacked bills, covering her face sobbing.

Just like Zheng Xiaotian, Wang Lianfa also shared these feelings.

His smile faded too, as he walked over to hold his wife in his arms, and the couple hugged and cried together.

Though they didn’t cry out loud, after that bout of crying, the tension in their hearts was significantly relieved.

Wang Lianfa poured some warm water, and after washing hands and faces together, led his wife to sit at the dining table, “You sit, I’ll tidy up the meal.”

“We haven’t counted the money yet,” Zheng Xiaotian said.

“What’s the rush, it’s not going to grow legs and run away. Let’s count it after we’re full. Take your time to count! From now on, every day I’ll bring back the money I earn for you to count, and I’ll leave the bookkeeping to you, you’re better at it than I am,” Wang Lianfa said with a laugh, breaking the pancake and serving the stew, inviting his wife to eat.

Zheng Xiaotian only graduated from elementary school, her husband attended two years of middle school, and from what she knows, he is quite adept at managing accounts! He only said that to make her happy.

Yet, she felt comforted in her heart, and even a bit of newlywed sweetness.

Ling Chengyan and Wang Liansheng returned to Huicheng in the evening. Neither of them mentioned visiting the second cousin’s, they just headed straight home.

The children hadn’t seen their parents all day and acted like abandoned puppies, being overly affectionate. Especially little Shi Tou, who was even more clingy than the little girl, refusing to leave Ling Chengyan’s embrace.

Wang Liansheng watched and felt a bit sour, gently pinching his son’s nose, teasing, “You little heartless fellow.”

Shi Tou turned around to seek shelter in his mother’s arms, giggling all the while.

Ling Chengyan patted his chubby little bottom and pulled out some goodies brought from the hometown.

The big yellow dog wagged its tail, welcoming its owners home, and followed them, lying at the door. Little Xing secretly slipped it two pieces of fried meat, and Ling Chengyan pretended not to see.

Normally, the big yellow dog only eats pancakes, and sometimes can have some meat soup, but during New Year, it got quite a feast too.

The next day after breakfast, Wang Liansheng carried the vegetable basket out, greeted by a few aunts.

“Little Wang, are you going to buy groceries? Aren’t the food supply companies still closed?”

The food supply companies are on holiday too, they reopen on the eighth day.

Wang Liansheng didn’t hide anything, smiling, “The kids are pining for fish, and I heard some fellow villagers are selling farm products in town, so I thought I’d try my luck.”

An aunt came over with a knowing smile and quietly gave him a tip, “Check behind the food supply company, there was someone there before the New Year.”

Wang Liansheng thanked her, hopped on his bike, and headed out.

When he returned, he brought back news for Ling Chengyan: Second brother’s business is doing well, he sold more than two hundred yuan in two days, and Second sister-in-law looks much better. He even looked around the street for a glimpse of Second brother and found him surrounded by a group of women, busy as ever.

Ling Chengyan was happy for her second cousin’s family and pondered how to arrange another batch of goods for him. After the New Year, cash in hand is comforting, with many visits and gifts exchanged, scarves being fancy yet not too expensive, it’s a popular season for them.

Ling Chengyan drove out on the fifth day, then resumed normal work trips, but with respect to her injured arm, no long-distance tasks were given to her.

On the seventh evening, Ling Chengyan delivered another batch of goods to Wang Lianfa, along with instructions on how to pick up the stock.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep