After being jilted, the entire neighboring village was filled with deep regret.

They can't even understand these tasks, how can they do them well? What will happen if they don't do them well?
The more I think about them, the more uneasy I feel.

Su Tai roughly guessed what they were thinking, but said nothing. What she needed were hardworking, studious, strong, and ambitious people, not weaklings who would cry and back down when faced with problems. If these people were not capable of being of great use, she would not have sold them off; she would just not give them important positions.

"Now I'm handing the reins over to you. You can choose what you want to do, and I'll give you time to discuss it." Su Tai got up and went back to the kitchen. The children hadn't eaten breakfast yet, so she had to cook.

Yu Xiaoyu listened intently for a while, then mustered her courage and followed Su Tai into the kitchen. The five women who had been whispering among themselves stopped talking and looked at her.

Yu Xiaoyu stood at the entrance of the kitchen and asked cautiously, "Madam, can I help start the fire?"

Su Tai had just lit the firewood when she heard the sound and looked over in surprise. She got up, dusted off her hands, and said, "Okay, then you can burn the firewood."

After saying that, she turned around and scooped a ladle of clean water from the large water vat to wash her hands.

It only takes a moment.

Five women followed them in.

Yu Mei mustered her courage and asked, "Madam, can we learn how to cook?"

Su Tai's lips curved into a barely perceptible smile. "Okay."

She scooped a ladle of flour from another tightly covered large jar, cracked in six eggs, added some chopped green onions, shredded cabbage, various seasonings, and an appropriate amount of water, and stirred it into a batter.

The five women watched intently, not daring to ask any questions even though they didn't understand.

Seeing the water in the pot almost boil over, they thought Su Tai was going to put the batter in to make noodle soup. But Su Tai used the boiling water to wash another small iron pot and a large pot on the flat ground. Then she drained all the boiling water from the pot, put in tea leaves and rock sugar and stir-fried them until they turned caramel color. Then she poured in fresh milk, and the kitchen was filled with the sweet aroma of milk tea.

"The first step in making milk tea is to stir-fry the black tea and rock sugar. Stir-fried tea and sugar make for better-tasting milk tea. When the milk is almost boiling, turn the heat down to low, otherwise it will easily overflow."

Everyone suddenly realized.

Yu Xiaoyu kept her eyes on the stove, worried that she wouldn't be able to control the heat properly.

Su Tai pointed to the iron tongs next to her, "Don't worry, when I tell you to remove the firewood, take the firewood out and put it into the small stove. Take it one step at a time, don't be nervous."

"Yes!" Yu Xiaoyu replied loudly.

Su Tai paused for a moment, then smiled. This child was finally starting to act like a child.

Seeing that the milk tea was almost boiling, Su Tai hurriedly said, "We can remove some firewood."

Yu Xiaoyu used both hands to forcefully pick out the thickest piece of firewood she had chosen, carefully avoiding the surrounding objects, and put it into the small stove.

Having succeeded the first time, she was clearly confident and looked at Su Tai with expectant praise, "Madam, shall we remove the firewood again?"

Su Tai smiled at her and nodded.

Yu Xiaoyu then eagerly took two more pieces of firewood out.

"That's about right. Let it simmer on low heat for a little while longer."

After Su Tai finished speaking, she turned around, picked up a small frying pan, brushed it with oil, placed it on the small stove, and began to make pancakes. Everyone stared in astonishment and admiration as Su Tai effortlessly made a perfectly round pancake.

Su Tai never imagined that she would be admired for making pancakes. She smiled helplessly and said, "These are just everyday foods. There are the same stoves and ovens in the kitchen in your backyard. I can give you a frying pan so you can practice on your own."

Furthermore, to cook well, always remember this: food must be made to be delicious, not stingy. Habits like being reluctant to add oil or sugar are undesirable. If you can grasp this principle and still want to learn to cook, you might consider taking up a stove.

Before the five adults could make up their minds, Yu Xiaoyu spoke up first, "Madam, I want to learn, is that alright?"

Seeing her bright, sparkling eyes, Su Tai immediately agreed.

Today's breakfast consisted of pancakes and milk tea. After Su Tai and the four children finished breakfast, she led Yu Mei and the others to see the laundry and cleaning work. The group went to the sheep pen and saw dozens of sheep, seven or eight beef cattle, as well as donkeys and horses. They were once again amazed by the size and wealth of the Shen family.

As Su Tai pointed to the surrounding environment, she said, "Cleaning this place is not a simple matter. There is a well and several water vats next to the vegetable garden outside the small gate. Every day, the water in the vats must be filled. When cleaning, use a shovel and a big broom to pile cow dung, sheep dung, donkey dung, and horse dung into the corner by the back door, then wash it with water and scrub the floor with a brush. Every five days, you have to come to me to get the cleaning solution for the floor."

As you can see, this place is really big. It takes one person most of the day to clean it; it's extremely tiring.

After seeing the livestock pens, we finally went to the fields.

Yu Mei and the others were all fishermen and didn't really know how to farm. They were all incredibly envious when they saw the villagers farming, and their enthusiasm for learning soared.

After completing the walk, they had their own ideas.

Going to the fields requires negotiating with the villagers; one needs to be bold and articulate. Yu Mei was the most suitable candidate, and she took on this task.

Shi Daniu was not afraid of hardship or fatigue. In addition, her own children were grown up and did not need her to look after them, so she took on the cleaning job.

The other three all went to learn the cooking skills at the stove.

Chi Sanhua and Chi Zhaodi had no objections at all. They could keep an eye on their child while doing this job, so they weren't afraid of anything happening.

As for Alan, needless to say, she's quiet and doesn't like to talk much, but cooking suits her quite well.

The next step was to assign tasks to the children.

Among these children, excluding the two infants, there are five girls and eight boys. Given that her twins are really too troublesome, Su Tai decided to assign two servants to each child.

Yu Xiaoyu looked steady and clever, so Su Tai let her follow Shen Yue'an. In addition, she gave the three or four-year-old girl from Chi Zhaodi's family to Shen Yue'an. When Yu Xiaoyu got older, the other little girl could take her place.

Shen Yuezhang then chose two other girls, both seven or eight years old, who were orphans without parents.

Yu Mei's daughter is temporarily staying with Su Tai, following her orders. When there's nothing else to do, she helps with tidying up the house and needs to be observant.

After arranging the little girl's turn, it was the little boy's turn.

Su Tai separated Yu Xiaoyu's two younger brothers, one with Shen Congrong and the other with Shen Congyu. She also arranged for two older children around nine years old to stay with them. Su Tai planned to keep two of the remaining four at home to look after the house and help with fetching water, chopping wood, and feeding the horses. The other two older children would learn to drive the carriage and run errands.

In this way, everyone except the two babies who did not survive had their own tasks.

With a goal in mind, people are less anxious and fearful. (End of Chapter)