Divorce with three kids? I'll build a house and eat meat, driving my in-laws crazy.

Chapter 34 Making a living by selling his daughter
Before her two sons could answer, Zhang Junniang retorted, "Mother, what do you mean by suffering? The Chen family has 100 taels of silver. That silver belongs to Sanbao, and it will be mine in the future."

Although Li Ruru received 36 taels of the 100 taels, there were still 64 taels left, which was still a huge sum of money.

Madam Lü scoffed, "What 100 taels? Do you think I don't know? His divorced wife took 36 taels, and a couple of days ago, his elder brother and sister-in-law sold fake konjac tofu that made someone sick, so they had to pay another 20 taels in compensation. You do the math and see how much is left?"

Ma Yong counted on his fingers for a long time but couldn't figure it out, and Ma Gan was also completely baffled.

"Grandma, how much is left?"

Madam Lü said with exasperation, "You can't even do this? All those years of studying have gone to waste! There are still 44 taels left!"

Ma Yong is 12 years old this year, a few months older than Daya. He spent money to study for several years, but he didn't learn anything.

Magan is 11 years old this year, older than Er Ya, and like his brother, he is not academically inclined.

Ma Yong exclaimed, "Mom, Uncle Chen only has 44 taels left!"

He knew that 100 was much larger than 44.

Zhang Junniang's lips twitched; this old woman was quite well-informed.

She glared at her two sons, who should have been on her side.

“What do you mean by ‘only’? Do you know how difficult it is to earn 44 taels? Besides, your Uncle Chen might dig up ginseng again next time, and it’s very possible that he could sell it for 200 taels.”

Upon hearing that it would cost 200 taels, the two sons immediately exclaimed excitedly, "That's wonderful! We'd love to go with Mother to Uncle Chen's house!"

With a cold face, Madam Lü looked at Madam Wang, Zhang Junniang's mother, who was standing to the side.

"I said, my dear sister, at least say something. Can you really bear to see your daughter marry into that family?"

The Chen family is lazy, unreliable, and full of scheming people. What kind of good life can your daughter expect after marrying into that family?

Lu said this not for Zhang Junniang's sake, but because she didn't want her two eldest grandsons to become someone else's grandsons.

She already knew about Zhang Junniang's affair with Chen Sanbao. She didn't care what Zhang Junniang did; it was better that someone was happily doing chores for her family.

But she would never agree to Zhang Junniang taking her grandson away.

Mrs. Wang smiled and said, "A woman can't live without a husband. I've seen how hard my daughter has lived alone all these years. So I won't stop her from having a good life."

Madam Lü's lips twitched, and she pressed her face close, saying bluntly, "You're really good at making things up! Everyone knows you're just after your daughter's dowry. Your Zhang family has always made a living by selling your daughters."

Zhang Junniang had three older sisters, and each of Lü's daughters demanded the highest dowry.

It's not for any other reason than the marriages of my three younger brothers.

Lu's face turned visibly pale; having her past exposed, she felt embarrassed.

He retorted defiantly, "If your son didn't want it back then, he could have refused. He could have just married someone else."

If her daughter hadn't married Lü's short-lived son, she wouldn't have been a widow for so many years.

“You…” Madam Lü was so angry that her nose twisted. Thinking of her son who had died young, her eyes reddened, and she secretly wiped away her tears.

Seeing this, Madam Wang could no longer press the matter, and instead sighed, "Old sister, there's no rush, let's talk about it slowly. Take care of yourself."

-

Over there, Li Ruru boarded an oxcart full of things and went home.

As soon as they unloaded their things and opened the door, Er Ya exclaimed in surprise.

"Mom, did you plant the vegetables in the yard? When did you plant them?"

She left early in the morning and didn't even notice the vegetables in the corner of the yard.

Li Ruru calmly said, "I planted them last night, and they were all dug up from the back mountain."

The three girls ran over excitedly to see.

Daya exclaimed, "Mom is amazing! She managed to dig up so many vegetable seedlings on the back hill. She's really incredible!"

Sanya saw some vegetables she recognized and said in her childish voice, "Purslane, wild garlic, and lamb's quarters."

That was Li Ruru who sneaked in, just so that the seedlings wouldn't stand out too much.

Er Ya squatted down and examined the seedlings, pointing to a row of dark green seedlings and asking, "Mom, what are those? I've never seen them before."

Following the direction of her finger, Li Ruru saw potato seedlings.

Because what she transplanted from the space was a potato that had already begun to bear fruit, and it even had small white flowers blooming on it.

Potato leaves are oblong with slightly wavy edges.

"Those are potato sprouts, they'll be ripe soon. Don't you love potatoes? Let's roast a couple tonight." Er Ya swallowed hard, thinking of the shredded potatoes her mother made yesterday.

"Potatoes can be roasted?" She thought they could only be stir-fried.

Li Ruru explained, "Potatoes can be boiled, stir-fried, deep-fried, or roasted."

It tastes good no matter how you cook it.

For lunch, Li Ruru made some pulled noodles.

When Da Ya saw her mother stretch the noodles to be so long, she exclaimed in surprise, "Mom, you're amazing!"

She had never seen her mother make noodles before, and considering that she had to be subservient to others even to get a simple vegetable porridge at the Chen family's house, she naturally couldn't afford to eat pulled noodles.

They had never eaten it before; they only occasionally saw their grandmother make it for their cousins.

Li Ruru now has two new iron pots, which makes her work much faster.

In one pot, I cooked noodles; in the other pot, I stir-fried chili, eggs, and meat.

After rinsing the noodles, place them in a bowl and top with meat and vegetables.

A bowl of mixed noodles with vegetables is all you need. It has meat, vegetables, and noodles. Hehe, delicious!

The three girls ate with great satisfaction, showering each other with compliments as if they were free.

"Mom, these pulled noodles are delicious."

"Stir-fried pork with chili peppers is so delicious."

"The noodle soup tastes sweet."

"Mom is amazing."

Li Ruru smiled smugly. What could be happier than having her cooking praised by her daughters?

The joy of cooking is watching others finish their food; that sense of accomplishment is sweet.

Having just finished eating, the mother and her four children were sitting on the steps in the yard to digest their food when there was a knock at the door.

Then came Pan Dayan's voice, "Little sister, open the door, I've brought you some konjac."

Li Ruru opened the door and welcomed Pan Dayan over.

Pan Dayan's basket contained several large konjac plants.

Li Ruru said reproachfully, "Auntie, you could have just told me how many you collected. You didn't have to carry them all over; it's tiring."

Pan Dayan put down her basket with a smile and waved her hand, "I'm not tired at all. I just wanted to show you so you can rest assured."

It's not appropriate to just collect konjac without letting people see it; they can't just take it and grind it directly.

Don't let her carefree and easygoing nature fool you; she's actually quite meticulous.

She deliberately ate dinner at home and waited a while, figuring that Li Ruru's family had already eaten, before coming over.

Although Li Ruru invited her to stay for dinner several times, she refused each time.

Li Ruru's family was so poor that they lived in a dilapidated house that no one wanted, how could she have the nerve to take advantage of them?

"Wow, young lady, you've planted so many vegetables!"

Li Ruru nodded, "We'll be able to eat it in a few days, and we'll send some to Auntie then."

Pan Dayan waved her hand again, "No need, I have some at home too."

The vegetables were planted, and the konjac business was booming. Pan Dayan was genuinely happy for Li Ruru.

As long as you are diligent, your life will get better and better.

Li Ruru immediately gave Pan Dayan 30 coins, saying, "Aunt Pan, please keep the money. Each piece costs 10 coins, so that's 30 coins in total."

After thinking for a moment, she asked again, "Auntie, were only three konjac plants harvested in total?"

Logically speaking, this shouldn't be the case. She's paying 10 coins per piece. Why wouldn't the villagers make money like this?

Pan Dayan sighed, "Oh, don't even mention it, it's all because of your ex-mother-in-law's interference."

Li Ruru asked, "What did she do this time?"

(End of this chapter)