Transmigrated into the role of the matriarch, I ensured my family had enough to eat and wear during

Shen Cuihe took the ten catties of lotus root, her fingertips trembling slightly.

She knew that everyone was struggling during the famine, so she didn't say anything more. Her eyes welled up with tears, and she looked up at Yang Gousheng, saying softly, "Then I'm going home."

Yang Gousheng still didn't dare to meet her gaze, his ears turning bright red, and he stammered, "I... I'll see you off."

Shen Cuihe gave a soft "hmm" and turned to walk forward.

The two tacitly maintained a distance of two or three meters, with Shen Cuihe walking in front and Yang Gousheng following silently behind.

Since they are not yet engaged, getting too close would damage Shen Cuihe's reputation if word got out.

As soon as the two left, Tang Susu frowned, a sense of worry welling up inside her.

The family already had a tight housing situation, with only a few mud-brick houses. If Yang Gousheng really married Shen Cuihe, the young couple would have nowhere to live.

She remembered seeing on a trading platform that in ancient times, building a new house with five mud-brick and thatched roof rooms would cost two taels of silver.

The problem is that the money in her possession comes from an unknown source, so she can't use it openly and honestly.

After much deliberation, she secretly resolved to first raise enough betrothal gifts to finalize the marriage, and then find a legitimate reason after the New Year to build the new house and choose an auspicious day for Shen Cuihe to marry into the family.

As night deepened, moonlight streamed through the window into the room, clear and bright.

Tang Susu was exhausted after a long day and fell asleep quickly after lying down in bed.

She had a dream in which her boyfriend from her past life—the one who broke up with her because of the long-distance relationship—was kneeling on one knee, holding a ring and proposing to her.

Her heart skipped a beat, and she was about to nod to accept the ring when a young man next to her kicked her in the waist, instantly waking her up.

Upon waking, Tang Susu stared blankly at the ceiling, her heart filled with a sense of loss.

Having traveled back to ancient times, she had long lost the right to dream of love. She had never even been married, yet she was about to become a mother-in-law. It was both helpless and funny to think about.

The next morning, as dawn broke and the sky was just beginning to brighten, Tang Lifu got up and carried buckets to the well at the village entrance to fetch water. Before long, he returned with half a vat of clean water.

These past few days, Tang Susu has forcibly set rules for the family: every morning, they must rinse their mouths and wash their faces, and they are not allowed to eat if they are not clean.

At first, the boys weren't used to it, but over time they got used to it and completely changed their sloppy habit of not washing up in the morning.

Miao Yulan also got up early and cleaned the house inside and out. She then took the clothes that she had washed the day before and hung them on the line in the front yard to dry.

Tang Susu walked to the grain bin and opened the lid—she would replenish three or four pounds of grain from the system every day to make the grain bin always look full, so as not to worry her family.

She took out three jin of millet and a few pieces of leftover lotus root, chopped them up, mixed them with flour, and pretended to take two eggs from the henhouse and cracked them into the mixture. She then made small balls and fried them in oil.

She dictated all the steps, and Miao Yulan practiced them on the spot. Before long, the golden and crispy lotus root balls were ready.

The rich aroma wafting from the kitchen woke up Tang Liqiang, Yang Gousheng, and Yang Xiaobao, who were still asleep.

The three boys, still half asleep and rubbing their eyes with drool running down their faces, rushed straight to the kitchen.

"Stop!" Tang Susu quickly stopped them. "Go wash up first, and come eat after you're clean."

The three boys exchanged glances and had no choice but to obediently turn around and go wash up.

Yang Gousheng washed his face with the icy well water, instantly dispelling the last trace of sleepiness.

He looked up and inadvertently caught sight of a familiar figure standing in front of the courtyard gate, quietly watching him.

He was stunned for a moment, and after confirming that he wasn't dreaming, Yang Xiaobao, who was next to him, recognized her first and shouted, "It's Sister Cuihe!"

Tang Susu came out upon hearing the noise and thought to herself: This young man and woman are quite inseparable.

We just met yesterday, and they came again right before dawn today.

She chuckled self-deprecatingly, realizing that as an older single woman, she couldn't escape being subjected to public displays of affection no matter where she went.

When Shen Cuihe saw Tang Susu, she pursed her lips slightly, looking a little awkward, but tried her best to appear generous. She stepped forward and called out, "Auntie." Then she looked at Yang Gousheng and whispered, "I'd like to say a few words to Gousheng."

"You two chat, don't be shy." Tang Susu waved her hand, turned around and went back to the kitchen to continue her work, but her ears involuntarily perked up.

She wasn't being nosy; she was mainly concerned about her son's emotional life and worried that he might be deceived because of his young age.

Shen Cuihe asked, "When I came over, I saw a lot of people walking back and forth at the village entrance, and they surrounded me and asked me a lot of questions. What were they doing?"

Yang Gousheng was usually very clever, but in front of Shen Cuihe, his mind went blank, and he stammered for a long time without being able to say a complete sentence.

Upon hearing this, Tang Susu suddenly became alert.

She suddenly remembered that Shen Cuihe's surname was Shen, and most of the Shen families in Yangqu Village were women who had married into the village from Ma'an Village.

Could this Shen Cuihe be a spy sent by Ma'an Village?

She walked out of the kitchen without making a sound, and said to Shen Cuihe with a smile, "Cuihe, since you're here, come in and have some breakfast. The fried meatballs are still warm."

Shen Cuihe seemed startled and hurriedly waved her hand to refuse, "No need, auntie, I... I just came to say a few words to Gousheng, and I'll leave after that."

His speech was somewhat hesitant.

"Cuihe, just tell me what's wrong. My mother is the best person in the world. She'll definitely help you if she can," Yang Gousheng chimed in, completely forgetting how Tang Susu had "punished" him earlier.

Tang Susu's lips twitched slightly as she sighed inwardly: This son of hers really forgets his mother as soon as he has someone he likes.

She walked up to Shen Cuihe and observed the girl closely.

Based on her experience in judging people from her previous life, she quickly realized that this girl was quite cunning.

The misty tears in her eyes, seemingly full of affection, were actually a carefully crafted performance, devoid of any genuine emotion.

Looking at Yang Gousheng again, the infatuation in his eyes clearly showed that he was so engrossed that he couldn't see through these tricks at all.

Tang Susu suppressed her doubts and said softly, "Cuihe, just say what you have to say, don't be shy. I will definitely help if I can."

Shen Cuihe bit her lower lip, her eyes instantly reddening again, and said in a tearful voice, "Auntie, I... I want to borrow another twenty-five catties of grain."

Upon hearing this, Yang Gousheng froze instantly, looking nervously at Tang Susu, afraid that Shen Cuihe would leave a bad impression of being greedy and insatiable before she even entered the house.

Tang Susu's expression remained unchanged as she gently explained, "Cuihe, we just lent you ten catties of lotus root yesterday, and today you want twenty-five catties. It's really not appropriate. As you can see, we have many children in our family. If we show favoritism, the other children will have complaints."

"I have no objection!" Tang Liqiang immediately shook his head, looking like he didn't care what happened as long as he could help Shen Cuihe.

Yang Xiaobao nodded in agreement, but was about to speak when Tang Susu glared at him, shutting him up instantly.

Tang Susu posed the question to Yang Gousheng, asking, "Gousheng, tell me, should we lend this money or not?"

Yang Gousheng wanted to say no, but seeing Shen Cuihe's almost crying appearance, his heart softened, his eyes wavered, and he stood there awkwardly, unable to say a word.

Tang Susu sighed helplessly. She was also afraid that forcibly breaking up the young couple would make Yang Gousheng resent her and feel guilty.

After hesitating for a moment, she said, "Fine, for the sake of your relationship with Gousheng, I'll give you another ten jin."

Shen Cuihe was overjoyed and quickly thanked her, "Thank you, Auntie! Thank you, Auntie!"

Tang Susu asked Yang Gousheng to fetch lotus roots from the cellar, then turned to Shen Cuihe and said earnestly, "Cuihe, my Gousheng is naturally naive and impulsive. He may not have been able to understand your difficulties and thoughts. I hope you don't mind."

Shen Cuihe stiffened slightly and replied in a low voice, "Don't worry, Auntie, I naturally understand Brother Gousheng."

Tang Susu's face instantly turned cold. She deliberately belittled Yang Gousheng to see Shen Cuihe's reaction.

Unexpectedly, Shen Cuihe agreed directly, which shows that she was actually upset that Yang Gousheng hadn't readily lent her the grain. However, being young, she couldn't hide her feelings and easily revealed them.

Before long, Yang Gousheng came out carrying ten catties of lotus roots, blushing as he said to Shen Cuihe, "Cuihe, let me take you home."

"No need," Tang Susu said indifferently, stopping her. "There are patrol teams everywhere in the village. If word gets out that you two young people are walking together alone, it will damage Miss Shen's reputation. Yulan, why don't you see Miss Shen off?"

Miao Yulan quickly put down what she was doing, stepped forward, and replied, "Okay."

After Miao Yulan saw Shen Cuihe off, Yang Gousheng walked up to Tang Susu, blushing as he thanked her, "Thank you, Mother."

Tang Susu looked at him and asked directly, "Are you sure you want to marry this girl?"

Yang Gousheng's face turned even redder. He lowered his head and gave a soft but firm "Mmm".

Tang Susu sighed helplessly. Yang Gousheng was so caught up in the situation that he couldn't see through Shen Cuihe's scheming.

It seems that only she, as the mother, can protect her son.

She decided to first find out more about Shen Cuihe's family background and see what kind of person this girl was.

By this time, it was already bright daylight, and the rising sun bathed the entire village in warm morning light. The distant mountains and nearby houses resembled a slowly unfolding ink painting.

Tang Susu walked out of the yard and saw that the village patrol team was already on duty in an orderly manner at the village entrance and around the village.

The village patrol team formed this time has a total of 200 people, divided into 20 teams of 10 people each.

Six groups of people are arranged to take turns each day, with each group on duty for two hours. This way, each villager only needs to take turns every two or three days, so it doesn't feel like a waste of time, and everyone cooperates very well.