I survived the famine by scavenging and supported my family.

The two women hadn't forgotten that the second wife still owed them ten taels of silver, and it would take a month to collect that money.

If the Sun family still wants a maid, wouldn't they be able to take Wuya away to the Sun family first... and then ask the second branch of the family for another 10 taels of silver?

A wicked plan began to form in their minds.

The second wife's side.

After making preparations for setting up her stall the next day, Zhao Ningning went to sleep without knowing anything about it. The next morning, before dawn, she got out of bed and went to boil water with great enthusiasm.

We expect to sell over a hundred bowls of ice jelly today, so we need to boil extra cold water to prepare. Ning's mother got up early to boil water, and when she saw Zhao Ningning get up, she put down the firewood she was carrying and went back to bed for a short nap.

Zhao Ningning boiled the last pot of water and cooked the brown rice porridge for breakfast, then put it in a bowl to cool in her space.

Seeing that her mother was still asleep, she washed her hands and poured the ice jelly seeds into a gauze bag to soak in cold water.

After finishing his porridge, Zhao Qi woke up and saw that his sister had already boiled water. He went to wash up and asked her, "Is the water all boiled?"

"Hmm! You stayed up late last night and boiled a lot of water, so I boiled three pots this morning and they were done." After her brother finished washing up, Zhao Ningning took out the porridge, and the two of them ate breakfast by the dim light of the small stove in the room.

After breakfast, Zhao Qi asked Zhao Ningning for the broken vase.

Thinking about what her brother was going to do, Zhao Ningning perked up, carefully took out the broken vase from the corner of her space, and handed it to her brother.

Zhao Qi took the vase, placed it on the ground, summoned his skill panel, selected the target, and clicked "use".

A puff of white smoke enveloped the vase, and after the countdown on the panel ended, a complete vase appeared on the ground.

Both of them breathed a sigh of relief. Zhao Ningning reached out and gently picked up the vase to examine it: the vase was a string-patterned vase, with beige evenly covering the body. A peach branch with a winding upward curve was painted on the body, with a large pink peach hanging on the branch, and a double copper coin pendant tied to the top.

On the other side of the vase, you can see peach branches extending outwards, with bats painted in the blank spaces.

The shopkeeper said this vase had a very auspicious meaning when I bought it, I think it was—

"May you enjoy both happiness and longevity." Zhao Ningning said, "I remember now, I bought it for 288 back then, and I even thought the style was outdated."

After admiring the vase, Zhao Ningning handed it to her brother, Zhao Qi. He carefully took it, looked at it a few times by the firelight, then carefully wrapped it in old clothes and put it in a basket.

Yesterday, when Zhao Qi went out to the clinic, he carefully observed the vases that could be seen in Fengning County. Although some of them were also decorated with patterns, the precision was not as high as that of his own vases, and the colors were not as vibrant.

"Luckily, I didn't buy a cartoon-patterned vase," Zhao Qi said. "This style of vase won't be too eye-catching, it's just right."

"Hehe..." Zhao Ningning scratched her head. At the time, she was thinking of buying a pig-shaped vase, with the two holes in the pig's nose just right for inserting flowers. Fortunately, her mother thought it was too abstract and refused to buy it for her, so she changed to this vase.

After the ice jelly seeds had soaked for a while, Zhao Ningning prepared the lime water and set it aside to settle. The two of them then each took a bucket and started kneading the ice jelly.

When they were halfway through making the porridge, Ning's mother woke up. Zhao Ningning quickly brought out her bowl of porridge, as she had left some hot water to keep it warm since she was worried it would get cold.

After eating her brown rice porridge, Ning's mother washed her hands and took over the work from Zhao Ningning. Ningning's physical age is only eight years old, and Ning's mother was worried that the child would not grow tall if she was too tired, so she tried to avoid letting the two children do heavy work.

They got up much earlier today than yesterday. When the three of them carried the baskets to the village entrance, the oxcart from Wangli Village hadn't left yet.

Knowing that the second branch of the Zhao family had a hard life, the oxcart driver put down his whip when he saw them coming and enthusiastically helped them lift the baskets onto the cart and tie them with ropes. He then invited Zhao Ningning to sit in the front, where the ride would be less bumpy.

Before dawn, several more young women from the village boarded the bus. They had arranged to go to the county town to buy needles and thread that day.

Ning's mother compared their faces to those in her memory, greeted them, and the two children followed suit.

The copper bells on the ox's neck jingled, the cart began to move forward, and the oxcart broke through the morning mist, slowly swaying towards the official road.

Zhao Ningning slept in her mother's arms, which were filled with fragrance, the whole way. When she woke up again, it was already bright daylight, and the half-high city wall of the county town slowly rose from the horizon of the official road.

Just like yesterday, the group paid the copper coins to enter the city and carried the baskets together towards the East Market.

Walking into a deserted alley, Zhao Ningning took out a wooden bucket containing ice jelly and water directly from her spatial storage. She had only concealed some bowls and spoons in the basket, keeping the heavier items in her spatial storage.

Struggling to carry the goods to the East Market, Ning Ma didn't change locations, setting up her stall in the same spot as yesterday. Cao Niangzi, who ran a hot food business, was surprised to see them arrive so early, exclaiming, "Zhou Niangzi? Why are you here so early today?"

Ning's mother smiled and said, "I made preparations in advance today to see which time sells best, and we'll experiment for a few more days."

Cao Niangzi nodded. There was still space next to her stall, so she moved aside before the stove was fully lit, giving Ning Ma and the others more room.

All gratitude was beyond words. After putting the things away, Zhao Ningning lifted the lid of a bucket to check the solidification of the ice jelly. It was solidified just right.

As the sky grew brighter, past Chenshi (7-9 AM), a thin layer of sweat appeared on the forehead of Cao Niangzi, who was working at a stall nearby. Ning Ma timely brought out a bowl of "sample" and placed it on the lid of the bucket. Soon, a passerby who had not yet eaten breakfast came over to inquire.

After selling more than a dozen bowls, Ning's mother noticed that the closer it got to noon, the more people there were. The temperature was also much higher than in the morning, and passersby wanted to find something to quench their thirst and cool off.

Therefore, the two hours around noon are when ice jelly is most popular.

Some of the repeat customers who ate there yesterday came back today to return their bowls and buy new ones. With this wave of repeat customers, Zhao Ningning's ice jelly was sold out before 3 p.m.

There were still a few people who didn't get to eat, so Ning's mother could only apologize and say that she would prepare more tomorrow.

After tidying up the stall a bit, Ning's mother greeted Cao Niangzi from the next stall, and the three of them went to the clinic to visit Ning's father.

Ning's father was leaning against the bed, idly fanning himself with the palm-leaf fan given to him by the clinic. When he saw his beloved wife and two children coming over, he happily threw the fan onto the bed, hurriedly got up, and made room for them.

"Come on in! Take a break. Why are you here so early today? Are you sold out of ice jelly?"

Ning's mother sat down next to Ning's father, took out her money bag and counted the coins. Four pairs of eyes were watching, and in the end, she counted out 540 coins.

Ning's mother took out forty coins and instructed Zhao Qi to take today's "medical expenses" to the clinic.

"We sold 108 bowls today, 20 more than yesterday." Earning half a tael of silver a day is a rare business for an ordinary family, but this money is only enough for Ning's father's daily consultation fee.

Fortunately, the vase was repaired. Selling it will give me a breather and I won't have to rush things anymore.

Zhao Ningning took out a cloth bag from her spatial storage, peeled off layers of old clothes, and showed the repaired vase to her father.

"You've all worked hard..." Ning's father leaned closer to take a look, and the broken part of the vase's rim had indeed been repaired without any trace of damage.

After handing the vase back to Zhao Ningning, Ningning's father reached into his coat pocket and whispered mysteriously, "I used my fishing skills today, and guess what I caught?"

Ning's mother asked, "What did you catch?"

Ning's father opened his hand, revealing only air in his palm. Even then, he couldn't resist being playful. Ning's mother rolled her eyes at her husband and said, "Let's get down to business."

"What I caught today wasn't a real thing," Ning's father said. "A new clinic has appeared at the fishing spot, and I caught 'Dr. Cheng's Medical Knowledge x1' at the new spot!"

"After I caught it, I felt like I had something new in my mind. The system told me that I could now identify some basic herbs."

"Great, great, great!" Ning's mother praised three times. This skill is so useful. There is no one in the family who knows Chinese medicine. If Ning's father could learn more medical knowledge, the whole family would be much safer in ancient times, and they could cure some minor illnesses themselves.

Ning's mother held his hand, her eyes filled with hope: "You'll be staying at the clinic for another two weeks, so use all your skills there!"

Ning's father nodded emphatically in agreement: "Yes!"

"He really is a fisherman!" Zhao Ningning exclaimed incredulously. "His fishing skills are amazing..."

If I could learn all the knowledge the teacher had during the college entrance exam, could I just walk into the exam hall with a smile...? No, no, I've already time-traveled and taken the college entrance exam. Zhao Ningning shook the jumbled thoughts out of her mind, wrapped up the vase in her hand, and asked, "Mom, shall we go sell vases now?"

"Go! Me too!" Ning's father was the first to stand up. "I'll go tell the clinic, and also, I asked them about it this morning..."

Following Ning's father's "inquiry," the three of them arrived at the pawnshop in Fengning County.

The four of them placed the vase on the counter and waited anxiously for the shopkeeper to appraise it.

Although the vase appeared to be of better craftsmanship than those from the Great Zhou Dynasty, the group had no idea of ​​its actual value.

"This vase seems to be something that could be made in Huaichuan Prefecture." The shopkeeper was a little unsure. He put down the vase and instructed the waiter beside him, "Go and call Manager Liu over to serve tea to the four guests."

The waiter nodded in agreement and respectfully came out from behind the counter, inviting the group to sit down and wait.

After serving him some tea, he went out and walked quickly down the alley.

The shopkeeper, who was looking at the vases, cupped his hands and said, "My surname is Zheng, and my given name is Deng. May I ask your surnames?"

"My surname is Zhao, Manager Zheng, you can just call me Zhao Lao Er," Ning's father replied.

"Well, I'm not good at judging vases, so I had the waiter fetch Manager Liu." Manager Zheng came out from behind the counter, sat down in a seat, and said with a smile, "I saw a pair of vases before, which were slightly inferior to today's, and were worth sixty taels of silver."

"Then your own vase must be worth at least twenty or thirty taels of silver?" Zhao Ningning's eyes gleamed.

Ning's father's anxious expression relaxed, and he sighed, "That's good. To be honest, it was Doctor Cheng from the south of the city who recommended me to come here."

"Look at me, I suffered a serious leg injury in an accident, and I really can't afford to pay for medical treatment, so I had no choice but to take out the family heirloom vase to pay for it."

Manager Zheng followed Zhao Lao Er's hand and saw a horrifying scar crawling down his leg under the lifted clothes.

No wonder they're putting such exquisite vases up for sale. Shopkeeper Zheng clicked his tongue inwardly, but outwardly expressed concern for the customer: "Vases are usually bought in pairs, but this vase... might have a lower starting price than the previous ones."

As long as the price exceeds twenty taels of silver, coming today won't be a loss. Ning's mother sat calmly while Ning's father put on an act and played the victim with the shopkeeper.

In the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, Manager Liu and the waiter hurried over. After greeting them, they went behind the counter to examine the vase closely.

After looking at it for a while, he carefully picked it up and examined it cautiously against the light, before a smile appeared on his face: "This vase is nice."

Upon hearing his words, Ning's father smiled, rubbed his hands together, and asked, "Manager Liu, how much can I pawn this vase for?"

"If you pawn it outright, I can give you thirty taels," Manager Liu carefully placed the vase down. "If you pawn it as is, I can only give you twenty taels, since there's only one vase. It would be better if it were a pair..."

When buying it, he hadn't thought about these kinds of details. Ning's father gritted his teeth, feigning reluctance to part with it, and said, "Manager Liu... do you think the price can be raised a bit more?"

"Sigh..." Manager Liu sighed, "The craftsmanship is indeed comparable to that of Huaichuan Prefecture. In recent years, Huaichuan Prefecture has rarely produced beige vases. Here, I'll give you thirty-two taels, that's the most I can offer."

Half an incense stick later.

Clutching the thirty-five taels of cool silver ingots, Ning's father left the pawnshop surrounded by three family members.

The four of them dared not linger and hurried toward the clinic. Back in their room, Ning's father quietly handed twenty taels of silver to Zhao Ningning, saying, "Ningning, keep this at home."

Zhao Ningning covered the silver with her hand, and the two shiny silver ingots immediately disappeared.

"Ten taels for the leg treatment, five taels for you to keep." After arranging where the money would go, Ning's father limped to the clinic to pay.

Doctor Cheng didn't ask how he managed to raise the money so quickly. After receiving the money, he checked on Ning's father's injured leg and told him to walk around less. He would set his bones again the day after tomorrow.

Ning's father returned to his room with a pale face, which startled everyone. After learning the reason, Ning's mother lovingly touched Ning's father's face and said that she would come to keep him company early the day after tomorrow.

The ten taels of silver hadn't been used up, so Ning's mother told Ning's father to keep the remaining one tael or so close to him for emergencies. Seeing that it was still early, she told the children's father to rest early, as she was going to take the children to buy some things.

With money in hand, one feels less anxious. Ning's mother first went to buy the iron pot that the family needed most. Considering that there were too many places in the family that would require money, she only bought one pot to use for the time being.

After buying the pot, I also bought two kitchen knives at the blacksmith's shop. Since the family split up, we don't even have kitchen knives anymore, so we've been tearing wild vegetables by hand these past few days.

The pot has been sold, and some fatty meat for seasoning the pot also needs to be bought. Two more pounds of meat were cut off, and Ning's mother is preparing to give the children a good nourishing meal.

After buying those items, she went to the fabric store to buy more fabric, intending to make two sets of clothes for the whole family to change into. Zhao Qi's clothes were in good condition, but Zhao Ningning's clothes were all torn to shreds, practically resembling mops.

Finally, Ning's mother bought some ancient snacks for the children, and with the remaining twenty taels of silver, she asked Zhao Ningning for ten taels of silver and used it all to buy grain.

Ningma had the grain shop staff move all the grain to the back of the alley. After sending the shop assistants away, she had Zhao Ningning stuff the entire cart of grain into her spatial storage, along with the iron pot and cloth she had just bought.

When the grain shop clerk returned, she told him that her family had already moved the grain away and asked the clerk to take the cart back.

Having collected ten large bags of grain, Zhao Ningning, with two bags of pastries in her hands, asked her mother as she walked, "Mom... Mom, shouldn't we buy some vegetables when we have some free time these next few days? We haven't had proper vegetables in a long time."

"Oh dear! Thank goodness for Ningning, I almost forgot about that." Ningning's mother slapped her forehead. "We'll buy it on the way back. Let's go get the things first."

It was getting late, so the three of them returned to the East Market and got baskets. The wooden buckets were empty, and Zhao Ningning and Zhao Qi could both lift them.

Ning's mother walked along the area with many stalls, and soon bought a few emergency vegetables from a vegetable stall in the county town. When Zhao Ningning saw that there were green beans, she wanted to shout to the sky.

The nightmare of green beans that I can't escape in modern times, I can't escape even in ancient times!

That's what she was thinking. That evening, Ning's mother stir-fried green beans and meat in a new pot, and Zhao Ningning reached for her chopsticks faster than anyone else.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Zhao Qi was left at home to watch the house, while Zhao Ningning went with her mother to fetch water to wash up.

The two acres of land that were allocated to them hadn't been taken care of for the past few days. Ning's mother and Zhao Ningning used their spatial abilities to cheat, making several trips back and forth to water all the land in the house.

Before leaving, Zhao Ningning pinched open a bunch of rice ears. Even though it was already in the late grain-filling stage, the grains inside looked underdeveloped, all thin and small, and some rice ears didn't have many grains at all.

It wasn't just her family's situation; Zhao Ningning had observed other people's rice fields on her way here, and they were all similar. Even though the soil was still moist when she came a couple of days ago, and it looked like they hadn't used much water, the yield was still just average.

The two went to the river to fetch water and return home, looking worried.

Old Zhao's family.

Sun tiptoed and peered through the crack in the window, but could only see her third son alone at home. She silently cursed herself, then hunched over and quietly returned to the main room.

"How is it?" Granny Qian asked in a low voice.

"Only the three boys are home, so Wuya must have been taken out by her mother!" Sun comforted her mother-in-law. "We'll get up early tomorrow and keep an eye on her. Zhou can't be with that girl all day!"