A Maid's Survival Story in a Noble Family Mansion? Rich Landlords Are More Appealing.

Her smile stunned not only the children around her.

In a secluded corner, a young man who was doing his own thing was drawn in by the commotion and has been watching intently for quite some time.

That smile dazzled him, and went straight into his heart.

As the sunlight shifted, the shadows of the haystacks lengthened.

After playing around for a while, Chen Wanxing's hands were covered in dust, but she felt very relaxed. They had caught two more sparrows, which Chen Yanche processed and roasted.

Seeing how much they were enjoying their food, Chen Wanxing tentatively took a small piece to taste. It wasn't particularly delicious, but it wasn't bad either.

The winter sun is only effective for a short time at noon, and the north wind blows straight at you.

After playing for a while, the initial excitement wore off, and Chen Wanxing was the first to feel the chill seeping into her bones. Her fingertips were numb from the cold, and a chill ran up her feet.

She wasn't like those kids who were used to running and jumping outdoors all year round and were used to being cold-resistant.

Chen Wanxing rubbed her hands together and breathed warm air onto her fingertips, saying, "That's enough, let's go back. The wind is too strong right now, it's so cold."

Upon hearing this, Chen Yanche looked up at the sky and saw that Chen Wanxing's face was a little pale and her nose was slightly red. He immediately nodded and said, "Okay, let's go back quickly. It's too cold now."

Upon hearing Chen Wanxing say she was cold, the group of children immediately became anxious and shrank their necks, echoing her sentiment to hurry back. Chen Youcong, who was leaning against her, even held her hand in his arms, hoping to warm her up.

The group packed up their meager belongings and escorted Chen Wanxing back home.

They had barely stepped into the Chen family courtyard, still feeling the chill, when they heard movement at the gate. Turning around, they saw Chen Yancheng and Zhang Huiniang returning.

They were enveloped in the chill from the outside air, their cheeks flushed slightly by the cold wind, and both of them looked tired from their busy work, but their expressions were relaxed and they seemed quite happy.

"Dalang, Huiniang, you're back!" Grandma Chen stood up, holding the child, and asked with concern, "How did it go? Is the matter of the meat from the Tian family settled?"

Hui Niang took off her headscarf, patted the dust off her clothes, and nodded to Grandma Chen: "Mother, don't worry, it's almost done. Father has spoken with Butcher Li, and we just need to take the meat to his shop this afternoon."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Although no one said anything when they agreed in the morning, if these five pigs really became a liability, it would be no small amount.

"That's good, as long as it can be resolved. Butcher Li is willing to give us face because of our in-law relationship."

Hui Niang walked to the door of the main room, took the warm water handed to her by Chen's mother and took a sip. Then, as if she remembered something, a half-smile appeared on her lips. She shook her head and said to the family members who had gathered around, "You don't know, this time, the Tian family really outsmarted themselves and ruined a perfectly good business deal."

"Oh? What's going on?" Third Aunt loved hearing about these things, so she immediately moved closer. Even Second Aunt Chen, who was about to go back to her room to put her things away, stopped and listened intently.

Hui Niang didn't keep anyone in suspense. She sat down on the stool and began to tell her story: "When Da Lang and I arrived in town, we told Dad about the situation. When Dad heard that it involved five pigs, which was quite a lot, he also felt it was a difficult situation."

He originally wanted to go directly to the county and find the managers of several restaurants to place orders for the meat, but then he felt that he should first find out why the original buyer had abandoned the Tian family, lest there be some hidden problems that we don't know about.

Then my father figured that since the person in charge couldn't buy meat from the Tian family, he might order it directly from a shop, so he went to Butcher Li's place to inquire about it...

She paused, glanced at everyone, and said, "Guess what? It wasn't that the buyer changed their mind for no reason. It was the Tian family who thought that since the buyer had placed an order with them, they needed the goods today and were in a hurry. So this morning when the buyer came to pick up the goods, they got greedy and raised the price on the spot, trying to extort more money."

The original price they offered was 1.8 jin of pork, just for the pure meat, which wasn't cheap. But the Tian family went too far and dared to ask for 2 taels of silver, selling it at retail price. The manager got furious.

But she was a tough one; she felt he was untrustworthy and immediately turned hostile, preferring to cancel the order and order elsewhere rather than tolerate his behavior. That's why Uncle Tian was in such a panic that morning.

It turned out to be the case.

A murmur of discussion immediately arose in the courtyard. Chen's father frowned and said, "This Youfu, how could he keep doing such foolish things?"

Chen Yancheng added from the side, "That's right. My wife and I were dumbfounded when we heard that. Uncle Tian came to our house this morning and was vague in his explanation, putting all the blame on him."

"And then, as you can imagine, the manager went to buy meat and happened to go to Butcher Li's shop, where Butcher Li was slaughtering five animals in his own pen."

When we arrived, Uncle Li was saying that he was out of stock and was going to the village below to buy pigs that afternoon. He told us to just bring the meat over, offering us 1.8 taels per pig without haggling. In the end, although Uncle Li would make less profit on this batch, he saved us a lot of trouble. After all that, we ended up getting a great deal.

After listening, Grandma Chen remained silent for a moment, and finally said simply, "Greed knows no bounds. This is a lesson learned. We have no conscience keeping this money."

Chen Wanxing listened quietly, still having some questions in her mind. "Why would people from this county come to the Tian family to order meat? It's so troublesome, and the price they're offering isn't low either."

"I'm not sure about that."

In the late afternoon, when the Tian family drove the oxcart to the Chen family's house, Grandma Chen directly paid him eight taels of silver. Tian Youfu felt a great weight lifted off his shoulders. Although he earned less than he had expected, at least he hadn't lost everything.

Once Brother Chen, Father Chen, and Uncle Chen each drove an oxcart to deliver the processed pork to Butcher Li in town, the matter was considered settled.

After they finished packing and were ready to leave, Grandma Chen said to Mr. Chen, "Of the money we earned this time, and all this offal, we'll keep half for ourselves and send the rest to Hui Niang's parents. We're so grateful to our in-laws for mediating this; we can't let them benefit from our kindness."

Hui Niang smiled and said, "Grandma, don't worry, I know. I already discussed how to distribute the money with Father in town this afternoon. Father was initially unwilling to accept it, but Da Lang persuaded him, and he finally accepted it. As for these offal bones..."

She pointed to the other portion that had been divided up, "The elderly couple are small and don't eat much. It would be a waste if it spoiled. Let Dalang take this thicker portion to his parents so they can have an extra dish. We'll keep the rest for ourselves."

Grandma Chen nodded in satisfaction after hearing this: "It's good that you know what's going on."