A fierce wife enters the house: She helps up a house full of spineless people.

Wang Xiaobao ran all the way to the Chen family's house and bumped into Chen Tianfang walking out.

"Brother-in-law, is my sister home?"

Seeing that he was covered in sweat and looked unwell, Chen Tianfang stepped aside to let him pass: "You're mixing powder, what's wrong?"

Wang Xiaobao didn't answer; he went straight to find his sister.

Wang Jinzhu was scraping a plate of incense powder with a bamboo skewer when she heard footsteps. She looked up and saw her third brother standing at the door with a livid face, his hands supporting his knees as he panted.

"Little sister, something is missing from Tianwei's dowry chest."

Wang Jinzhu stopped spinning the bamboo strips.

What's missing?

"Two lip rouges, one bright red and one bean paste colored. A jar of face cream, the kind that hasn't been touched even with the sealing wax. Tianwei said that yesterday morning, Liu Yiyi and Chen Xiufen went to her room specifically to take a look, touched the box, and asked what was inside."

Wang Jinzhu put down the bamboo strips and patted the powder off her hands.

"What did Tianwei say?"

"She said it's up to you to decide."

In the courtyard, Chen Tianfang followed him in. Hearing this, he slammed his fist on the doorframe: "It's the second wife again! I'm going to search her room right now!"

"What are you going to search?" Wang Jinzhu stopped him. "If you go over there now, what will you find?"

Chen Tianfang was stunned.

Wang Jinzhu pulled up a stool and sat down, gesturing for Wang Xiaobao to sit as well.

"Think about it, if you stole something, would you leave it at home and wait for someone to look for it? Now, if you rush over and make a scene, and she insists she didn't take it, what will you do? You'll search the whole house and find nothing, and you'll end up with a reputation for bullying a pregnant woman."

Wang Xiaobao gritted his teeth: "So, we're just going to leave it at that?"

"Who said it's okay? Go back and tell Tianwei to go about her business and not take it to heart. I'll replace what she lost."

Wang Xiaobao grew anxious: "The point isn't whether it's fixed or not, it's about this spirit—"

"Angry?" Wang Jinzhu looked at him. "Don't worry, I'll definitely help you get revenge."

She stood up and wiped the remaining powder off her hands on her apron.

"Liu Yiyi stole it, so she definitely wouldn't dare use it herself. If she uses it in the village, within three days the whole village will know that I made the makeup. How will she explain where it came from then on? Her only option is to sell it."

Chen Tianfang realized what was happening: "You mean, wait for her to sell it?"

"I'm not just waiting for her to sell," Wang Jinzhu said with a slight smile. "I'm waiting for her to get a taste of success. Once she's made money from stealing once, do you think she can resist stealing a second time? That's not just a few dozen coins; I don't believe she can resist the temptation of a few taels of silver."

Wang Xiaobao sighed: "Okay, I'll do as you say."

He walked to the door, then turned back: "Little sister, what if she doesn't come to steal it?"

"She will come," Wang Jinzhu said confidently. "Greed is something that can never be satisfied."

As Wang Jinzhu had predicted, Liu Yiyi had sold the items the day before.

Liu Yiyi went to the Wang family's house for a banquet with the wedding procession the day before yesterday. When she returned, she had an extra cloth bag in her sleeve.

The cloth was wrapped in three layers, with two tubes of lip balm and a jar of face cream inside.

She didn't stay in the village. On her way back, she said she wasn't feeling well and wanted to go back to her parents' home to rest during her pregnancy. Despite being heavily pregnant, she hitched a ride on an oxcart and went into the town.

She went to a cosmetics shop on West Street called "Jinxiang Pavilion". The shop was small, with a half-new, half-old paint on the facade, and it specialized in selling rouge and face powder to the small families in the town.

When Liu Yiyi entered, the shopkeeper was behind the counter using an abacus.

"Shopkeeper, do you accept good goods or not?"

The shopkeeper was a thin man in his forties. He glanced at her, his gaze falling on her protruding belly before moving to the cloth bag in her hand.

"have a look."

Liu Yiyi opened the cloth bag, and three items were lined up on the counter.

The shopkeeper picked up the bright red lipstick, unscrewed it, examined the product closely, and then tested it on the back of his hand. The color was even, the texture was delicate, and it didn't clump or dry out his skin.

He opened the jar of face cream; the wax seal was intact. He picked out a little and crushed it between his fingertips. It was smooth but not greasy, with a faint floral scent.

The shopkeeper's expression changed.

"Where did this come from?"

"It was given to me by my elders," Liu Yiyi said without changing her expression. "I don't need it, but I wanted to exchange it for some money to supplement my household income."

The shopkeeper then peeled back the bean paste-colored lip rouge to examine it, pondered for a moment, and said, "Three items, five taels."

Liu Yiyi's heart skipped a beat.

Five taels?

She had been married into the Chen family for almost a year, and Chen Shuyan's tuition, including writing materials, cost him no more than twenty taels of silver a year. Five taels of silver was enough for her family's study to earn for half a month.

Just these three little things?

She swallowed, trying to keep her voice calm: "Okay."

With the money in hand, Liu Yiyi tucked it into her bosom and turned to leave.

"Miss," the shopkeeper called out to her from behind.

Liu Yiyi turned around.

The shopkeeper carefully wrapped the three items in cotton paper and put them into a hidden compartment under the counter before slowly speaking:

"Goods of this quality fetch a good price in the prefectural city. If you have any more, bring them over; I'll buy as many as you have. The price is negotiable."

Liu Yiyi paused for a moment, then nodded and left the shop.

Walking down the street, she kept her hand clutching the silver ingot in her bosom, her heart pounding like a drum.

Five taels.

How much would it cost Wang Jinzhu to make these things? Oil, flower petals, powder—just boil them on the stove and press them into molds. The set in Chen Tianwei's dowry box was worth at least twenty taels.

Twenty taels.

Liu Yiyi walked a few steps in the town, but couldn't catch her breath. She found a tea stall, sat down, and ordered a bowl of cold tea.

She sat there, her fingers unconsciously stroking the rim of the bowl, her mind filled with numbers.

How much does Wang Jinzhu produce in a month? That workshop has three large woks, two helpers, and they work day and night...

She thought of the construction site of the new house, the blue brick walls, the broken porcelain shards, and the courtyard wall that was two people high.

Those were all built with silver.

Liu Yiyi's hands tightened.

She had a second idea.

But that hope was quickly dashed—she was over four months pregnant, unable to climb walls, scale windows, or even run fast. If caught red-handed, given Wang Jinzhu's temperament, she might very well be tied up and sent to the county government.

No, I can't do it myself.

But those things were displayed in the next room, all prepared, dried, and packaged, jar after jar, bottle after bottle, neatly stacked on the shelf.

She saw it with her own eyes. She went around to the front of Wang Jinzhu's house and looked inside.

How much silver is that room full of goods worth?

Liu Yiyi was filled with excitement and hurried towards the academy. She needed to find someone to discuss it with.