After wearing it: I traded a pig for a man.

After driving Jiang Mancang away, Jiang Yunning started pestering Jiang Yuntian.

"Brother, I haven't been home during the day, and Jiang Mancang still came by?" She asked curiously, wanting to know how Jiang Yuntian got rid of him.

Jiang Yuntian nodded and wiped his sweat: "They came the day before yesterday, and I chased them away with a carrying pole."

"Why didn't you tell me?" She handed him the water ladle, her face full of anticipation. "If you had told me earlier, I would have stormed into his house tonight."

Jiang Yuntian's face darkened: "You're a girl, and you're always fighting and killing."

Hearing this, Jiang Yunning was unhappy and was about to retort when she heard Jiang Yuntian say, "How can you fight so many by yourself? Next time, remember to bring Dahei and Erhei along. And call Jiang Che and me too."

He looked serious and didn't think there was anything wrong with what he said, holding the water ladle and drinking water in big gulps.

Jiang Yun Ning's tone softened unconsciously: "I know, next time you get into a fight, call for backup first."

She pursed her lips, feeling very satisfied.

Suddenly, she felt that she had come here because God saw that she had suffered too much in her previous life, so He arranged for her to experience what it is like to be loved by her family.

Jiang Yun Ning looked up and sniffed, her nose feeling a little sore.

When she has the ability, she will do more good deeds, as a way to accumulate merit for her next life.

"You should go back now. It's hot and dirty in here," Jiang Yuntian urged, "Be careful, watch your step, it's all stones."

Jiang Yun Ning nodded and left with light steps.

When she returned to the courtyard, Liu Yuzhi and Wang Cuihua were still boiling water, so she sat down next to them and picked vegetables with Old Lady Liu and Aunt Hua.

"Yun Ning, is Qingshan Academy still accepting students? How much is the annual tuition?" Aunt Hua suddenly asked.

Jiang Yun Ning looked up: "The introductory class costs two taels of silver and five catties of pork a year. Are you sending Xiao Douzi there?"

Xiao Douzi is only seven years old and can't read yet, so she'll definitely be assigned to the beginner's class like Jiang Anhe. Having the two of them together will put her at ease.

Aunt Hua nodded: "This is Chunmei. She earned some money working at your house and thought that Xiaodouzi shouldn't end up like us, blind even though he has eyes.

She sighed, "It's a bit expensive, but our family income has increased recently, so we can afford it."

Jiang Yunning smiled: "Auntie, it just so happens that we pick up and drop off Anhe every day, so we can give Douzi a ride along the way. But we need to hurry, it seems like the enrollment period for this year is almost over."

"Okay. I'll have his father ask tomorrow." Aunt Hua nodded without being polite.

Jiang Che returned around noon.

After tying up the oxcart, he entered the yard, carrying a straw hat in his hand.

Jiang Yuning had already prepared the ice jelly, and was just waiting for him to come back, load it into the car, and then they could go to the academy.

"Here you go." Jiang Che lowered his eyes and didn't look up.

Jiang Yun Ning casually wiped the water off her hands and clothes, then glanced at him: "Straw hat?"

Jiang Che nodded, feeling that even if he didn't look at her, his ears would still burn.

My heart was pounding, and I cleared my throat awkwardly: "The sun is too strong, you should take this and wear it on the street."

After saying that, without waiting for Jiang Yun Ning's reaction, he quickly stuffed her into her arms and went into the kitchen to get the ice jelly.

Jiang Yuning took it in her hand and examined it a few times; the person who made the straw hat was quite skilled.

"Mother, Jiang Che and I are going to sell ice jelly." Jiang Yun Ning put her straw hat on her head, called out, waved, and got into the oxcart.

As soon as Jiang Yun Ning stepped out of the village, she saw a hand suddenly extended in front of her.

"This is the money you gave me this morning. I haven't spent it," Jiang Che said.

Jiang Yun Ning looked at the tael of silver with suspicion: "Did you steal this straw hat?"

Jiang Che shook his head: "No. I met an old man selling straw hats when I was going uphill, and I bought one from him. He was pushing his wooden cart and couldn't climb up, so I helped him. He didn't ask me for any money."

"It's not easy for the old man to sell straw hats, we can't just take his hats for free," Jiang Yun Ning replied.

Jiang Che nodded: "I didn't take it for nothing, I gave him two pounds of tomatoes."

Jiang Yun Ning's lips twitched: "Do you know how much a straw hat costs?"

A straw hat costs seven or eight coins, and a better one costs less than fifteen coins. But a pound of tomatoes, delivered to Fumanlou, can sell for twenty-five coins.

"I don't know." Jiang Che shook his head. He had no recollection of ever buying a straw hat before. Moreover, he didn't even have time to ask the price before the old man said he didn't need any money.

"Never mind." Jiang Yun Ning sighed, deciding to just consider it a good deed.

Moreover, once tomatoes become more widely available, the price won't be so high anymore.

The two fell silent again, and Jiang Che racked his brains trying to think of something he could say.

"How was Jiang Mancang's matter resolved this morning? Did he take any action?" Jiang Che turned to look at her.

Jiang Yun Ning, somewhat curious, tilted her head and leaned closer: "When did you start caring about these things?"

Jiang Che looked away and remained silent, pursing his lips.

"He just said a few scares and ran away. He's not very brave; he's always daydreaming about getting rich quick. He's actually a coward. He's both a wimp and a pretentious coward."

Perhaps because Jiang Che took the initiative to speak, Jiang Yun Ning was in a great mood and recounted the entire process after Jiang Che left that morning, word for word.

He was especially happy when talking about Granny Li.

"You didn't see the look on her face back then, hahaha, it looked just like when you first came to our house and stepped in pig manure."

Jiang Che didn't seem to care that his embarrassment had been brought up again; he simply frowned and asked, "So, do you still have feelings for Song Minglang?"

Although Jiang Yuning's actions had shown that she no longer cared about Song Minglang, Jiang Che still wanted to hear her tell him in person.

"Are you alright?" Jiang Yun Ning glanced at him a few times. "Why would I leave someone as handsome as you at home to go after that gigolo?"

Jiang Che's eyes brightened slightly, but then he looked disappointed: "But I'm also being supported by you."

Since he came to the Jiang family, he has had no chance to go out and earn money. He spends every day following Jiang Yun Ning around like a lackey.

The disappointed tone in Jiang Yun Ning's ears made her begin to take Jiang Che's thoughts seriously.

It seems that Jiang Che's feelings were indeed ignored, making him feel like he was just a freeloader.

"You're not."

Jiang Yun Ning patted him on the shoulder: "You've done a lot of work."

Jiang Che raised his eyebrows and looked at her expectantly.

"Since you came to our house, the pigsty has become very clean. You've done a lot of farm work, taught Anhe to read, and taught me archery. You've also helped me make soap and sell ice jelly. You've even gone hunting with me. You've always protected me whenever there's danger."

As Jiang Yun Ning spoke, she turned to look at him again: "You want your wages?"

It seems we really should give him some money, otherwise Jiang Che, an adult, can't do without some cash on hand.

But she did give it to him, didn't she? Every time Jiang Che had any money left over, he would return it to her.

Jiang Che shook his head: "No, that's not what I meant."

He pursed his lips, and asked somewhat hesitantly, "So, I'm very important to this family and to you, right?"