The husband I snatched halfway through his life is strange.

Chapter 31 So poor?

Making meat sauce is time-consuming and laborious.

Yu Tingwan watched from the side. After seeing that Hui Niang had prepared everything, she picked up a wooden stool, sat down by the stove, and started a fire.

Once the oil in the pan was hot, it sizzled. Hui Niang first rendered the shrimp oil, then poured in the shrimp meat and fried it until crispy.

After taking them out, cut them into uniform small pieces, and then proceed to process the black fungus.

The meat hadn't even been processed yet, but the air was already filled with an irresistible aroma.

Yu Tingwan worked very diligently. When Hui Niang told her to add firewood, she did. When she was told to turn the fire down, she used the long-nose iron shears to pluck out a few pieces of firewood.

The firelight reflected off the beauty mark at the corner of her eye, making the little girl's eyes and brows appear even more radiant.

Hui Niang stirred the food in the pan while talking to her.

"Mom, how old are you now?"

"I'll be eighteen after the New Year."

"Oh dear, at that age, it's time to look for a husband."

Yu Tingwan wholeheartedly agreed with this statement.

She nodded emphatically.

Hui Niang asked casually, and soon started talking to Yu Tingwan about other things.

"I learned how to make this meat sauce from my mother before I got married. It's a pity she passed away early, and I only learned a little bit of her skill."

Even after all this, is it still just the tip of the iceberg?
Upon hearing these words, Yu Tingwan couldn't help but feel sad.

She whispered, "My mother passed away early too."

"She can embroider and sing, and I've learned those skills too."

Yu Tingwan rarely talked about these things with others. People in the village didn't like to mention her mother, and even if they did, they didn't say anything good about her.

But she always felt that Hui Niang was different from others.

She stared intently at Hui Niang, her hand unconsciously gripping the hem of her dress.

Hui Niang paused in her work, her tone surprised, and looked at her with a smile: "Wan Niang can embroider? Not many people in our village know how to embroider, they only know some ordinary sewing and mending. With this skill, you won't have to worry about the future."

A glimmer of light appeared in Yu Tingwan's eyes.

Hui Niang: "You can earn some money by embroidering handkerchiefs and taking them to the embroidery shop. After you get married, your husband's family will think more highly of you."

Yu Tingwan: "Then my skills aren't good enough."

Don't be modest.

Yu Tingwan was not being modest at all.

“I have no patience, and my mother feels sorry for me, so she doesn’t want to teach me anymore.”

How can you not feel sorry for me?

The little girl was delicate and had never suffered much hardship since childhood. She tried her best to stand on tiptoe and raise her hand to get close to her mother's eyes, afraid that her mother would not see her fingertips that were pricked by the needle and bleeding.

And they even had the audacity to speak so arrogantly.

[Mother, shall we stew a chicken for Yao Yao today to help her recover?]

Unfortunately, she was no longer an innocent little girl, and no one was willing to indulge her anymore.

"But I can sing."

Yu Tingwan's tone was calm, but if you listened carefully, you could hear a hint of well-hidden pride: "Every time I want to sing, my dad immediately takes out money, praises my voice, and tells me not to sing."

Wei Zhao:......

Can't you tell it's sarcasm?
The aroma of meat sauce filled the room, and Hui Niang broke out in a sweat from the heat.

Yu Tingwan washed her hands and helped pack the contents into the earthenware jar.

Wei Shouzhong returned at this time. He was covered in snow again and carried a chill with him.

He shivered outside before coming in.

"Alang."

He called out first.

No response.

Wei Shouzhong was used to it.

Hui Niang asked, "Have all those people from other places been taken care of?"

Wei Shouzhong strode forward: "I was just about to tell you about this."

"The village head originally planned to settle three people at our house, five people at Doctor Qian's place, and the rest at Silly Girl's house."

But would Old Man Qian agree to that?
He immediately turned hostile, saying he wasn't short of money! The official replied politely.

"Please help. It's so cold outside, I urge you to save lives."

Old Man Qian was stubborn and made his statement directly.

"That's easy. Come find me when they're almost frozen to death, and I'll see if I can save them."

He is very confident now.

"I'm the one who saved that Wei family boy's life. If it weren't for me, he would have died long ago. That shows I do have that ability."

Wei Shouzhong was preoccupied with something on his mind and said absentmindedly, "In the end, there was no other way but the village head had to find someone else. However, the arrangements were still made properly."

As he spoke, he glanced at Wei Zhao, who was standing in a daze not far away, a strange emotion flashing in his eyes. He hesitated for a moment, then walked out, somewhat mindful of Yu Tingwan beside him.

"Huiniang, come out with me for a moment."

Hearing this tone, Hui Niang became suspicious.

She asked Wei Shouzhong to wait, and after she and Yu Tingwan finished packing the meat sauce, she wiped her hands.

The two walked out one after the other.

Once outside the house, Wei Shouzhong beckoned Huiniang to a corner, and without saying a word, lowered his voice and said...

"Among these outsiders was a matchmaker, who brought with her five girls, all bought from the north and intended to be sold to the south."

In this world, poor people are everywhere, and selling daughters for money is the most common thing.

"Before they came to our Linxi Village, bandits had their eyes on this group, and the matchmaker had all her money stolen. The girls also suffered a lot along the way, and they were all emaciated. Several of them even died of illness. So she thought she would get rid of them as soon as possible, and sell as many as she could."

Upon hearing this, Hui Niang stopped breathing.

She understood what Wei Shouzhong meant and grabbed his arm: "How much silver?"

Wei Shouzhong: "One tael."

Hui Niang's eyes darkened.

The family's savings over the years, plus what the eldest son received that year, add up to only five taels of silver, which is still needed for medical treatment in the county town.

Hui Niang was in a state of confusion: "Let me think about it."

While the two were talking outside, Yu Tingwan walked over to Wei Zhao from inside the kitchen.

A shadow fell over his head, but Wei Zhao did not react.

Yu Tingwan couldn't help but ask, "Why are there stones and tiles in the basket?"

She just couldn't understand it!
Seeing that Wei Zhao did not respond, Yu Tingwan pursed her lips and could only tentatively say, "You've been in the military camp for so many years, you're quite skilled."

Wei Zhao didn't even look at her.

Yu Tingwan spoke to him gently, "Next time you throw it, could you veer slightly to the right?"

He always hits the same spot, and even after such serious injuries, he can still hit like this, which shows his accuracy is quite good. It's just that the spot is much deeper than the surrounding ground, about an arm's length deep.

Yu Tingwan would spend a long time digging in the snow every time.

She was very tired too.

Wei Zhao didn't want to talk to her.

Yu Tingwan: "Keep the medicine for yourself, I don't need it."

Seeing that Wei Zhao showed no signs of anger, Yu Tingwan turned her head and forgot about what Old Man Qian had said earlier.

She even made another request.

"Could you set a fixed time for throwing it?"

She wanted to eat hot eggs.

Wei Zhao slowly raised his eyes, his gaze devoid of any emotion.

He always seemed to possess an imposing presence, as if it were innate. Yet, his sickly appearance ironically made him seem less threatening to others.

Yu Tingwan pursed her lips: "You threw those things away willingly. I didn't steal or rob them. Even if you picked them up and ate them, I won't pay you for them."

Even if you wanted it, I wouldn't have it.

"But when I have money in the future, I..."

Before he could finish speaking, Wei Zhao finally spoke.

It was very unpleasant to hear, and even jarring to Yu Tingwan.

His voice was calm.

"So poor?"