The Daily Life of a Down-on-Hard-Life Medicine Girl Supporting Her Family

Chapter 90

"Neither, it's for skincare."

Considering that Zhao Minghua was a loyal partner, Chunnuan decided not to hide it from him.

"This product I made is only suitable for women. People in Changzhou are willing to spend money, but there aren't many truly wealthy people."

Chun Nuan smiled and said, "I'm not trying to discourage you, but you won't know how low your official rank is until you go to the capital, and you won't know how much wealth you have until you go to the capital."

Zhao Minghua... That really hits home; there's no comparison.

The Zhao family wasn't even considered one of the four great families in Changzhou, let alone in the capital.

"What I make is very expensive; a small box of it can sell for tens of taels of silver..."

Zhao Minghua couldn't listen to anything else; all he could think about was how much money he was going to make.
"Could you spare some for me to sell?"

“We can’t divide it.” Chunnuan said, “You know that my elder sister is isolated in the capital. Money is her biggest source of confidence. I want her to do this exclusive business. Only limited and exclusive products will have high value.”

If the same product appears in Changzhou, where does the sense of superiority come from for those wealthy ladies who line up to pay deposits?
"What they are buying is not a cosmetic, but a status and position."

Zhao Minghua... always thought he was a business genius, that he could get rich. Turns out he was too naive; this guy was the real hidden master!
He never thought that far ahead when he was doing business.

Since the teahouse opened a women's section and started selling exclusive pastries, money has been pouring in like snowflakes.

From then on, I never envied the business of the teahouse across the street again.

Especially in the dead of winter, the business of the herbal tea shop across the street plummeted, while the number of female guests on their side increased significantly. It is no exaggeration to say that if the ladies and young women of Changzhou wanted to meet with their close friends, their first choice would be their teahouse.

The reason we were able to make money was because Chunnuan came up with a great idea.

At the time, I only knew that she had mentioned it casually.

Now I realize they are truly amazing.

“Well, actually…” Zhao Minghua thought for a moment and rearranged his words: “I’m not trying to steal your older sister’s business. What I mean is, we can cooperate. You can be in charge of producing these products, and I can be in charge of selling them.”

Chunnuan asked if he hadn't understood, as it was unique in the capital.

"Actually, I could also open a shop in Beijing."

Spring is warm... A newborn calf is not afraid of a tiger, that's exactly the kind of person he is.

For the Zhao family to have such a large fortune and establish themselves in the capital is truly wishful thinking.

Moreover, those who open shops in the capital and make real money all have powerful backers. With his limited cleverness, he would never be able to make it in the world without such backing.

Whenever business is good and profitable, it can easily provoke people to become aggressive.

"I'm telling the truth, I want to become the richest man in Great Xia."

Chunnuan nodded to indicate that she understood, and of course, what partners need is praise.

"You are still young. After many years of hard work, you will definitely become the richest man in the Great Xia Dynasty."

Dreaming in broad daylight isn't a crime, so she won't lose anything by praising it a couple of times.

"You do not believe?"

Spring is here... I said I believed you, but you wouldn't listen; I said I didn't believe you, but that would hurt your pride.

"Just wait, I will definitely become the richest man in the Great Xia Dynasty."

“Okay, then I can show off to outsiders: I have a friend who is the richest man in the Great Xia.”

"puff"

They both laughed.

One took it seriously, the other took it as a joke.

Zhao Minghua ultimately failed to gain any benefit from Chunnuan, which was quite regrettable.

"By the way, I heard from Qingsheng that your family is building a house in the village. Are you going to move back to the village after it's finished?"

"Probably, but I will still ask Master Zhang to rent this courtyard. It will be more convenient to process the medicinal herbs here."

“Yes, yes, that’s what I was thinking too. It’s really more convenient for you to live in this town. It’s also less troublesome for us to deliver and pick up medicine.” Zhao Minghua said, “Otherwise, you can stop renting this courtyard from Master Zhang and move directly to our courtyard next door.”

"What? You're saying the neighbor's yard is yours?"

"It was part of my mother's dowry."

So, is it true that Wu Ma felt like someone was watching her yard all the time?
Was he really spying on his own family?

The thought of this possibility made Chunnuan feel terrible.

"you……"

I want to ask, but I have no proof. Besides, it seems like they didn't break any rules by looking out from their own yard.

"What's wrong? Tell me, don't beat around the bush. I'm not used to it being you anymore."

Chunnuan struck him as a capable and decisive woman, straightforward and rarely seemed conflicted.

"It's nothing, just sell me some of these herbs."

"Take it if you want, you don't need to pay. We don't have much else, but we have plenty of medicine."

Although she was telling the truth, Chunnuan didn't want to owe him too much.

Often, it's easy to repay a debt of money, but a debt of gratitude can last forever.

"You have to pay for it, otherwise I won't take it and I'll buy it outside."

"No, no, no, I'm a businessman. There's no reason for me to turn down money when I can make it. I'll give you a price, see if that works for you?"

Zhao Minghua's price was the true cost price, and Chunnuan expressed her special gratitude.

Is there anything I can help with in the yard at the entrance of your village?

"Uncle Luo is currently looking after her, and Chun Ning is learning from him, so there's not much she can do to help."

"Your Uncle Luo is really a kind-hearted person."

Zhao Minghua also wanted to go and help, but then he thought that he was too weak to carry anything and would only embarrass himself if he went there.

"That's right, Uncle Luo is so kind, he taught us how to grow crops and vegetables..."

Without his help, the Xiao family wouldn't have been able to get many of their jobs done.

Chun Ning felt somewhat helpless about doing farm work, but she couldn't refuse it; she had no choice but to keep doing it to survive.

"Also, your younger brother Chun Ning, in just one year, yes, almost a year, I never expected him to be able to stand on his own." Zhao Minghua said, "Really, Chun Ning's excellence makes my stupidity stand out. I must never let my parents know how capable Chun Ning is."

Zhao Minghua disliked doing these mundane things the most; they were simply a waste of time.

He would never burden anyone with a problem that could be solved with money.

There's no need to go through all this trouble with the Xiao family's house renovation. They could simply find a few craftsmen, tell them what they want, and then hand it over to them to do. There's no need for anything like contracting out labor and meals.

"Children of poor families mature early; hardship forces us to grow up." Chunnuan couldn't help but feel this way.

The Xiao family's siblings were all forced to grow up overnight.

Their first trip outside the capital was to return to their ancestral home in Sichuan.

After returning to Shu and being expelled from the Xiao clan, the Xiao family members embarked on countless firsts.

The first time she lit a fire to cook, her eldest sister-in-law burned the kitchen to the ground.

It was the first time she had ever dug for wild vegetables, and the first time she had ever gone into the river to catch crabs without a second thought, just to fill her stomach.

The first time I dug soil to plant, the first time I watched the vegetable seedlings I planted grow day by day, blossom and bear fruit...

Back in Sichuan, every first time is an experience, and such experiences naturally help one grow. After seeing Zhao Minghua off, Chunnuan stood by the wall for a long time.

"Young lady, what's wrong with you...?"

The wet nurse, Wu Ma, looked at her in confusion, wondering if the lecherous man next door had cheated on her again.

"Aunt Wu, I remember a kind of bamboo that doesn't grow very tall, but it can grow as tall as this wall?"

"Yes, we call it spotted bamboo. It's a small bamboo, not very tall."

"Where can we get the seeds? We'll plant them right next to this wall."

“My family has them.”

"Then go back to your parents' home tomorrow to dig some up and plant them."

Wu Ma said yes.

Wu Ma is also very efficient and never requires anyone to worry about her.

The next morning, she fed Xiao Muyang milk, and then told Chunnuan that she was going back to her parents' home to dig up spotted bamboo.

"Aunt Wu, wait a moment."

Chunnuan quickly went to the kitchen and packed two bags of the pastries she had made that morning.

“Aunt Wu, since it’s a married daughter returning to her parents’ home, we can’t just take things without giving anything in return. These pastries are soft and chewy, and they’re perfect for older people. You can take them back for your mother to eat.”

"Miss, I can't accept such expensive pastries."

Wu Ma declined repeatedly.

She knew how precious Chunnuan's pastries were, as they contained not only eggs but also some medicinal herbs.

“This is good for the spleen and stomach,” Chunnuan said. “There’s a reason why it’s especially suitable for the elderly.”

"Then I thank you, young lady."

Wu Ma really didn't expect that Chun Nuan would treat her so well, even though she was just a wet nurse, and even reminded her to bring some pastries when she went back to her parents' home.

Wu Ma went back to her parents' home and gave the pastries to her own mother.

"Mother, isn't your stomach and spleen not very good? Try this pastry." Wu Ma said, "This was made by our master's daughter herself. Please have a taste."

The old lady tasted it and praised it highly.

"If you could bring this recipe back, we could open a shop..."

After finishing his speech, he didn't forget to scold his daughter, saying she was stupid.

"Mother, what are you thinking?" How could you possibly let someone else know your recipe? "These pastries were made by our master himself; how could she possibly let me know the recipe?"

As for opening a shop, Wu Shi had no involvement whatsoever, and she was quite farsighted, having rejected her mother's request early on.

“You silly child, anything is possible if you put your mind to it. If you want it, how can you not get it?” Wu’s mother said. “Go and get it back. We’ll open a shop, and life will be better from now on. You won’t have to put up with their bullying anymore.”

"talk later."

Ms. Wu was annoyed, so she had no choice but to agree casually.

Right now, he was furious. The girl was good to him, but his own mother wanted him to be ruthless.

"Oh, right, Mother, I need to dig up some bamboo to plant back home."

Ms. Wu explained her purpose for coming.

As a result, her own mother made her give money.

"You're so stupid to come all the way back to your parents' house to get these things? You need money to buy them. You can't side with your family."

"How much does that cost?"

Wu found it incredibly ironic that these bamboo stalks weren't planted by him when he was a child, and now he wasn't even allowed to dig up a single one.

"Not much, one tael of silver is enough for one bamboo."

"You could have just robbed it, why are you being so civilized?" Wu laughed in exasperation; they really knew how to push their luck.

"What do you mean by that?" Old Mrs. Wu was so angry that she started cursing again: "You can only be well if your family is doing well, and only then will you have someone to back you up. You idiot, what can't you take? If you want to dig up my bamboo, it's one or two taels of silver per stalk, there's no price to haggle over."

Wu took one last look at the spotted bamboo next to the house. Oh well, she found it herself back then, so she'll just go look for it again.

"Hey, where are you going?"

When Grandma Wu saw her daughter leave, it meant the deal was off.

“I’ll go back and tell the owner that you want one tael of silver per piece. If the owner says he wants to buy it, I’ll bring you the silver. If he says he doesn’t want to buy it, I won’t come.”

Anyway, not only did I come here for nothing, but I also lost two boxes of pastries. I feel like I've suffered a huge loss.

"Alright, go ask quickly, and come dig it up as soon as you find out. There's a lot of rain in early spring, so if you dig it up and plant it, it will grow."

With a tael of silver and a bamboo pole, Old Lady Wu could almost see the silver crushing her to death.

Instead of actually going home, Ms. Wu went to climb the mountain. She used to run there two or three times a day when she was a child, but when she came back to the mountain more than ten years later, she found that she could not find the way at all.

But in order to dig up the bamboo that Chunnuan needed, she gritted her teeth and cleared a path as she walked.

"Hmm, what kind of grass is this?" Wu examined the roadside weeds closely. "It seems to be a kind of medicinal herb. I can't remember the name for the time being. No, I'll pick some for Chunnuan to take back."

Wu walked along the mountain path, which was already closed off, picking herbs as she went, her steps uneven.

Finally, we arrived at the place where we had dug up the spotted bamboo years ago. As far as the eye could see, there was a vast expanse of bamboo.

"My mother really is..."

She actually thought she could make a fortune off this rotten hillside. What was she thinking?
Wu wielded her hoe and dug them out one by one.

After digging up dozens of them, Wu carried them back to town.

"Girl, the bamboo you requested has been dug up."

"So many! Did you dig up all the bamboo from your mother's family?"

"No, I have many relatives from my family."

Wu never mentioned her family's greed, as that was truly shameful.

People really do change.

Back then, my mother was someone who thought of herself, but after she got married, she only had eyes for her son and no longer cared about her daughter.

She asked for a single bamboo stalk for one or two taels of silver; she never considered how she should behave in the employer's household.

"That must have been very hard on you."

Chunnuan said, "Let's rest today and plant them tomorrow."

"It's alright, I'm not tired, I can still plant them."

As spring warmed the air, the Wu family planted a dense thicket of bamboo around the area surrounding their fence.

The bamboo wasn't very tall, but it was just taller than the wall. That meant that if the neighbors wanted to climb over the wall and peek at something, they would have to stand on tiptoe, which was a very risky thing to do. They probably wouldn't do it again.

Zhao Minghua, who was next door, looked up and was dumbfounded: What's going on?

I didn't go back to this little courtyard overnight, and a lush green bamboo has grown on the wall.

Standing on the wooden ladder again, I tried to see what the other side was all about, but I couldn't see anything, not even a tiny bit.

(End of this chapter)