Chapter 109: Picking Up Good Fortune Without Worries

  Niú Xiǎo Huā's eyes were filled with affection for Niú Lǎo Gēn, although she felt happy now, there was still some regret. If only she could have spent two more years by her father's side, how good that would be, but unfortunately, it was not up to her.

  "That's good, that's good..." Niu Laogen's eyes welled up with tears as he felt a weight lift off his mind. Seeing his daughter's improved complexion and her new clothes and silver hairpin, he knew the Zhong family had not mistreated her, and only then did Niu Laogen's heart finally find peace.

  "Dad......" Niu Xiaohua wanted him to stop crying, but she didn't say it out loud, and she started tearing up, unable to control herself.

  Zhong Gensheng smiled and said, "You guys, it's not like you can't see each other, what's the point of this?! Hurry up and sit down, Old Gen, I'll pour you a glass of water. We don't have tea at home, so I won't offer you any..."

  "Water will do, I'm just about to go down to the fields and work, I'm exhausted."

  In fact, in slightly better-off households, there is usually some coarse tea leaves boiled water for receiving guests. However, at that time, the Zhong family even had to be frugal with their meals, let alone having spare money to buy tea. So, they were accustomed to a life without tea. Only now did they realize that it was indeed inconvenient when someone came over. Although no one else visited their home either, not having tea made them feel somewhat uneasy. Thus, Zhong Gen thought about buying some coarse tea while he poured a cup of water for Niu Laogen.

  In the countryside, there's no need to be so particular. A large bowl of water was poured and Niu Laogen took it in his hands and gulped it down, laughing: "This water has been chilled, it's very refreshing..."

  "Yes, my family's Tuniu is afraid of heat, so every day a big pot of boiling water is cooled and then put into a wooden plate to be placed in the well to chill, and then taken out to drink very comfortably......" Zhong Gensheng smiled and said: "The autumn tiger is also very hot..."

  "Yeah..." Old Cow took a break and said: "Is there anything I can help with? I'll come to assist you..."

  "No, you'd better keep chatting with Xiaohua, there are many people doing chores at home..." Zhong Gensheng smiled and said: "Xiaohua is a diligent and not talkative person, let her take a break today, usually doing housework and sewing is also tiring..."

  He Axiu smiled and said: "Yes, Xiaohua's embroidery is indeed better than mine..."

  Niu Xiaohua lowered her head shyly, and Niu Laogen saw that the faint smile on her face had dispelled his original worries. In his heart, the last bit of doubt also dissipated... This lifetime, this was probably the best decision he had ever made...

  Niu Laogen suddenly felt enlightened, and the things that had been weighing on his mind for days were gone. He was in a particularly good mood, and without saying anything, he took over the task of chopping wood. Zhong Gensheng wanted to take it back but couldn't, and in the end, he could only let her do it.

  Niu Laogen is also a honest man, he just wants to work harder so that others can treat his daughter better, and it's also a way to repay the kindness of her husband's family to his daughter. Besides, he isn't a talkative person, as long as he sees his daughter living a good life, there's no need to say too much. Moreover, if he says too much, it might involve Tian Guifang, and that would make his daughter very sad. So, he'd rather keep silent and focus on working hard.

  He Ashu also came to persuade, but didn't succeed, and could only helplessly say: "Gensheng, you didn't stop him either. If I had known earlier, I would have let Old Gen come over later... this..."

  Zhong Gensheng smiled and said, "Forget it, he's just that kind of person, like the people in our family. If he wants to do these things on his own, we'll just let him be. I haven't had a chance to buy wine yet, now I'll go buy some..."

  He Qiu Xi hastily said: "Then let's hurry up and go..."

  "Ah..." Zhong Gensheng said, and then he left the yard. He also has a daughter who gives him pocket money now. Although it's only a little more than five taels of silver, this so-called pocket money is more than what they earned in a year before. He is very happy now...

  Everyone in the family has some small money on them, Shen Sisi lets them spend it as they please. If all that comes in never goes out and one toils too much for money without enjoying it, then that's not fun at all. However, she herself has even more, if she saves a bit more, she can buy a piece of land and build a house.

  Zhong Gensheng bought two bottles of wine back, put them down and smiled: "Tuniang, tomorrow early father still has to go collect pigs, you take them to sell braised meat in the city..."

  Unconsciously, I have already treated Shen Sisi as an adult.

  "Tomorrow, I'll take a day off and see how they do on their own. I can't always be holding their hands, after all. Let them try it themselves for once. Now that Er Gouzi is also on the right path, as long as Da Bao follows suit, everything will be fine..."

  Dabao, she wants to cultivate him into a generation of entrepreneurs, Dabao must follow from start to finish, so he has to go. Shen Sisi, on the other hand, needs to let go slowly, anyway, she only needs to manage the overall situation, it's impossible for her to do everything personally...

  Zhong Gensheng smiled and nodded: "Then let Dabao be more careful..."

  Dabao listened and still felt a bit apprehensive, tomorrow Dad won't be there either, Shen Sisi won't be there either, he has already become dependent on Shen Sisi, suddenly very nervously said: "...... Tuniu, tomorrow I'm alone?!"

  She shot him a slanted glance and said, "What? Afraid of miscalculating?! I teach you arithmetic every day, just remember it well, come back and recalculate the accounts for me to see, how can there be mistakes?!"

  As soon as Da Bao heard her mention the problem of accounting, he immediately shut up. He was a bit stupid in reading and had no talent for accounting, but fortunately, he was meticulous and honest. Although he calculated slowly, he never made any mistakes. He didn't dare to disobey Shen Sisi, fearing that she would scold him for being bad at studying. Heaven knows, he had already been beaten several times for his poor performance in reading, writing, and accounting, making the second, third, and fourth treasures laugh at him. Those two little guys were clever and learned quickly, but why was there such a big difference between them? Even the fourth treasure was also quick to learn, making Da Bao feel ashamed. Sometimes he felt inferior, but fortunately, Shen Sisi had already beaten him during those times, and when it hurt, he didn't have time to think about how inferior he was. Otherwise, compared to others, he would have gone crazy...

  "You'll have to take care of yourself from now on, or are you going to rely on me for the rest of your life?!" Shen Sisi smiled and said: "Good boy, Da Bao, listen to me, as long as you put your heart into it, you'll definitely do well. If anything happens, come back and tell me, if someone is causing trouble, isn't there Si Bao? Let him handle it..."

  "......" Si Bao was shaving the hair off a pig's trotter, and upon hearing this, his mouth twitched. Damn it, did he think she was a dog or something? Could he just let her go whenever he wanted? Could he just get on top of her whenever he wanted?! This was... too despicable! However, he only dared to mock her in his heart, but didn't dare say it out loud...

  "Uh-huh." Dabao didn't dare not respond, and could only steel himself to get ready, no matter what. He couldn't let Tuni find fault with him and have another reason to beat him up.

  In the afternoon, Shen Sisi finished braising four pots of meat and dried tofu, then transferred them to wooden barrels. After emptying the pots, she cut off the pig's ears, took out some braised tofu, and sliced a large plate of braised meat, arranging it neatly on a platter. He Axiu quickly stir-fried several small dishes in the backyard, adding a large plate of braised pig's trotters and a big pot of pork miscellaneous soup, filling the table to the brim. He Axiu even started simmering bone broth in the kitchen to prepare for wrapping white noodles...

  When Niu Laogen sat down at the table, he was completely stunned. He never thought the dishes would be so good, even better than during Chinese New Year. Suddenly, he became restless and said: "Laogen, I'm not an outsider, why did you prepare so many dishes?!"

  Zhong Gensheng said, "There's nothing special about the dishes, we usually eat this at home too. We kill pigs every day and these are all good things left over. Try some, this is made by my family's Tuniang, it tastes extremely good, especially the braised pig's trotters that go perfectly with wine..."

  He Axiu smiled and said, "Lao Gen, don't be polite, in the past our family couldn't afford to eat these things, it's just that now we're doing this braised meat business, these are all leftover materials..."

  Niu Laogen still wasn't at ease, and whispered: "...... I should have bought some wine." He had originally come to see his daughter with a single-minded devotion, but had forgotten these social niceties.

  Niu Xiaohua sat beside Niu Laogen and said: "Dad, don't think too much about it, we eat these at home every day..."

  "Really?!" The pressure on Niu Laogen was relieved, and he finally let out a sigh of relief, looking at Xiaohua with delight. Such good food, no wonder Xiaohua's complexion has improved a lot recently, so that's how it is.

  Zhong Gen Sheng hastily patted the mud seal of the wine and said: "Come, old Gen, let's have a drink. Today, we'll drink more than usual. We won't stop until we're drunk... Between us, to be honest... from now on, we'll be like one family..."

  Niu Xiaohua and Da Bao's faces turned red, they just lowered their heads and didn't speak.

  Niu Laogen also relaxed and laughed: "Right, you're absolutely right. Family members don't stand on ceremony with each other. Come, let's have a drink..."

  Shen Sisi was secretly delighted on one side, eating pastry on the other, and waiting for the bone soup to be cooked to eat wontons.

  Fortunately, the filling was already ready and the dough had been rolled out. The aroma of bone soup wafted out, and Shen Sisi and Niu Xiaohua entered the kitchen to start wrapping the dumplings. A large pot was put down, and after a while, several bowls were brought out. Each person got a big bowl, and with a smile, said: "Eat this, it's made from white flour, look at how crystal clear and fragrant it is!"

  Niu Laogen looked at it and smiled with satisfaction after taking a bite, saying: "Delicious, this flavor is much better than the ones on the street..."

  Zhong Gensheng's tongue got a bit bigger from drinking, and his face turned red as he said: "...Old Gen, our family is living a much better life now. In the past, the children were always hungry... I really couldn't bear it. Before, we could hardly eat meat once a year, but now we can eat it every day. Seeing the kids doing well, I...I feel at ease... sob..."

  Zhong Gen Sheng was almost bursting with excitement, and after a few drinks, he lost control of himself and slurred: "......That year's drought almost drove our Zhong family to the brink of disaster...now it's all good...our Tuniang is our little financial god, she's the lucky charm we picked up..."