stingy landlady

Chapter 166 Changes

"Oh! Third brother's wife! People say that poor scholars are poor scholars! Your fifth brother's meager savings are barely enough for his own food!"

Now his clothes, shoes, socks, food, and other necessities all depend on your eldest brother! We need to save some grain from the family's sale for your fifth brother, so he can go to the prefectural city to study after spring. He'll have to study for a few more years; they say he'll take the imperial examinations to become a provincial graduate and then a metropolitan graduate!

Anyway, Mom doesn't understand! Your dad said it will take several more years before he can really help you support your education!

It's true what they say, supporting a student requires the entire family to work hard! How is Koizumi's education? If he's not good at it, he'll just learn a few characters!

He has no siblings to help him, and it seems difficult for the third son to earn money on his own!

Qian harbored resentment:

"That old bastard! He sealed the door long ago! Your son and his brothers have to tighten their belts to support his education, while my son only needs to know a few words?"

If these uncles and elders were willing to tighten their belts a little, they might be able to expose Koizumi. But where would they get the money?

Qian was extremely worried. Li also returned from outside, and Zhao immediately fawned over her the moment she saw her!

"Sister-in-law! They're starting to practice Yangko dance tonight! I heard that my brother donated a lot of money this year!"

"Your older brother loves to do Yangko dance! He leads the way every year. Even at his age, he's still like a child! He doesn't spend much money; he just has people buy the fans, ribbons, and paper flowers for the Yangko dance!"

It's just to make the villagers happy!

Li said this with no small amount of pride.

Zhao said enviously:

"Sister-in-law, when the Yangko dance troupe goes to pay New Year's visits on the first day of the Lunar New Year, the first house they should go to is my brother's! They spend so much money, they should at least dance in your yard for an hour or two!"

Mr. Li humbly replied:

"No way! Your older brother said that there's still the village chief's family and some elderly people in our village. We younger generations can't be so presumptuous as to spend a little money!"

Sun echoed:

"Sister-in-law! My eldest brother is right! We shouldn't spend money and then make things complicated for others! That's not worth it! Come on in! My third brother and sister-in-law are back! They're sitting in Mother's room!"

When Li entered the room, she saw that Qian no longer possessed the same spirited demeanor as she had a few years ago. Instead, she exuded a gloomy and melancholic air.

"My third sister-in-law is back! Why isn't she smiling? It's the New Year, so everything else should be put on hold. The New Year is for being happy, right, Mother?"

The old lady smiled too.

"It's rare for your sister-in-law to say something nice! That's right, let's all be happy during the New Year, and we can talk about anything else after the New Year!"

Li then said:

"Mother! I've been kowtowing to you every day, haven't I? Before, I couldn't even open my mouth when I saw you! But now that we're together every day, you're much easier to talk to!"

The old lady scolded:

"Aren't you afraid of me now? You're just bad with words. We're family, so if there's anything you say that's right or wrong, just say it and we'll discuss it! Don't always keep it to yourself, or who knows what you're thinking!"

"Yes, Mother is right! Daughter-in-law will change from now on!"

Li has changed quite a bit. Mainly, she's become more assertive. Every day she comes home to pick beans, soak them, sprout them, and sell them. With these few people together every day, Zhao will fawn over Li, and Sun is easygoing. The old lady, for the sake of the money, will certainly give Li face.

Li gradually grew bolder! Besides, she had earned quite a bit of money from selling her garlic sprouts, and her family never asked her for money. It all went into her own coffers. Money emboldens a beautiful woman, after all!

The old lady was thinking about Guizhi:

"Guizhi hasn't come back yet? Today is the 28th! Tomorrow is the 29th! The day after tomorrow is the 30th, time for New Year's Eve dinner! No, let Dazhu go and bring her back!"

Mr. Li's cautious reply:

"Yes, Mother! I told Dazhu the same thing, and Dazhu said he'll probably be back by tomorrow at the latest! Something must have gotten in the way of Guizhi! Besides, she's just a young girl, she can't really help much if she comes back!"

"She just comes back to eat, drink, and have fun; it's the same for her no matter where she is!"

The old lady disagreed.

"Your father said that Guizhi is our family's lucky star! She's taken care of everything, both inside and outside the house!"

Li Shidao:

“Mother! Why are you worrying about her, she’s just a little girl! It’s all because Dazhu spoils her! He indulges her in everything! She’s only young now, so I let her play around. When she gets older, I’ll have to keep a closer eye on her, so she doesn’t run wild and have trouble finding a husband!”

The old lady could tell that Li Shi still didn't seem to know how good Guizhi was. Although she didn't know either, a granddaughter who was valued by the old man must be good!

Considering that Li was never a particularly intelligent person, he said no more.

Zhao asked:

"Sister-in-law! Guixiang and Guihong didn't come out to play? Are they still at home? Taozhi just said she wanted to play with her sister!"

"Then let her go! These little girls are always thinking about food! They're at home kneading dough, wanting to fry meatballs, and they're even talking about frying twisted dough sticks and noodles!"

I came back to check on them, let them do whatever they want! I'll call Taozhi to come play too! All the girls live in the same village, so I also called Hongmin and Hongli.

Zhao hurriedly walked out, saying as she went:

"Sister-in-law! I'm going to call Taozhi over to play together! Guixiang and Guihong are always busy, it's such a rare chance to relax! I'll come over later!"

"go Go!"

Taozhi hasn't done much embroidery in a long time! Today, I didn't have to do any work, so while tidying up old clothes, I found some old embroidered flowers and sat there lost in thought!

Thinking back, Taozhi used to live like a pampered young lady in this family, only having to do embroidery! Every day, she would hear her grandmother and mother calling on Guixiang and the others to go and do chores!

Now life is reversed. Gui Xiang and her sisters can stay home embroidering, reading, and doing whatever they want! But I have endless chores to do every day!

Just as Zhao entered, about to shout, she saw the embroidery in Taozhi's hands, sighed, and said gently:

"Taozhi! You've suffered these past two years! There's nothing we can do, our family is poor! Poverty makes people lose their spirit! Cheer up and go find Guixiang and the others to play together."

Maybe then you'll be able to go back to that life where you only need to embroider and don't have to do any other chores?

Taozhi stared blankly at Zhao Shi:

"Mother! Will I ever have a moment to embroider in peace? After the New Year, we'll have to raise pigs, dig for wild vegetables, sprout beans, and pick beans! During the busy farming season, I'll cook and deliver meals to you, Mother!"

Grandma always said, "How can a family like ours, toiling in the fields, afford to raise a pampered princess?"

Zhao passed on her experience to Taozhi:

"Taozhi! If you want something, you have to learn to be thick-skinned! If you're thin-skinned and run away as soon as you ask, nothing will get done! Look at your mother!"

Everyone says I'm a tough nut to crack, but what's wrong with letting people scold me or say a few words just to make a better living and to fill my stomach?

"Look at your aunt! We've fought and argued before! But circumstances dictate our lives! I humbled myself and flattered your aunt, and look, we're making money now!"