The Lucky Farmgirl

Ms.Qian, who was about to pour all the money together, paused when she heard this. She furrowed her brows in thought, glancing at the private savings Zhou Dalang had handed over. She then took the same amount from Zhou Wulang and Zhou Liulang before returning the rest to them, saying, "Keep it for yourselves. Times are hard for the family; we can’t combine all the money. Five is right. When it’s time for you to discuss marriage, if the family has money, we will naturally provide for you. If not, you’ll have to use your own savings as a stopgap, and we’ll repay you when the family has the means. So, it’s important that you have your own savings."

She said, "Your eldest brother, second brother, and third brother all had their weddings funded by the family. Your fourth brother’s wedding used money from your eldest sister, which our family will repay. Naturally, the same will apply to you when you marry."

"With so many children in the family, it’s difficult to treat everyone equally, but I’ll do my best to be fair."

Zhou Wulang felt somewhat embarrassed and said, "Mother, we’re not discussing marriage right now. Let’s use the money for the family’s urgent needs first."

Ms.Qian shook her head. "It should be enough as it is. As long as you contribute as much as your eldest brother, that’s fine. When you think about it, you’re actually at a disadvantage."

Since Five and Sixth had done as they had, Ms.Qian naturally couldn’t take all of Zhou Xi’s money. She only took as much as given by Zhou Dalang and returned the rest, saying, "You are a returning daughter; you must always have some money in hand."

From the money Zhou Silang had brought out, Ms.Qian only took the copper coins, returning the rest to him, saying, "I didn’t use your elder sister-in-law’s dowry, so I certainly can’t take your wife’s dowry. Take it back."

Zhou Silang had brought the least amount of money, but he hadn’t been out earning much in the past half-year. Ms.Qian thus spoke to him, "Pay more attention, and look after your younger brothers and sisters."

Zhou Silang hung his head in shame.

Manbao’s money wasn’t much either, but Ms.Qian didn’t take it all. She grabbed a handful for Manbao to save for buying snacks, and only then took the rest.

Ms.Qian called Zhou Er, Zhou Si, Zhou Wu, and Manbao over to organize the money together. Everyone’s funds were already tied in bunches of one hundred, and the tied ones were set aside while the scattered ones were gathered to be counted and continued to be tied.