The Lucky Farmgirl

Ms. Qian was stunned, and it took her a long while to find her voice again, "You, you all are... going too far, what if Old Master Bai doesn’t buy the wheat seeds from you, or doesn’t buy that many?"

Manbao said, "Then we’ll just sell them at the market price for grains."

"Wouldn’t that be a loss?"

"We’ll lose a bit, but Shanbao and I have done the math, and we can afford it," Manbao reassured her, "Mother, don’t worry."

Ms. Qian wanted to persuade her otherwise but the words got stuck in her throat as she looked at the confident Manbao. She reached out and touched Manbao’s fair and smooth cheek, seemingly seeing once again that dark, mischievous yet filial and sensible young boy of years past. Back then, he also told her the same, saying that he would surely find enough grain to keep them alive, and even if he couldn’t find it, he could still survive alone...

Manbao felt something was off about her mother’s demeanor and couldn’t help but hug her arm and ask, "Mother, what’s wrong?"

Ms. Qian snapped back to reality and gave Manbao a slight smile, "It’s nothing. Since you all have discussed and decided, then go ahead and do it."

Manbao was overjoyed, "Mother, I knew you’d be on my side."

Ms. Qian tapped her on the forehead, "You sly one, but you have to keep this tightly under wraps. Your father mustn’t find out, and don’t let Old Master Bai get a whiff either."

"Don’t worry, Mother, we’ve thought it all through. Bai Er has even moved in with Shanbao now."

Ms. Qian smiled slightly. Old Master Bai wasn’t a fool; he must know they were preparing some scheme behind his back. Perhaps he just wanted to see what the children were up to.