Chapter 133 - 134: Trifles
If he hadn’t married the sole heir of the Jin Family, Seventh probably wouldn’t have passed the scholar examination, no matter how clever he was, let alone think of advancing further.
The more Li Cuicui looked at Jin Qianqian, the more satisfied she became. In contrast, she constantly found fault with her other daughters-in-law, who always seemed to have one flaw or another.
Hearing the commotion outside, Sister-in-law Xiang lifted the curtain to the inner courtyard and called out, "Miss Gu, do you need warm water?"
The question reminded Jin Qianqian of what she had forgotten. "Sister-in-law Xiang, quickly prepare two hot water bottles! My mother is here."
"Right away!" Sister-in-law Xiang bowed to Li Cuicui in greeting before hurrying off to the kitchen.
"Well, well, looks like our Scholar’s wife is living the good life, ordering servants around and everything."
"Our parents are still toiling in the fields, and here you are, living it up."
Jin Qianqian took a deep breath, exhaling slowly to keep herself from cursing out loud. "Third Sister-in-law, you can’t just spout nonsense like that. Sister-in-law Xiang is a resident of this very town. I hired her to help because I’m too busy to manage alone. She’s a free commoner, just like us."
"Even so, isn’t it the same difference?" Li Xiaohua’s eyes darted around, and she leaned in to ask conspiratorially, "So, how much do you pay her each month?"
Jin Qianqian replied, "That’s none of your business, is it, Third Sister-in-law?"
"Hey, how is it none of my business? You can never really trust an outsider. Your pastries have secret recipes, don’t they? What will you do if she steals them?"
"Look, I’m just sitting idle anyway. How about I come and help you out?"
"You don’t have to pay me much. Just whatever you’re paying her will be fine."
Jin Qianqian scoffed. "I’m looking to hire a helper, not a master I have to serve."
"You...!"
Li Cuicui knew she had just been entertaining a similar thought herself. ’It wouldn’t be a bad thing if we could help the other brothers out a little,’ she’d thought.
’It’s a pity these daughters-in-law of mine are so tactless. She got shot down the moment she opened her mouth.’
She reached out, picked up a pastry, and smiled to herself. ’As expected, when you get old, you get soft-hearted. That’s not a good thing.’
"Mother, try this. I used very little sugar, and it has just a hint of saltiness." Not wanting to bicker with Li Xiaohua any longer, Jin Qianqian deliberately turned her attention to Li Cuicui.
"It smells wonderful and looks beautiful, so the taste is sure to be good." Li Cuicui took the opportunity to look around the shop. The pristine white walls and the neat, orderly counters were a pleasant sight that put one at ease.
"You don’t need to stay here and entertain us," Li Cuicui said. "We’ll just rest for a bit, then we plan to go buy some things. You go on and do what you need to do."
Despite what Li Cuicui said, Jin Qianqian didn’t leave. One moment, she was tucking a hot water bottle beside her mother-in-law; the next, she was pouring her warm water. Li Xiaohua, who was being completely ignored, watched with eyes that nearly popped out of her head.
However, she quickly found an outlet for her frustration, attacking the plate of pastries. She stuffed them into her mouth one after another, and the once-heaping plate was soon empty.
"Were you a starving ghost in your past life?" Li Cuicui snapped, her hand grabbing at empty air where a pastry had been moments before. She had finally lost her patience.
"Our sister-in-law’s shop is so big, is she really going to miss the few bites I take?"
"Mother, if you want more, we can just ask her to bring another plate."
Jin Qianqian, who had been packing an order for a customer, placed the bag in their hands and saw them out. Only then did she turn around, her face taut. "Third Sister-in-law, I’m running a business, not a soup kitchen. If you want more, you’ll need to pay for it with silver."
"It’s getting late. If you don’t find a buyer for that basket of yours soon, the vegetables are going to wilt."
’I’m trying to run a business here,’ Jin Qianqian thought. She didn’t want to make the atmosphere in the shop too tense, or else she would have thrown the woman out already.
The mention of her own profits finally reminded Li Xiaohua of her reason for coming. She glanced at her basket—the vegetables were indeed not as crisp and green as they had been that morning. With no time to bicker, she grabbed her basket and rushed out.
But a moment later, she was back. "Seventh Wife, you live in the city and have no place to grow your own vegetables. You have to buy from someone, so why not just buy all of mine?"
Jin Qianqian almost laughed out of sheer exasperation. ’The pastries she just devoured are worth more than this entire basket of vegetables,’ she thought. "That won’t be necessary," she said aloud. "It’s just me and Sister-in-law Xiang at home, so we don’t need much. Besides, we prefer to buy our vegetables fresh each day. You should hurry and find a spot to sell, Third Sister-in-law, or you might not sell them at all."
"Pah! Fine, don’t buy them! But why do you have to curse my vegetables? If I can’t sell these now, I’m holding you responsible!" Thinking of the nearly empty salt crock at home, Li Xiaohua couldn’t afford to stand around arguing any longer.
Li Cuicui stood up as well. "I saw a general store up ahead on my way here. I’m going to go buy some salt and look for a few farm tools. You just focus on your work."
Jin Qianqian replied, "But it’s so cold out. Why don’t you just stay here? I can go and buy whatever you need."
Li Cuicui waved her off. "Your shop is busy, and it’s not far. I can go myself. Your sister-in-law has a foul mouth; don’t lower yourself to her level. It’s not worth it."
Jin Qianqian just smiled and silently tidied up the table.
Li Cuicui grabbed her bag and headed out. She had come mainly to buy some supplies, but now she was filled with regret. ’Why didn’t I think to bring some vegetables from our own garden for Seventh Wife?’
This feeling of regret became even more pronounced when she returned from her shopping.
As she looked around the small shop, now filled with vegetables brought as gifts by villagers and clansmen, Li Cuicui wished she could turn back time. ’Who knows what Seventh Wife must be thinking of me now?’ she fretted.
After finally seeing everyone off, Jin Qianqian rubbed her cheeks, which had grown stiff from smiling. Losing the will to mind the shop any longer, she gave a few instructions to Sister-in-law Xiang, wrapped her clothes tightly around herself, and returned to her small courtyard.
With no outsiders around, Jin Qianqian stopped forcing herself to endure the cold and returned to her personal space.
’I have no idea how this space was formed,’ she thought, ’but the temperature is always perfect.’ The moment she was inside, she could shed the heavy cotton-padded jacket she’d been wearing.
"Phew... no central heating, no air conditioning. This life is so hard to get through." Jin Qianqian walked over to the makeshift dressing table she had put together, spritzed her face with moisturizing toner, and checked for any signs of chapping from the cold.
Seeing that her face was still fair with a healthy, rosy glow, she patted her cheeks in satisfaction.
’This northern weather is no joke,’ she mused. ’It’s only the beginning of winter, and it’s already bone-chillingly cold. If it gets any worse, I’ll probably have to just hide at home.’
Rummaging through the down jackets she had previously collected and stored in her space, Jin Qianqian found some fine linen, thinking she could modify one of the jackets.
As for Li Xiaohua, who had been hoping to take some pastries to-go before leaving, she was now the furthest thing from Jin Qianqian’s mind.
＆
While Jin Qianqian had put them out of her mind, one of them was bad-mouthing her for the entire journey.
As Li Xiaohua’s complaints grew more and more outrageous, Li Cuicui finally cut her off. "She is running a business, all to earn a little money to support Seventh’s studies. If people like you just want to eat for free and take things home, how could she possibly afford it?"