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Family.

For starters, Yan Zhigao was no longer as busy at the Prefectural Governor’s Office, and the funds for the river embankment construction were approved a few days later. The officials there no longer gave lip service as before;

Secondly, Madam Li received more invitations and visiting cards. Even Daohua received several invitations from officials’ daughters. However, she attended none of them and turned them all down.

By July, the watermelons in the farmstead were ripe and ready to sell. She was very busy.

In the city, Madam Li had purchased a shop. At this moment, that shop had begun to sell watermelons and business was booming.

There was no helping it. The Yan Family’s watermelons were large, juicy, sweet, and had a red flesh. Once cut open and displayed at the shop entrance, they immediately attracted a crowd of people.

It was also during this time that the Yan Family truly realized Daohua’s ability to make money and no longer believed that she had bought that small farmstead only because of the financial support from Old Madam Yan.

Songhe Courtyard.

Daohua, as she had back home, settled and recorded accounts in front of the

old lady, her handiwork with the abacus was extremely smooth.

Watching her granddaughter, who never seemed to lose her smile, Old Madam

Yan shook her head with a chuckle and said to Madam Li, “Look how happy this girl is. I never realized that our Daohua was such a money-grubber.”

Daohua looked up, “That’s because our expenses were low before. The produce from our fields not only covered our expenses but also had surplus. We lived comfortably and didn’t need to fuss over money.”

“But now, with our household expenses being so large and money tight, this income from selling watermelons means we can breathe a bit easier. Naturally,

I am happy.”

Madam Li felt very relieved hearing this. Her daughter, so young, was already taking burdens off her shoulders, not only sharing her worries but also directly solving them.

Over the years, she too had her share of concerns about money, which she had managed to bear alone through haphazard means.

This year, with her husband’s promotion to Prefectural Governor, she knew that the financial strain would be greater than before. She had prepared herself to brazenly ask for help from her older and younger brothers when necessary. But to her surprise, her daughter’s watermelons had quickly solved an urgent matter.

Madam Li watched Daohua, who was bent over the accounts with curved eyes and brows, feeling warmth in her heart.

This girl was too considerate.

“Mother, the watermelons are selling too well in the city. When Second Uncle arrives, the watermelons we transport to the provincial capital won’t be as plentiful as we first thought,” Daohua suddenly said.

Madam Li laughed, “That’s alright. Your Second Uncle is also coming over to check on us. He’ll take whatever watermelon he can. The prices in the provincial capital are surely higher than in the city, he won’t be at a loss.” Daohua nodded. She had been concerned about not being able to sell the watermelons, so she specifically asked her mother to write to her uncles for help. Now, with her uncles taking on the task, she felt truly apologetic about the limited supply.

“I won’t sell the watermelons from my farmstead. Apart from some that 111 keep to give away, I’ll let Second Uncle take the rest.

Madam Li had no objections: “The farmstead is yours; you can do whatever you want with it.”

Old Madam Yan sat on the side, munching on grapes delivered from the farmstead, and spoke up, “You also grew quite a few grapes on the farmstead. What do you plan to do with them?”

“The grape yield is too small. I only grew some in the yards of the farmstead, and I don’t plan to sell them. We’ll either eat them ourselves or give them away. Oh, and I’m thinking about learning how to make wine from grapes,” Daohua replied.

When Yan Zhigao walked in with Yan Zhiyuan and Yan Zhiqiang, they heard her mention this.

Playing the elder, Yan Zhiyuan spoke directly, “Daohua, you can’t just waste things. Listen to your second uncle, grapes are precious. If you want to learn winemaking, use something else.”

Daohua shook her head and blurted out, “That won’t do. What I want to make is grape wine, and other things simply can’t replace that.”

Being bluntly rejected by a younger family member, Yan Zhiyuan’s face turned somewhat unpleasant, “You’re just a young lady. What do you know about winemaking? It’s nothing but a waste.

Daohua felt somewhat displeased inside, but still responded, “Uncle, it’s precisely because I don’t understand that I need to learn. No one is born with all kinds of skills.”

Seeing his words thrown back at him, Yan Zhiyuan’s face showed signs of not being able to hang on.

Madam Li glanced at Yan Zhiyuan and did not open her mouth to smooth over the atmosphere. Her daughter’s matters on the farm hadn’t even warranted her intervention yet, and here was the uncle being frankly impolite.

To the side, Yan Zhigao put down the tea bowl he was holding and addressed Daohua, “Your uncle is right. Didn’t you say that there aren’t many grapes grown? How about this, don’t learn how to make that whatever grape wine this year. Next year, once you’ve planted more, you can learn then.

Grape wine, that was something only royalty and nobles could afford to drink. Was it that easy to brew?

Moreover, he shared the same thoughts as his younger brother. In the past, he had only eaten grapes a few times, during the banquet of the top scholar, the year he passed the imperial examination. These fruits were even more precious than watermelons, using them to learn wine brewing felt incredibly wasteful. Daohua’s eyebrows knitted slightly. She really disliked this feeling of being dictated to. She was using her own crops and it didn’t inconvenience the family at all.

The old Lady Yan knew Daohua’s temperament all too well. A single furrowing of her brows indicated what she was thinking, so she immediately chastised Yan Zhigao and his brother with a laugh, “It’s not like you’re using your own stuff, why the unnecessary fuss?”

Once the old lady spoke, Yan Zhigao and his brother could no longer continue. The matter was thus dropped.

At that moment, a servant girl came to report that the master from her maternal uncle’s house had arrived.

Hearing this, Madam Li’s face brightened with joy, and Daohua also hurriedly put down her abacus and stood up.

Old Lady Yan said with a smile, “We were just talking about it, and what a coincidence that he has arrived. Eldest son, daughter-in-law, go and welcome him quickly.”

Daohua, “Grandmother, I’ll go too.”

Old Lady Yan waved her hand, “Go ahead, go ahead, wherever you are, girl.” Yan Zhigao stood up and left with mother and daughter. The Li Family had not been of little help these years; he ought to go and welcome his uncle.

Once the family of three had left, Yan Zhiyuan offhandedly remarked, “Daohua seems to be particularly close to the Li Family.”

Old Lady Yan glanced at him sidelong, “That’s because the Li Family treats Daohua well. She knows how to be grateful and naturally feels close to the Li Family.”

Yan Zhiyuan said awkwardly, “Mother, you indulge Daohua too much. You may not know this, but those grapes are rare in Xingzhou, especially the ones we grow in our family-large and plump, juicy and delicious. Using them for winemaking is just too wasteful.”

Old Lady Yan bluntly retorted, “What do you mean ‘our family’? Those are Daohua’s grapes.”

Yan Zhiyuan was taken aback, “Look at what you’re saying, Mother. Isn’t Daohua a member of the Yan Family?”

Old Lady Yan replied coolly, “Second son, keep your little schemes to yourself. Over these years, our family has not separated, and all the major and minor matters have been managed by your elder brother and his wife; you have not been slighted in the least. I’ll make things clear today: keep your hands off Daohua’s things.”

Yan Zhiyuan felt uncomfortable, “Mother, what kind of person do you take me for? Am I that kind of person who covets my niece’s things?

Old Lady Yan huffed, “You know whether you are or not. You and your wife are both clever calculators. Now, I’m too tired to deal with the two of you. Remember, what is yours, I won’t shortchange you a single thing even after a hundred years; what’s not yours, do not even think about it.”

Yan Zhiyuan’s expression turned slightly embarrassed, and he fell silent.

Seeing this, Yan Zhiqiang hurriedly tried to smooth things over, “It’s my fault for not managing it this year, as I was busy with the fields when Daohua was planting the grapes. Next year, I will specifically allocate a plot of land for grape cultivation. That way, our family will not be short on grapes.” Yan Zhiyuan glanced at Yan Zhiqiang with a speechless expression.

Was this a question of having enough to eat?

This was about the young one not putting her elder in her eyes, wasn t it?