The wicked sister-in-law is in charge; meals include fish and shrimp.

Chapter 15 The Sweet-Talking Wen

When the oxcart arrived in town, Wen Luozhi took out six copper coins and handed them to Old Man Zhao as he got off. "Uncle Zhao, here's the fare."

Old Zhao raised an eyebrow, took the copper coin, and handed her two more, saying, "That little girl doesn't take up much space. I said I wouldn't accept them, so I won't."

Wen Luozhi refused to accept it, so Xie Chunhua shamelessly went up to Old Man Zhao and said, "If this girl doesn't want it, just consider it my fare for the ride. You won't lose a single copper coin this way!"

Wen Luozhi looked up at the sky speechlessly, pushed her aside, and took the copper coin. "Thank you, Uncle Zhao. Sister-in-law Wu will definitely give you a big, fat grandson," she said with a grin.

Old Zhao's eldest son had just gotten married not long ago, so he was most eager to hear such auspicious words.

Seeing that Wen Luozhi's smile was adorable and her speech was sensible, unlike what was rumored in the village, he grew to like her even more.

"Alright! I appreciate Luo's kind words! Uncle Zhao will be here waiting for you in a little while," he said with a smile.

"Zhang Chunhua! Pay the fare! Don't even think about getting away with it this time!"

"If you run away again, don't ever ride in my car again!" He said to Zhang Chunhua with a stern face, impatiently extending his hand.

Last time, that shameless woman slipped away when he wasn't looking, and when he asked her for the fare, she refused to admit that she hadn't paid him.

There were other people on the bus watching, and Zhang Chunhua, who was also from the same village, had no choice but to reluctantly take out her purse and give them two coins.

Wen Luozhi and the other two first found a place to sell the pheasants and rabbits, and each sold them for fifty coins because they were all fresh.

Thinking that Wen Luozhi had cooked up the last bit of rice left at home yesterday, Xie He hid the money bag again and again before taking her to the grain shop.

"Young man, how much is your brown rice?"

"Hey, auntie, our brown rice is three coins a pound," the shopkeeper said enthusiastically, wiping his sweat. "You can also buy some bran to mix in; it'll fill you up too, and it's only one coin a pound."

After looking at Xie He and the other two's clothes, the waiter said enthusiastically.

After walking around the shop for a while, I learned the prices of everything.

Xie He pondered for a moment, then took out his money pouch, counted out fifty-five coins, and said, "Pack me five catties of refined rice, ten catties of brown rice, and five catties of bran."

"Mother! Why are you buying polished rice?!" Wen Luozhi stopped her.

"You silly girl, have you forgotten? Yesterday you cooked all the fine rice you ate for everyone, so you should buy some to take home!" Xie He said reproachfully.

Yesterday, she stopped the girl and said that she could just cook porridge with brown rice, but the girl insisted on cooking white rice with refined rice and used up all of her own food in one meal.

Upon hearing this, Wen Luozhi took the copper coin from her hand and sweetly said to the shopkeeper, "Please give us twenty catties of brown rice, young man." After saying that, she took out five copper coins from her money bag, making up sixty coins, and handed them over.

"Okay! Wait a moment while I go weigh the rice!"

The young shop assistant had never seen such a pretty girl before, and he spoke to her politely. He happily took the coins and went to fill the rice container.

Xie He tried to stop Wen Luozhi, who pulled her back, saying, "Mother, I'll eat the same as everyone else. How can I eat that bran that's so rough on my throat?"

"Everyone works very hard every day, so let's have something good to eat."

Xie He knew her daughter was concerned for her family, so she didn't say anything more. She took out five copper coins from her purse and said to her, "That's pocket money your mother gave you. How can we spend your money on household expenses?"

She gave her daughter a reproachful look and, without saying a word, stuffed five copper coins into her purse.

Wen Luozhi watched her mother's actions with a smile, grinning foolishly.

The three of them walked out of the shop. Wen Luozhi pulled Daya to the candied hawthorn seller and said, "Grandpa, I'd like three skewers of candied hawthorn." She took out three copper coins and handed them over.

"Okay!" The old man happily took it, quickly wrapped up the three skewers, and handed them to her.

Wen Luozhi took out a string of coins and stuffed it into Daya's hand. "Here, thank you Daya for protecting my aunt on the oxcart." She smiled and winked at the little girl.

Daya blushed slightly, her sallow face flushing with shyness. She stood on tiptoe, propped her little hand up, and held the candied hawthorn to Wen Luozhi's lips, whispering, "Auntie, you can have the first one."

Wen Luozhi grinned and took a bite of the first one without any hesitation.

“Da Ya can eat the rest herself, Xiao Gu doesn’t like to eat this,” she said, patting Da Ya’s head.

The three of them strolled around for a while longer, and Wen Luozhi bought hair ties for Daya and Erya, as well as a lot of snacks.

It was almost noon. She patted her stomach, licked her lips, and stopped in front of a wonton stall.

Xie He waved his hand and led the two children inside to find a table. He sat down and called out, "Boss, one bowl of meat wontons and one bowl of vegetarian noodles, please!"

"Okay!" the person inside replied.

Soon the two dishes were served, and the proprietress smiled and said, "Sister, the wontons are four coins and the vegetarian noodles are two coins, so it's six coins in total. I'll also give you a small dish of pickled vegetables."

Xie He took out six copper coins and handed them to her, feeling a little heartbroken and regretful.

If I had known, I would have just not eaten and let my daughter eat her fill.

She asked the proprietress for another bowl, divided the vegetarian noodles in half, and pushed it in front of Daya.

Wen Luozhi pushed the two bowls in front of her, picked up half a wonton, and said, "I can't eat this much. Let's all eat together."

Xie He was about to take some food from her bowl when Wen Luozhi quickly stopped her, "Mother, it'll be a waste if I can't finish it. This is just right for me."

After saying that, she buried her head and began to eat the wontons in her bowl.

Xie He had no choice but to go along with her wishes.

Wen Luozhi frowned as soon as she took a bite of the wontons. The soup had a fishy smell, the wonton wrappers were thick, and the filling inside was very little, with only a hint of saltiness and the rest being a fishy meaty taste.

She ate one bite and then put down her chopsticks. Xie He looked at her and asked, "What's wrong, honey? Doesn't it suit your taste?"

Wen Luozhi nodded and said, "It's too hot, Mother. Let's go home later and get some meat to make porridge."

Xie He felt sorry for her daughter. She finished her bowl in a few bites and, adhering to the principle of not wasting food, divided the rest of her bowl with Wen Luozhi's and Daya's.

When they arrived at the butcher shop, the owner was lying in the room, idly fanning himself. Seeing a customer come in, he quickly stood up. "Sister, the meat here is really good today, it's all freshly slaughtered pork, take a look!" He picked up the oil paper wrapped around his hand and showed it to Xie He, while also stating the price.

Wen Luozhi looked around, then pointed to a piece of lean meat and a piece of pork belly and said, "Boss, we'll take these two pieces."

The boss smiled as he weighed and packed the items, his fleshy face trembling with joy.

"Big sister, these two pieces of meat that this young lady wants cost twenty-five coins in total," he said with a smile as he handed them over.

Xie He readily paid and took the meat, ready to leave. Wen Luozhi's eyes lit up when she saw the large pork bones and offal on the far side.

She tugged at Xie He's sleeve and asked, "Uncle, how much are your pork bones and offal?"

The uncle scratched his head, about to speak, when a voice came from inside and a plump woman with a pregnant belly walked out. "Husband, we have a happy occasion today. The young lady bought so much. Just accept a little as a token." The woman walked up to the group and said with a smile.

Her eyes lit up when she saw Wen Luozhi; what a pretty little girl!

The doctor diagnosed her today and found out she's having a girl! She loves girls! Seeing the beautiful Wen Luozhi now makes her even happier.

"Auntie, you're so beautiful, like a fairy!" Wen Luozhi said sweetly to the proprietress with two dimples showing.

The proprietress covered her mouth and laughed heartily, "Oh my, you little girl, you have such a sweet tongue!"

"Your aunt is in a good mood today, so I'll give you those two things!"

After saying that, she smiled and said to the shopkeeper beside her, "What are you standing there for, boss? Hurry up and wrap this up for this young lady!"

The boss chuckled and readily agreed, thinking, "If my wife's happy, I'll give it away for free!"

Wen Luozhi kept thanking her and showering her with compliments, while Xie He looked at his daughter with admiration and silently gave her a thumbs up.

After the shopkeeper finished packing, she took out six copper coins and placed them on the table. "Brother, I can't just give these away for free! Making a living isn't easy."

"Sixes bring good luck!" she said, then pulled Wen Luozhi and the things back.

The boss wanted to chase after her, but his wife stopped him, saying, "Forget it, husband. I think that young girl likes her quite a bit."

"Next time she comes, let's give her a discount." She's in a good mood today, so she doesn't care how much she earns.

The boss bent down and gently touched her belly, smiling as he said, "Whatever you say, my wife. Hurry inside, don't let my precious daughter get too hot."

……