Chapter 4: with translation of chapter title

Headache.

This young lady really gives people a huge headache.

But what nobody expected was that an even more troublesome matter lay ahead.

When the freshly formed family of seven helped each other back to the door of their home, everyone fell silent——

It was a thatched hut no bigger than three people's armspan, its roof already sparse, rustling with every gust of autumn wind.

The north wall had a crack wide enough to fit a finger, with yellow leaves occasionally blowing in.

Inside, the earthen floor was damp, the stove bore mold spots, and the water vat held two withered lotus leaves.

At noon, sunlight slanted through a hole in the roof, revealing a half-spun spiderweb on the beam and illuminating three chipped earthen jars stacked in the corner.

The party of seven, aside from Du Shanü who had already accepted her situation after crossing over, also included the blind beauty Yu Hen, and even the simple-minded A Chou widened his eyes, pointing at the collapsed half of the bed inside the thatched hut, and uttered a dazed 'aba aba' twice.

"If I had known your family couldn't even scrape together a four-legged stool......"

The lame roughneck couldn't hold back, squeezing out each word from between his teeth:

"I'd rather follow that fifty-year-old widow from the upper household!"

One must know that although he became lame from several escape attempts, his appearance is upright, his body sturdy, and he also possesses a skill.

It's only because he was stubborn and refused to bow his head to be picked, so he never left.

Now look at that: not only was he left over, but he's forced to become a concubine alongside several men, and this young lady's family is dirt poor!

Yu Hen listened to the sounds, seeming somewhat hesitant and lost, reaching out to feel around, then spoke to ease the atmosphere:

"You can't say that; no family is born wealthy—squeak—bang!!!"

The final loud bang was not Yu Hen's voice, but the teetering door of the thatched hut being accidentally knocked down by Yu Hen, releasing a thunderous crash that kicked up countless dust and smoke, making several people start coughing repeatedly.

Was what fell the door panel?

No, it's several people's hearts!

The widower, who had guarded his child from start to finish, held the child and softly sobbed, while the little boy blinked his big, puppy‑like eyes as tears gradually welled up.......

Du Shanü squatted, lifted her hand, pinched some earth and fed it into his mouth in one smooth motion; the boy who was about to burst into tears opened his mouth, neither crying nor spitting, just stared dumbfounded.

What, what is this lady sister doing!

Who, seeing someone cry, would shove dirt into another person's mouth!

A film of tears gathered before the boy's eyes, and Du Shanü smiled as she rubbed the head of the boy, who was a few years younger than her:

"First, fetch a basin of water to wash up and relieve fatigue, then sit down to exchange names and talents, and after that think of ways to earn silver...... Crying solves nothing."

Having grown up in the spring breeze, Du Shanü will never succumb to adversity, no matter what!

Moreover, her best moneymaker——

It's her brain!

As long as her mind is sharp, even if her home is now dilapidated, it's only temporary!

At Du Shanü's strong insistence, after a quarter hour, the six men who had finished washing—now looking completely renewed—sat in a circle on the grass mats inside the thatched hut, and began, in order of age, to introduce their names and talents——

The eldest was the man who brought a child, his brow showing a touch of melancholy frailty:

"I lack talent; my surname is Ouyang, given name Yan. I can cook and wash clothes; years ago I followed an itinerant doctor to study medicine for a few years, but my medical skill is poor—I only know a little about herbs......"

The second eldest, having washed off the dust, was a cold‑faced roughneck with a rather heroic air:

"I am called Leitie; I have been striking iron with my parents since childhood, so I have some skill."

The third and fourth eldest are the blind‑eyed Yu Hen, who wears a blindfold, and his inseparable simple‑minded companion A Chou:

"Yu Hen, A Chou."

"Our conditions are probably the worst among us—blind and simple‑minded...... but we still have some strength and are willing to work."

The fifth is the young scholar who has been wandering the edges of the crowd today.

He is also the person whose appearance changed the most after washing up among the group—slim and slender, with phoenix eyes and thin lips, a faint sickly air lingering between his brows and eyes, his chin so thin it borders on spiteful, and he speaks sparingly:

"Liu Wenyuan, I'm a scholar."

The sixth is naturally the young son of the husband's family.

The boy is young, still bearing baby fat on his face, but his bright eyes are moist and shining; at a glance he looks extremely well‑behaved:

"Just like my father, I bear the double surname Ouyang, given name An; I can climb trees and steal bird eggs!"

Each person's information is quite memorable.

Husband, blacksmith, blind person, simple‑minded one, scholar, boy.

Among them, the husband and the boy are father and son, counting as 'one group'; the blind person and the simple‑minded one are close friends, also counting as 'one group'.

The remaining two, the rash blacksmith and the aloof scholar, show nothing special for now, but in these times they count as 'rare technical talent', and will surely be useful later.

Du Shanü rose to her feet and hoisted the half‑old bamboo basket from the corner of the thatched hut:

"Alright, today is your first day; rest for an hour, I'll go out to get you some food, and after you've eaten we'll start work."

Everyone thought her gathering of information would be useful, but they didn't expect her to cast them aside after asking.

Although they felt a bit disheartened, everyone understood she probably couldn't think of a way to make money and just wanted to borrow grain, so no one spoke.

Du Shanü paid them no mind, only telling the blind beauty she favored most to guard the home and wait for her return, then she shouldered the basket and strode into the wild hills not far behind the house.

When she crossed over yesterday, Du Shanü had carefully surveyed the surroundings, so every plant and tree within several li entered her sight.

To the villagers, this barren mountain is full of inedible bitter acorns, and the gray‑white cave on the mountainside, unchanged for myriad years, is even spoken of in local lore as a den of evil spirits......

But to her, this mountain is no different from a gift from heaven.

Du Shanü gathered the fallen bitter acorns from the ground while quickly locating the cave's position, stroking those gray‑white stones, and at once felt as if she had obtained a priceless treasure.

To ordinary eyes these minerals might be nothing, but in her view they are limestone, iron needle ore, rock salt, borax, gypsum......

In other words, they represent lime, cement, glass, and even......

Explosives!

But for now, having enough to eat is still a problem.

Du Shanü came to the cave this time, only digging gypsum.

One piece, two pieces, three pieces...

The bamboo basket gradually filled, and Du Shanü turned and headed home.

This trip yielded a bountiful harvest.

But when she returned home and set down the basket, it drew the dissatisfaction of several people:

"Guanyin soil cannot be eaten!"

"Miss, you're really foolish! Even if you couldn't borrow grain, you shouldn't have dug up Guanyin soil to bring back!"

"Exactly, exactly! Sister-in-law, I and my father once saw someone who ate Guanyin soil; his belly swelled huge, but he couldn't digest it, and in the end he died on the road while fleeing... So, absolutely do not eat it!"

?? I seem to have forgotten to mention; strictly speaking, this story is a 'buy-stock' type, whether there is a male lead, how many male leads, are all up to the readers; if you already have a favorite man, leave an early comment~