Chapter 25

This time, to help Eldest Brother welcome the bride, he had asked for leave for several days, so it was time to return to school.

Du Ruo nodded: "Fine, I'll handle the things at home; you can go to school with peace of mind."

After thinking about it, she said: "I'm going to the town tomorrow to sell that snake; it just so happens that I can't drag it alone, so you can help me move it when you return to the academy."

Jiang Zhan hurriedly agreed.

On this day, Du Ruo drank another dose of medicine; the medicine for 【missing amount】 silver was only enough to drink for seven days, and she had to buy more after drinking it.

So this money really doesn't last long.

Du Ruo carefully calculated; she only had seven taels of silver left, and the family still had expenses, so it would be spent soon.

This python could be sold for some money, but it wouldn't be too much.

Tie Dan could hunt some small animals back from time to time, but it couldn't be done without restraint, otherwise, it would affect the ecological balance of the back mountain, and besides, this wasn't a long-term solution.

She had to think of another way to take the long road and earn big money.

"Little Tong, is there any way to make money quickly?" Du Ruo asked in her mind.

The system became that emotionless machine again: "Sorry, earning money is not within the service scope of this system; this system is only responsible for issuing tasks and exchanging rewards."

Alright, it seems the system can't be relied on; she still has to rely on herself.

Du Ruo racked her brains but couldn't think of any good ideas, so she stopped thinking about it for the time being.

That night, she slept especially early, making up for all the sleep she had missed.

The next morning, she got up before dawn and started getting busy.

The ten catties of pork bought before hadn't been finished and wouldn't keep, so Du Ruo minced all the meat and made it into filling, then mixed it with white flour, added shredded radish and seasonings, kneaded them into balls, and fried them in a pot over low heat until cooked.

She left a plateful, and the rest were packed in a bamboo basket and carried to the hall.

Jiang Zhan was returning to the academy today, so he got up early and smelled a fragrant scent as soon as he walked out of the room.

"Sister-in-law, what is that?"

"Pork and radish balls."

Du Ruo handed him a pair of chopsticks: "Taste it and see if you like it."

Jiang Zhan picked one up, put it in his mouth, and chewed; it was a bit fresh, a bit salty, and very delicious.

He was never a person who coveted the pleasures of the palate, but he couldn't help but eat several, only then putting down the chopsticks with lingering aftertaste.

Du Ruo covered it with a cloth and said: "Take these balls to the academy and share them with your close classmates, especially Young Master Shang; he helped us so much, so we should express our gratitude."

After saying this, she returned to the room, packed the two new sets of clothes bought last time into a bundle, and took out 【missing amount】 copper coins from her body and placed them on the table.

"This is your pocket money."

Jiang Zhan wouldn't take it and waved his hands repeatedly: "No need, Sister-in-law; I eat and live at the academy, so I don't need to spend money."

Du Ruo insisted and stuffed them all into the bundle: "How can you go out without bringing some self-defense silver? What if there's an emergency? It's always good to be prepared."

Jiang Zhan's throat seemed to be choked by something, and his eye sockets inexplicably began to heat up.

He coughed twice and said: "Okay, I'll listen to Sister-in-law."

Seeing the emotional fluctuation of the beautiful youth, Du Ruo also felt some emotion in her heart.

Children without mothers are truly pitiful; Jiang Li is a big man, and a rough man at that, so he must rarely care about his younger brother in these details on a daily basis.

So she only did this little bit of thing, and this child was moved to the point of almost crying, *sigh*...

Her eyes turned, and Du Ruo suddenly straightened her face.

"However, I have to say one thing first: money can only be used for proper purposes; you absolutely cannot take it to drink flower wine. Do you remember?"

The youth's beautiful face immediately turned into a festive red, and he stammered: "I, I wouldn't go to that kind of place!"

He is a scholar and should aspire to serve the country; how could he linger in the flower bushes?

After saying this, he ran away with messy steps.

Du Ruo laughed; she knew this would make her mature little brother-in-law drop his mask, *hehe*.

She turned and walked out of the hall, preparing to make breakfast.

Looking up, she saw Tie Dan jumping in from outside the courtyard wall with a colorful pheasant in its mouth.

The pheasant was still alive; after being thrown to the ground by Tie Dan, it immediately jumped up and wanted to fly, chirping in a panic, looking flustered.

Du Ruo hurriedly grabbed it and tied its legs with a vine pulled from the fence.

"Powerful, Tie Dan; if you can maintain this record and bring me a pheasant every day, our family will soon be able to lift ourselves out of poverty and become rich!" She patted the dog, which was beaming with joy, and praised it with a smile.

Tie Dan barked proudly at her, walked into the house with heroic steps, and held its head high to find its little master to claim credit.

Du Ruo laughed; sure enough, having strength is different; now the dog doesn't have a trace of its original decadence.

That little look is like an *nouveau riche*.

After the family finished breakfast, Jiang Sheng went to his master's house as usual; now with the fierce Tie Dan, there was no need for him to guard his sister at home.

Du Ruo and Jiang Zhan stuffed that python into a coarse hemp bag; otherwise, dragging a giant python on the street like this would scare people to death.

This snake was 【missing length】 long and weighed over a hundred catties.

It took a lot of effort for the two of them to drag it onto the ox cart at the entrance of the village; many villagers asked curiously along the way, and Du Ruo didn't dare say it was a big snake caught by their own dog, only smiling and saying it was worthless mountain goods.

There were already two young girls sitting on the ox cart.

They were Lin Qingshuang and Jiang Lian'er.

The two grew up together, and although they couldn't be called close friends, their relationship was okay.

Jiang Lian'er was sent to the town by Cao Shi to sell embroidery; her sister-in-law, Qin Shi, was pregnant and couldn't do heavy work, but she couldn't be idle either, so she would embroider flowers and make shoes in the room when she had time.

Qin Shi's embroidery skills were excellent, and each piece could sell for several dozen copper coins, which could also subsidize the family.

Lin Qingshuang was different; her family didn't lack that bit of money, and everything good was saved for her, the only beloved daughter, so she bought whatever she wanted.

Speaking of which, it was Du Ruo's fault.

Du Ruo sent the dog to help Auntie Lin wash clothes yesterday, but the clothes weren't washed, and they were all stained with the dog's saliva.

Lin Qingshuang refused to wear them no matter what; there was no other way, so her mother had to give her several hundred copper coins to buy new ones herself.

Seeing Du Ruo come over, Jiang Lian'er's face turned pale, and she immediately shrank to the very inside.

Lin Qingshuang was as polite as ever, greeting softly: "Sister-in-law Jiang."

She also nodded reservedly at Jiang Zhan.

This girl was quite generous; she didn't hold a grudge against her because of what happened yesterday, at least not on the surface.

It seemed different from her mother's temperament.

"Sister Qingshuang, good morning." Du Ruo sat opposite her, lifted the cloth covering the bamboo basket, and smiled: "These are pork and radish balls I made; the taste is not bad, do you want to taste a few?"

Lin Qingshuang leaned over to look.

Sure enough, they were bright in color and fragrant, and one could tell they weren't bad.

Lin Qingshuang took a handkerchief from her sleeve to wipe her hands, then reached out to take one and ate it in small bites.

"Hmm, it's really delicious!" Her eyes lit up, and she couldn't help but take another big bite: "How is this made? It's too delicious!"

Du Ruo stretched the basket in front of her and smiled: "If you like it, eat a few more; anyway, there are plenty."

Lin Qingshuang's pretty face flushed slightly: "How can I be so embarrassed?"

Her gaze lingered on the meat balls, but in the end, she couldn't resist the temptation and reached out to take two.

Du Ruo also handed a few to the old man driving the cart in front.

"Old Tie uncle, you taste it too."

"The old man has a share too? Hahahaha, fine, then I won't be polite!"

He tasted it and nodded in praise: "Hmm, it's really not bad."

Lin Qingshuang looked at the meat ball in her hand and said with a melancholy tone: "Sister-in-law Jiang's craftsmanship is really good; Big Brother Jiang is a blessed person."

Du Ruo's eyes flashed slightly.

"My Jiang Li only has the blessing of the mouth; how can he compare to Sister Qingshuang's future husband? Sister Qingshuang is so good-looking, that is a great blessing!"

She had heard from Yao Yulan long ago that Lin Qingshuang liked Jiang Li.

Although she didn't have marital feelings for Jiang Li, she was now occupying the position of Mrs. Jiang, so naturally, she wouldn't allow others to dig the wall.