Chapter 143: Sisters United
Wen Yao held onto the elderly woman’s arm, full of heartfelt concern.
Old Madam Luo patted her hand reassuringly and said, “Since your eldest brother says it’ll work, then let’s give it a try. Eldest, keep talking.”
She sat back down again, this time no longer interrupting Wen Xiuyi. Even Old Man Wen quietly returned to sit beside his wife to show his support.
Yes, children and grandchildren have their own fortune. They were getting old now. How far things could go would depend on the younger generation. But he could see clearly—Wen Xiuyi’s two younger brothers and their wives were all genuinely willing to follow his lead. If nothing else, just the changes in Wen Xiuyi’s household over the past six months were enough to earn their trust.
And if they really lost money in the end, so be it. Worst case, they’d just start over again.
Wen Xiuyi glanced at his two younger brothers and asked, “What about you two? What do you say?”
Wen Xiuzhu was still hesitating. After all, fifty taels of silver included even their parents’ funeral funds—it was the family’s entire savings. Things were different now for Eldest Brother’s family, but theirs was still the same as before.
But they’d already split households. They couldn’t keep relying on their eldest brother.
Just as Wen Xiuzhu was still hesitating, Lady Li made up her mind: “Eldest Brother, we’ll follow your lead.”
Her thoughts were simple. Their two sons were growing up, and even though their daughter was still small, they had to think of her future too. The bold get rich, the timid starve. She and her husband were still young—if they gambled and won, it would be endless good days ahead. If they failed, they’d just start again.
Lady Cai had similar thoughts, but more than anything, she kept thinking about Wen Jin’s ability to read and Wen Di’s fascination with that guqin. It had stung her deeply as a mother. Even if just for the sake of their children, she had to take this gamble.
“Eldest Brother, we’ll follow your lead,” Lady Cai said, speaking up first. This surprised everyone, because usually in the third household, Wen Xiuqing made all the decisions—his wife rarely took the lead.
Since even the wives had agreed, the two brothers could only go along with their decision.
With his brothers and their wives giving their answers, Wen Xiuyi’s expression turned serious. “Then let’s plan this out properly.”
That discussion lasted until deep into the night.
“It’s getting late. Let’s leave it here for tonight. Eldest, come with me to talk to the village chief tomorrow morning,” Old Man Wen stood up, stretching his back. The others got up as well.
Wen Xiuyi nodded and used his foot to smudge the drawings he’d made on the ground. The plan was set—next came execution.
Early the next morning, Wen Xiuyi was dragged off by Old Man Wen. Old Madam Luo came to find Wen Yao.
“Your second uncle is taking Dazhu and the others back to the academy later. You and I are going to visit your great-aunt.”
Wen Yao immediately guessed her grandmother’s plan. “Grandma, are you planning to bring Great-Aunt’s family into this too?”
Old Madam Luo didn’t deny it. “Yes. This was a craft your great-great-grandmother taught the two of us. Back in her day, they also made this to sell. It stopped later when business slowed down, and it just became something we made for ourselves. Now that you’ve gotten me such a good opportunity, I can’t let your efforts go to waste. I’ve got to stand up and do this right.”
Wen Yao cuddled up to her grandmother and encouraged her, “That’s the spirit, Grandma. No matter how old we are, we should have our own career. See? The opportunity is here.”
Old Madam Luo chuckled and pinched Wen Yao’s nose fondly. “You sweet-talking girl. But we still don’t know if your great-aunt is willing. Their family’s doing better than ours. Now they’ve got a capable daughter-in-law, and I heard your second cousin even found work at the government office.”
“Oh? Really? Second Cousin works for the government now?” Wen Yao was surprised. No matter the era, holding a government job was a big deal.
Old Madam Luo nodded. “Yes, I heard one of his former officers wrote a recommendation for him. Your second cousin had earned military merit, but after getting injured, he came home. His officer helped him get a job as a prison guard. Not a bad deal—he doesn’t have to run around all day and earns a monthly wage. It’s enough to support the family.”
“Then I suppose it gives Second Cousin a decent future too.” No matter the time period, Wen Yao’s respect for soldiers remained deep.
By the time Wen Xiuzhu had brought Wen Jun and the boys back, Dahuang hadn’t even had a sip of water before being turned around again to send Wen Yao and Old Madam Luo to the Cui family.
Little Madam Luo hadn’t expected her elder sister to show up at this hour. She quickly welcomed them into the house, and Jiao Yang’s new wife brewed tea and brought it in.
“Yue-niang, don’t fuss,” Old Madam Luo said gently. She was quite fond of this niece-in-law—gentle and well-mannered, and ever since marrying Jiao Yang, she had been dutiful to her in-laws and a good homemaker.
Jiang Yueniang smiled and greeted, “Auntie,” before standing beside Little Madam Luo.
“Elder Sister, what brings you here today?” asked Little Madam Luo.
Old Madam Luo didn’t beat around the bush. She directly stated her purpose for coming.
Little Madam Luo was shocked. “What? Sister, you’re not teasing me, are you?”
Wen Yao had always been working with Zui Xian Tower, and now she’d even brought a new business to her eldest aunt? Could the pickling skills passed down by their mother really be worth money?
She couldn’t wrap her head around it at first. Yes, her family was doing better than most now—but who didn’t want an even better life? Of course she did.
Seeing her reaction, Old Madam Luo smiled. “Why would I tease you? Yao and I came here today exactly because of this. This skill was taught to us by our mother. I can’t just make money on my own without thinking of you. Besides, I can’t do it all myself, so I came to ask how you feel about joining in.”
The moment she heard this, Little Madam Luo eagerly nodded. “Of course I’m willing, Elder Sister! Absolutely. I sit at home all day with nothing to do. It’s better to follow your lead—what did Yao call it again? Right—build a career.”
Wen Yao couldn’t help but laugh. “Great-Aunt, it’s settled then. As for the profit sharing, you and Grandma can discuss the details between yourselves, and I’ll draft a written agreement afterward.”
Little Madam Luo blurted out, “What do we need a written agreement for?”
Old Madam Luo replied, “We do. Even between blood relatives, accounts should be clear. What’s owed is owed. I was thinking, since Rongrong’s side will be needing a lot of supply, we should set up a small workshop. Now, where would be a good place to put it?”
Little Madam Luo exchanged a look with her daughter-in-law and, after considering a moment, said, “Sister, put it at your place. Not just because it’s so far between our two houses, but because it wouldn’t be convenient for you to come and go. Plus, it’s just me and Yueniang at home most of the time—the others all work in town. If anything were to go missing, we wouldn’t be able to handle it. And since you’re raising ducks and everything else at your place too, it makes more sense for the workshop to be there. When things are slow here, Yueniang and I can come over to help.”
