Chapter 132: Loading the Cart

“Hahaha! Dad! Eldest Uncle is the head of our family. Isn’t it normal to gauge his thoughts? If he’s an open-minded person, we can relax a bit. If not, we just need to be more restrained. So, Dad! We still need to make more money. In the future, we’ll buy a big house, and even if we live under the same roof, we can stay far apart.”

“Don’t worry, daughter, I’ll work hard!” Yan Lao’er was full of fighting spirit, eager to head to Guanzhou and make his mark.

“Let’s go home, Dad.”

Father and daughter rode their ox back.

Yan Lao’er unloaded water and quietly had Sanbao spit out two more buckets.

Yan Yu sat on the ox’s back, keeping watch for him.

“Why isn’t your mother back yet? Just how many steamed buns is she making?” Yan Lao’er looked toward the misty area.

“I’ll go check.” As soon as Yan Yu spoke, Sanbao crouched down, making it easier for her to slide off smoothly.

She happily patted Sanbao and praised, “Sanbao, you’re so good.”

Sanbao gazed at her with gentle eyes and let out a low moo.

When Yan Yu arrived at the bun distribution area, she saw her mother and Elder Sister Da Ya loading buns—not for their own use, but for others.

She crouched down skillfully and watched for a while. Business was booming.

Every household had brought their cooking utensils, and the white steamed buns were packed together, making for a cheerful sight.

Who knew how many they had steamed? Finally, it was coming to an end.

With the last batch of buns coming out of the pot, the steaming mist finally cleared.

The women of the village finally took a break and looked toward the bags of flour.

“Wow! So much!”

“There’s still a lot of water left. We’ve already steamed all of our own. Are all these extras our earnings?”

It was expected that water would be left over—they never returned water to outsiders.

Looking at the leftover flour and water, the women exchanged glances, their eyes filled with content smiles.

“This is way easier than fetching water ourselves.”

“What should we do with the flour? Divide it up?”

“Better not. Let’s keep it together for now. Next time we steam buns, we’ll just divide the buns… Hey? If we keep doing this, won’t we stop needing to bring our own flour?”

Just a bit of work, and they could earn a good number of buns.

The women, skilled at budgeting, quickly figured out the math in their heads.

This was a great opportunity!

“Sister, let’s store these at your house for now.”

Everyone looked at Li Xuemei.

Li Xuemei readily agreed. “Alright, we’ll keep the flour at my place. As for the extra water, let’s divide it up—it’s too much for my house alone.”

The women hurried home to get containers for the water.

Yan Yu also ran back to call her father, bringing Sanbao along to help move things.

Seeing Second Uncle Yan return with a large sack of buns, Liang Fengnian quickly took his leave.

Yan Lao’er didn’t even get a chance to offer him a meal before he was gone.

Yan Yu suspected that Fengnian had fled so quickly because Eldest Uncle had been testing him too hard…

Their house didn’t need much tidying. Everything had a designated place, ready to be loaded onto the cart at a moment’s notice.

Yan Yu wasn’t in a hurry and even had time to play with the cat.

Yan Lao’er took stock of their belongings, mentally calculating.

He wasn’t as relaxed as his daughter.

They might have… too much stuff.

He glanced at his wife and daughter and exchanged a look.

The three of them tacitly slipped into the woods.

Their excuse: nature’s call.

“There are too many water buckets, too much meat, and a bunch of other miscellaneous things. Look closely—it’s a pile of big bags everywhere.”

Li Xuemei and Yan Yu peered through the gaps between the trees.

Indeed, without realizing it, they had accumulated so much!

“It doesn’t seem like a lot now because many things are stuffed under the cart, wedging the wheels. But once we start loading…”

“We need to distract Old Yan and Da Ya—preferably both of them,” Yan Lao’er said.

Li Xuemei recalled, “I remember there were things tied under the cart. We disguised some bundles—inside, they’re just straw. Let’s swap them out and use them to pack dried meat. That way, there’s no moisture, and they won’t spoil even if tied underneath.”

Yan Yu resigned herself. “I’ll go find Grandpa the Village Chief. He’ll definitely have something to discuss with Eldest Uncle.

“As for Sister Da Ya, hmm, I’ll let the cat run off and have her help me find it…”

Yan Lao’er and Li Xuemei exchanged a look and chuckled mischievously.

The three sprang into action.

Yan Yu quickly ran back and told her Eldest Uncle that the Village Chief wanted to see him.

Then she used the cat as an excuse to take Sister Da Ya away.

Now, only Yan Lao’er and Li Xuemei remained near the ox cart.

Yan Lao’er was secretly excited.

It felt like they were up to something shady.

“Sanbao, keep an eye out. If anyone comes near, warn me.” He reminded their ox.

Sanbao let out a low moo.

The couple got to work.

The straw bundles were hidden in the woods. The space under the cart was reserved for dried meat, medicinal herbs, dried wild vegetables, and the sweet potatoes and potatoes they had been reluctant to eat. Everything was securely tied down again.

The white rice and fine flour they didn’t want others to see were mixed in with the junk Yan Lao’er had picked up.

As she worked, Li Xuemei grumbled, “Why do you even keep this stuff? It’s useless and takes up space.”

“This is all valuable!!” Yan Lao’er argued confidently. “Look at this painting—what if it’s by a famous artist? And this jewelry box—it’s even carved! This candlestick—isn’t it better than the one we sold? And—”

The junk Yan Lao’er had hauled from the bandit hideout was mostly clothes, along with other random items. They hadn’t had time to sort through it, so it had just piled up.

“Why is there a knife?” He pulled out a short blade. It had a simple scabbard, and when he drew it out, the blade was even plainer—rusted all over.

Li Xuemei rolled her eyes. “And you call this valuable?”

“Well, uh, it’s just rust! Maybe if I sharpen it, it’ll still be useful.” Yan Lao’er wasn’t embarrassed and moved on.

“Oh wow, a pipe bowl.”

He picked up an old smoking pipe like he had found treasure.

“This is copper, right?” He weighed it in his hand.

Li Xuemei didn’t care what it was. She snatched it and stuffed it into a bundle, then ordered Yan Lao’er to keep packing.

She sat on the cart supervising him, thinking: Covered in dust, yet still won’t shut up…

“Did you check those buckets? Do they really not leak?” she asked, pointing at the ones Qi Wu had given them.

“No leaks at all! Brother Qi Wu’s craftsmanship is top-notch—practical and durable. Really great!”

“Then load them onto the cart. Put them near the front, close the lids, and tie them down tightly. From now on, we won’t need to move them.”

Yan Lao’er placed the buckets in position. They fit perfectly.

“If we stack some bundles here, Eldest Brother won’t be able to see me from behind!” Yan Lao’er was delighted.

Li Xuemei glanced at him. “Are you scared of being watched?”

“It’s just that I can’t slack off. Sanbao can navigate on his own—I don’t have to do anything! But knowing Eldest Brother is watching from behind, I have to at least pretend to read the map and steer. It’s exhausting!” Yan Lao’er sighed.

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