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Compared to the grievances he had suffered, more important matters remained unresolved. Liu Yang stood awkwardly in front of Ye Xiaohan. "Sister-in-law, this is all a misunderstanding. I didn't mean to drive you away. Please don't leave; stay with us. My brother really likes you, and both Qi and I hope you will stay."
Ye Xiaohan rolled her eyes, still enjoying the heartfelt drama of the Liu brothers, when suddenly the focus shifted back to her.
She instinctively glanced over, and Liu Bei was staring at her intently, waiting for her response. Such tenderness made Ye Xiaohan, who was usually decisive and straightforward, hesitate.
Seeing her uncertainty, Liu Yang quickly signaled to Liu Qi. "Qi also doesn't want Sister-in-law to leave. She wants Sister-in-law to always play with her, right?"
Liu Qi nodded eagerly, hugging Ye Xiaohan's leg and looking up at her with a sweet smile. "I want Sister-in-law to always play with me."
What a clever little schemer. Ye Xiaohan shot Liu Yang a glare and quickly glanced at Liu Bei before lifting Liu Qi into her arms. "Alright then, I'll stay and play with you."
Liu Qi wrapped her arms around Ye Xiaohan's neck, laughing joyfully.
Upon hearing Ye Xiaohan's answer, Liu Bei felt as if a year had passed; he finally breathed a sigh of relief. Hearing that she was willing to stay brought him joy. "Wife... Xiao Han, it's great that you want to stay. I will treat you well from now on."
Who knows who will help whom in the future? Ye Xiaohan was too lazy to explain. "Don't get me wrong; I'm not planning to stay forever—just temporarily. I have nowhere else to go right now, so it doesn't matter where I am. But let me make this clear: when I want to leave, I will leave, and you won't be able to stop me."
Her attitude was resolute. Liu Bei understood that her mind was made up and that nothing could change it. Although Ye Xiaohan still had thoughts of leaving, the fact that she was willing to stay for him or for the Liu family was already a significant step forward.
Perhaps in the future, after more days together, she would willingly choose to remain by his side. As long as she was near him, there would always be a chance for their relationship to improve gradually.
Liu Yang wanted to plead further, but Liu Bei held him back and said, "It's getting late; we need to prepare dinner quickly. I'll go clean the mountain chicken while Liu Yang helps with cooking."
They finished their meal in silence, each lost in their own thoughts except for Liu Qi, who ate happily as usual.
The next morning, just as dawn broke, the human trafficker arrived. Before Liu Bei could finish listening, his expression darkened as he prepared to chase them away. Ye Xiaohan stopped him and said, "Aunt Zhang, I asked my husband yesterday; he doesn't agree to sell me. So let's just leave it at that."
The Human Trafficker, hands on her hips, shouted, "Are you joking with me? What was agreed upon yesterday has suddenly changed overnight! How am I supposed to report this to the buyer?"
Ye Xiaohan coldly replied, "Whether others buy or not is their business; whether we sell or not is ours. We no longer wish to sell, so what are you going to do about it? Are you going to force us?"
"Oh, you wicked scoundrel, always picking on an old woman," the Human Trafficker retorted. She wanted to confront Ye Xiaohan but hesitated because of the tall and imposing figure of Liu Bei standing behind her. Instead, she plopped down on the ground and began to wail.
Ye Xiaohan felt a headache coming on. She was impervious to threats, but dealing with a middle-aged woman throwing a tantrum was incredibly annoying. Moreover, she knew she was in the wrong since she had indeed agreed to the deal earlier.
If it came down to a serious confrontation, she wouldn’t even regard someone like the Human Trafficker. It was just that the noise was getting on her nerves, and she was too lazy to deal with it. Liu Bei stood nearby, anxiously watching her, afraid that she might suddenly change her mind and walk away.
Ye Xiaohan waved her hand dismissively and casually touched the Human Trafficker's arm, pinching a pressure point that temporarily silenced her. The Human Trafficker suddenly fell silent and looked up in surprise.
Ye Xiaohan quickly withdrew her hand and said, "Aunt Zhang, this matter has reached this point. If you have any grievances, let’s discuss them and see if we can resolve it. Otherwise, crying here won’t change anything."
The Human Trafficker opened her mouth and found she could speak again. Thinking that she had merely choked on her emotions earlier, she didn’t pay it much mind. Upon hearing Ye Xiaohan's words, she immediately shifted her focus: "If this deal goes through, I could earn a hefty reward. Now that this money is gone, what will you do?"
To make the noise stop quickly, Ye Xiaohan replied, "How could we let Aunt Zhang suffer losses? We'll cover this amount; how does that sound?"
Upon hearing there was money involved, the Human Trafficker stopped wailing and scrambled to her feet. "The gentleman over there promised five taels as a reward; you can't go back on your word!" In reality, it was only two taels that she had exaggerated.
Five taels were fine; as long as it brought peace and quiet. Ye Xiaohan paid the five taels in silver, and the Human Trafficker left contentedly.
Ye Xiaohan looked displeased at the door. "I usually only trick others; I never thought I'd end up being swindled by an old woman."
Liu Bei felt sorry for her; all that silver had been earned by Ye Xiaohan herself. He only wanted to spend it on her and felt it was a waste to spend even a single coin on himself.
However, what mattered most was that Ye Xiaohan could stay.
He watched Ye Xiaohan bustling around the house, feeling a sense of satisfaction in his heart.
He only wished that this tranquility could last.
Ye Xiaohan bit her chopsticks, staring blankly at the table when Liu Bei placed a serving of vegetables in front of her, puzzled. "What's wrong? Is it not tasty?"
Recently, the food at the Liu household had improved, with a variety of dishes that were far better than before. Just look at the round faces of Liu Qi and Liu Yang to see the difference.
Liu Yang took a bite of rice and nodded, indicating it was delicious, while Liu Qi chimed in with an approving nod.
Ye Xiaohan set down her bowl and chopsticks. "We don't have a stable income. The money we made before mostly came from tricks and deceit; that won't last long. We need to think of a way to earn money properly. Otherwise, if we keep eating away at our savings, we'll end up back to eating wild vegetable soup."
Liu Bei felt a bit awkward. He was the head of the Liu family, yet he couldn't even take care of the Gu family's needs, causing his younger siblings and wife to go hungry.
"I can try harder and go up the mountain more often; there should be more gains," Liu Bei said, though his confidence was lacking. There were many beasts on the mountain, and whether he could catch any was uncertain.
Seeing his older brother in distress, Liu Yang quickly offered, "I can help out too, do some odd jobs to earn a little extra for the household."
The little follower Liu Qi didn't care whether he understood or not and nodded eagerly. "Earn money, household expenses."
"Pfft." Ye Xiaohan laughed at their enthusiasm and reached out to pinch Liu Qi's cheek. "You don't need to help; I already have an idea."
Sitting up straight, Ye Xiaohan discussed with Liu Bei. "I've thought about it. We don't have land or enough labor; this path won't work. If we want to get rich, we can only do business."
"Six Bei has never opposed her, so he readily agreed, 'Do whatever you want, and I will help you.'
Six Yang asked, 'So what business are we going to do? There aren't many people in the village who run businesses. Some are just peddlers selling needles and threads, working hard but barely making any money.'
Ye Xiaohan proudly lifted her chin. 'They are foolish. That can't even be called a business; it's just selling labor. If we want to do something, we need to use our brains and earn money with our intellect.'
Six Yang seemed to understand a bit. 'That does sound reasonable, Sister-in-law. Have you thought about what kind of business you want to start?'
'Um...' Ye Xiaohan's expression fell as she glanced sideways at Six Yang. 'Not yet.'
Six Yang burst into laughter and quickly covered his mouth. 'You need to have a clear plan! I thought you already had an idea; turns out you still need to think it over.'
Ye Xiaohan glared at him. 'This is a serious matter; of course, it requires careful consideration! You eat your meal and stop talking so much!'
'Six Yang, stop bullying Xiao Han,' Six Bei interjected. He didn't mind his older brother's obvious favoritism and continued to eat quietly.
Seeing Ye Xiaohan frown in distress, Six Bei said, 'Don't worry; there will definitely be a way.'
Ye Xiaohan tilted her head to look at him. 'To start a business, you need capital. With only this little money at home, can I really use it all?'
'Of course! This money was earned by you, so naturally, you can decide how to use it. You can do whatever you want,' Six Bei stated firmly.
Ye Xiaohan rested her chin on her hand and asked, 'What if the business fails and I lose everything? Is that okay?'
Six Bei repeated, 'It's fine; just go ahead and do what you want.'"
It was truly rare for Ye Xiaohan to silently give a thumbs up to Liu Bei. Even in modern times, husbands who support their wives' entrepreneurial endeavors are few and far between, let alone in the male-dominated ancient era.
She lowered her head and quickly finished her meal; there were still many things to do ahead.
Liu Bei instructed his siblings not to disturb her while Ye Xiaohan wandered around alone.
Unfortunately, the Liu family was indeed destitute, and the village was surrounded by harsh conditions. The resources available for use were pitifully scarce. Ye Xiaohan proposed one idea after another, only to dismiss them all.
After wandering for a while, her breath became somewhat unsteady. This was still thanks to her careful conditioning; if it had been her previous frail self, she wouldn't have been able to last this long.
Ye Xiaohan found a large stone in the backyard and sat down, massaging her legs along the acupoints to alleviate the soreness.
The only advantage of the Liu family was its vast land; everywhere felt spacious. It wasn't just the Liu family; this was common among households here. With a low population in ancient times and inadequate medical facilities, rural areas often had more land than people.
Even the impoverished Liu family had a small backyard where they grew some vegetables and fruits, which helped save on expenses. Ye Xiaohan looked at the large peach tree in the yard; it seemed quite old, and with the warmth returning, it was blooming beautifully with peach blossoms.
Ye Xiaohan nodded. Trees that appeared to have fewer flowers often bore larger and more abundant fruit compared to those that were heavily laden with blossoms but ended up dropping immature fruit all over the ground.
By summer, there would be sweet peaches to enjoy. The peach tree truly was a treasure; its peaches were delicious, peach resin nourished the body, and peach blossoms enhanced beauty...
Wait a minute, peach blossoms!
Ye Xiaohan suddenly snapped back to reality; she had an idea for a business!
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