Chapter 23: This is a lot of information!

Chapter 23: That's a lot of information!

"Then I'll go back first to scrub the pot and boil some water." Er Ya's eyes lit up instantly; she had to get the ingredients into the pot before Grandma and the others returned!

Bai Lie told her to hurry along.

Shuyue leaned against her father's shoulder, peeking out curiously at the basket Bai Lie was carrying. "Is it all rewards?"

It looked like a lot of things.

Bai Lie: "..."

It wasn't!

By now, they had already left the threshing floor. Since it looked like rain was imminent, the grain that had been drying had already been moved, leaving only some haystacks and straw. Consequently, there were few people working there.

Bai Lie struggled for half a second between telling his daughter the truth or not. Worried that if he didn't tell her, she might act too boldly and try to "perform a heroic deed" to earn rewards next time she encountered something, he lowered his voice to explain to Shuyue.

Upon learning the truth, Shuyue was dumbfounded: "..."

Oh, so these things were exchanged by Dad selling a small gold nugget!

Oh, so Dad was trying to use these rewards to smuggle some things back and then process the rest through official channels!

That made sense!

Originally, a commendation ceremony would involve standing on a stage, recounting personal deeds, giving a speech to inspire the masses, and announcing the prizes one by one for everyone to hear.

But circumstances required flexibility!

With the rain coming, everyone in the village was busy as dogs; who had the time to hold a commendation ceremony for you? If they forced the whole village to attend, who would be responsible for the ruined grain and delayed work in the fields once the rain actually fell?

Thus, everyone had a tacit understanding.

Bai Lie simply went to a threshing floor that wouldn't interfere with people's work to take a photo, and the public security officer struck a gong to make an announcement in the village. That was enough.

Shuyue's eyelashes fluttered, her eyes sparkling with a hint of mischief.

"Dad, you're quite wealthy! The night before last, I heard that Third Uncle is looking for a job in the city and is short on money to pull some strings!"

From the tone of it, it sounded like the family was in a difficult spot, and they probably couldn't scrape that money together.

But looking at her own father's extravagant display... tsk...

"What wealth? I'm poor. Every year, the grain and money distributed by the village are all held tightly by your Grandma."

Bai Lie spoke with an air of righteous indignation, but he looked at his daughter with a strange expression. "You're just a child; you can actually understand these kinds of things?"

Shuyue was startled. Bai Lie had already spoken, a hint of pride in his smile. "You are my daughter after all, just like I was back then. They all think I don't remember the old days, but actually, I remember things from when I was your age quite clearly!"

Shuyue: "..."

That was a lot of information!

What do you mean "remember or not"? Who thought you didn't remember something?

Shuyue was curious, but Bai Lie had no intention of saying more. By this time, they had reached their home. Instead of taking Shuyue through the front door, Bai Lie led her directly into the bamboo grove toward the back window of their house.

He had to get the smuggled items into the house first before taking the rest through the official channels!

"You can't open it, right? I put a latch on the inside!" However, before Shuyue could even finish her sentence, she saw Bai Lie remove the entire window frame in one smooth, fluid motion.

Shuyue: "..."

She had even hidden gold in this house; could he not give her a little sense of security?

Before Shuyue could dwell on it, Bai Lie had already led her into the house, taking items out of the basket one by one: cold cream, clam oil, fruit candies, brown sugar, white sugar, biscuits, shortbread, dried persimmons, malt extract, milk powder, honey, and three small cloth bags containing two catties of dried sweet potatoes, two catties of millet, five catties of white rice, and a piece of yellow millet and red bean rice cake that must have weighed at least one catty!

(End of Chapter)