Chapter 10: Sheng the Skin-Peeler

"As if she could ever climb up to my brother, pfft!" Bai Xiaolian looked down on Sheng Zhaodi with utter contempt.

In the end, Sheng Zhaodi could only return to her own doorstep. She squatted on the ground, tears streaming down her face before she even realized it. It was all that little bitch Sheng Wanqiu’s fault; if it weren't for her, she wouldn't have been kicked out by her mother, and Auntie Bai wouldn't have barred her from entering the courtyard.

Meanwhile, Sheng Wanqiu was busy admiring her reflection in a small bronze mirror.

Tsk, tsk, tsk! Still too thin, and this complexion isn't great—not fair enough.

The best features were her eyes, which were lively and carried a hint of allure. Her little nose was reasonably perky, her lips were pouty, and when she smiled, two small dimples appeared on her cheeks. When she wasn't smiling, she looked quiet and elegant. If she were a bit fairer and a bit plumper, she could definitely be considered a little beauty.

Of course, clothes make the person; if she dressed a bit better, she could probably go out and bluff a few people!

The most pressing matter was figuring out how to make money. This Great Yue Dynasty valued literature, so it seemed she would have to send her younger brothers to school. If one of them managed to become an official or something, couldn't she just lie back and live a life of ease?

Furthermore, if she really did find a way to make money, she couldn't do it without someone backing her. If an official decided to raid her home for some bullshit reason, all her hard work would be for nothing. No matter how much money she made, it would be useless.

"Aren't you going to wash up and sleep? What are you doing staring into a mirror? All you know is how to be vain!" Old Lady Sheng walked in and saw her making faces at the small bronze mirror, which gave her a start.

It was bad luck to look in a mirror after dark, so she quickly spoke up to interrupt her.

"I know, Grandma. You go to sleep first! I'm going to boil some water for a bath before I sleep!" Sheng Wanqiu nimbly jumped off the bed and headed to the kitchen to boil water.

When she used to watch short videos, she had always wanted to try firing up one of these old-fashioned earthen stoves. Sheng Huaian had done the cooking for dinner, and she hadn't had a chance to try it yet.

Without a second thought, she dove in, and a moment later, a soot-covered person crawled out of the smoke-filled kitchen.

"Damn it! I’m choking to death!" Sheng Wanqiu sat on the ground, coughing uncontrollably.

"You wretched girl, what are you doing? Trying to burn the kitchen down?!"

Old Lady Sheng came running into the kitchen, cursing. She pulled the wood that was stuffed to the brim out of the stove, then proceeded to greet Sheng Wanqiu with a flurry of little punches.

"Grandma, don't hit me! I was just trying to boil some water for a bath, not burn the kitchen!"

Sheng Wanqiu ran while looking back to beg for mercy.

"Boil water? Is that what you call boiling water? You nearly poked a hole through the bottom of the pot! You wretched girl, why are you getting dumber by the day?"

"You can't even boil water, what else are you good for? Don't run! Let me give you a few lumps on your head!"

Old Lady Sheng chased her, brandishing a fire poker and cursing all the way!

In the end, the bathwater was still boiled by Sheng Huaian. Touching the few strands of hair her grandmother had yanked out, Sheng Wanqiu felt like crying. This old lady had a heavy hand—she’d actually pulled out her hair!

Wuwuwu!

She had thought she would need time to adapt to this era and wouldn't be able to sleep, but to her surprise, she was snoring the moment her head hit the pillow. Accompanied by the sound of insects, she slept exceptionally well.

Old Lady Sheng looked at Sheng Wanqiu, who was curled up at the foot of her bed. She reached out to tuck the thin quilt around her and stroked her hair kindly. Perhaps this child was just finding joy in the midst of bitterness.

After a good night's sleep, Sheng Wanqiu opened her eyes to the sound of a rooster crowing.

"Whose chicken is that? Kill it and stew it! It's so noisy, what time is it even? It sounds just like the chickens at Old Man Sheng the Skinflint's house!"

"What are you muttering about? Who is Old Man Sheng the Skinflint?"

Old Lady Sheng walked in from outside, looking at Sheng Wanqiu’s bedhead with disdain.

"A stingy old landlord!" Sheng Wanqiu replied, stretching her arms.

"Hurry up and wash, we're taking the ox cart to town!" Old Lady Sheng ignored her nonsense and busied herself with tidying up.

Sheng Wanqiu got dressed and walked out into the courtyard, circling around. Where was the toothbrush?

"Sister, what are you looking for?" Sheng Huaian brought breakfast out from the kitchen and saw Sheng Wanqiu wandering around the yard.

"Uh! I don't know how to put it, but how do you guys brush your teeth?" Sheng Wanqiu scratched her head and asked.

"That's easy!" Sheng Huaian then broke a small twig off a white bamboo stalk and handed it to her.

"Just dip this in some coarse salt and scrub your teeth with it!"

"Sister, what's wrong with you? Are you still half-asleep? How could you forget this?" Sheng Huaian looked at his sister suspiciously.

"I'm still groggy, haha!" Sheng Wanqiu laughed awkwardly and took the twig to brush her teeth.

Tsk, tsk, tsk. She almost poked her gums through. What a disaster!

After wolfing down breakfast—a bowl of rice porridge so thin she could see her reflection in it, and a black, unrecognizable cake that she had to thump her chest three times to swallow—they were ready to go.

Old Lady Sheng arranged for her two grandsons to go to her eldest daughter's house in the next village, while she took Sheng Wanqiu to her youngest daughter's house in town.

The eldest daughter lived in the next village, not far away, so she was comfortable letting the two boys go alone, as they often ran over there anyway.

"You two, be careful on the road. If anyone with no eyes bothers you, fight if you can. If you can't win, run away and come back to tell me. Your sister will go and get revenge for you!"

Before Sheng Wanqiu could finish her instructions to her brothers, she was dragged away by Old Lady Sheng. She was truly terrified; one reckless person in the family was enough—if there were two more, how would she ever survive?

Old Lady Sheng squeezed onto the ox cart with her. The cart was mostly filled with people from the surrounding villages, and the cart usually made two trips a day.

Their Qingshan Village was relatively close to town, separated by only two other villages. If they walked, it would take at least two hours.

Taking the ox cart, if they were fast, they could get there in an hour.

Two wen per person was a very reasonable fare. Sheng Wanqiu paid for it; she knew they were going to town today, so she had tucked her little coin purse away early—or rather, she had placed it in that three-hundred-square-meter space.

Sheng Wanqiu held the clay pot, leaning her head on Old Lady Sheng's shoulder, enduring the constant jolting from beneath her.

They hadn't been traveling long, and her butt was already going numb!

Damn it! Once she made some money, she would definitely buy a carriage so her butt wouldn't have to suffer so much!

"Wanqiu, what do you have in that clay pot?" Bai Xiaolian and her mother were also on the cart. Bai Xiaolian had been jealous the moment she saw Sheng Wanqiu pull out silver to pay the fare. Why was this person richer than her? Her mother was good at everything, except she never gave her any silver.

Seeing Sheng Wanqiu casually pull out four wen made her eyes turn green with envy.

On top of that, she looked very different today. Her hair was neatly braided into a plait with a small, unknown flower tucked into it, and her grey dress made her look quite pretty. She was the same person as before, but today, Sheng Wanqiu just felt very different.