"Really?" Shen Xiaoming's eyes sparkled as he looked at Shen Xiaoyan.
Shen Xiaoyan patted his head and chuckled, "Of course."
Zheng Wei remained non-committal, believing children ought to attend school and learn to read.
Having earned the largest sum of money since her transmigration, Shen Xiaoyan was overjoyed. The striped watermelons in the field could still be sold a few more times, and then she would have enough money to build a house.
Looking up at the adobe roof of the thatched hut, Shen Xiaoyan's resolve to build a house grew stronger. If not for anything else, when winter arrived, the three of them would surely freeze in this humble dwelling.
Wishing Shen Xiaoming well and telling him to practice his calligraphy diligently, Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei stood up and walked towards the courtyard.
As for what they were going to do, that was a story that began earlier.
Ever since Shen Xiaoyan and Shen Xiaoming started studying and selling raspberries, Zheng Wei had stopped hunting in the mountains.
However, Shen Xiaoyan noticed that he got up very early every morning. At first, she thought he was just going out to chop firewood and fetch water, as they needed firewood for cooking and water for meals since there was no well in the courtyard. Zheng Wei would always fetch it from the nearby river.
One morning, unable to sleep, Shen Xiaoyan also got up after Zheng Wei and discovered that he was practicing martial arts.
The martial arts Zheng Wei practiced were not like those she had seen in television dramas in her previous life, where people could fly and jump. It was more akin to Sanda, or perhaps simply called Chinese martial arts.
Although Shen Xiaoyan had awakened her superpower and could control any plant as her weapon, making her actions more effortless, she did not want to be burned alive as a monster. Therefore, aside from exhibiting greater strength, she had not revealed any other unusual abilities.
Now, seeing Zheng Wei practicing martial arts, Shen Xiaoyan pestered him to teach her.
Initially, Zheng Wei refused, fearing that Shen Xiaoyan would not be able to endure the hardship. However, Shen Xiaoyan's physical condition had already reached a perfect state.
The training exercises Zheng Wei used to deter her, meant to make her give up, were effortless for Shen Xiaoyan.
This time, it was Zheng Wei's turn to be astonished, his gaze filled with pleasant surprise as he looked at Shen Xiaoyan.
From then on, Shen Xiaoyan followed Zheng Wei to practice martial arts whenever she had free time. Over half a month, she had already made some progress.
In her first life, she was a weak woman with no strength. In her second life, though she had great strength, she mostly relied on her wood-element superpower.
Only now, was she truly utilizing her physical strength. She was confident that she could easily handle two or three adult men.
At this moment, Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei walked into the courtyard. On the bare patch of ground where nothing was planted, they began sparring.
This was Zheng Wei's idea. He said that rote learning was inferior to practical application, and that more sparring practice would lead to better mastery of one's abilities.
They sparred for an hour, both drenched in sweat and flushed with exertion.
Shen Xiaoyan went to the kitchen to boil water, and after they both washed up, they felt much refreshed.
The bathing area was next to the kitchen, a small hut that Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei had built together. It was made of bamboo and wood, with bamboo curtains hung on all four walls and a door that could be latched from the inside, so there was no fear of being seen from outside.
Although their current living conditions were not ideal, Shen Xiaoyan couldn't bear to go half a month without bathing, so she had to make do with this simple arrangement for now.
Half a month later, Lu Taobao arrived with more people to pick up the striped watermelons. As soon as he entered, Lu Taobao said with a smile, "Brother, Sister-in-law, you have no idea how popular these striped watermelons are."
Shen Xiaoyan smiled at his words. She had indeed anticipated that the striped watermelons would be popular, given the limited variety of fruits in ancient times.
After a tour of the watermelon patch with his men, they harvested all the ripe watermelons. After weighing them, this time they totaled 12,000 jin, selling for a total of 180 taels of silver.
Watching Lu Taobao and his convoy depart, Shen Xiaoyan turned to go back. Her eyes caught sight of the direction of Baiyun Village, and she saw several people walking towards them.
Upon recognizing who was coming, Shen Xiaoyan couldn't help but sigh inwardly, *They're here.*
These people were none other than Shen Cheng's family: Shen Cheng and Xu Shi, along with Xu Xiao'e and the dragon-phoenix twins. This time, they were all present.
Although Shen Xiaoyan really wanted to turn around and go back into her courtyard and close the door, she could only think about it.
As the group approached her, Shen Xiaoyan looked at them without speaking.
After waiting for a long time without a response from Shen Xiaoyan, Shen Cheng's expression turned unpleasant.
Xu Xiao'e, however, broke into a smile and said, "I heard recently that Sister has made a lot of money. Why haven't you come back to see Mom and Dad?"
Without waiting for Shen Xiaoyan's reply, Xu Shi chimed in, "She's rich now, and she doesn't remember the hardship Mom and Dad went through to raise her."
As Xu Shi spoke, she even took out a handkerchief and dabbed at the corner of her eye. It was likely an attempt to feign tears, though Shen Xiaoyan saw no moisture in her eyes.
Indeed, when Xu Shi lowered the handkerchief, there were no marks on it.
Shen Xiaoyan glanced at Xu Shi's bulging belly and thought to herself, judging by the timing, she must be about four months pregnant.
"Why is Mother running all this way instead of resting at home and taking care of her pregnancy?" Shen Xiaoyan said with a forced smile.
Shen Cheng flicked his sleeve and, without waiting for Xu Shi to speak, walked past Shen Xiaoyan and into the courtyard.
Seeing this, Xu Shi quickly followed him into the courtyard, with Xu Xiao'e and the dragon-phoenix twins hurrying after them.
Shen Xiaoyan was unfazed by this. The striped watermelons were being sold in town, and she hadn't deliberately kept it a secret. As long as someone was willing to inquire, it wouldn't be hard to find out where the striped watermelons came from.
It was only a matter of time before Shen Cheng's family heard about it and came looking for her. Since she had anticipated this, she had nothing to worry about.
She walked into the courtyard and saw Xu Xiao'e and the dragon-phoenix twins squatting in the raspberry patch, picking and eating raspberries.
Although some of them had been picked by Lu Taobao earlier, there were still some less ripe ones left. However, the three of them didn't seem to care. They picked them, and without washing them, popped them directly into their mouths.
Seeing this, Shen Xiaoyan felt utterly speechless. Although there were no pesticides used, they were grown outdoors, so they were bound to be covered in dirt.
Did they not find it dirty to eat them like this?
It was understandable for the children, but Xu Xiao'e was an adult.
Shen Xiaoyan turned her head and looked at Shen Cheng and Xu Shi. The two of them were standing at the edge of the watermelon field, staring blankly at the striped watermelons in the field.
After a while, Shen Cheng seemed to snap back to reality and said to Shen Xiaoyan, "The striped watermelons in town are sold for over 20 li per jin. Even selling them wholesale to the Lu family, it should be at least 10 li per jin, right? Look how many striped watermelons have been sold in town, and the Lu family just took away over a dozen carts. You must have made a lot of money, so why don't you help your family?"