Thanks to all the students for the tips and votes. －－－－－－－－－－－－－ Er Niu paused, feeling he had said all that needed to be said previously, and decided that was about it. He handed out a 'start-of-work' red envelope to each person, announcing they would all take the morning off. They would gather for a celebratory lunch to kick off the work, and in the afternoon, he would take them to the fields to divide the land, assigning specific plots to each worker. This way, by year's end, they could assess who performed best and reward or penalize accordingly.

Hong Xia arrived early that day. Her belly was slightly rounded now, though the layers of winter clothing made it less obvious; it didn't impede her usual tasks. Since it was the first day, Huang Shi and Lin He had also come along. Huang Shi set out the provisions Er Niu had purchased—a good amount of various grains: white flour, cornmeal, black flour, and brown rice. She instructed Hong Xia to mix and prepare them, ensuring the staple food was ample, with white flour served every other meal. As for vegetables, someone would deliver fresh ones early every morning.

Hong Xia listened carefully to Huang Shi's instructions and stored everything properly before starting to process the greens for lunch. Seeing the abundance of supplies on the first day, Huang Shi lent a hand. Er Niu’s family was quite generous with the food. Besides the purchased meat, Er Niu had Old Man Qin fetch two fish from the pond and brought out one chicken and one duck from the coop. For vegetables, they had cabbages, potatoes, radishes, and celery stored from the winter. Huang Shi figured this spread was more than sufficient.

Lunch was a feast to celebrate the start of work, making it exceptionally rich. The fish was braised, cooked by Huang Shi; the chicken was steamed dry; the duck was stewed into soup. There were also several meat dishes accompanied by vegetables, creating a lavish spread. When the several hired hands saw this food, they genuinely couldn't believe it was meant for them. They had never seen masters prepare such fine meals for laborers.

Er Niu urged them to eat together before they truly believed the food was for them. The table, laden with dishes, was entirely cleared by the dozen or so strong men. Most of these laborers had come out because their own families didn't have enough to eat, so consuming a large amount was natural. If their family circumstances were better, who would choose to be a long-term hired hand, spending years away from home and rarely seeing family?

After lunch, Er Niu and Old Man Qin took the laborers to survey the fields and allocated each man his assigned section, instructing them to memorize their boundaries. They were told that if any issues arose, they could report to Old Man Qin temporarily. As for Old Man Qin, Er Niu instructed him not to do heavy labor in the fields for the time being, but instead to supervise the laborers and address whatever they needed.

The laborers did little actual work on their first day. That evening, Er Niu met with Old Man Qin indoors to discuss the urgent need to forge farm implements—they needed about ten sets—and planned to dedicate time soon to getting the tools made.

The days flew by quickly as spring approached. Old Man Qin led the laborers in working the fields daily. When spring officially arrived, they could first plant a season of corn, and once the corn was harvested in autumn, they could immediately plant wheat. Of course, before spring, the fields needed weeding and fertilizing to be properly nourished.

Regarding Uncle Wen, people had been coming from his place regularly to collect goods for Lin He. However, a few days prior, Uncle Wen sent someone with a message: his matters there had been resolved, and there was nothing pressing anymore. Lin He could travel to town whenever she wished. Still, the deliveries would continue to be collected monthly by his messenger, though he hoped Lin He would visit town when she had time.

Lin He genuinely hadn't been to town in a long time, and hearing Uncle Wen say things were settled made her want to find an opportunity to go soon. Her two dogs at home were growing quite large; they would make excellent bodyguards if taken along. However, Lin He worried—Old Man Qin didn't have the time to take them to town now, and she and Xiao Jun couldn't manage the ox cart themselves, especially since neither of them knew how to drive one. It would be wonderful if they could hire some skilled men in town.

People like that were likely called hùyuàn (guards) now. As Lin He’s household accumulated more valuables, hiring guards was becoming necessary. But for the moment, Lin He preferred to hire someone she could keep close, preferably a skilled young woman. Lin He decided to seek out Uncle Wen, believing he could help her find the right person.

Lin He waited a few days at home until Er Niu finally had some free time. She asked Er Niu to accompany them to town, mentioning she needed to see Uncle Wen about some matters. Er Niu hitched the ox cart and drove them over. Lin He couldn't tell if Er Niu was driving too fast or if the cart genuinely had technical issues, but the jolting made her feel nauseous. She decided then and there that she needed to buy a proper carriage and hire someone who knew how to drive one. Having to endure this ride several more times was out of the question, plus Er Niu wouldn't always be available to take her.

Er Niu dropped them off at the entrance of Cai Die Xuan and drove the ox cart away. Uncle Wen wasn't inside the shop, but the two people Lin He least wanted to see were present. If she had known they would be there, Lin He wouldn't have come today.

Both Wen Ning Xuan and Wen Ning Mo were inside the shop. Seeing Lin He arrive, Wen Ning Xuan remained seated where he was without moving. Wen Ning Mo, however, walked over and asked, "Little girl, are you here to find my father again? Why are you looking for him?"

Seeing Uncle Wen absent, Lin He planned to turn and leave, intending to browse the street first and return later, as she couldn't be bothered to exchange pleasantries with these two brutes. One was as stiff as a piece of wood, glaring at her coldly as if everyone owed him money; the other was a noisy brat, excessively gossipy, asking about everything and always stirring up trouble.

Indeed, Lin He was about to leave when that younger boy started talking. She intended to ignore him, but he stepped directly in front of her and said, "Hey, I'm talking to you, why are you ignoring me?"

"Oh, I didn't hear you just now. Young Master, do you need something?" Lin He deliberately feigned only just noticing Wen Ning Mo.

"It's nothing. Are you here for my dad? Don't come looking for him anymore if it's nothing important. Even if you have business, don't bother coming. You act so capable, but you're just a country girl. I truly don't see what’s so great about you that makes my father praise you so much and say I'm not as good as you in this or that…" Today, Wen Ning Mo wasn't affecting an air of mature authority; he sounded much more like an eight-year-old child.

As Wen Ning Mo continued, his voice grew quieter toward the end, but Lin He still caught it. Lin He paused, finally understanding why the young master had shown such immediate hostility toward her: it was because Uncle Wen had compared him unfavorably to her. What a petty child, holding such a grudge.

But if anyone should hold a grudge, it should be against his own father. Lin He felt unfairly implicated, yet this time, she found the young master somewhat amusing. She deliberately asked, "Young Master, what did you say? You said your father said you aren't as good as who? Are you saying you aren't as good as me?"

"Who said that? How am I not as good as you? Look at you, a country girl—have you studied? Do you know how to read account books? Can you recite poetry? Have you ever been to a school? No, I suppose not. You probably don't even recognize a single character," Wen Ning Mo exclaimed indignantly.