"There’s still a lot to learn in business. I’ve been learning these things since I was a kid, so naturally, I know a bit more. If you want to learn, study well. When you graduate from college and want to do business, I’ll teach you." Yin Yang said gently.

"I want to, I want to! Brother-in-law, you must teach me then." Xu Tao said excitedly, deciding that his brother-in-law would be his idol from now on.

"No problem." Yin Yang nodded with a smile.

"I want to learn too." Tiedan also looked at Yin Yang with anticipation.

"Of course you can. The more you learn, the more you can do in the future. People with skills can make money doing anything." Yin Yang said seriously, feeling a bit embarrassed by the sincere and eager looks from the children.

Xu Mumu tidied up her room, still in her old room. The room had new newspapers pasted on the walls, making it quite comfortable.

Lunch was very sumptuous. The family had stored a lot of dried mushrooms, some were sold, and some were kept for their own consumption.

The small greens in the garden at the front door were very tender, and the cold cucumber salad was crispy as well.

Xu Xue wasn’t home, so at the dining table, Xu Mumu heard her second aunt mention that Xu Xue had rented a shop in the provincial city and could now do business. She set up a shop selling buns, stuffed buns, and tea eggs, which was said to be doing well. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Xu Mumu wasn’t surprised. Xu Xue was bound to start this business someday, and now she’s doing it openly.

Madam Chen paused her eating for a moment upon hearing this, then continued. To be honest, she didn’t like the two girls from the second household at all. Back when the family hadn’t split, that naughty girl Xu Xue often talked back, making her dislike her even more.

Hmph, so what if she’s doing business? She’s still not as capable as Mumu and the rest, and Yin Yang is even better, earning so much money every day. Madam Chen had heard what Xu Mumu told the kids earlier.

Madam Chen thought proudly, of course, Qian Ying didn’t know what was on her mother-in-law’s mind.

Her girl might be struggling a bit over there, but the money she earns is real; otherwise, how could the couple allow Xu Xue to stay there alone?

The provincial city is huge, and Xu Xue’s school is quite far from where the main household lives, so Xu Xue rented a storefront on her own, which also has living quarters at the back. The couple felt reassured.

Xu Mumu didn’t care about Xu Xue’s affairs; whatever she did had nothing to do with her. They were just cousins with distant relations, so why should she care?

After lunch, Xu Mumu continued with her knitting while Yin Yang went to coach the kids.

She had knitted over half of the sweater, designed in the simplest style, and honestly, Xu Mumu found it a bit ugly.

The small courtyard was quite lively. Besides the kids studying, many from the village came over to chat with Madam Chen and the others.

Many people were particularly interested in the affairs of the provincial city and the kids winning awards. They hoped their own children could also be proud someday, so they came to the Old Xu Family to inquire how they educated their kids to be so remarkable.

Several old women, who used to have a good relationship with Madam Chen, were sitting in the courtyard.

Madam Chen was eloquent as she spoke about her family’s affairs, and the others listened attentively.

Listening to Madam Chen’s boasting in the courtyard, Xu Mumu’s mouth twitched. She didn’t expect her grandmother to learn to boast, yet none of the senior men and women in the courtyard felt she was boasting; they all listened intently.

Indeed, one becomes red by being near vermilion and black by being near ink. This must be learned from her parents. This bragging is exactly like when Li Caixia shows off each time she goes out.

Yin Yang saw it too; the Old Xu Family indeed stood out.

Looking at the satisfied listeners, Yin Yang was a little helpless, thinking that they would believe anything.

They had to plan for a banquet; the date was already set while at home, just a week later.

Early the next morning, Xu Mumu took a basket and sickle and went up the mountain with Yin Yang.

As for the kids, they went to find mushrooms, setting off even earlier.

Walking through the mountains, the two reached the tea trees. At this time, the tea tree buds were sparse, with only a few left.

For the wild vegetables, Xu Mumu only picked those she liked to eat.

"Where do you want to go?" Yin Yang asked with a smile, looking at Xu Mumu.

"The banquet is in a few days, so we must save some money. Today we’re going hunting," Xu Mumu said seriously, as if to save money for him.

"Mumu really knows how to live." Yin Yang chuckled, clearly knowing her hands itched to catch some game.

On the road, any handy stones were picked up by Xu Mumu.

Xu Mumu felt her luck was pretty good. They hadn’t gone far when they encountered two wild ducks flying in the sky, probably returning from foraging near the reservoir.

Xu Mumu weighed the stone in her hand and then threw it at one of them.

The duck cried out in pain and fell from the sky, while Xu Mumu threw another stone at the other, successfully bringing it down too.

"Not bad; my aim hasn’t faded." Xu Mumu said with satisfaction.

"Yes, indeed very impressive," Yin Yang nodded. "Let’s go, pick up the ducks."

"These ducks are much smaller than domestic ones; we’ll take these two back to stew for dinner." Xu Mumu smiled, although the wild ducks were small, they were a free catch.

"Whatever you say."

There weren’t many people hunting in these mountains, and Xu Mumu felt her luck was really good. As they returned, she was carrying two fat chickens in her hands, with a raccoon in the basket, two wild ducks, and a green-winged bird.

The bird’s feathers were quite pretty, although there wasn’t much meat.

"So much?" Seeing Xu Mumu and the others bringing back so much game, Madam Chen was a bit dumbfounded.

"It’s okay, grandma, with the banquet in a few days, we won’t need to buy any meat. These days, I’ll go up the mountain a couple more times." Xu Mumu said cheerfully.

"Okay then, this will save us a lot of money." Madam Chen sighed, amazed at how capable her granddaughter was. These could sell for dozens of yuan.

"Second Aunt, clean these two wild ducks and stew them. We’ll have them for dinner." Xu Mumu pulled out the two wild ducks.

"Sure, no problem." Qian Ying nodded with a smile, this niece was indeed quite capable.

Once the hot water was ready, they all helped, and the game was quickly prepared. They had two large basins full of meat. The offal and all that, Qian Ying and Madam Chen couldn’t bear to throw it away, planning to wash them after lunch.

After lunch, Madam Chen and the others got busy. Xu Mumu took a palm-leaf fan, holding her little brother and fanning them as the weather got increasingly hotter.