When Widow Qu heard her asking for tea, she was very generous and brought out a clay pot and teapot: "This is tea made from the leaves of the yellow-skinned fruit tree. It clears away heat and quenches thirst. I don't know if you are used to drinking it."
How could Zhao Liya be picky? She quickly thanked her and took it.
She thought for a while, then smiled and said politely: "By the way, Aunt Qu, can we borrow your stove to cook some porridge tonight? It's not in vain, I can pay for it, please do it for your convenience."
Widow Qu smiled: "What do the neighbors say about money? Just come and do it!"
"Thank you Aunt Qu!"
Zhao Liya left with brisk steps.
The tea was light amber in color, refreshing in the mouth, with a hint of sweetness. After working for a long time, the family was very thirsty, so they drank it from a stoneware bowl and praised it greatly.
After drinking the tea and tidying up for a while, Zhao Liya said something, then scooped up a large bowl of millet and took it to Widow Qu's house.
Their bowls were for the road, but they didn't have pots and hadn't had time to buy them yet, so they had to borrow them from Widow Qu's house.
This big bowl of millet weighs almost a pound, which is enough to make porridge and give two bowls to Widow Qu. I borrowed the firewood and pot from someone else's stove, but of course I can't eat alone. I'll return the favor later.
It is important to cook porridge, but it is also important to inquire about the situation in the village.
It just so happened that Widow Qu seemed to be quite interested in their family's new neighbors and asked a lot of questions. Zhao Liya told her everything she could tell. And Widow Qu also told her everything Zhao Liya asked about.
The two chatted happily.
Only then did Zhao Liya know that Widow Qu was a widow living here with her daughter Qu Yutao, and she was filled with admiration. The mother and daughter must have some ability to establish themselves here. She is also a good person and can be dealt with.
.
After cooking the millet porridge for more than half an hour, the cooked millet porridge is thick and smooth, with a full rice aroma. Once you smell it, you will feel like it is ironing. After one sip, your spleen and stomach will be soothed.
Zhao Liya filled two large steaming bowls and put them on the stove, "Auntie and Sister Yutao also want to try it. On such a hot day, some porridge can nourish the stomach and nourish the body!"
"Hey, I'm asking you to spend money!" Widow Qu didn't refuse, she said thank you with a smile, and took out a few fresh cucumbers from the small basket and put them in the basket: "Take them to taste."
"Thank you, Auntie!" Zhao Liya thanked her with a crisp smile, took the pot and the basket and left, "I will return the pot and basket to Auntie later."
"Hey, don't be in a hurry!"
Zhao Liya brought dinner home and the whole family shared it.
There were no stools in the room, so everyone spread out mats to sit on.
I am tired after a long day of work, and the fragrant and yellow millet porridge is particularly tempting.
"Hey, this millet porridge is so fragrant! Does it taste good?"
“Delicious!”
"It's your sister who is good at her craftsmanship, haha!"
"Dad, cooking porridge doesn't require skills."
"You want it, but a mother like me doesn't know how to do it!"
Everyone laughed. In the afterglow of the setting sun, the whole family talked and laughed, cherishing and happily sitting together and drinking fragrant millet porridge. It was simple but happy and warm.
The millet porridge was boiled very thickly, and the adults tacitly followed the two little ones first to let them eat until they were full. The adults were probably seven-thirds full.
After dinner, the dusk became darker.
They also had moxa sticks bought at the drugstore, so they smoked them all over the house and burned them outside the door to smoke them out against mosquitoes.
Then, everyone sat on the mat and discussed the future arrangements.
First of all, of course, you need to take stock of your money to see how much possessions you have left.
When they came, Zhao Liya extorted two thousand taels of silver from Duke Li Guo's government. Hu Ling later caught up with them and brought 400 taels of silver, making a total of 2,400 taels.
It looks like a lot, but it costs even more money on the road.
I only gave 600 taels of gifts to the escorting officers, and I also bought some wine, meat, cakes, fresh fruits, etc. from time to time to bribe them, which cost more than 200 taels.
They themselves spent a lot of money along the way. Especially when they stayed at the inn, they were treated as the culprits. It was not enough not to let them be slaughtered. If something happened to them, who knew what would happen?
At this time, after counting, there were still more than one thousand and thirty taels of silver left.
Although it seems to be a lot, their current status means that they may need to spend money to eliminate disasters. Therefore, they must keep about 600 taels as life-saving money, which must not be used easily.
In other words, what they can use now is only 500 taels plus a fraction.
I took a look at this house without a door - money needs to be filled everywhere!
Zhao Xiang said: "Ya'er, from now on you will be in charge of the money in our house. You are thoughtful and I will work hard for you in the future."
Mrs. Deng also smiled lovingly and agreed: "Yes, my Ya'er is a good person. Fortunately, you are my parents' blessing!"
Hu Ling grinned: "I also listen to my sister."
"Okay, then I'll tell you my plan..."
Zhao Liya originally planned to worry about this family to the end. Even if she was not the head of the family in name, she had to actually have the final say.
It's not that she likes to seize power, but her parents have never lived like this before and don't know where to start. It's okay to be brave, but nothing else works. If she doesn't stand up, who do you expect?
As far as their family's current situation is concerned, there is no need to say anything. They need to establish a foothold in the village first.
This place is different from other villages. Either prisoners are exiled, or relatives or descendants of prisoners are exiled. It cannot be said that there are all heinous villains here, but there is definitely a mixture of dragons and snakes, and there are more villains.
Everyone's moral sense is also lower.
Therefore, in order to gain a foothold, Zhao Liya couldn't say exactly how to do it. She could only use troops to cover up the water and cover up the ground.
For example, if you want to make friends with people like Widow Qu; if you want to deal with gangsters and scoundrels, of course you must have fists.
"Our house must be well reinforced and built to be safe. My brother and I will go to the county town tomorrow to inquire about it and hire more people to build the house quickly."
This was unanimously agreed upon by everyone.
Mrs. Deng was particularly frightened. She couldn't help but look at the dark door with only a frame and said: "This house is really scary to live in. The sooner it is built, the better. Otherwise, I will be really worried, worried..."
Zhao Liya smiled: "Don't worry, Mom, I will make it in time. With me, dad and brother here, you can just sleep peacefully at night no matter what time!"
"Not bad!" Everyone laughed.
After the dust settled, the tense energy along the way subconsciously relaxed. Everyone was tired and sleepy, and after a while, they all went to rest.
There are too many things to talk about in a short while anyway, so there is no hurry this evening.
The house must be done well first, personal safety and property safety must be ensured first, and the rest will come step by step.
They have money in their pockets and don't feel panic. They still have some confidence.