Chapter 6 Plan(1)_1

Lady Du exchanged a few more polite words with Aunt Zhou, chatted about ordinary matters for a while, before seeing her off.

Upon returning to the inner room, she saw Mu Caiwei had already risen from the kang, and was squatting on the floor putting on shoes. She quickly moved forward to support her daughter, saying, "Oh dear, Wei'er, you're just recovering, why are you up? Hurry back to bed..."

Mu Caiwei gently patted Lady Du's hand, saying, "Mother, I'm much better now. I want to stretch a little. If we stay in bed all the time, even a healthy person might fall sick!"

Perhaps due to having just eaten a bowl of porridge, Mu Caiwei's face was already a little flushed, and she spoke with vigor.

Lady Du looked at her daughter for a while, seeing that she seemed much more spirited than before, she felt relieved. She took the basket given by Aunt Zhou and went to the kitchen to get busy.

Cai Wei waved her hand and called her younger sister Cai Fei and younger brother Chong Wen over.

"Fei'er, go and get the broom for your sister."

"Wu'er, go to the kitchen and find a sharp knife for your sister."

"Understood, older sister."

"Understood, older sister."

Fei'er and Wen'er were very obedient and quickly returned, one holding a broom, the other holding a kitchen knife.

"Older sister, here you go."

Mu Caiwei gently caressed the broom that Fei'er had handed over, silently rejoicing to herself – fortunately the broom at home was made of bamboo.

Earlier she had been worried that the broom at home would be like those in modern Northeastern countryside, made of bound sorghum stalks. If that were the case, her perfect plan to get rich might be doomed!

"Eldest sister, why do you want to cut these bamboo strips off the broom?"

Her youngest brother, Mu Chongwu, standing beside Mu Caiwei, blinked his big eyes as he watched his older sister busy at work, his face full of curiosity.

"Your sister needs it."

"Then why are you sharpening both ends?"

"To make bamboo sticks."

"What does sister need bamboo sticks for?"

"You'll know tomorrow, Wu'er!"

"..."

Shortly after, Mu Caiwei had several bamboo sticks in her hand. She broke a few with ease and then frowned, "No good, not strong enough."

In the kitchen, Lady Du was cutting potatoes, planning to boil some mashed potatoes later to stave off the children's hunger. Hearing footsteps, she looked up and saw Cai Wei coming in.

"Caiwei, what's the matter?"

"Mmm, Mother, do we still have any salt at home?" Mu Caiwei was looking around.

"Yes, we do." Lady Du pointed to a wooden shelf next to the stove. On it was a greasy oil bottle and a black pot with a chipped edge.

"We do have some, but there is hardly any left." Lady Du handed the salt jar to Caiwei.

Mu Caiwei took the salt jar and brought it close to her eyes to check, exhaling a long breath, "Good, it's enough."

"Wei'er, what do you need the salt for? Hey, what is that in your hand?" Lady Du asked.

"Nothing, it's just some small craft work I wanted to do," Mu Caiwei said. She didn't want to share her plans with her mother just yet. Knowing her mother's gentle temperament, she would surely worry herself sick if she knew about her plan to hunt wild boars, and definitely would not let her go. Therefore, she must keep everything a secret until she has hunted a wild boar.

"Mother, could you leave the kitchen for a while? Our kitchen is too small, I can't move freely with you here." Mimicking the tone of a little girl, Mu Caiwei shook Lady Du's arm playfully and gently guided her out of the kitchen.

Lady Du smiled affectionately, pointed at her daughter's forehead with her finger and teasingly said, "You naughty girl. You seem to have become quite cheeky since falling ill..."