When the couple returned home, it was already completely dark.

"Dad’s back!" 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Si Niang exclaimed in surprise as she eagerly ran to the door, curious as she saw the pears on the cart and asked:

"Dad, you bought so many pears, can we finish them all?"

Liu Ji parked the ox cart, jumped down first, and turned to help Qin Yao, only to be avoided as expected.

Liu Ji shrugged, ready to unload, grabbing a basket with each hand, he brought the four baskets of pears into the courtyard from the cart.

Then, Da Lang and the others who came out exclaimed: "So many pears!"

Sanlang reached out to take one to try but was waved away mercilessly by Liu Ji, "Get away, these are picked by Dad for your Mother, she hasn’t touched them yet."

Sanlang pouted and immediately ran to find his Mother, shouting loudly: "Mother, I want to eat pears!"

"Me too, me too!" Si Niang immediately echoed.

Qin Yao chuckled as she pulled the Dragon and Phoenix Twins away from her, gesturing to Ah Wang to lead away the ox cart, she instructed Yin Le and Mrs. Li: "Wash a basin so we can taste it, not sure if these little pears are sweet."

Yin Le agreed cheerfully, brought a wooden basin, filled it with a dozen pears and went to wash by the water vat, while the greedy Dragon and Phoenix Twins couldn’t resist any longer, immediately following and biting into a pear as soon as it got wet.

It was crunchy, the skin was somewhat thick, but the juice was sweet; Si Niang quickly ran over to her Mother, tiptoed, wanting her to take a bite.

"Very sweet." Si Niang offered it forward again expectantly, Qin Yao couldn’t refuse, as the little girl wouldn’t give up until she took a bite.

This pear wasn’t the thin-skinned, soft-fleshed snow pear but just a local pear, with yellow-brown skin, round shaped, about the size of a tightly clenched fist of a seven or eight-year-old child; they matured around August and September, and now it’s October, these should be the last batch.

Under Si Niang’s expectant gaze, Qin Yao lowered her head and took a small bite, the flesh was thick and slightly firm, juice wasn’t abundant but was indeed sweet.

"Did you pick all the pears from the mountain?" Qin Yao asked while walking towards the water vat.

Liu Ji moved the basket intended for the teachers and senior brothers to the corridor, instructing the children not to touch it, then took a few quick steps to catch up to Qin Yao, grinning as he said:

"Yes, each one was personally chosen by me, if it’s not sweet, not big, not round, they don’t make the cut, what do you think? Is it delicious, my dear? According to the previous owners, these usually sell for seven or eight coins a pound."

But now, with winter approaching, the weather’s turning cold, pears aren’t selling well, instead of letting them rot on the trees, it’s better to pick them.

Qin Yao automatically ignored Liu Ji’s preceding nonsense, only catching the price of the local pears, thinking that he has conducted proper field research this time, she asked detailed questions about the orchards’ age and yield.

Liu Ji wisely scooped water for her to wash her hands, "That mountain forest is quite large, all planted with yellow pears, the fruit trees are over ten years old, they bear tens of thousands of pounds each year, in good years they can sell for a hundred taels."

He also recounted renting out the shop and house, emphasizing how he found the reliable buyers, and how he skillfully negotiated a good price.

Qin Yao raised her hand, she didn’t want to hear so much nonsense, accepted the cloth towel Liu Ji handed to her to wipe her face and hands, directly asked: "Where’s the silver?"

Liu Ji hung the towel, like presenting a treasure, took out the money bag and offered it, "The shop was rented for thirty taels, the small yard outside the city rented for ten taels, also the Deng Family gave ten acres of paddy field, I thought it was too far from home so I sold them to a rich villager at eight taels per acre, totaling 120 taels of silver, my dear, please count."

While Qin Yao counted the money, he added: "This time out, I met quite a few people asking for favors, but I remembered your teachings, as soon as they approached, I immediately pushed them away!"

"I told them, my family has a wife who earns silver to last a lifetime, I don’t lack silver, don’t bother me with filthy matters!"

After saying this, he looked at her expectantly, his eyes twinkling.

Finding no mistake with the Silver Coin, Qin Yao tied the money bag and put it in her pocket, satisfied she patted his shoulder, "Wash your hands and join for dinner."

"Oh, right, I want to drink pear juice, make me a bowl." She instructed, then remembered something, turned to ask Yin Le, Da Lang Brothers and Sisters, and others in the yard chomping on pears: "Do you want to drink pear juice?"

The four siblings spoke without hesitation: "Yes!"

Liu Ji glared, just as he was about to speak, Yin Le and Ah Wang silently closed their mouths, biting into the peeled pears in their hands.

Liu Ji nodded satisfied, and said to the four siblings: "Since you’ve eaten pears, don’t drink pear juice; pears are too cold, eating too much isn’t good for your body."

After saying this, not giving the four siblings a chance to rebut, he took the three pears just peeled by Mrs. Li into the kitchen.

Pears, chopped into pieces, were mashed in a clean stone mortar, then filtered through clean gauze; a bowl of fresh pear juice that looked unremarkable but tasted excellent was made.

The remaining scraps could be fed to cattle and horses, nothing would be wasted.

At the dinner table, watching Qin Yao eating deliciously, sipping pear juice between bites of food, Liu Ji next to her busily added dishes and asked if she wanted more pear juice, while Yin Le, Ah Wang, and the four siblings shook their heads in unison.

So humble, too humble.

Originally with so many pears, Liu Ji worried they would rot before being eaten.

But now with Qin Yao drinking three large bowls of pear juice a day, other family members hadn’t quite had their share, in no time, the pears had run out.

Thankfully, the family is no longer short of food, not missing them much.

The days have been getting colder day by day, as long as there’s sunshine during the daytime it’s fine, but come evening, the temperature drops sharply, burning charcoal at night is the only way to keep warm.

After a night of pouring rain, the chill sweeps in, leaving the mountains bleak and cold enough that no one wants to go out.

Qin Yao’s family urgently changed into last year’s thick winter clothes, yet the Da Lang Brothers and Sisters, who had to rush to school early, shivered unmistakably.

Sanlang sneezed with a little bubble of snot, Yin Le quickly pulled out a handkerchief to wipe his small face clean, Ah Wang handed him a warm water pouch.

With a warm source, Sanlang’s snot stopped, not daring to delay, swiftly crawled into the wind-shielding horse carriage, burrowed under the thick quilt prepared by Mrs. Li, wrapping himself tightly.

Liu Ji walked out arms crossed, glanced at the gloomy sky, muttering: "Such a cold day, the roads are slippery, maybe we shouldn’t go to school?"

As soon as he said this, even King of Quan Second Lang, who loved studying, couldn’t help but feel overjoyed.

Having already crawled into the carriage and wrapped himself tightly, Sanlang climbed out immediately, with wide eyes eagerly looking at his Dad: "Really?"

Liu Ji teasingly raised an eyebrow and pointed to the main house with the door tightly closed.

At this hour, Qin Yao would definitely not be up, still lazing in her warm bed.

Liu Ji nudged his chin towards Da Lang, go ask your Mother, if she agrees, then you don’t have to go to school today.

Second Lang, Sanlang, and Si Niang immediately called out expectantly: "Big Brother!"

"This isn’t good, right?" Da Lang hesitated, what if Mother wakes up startled and gets mad?