The couple suspiciously glanced at their daughter to the left, then to the right.
Well, their daughter could eat a little more, was a bit tougher, loved to jump around a bit more. But looking at her chubby, adorable appearance, how was she strong?
After a while.
Sun Mei uncertainly said, "It seems she's put on a little weight since we first got here."
Zhao Dong nodded with satisfaction, "White and plump, so festive."
Zhao Zhitong protested unhappily, pinching her tiny waist, "I'm not fat, I'm not fat."
Zhao Dong gently pinched Zhao Zhitong's little nose, indulgently saying, "Being chubby is good, being chubby is healthy."
Zhao Zhitong shouted, "I don't want to be chubby, I don't want to become a little fatty."
"Alright, alright, not chubby, not chubby. Okay, you go play by yourself for a while, your mother and I have work to do."
Zhao Zhitong's schooling issue was resolved, so Sun Mei and Zhao Dong had to strive hard for 'money'.
The tofu sold very well today. After she returned from school, the tofu and douhua they made in the morning were all sold out, and many villagers hadn't been able to buy any, so they reserved some for the afternoon.
Thus, all the soy milk in the afternoon was made into tofu and douhua.
Perhaps because Sun Mei sent the tofu to the school and it had an effect, that night, Landlord Wei sent someone to buy three catties of tofu and ten bowls of douhua.
Right after the people from Landlord Wei's manor left, villagers from the neighboring village started to come and buy tofu.
In those days, farmer families didn't have much to eat, usually only during the New Year or festivals did they have something good to eat. Now, tofu wasn't expensive and tasted good, so everyone was eager for something different.
So, by the afternoon, the tofu sold out quickly again.
Taking this opportunity, Zhao Dong decided it was time to wholesale tofu to alleviate some pressure off the two of them.
So, they called a few well-behaved young men from the village like Shitou, and asked if they were willing to sell tofu with him. He would sell tofu to them at a wholesale price of two and a half copper coins, and they could sell it for three coins.
The Zhao Dong family's tofu sold well and tasted good, they had witnessed it themselves, so they were all excited when they heard.
It was a good deal; they didn't exert much effort, just pushed carts and made rounds, and could earn money. Moreover, since wheat hadn't matured yet and there wasn't much farm work, it was a good time to earn some extra money during leisure.
So, they all agreed willingly.
——
At that moment, Zhao Dong was holding a charred stick, writing in modern characters on a stone who had pre-ordered tofu for that day.
"Wife, tomorrow morning we have to make a hundred and twenty catties of tofu and more than a hundred bowls of douhua."
Sun Mei, who was filtering soybean milk, nodded, "That's fine, at worst we'll just get up early. Anyway, the soy milk we brought back tonight is enough for tomorrow morning."
After confirming the next morning's production, Zhao Dong hurried over to help Sun Mei filter the soy milk.
By the time they finished filtering the soy milk, the sky had completely darkened.
The family of three sat around the table in the main hall, and Sun Mei lit the only kerosene lamp in the house.
The dim light flickered in the room, casting a warm glow that added a touch of coziness.
Zhao Dong held a pouch of money, and as it shook, the copper coins clattered inside, "Look, this is the money we earned today selling tofu. Let's count how much we earned."
With that, he poured all the copper coins out of the pouch.
Zhao Zhitong's eyes gleamed, "Wow, so many! Let me count, let me count."
Zhao Dong laughed, "Sure, you count." He said as he turned to get the string for threading the coins.
Zhao Zhitong counted very seriously, using her small hands to shuffle the copper coins, counting one by one, and once she reached a hundred, she pushed the coins to Zhao Dong to thread into a string before continuing to count.
Quickly, Zhao Zhitong finished counting.
Zhao Dong intentionally tested her by laying the strung copper coins side by side on the table, asking, "Tongtong, you've finished counting too. How many copper coins are there in total?"
Zhao Zhitong rested her chin on the table, lying her entire upper body on it, and reached out to point at the money strings, "One, two, three, four, five. That's five strings, five times a hundred copper coins."
Then she pointed at the loose copper coins, saying, "Here are thirty-one copper coins."
Sun Mei prompted helpfully, "Right, so how many are there in total?"
Zhao Zhitong blinked her round almond eyes, counting on her little fingers, murmuring as she calculated, "Five times one is five, that's five strings, this is thirty-one, thirty-one plus zero is still thirty-one..."
Zhao Dong and Sun Mei quietly watched her, neither interrupting nor assisting.
After a moment, Zhao Zhitong finally calculated it, her little face full of excitement as she loudly declared, "A total of five hundred and thirty-one copper coins."
"Not bad, Tongtong, well done. Keep it up!"
Sun Mei smiled encouragingly, then gathered up all the copper coins.
They hadn't made a full tael of silver today, but with the villagers going to sell in other villages tomorrow, they should earn a bit more.
Because they would be busy the next day, after counting the money, the three of them quickly washed up and went to bed.
By 5 a.m. the next day, more than a hundred catties of tofu and over a hundred bowls of douhua were all set, with Sun Mei exhausted and aching all over.
Because some villagers were going to sell tofu in farther villages, Sun Mei got up early to start making tofu.
At this moment, feeling both tired and sleepy, after pouring the last batch of tofu into the molds, she went inside and immediately fell asleep, "Ah, even in the hardest times of my earlier life, it was never this exhausting."
With that sigh, she drifted off to sleep.
Zhao Dong was also exceedingly tired, but the door was already being knocked on. It was the villagers who had pre-ordered tofu coming to pick it up.
For their first time selling tofu, everyone was cautious and didn't dare to demand too much, only asking for ten catties of tofu and ten bowls of douhua.
The price Zhao Dong gave for the douhua was ten bowls for eight copper coins.
Zhao Dong's tofu mold was just the right size, at four and a half jīn, with a block of tofu weighing just over a jīn or so. Split in half, it was exactly ten catties.
Sun Mei had already measured the douhua and prepared the sauce, so there was only more, not less.
Soon, the villagers who had ordered tofu all left with it and the douhua.
At that time, there was still a block of tofu and eighteen bowls of douhua left at home, but Zhao Dong wasn't worried; they could just sell it at home.
Thinking of this, Zhao Dong closed the door and went back to catch some more sleep.
——
Sun Mei and Zhao Dong were awakened by knocking and Zhao Zhitong's shouts.
At this point, it was 7 a.m., and the villagers were coming to buy tofu after returning from the fields, banging on the door.
Zhao Dong hurriedly got up to open the shop.
"Hey, Mr. Dong, who wrote the words on the sign outside your door? They look really good."
The villagers who came to buy tofu noticed the new sign outside Zhao Dong's house and smiled as they asked.
Zhao Dong handed them the tofu, laughing, "You see, Mr. Meng ate my tofu and found it delicious, so he had someone from Landlord Wei's house send this yesterday."
The surrounding villagers couldn't help but look envious.
Because of the gossip in the village, everyone thought Zhao Dong wouldn't manage well and would live poorly in the future.
But now, look at that! Not only did he find a new path for himself, but he also gained recognition from Landlord Wei and Mr. Meng!