Chapter 36: Cooperation

Shao Diandian felt this position was rather awkward. On either side were his long, muscular legs, and as for moving forward… that was simply not an option. She tried to lean back, but Wei Ting, assuming she was unstable and about to fall, kindly reached out to steady her.

Shao Diandian: "..."

She was forced to remain in a squatting position right where she was. Wei Ting’s attention was primarily focused on guarding against the uninvited guest on the roof, so he didn’t notice their awkward posture for a moment. His first instinct was that the intruder had come for him or the children. At that very moment, the children were playing wildly in the backyard with Shao Erdan, and the courtyard was filled with the laughter of one adult and three little ones.

He had steeled himself to kill tonight, but to his surprise, the visitor on the roof showed no intention of attacking. He felt no malice in the intruder's aura either. The visitor simply lingered on the roof for a moment and then left without a sound. It was unlikely that the intruder was alone and merely afraid to strike; the children were right under the visitor’s nose, and if they had truly intended to seize them, Wei Ting would have had no time to intervene.

So… what was going on? Who was that person? Were they here for him?

Shao Diandian’s little feet had gone numb from squatting. Unable to bear it any longer, she grabbed Wei Ting’s arm and used it as leverage to stand up. Just then, Wei Ting lowered his head and asked, "Could it be that they were after—"

Before the word "you" could leave his lips, his lips brushed against Shao Diandian’s forehead.

"Are you kissing me?" Shao Diandian’s eyes widened.

Wei Ting remained unfazed. "You bumped into me. Clearly, you’re taking advantage of me."

Shao Diandian straightened her back and put her hands on her chubby waist. "Can’t I stand up when my legs are numb? Who told you to lower your head so suddenly?"

Wei Ting stubbornly refused to admit it was his fault. "It was you taking advantage of me. You are molesting me."

Shao Diandian gritted her teeth, the sound echoing in the room. "Oh, so I’m molesting you, am I?" She laughed in anger.

Wei Ting let out a cold huff.

Shao Diandian’s fury rose, and with a surge of reckless courage, she narrowed her eyes, suddenly leaned in, pinned him against the headboard, and planted a swift kiss on his face!

"This is what molesting looks like!" she declared with bravado.

Wei Ting froze.

The atmosphere in the room turned strange in an instant. Shao Diandian felt a chill on the back of her neck. She blinked and slowly turned her head. There, standing at the doorway, were Old Man Shao, Shao Erdan, Little Wu, and the three little beans, all staring with their jaws dropped.

Shao Diandian: "..."

...

This was impossible to explain. Shao Diandian calmly straightened up and, putting on a show, smoothed out Wei Ting’s collar. "I told you your injuries haven't healed yet; you really should take it easy."

Wei Ting: "..."

Everyone else: "..."

Shouldn't you be the one taking it easy?

Shao Diandian gave a light cough and, under the meaningful gazes of everyone present, marched back to her room with her head held high! Once she closed the door, she collapsed onto the bed and pulled the pillow over her head!

*Ahhh! How humiliating!*

That night, the three little ones brought their pillows to the east room again.

"Erdan, wasn't your mattress dried out?" Shao Diandian asked Shao Erdan, who was in the main room.

Shao Erdan said resentfully, "They peed on Father’s bed again!"

"Did you do that on purpose?" Shao Diandian asked sternly.

The three little ones shook their heads innocently. Shao Diandian, half-doubting, picked them up one by one and tucked them into the quilt.

--

The next day, before dawn, Little Wu came over to help Shao Diandian as usual. As she rolled up her sleeves to wash the preserved mustard greens, Shao Diandian’s sharp eyes caught the bruises on her arms.

"Did your mother-in-law hit you?" Shao Diandian decided not to pretend she didn't see it this time.

Little Wu scrubbed at the mustard greens, hesitating, but eventually spoke: "It was... yesterday morning."

Big Wu had scolded Little Wu for taking eggs to her parents' home and had taken her anger out on Little Wu’s two daughters. Little Wu had stepped in to shield them and taken a few blows instead. In her memory, this wasn’t the first time Little Wu had been beaten, but Little Wu never complained to outsiders. Shao Diandian only knew because she lived next door and could always hear the sounds of the beatings.

Shao Diandian didn't rush to ask about her future plans, but instead said, "Can you come over every day from now on?"

Little Wu nodded. Since they lived next door and she didn't travel far, coming over every day was not a problem.

Shao Diandian brought out the dough. "I will pay you your wages monthly."

Wu hurriedly said, "I don't need wages!"

Shao Diandian laughed. "Who hires someone to work without paying them? I’m not a miser."

"A... what kind of miser?" Little Wu didn't understand.

Shao Diandian continued, "You come over every morning to help me prepare food; it’s hard work. If the business grows, it will be even harder. Besides, I’ll need you to look after the three children from time to time. You already have two children of your own, so this isn't an easy job."

Little Wu said, "It’s fine, Meizi can help me watch them too."

Meizi was Little Wu’s eldest daughter, eight years old, very sensible and well-behaved. The three little beans ran all over the village, and Meizi was always following them.

"And... Big Tiger and the others... are actually quite easy to look after."

This wasn’t a lie. The three children had a strong sense of danger; they never went near hazardous places and never left Little Wu or Meizi’s sight. They didn't cry, didn't wet their pants, and would tell someone if they were hungry, thirsty, or needed to use the toilet. Although they often made the other village children cry, they never bullied Meizi or her sister.

"Regardless of whether Big Tiger and the others are easy to handle, I will pay you," Shao Diandian told her. "For now, it will be twenty copper coins a day. When business improves, I’ll give you a raise."

Little Wu was stunned.

"T-twenty copper coins?"

A day? That was over half a tael of silver a month! She was earning more than Liu Ping! Not only the wages, but Shao Daya also saved a portion of the pancakes and braised dishes for her every day—if she had to buy those at the market, it would be no small sum.

"It doesn't need to be that much..."

"If you think I’m paying too much, then just do your work well."

...

Because she had to go to the market, Shao Diandian left even earlier than usual. When she arrived, Luo Dazhuang had just set up his stall and hadn't even finished hanging the meat.

"You're early," Luo Dazhuang said.

"How did sales go yesterday?" Shao Diandian asked.

"Here," he said. Everything was sold out.

Ten jin of braised pork and twenty jin of braised ribs, priced at thirty and forty coins per jin respectively. When he first heard her prices, he thought she had gone mad—this was just a small town, did she think it was the capital? But as it turned out, it all sold out.

"I sampled one jin of the braised meat," he admitted, showing he wasn't trying to skim off her earnings.

In total, they had made one tael and seventy copper coins. Luo Dazhuang took his twenty percent commission, and Shao Diandian received eight hundred and fifty coins. The cost of the meat was three hundred coins, and the labor and spices added up to no more than fifty. Looking at it this way, the net profit was half a tael of silver.

"It seems our partnership is quite pleasant."

She smiled, took back the empty jars from the day before, and placed three new ones on his stall.