Madam Yang was eager to know the arrangements for her and her daughter, but as a born servant of the Yao family, imbued with inherent subservience, she dared not ask even though her status was now equal to Madam Yin’s. She could only listen quietly as Madam Yin continued.
"Cousin said that to avoid attracting attention, Sister Yang and Lichun will stay here with the eldest young lady."
Madam Yin was reluctant to part with Madam Yang, but her cousin's reasoning was sound. If they remained together, it might be dangerous. It was better for Madam Yang and her daughter to stay by the side of the eldest young lady of the Fu family, which would be beneficial for them all.
Upon hearing Madam Yin's words, Madam Yang felt a mix of joy and worry, as she herself could not clearly articulate her true feelings at the moment.
Fu Xinci listened quietly as Madam Yin finished speaking and then asked Madam Yin to take Lixia to pack their belongings.
Madam Yin and her daughter did not have many belongings, so packing was done swiftly.
Li Wenxiu did not want these things, but Madam Yin insisted on taking them, so Li Wenxiu complied.
The snow was still falling. A snowfall without wind was the most beautiful.
Fu Xinci and Madam Yang stood at the main entrance, watching the carriage gradually disappear from view, and both let out a silent sigh of relief.
Without a word, they turned and entered the courtyard, resuming their tasks as if nothing had changed in the entire Meng family compound.
Fu Xinci, however, knew that Madam Yang's state of mind was different from before, and her smile was noticeably more frequent.
When Qi Yuanshan learned that Madam Yin had been taken away, he felt relieved and invigorated.
The hidden crisis was resolved, and he would no longer have to worry about this matter.
Heh heh, he decided he had to go for a drink with Uncle Meng and Brother Yu tonight.
Just one drink would suffice; he needed to celebrate.
As night fell, the surroundings were utterly silent. Everyone in the courtyard slept soundly except for Fu Xinci.
Especially Madam Yang and her daughter, who slept the most peacefully since leaving the convict labor camp.
Outside the window, the soft rustle of falling snow could be heard.
Fu Xinci had no hint of sleepiness. It seemed a waste of good time not to do something on such a beautiful snowy night.
However, as everyone else was asleep, she had no choice but to enter her space. In her good mood, she harvested all the crops that needed to be harvested and then replanted the empty plots.
After completing these tasks, Fu Xinci leaned back leisurely against a haystack, contemplating what to send to her friends.
Longcheng had a great harvest this year.
With everyone's combined efforts, the grain planted in the fields not only met their own needs but also provided some assistance to Qilin Town.
Because of this, Xiang Tong had gained considerable prestige in front of Lan Tianyao.
If they added the glass workshop, hehe, they could be said to be swimming in wealth.
Later, Lan Tianyao, unable to contain himself, brought out their treasured jade ornaments and sent them to the capital through Fu Xinci's channels with the Imperial Guard, hoping to sell them at a good price.
As soon as Yan Yi took the ornaments out of the large wooden box, he happened to be seen by the Emperor, who had secretly come to find him.
Needless to say, such excellent items could only fall into the Emperor's hands and were placed in the imperial study for the Emperor to admire daily.
When Fu Xinci received the silver and the letter sent by Yan Yi, she suspected for a moment that Yan Yi had done it intentionally.
However, the outcome was not bad; they had sold it for a good price, which was quite worthwhile.
When Fu Xinci delivered this gleaming silver to Qilin Town, a long-lost smile finally appeared on Lan Tianyao's face.
He insisted on giving Fu Xinci a tenth as a reward, not allowing her to refuse.
Fu Xinci understood that if she refused, Lan Tianyao would feel uneasy, and it would be difficult for him to ask her for help in the future, so she smilingly accepted.
Fu Xinci did not yet know that when she went to Longcheng, everyone would be waiting for her to discuss important matters.
The next day, the weather was fine, and Fu Xinci informed her grandfather of her intention to go to Longcheng that day.
Grandpa Meng looked at the white snow in the distance and urged her to be careful on the road before letting her depart.
Along the way, others would have to use the phrase "crossing mountains and wading through rivers."
Fu Xinci, however, galloped swiftly above the treetops. Her bright red cloak edged with white fur fluttered with her movements, giving her a demeanor of an immortal from afar.
Pang Dun looked towards a spot in the forest and muttered to himself, "Won't Xinci come today?"
"No, she might not come if it rained, but after snow, she'll definitely come."
As soon as the captain finished speaking, a red figure gracefully arrived.
"I told you, Xinci would not break her promise."
"Wow, so cool."
Fu Xinci was momentarily taken aback by the three boys complimenting her as cool.
Her gaze swept around before she finally asked, "Why are only the three of you here today?"
After asking, Fu Xinci suddenly realized how foolish she was for asking such a simple question.
The captain and the others clearly didn't dwell on the question, but directly told her, "Xiang Tong and Lan Tianyao are looking for you."
"What are they looking for me for?"
"It seems to be about coal mining."
"Coal mining? That's a good thing." Fu Xinci said, then ran towards the town mayor's office.
"Hey, hey, Xinci, you haven't brought us any fresh fruit yet."
"I'll send some to your homes later."
"Alright!"
When Fu Xinci arrived at Xiang Tong's office, knocked, and entered, she saw Xiang Tong and Lan Tianyao sitting by the stove, warming themselves.
"Little Miss Fu is here. It's cold outside, isn't it?"
"It's alright. Mayor Xiang and Mayor Lan are looking for me?"
"Yes, please sit down."
After Fu Xinci sat down, Xiang Tong explained their plan and showed her a map from before the apocalypse.
"Look at these places; they're not far from us," Xiang Tong said, pointing to several locations marked with red pens.
Fu Xinci looked at the markings: a jade mine and two coal mines, all well-known before the apocalypse.
"Mayor Xiang and Mayor Lan want to mine them?"
"Yes, currently these places are still wastelands and not yet within the territory of Daming. They are ownerless for us, so no one will regulate us even if we mine them."
"We should take advantage of this."
"That's what we thought. However, our two towns don't need that much, so we want to sell the excess to various places in the Northern Frontier."
"That's possible! It's just that this business is quite tough and also has certain dangers."
"The danger is not great; we'll mine the coal in open-pit operations."
"I support this."
Seeing that Xiang Tong had said enough, Lan Tianyao began to state the proposal he and Xiang Tong had discussed.
"Little Miss Fu, we need your help to sell coal to various places in the Northern Frontier. We'll give you twenty percent of the net profit."
"Isn't that a lot?"
"Not really. You still have to find people to open up channels, right? You can't just ask people for nothing."
"Yes, this matter definitely requires approaching big figures in the Northern Frontier garrison, otherwise, we won't be able to get through."