Chapter 120: Traditional Chinese Characters

Chapter 120: Chapter 120: Traditional Chinese Characters

Persuaded by the Goddess—who was also his niece—the village chief finally accepted the idea of using the brightly colored fabrics for new clothes. "If everyone knew the Goddess bought such high-quality cotton cloth, they’d be absolutely thrilled," he said. "But enough talk. Let’s all eat and get some rest early."

The village chief and Yun Xiu headed to the kitchen. After washing their hands, everyone lined up in an orderly fashion at the kitchen door, each holding their own bowl. Inside the kitchen, the dough drop soup boiled with a loud BUBBLE BUBBLE, its savory aroma filling the entire village.

"Zhen Niang, are you really not going to eat? The dough drop soup smells amazing." Yun Xiu brought over the portions for his wife and granddaughter.

"Dad, I’m already full. If I eat too much, I won’t sleep well tonight," Yun Zhen replied, taking a bowl of the soup and feeding it to Xiaobao spoonful by spoonful.

Thanks to the soy sauce, the broth took on a beautiful light red hue. The snow-white dough drops piled in the bowl looked like tender pieces of tofu. A few vibrant green vegetables floated on the surface, garnished with plenty of diced meat and glistening drops of oil. It looked absolutely mouthwatering.

"Mommy, you eat too," Xiaobao said, pointing at the bowl.

Yun Zhen wiped the corner of the little girl’s mouth with a tissue. "Mommy has already eaten. Xiaobao needs to eat so you can grow big and strong."

Seeing that her mother really wasn’t going to eat, Xiaobao pointed at the bowl again. "It’s tiring for Mommy to hold it. Put it on the table; Xiaobao will eat by herself."

Yun Zhen didn’t argue, her heart swelling with joy. "Alright. My Xiaobao knows how to care for her mommy now."

She placed the bowl on the table and sat Xiaobao at the end of the bed, just close enough for the little girl to reach her food.

Xiaobao ate with her own little spoon, looking unbelievably adorable and well-behaved. She didn’t spill a single grain of food or splash any soup on herself. She took big bites of the dough drops, chewing carefully so she wouldn’t choke.

Seeing such a well-behaved daughter melted Yun Zhen’s heart. "Eat up, Xiaobao."

And Xiaobao truly was a good girl. Waving her soup spoon, she happily showed off to her mother. "Xiaobao ate it all up!"

Yun Zhen used a tissue to wipe her mouth again. "Xiaobao is so amazing. Do you want some more?"

"Xiaobao is full. BURP~" Xiaobao let out a loud burp.

Yun Duo chuckled at her granddaughter’s cuteness. "Pfft. Zhen Niang, this is just how much our Xiaobao eats. Your dad scooped exactly the right portion for her. If she eats less, she gets hungry too quickly, but if she eats more, she gets too stuffed."

Afraid that her daughter might worry about the little girl going hungry, she added, "Don’t worry. Aside from her three meals a day, she has milk and red date pork liver every single day. She definitely won’t go hungry."

Yun Zhen smiled warmly. "Mom, with you and Dad looking after Xiaobao, what is there for me to worry about?" She then mentioned, "Once I buy some books from the Immortal Realm, I’ll have Dad teach Xiaobao how to read."

"Isn’t it a bit too early to make her learn how to read right now? She’s not even three years old yet," Yun Duo said, her heart aching for the child.

"I don’t need her to master anything right now," Yun Zhen explained. "When Dad teaches the other children how to read, just sit Xiaobao nearby. Through constant exposure, she’ll naturally pick up a lot of words by the time she’s a little older."

Yun Duo nodded in agreement. "Alright. I was just worried she wouldn’t be able to sit still for that long."

"I also bought a batch of bright, festive red cotton cloth," Yun Zhen continued. "It has butterfly patterns on it, which is absolutely perfect for a child like Xiaobao. Ask Aunt Cui Lan to make her a red outfit for the New Year, along with a light yellow one."

"Noted," Yun Duo nodded.

After everyone finished dinner, they returned to their respective rooms to rest.

Only Li Cuilan and her crochet team were still working on the crochet dolls. They finished up the rest of the material kits, completing forty dolls in total.

Meanwhile, Carpenter Zhao and Hunter Wang also came to find Yun Zhen with their finished woodwork.

"Goddess!"

Hearing the voice, Yun Zhen instantly knew who it was. "Aunt Cui Lan, Uncle Zhao, Uncle Wang, come on in."

The group entered the room upon hearing her invitation.

"Goddess, these are the crochet dolls we made. We used up all the material kits and made forty dolls in total." Li Cuilan showed her the basket filled with dolls. Their quality was as excellent as ever.

Yun Zhen was just as satisfied with this batch. "Aunt Cui Lan, thank you and everyone else for your hard work."

Li Cuilan smiled. "We’re all working for the village. There’s no need to talk about hard work."

"Goddess, today I made thirty wooden hairpins and three three-tiered jewelry boxes." Carpenter Zhao showed the Goddess his goods with an expectant look on his face.

Hunter Wang chimed in, "I brought fifty small ornaments. My son and I made them together. When the village chief heard that my son knows a bit about carpentry, he sent him back to help me. He doesn’t have to build the stone wall anymore."

Yun Xiu lifted the heavy curtain and walked in, chuckling. "Isn’t this the perfect example of ’brothers fighting shoulder to shoulder, father and son taking the battlefield together’?"

"Brother Yun, don’t tease me," Hunter Wang said, rubbing the back of his head shyly at Yun Xiu’s praise. However, he couldn’t resist bragging about his son a little. "But honestly, my son’s craftsmanship is only slightly inferior to mine. The small wooden ornaments he makes are also quite beautiful."

Hunter Wang separated the wooden ornaments he made from the ones his son had crafted, letting Yun Zhen judge for herself. "I made these thirty-five, and my son made these fifteen. Goddess, take a look and see if his craftsmanship is up to standard."

After inspecting them, Yun Zhen expressed her utmost satisfaction. "Uncle Wang, Xiaoshu’s skills are just as good as yours!"

"Hehe." Hunter Wang finally felt relieved. From now on, he could have his son help him make the small wooden ornaments.

Yun Zhen then moved on to discuss the prices. "The price for the wooden hairpins and small wooden ornaments will remain the same at one hundred cents each. I already adjusted the price for the crochet dolls before, so they are now one hundred and twenty cents each. As for the three three-tiered jewelry boxes Uncle Zhao made, the price needs to be raised a bit. The two-tiered jewelry boxes were three hundred cents, so we’ll price the three-tiered ones at five hundred cents each."

How much?!

Five hundred cents!

Carpenter Zhao’s eyes widened in sheer disbelief.

Didn’t that mean he could earn one tael of Silver just by making two jewelry boxes?

He was so excited that he nearly lost his breath.

Clutching his chest, Carpenter Zhao asked, "Five hundred cents for a three-tiered jewelry box... Goddess, if I make four-tiered, five-tiered, or even six-tiered jewelry boxes, will the price be even higher?"

"As long as the craftsmanship remains consistent, the price will definitely increase according to the number of tiers," Yun Zhen replied.

Carpenter Zhao’s eyes sparkled brightly. "I’ll try making a four-tiered jewelry box tomorrow. I won’t consider a five-tiered one for now. Making jewelry boxes takes a lot of time, effort, and wood. I not only have to select the right timber, but I also have to cut, polish, and carve patterns into it. It’s too troublesome."

"Uncle Zhao, just do whatever you’re comfortable with," Yun Zhen said. She had no objections. She knew Uncle Zhao was a skilled craftsman who knew his own limits, so there was no need for her to waste her breath.

Glancing at the sky, Yun Zhen said, "I’ll accept these goods. It’s getting late, so you should all go back and rest."

Trying hard to calm his pounding heart, Carpenter Zhao nodded. "Goddess, we won’t disturb you any longer."

The three of them took their leave.

Yun Zhen tossed the goods she planned to sell tomorrow into the treasured land in her mind.

She let out a yawn. "Dad, Mom, take Xiaobao to sleep. I’m heading to the Immortal Realm."

That night, she slept soundly.

The next day, she attended Mr. Gao’s class and asked, "Mr. Gao, I wanted to ask if there are any books with characters that have more strokes. I’m very interested in that kind of writing and would love to study it."

"You mean traditional Chinese characters, right?" Mr. Gao asked, taking a long moment to realize what she meant.

He pulled out a book printed in traditional characters and showed it to her.

Yun Zhen nodded excitedly. "Yes, yes, yes! That’s exactly it. Mr. Gao, where can I buy books like this?"

"You’re interested in traditional characters? I have copies of the Four Great Classical Novels in traditional script, as well as the *Thousand Character Classic*, the *Three Character Classic*, and the *Standards for being a Good Pupil and Child*. If you’re interested, I can give you a set. They’re all books that my former students didn’t want when I was teaching at my previous school," Mr. Gao offered generously.

Yun Zhen hesitated. "Mr. Gao, I couldn’t possibly accept."

Mr. Gao waved off her concerns. "It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a student as eager to learn as you. I’m your teacher; giving you a few books is nothing to fuss over.

"Come to my office after class to pick them up."