During this time, Gu Dexing threw a tantrum, kneeling and pleading with Gu Dafu for a whole day and night, even taking out the letter written by Scholar Shang, saying he wanted to study at the private school in the town. He was certain that with ten years of study, he would surely pass the exams and earn an official position, and studying at Songzi Gully was ruining his future prospects. Gu Dafu did not agree. He said that the town was bustling and home to many wealthy families, fearing that if Gu Dexing went to study there, his temper might become even more restless. He suggested that Gu Dexing should first spend a year or two studying at Songzi Gully. If he became calmer and more stable, then he could be sent to a private school in the town. Because of this, Gu Dexing had been wearing a stern face these past few days. Just the night before last, he even made a mistake when calculating the accounts. When it came time to count the money, they found there was a shortage, and everyone initially thought the money had been lost. Thankfully, Gu Jin’an was there. After recalculating the accounts, the issue was resolved. Otherwise, Gu Dafu’s family would have had to compensate for the missing amount. Gu Daya heard Third Grandma scolding Mrs. Chen and, thinking of her elder brother’s tofu and spice business, anxiously asked, "Is Little Sister-in-law Da Gui suspicious of us?" "Don’t bother with her, that’s just how she is. She’s always afraid her family will suffer a loss, pecking about in boredom." Third Grandma poured cooking fat into the pot, then added the chopped chicken and began to stir-fry. Once the chicken changed color, she added the sauce Gu Jinli had prepared, stirred for a while longer, poured in water, covered the pot with a lid, and left it to simmer. Gu Daya was still worried, afraid her family would cause trouble for her elder brother’s household, but she did not dare to look upset for fear of making everyone uncomfortable. Hearing what Third Grandma said, she smiled and replied, "Third Aunt can rest assured, I won’t overthink it." "That’s right," said the Third Grandma, deftly retrieving a cabbage. "Let’s make some pork-stuffed cabbage dumplings." Qi Kangle and Gu Jinxiu were rolling out dumpling wrappers, while Gu Jinli was making fried meatballs. After a bustle of activity, they finally prepared over a dozen rich dishes. "Time to eat!" called out Third Grandma, leading Mrs. Cui and the others to bring the dishes to the main hall. With many people, they put two tables together to make one big table for dining. Gu Daya, looking at the full spread which was mostly meat dishes, felt her eyes well up with tears. It was not that her family had never eaten good food, but such fine dishes were usually leftovers given to them by their masters. They were delicious, yes, but eating them always felt uncomfortable. Now that they were back home, the food on this table was specially prepared by Third Grandma for them and wasn’t leftovers from someone else. "Don’t just stand there, eat quickly," urged Third Grandma. "In no time, several families will be coming over to settle the daily accounts. We need to eat fast." Hearing this, Gu Daya’s family hastened to eat, afraid of eating too slowly and causing inconvenience for the other families’ important matters. Meanwhile, Third Grandma kept busy serving them more dishes, allotting two chickens, including all four chicken legs, to Gu Daya’s family. Qi Panzi didn’t get any chicken legs to eat – Third Grandma was still angry with him and didn’t serve him any. Dinner was late today, and everyone was famished. They devoured the food like a whirlwind, and it wasn’t long before they were full. "Don’t stop eating," said Third Grandma. "Finish all this meat, don’t worry about overeating." Not wishing to go against Third Grandma’s wishes, Gu Daya’s family obediently finished off all the meat dishes on the table. After they had eaten and rested for a while, several families arrived at their doorstep, each bringing gifts: one family brought fabric, another brought tables and stools, one brought a pair of lamps, and another brought some grain. "This blanket is new, never been used in our home, Er Lang and San Lang have gone off to the Military Office and won’t need it, so it’s for my grandniece’s family," Elder Qin said as he brought over a thin, unused blanket from his home. Gu Daya felt very embarrassed as she looked at the items brought by the families, and tried to refuse them, but she was stopped by Third Grandpa: "Go ahead and take them. Our families fled the famine together and have shared life and death, our bond is no ordinary one. If you’re given these things, accept them. In the future, if any of the families needs help, you’ll lend a hand too." "Eh, okay. Then we’ll accept," said Gu Daya, and together with the children, they took the items and stored them in the main hall. Mrs. Chen could hardly wait and said, "Let’s hurry up and settle the daily accounts, distribute the Silver Coin, and then discuss the matter about Sister Daya’s family." Gu Dagui glared at her: "You are the one who always talks too much." Mrs. Chen gave him a look and had already found a stool to sit down on. "Alright, Brother Xing, let’s calculate the accounts." Third Grandpa gave the word, and Gu Dexing began to work on the accounts, while Third Grandma went back into the house to bring out the Silver Coin they earned from the stall today and dumped it on the table, ready to count the money later. With a clatter, the Copper Coins and broken silver all poured out, and Gu Daya’s family was stunned for a moment. They quickly got up, lifted Qi Kangping, left the main hall, and stayed away. It was the business of several families, and her family was not involved. It wasn’t appropriate for them to stay there. Gu Jinli did not keep them and let them go sit in the courtyard first. Seeing Gu Daya’s family leave, Mrs. Chen was very pleased. It seemed that Xiao Yu didn’t want Gu Daya’s family to share the stocks and take a part of their profits. minutes later, Gu Dexing finished calculating the accounts and reported to everyone: "Today, the homemade tofu and spices made a net profit of twenty-four taels of Silver, and the tofu stall in town made eleven taels, a total net profit of thirty-five taels. After deducting five taels of Silver as working capital, our families can share thirty taels." After Gu Dexing reported the accounts, everyone turned to Gu Jin’an: "Good Brother An, is this calculation correct?" Gu Dexing was somewhat unhappy, but since he had made a mistake in the accounts the night before, it was understandable that the families didn’t trust him. Gu Jin’an smiled and nodded: "The numbers are correct." "Then that’s good, let’s quickly divide the money." Mrs. Chen rubbed her hands eagerly, her eyes fixed on the pile of Silver Coin on the table. Third Grandma saw Mrs. Chen’s greedy demeanor and got annoyed: "Hurry up and give her share, always , never improved over the years." Mrs. Chen chuckled, letting Third Grandma scold her. What did she mean by never improved? Her progress was significant; she had buried quite a lot of hidden savings in her room. Before long, Gu Dexing had divided the Silver Coin for the families. Mrs. Chen then said: "Xiao Yu, your uncle’s family has arrived, how are you planning to arrange things for the future? What kind of business will you do? You should tell us quickly." If she didn’t speak up, her anxiety was going to kill her. Gu Jinli raised his eyebrows, took a glance at Mrs. Chen, and smiled: "Since Aunt Da Gui is so concerned about my uncle’s family’s future livelihood, then I will tell everyone." "Speak quickly!" Mrs. Chen prayed in her heart, God bless, Xiao Yu must not let Gu Daya’s family share the stocks and do business with them, making tofu and spices. The more people sharing the stocks, the less money they could divide amongst their families. Gu Jinli looked at Mrs. Chen, who was in such a rush, and gave her an exceptionally brilliant smile: "Aunt Da Gui, don’t worry, my uncle’s family isn’t going to join us in making tofu or spices, they won’t take away everyone’s dividends. Every single copper coin of yours will be intact." Mrs. Chen was embarrassed and said, "What are you talking about, child? Aunt Da Gui isn’t thinking like that. I’m just worried about Sister Daya’s family not having a livelihood in the future, so I’m asking." Gu Jinli gave her a "who would believe that" look? After a while, he said: "My uncle was a peddler before, doing business through the streets and alleyways, and my second cousin is smart too. I am thinking about lending money to my aunt’s family to open a shop and do business." "What? Open a shop to do business?!" Mrs. Chen exclaimed, feeling sour inside. They were still setting up stalls, and yet Xiao Yu was planning to lend money to Gu Daya’s family to open a shop.