Watching tofu sell better and better, Xu Chunhua's eyes practically turned red with envy.
If she'd known this from the start, she never would have disliked Jiang Huaiyu's looks. She should've swallowed her disgust and befriended her back then. Now all the profit had gone straight into that shrew Zheng Xiaoyue's hands!
Xu Chunhua stomped her feet in fury. She should have realized earlier—any woman as good-looking as Jiang Huaiyu, carrying a child on her own, either had silver hidden away or some secret way of making money.
Even if she'd had to pinch her nose and pretend to be friendly, a business that raked in money by the bucketful should've included her share!
Thinking about blocks of tofu selling one after another, coins dropping into pockets, Xu Chunhua felt as if every single one of those coins should've been hers.
As if that weren't enough, the night before, her good-for-nothing husband had learned that the wildly profitable tofu was invented by that little woman next door. Reeking of alcohol and bad breath, he shoved Xu Chunhua and cursed her for being "long-haired and short-sighted," ordering her to snatch the tofu business at all costs.
Xu Chunhua was afraid he'd go on a drunken rampage. And watching tofu get snapped up like loot in broad daylight—how could she not burn with jealousy?
Seeing Xu Chunhua's spit nearly flying into her face, Jiang Huaiyu couldn't help stepping back slightly. She smiled politely but distantly.
"Auntie, I think you've misunderstood. The tofu really was made by Brother Wang and his family. I only put in some money and took a small share."
Xu Chunhua's brows twisted as she prepared to sling more mud at the Wang family—
But Zheng Xiaoyue, having heard the commotion, strode over.
The moment she saw Xu Chunhua, she planted her hands on her hips and shouted, "Xu Chunhua, you stinking woman—what nonsense are you babbling about again?!"
Zheng Xiaoyue was infamous for her fierce temper. Xu Chunhua only dared to curse indirectly—she never had the guts to confront her head-on.
Her face turned green. She shot Jiang Huaiyu a venomous look and fled in a hurry.
"She came asking about tofu, didn't she?" Zheng Xiaoyue asked cautiously once Xu Chunhua was gone.
Jiang Huaiyu smiled. "Yes. I thought she seemed decent before. Turns out she's quite something."
Zheng Xiaoyue snorted. "Isn't she? She looks honest, but when no one's around, her words are more poisonous than anyone's. When people are watching, she acts like the world owes her sympathy."
Jiang Huaiyu narrowed her eyes thoughtfully. "A white lotus."
"Huh?" Zheng Xiaoyue kept grinding beans, not catching it.
Jiang Huaiyu shook her head with a smile. "Nothing. Just thinking—what a rare personality."
Zheng Xiaoyue laughed mockingly. "You're telling me. Remember the family at the village head that sells braised meat? When they first started, she made a scene too—claimed their recipe was stolen from her dowry. As if! She came from some backwater place, and that family's son was trained by a county tavern chef. She still dared to cause trouble."
Hearing this, Jiang Huaiyu felt both enlightened and alert.
Never judge by appearances, she reminded herself. Thankfully, she wasn't some naïve sweetheart. If Xu Chunhua ever got involved in the tofu business, she'd be skinned alive.
"Xiaoyue! Miss Jiang!"
The courtyard gate was pushed open again—Wang Dazhuang's excited voice rang out.
Jiang Huaiyu and Zheng Xiaoyue exchanged a glance. Just from his tone, they knew it was good news.
Sure enough, Wang Dazhuang's grin nearly split his face. Not only had all the tofu sold out—every last drop of tofu pudding in the vat was gone too.
Holding Tangbao, Jiang Huaiyu asked, "You've worked hard, Brother Wang. How did it sell?"
"Great! Too great!" Wang Dazhuang gulped down a ladle of well water and said in a booming voice. "I shouted a bit at the market, and people swarmed over. Once they confirmed it really was tofu, they even offered extra money to buy first.
"I followed your instructions—no price increase. Everyone lined up, one block of tofu or one bowl of tofu pudding per person. The crowd got so big even the constables thought something serious was happening. By the time they checked, everything was sold out, so I rushed back."
As he spoke, he pulled out a cloth-wrapped bundle from his belt. Unwrapping it revealed several small ingots of silver.
"The young lady of Master Qiu's household in the county town tasted the tofu pudding and rewarded me with one tael of silver! Including the past few days, we've earned three taels and eighty-seven copper coins!"
His hands trembled with excitement.
Outside the gate, peeking through the crack, Xu Chunhua's eyes bulged. She swallowed hard.
Three taels of silver.
Thinking of Jiang Huaiyu's earlier coldness, rage surged in Xu Chunhua's chest. Such a lucrative business—and she'd missed it.
Judging by Jiang Huaiyu's attitude, she clearly wouldn't teach her the tofu recipe. Xu Chunhua's mind, which always drifted toward filth, spun rapidly.
Grinding her teeth, she swore silently:
If I can't have it, you won't have peace either.
Unaware of the malice brewing, Jiang Huaiyu took one tael of silver, patted Tangbao's back, and said gently, "The next few days will be hard on you. Once we sell a bit more, we should have enough to open a shop. After that, things will ease up."
"But this money—" Wang Dazhuang hesitated.
Jiang Huaiyu raised a hand to stop him. "I trust your character. And it's inconvenient for me to appear publicly with a child—I don't want unnecessary trouble. I'll leave hiring workers and opening the shop to you."
Hearing this, Zheng Xiaoyue felt she hadn't misjudged Jiang Huaiyu at all.
People always said Zheng Xiaoyue looked cold but was warm-hearted. Such a temperament rarely earned thanks. Helping Jiang Huaiyu had only been a moment of sympathy—but it had brought an unexpected windfall.
As for Wang Dazhuang, a man of few words and steady labor, he clenched the silver tightly and swore to himself that he'd make the tofu shop flourish—so Jiang Huaiyu would never have worries, and his wife and children could live well.
Receiving their grateful gazes, Jiang Huaiyu returned home and tugged at the corner of her mouth.
She nearly felt like a ruthless merchant.
She wasn't blindly trusting them. With or without the Wang couple, the tofu business could go on—but without her, they'd return immediately to their old lives.
As long as the secret of gypsum-curdling tofu stayed in her hands, Jiang Huaiyu could delegate freely—she only needed honest people to sell.
Yet the couple was so moved by her "trust" that their innocent expressions made her a little embarrassed.
"Who would've thought I'd one day lie back and count money?" Jiang Huaiyu said lazily, lying on her creaky bed and turning her head toward Tangbao. "That day isn't far off, right, my son?"
Tangbao stared at the silver in her hand, his rosy mouth opening wide. "Ya-ya!"
"Mm," Jiang Huaiyu replied lazily. "Saving it to buy you a wife someday."
"Yi-yi!"
"Oh right—and we'll build you a big house too…"
Neither understood the other, yet the exchange felt strangely harmonious.
In the days that followed, Jiang Huaiyu used the tofu earnings to renovate her home. The repaired roof tiles gave her a sense of security.
To guard against ill intentions, she raised the courtyard walls by more than half. Unless someone dragged over a chair and stood on tiptoe, they couldn't see inside.
Xu Chunhua grew more and more restless. She barely slept at night.
Watching the neighboring house replace old tiles with fine blue ones, lay down stone slabs in the yard, and cook eggs and meat daily—the aroma drifting over made her children cry from hunger.
She'd always hated seeing others prosper. She'd tried copying the tofu process—but didn't know the key step of gypsum water. On top of that, she was stingy, grinding beans with so much water it was laughable.
The result was thin soy milk that tasted awful. Even after souring, it never turned into tofu.
After days of stewing in resentment, Xu Chunhua's eyes lit up with a vicious idea.
She hastily cooked a pot of food and yanked her daughter by the ear. "Don't touch the food on the stove! Wait until your brother comes home from school. If I'm not back tonight, tell your father I went to your uncle's—understand?"
The girl nodded quickly, used to the pain, and glared resentfully after Xu Chunhua left.
Rushing to her brother's house, Xu Chunhua ignored her sister-in-law and grabbed her brother Xu Qiuqiang, who worked as a servant for the Second Young Master of the Yan family, the richest household in the county.
Xu Qiuqiang nearly exploded with anger. The Yan family was unimaginably wealthy. Even he only followed the young master on outings—he wasn't qualified to step inside the inner courtyards.
And Xu Chunhua had always been detestable since childhood. He'd never liked this sister.
Seeing him hesitate, Xu Chunhua gritted her teeth. "Help me this once, Brother. You might enjoy wealth and glory too. Refuse—and you'll regret it."
When he didn't believe her, she sneered and lowered her voice. "You know about the tofu selling in the county these days, right?"
"Of course," Xu Qiuqiang frowned. "The second young master often sends people to buy it—and often can't. They end up paying triple from others."
Xu Chunhua smiled. "That's exactly why I need you to introduce me. That tofu—it's made by me."
Xu Qiuqiang stared at her in shock. "You made the tofu?!"
"Lower your voice," she snapped, nerves flickering beneath her lie. "Just introduce me to the second young master. I want to discuss the tofu business. Once it succeeds, you won't be left out."