The days passed by extremely quickly, and in the blink of an eye, more than a month had gone by. On this particular day, the sky suddenly cleared up, and big snowflakes began to fall from the sky. The snow in the countryside was different from that in the city, it was bigger and more violent. In just half a day, everything was covered in white, and all sounds were muffled, not a single human voice could be heard.

  In such weather, Tao Shi would absolutely not go out, but Lin Jinrong was tied to the boots with straw ropes by Miao Fu to prevent slipping, and went out as usual to Qingliang Temple to burn incense and play in the water.

  Tao was tossing the small golden pomelo up and down on her bed, looking bored. She worriedly said: "I don't know what Ah Yin and Shen Zhi are doing now? What are they up to?" Originally, she had agreed with Lin Shen Zhi that after ten days or half a month, she would pick him up to stay for two days, but unfortunately, Old Master Lin did not allow it. Every time he was on holiday, he only allowed half a day off. It seemed like if she wanted to see the child, she had to hurry back home.

  Gong Mama took the big needle in her hand and scratched it against her scalp, then quickly stabbed it into the sole of the shoe. She clamped down on the needle with a clip and pulled it out with force, tugging hard on the thread twice before pressing down on the half-finished sole. Smiling, she said, "Just the other day, Third Young Lady sent word that everything was fine, didn't she? Don't worry, Madame, he'll be back for New Year's, and when you see Seventh Young Master then, you'll have to sigh at how grown up he is."

  "I don't want to go back for the New Year, worship ancestors and entertain guests, keep incomplete rules, do unfinished things, it's annoying to death."

  "Alas, I'm afraid the old master and mistress will not allow it. It's already difficult to agree to let you out to nurse your illness for so long, and as for the reunion dinner, you must go back for that. If you don't return, rumors will spread and it won't be good for the young lady and Seventh Master either."

  The two of them fell silent at the same time.

  "Madam, it's also good to go back. I heard that these days the two sides are fighting happily. The fifth girl has not been released yet. Even when Miss Bao went to beg for mercy from Old Lady, she didn't agree. The first madam is ill and the second madam has come out to handle affairs. The two sides have already fought openly and secretly several times. We're bored anyway, it's just right to watch the show."

  "Taoshi said, 'What's there for me to be happy about when Zhou is down on her luck? At least she still knows some propriety. But Luo has never been a good thing, now that she's down on her luck, I'm the one who's delighted.'"

  Chūn Yā smiled and said, "Tiě Māma, you're beaming with joy, what's the good news?"

  Tiehuajia's smile said, "It was the fourth daughter who asked me to ask about something, and now I'm in a hurry to come and report back to her." Chunya said, "Unfortunately, the young lady just took Miao Yu and Fang Baozi to the temple." Tiehuajia's scolded, "This Miao Yu is too careless, daring to persuade the young lady to go out on such a day. When she comes back, I'll teach her a lesson." Ah, Madam, I'll pay my respects to you, and there are eggs, how about making hot pot tonight? Tao Shi nodded slightly towards Gong Mama, who got up and rolled up the curtains, smiling, "You smooth-talking thing, where would Madam go if she's not in the house? Don't hurry in?" The two of them were sisters from previous years, so they didn't have to be too formal. Tiehuajia smiled and walked in, paid her respects, asked about their well-being, and sat down by the charcoal brazier, leaning against it as instructed by Tao Shi.

  "Hey, what did you find out for the fourth young lady?" Iron Horn's family repeated Lin Zhenrong's request one by one. "Ah, I thought that salt alkali land was unwanted, but it turns out someone owns it. It's said that behind Pingzhou City, there is a large piece of ownerless land, as far as the eye can see, at least several dozen qing, who knows what bet the young lady and her uncle made." Tao Shi and Gong Mama exchanged a glance, both feeling very surprised, what was this little girl thinking?

  Lin Jianrong, who had been playing in the snow and had a red face, was taken home by Mrs. Tao for interrogation as soon as he got back, asking what they were doing at the salt alkali land and what kind of bet Lin had made with Tao Shunqin again.

  Lin Jianrong was originally thinking about how to persuade Taoshi, but seeing Taoshi's interested expression, she decided to take advantage of the situation and probe Taoshi's intentions. "My uncle told me that although the land is not valuable now, after the Tianhe River floods, it will become fertile land. I said, if so, why not buy it? My uncle said it's not easy, we need the Tianhe River water, and we need to build canals and dams, which is beyond the power of a single family. I thought, since the land is next to the riverbank, the Tianhe River water will come cheaply, just need to spend some labor and food money to get people to build canals and dams, who says it's impossible? He laughed at me, I didn't believe him, so we made a bet. When I buy that land and it becomes fertile in the future, let's see what he says." Taoshi frowned and looked at her for a while, then suddenly smiled at Gongmama and Chunyue, "So, Fourth Miss wants to buy land and start a business on her own?" Gongmama and Chunyue all covered their mouths and laughed, everyone in the room thought that Lin Jianrong was being childish. It's worth noting that even someone as shrewd as Taoshunqin said it couldn't be done, then it must be impossible. Taoshi still pinched Lin Jianrong's cheek and smiled, "Even if you want to save money for your mother, it shouldn't be on this kind of land that people will laugh at. Your mother wants to prepare high-quality land for you, not this kind of inferior land." Lin Jianrong suddenly became very angry, but this anger was not because of Taoshi's and others' well-intentioned teasing, but because she was angry with herself. She knew a lot, saw many opportunities, but couldn't smoothly realize them! Couldn't persuade her relatives to follow her and get rich together! Last time, it took all her might to barely grasp a small opportunity, would this time let her watch as the opportunity slipped away in front of her, leaving her only sighing?

  "No! This passive situation can't continue, she needs to change her image as a little kid to get more opportunities. Lin Jinrong quickly composed herself and looked at Tao Shi seriously, 'Since other places have the method of turning barren land into fertile land, why can't we do it here? Are all the people in Pingzhou stupid? Will they just give up on this land that can be turned into good land? You're all laughing at me, but I'm going to buy this land and show you all later.'

  'Haha, looks like someone's really worked up!' Tao Shi's mood lifted from its previous low, and she laughed happily, 'So, little one, tell me, how do you plan on buying this land? Do you know what needs to be done to buy land? How much is this land worth? Where will your money come from?'

  As soon as she said this, everyone looked at Lin Jinrong with a smile, curious about how the usually mature and composed fourth young lady would respond."

  Lin Jinrong's face was stern as she said, "I know I need to find an intermediary, a guarantor, and write a contract. I also need to go to the government office to register it. This land is worth how much? If you really want to buy it, just ask someone and they'll tell you. He's asking for a high price, but I can still afford it. After all, if I'm going to buy it, I have to get a good deal. Can't just pay the price of good land." She looked up at Tao Shi with a smile that was flattering to the extreme, "Mother, my birthday is coming up! You said last time you would make me new clothes and a full set of gold jewelry." Tao Shi was taken aback, then burst out laughing, pointing at Lin Jinrong and saying, "Look at her, she's trying to take advantage of me!" Lin Jinrong didn't hesitate, quickly climbing onto the bed and kneeling beside Tao Shi, tightly wrapping her arms around her mother's arm and begging, "I don't want those things anymore, Mother. Just buy this land for me, okay?" Tao Shi just smiled and said nothing, thinking that buying that land would be a waste of money, like throwing it away. She was happy to humor the child, but she wouldn't actually spend real money on something so frivolous.

  Lin Jinyong had long been mentally prepared and was not discouraged. She sat up straight, using an unprecedented firm tone to say seriously, "Then I'll buy it myself with my own money, can you help me, Mother?" She didn't have her own independent household registration, so even if she managed to buy the land, it would still have to be registered under the Tao family's name.

  Mrs. Tao frowned at her little daughter.

  Lin Jianrong's bright eyes stared straight at the Tao family, her small face pale with a hint of red, without a trace of playfulness or concession, even the coquettish pout from earlier had vanished. All that remained was determination and resolve.

  Taoshi suddenly realized that she had hardly seen her little daughter cry recently, as every day she supervised herself to take medicine on time, dragged herself out for a walk and sunbathing, and took over many trivial matters in the farm. Although Gong Mama said that she would think for a while before giving orders when doing something, but she still did it very well, without any childishness.

  Something very obvious had happened to her, just as Lin Jinyan and Gong Mama said. She was still quiet and calm, but her intelligence and composure were fully demonstrated in a series of events after the birthday banquet.

  She has her own opinions, but only shows softness on the surface.

  It has to be said that this change was one of the reasons why he agreed to let her come and go freely in the Zhuangzi, visit the Qingliang Temple and soak in the hot springs. Because long ago, without realizing it, he had already believed that she would not cause him any trouble. Realizing this, Mr. Tao rubbed his temples tiredly and waved his hand at Mrs. Gong and others, "You all withdraw." As the door was closed, Lin Jingrong's muscles and nerves were tense, her eyes wide open, knowing that what followed would be a crucial battle. She had already moved Mr. Tao and won this opportunity, but whether she could thoroughly convince him depended on how she performed next.

  "Mother, I know you think I'm just a foolish child who only cares about getting rich and winning against my uncle. But the truth is, I've been thinking carefully about this land. It won't cost much to buy it, and I plan to use my monthly allowance and sell some of my clothes and accessories to raise the money. No matter how much you give me, I must have the ability to manage it well and make it grow. Otherwise, even a mountain of gold and silver will eventually be depleted. After all these years, mother should know that I've grown up and it's time for me to learn and practice. This land is my chance to do so, and I'm sure it will become a good field!"

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