The Evil Mother-in-law: Torment Children, Work Hard, Be Rich!-Chapter 65: Perfect Cooperation

"Taohua, I need to remind you of something. Even though we have this secret space, we can’t live a life free of worries about food and clothing. We can only use the things in the space to support ourselves." Tong Huaqiong said.

Gu Taohua felt like a cold bucket of water had been poured over her head and asked, "Why?"

Gu Taohua thought to herself, wouldn’t it be a waste not to take advantage of such a gift from the heavens?

Tong Huaqiong glared at her plump daughter and began a scare tactic education.

"After the girl who saved the fox fairy in our village had her cave stolen, her people no longer farmed or worked. They only thought about grabbing things from the cave each day. Eventually, they became envious of which family took more and which family took less, which led to arguments and eventually to bloody fights, ending in a violent clash in the cave. The deity couldn’t tolerate it anymore and sealed the cave, and none of those people ever came out."

Gu Taohua listened to Tong Huaqiong’s story, and nodded thoughtfully, implying that she needed to continue working hard to prosper.

That’s not a problem, anyway, working hard to prosper with resources is always easier than without resources.

"Mom, I understand your point now." Gu Taohua nodded in agreement.

She thought, it must be because of this space that her mom could make desserts so delicious.

"Grandma, I’ll take out the things you need." Man Er said to Tong Huaqiong.

Man Er hadn’t been listening to Tong Huaqiong’s teachings to Gu Taohua. She leisurely ate snacks by the table. After finishing, she would follow the procedure of entering the cave to take things out.

As for what things to take, she listened to Tong Huaqiong.

Tong Huaqiong had the same intention, she pointed out some items and had Man Er take them out in batches.

Man Er’s entry into the space gave Tong Huaqiong a new discovery, that is, actually, Man Er and Gu Taohua can enter the space without her being present.

This is manageable; in the future, she will focus on purchasing new materials, Gu Taohua will replenish the stock, and Man Er will carry out the needed materials.

What a perfect supply chain! 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"Man Er, take this out."

Tong Huaqiong pointed to newly purchased band-aids, antiseptic solutions, and anti-inflammatory medicines.

In this era, minor wounds and common colds could be fatal, so keeping these medications isn’t a bad idea.

"Understood, Grandma." Man Er nodded, stuffing band-aids, antiseptic solutions, and anti-inflammatory medicines into her bag and carrying them in her hand.

Thus, under Tong Huaqiong’s direction, Man Er transported many things out. Each time she finished, Gu Taohua supplemented the stock according to Tong Huaqiong’s instructions.

The three generations of the family cooperated perfectly.

...

Tong Huaqiong opened her eyes in the early morning light to see a smiling plump face right in front of her, startling her into sitting up.

"Mom, did I scare you? It’s me, your daughter, Taohua." Gu Taohua said, sitting by Tong Huaqiong’s bed.

The sun had risen from the west, Gu Taohua was up so early.

"Mom, last night, I thought it was a dream, but waking up, I see it’s real." Gu Taohua said, barely concealing her excitement.

Gu Taohua had woken up at the third crow of the rooster, unsure if everything she experienced in the space was a dream. She dressed and went to Tong Huaqiong’s room.

Seeing all the items Man Er had taken out in Tong Huaqiong’s room, she felt reassured.

It turned out all of it was real!

Gu Taohua excitedly sat on Tong Huaqiong’s bed, waiting for her to wake up.

Seeing Tong Huaqiong open her eyes, Gu Taohua kept talking at her side.

"Mom, everything Man Er took is in your room."

"Mom, you’re finally awake."

Tong Huaqiong turned over, pushed Gu Taohua aside, and said, "Let me catch my breath."

Gu Taohua took her arms off Tong Huaqiong and then sat by her bed.

"Taohua, remember, you must not talk about the space stuff outside. Think of that girl who got burned alive with the fox fairy’s wealth-filled cave. If you talk about it, I won’t even wait for others to do anything, I’ll lock you up as a mad person."

Tong Huaqiong sat up, both advising and threatening.

Gu Taohua nodded vigorously.

She must not speak of it.

She could hold back on telling about selling endless desserts to earn fifty-seven taels of Silver, let alone such a treasure space.

With the precedent of that girl who got burned alive, unless a knife is held to her head, she won’t speak.

"Mom, not only will I not speak of this outside, but I will also treat Man Er better," said Taohua.

She had come to understand why Man Er replaced Yaozu as the top among the Gu family grandchildren; it was entirely because Man Er controlled the family’s living resources.

Tong Huaqiong was quite satisfied with Taohua’s change in mindset.

Looking at the pile of supplies beside the bed, she felt reassured; there was no longer any worry about the inconsistency in the flavor of Taohua Dessert.

The two were chatting when Chen Sufen knocked on the door and came in with a basin of water for washing her face.

"I’ll do it, sister-in-law." Taohua took the basin from Chen Sufen with a respectful expression.

Previously, Taohua would boss Chen Sufen around, but recently, after being reprimanded by Tong Huaqiong, she stopped. However, there was little genuine respect. After witnessing Man Er’s influence, she began to genuinely respect Chen Sufen.

"Taohua, up so early?"

Chen Sufen was quite surprised by Taohua’s show of respect.

They say the young sister-in-law is a pampered guest in the family; both past and present, Chen Sufen always treated Taohua with care.

Tong Huaqiong was dressed and her face washed by Chen Sufen and Taohua, and she couldn’t help but ask, "Where’s Yue Er?"

Usually, Liu Yueer would be the first to bring water to wash faces in the morning, and not seeing Liu Yueer flatter her this morning felt somewhat unusual.

"Second sister-in-law is taking care of Miss Lu," said Chen Sufen.

Tong Huaqiong sneered inwardly; she thought Liu Yueer had woken up early to actively cook, but it turned out she went to curry favor with the Lu family.

Tong Huaqiong dressed neatly and walked out of the room, seeing Liu Yueer laughingly currying favor with Lu Zhaozhao.

"Mom, you’re up? I thought you might sleep a bit longer," Liu Yueer quickly moved in front of her when she saw Tong Huaqiong.

Tong Huaqiong looked Liu Yueer up and down, noticing her clothes were exquisite and sumptuous, made of fabric beyond the Gu family’s means.

It must have been gained by currying favor with Lu Zhaozhao.

"Mom, look at this outfit from Miss Lu; I said no, but she insisted on giving it to me."

Liu Yueer touched the fabric on her body, smiling happily.

If only her mother-in-law had come out a bit later, maybe Lu Zhaozhao would have given her the hairpin from her head.

"I know you, don’t I? Even if Miss Lu gives you clothes, would you accept them so easily?" Tong Huaqiong sneered.

Liu Yueer smiled sheepishly.

"Aunt Tong, I gave the clothes to sister-in-law Yue Er on my own initiative," said Lu Zhaozhao.

Tong Huaqiong glared at Liu Yueer, warning, "This time it’s fine, but don’t let it happen again."

For Lu Zhaozhao, gifting a piece of clothing is nothing, but for Liu Yueer, a piece of clothing is worth currying favor for.

"I still have a few pieces left, sister-in-law Yue Er, if you don’t mind, I’ll give them all to you." Lu Zhaozhao, this pure white jasmine, couldn’t comprehend Tong Huaqiong’s signals and still wanted to continue gifting clothes to Liu Yueer.

Liu Yueer understood her mother-in-law quite well, and seeing the murderous look in Tong Huaqiong’s eyes, she regretfully waved her hands at Lu Zhaozhao, saying, "One is enough."

"Zhaozhao, go check on your brother," Tong Huaqiong sent Lu Zhaozhao away.

After Lu Zhaozhao entered the house, Tong Huaqiong began to unleash her wrath on Liu Yueer.

"Such a shallow-minded person, already currying favor like this."

"Is your face made of iron or copper? How can you be so thick-skinned? If I hadn’t come out, wouldn’t you want more from her? You’d better restrain your desire to take advantage, or it’ll be embarrassing the way you are."

Liu Yueer shook her head in fright, no longer daring to think about Lu Zhaozhao’s hairpin.

Tong Huaqiong scolded Liu Yueer not only for her fawning attitude this morning but also to vent for the past injustice done to Lu Zhaozhao.

Thinking about the previous life, Lu Zhaozhao was passionately kind to Liu Yueer, treating her with respect as a sister-in-law, gifting jewelry and clothes, and enlarging the appetite of the already slightly greedy Liu Yueer.

Lu Zhaozhao and Gu Jingzhe had been married for many years without children; Liu Yueer even thought of making Yaozu Gu Jingzhe and Lu Zhaozhao’s son by inheritance, so as to inherit the Lu family’s wealth.

When Lu Zhaozhao refused, she offended Liu Yueer.

Later, after Gu Jingzhe married the Commandery Princess, Liu Yueer turned to curry favor with the princess, teaming up to trample Lu Zhaozhao, calling her a chicken that couldn’t lay eggs.

Of course, Liu Yueer didn’t gain anything from following the Commandery Princess.

The princess facilitated Gu Dashu’s divorce with Liu Yueer and arranged a marriage with a noble family’s concubine daughter; after being divorced, Liu Yueer lived worse than Lu Zhaozhao; Lu Zhaozhao, at least, had silver, while Liu Yueer had no money, no background, and could only wait to die in a temple as a nun.

Liu Yueer seems smart but is actually easily blinded by small favors, so she needs to be reprimanded frequently; otherwise, she tends to veer off course.