With each picture she turned, Old Mr. Bai would introduce it to her and briefly tell her what it was used to treat.
Very soon, she found a few herbs that could treat bruises and injuries: one was Tianqi, another was Danshen, and Old Mr. Bai mentioned Duxu.
She wanted to secretly gather herbs and then give her father a surprise.
Having set a small goal in her heart, Zhao Zhitong felt very fulfilled, filled with energy, sweeping away the previous gloom. During dinner, she had a great appetite, eating more than half a bun and drinking a bowl of porridge.
Zhao Dong and Sun Mei also noticed that during the day, Zhao Zhitong's mood wasn't very high.
However, with the tofu business about to open, both were very busy and didn't have time to attend to her, planning to spend time with her after finishing their work in the evening.
Unexpectedly, by dinner, the little girl had already recovered her spirits, much to their relief.
After dinner, thinking about gathering herbs the next day, Zhao Zhitong climbed into bed early to sleep.
In the room, it was a bit stuffy, and Zhao Zhitong had already fallen into a deep sleep. Sun Mei and Zhao Dong held large fans, fanning the air while chatting in low voices.
Sun Mei: "During busy times, I wish we had an older brother or sister at home. They could play with Tongtong and she wouldn't feel neglected."
Thinking of something, Sun Mei continued, "If only there were a kindergarten, with teachers and classmates."
Zhao Dong, fanning and rubbing his leg: "Right now, we have no money, but once the tofu business makes some, we'll send Tongtong to study at the school. Mr. Meng seems to like our Tongtong quite a bit, he might accept her."
Speaking of that, Sun Mei recalled how whenever they met Mr. Meng, his fondness for Tongtong was clear.
Sun Mei couldn't help but smile with pride: "We'll definitely send Tongtong to school. It's not about her achieving great success, but to understand reason, discern right from wrong, and not easily be deceived."
Sun Mei paused, then added: "However, just because Mr. Meng likes our Tongtong doesn't mean it's settled. The private school belongs to Landlord Wei, and he has requirements for the students he accepts. I'm not sure if he'll agree to enroll Tongtong."
Sun Mei's concern wasn't that Landlord Wei would refuse because Zhao Zhitong is a girl.
Over these days, she realized that this Landlord Wei wasn't the type to think girls shouldn't study.
This was evident from the fact that several of his own daughters were studying at the school.
Moreover, the constraints on women during this era hadn't reached an extreme; it could be considered a time when women held a relatively high status.
The concern was that Landlord Wei placed great emphasis on the school's atmosphere, so he would have requirements for enrolled students.
Zhao Dong nodded, having already made a mental note: "When the time comes, I'll bring some gifts to Landlord Wei's house and ask. Alright, wife, let's go to sleep early. We have much to do next year too."
"Tomorrow is another busy day," Sun Mei sighed. "I suddenly miss modern life; it wasn't this exhausting in our past life."
With that, she lay down as well.
Zhao Dong: "By the way, if Tongtong gets bored at home tomorrow, let her go play with Mr. Meng and the students at the school. Deliver some grain to the school, so Tongtong can have lunch there too, saving her from running back and forth."
Sun Mei: "Alright."
And so, the night passed without further conversation.
The next day, at 5 a.m., Sun Mei and Zhao Dong got up.
The soybean milk had been filtered the night before, now it just needed to be boiled and coagulated with gypsum.
So they weren't in a great hurry, Zhao Dong first went to fill the water jar. Sun Mei put the soaked beans into a sack.
After they finished, Zhao Dong helped Sun Mei light a fire, then pushed the cart loaded with soybeans out.
It took about a quarter of an hour to boil a pot of soy milk, and half an hour for the tofu to set.
By the time Zhao Dong returned from delivering the soybeans, Sun Mei had already cooked a pot, and was scooping it into molds.
Zhao Dong quickly weighed it; this large pot produced over thirty pounds of tofu.
Since it was the first day of selling, they couldn't be sure they'd sell all of it, so they made two pots — one of tofu and one of bean curd.
After doing all this, it was already 7 a.m., just after 8 a.m. in the morning.
The farmers here only ate two meals a day, one at 9 a.m. and another at 3 p.m.
This timing was just right for when the villagers would go home to prepare meals.
Zhao Dong opened the main door, set up a table at the entrance, and officially began business!
Some of the villagers who had eaten tofu yesterday came by Zhao Dong's house as they returned from the fields.
The first to arrive was the eldest daughter-in-law of the village chief, Tian, who entered and loudly praised, "Sun Mei, your skill is really good. Last night we stewed the tofu with cabbage, it was so delicious, as flavorful as meat!"
Zhao Dong chuckled, "This tofu really is the meat among plants with its rich nutrition."
Tian Cuixia laughed, "Really? That's great news! You don't know, my father-in-law and mother-in-law can't chew meat anymore; the tofu is soft and perfect for their taste. As soon as they got up today, they urged me to come buy some more."
The Zhao Family's gate was open, and villagers passing by the fields occasionally walked by. Tian Cuixia intentionally raised her voice to be heard outside.
Both Zhao Dong and Sun Mei understood her good intentions and were very grateful, even giving her an extra slice while cutting the tofu.
At this moment, Shitou's wife, Sun Sanniang, also hurriedly arrived, diving straight into the matter: "Mr. Dong, give me two pounds of this tofu, and two bowls of this bean curd. It's so tasty, you wouldn't believe it, Shitou was even fighting with the kids over it yesterday, haha."
With the help of Tian Cuixia and Sun Sanniang, who spread the word loudly, many villagers quickly gathered in the yard.
Sun Mei greeted the villagers with a smile and then handed over the task of selling tofu to Zhao Dong.
She went to the kitchen, wrapped a piece of tofu in a steaming cloth, and placed it in a basket, planning to take it to the school and share it with the children and teacher for free, essentially advertising in Xiaoyi Village.
"Tongtong, let's go to school!"
Sun Mei, with the basket on her back, searched the yard for a while but couldn't find the little girl, which piqued her curiosity. Normally, she would've already been pestering her about when they'd go to school.
Today, she was nowhere to be found.
At that moment, behind the house, Zhao Zhitong was digging up a plantain herb, also known as Wheel Herb. Hearing Sun Mei's voice, she shouted, "Mother, wait for me!"
As she yelled, her two small hands gripped the plant, and using all her might, she pulled up with her feet firmly on the ground.
"Ouch~"
The plantain herb snapped from the root, and Zhao Zhitong fell right on her bottom.
Sun Mei: "Tongtong, what are you doing? Hurry up!"
Hearing Sun Mei's voice again, Zhao Zhitong held back the pain in her bottom, quickly got up, tossed the wild grass into the space, rubbed her small rear, and ran out.
Zhao Zhitong: "I'm coming~"