The Little Country Girl

Piao Piao drifted as a lonely ghost for several hundred years before getting a second chance at life, only to be reborn in the body of a scrawny little girl who never had enough to eat. But Piao Piao had a good attitude. Being a little girl was fine. She had brains and two hands, so why worry that she couldn't earn enough to feed herself? Her family was pretty easy to deal with, too. Father Ruan was away at work most days, Mother Ruan had to worry about the crops, and Grandma wasn't difficult. Her two younger brothers were one adorable and the other sensible. Her eldest sister's personality wasn't quite as good as Ruan Luyi's, but that was no big deal. The real problem was that the family was in debt, living in a borrowed house, and shunned by the villagers. Debts could be repaid, and the shabby house they'd borrowed could be returned. As for the villagers, those forgetful ingrates weren't beyond saving, either. So, all things considered, there was only one real problem: making money, making money, making money. [The Villagers' Ungrateful Wretches] On Ruan Lü's first day out, she was eagerly about to raid a bird's nest and pick fruit for her two younger brothers when the so-called owner of the fruit tree caught her. He grabbed Ruan Xi with his left hand and Ruan Yun with his right, then spat as he cursed Ruan Lü. “You ungrateful little brats! You eat our village's food and live in our village, and now you're stealing from us. Your mother gave birth to you, but clearly never raised you!” “The bridge and roads in your village were built by the Ruan family!” Ruan Lü shot back indignantly. Madam Ma and the onlookers gaped, at a loss for words. [Playing the Fool to Catch the Wise] After Ruan Lü turned the fruit into preserves, she was fretting over finding buyers when Shopkeeper Chen came along. “Girl, how much are you selling these preserves for?” Shopkeeper Chen waited anxiously for her answer. “I'm not selling them. From now on, we're only supplying Xu's shop.” Ruan Lü looked at Shopkeeper Chen. “Girl, don't sell to Xu's shop. Just look at how shabby it is. It's so run-down, and who knows when they'll cheat you out of your goods?” Shopkeeper Chen urged her earnestly. “Look at our shop. It's decorated so beautifully. How about this: Uncle Chen will pay you five hundred coins per jin. Sell them to me instead.” “Huh? Uncle Chen, that's even stingier than Xu's shop. They offered three taels of silver per jin,” Ruan Lü said sheepishly. “Then how about this? I'll give you five taels. I'll just take the loss,” Shopkeeper Chen said through gritted teeth, rubbing his hands together. “All right, then.” Ruan Lü secretly grinned to herself.