Chapter 247: Other ways to make money 247 Chapter 247: Other ways to make money 247 “Mother, I’ve already said it before, I don’t want to partake in the soap business. It’s fine for you to decide. I have no objections to giving it to Third Brother, and as for my third share, just keep it with you, Mother. As for the future, you can leave your possessions to whomever you wish. This way, you hold the majority and will be the wealthiest in our family. Whether it’s First Brother, Second Brother, or Third Brother, Fourth Brother, they will all have to listen to you,” Ye Jiu said.

He Shi immediately stretched out her finger and tapped Ye Jiu’s forehead, her touch light despite her frustration, “You silly girl, you’re always thinking of helping the family, but you can’t neglect yourself. You’re still young and don’t understand that whoever holds the silver is the one who holds sway. You’re giving them so much now so easily, but when the time comes to take it back, it’s going to be much harder.”

“Pfft…” Ye Jiu laughed, “Mother loves me the most.”

“If you know I love you, then listen to me; don’t go telling your brothers and sisters-in-law that you don’t want your share. They’re all too eager for you to say such things,” He Shi sighed. “Remember, favors for a bucket of rice turn into grudges for a basket of rice. You may help them, but you can’t just give everything away without thought.”

“Mother, I know. If they ask again in the future, I won’t give anymore, as long as you won’t think I’m too heartless by then. Besides, this time it’s for you, not for them. Moreover, I really don’t want to get involved in the soap business,” Ye Jiu was very firm about this.

She didn’t want her future path to be limited to the soap trade; she had her own path to follow. If she got involved in the family affairs, given her temperament, she would surely spend a lot of time and effort on them.

That way, she would be exhausting herself while not necessarily gaining the support of her family members. They might even think she was acting dictatorially, trying to take over He Shi’s role in the household.

Ye Jiu was willing to find a way out for them but did not want to be tied down by them for life. It was better to disentangle herself from this business early on.

Ye Jiu had always seen things clearly. Regarding her eldest and second brothers, she could only help so much, which she felt was enough to repay them for their years of care and attention.

As for her simple-minded Fourth Brother, although a bit slow, he was a very good person and the brother she was closest to.

In regard to Third Brother, who had married into another family, he seemed alright so far. Every time he visited, he would bring gifts, and even with her recent misfortunes, though Third Brother had not gone out to look himself, he spared no effort to ask around town for news.

Seeing that He Shi wanted to continue persuading her, Ye Jiu simply reached into her robe and pulled out two silver notes.

These notes were from the last sale of pearls. She had not even finished spending the scattered silver from those 200 taels; she had never even had the opportunity to use these notes.

“Mother, see what this is?” Ye Jiu placed it right in front of He Shi.

“This is…” He Shi recognized it, of course. She originally had two notes as well, but in order to find Ye Jiu, she had to exchange one and distribute the money among her sons for their travel expenses. Now, she still had one note, which she was determined to save for Ye Jiu’s dowry.

Their family earned just over a thousand taels from the soap business these past few months, with both the first and second households getting only a little over a hundred each. The second household, because of the 20 taels Zhao Shi had taken home, even added another 20 back to the family.

Even so, they felt it was a great deal; the family was on its way to prospering.

Yet, when their daughter made a move, it was a full two thousand taels of silver, which truly astonished He Shi.

“Mother, you see, your daughter has other ways to make money. I sincerely don’t want to get involved in the family’s soap anymore,” Ye Jiu said.