After being reborn as a man, the woman improved her family's fortunes through education.

Chapter 475 Boiling Pot, Reminiscing About the Past

"But... to some people, the Prince of Xuan Nan is a bad guy, such as the southern barbarians who were beaten and driven away!"

Li Mo seemed to understand somewhat.

"To the people in the fiefdom of the Prince of Xuannan and the people on the border, the Prince of Xuannan is a lord, a war god, and even a guardian god."

But to the southern barbarians, the Prince of Xuan Nan was a god of death, a demon, the King of Hell, and above all, an enemy!

"Therefore, there are no purely good people or purely bad people in this world, only people with different stances."

Their actions and the paths they follow are all based on their own standpoint, and have nothing to do with good or bad.

Jiang Xiaoqi nodded, and the two quickly ended their discussion about the pros and cons, because the hot pot broth had already been served.

"Eat more, you've been through so much hardship these past few days!"

Jiang Xiaoqi placed most of the meat and vegetables in front of Li Mo, while she herself had some green vegetables and mushrooms sent from the estate.

The villagers on the outskirts of the city are now very skilled at growing vegetables and mushrooms in greenhouses, so even in winter, the Jiang family has no shortage of vegetables to eat.

A combination of meat and vegetables, balanced nutrition.

Even the servants could eat fresh vegetables every few days. The estate was mainly supplied to the Jiang residence, and only when there was a surplus would they be taken to the market to sell.

The head of the village and the villagers were all very honest people; none of them were cunning or liked to take advantage of their employers.

Their world is simple: enough to eat and wear, and a little surplus at the end of the year—that's enough.

Moreover, the Jiang family treated their tenants and their own farmhands quite well. Although they started as a landlord family, the change in social status changed the perspective and outlook of the entire family.

They wouldn't haggle over a few bushels of rice with the poor, but rather try to make sure the people below them live as well as possible.

This was something Jiang Xiaoqi and his grandfather had discussed. They were no longer landlords or gentry; official families should have different management methods.

In this capital city, sometimes a good reputation is worth more than a million pieces of gold.

Water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it; those who have nothing to lose are not afraid of those who have something to lose.

In later generations, this can be considered a principle of yielding in the face of happiness.

Because those who are unfortunate and have nothing are the ones most willing to risk everything, because they have never possessed anything, so they are not afraid of losing what they have left.

Dignity is worthless in the face of food and life.

"Mmm, delicious! Young master, you should have some too!"

Jiang Xiaoqi picked up her chopsticks and put in her favorite kinds of mushrooms.

Both spicy broth and mushroom broth are used, and sometimes it's hard to tell whether the mushrooms in the mushroom broth are fresh mushrooms or mushrooms that come with the broth.

They all look the same when they're picked up, but you can only tell the difference when you put them in your mouth; their elasticity and chewiness are different.

The mushrooms at the bottom of the pot are dried and dehydrated, then boiled again, making them even more chewy and resilient.

Freshly added mushrooms are more tender and juicy; both have their own unique appeal.

"You should eat the lamb rolls and some vegetables too, otherwise the spicy broth will easily cause you to get a sore throat."

The few small bok choy leaves were only briefly dipped in the pot before being promptly scooped out.

After all, these green vegetables are the tenderest ones selected by the farmers. If they are cooked for too long, they will become tough and lose their original flavor.

"These vegetables are delicious, young master. In the dead of winter, vegetables must be more expensive than meat, right?"

"Yes, definitely outside, but our suburban estate can produce its own food, so we don't need to buy vegetables from other people's hot spring estates."

Li Mo nodded. That's good. If it's not something I bought, I won't feel so much pressure eating it myself.

In winter, even a small bunch of green vegetables can sell for an ounce of silver. That's not eating vegetables, it's practically eating silver!

"Don't worry about eating. We've built a lot of vegetable greenhouses in our village, so we won't lack fresh vegetables all winter. It's just that the villagers have to work hard to bring them to the city before dawn every day."

Jiang Xiaoqi seemed to see through Li Mo's thoughts and directly poured another plate of green vegetables into the clear soup pot.

“Young master, since we don’t lack vegetables, we can let the farmers set up stalls to sell vegetables when they go to the city. This will give them more income and make their winter easier.”

Li Mo wasn't trying to be generous with other people's money; rather, he knew his young master would agree.

"Do you need to remind them? They are all honest and hardworking people. They pick the best-growing vegetables before dawn every day."

The women would carefully pick the vegetables, and our small kitchen could be used simply by washing them in water, saving us the trouble of picking them.

I had already told them that any extras could be taken to the market to sell, but they didn't sell many; most of them were brought in anyway.

Only those that don't look particularly appealing are taken to the market. There aren't many, but enough to earn enough for firewood and charcoal for the winter, enough to keep the elderly and children at home from freezing.

Li Mo swallowed the food in his mouth and nodded vigorously.

He still remembers his childhood experience of fleeing famine with his parents and grandparents. They lacked food and clothing, and countless people starved and froze to death on the way.

It was a stroke of luck that their family survived and managed to stay together until they encountered the young master's family.

Most of the refugees had even resorted to cannibalism, exchanging their own children for food.

Those parents who couldn't bear to part with their children and couldn't bring themselves to do it could only watch helplessly as others dug up their children's remains from the ground and cooked them.

Those images left such a deep impression that Li Mo didn't want to eat meat for three or four years.

Later, as they lived with the Jiang family, their lives improved and they gradually forgot about that painful past.

"Young Master, why did you decide to buy our family in the first place?"

"At that time, we were short-handed at home, and you also needed a place to stay, so this was just what we needed, wasn't it?"

Of course, it's also because everyone in your family has some extraordinary qualities. For example, your grandfather, despite his advanced age, still remembers everyone he's met and can even match their names to their surnames.

Your grandmother's embroidery skills have trained countless clumsy maids over the years. And your mother, I don't need to elaborate on her culinary abilities, do I?

What's even more remarkable is that your mother also loves to use her brain to come up with new dishes and desserts. Her matcha pastries are praised by the adults in the Hanlin Academy.

And you, so young, with such a determined look in your eyes, though you've suffered a lot, you haven't resorted to dishonest means to beg for food like others.

Li Mo nodded, surprised that the young master had such a talent for judging people at such a young age.

"What about my father? It seems that the young master didn't mention my father at all."

"Haha, of course your father is not useless. On the contrary, as the only able-bodied man, he has taken good care of your family, including the elderly, women and children. He is very responsible as a man."

He's not only a good father, but also a good husband and a good son; he fulfills all three roles very well!