Dispersing Wealth

As the day was not yet dark, Manbao spread a bag on the ground and poured out the copper coins from the cloth bag to count them. Then, she took out the copper coins and silver ingots from her pockets.

Everyone was astonished. Although they knew they had earned a lot of money, they did not expect there to be so much.

Zhou Dalang and Zhou Erlang had always known, so their surprise was limited. However, Zhou Sanlang and Zhou Silang couldn't help but widen their eyes, staring blankly at Manbao squatting on the ground counting money with their parents.

Zhou Wulang brought a string of coins, and then everyone started counting the money.

Although Zhou Wulang could barely count to one hundred, he always made mistakes. So, he counted in groups of ten, making piles of ten, and then counted the piles to reach one hundred.

Manbao looked down at him and asked him to string the coins while she counted.

The adults joined in the fun, counting along with Manbao, but they got confused after reaching twenty. They couldn't help but shout out "seventeen" one moment, and then "twenty-two" the next.

Manbao, however, seemed unaffected and continued to count by herself.

Lao Zhoutou sat on the side, touched the tobacco in his waist pouch that he was reluctant to use, and squeezed out a pinch to put in his pipe and light it.

He just watched Manbao, lost in thought.

Manbao successfully counted to one hundred, pushed the money to Wuge to string, and then counted again. Zhoululang also pinched a string of coins and waited behind to string.

The adults followed along, watching Manbao count and sweat profusely as she calculated. They didn't help her; they just watched her figure out how much seventy plus forty was.

After a long time, Manbao finally shouted, "It's six hundred and ten wen."

Qianshi nodded with a smile and asked, "So, how much do you need to contribute to the public fund?"

Manbao couldn't figure it out on her own, so she scratched her head. Finally, she asked Dage and Erge to find six large stones and six small stones for her.

She arranged the six large stones in a row and pointed, "This is one hundred wen, sixty wen for mother…"

Manbao placed a small stone in front of the large stone and said, "This is sixty wen."

"This is also one hundred wen, and sixty wen for mother… a total of six sixty wen," Manbao counted, adding them up one by one. Finally, she clapped her hands and said, "Three hundred and sixty wen, just give mother six more wen."

Manbao gave a silver coin to Qianshi and counted out twenty-six wen from the scattered copper coins to complete the public fund contribution.

The remaining money was theirs, totaling two hundred and forty-four wen.

Manbao called all the little friends who had helped her, counted the number of people, and generously gave each of them ten wen.

Lao Zhoutou and Qianshi were included, totaling eighty wen.

Considering that today, Daya, Erya, Wuge, and Wuliu had accompanied her to the county town and had worked hard, she gave each of them ten wen.

The children had to look at their parents before accepting the money.

Seeing Manbao giving out money like this, Zhou Dalang and the others instinctively wanted to refuse. However, they then thought, if they declined, wouldn't the money just remain with Manbao?

So, they happily agreed and gestured for their children to accept.

It was impossible to compete with Manbao for money, but it was okay to compete with their own children. They even joined in the fun, "Manbao, we also helped with your bamboo basket." "Don't we deserve payment?"

Manbao thought about it and gave money to her three brothers. When she saw her sisters-in-law, she felt that they had also worked hard, so she decided to give them money as well.

The money that had been strung together was all scattered again. In the end, only sixty-four wen remained in Manbao's hands. She didn't mind and happily put it in her pocket. She found that her pocket was too small and asked Qian, "Sister-in-law, can you help me make the pockets on my clothes bigger so I can fit more money in?"

Qian was skilled at sewing and smiled, "Little sister, you are so small that even if the pockets were larger, they wouldn't be much bigger." "When we have some scrap fabric at home, I'll make you a cloth bag, similar to a purse."

Manbao was happy. "Okay, I want to design it myself."

Qian smiled and accepted the ten wen that Manbao gave her. Last time, she had emptied the money from all the rooms to pay off Zhou Silang's gambling debts, so now she finally had some income.

Although Manbao still had a lot of money, the sixty-four wen was no longer of interest to the adults compared to the previous six hundred.

They also knew that it was impossible to take control of this money from her, so they all turned their attention to their own sons and daughters.

Lao Zhoutou first looked at Zhou Wulang and Zhou Liulang, then leisurely took a puff of smoke. "You two can each keep two wen, and let your mother hold onto the rest for you to use when you get married in the future."

Zhou Dalang also said to Daya and Dage, "Let your mother keep it for you, so you can buy new clothes in the future."

Zhou Erlang also looked at his two children and coaxed, "Come, let your father keep it for you, and he'll buy you some candy later."

The children held onto their copper coins tightly, wanting to cry but not daring to.

The only individuals who did not receive any money on the spot were Zhou Silang and the three children.

Manbao's gaze fell on Sige, quickly passed over him, and then he took out three wen to give to San, Si, and Sanya, saying generously, "This is for you."

The three little ones quickly accepted the money and said in a childish voice, "Congratulations on getting rich, little sister."

Manbao was overjoyed.

Zhou Silang squatted on the side, almost crying out loud. Manbao squatted next to him, sighed, and said, "Sige, you are still a bad person, so I can't give you money."

Zhou Silang asked her with red eyes, "Am I not your brother? How can I be a bad person?"

"Those who gamble are bad people," Manbao affirmed. "Only those who repent have a chance to be liked by others; otherwise, everyone will dislike you."

For the first time, Zhou Silang lowered his head and sat silently on the ground. When everyone else had received money and he hadn't, he finally realized the differential treatment he received due to his gambling addiction. His eyes couldn't help but turn red, and he said softly, "I know I was wrong."

"That's great!" "Work even harder to demonstrate your sincerity to your parents and siblings," Manbao patted his shoulder, resembling Erge, and inquired, "How is the land reclamation progressing?"

Zhou Silang sighed, "It should be ready before winter."

Manbao said, "I'll help you tomorrow."

"No, you're going to school tomorrow, aren't you?" Zhou Silang asked.

"Yes, but I can go to the fields first and then go to school with Dajie when I come back."

Manbao had not yet developed the self-discipline of a student. She felt free to come and go as she pleased, just like before.