"No need to exchange," Shi Xiaolan immediately shook her head, "Our family has a lot of straw, and An Fu and I can pick some for you."
"You’re helping our family so much, there’s really no need to exchange it for firewood," An Fu also said.
"How can I just take it without giving something in return? Let’s still exchange it for firewood," An Jing still felt that she couldn’t just take other people’s straw for nothing.
"It’s really not necessary," Shi Xiaolan shook her head repeatedly, then said in an extremely forlorn tone, "Please don’t exchange it with us. It would make us feel so bad. Usually, we have no business and can barely survive. Now, you’ve given us two big deals, and we’re really grateful to you. We don’t even know how to repay you... Straw isn’t worth much, you—"
Seeing Shi Xiaolan getting more and more despondent, looking as if she was about to cry, An Jing quickly replied, "Alright, alright, I won’t exchange firewood with you, is that okay? But you don’t need to deliver it, I’ll just have my husband go back with you and pick up a load."
Only then did Shi Xiaolan smile.
An Fu also breathed a sigh of relief. He was afraid An Jing would still insist on exchanging the straw for firewood, which was worth nothing. The firewood could be sold in town for some money, but straw couldn’t be sold for money; no one would buy straw.
An Jing looked at Shi Xiaolan and An Fu, finding the situation somewhat amusing. They were truly honest and upright people. If she had actually exchanged firewood with them, they probably would’ve been restless and uneasy.
Thinking this way, An Jing turned around and packed about a pound of fermented tofu from the jar to give to Shi Xiaolan and An Fu to take back with them.
Shi Xiaolan and An Fu already knew from An Quangui that An Jing’s fermented tofu sold for ten coins a pound and adamantly refused to accept it.
In the end, it was only after An Jing threatened to get angry if they didn’t accept it that Shi Xiaolan and An Fu hurriedly took it.
Xiao Changyi went with Shi Xiaolan and An Fu to An Village to pick straw, while An Jing stayed at home to cut tofu.
But when Xiao Changyi came back, not only did he bring back a load of straw, Shi Xiaolan and An Fu each also brought back a load. Even An Quangui’s three sons, An Yijin, An Eryin, and An Santong, each helped to bring back a load of straw.
Watching everyone deliver the straw to the woodshed, An Jing was quite moved. This was the difference. Jiuping Village and An Village were so close, yet the people of the two villages were so different.
After Shi Xiaolan and the others had left, An Jing teased her husband, who was usually cold and barely spoke to anyone other than her, "Husband, why didn’t you try to stop them from bringing so much straw?"
"There was nothing to stop," Xiao Changyi said indifferently. After pausing, he added, "It makes them feel better this way."
By ’them,’ he obviously meant Shi Xiaolan and An Fu.
An Jing actually knew that this would make Shi Xiaolan and An Fu feel better, but she still playfully said, "You care about their feelings so much? Where does that leave me?"
"I don’t care about them; I was merely stating the facts just now," Xiao Changyi said very clearly. Then, he took her hand and placed it over his heart, "And you, you are here."
An Jing immediately grinned, tiptoed, and kissed him on the lips, "Husband, I love it when you speak such sweet nothings to me with your usual cool demeanor, it sounds so good~"
She had no interest in anyone else’s sweet talk, but as for her husband’s, tsk tsk, even the simplest words made her heart sweet and happy.