Chapter 174: I Want to Brew Wine

When Wen Yao heard about it while delivering lunch, she set the food down and ran straight up the mountain.

“Slow down, slow down!” Mrs. Luo shouted from behind, but Wen Yao did not slow her pace in the slightest.

There was nothing for it. The old woman handed the task of serving the meal over to her two daughters-in-law and followed after her. By the time she had climbed the mountain, panting for breath, she saw Wen Yao and Wen Xiu Yi crouched on either side of the water-filled pit, apparently discussing something.

“You little wretch, why are you running so fast? Are you trying to kill me?” Mrs. Luo shouted.

Wen Yao and Wen Xiu Yi were still studying the principle behind it. When they saw the old woman standing there with both hands braced on her knees, looking utterly exhausted, Wen Yao cried out, “Good heavens!”

She hurried over to support her grandmother. “Grandma, you didn’t actually chase me all the way up here, did you?”

Panting, Mrs. Luo raised her hand and smacked Wen Yao. “You little wretch! Why are you running so fast? Are you in such a hurry to be reborn?”

Wen Yao gave a mischievous grin. “Grandma, this is something even better than being reborn.”

As she spoke, she helped Mrs. Luo over to the pit.

“Grandma, look.”

Mrs. Luo stared at the pool of water, utterly dumbfounded. “This is the spring they said they dug out of the mountain? Why isn’t the water overflowing?”

That there was water on the mountain was something Mrs. Luo had never imagined. In all these years, this was the first time she had ever seen it.

Wen Yao immediately demonstrated. She scooped the water out of the pit, and before long, it slowly filled again, stopping precisely at the brim without spilling over.

“Good heavens, this is miraculous!”

Still unable to believe it, Mrs. Luo imitated Wen Yao and scooped out the water herself. It was full again in no time. Only then did she believe that the water really could replenish itself, stopping the moment it reached the top.

In all her long life, Mrs. Luo had never encountered anything like it.

The two people who had originally been crouching beside the pit now became three.

“I must say, this water tastes rather good.” Mrs. Luo took a sip.

Wen Yao was worried that the mountain water might contain parasites or something similar, and that drinking it might give her grandmother a stomachache. She quickly said, “Grandma, have you forgotten what my brother said? We mustn’t drink untreated water.”

Ever since Wen Jun had begun studying medicine under Doctor Jin, he had established a rule for the entire household: no matter who they were, no one was allowed to drink raw water. Every drop had to be boiled first.

Mrs. Luo wiped her mouth. “We’ve lived this way for decades. What’s the harm in drinking it? Still, this water really is different from the water in our well. It even has a faint sweetness.”

She looked around at the surroundings. Though the mountain was barren, greenery flourished everywhere, and small wildflowers of unknown varieties bloomed here and there.

“With this spring, watering the fields on the mountain will be much easier. We won’t have to carry water up from below anymore.”

Wen Yao’s eyes shifted thoughtfully. “Grandma, since you say this water tastes better than the water from our well, why don’t you try using it to make bean paste?”

Sometimes, food made with different water tasted different as well. That was why wine brewed in some places was delicious, while wine from other places was merely ordinary. In most cases, the difference came down to the quality of the water.

Suddenly, Wen Yao froze. A flash of inspiration struck her.

Brewing wine?

“Ahhh! Hahahahahaha…”

Could this be fate? Was Heaven giving their family an opportunity?

Unable to contain herself, Wen Yao burst into loud laughter.

Previously, when Wen Xiu Yi had suggested that she brew wine, she had thought there was little point in doing so without good water. Yet here they were, having dug up a mountain spring—and her father had discovered it only because he had taken a tumble.

Could this be another form of compensation for their family of three?

Wen Yao tipped her head back and gazed at the sky.

Thank you, Heaven. And thank you, Old Fox and Little Fox.

Her wild, unrestrained behavior frightened Mrs. Luo.

“What are you doing? Yao Yao, Yao Yao!” the old woman called several times in alarm.

With her hands planted on her hips, Wen Yao laughed heartily. “Grandma, our family is going to make a fortune!”

She dared not claim anything else, but the yeast starters available in her magical space were more than enough to help her brew the finest wine in the world. Perhaps, in time, the Wen family’s wine could even carve out a place for itself here.

The more she thought about it, the more Wen Yao felt they had to get started immediately. Not a single day could be wasted.

Mrs. Luo, however, was not concerned with making a fortune. She hurried forward and felt her granddaughter’s head, afraid that she had somehow lost her senses.

Wen Yao took her hand down and clasped it in her own, grinning from ear to ear. “Grandma, I’m fine. I’m not sick. Hehe, I just thought of another brilliant way to make money.”

Mrs. Luo found that even more headache-inducing than hearing that her granddaughter was ill.

“Enough with your brilliant schemes. Look at this, and then look over there. Look at your grandfather, your second uncle, your third uncle, and the rest of them.”

She gestured toward the people laboring all over the mountain and said helplessly, “Why don’t you solve the problem with this mountain first?”

It was not that Mrs. Luo disliked money. It was simply that whenever this granddaughter opened her mouth, the entire extended family lost all hope of ever having a moment’s rest.

Wen Xiu Yi also felt a headache coming on. The moment he saw Wen Yao’s expression, he knew exactly what she was thinking. Though he was tempted by the prospect of good wine, his old arms and legs truly could not endure another ordeal.

He quickly joined Mrs. Luo in persuading her. “Girl, we can talk about this later. Let’s finish what’s in front of us first.”

“But, Father…”

“All right, all right. Eldest, hurry down the mountain for lunch. Yao Yao, Grandma is tired. Climbing all the way up here has worn me out. Help me back down so I can rest.”

Preferably, Mrs. Luo thought, until all those ideas had rested right out of her head.

Wen Yao pouted, but she had no choice except to help her grandmother down the mountain. She remained sullen the entire way.

Mrs. Luo felt sorry for her, but when she looked at the whole family, her heart hardened again. Let her sulk for a while. She would get over it soon enough. That was still better than exhausting everyone with another scheme.

By the time they reached the foot of the mountain, Wen Yao still could not let go of the idea. Since she had failed to persuade her grandmother, she decided to try her father.

“Father…”

“Oh, my head hurts! Father, Mother, I’m going back to rest!”

The moment Wen Xiu Yi heard her voice, he began howling about his headache and hurried away, clutching his head.

Wen Yao was speechless.

Hmph. Let’s see if you refuse to drink it once the wine is brewed.

Wen Yao wore a dark expression all day long, slamming things around as she worked. Both Li and Cai could tell that their young sister-in-law was unhappy.

But Mrs. Luo had warned them that if they did not want to work themselves to death, they should leave her alone. She would be fine the next day.

Though the two women did not understand why, they decided to follow the wisdom of Mrs. Luo, the household’s resident sage.

When Old Wen Han finally came down from the mountain near nightfall, he immediately noticed that his beloved granddaughter was unhappy. The old man’s heart ached for her.

“Yao Yao, what’s wrong? Has someone bullied you? Tell Grandpa, and I’ll teach him a lesson.”

Before Mrs. Luo could stop him, Old Wen Han had already hurried over to Wen Yao.

At last, Wen Yao had found someone willing to ask what was wrong. She seized the opportunity and spoke quickly, before anyone could interrupt her.

“Grandpa, I tasted the water from the spring they dug out on the mountain, and it’s really good. I want to brew wine.”

When Old Wen Han heard that she knew how to brew wine, he was delighted.

“If you want to brew wine, then brew it! Tell Grandpa what you need, and I’ll get it for you.”

He was quite pleased. If their family could brew its own wine, would they not have an endless supply to drink in the future? Just thinking about it made him beam with happiness.

Mrs. Luo shot him a sidelong glance and smiled.

“Very well. Whoever agreed to it can do the work.”

Wen Yao giggled and pressed herself affectionately against Old Wen Han. “Of course. Grandpa is the best grandpa in the whole world.”

Old Wen Han was immensely pleased. Seeing that his granddaughter favored him rather than the old woman, he was happier still. He nodded repeatedly.

“That’s right, that’s right. Grandpa and granddaughter are the closest of all.”

Mrs. Luo did not bother arguing with him. She merely gave them a meaningful smile.

“Fine, then. You two are the closest.”