After the Dragon Boat Festival, Ziqing went to the back mountain to pick peaches. In spring, Ziqing found that the first three peach trees had bloomed with sparse flowers, which was very exciting. Since then, every time she came to collect eggs, she would stand under the tree and take a look. Now, finally seeing the peaches showing a bit of red tip, she couldn't hold back anymore, picked 7 or 8 big ones, washed them at home and shared with everyone. Zishou and Zixi both said they were delicious, but Ziqing felt so-so, not sweet enough.

  From then on, every day when Zi Qing went to pick up eggs, she would bring back a few peaches. When she encountered delicious ones, she would leave the peach pits behind and bury them in the nursery. After seven or eight days, the peaches were all ripe. Zi Qing discussed with Shen Shi about sending some to Old Master and also sending some to He Shi's family in Bai Tang Village. Since Zeng Rui Xiang had been at home after the New Year, he had sent several messages to He Shi but she hadn't come over yet. Zi Qing missed her grandmother a little.

  Shen's family discussed it with her husband, and Zeng Rui-xiang said, "In that case, I'll personally go pick them up after school. Don't worry, I'll definitely bring the old folks over."

  After He's arrival, Shen and Zi Qing's days became much more relaxed. Zi Qing no longer managed the kitchen affairs, only taking care of the watermelon and fruit trees on the back mountain. This year's harvest was good, with many chickens and sheep raised, and plenty of fertilizer. The growth of both the watermelon and fruit trees was excellent. Since May 20th, they had already sold several batches of watermelons. Zi Qing looked at the numerous large and small watermelons on the ground, estimating this year's income, feeling delighted in her heart.

  Who would have thought that on the sixth day of June, when Shen's family was airing out their clothes and bedding, Zi Qing was drying her father's tanned sheepskins - over thirty pieces. Shen didn't let them be sold, saying they should be used to make a few sheepskin quilts, which would keep them warm in winter. The wooden floorboards in the study were covered with woolen blankets in winter, and sitting on them wasn't cold either. Just around three o'clock, Zi Qing was sitting under the corridor in the center of the courtyard when she suddenly discovered that the sky, which had been clear just a moment before, had quickly become overcast with dark clouds. Fortunately, they had noticed early enough to hurry and call out to Shen and He to put things away, but even so, some of their less valuable clothes got wet from the rain - or rather, the hail.

  At first, everyone didn't pay attention and laughed, saying that the people who suffered losses were those with quick hands and feet. The fabric and leather didn't suffer much loss. Later, when they saw fist-sized hail hitting the muddy ground and creating a hole, Zi Qing thought of the watermelons in the field. "Mom, it's bad, I'm afraid all the watermelons are done for, and the chickens on the mountain must have been smashed too."

  Shen's family was anxious. She wanted to rush out and take a look at the melon field, but Zi Qing and He Shi held her back, "Mother, it's thundering and lightning outside. You can't go out, it's too dangerous. Anyway, our family has already sold so many."

  "That's silver, thousands of taels of silver. It's all gone." Madam Shen stamped her feet and sighed heavily, bursting into tears. As soon as she started crying, Zi Xi didn't know what was happening and also began wailing loudly.

  "Daughter. If it doesn't work out this year, we can try again next year. Crops don't always have a good harvest every year. It's better for people to be safe than anything else." Zi Qing consoled, and hugged Zi Xi to comfort her.

  "You're not even as steady as a child! Listen, go back inside quietly. Zi Xi is crying, and soon Zi Yu will wake up too. They'll cry if they can't find you." He Shi also advised.

  The hailstorm lasted for a whole multiple of time, and Zeng Rui Xiang was trapped in the school and couldn't come back. He was worried about the situation at home. As soon as the rain stopped, Zi Qing rushed out, and the watermelon field was a mess, it was a pitiful sight, estimated that nothing could be harvested, fortunately, some watermelon seeds had been collected by Zi Qing, but it was unknown if they were enough. Zi Qing picked up some ripe watermelons and dug up some watermelon seeds, Shen Shi also came out and stared at the watermelon field in front of her. When Zeng Rui Xiang arrived home, Shen Shi hugged him again and cried bitterly. "Waaah, we won't have thousands of taels of silver now, it's all gone, my heart aches..."

  Zeng Ruixiang saw his wife like this, pressed down his own despair, and patiently comforted his wife. He also said that this year's grain is estimated to be only 50% collected, it's better to turn over the land and hurry up to plant sweet potatoes, which can still get a good price.

  Ziying saw the two of them like that, didn't want to disturb them, and came alone to the back mountain. Many fruit trees had their branches broken off, scattered all over the ground. The only comforting thing was that none of the main trunks were broken. Chickens also got hit before they could get into their coop, some with broken legs, some unable to move. The sheep were fine, mostly in their pens. Dozens of geese were also injured.

  Zi Qing went back and told Shen Shi, Shen Shi heard tears came out again, said the big ones were taken away to be sold, anyway they hadn't died yet, the smaller ones were made into cured chicken, fortunately it wasn't too many, there were over a hundred. The whole family was busy for several days before they could clean up the mess.

  Zifuchiluck took a holiday and returned home, but they were also delayed for a day due to the hailstorm. They were worried about the situation at home and rushed back as soon as the weather improved.

  The children at home all gathered around her, and Shen's mood quickly adjusted as well. Zi Fu advised her to think from a different perspective, after all, their household income this year was over a thousand taels of silver, who knows how many times stronger than before.

  Madam Shen also thought so and focused on taking care of the children's food and clothing. Zi Fu and Zi Lu had both grown a lot in half a year, and their clothes needed to be remade. Zeng Rui Xiang saw this and although he felt relieved, he also complained to Madam Shen: "As soon as our son says something, you listen to him, but I advise you for several days and you don't even smile once. It seems that in your heart, my importance is not even comparable to our son's." For a few days, they were at odds with each other, but then Madam Shen turned around and coaxed him again for a few days.

  At the end of the month, only 30% of the rent was collected. The estimated loss from this hailstorm is over 1,000 taels. The mother hen was frightened and stopped laying eggs. Madam Shen arranged to buy new chicks on one hand, and sold all the big chickens on the other. Fortunately, the chickens at home were raised in the mountains and tasted fresh and tender, so Zhou Zhanggui gave a good price for them and took them away in batches.

  Because Zifu is preparing to take the imperial examination next spring, he spent most of his summer vacation at home studying hard. Zirui often went fishing with him, while Ziqing stayed at home doing some needlework under Shen's guidance. Nowadays, Ziqing can also embroider handkerchiefs and pouches, but since they are not short of money at home, she didn't plan to sell them, instead keeping them to give as gifts or rewards. Only later when she made too many did she start selling them to save up some private funds, with Shen's permission.

  One day, Shen's good friend Liu Yulan came to visit. She was originally a widow in her thirties with no children, working as a cook in the town's carpentry shop to make a living. Shen sympathized with Liu's childless and pitiful situation, often chatting with her. Liu sympathized with Shen's hardships of raising several children alone without her husband by her side, often coming over to help wash and mend the children's clothes, occasionally bringing some food to satisfy their cravings. Before they separated, the relationship between the two had become increasingly close.

  Later, the Shen family moved to the village and Liu's visits became less frequent due to the distance. Now that Liu Yulan is preparing to remarry, she came to say goodbye and mentioned that her new husband works as an accountant in Anzhou City, their children have grown up, and they want to start anew. Before leaving, Liu Yulan left her address and invited Shen's family to visit them.