You mustn't lie to me, alright?

Si Yuheng maintained a calm expression. "An illusion!"

Fang Ning slanted a glance at him. "Young Master, treating me this way is something you will regret in the future."

"Do you want me to throw you out?"

"I'm leaving!"

Fang Ning stomped off in a huff.

Si Yuheng frowned slightly, returning his focus to the book by the window to write annotations.

These were all materials he had instructed Yu An to prepare.

Since Fang Ning wished to walk the path of the imperial examinations and he had given his word, he naturally intended to help her with all his might!

Upon coming outside, Fang Ning saw Old Madam Fang sitting under the eaves, sewing small cloth balls one by one.

Fang Ning squatted down beside her. "Grandma, please sew twelve of each color for me, and leave two extra as spares."

"Alright, as you wish," Old Madam Fang said with a warm smile.

Fang Ning helped gather the fabrics of matching colors, folding them neatly and placing them to the side.

"Grandma, do you know how to make little stuffed fabric dolls?"

"What kind of little stuffed dolls?"

"You know, piecing these scrap fabrics together into things like little cats and dogs."

"Can people even make those?"

"Of course they can. Should I give it a try?"

With that, Fang Ning reached for the scissors, needle, and thread.

Old Madam Fang snatched them away and shot her a glare. "Needlework is women's work. How can a young man like you handle a needle? People will laugh you to death."

"It's fine, let them talk while I do my work. I won't lose a piece of flesh. Grandma, if I manage to make one, can you reward me with an egg?"

"Even if you don't make one, you still get to eat. From now on, the eggs laid by the hens at home won't be sold; they'll be kept for you and your siblings."

Hearing this, Fang Hong came running over at full speed. "Grandma, is what you said true? Don't tease me."

"You only ever think about eating from morning till night. When have I ever shortchanged you? Every child in the house gets some." With their finances easing up slightly, Old Madam Fang had grown more generous toward the children.

Fang Yu was currently feeding the goslings and turned his head back at this. "Grandma, can I save my egg instead of eating it, so I can accumulate them myself?"

The younger siblings all had pocket money, but he had lost all of his to Fang Ning. Hearing that he could have eggs, a scheme instantly hatched in his mind to hoard the eggs and sell them himself.

"If you don't want to eat it, then don't." Could Old Madam Fang not know what was going on in his head? She rejected him flatly.

Fang Yu puffed up with anger, losing all interest in feeding the goslings.

Realizing Fang Yu was absent-minded and carelessly scattering their feed, the goslings honked angrily at him, nearly charging out of the pen to peck at Fang Hong.

Fang Ning couldn't help but chuckle.

This flock of goslings truly had quite the fiery temper!

Fang Ning's embroidery skills were subpar, resulting in crooked stitches, but before dinner, she actually managed to stitch together a little cloth cat, stuffing it with old cotton and sealing the seams.

Though not particularly pretty, it had a quaint, ugly-cute charm to it.

"Oh my, our Ning-ning really made a little cat," Old Madam Fang praised, unable to contain herself.

Fang Ning chuckled. "I really am a genius."

She had crafted a handmade fabric doll relying solely on the memory of videos she had watched in the past.

Ugly as it was, it was still her creation.

For reasons unknown to herself, Fang Ning's very first impulse was to run and show it to Si Yuheng.

Si Yuheng looked at it with a hint of disdain. "Ugly."

She had originally intended to show it off to him, but upon hearing this remark, Fang Ning shoved the little cat straight into Si Yuheng's arms without a second thought. "It's yours now. If you throw it away, our deal is off!"

With that, Fang Ning bolted.

Si Yuheng: "..."

He instinctively wanted to toss it, but as he lifted his arm, he couldn't help taking another look at it.

The stitches were truly hideous, yet the shape of a fist-sized cat had indeed been formed. Looking at it a little longer, it somehow didn't seem quite as ugly anymore.

Si Yuheng withdrew his hand and placed the little fabric cat atop the books on his desk.

He stared at it for a moment, a rather bizarre sentiment welling up in his chest: A twenty-seven-year-old man sitting there doing needlework, just to give this to him?

Why did the more he thought about it, the more spine-chilling it felt?

Si Yuheng hurriedly grabbed a book to cover up the little cat, and only then did the eerie feeling dissipate.

During dinner, Fang Ning brought up the matter to the Fang family: "I bought back so many fabric scraps because I want to make little cats and dogs, and see if we can take them to the town to sell. The scraps don't cost much, but if we turn them into small fabric dolls, there's definitely a profit to be made."

Madame Zhao was dumbfounded. "Ning-ning, did you think of all this beforehand?"

Fang Ning nodded. "Now that the bayberries are mostly picked, we need to think of other ways to make money. My mother wants to brew wine, my father is going to practice medicine, so I was wondering if Second Aunt or Third Aunt could take this on?"

Madame Chen raised her head. "Ning-ning, I can do it, but I still have to make clothes..."

"Clothes aren't urgent. Let's make these fabric scraps into small dolls first. Third Aunt, just focus on making them, and leave the selling to me."

"Alright then, I'll listen to you."

Old Master Fang looked at Fang Ning. "Ning-ning, how is your head able to conjure up so many things?"

"I've been thinking about them before. It's just that none of you liked me, so I didn't want to mention them, did I?"

"Who told you to act like a scoundrel in the past?" Old Madam Fang glared at her, and poor Fang Cinian instantly took the collateral damage. "If you, his father, had any semblance of human decency, would you have taught Ning-ning to be like this? You rascal, I want to beat you every single time I see you!"

Fang Cinian: "..."

He felt deeply aggrieved, but he dared not speak.

Li Anrong silently nudged his leg under the table, signaling him to endure it.

Fang Cinian had no choice but to bear it.

Si Yuheng threw a subtle glance at Fang Ning, finding her increasingly bizarre.

Why would a man constantly obsess over hair ornaments and embroidery work? Could it possibly be that in her world, women supported the families while men educated the children?

After the meal, Madame Chen followed Fang Ning's instructions and made a small cat. Compared to Fang Ning's ugly-cute creation, Madame Chen's work could only be described as exquisite.

"Wow, Third Aunt, your embroidery skills are incredible!" Fang Ning picked it up, inspecting it from left to right with boundless praise.

Madame Chen smiled shyly. "Is this acceptable?"

"Of course it is, Third Aunt, you are amazing."

"It's only because you taught me how."

"No, no, no, I only told you how to do it; what you made is even better than what I described. How about this? For the rest of the fabric scraps, just make whatever you like without asking me. I feel like my ideas would only limit your creativity!"

If this were back in the modern era, she would undoubtedly be a handicraft master!

Who would have thought that her timid Third Aunt was actually hiding such profound talents.

"You're leaving everything to me to handle?"

"Yes, just make whatever comes to mind and whatever you wish. A little fabric doll as pretty as this will definitely sell. If you dare, you can even make larger plush dolls."

"How large? The kind a small child can hold in their arms."

Little girls all loved stuffed dolls, and people here would certainly be no exception.

"I can't make one that big myself."

"That's fine, I'll draw a pattern for you later, and you can just follow it."

Madame Chen glanced at Old Madam Fang.

Old Madam Fang waved her hand. "Listen to Ning-ning. The work in the fields is enough for the men. Second family's wife, you stay home these days and help out as well."

Madame Zhao acknowledged, "Understood, I know what to do."

Old Madam Fang looked toward Li Anrong, who stated, "I don't know much about needlework, so I plan to spend this time brewing bayberry wine."

"Very well, let's arrange it like that," Old Madam Fang decided with a final word.

Old Master Fang lowered his head to eat his meal, his presence as the head of the household utterly negligible.