A Jiu’s hands began to tremble before she could even stand up to get the croton seeds:
"Mother, you… this might kill someone."
"Money is important, hurry and get it. I heard from Lord Wang a few days ago that water is scarce now. If we want to sell water, we need some capital to rent a shop. We'll make a fortune then."
Meng Shaode hadn't recovered from the shock of her swallowing pieces of silver and gold. He scrutinized the woman.
"You… you ate them?"
Meng Shaode was clearly slow to react, his expression at that moment was as if he had seen a ghost.
"Mhm, I ate them. They're in my stomach. What else could I do? I was searched. If I couldn't even keep my own little bit of capital, how would I feed my daughter until she was plump? Luckily, I reacted quickly."
"But… you ate them, so… if I remember correctly, Mother had a five-tael gold nugget. You… you ate that too?"
As he spoke, Meng Shaode’s eyes were fixed on his wife. Even he thought that the money had been confiscated by the yamen.
"Yes, gold is the most valuable. It was the first thing I ate," Cai Lihua said decisively, her expression animated despite her unappealing complexion.
*Phew.* Meng Shaode almost fainted. Could she possibly… excrete it?
"Father, I'll go get the croton seeds." Ah Jiu also bolted out, darting to the front hall where drawers were labeled with names. She muttered, "Croton seeds, croton seeds."
After searching for a long time, she finally found them. She pulled open a drawer, grabbed a handful without a second thought, and ran back into the house. Those things were hard to excrete. Mother had eaten silver and gold these past few days, so her stomach must be uncomfortable, no wonder her complexion was poor.
Indeed, when she returned to the backyard room, Cai Lihua’s face was already pale, her hands clutching her abdomen.
"Mother, Mother, croton seeds." Ah Jiu crushed the seeds in a mortar and mixed them with water.
Unexpectedly, Cai Lihua drank it all in one gulp, then gave a pale smile, "That Wang fellow is a scoundrel, wanting to leave me with no way out. No way… Ah…"
Within three minutes of drinking it, she curled up, clutching her stomach, "Quick, daughter, the privy, where is the privy?"
"Southwest corner." Ah Jiu quickly led the way.
Meng Shaode supported her all the way into the outhouse.
"Get… get a wooden bucket, quick…" Meng Shaode was in a daze the entire time. The bucket was sent in. When it came out, he wiped the sweat from his brow.
"Ah—Ugh!"
Listening to the sounds from the outhouse, Meng Shaode said softly, "Your mother likes money because…"
Before he could finish, "Ah…" came screams of agonizing pain.
It sounded like she was expelling a millennium's worth of excrement.
*Plop.*
"Damn it, daughter, the elders always said that a golden backside could shit out gold, or something like that. Father truly believes it today." Meng Shaode said with a look of helplessness.
Ah Jiu certainly didn't find it funny. She twitched the corner of her mouth as a form of polite smile. In her heart, however, she was filled with worry. She knew her mother's obsession with money was to fatten her up. If she herself could earn money, then Mother wouldn't be so desperate for money that she'd risk her life.
"Jiu'er, it really rained." Meng Shaode was drawn to the pots, bowls, and jars scattered around the yard.
"When did it rain?"
Ah Jiu understood immediately. "Probably when Father and Mother were still in prison. It rained heavily outside."
"Sigh… we missed it. Otherwise, I could have taken a bath." Meng Shaode smacked his lips. He reached into his pocket, rubbed it a few times, and when he pulled his hand out, he held a gray pellet, sniffed it, and grimaced in disgust.
"Father, you should be content. The rainwater we collected is barely enough for us to drink for ten days. Where is there water for bathing?" This estimate was even with the spiritual spring water. Ah Jiu wanted to save as much of the spiritual spring water as possible for her grandmother. Before coming here, she had clearly noticed how weak her grandmother was.
"Since it has rained once, perhaps the heavens will continue to rain every few days."
As Meng Shaode spoke, Ah Jiu’s lips twitched a few times.