Episode Summary
Ning Susu successfully helps her sister's family secure more land from Fei Zuoshi. As spring arrives, the village celebrates, but new rental agreements cause Tietou's family to lose their land, which Feng Er acquires. To manage the increased workload on their farm, Ning Xiuxiu cleverly tricks her frugal father-in-law, Feng Er, into buying a much-needed ox.
Spoiler Alert
The episode opens with a festive air as Ning Susu pays a New Year's visit to her sister, Ning Xiuxiu. The sisters, along with Xiuxiu's family, enjoy a trip to a temple fair on Niangniang Mountain. During an overnight stay at Xiuxiu's home, the crucial topic of renting land is brought up, and Susu readily agrees to help. This news, however, makes Feng Er anxious, and he unsuccessfully tries to get Big Foot Feng to find out if the deal has been finalized.
The situation becomes complicated when Fei Zuoshi arrives to forcibly take Susu home, leaving Xiuxiu feeling dejected. However, Susu proves to be resourceful. She shares a drink with Fei Zuoshi and cleverly steers the conversation toward Feng Er's request to rent land. Upon hearing that Xiuxiu is now fully committed to her life with Big Foot Feng, Fei Zuoshi has a change of heart and agrees to the lease.
Meanwhile, Xiuxiu continues to integrate into her new family. She impresses her mother-in-law by skillfully learning to weave straw sandals and make traditional straw raincoats. This provides a perfect opportunity for her to ask about Big Foot Feng's past, and the two women bond as her mother-in-law shares stories from his childhood. In a separate storyline, Ning Xuexiang secures a land deal with Feng Si, buying his four acres by settling Feng Si's existing debt and paying the remainder in cash, promising to return the land when Feng Si is old.
As the Start of Spring arrives, the village prepares for the "Spring Breath Trial" ceremony. In a lighthearted moment, Xiuxiu's mother-in-law gives her a radish, a traditional gesture to wish for the early birth of a grandson, much to Xiuxiu's embarrassment. Later, Feng Er leads the villagers in the solemn ceremony. They kneel and pray, and a feather placed inside a bamboo tube slowly floats out, signaling that spring has arrived and the time for planting has begun. The village erupts in celebration, and Xiuxiu is moved by their collective joy.
The joy is short-lived for some. Fei Zuoshi instructs Bearded Liu to gather all the tenant farmers to sign new rental contracts, intending to reduce the land allotment for anyone who was late with their rent. Despite Tie Tou's mother's pleas that their debt was due to her husband's illness, Fei Zuoshi remains firm and reassigns their family's thirteen acres of land to Feng Er. Showing her kindness, Xiuxiu prepares clothes and travel money for the now-landless Tie Tou, encouraging him to join Guo Guiyao's salt trading business.
With his original eighteen acres plus the newly acquired thirteen, Feng Er's family now has a massive amount of land to cultivate. Xiuxiu worries about the workload and suggests buying a draft ox. The frugal Feng Er is reluctant to spend the money. Taking matters into her own hands, Xiuxiu visits the livestock market and spots a one-horned cow. She pays a one-silver-dollar deposit on the four-dollar animal and has the seller deliver it to Feng Er, telling him her brother-in-law will pay the remaining three.
Though initially refusing the delivery, Feng Er is forced to haggle with the seller since a deposit has already been paid. He ultimately buys the cow for three silver dollars. While he is secretly pleased with the excellent animal, Feng Er is furious at being tricked by Xiuxiu and demands that Big Foot Feng teach her a lesson, setting the stage for a new family conflict.
