Beautiful Peasant Girl: The Young Marquis's Beloved

Early in the morning on the 30th, a team of horse-drawn carriages drove into Liujia Village. Someone recognized the first carriage as the one that had been to Liu Xu's house before.

Some smart people immediately reacted: "Could it be that Zuiyunxuan is here to collect mushrooms?"

After hearing this, some smart people hurried to find the village chief, while others followed the carriage to the Liu family's new house.

Liu Xu didn't expect that Chang Yifei would come in person, so when Uncle He reported that someone from Zuiyunxuan had arrived, she thought it was Manager Chang.

When Liu Xu saw the gentle man in the living room, she looked a little surprised.

"What's wrong? Sister Xu'er doesn't welcome me?" Chang Yifei joked when he saw her expression.

"No, I'm just a little surprised. Brother Chang, didn't you go back to the capital? Why are you in Yuyang Town again?" Liu Xu restrained her expression and sat down in a chair with a relaxed look. Huanxi brought in the tea, and Chang Yifei took a sip before saying:

"Yes, I went back to the capital. You said before that we could harvest mushrooms by the end of the month, so I came back after finishing my business. I just happened to receive a message from the shopkeeper Dao Chang on the way. It's my first time, so of course I have to come and see it myself."

Liu Xu nodded, "Then I'll have someone notify everyone to go back and pick mushrooms. You'll stay in the accounting office, right?"

"Well, I thought they were going to take over your family and Uncle Liu's family directly?" Chang Yifei raised his eyebrows.

Liu Xu shrugged. "The mushrooms in the village are all grown by my uncle and me. They are all the same. They don't have a drying room, so they sold the early mushrooms to me a few days ago. Because of the loss, the price of fresh mushrooms is three cents cheaper than yours. So I thought, I will specialize in dried mushrooms, and you can buy fresh mushrooms directly from the villagers in the future. It's not easy for farmers to make money these days. We are all from the same village and clan. It's good to take care of everyone without damaging my interests."

Chang Yifei raised his eyebrows when he heard this: "You are honest and told them the price of the mushrooms I gave you. If you change to someone else, you will have to make a profit from the difference."

"I won't be greedy for their few coins because I'm still cooperating with Brother Chang San. Besides, money can make people's hearts flutter. If the villagers cause trouble because of those few coins, it will be a loss. So, we have to take a long-term view and not lose the big picture for the sake of small gains, which will ruin the long-term business and the friendship between neighbors."

Chang Yifei was a little surprised to hear her say that. He looked at Liu Xu up and down and said, "Are you sure you are only six years old this year? You act like a business veteran."

"Hey, I'm not six years old yet. In a few days, after my seventh birthday, I will be eight years old." Liu Xu replied playfully.

Chang Yifei laughed out loud: "Okay, you are right, let's send someone to notify them. Collect 500 kilograms of fresh mushrooms today, and then increase or decrease the amount depending on the situation. For dried mushrooms, you have to prepare 100 kilograms for me in five days, and let them prepare their own baskets. I will send it back to them when we come to collect it the next day. As for how much each family should send, you can discuss it among yourselves."

"Okay! Qiao Yun, ask Uncle He to find the village chief." Qiao Yun agreed, but just as she reached the door, she saw Uncle He leading the village chief in.

"Xu girl, I heard that grandpa is here to collect mushrooms from Zuiyunxuan?" The voice came in before the person arrived.

Then Liu Xu and the others saw the village chief walking in hurriedly with a smile on his face. When he saw Chang Yifei, his face was even more excited: "This, this is..." Liu Dahai looked at Liu Xu and asked excitedly.

Liu Xu came forward and helped him to the top, and after he sat down, he said, "Grandpa, this is the young master of Zuiyunxuan, Chang Yifei, the third son of Chang. Third brother Chang, this is the village chief of our Liujia Village, and also my grandpa, Liu Dahai."

"Mr. Liu, nice to meet you!" Chang Yifei stood up and saluted.

"Nice to meet you, nice to meet you! Are you here to pick mushrooms today, Third Young Master?" Liu Dahai quickly stood up to return the greeting and asked excitedly.

"Yes, today is the first time I go to Liujia Village to collect mushrooms. I am a little worried, so I came to see it in person." Chang Yifei replied politely.

"Of course, of course! I wonder how the Third Young Master is going to collect it today?"

"Sister Xu'er has already told everyone the price. We'll buy 500 kilograms of fresh mushrooms today, and then increase or decrease the price based on the store's consumption. You can ask Sister Xu'er for the details." Chang Yifei said, motioning Liu Xu to take over.

Liu Xu raised her eyebrows and said:

"Grandpa, this is my plan. From now on, all the fresh mushrooms needed by Zuiyunxuan will be supplied by you guys, and my uncle and I will only make dried mushrooms." She had discussed this matter with Liu Changshun before. Their main business was in the military camp, so there was no need to compete with the villagers for these small amounts of money, and they could still sell them well. Liu Changshun naturally had no objection, and it could save a lot of trouble.

"It's just that the production of mushrooms varies. For the sake of fairness, the girl suggested that the grandfather distribute it equally among the households. If there are any left after they are sold out, you can bring them to me and I will still buy them at the previous price. This way, each family can save a few more coins for fresh mushrooms, and it can also ensure that the leftover mushrooms of the big guys will not be wasted. What do you think?"

After Liu Xu finished speaking, he looked at the village chief with a smile.

"Xu girl, you... Grandpa won't be so hypocritical anymore. Grandpa thanks you on behalf of the villagers and also thanks Mr. Chang San!"

The village chief's eyes were red. He knew that this girl was a good girl, just like her father, and it was worth it for him to protect them.

"Grandpa, there are 16 households in our village that grow mushrooms now. On average, each household produces about kilograms. However, you have to find someone to ask Dr. Meng if he wants to sell them. He told me before that he keeps them for himself. But if we take good care of them, we can get a lot of mushrooms." Liu Xu said seriously.

"Okay, okay, then I'll go tell everyone first, and ask Doctor Meng. You and Mr. Chang continue chatting, and I'll go get busy first." After saying this, Liu Dahai hurried out.

The matters outside were handled by the people Chang Yifei brought with him, and Uncle He was also looking after Liu Xu's house. The two of them were chatting in the living room.

"Brother Chang San, why don't you stay for lunch later? I'll prepare something new for you." Liu Xu smiled cunningly. Chang Yifei's eyebrows twitched as he looked at her. He thought this little fox would not try to take his money again.

But thinking that he didn't seem to suffer any loss and even made a lot of money, he couldn't help but feel a little excited: "What's new?"

"Hey, keep it a secret. You'll know by noon. But if you're pressed for time, we'll do it next time."

As she spoke, she leaned back in the chair with her feet dangling and swinging, making Chang Yifei want to pull her over and give her a beating.

Before he could take action, he saw Liu Changshun striding in. Behind him were Chen Lan and her two daughters.

"Haha, Mr. Chang San, I haven't seen you for a while. You look more handsome than ever." Liu Changshun bowed to Chang Yifei as he entered the room, and Chen Lan and others also followed suit.

Chang Yifei stood up to return the greeting, and after everyone sat down, he said politely:

"Uncle Liu, you are too kind. Yifei just happened to be here, and since it was my first time to collect mushrooms in the village, I came to take a look. And Uncle Fu said that your new house has been built, so I came to introduce myself to the place!"

"Hahahaha, thanks to the Third Young Master and Miss Xu, our family now has this new house." Liu Changshun said with another bow.

Liu Xu's eyes hurt as she watched from the side, but seeing how her uncle behaved, Dong Bin must have put a lot of thought into it. Afraid that they would continue to be polite, she couldn't help but say:

"Uncle San, Brother Chang San, please stop immediately. I am getting tired of being so polite."

Everyone laughed when they heard this.

Seeing Chen Lan and the others coming over, Xu Ruolan also came out holding the child. Before, she was worried that Chang Yifei was a stranger and she might not feel comfortable with him. Now that Liu Changshun and his family were here, it would be difficult for her to stay inside.

"Please forgive me, Third Young Master. The child was sleepy just now and I couldn't leave." Xu Ruolan bowed and said gently.

Chang Yifei quickly stepped aside upon seeing this. Are you kidding? This is the little fox's biological mother. If he dared to accept this gift, he would definitely be tricked by her later.

"Aunt, you are embarrassing me. Please don't call me the Third Young Master. Since I have accepted Xu'er as my sister, you are my elder. Just call me Yifei!"

After saying that, he helped Xu Ruolan to the top of the table, and he sat down next to Liu Xu.

"How, how can this be possible?" Xu Ruolan looked at her daughter in fear.

Liu Xu comforted her, "Mom, please don't be polite to him. I call him Third Brother Chang, so you are his elder, don't worry."

After saying this, she was afraid that her mother would continue to be troubled, so she quickly changed the subject.

"Uncle San, Aunt San, and Brother Chang San, why don't you all have lunch here at noon today? First, let's have some fun together. Second, I've prepared something new. Can you all try it and give us your opinions?" Liu Xu asked with a blink of an eye.

Xing'er and Shuisheng looked at each other with bright eyes, the words "braised pork" clearly written in their eyes.

Liu Changshun and his wife thought the same thing. The thing was indeed delicious. Although they had already eaten it, they still missed it very much.

So they all nodded in agreement. After that, Liu Xu asked Liu Changshun to chat with Chang Yifei, and she asked Xing'er and Shuisheng to go to the kitchen. Xu Ruolan and Chen Lan were female relatives, so they went back to their rooms to chat.

There was braised meat. She asked Granny Fang to braise a lot of it yesterday. However, this was not what Liu Xu was mainly planning today.

Yesterday, Liu Ming went to the town to get the copper pot back, and He Lei and He Feng went to the mountains to get some wild animals, so today she planned to prepare a mushroom soup and mutton hotpot for everyone.

It’s a pity that the barbecue grill is not ready yet, otherwise we could have some barbecue.

When they got to the kitchen, they asked Granny Fang to help cut some braised meat for Xing'er and Shuisheng, and also brought a plate to Xiu'e and Shitou who were waiting outside. Liu Xu started to prepare the ingredients for the soup pot.

Let Qiaoyun go to the mushroom house to pick some mushrooms first, and then boil the bone soup. Then start preparing other ingredients. Although Granny Fang and Yan Niang don't understand what their young lady wants to do, they don't ask too much, and they just cut whatever Liu Xu asked them to cut.

When Qiao Yun came back, He Lei came with her, as expected. This kid was full of energy, and since he was young, even if he was on night watch, others would let him sleep a little longer. Outsiders who didn't know would think he didn't need to sleep every day.

As soon as He Lei arrived, the task of cutting the meat was handed over to him. Liu Xu told him her requirements and left it alone. Who can blame him for his good knife skills? The slices were thin and even, and he kept talking.

"Miss, what are we going to eat today?"

"Today I'm going to make mutton hotpot with mushroom soup for everyone. Boil it in the pot and dip it in my special sauce. It's so delicious that you'll swallow your tongue." Liu Xu said while swallowing his saliva.

Seeing this, the others couldn't help swallowing.

The kitchen was bustling, and the front of Liu Xu's house was even busier. The villagers lined up in two groups, one for Zuiyunxuan and the other for Uncle He and his friends.

The village chief has already said that Zuiyunxuan will collect 16 kilograms from each household, and ask them to sell the rest to Xu Yatou to prevent it from going bad and being wasted at home.

In addition to Liu Xu and his family, the village chief grew the most mushrooms. In addition to the mushrooms for Zuiyunxuan, his family also picked more than 2 kilograms to sell to Liu Xu and his family, which was equivalent to more than taels of silver a day, which made others jealous.

Think about it, in the past, they could only save two taels of silver in a year. Some clever people have already started to calculate how much money the village chief has made since the mushrooms started growing.

"The village chief's family is a few days ahead of us, and they produce about 80 kilograms a day. They should produce 20 taels these days, right?"

"Almost the same. If you want to say that the village chief is the village chief, my family just wanted to give it a try, and didn't hold out much hope, so we only planted three clusters. The village chief's family has two rooms and eight clusters, and they also built a fire wall. How could they not produce more mushrooms than us?"

"My family is also planning to build a firewall. I heard that their daily production is 10 kilograms higher after building the firewall."

The villagers lined up and talked about it. Everyone had a happy face. This made the widow Liu and Chen Shuman, who were watching from a distance, jealous to the point of red eyes.

But no one paid attention to them. After all, these two families were at odds with Liu Xu's family. Now they all followed Liu Xu to make money, so it would be unreasonable for them not to have much contact with these two families.