Pastoral Splendor

The road surface had a silvery sheen, and it made a soft, rustling sound when you stepped on it.

Aunt Xiao chased after them out of the courtyard: "Erhua and Sanhua, remember to bring your straw hats!"

Snowflakes began to fall softly from the sky, pattering against the eaves with a soft thud. The sisters, all wearing straw hats, went outside. Erhua rubbed her hands together and said, "It's so cold."

Sihua smiled sweetly: "It's better when the weather is colder, then our vegetables can fetch a better price."

By December, the weather was cold, and a recent snowfall had cut off the supply of fresh vegetables in the main vegetable market of Yuzhou City. Only Baixiangyuan Vegetable Market continued to supply vegetables throughout the city, just like usual. Many families began buying vegetables to stock up, waiting for the end of the year when Baixiangyuan would close and they would have nowhere to buy them. Every day, there was a constant stream of people buying vegetables, and Xiao Laifu had to make the rounds three times a day. Yan Ying said she would give him an extra tael of silver this month, which made him so happy that he couldn't stop smiling, and he became even more eager to drive the cart.

Yan Ying developed over twenty varieties of winter vegetables, including radishes, carrots, radish greens, baby bok choy, cauliflower, Chinese cabbage, garland chrysanthemum, eggplant, rapeseed, romaine lettuce, celery, spinach, and more. There were also fungi such as wood ear mushrooms, button mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, and silver enoki mushrooms, all neatly arranged, making Bai Xiang Yuan a vibrant, lush green oasis. Walking up to the display cases, you could almost smell the fresh, juicy aroma; the vegetables in the baskets seemed to be winking and pleading, "Choose me! Choose me!"

Business was so busy that the sisters had to get up earlier than usual every day so they could harvest more vegetables and have Xiao Laifu deliver more at once. Sometimes, wealthy families would send cars to Xiaojia Village to pick vegetables themselves, sometimes loading up a whole cartload, which made Erhua and the others so happy they were practically jumping for joy.

Walking into the vegetable garden, a layer of silvery-white snow covered the plants, revealing only some vegetable leaves. However, it was still early, and the green that should have been emerald was now a dark, indistinct patch.

Bending down, her hand touched the icy vegetable leaves, and Rikka couldn't help but exclaim, "Ouch! Those leaves are even colder today!"

"It's not that the vegetable leaves are cold, it's that it snowed last night!" Si Hua exhaled a breath, with a faint white mist in her mouth: "Don't think about being cold, just think about picking up silver on the ground and you won't be cold."

Liu Hua beamed, "Fourth Sister is right. Look, Second Sister and Third Sister have already collected a lot of silver over there."

Wu Hua was bending over cutting vegetables in front, listening to Liu Hua's chattering, she turned around and smiled: "Sixth Sister, hurry up! Brother Lai Fu should be here soon."

The sisters got up at dawn and cut vegetables for about half an hour. Then they heard a rumbling sound outside the vegetable garden, and Xiao Laifu's voice was very loud: "Sanhua, have you finished cutting vegetables?"

Yan Ying wiped the sweat from her forehead and said, "Brother Laifu, it's all done. Come over and help carry it over."

In the past, the vegetables picked were washed before being transported to Baixiangyuan, but now that winter is here and the weather is cold, Yan Ying has stopped doing so since November. The customers who come to buy vegetables are very understanding: "Miss Xiao, there's no need to explain. It's cold when you wash vegetables in the morning, and it's not summer. Let's not say too much."

Yan Ying nodded and smiled, "It's all thanks to everyone's kindness. You're all so wonderful."

The baskets were piled high with vegetables, with large cabbages stacked like plates, layer upon layer. Cabbage and Chinese cabbage are the best-selling vegetables in winter because they are large and can be stored for a long time. Now, these two kinds alone sell about ten baskets a day.

The sisters worked together to lift the baskets one by one onto the mule cart. Xiao Laifu helped them stack the baskets, and several layers of baskets were piled on top of the cart. He smiled and pointed to the mule: "Sanhua, I'm thinking of buying another mule to make the cart bigger, so we can transport more at once."

Yan Ying smiled slightly: "Why buy a mule? Wouldn't it be better to buy a horse?"

Xiao Laifu almost slipped: "Sanhua, I don't have that much money, and I can't afford to raise her."

“Brother Laifu, don’t rush to buy a mule. Let’s wait a few months. Once my Baixiang Garden is bigger, I’ll buy a delivery cart. We don’t need to pick a fancy horse; an ordinary one that can carry goods will do.” Seeing Xiao Laifu’s skeptical look, Yan Ying patted the mule cart: “Don’t worry, I’ll pay for it. You just need to drive the cart for me!”

Xiao Laifu was overjoyed to hear this. If that were the case, he wouldn't have to spend his own money to buy the carriage; he could sell the mule and even get a few taels of silver back. As he drove the carriage forward, he glanced back at Yan Ying. This third daughter of the Xiao family was quite clever; she was already thinking about saving up money to buy the carriage.

"Let's hurry back, Mother should have already prepared the meal. After eating, she'll rush off to do her chores." Sanhua led her sisters towards their home. The fire in the stove was burning brightly. Aunt Xiao had already prepared steamed buns and was steaming them in the pot. Meanwhile, she was busy washing mushrooms, preparing to make soup once the steamed buns were ready.

Yan Ying went over and washed her hands, then followed Aunt Xiao to wash the mushrooms. Liu Hua went to the stove to start a fire, while Er Hua, Si Hua, and Wu Hua took brooms and went out to sweep the yard. The family did everything in an orderly manner without needing anyone to tell them what to do.

After breakfast, Sihua had just finished collecting the dishes and was about to wash them when she heard a voice outside calling, "Sister-in-law Xiao, someone is looking for you!"

Aunt Xiao went out to greet him and was somewhat surprised: "Eighth Brother, what brings you here?"

Liu Laoba chuckled sheepishly: "Sixth Sister, why didn't you tell me you were building a new house? I could have at least come and help you with the work for a couple of days."

Aunt Xiao pulled him into the house, saying, "How could I possibly delay your work? You still have a whole family to support!"

The Liu family split up three years after Liu Shanfu passed away. Liu Gaoshi lived with Liu Ada, while the other three sons built a row of houses next to the old house. However, they did not build their own courtyard walls, so they still looked like they lived together. There were four stoves and four cabinets in a large kitchen, and they each lived their own little lives.

Of the four sons, only Liu Ada was doing relatively well. His family's cupboard had two locks on top, but sometimes you could still hear Liu Ada's wife's shrill voice: "I don't know which greedy rats came to our cupboard to steal oil!"

The other three brothers felt uncomfortable listening to this, but there was nothing they could do. Liu Ada worked as a errand boy for others, earning more money and eating better, so of course he always looked down on them. Therefore, the three brothers also worked themselves to the bone looking for work, just hoping that their wives and children at home wouldn't go hungry. If they could unexpectedly earn some extra money, it would be good that Liu Ada wouldn't be so arrogant.

Liu Laoba learned carpentry and used to travel from village to village doing odd jobs. In the last two years, he's become too lazy to go out and just stays home to take on jobs, while his mother can take care of the farm work. In the countryside, people are reluctant to spend money; they wait until things are completely rotten before replacing them with new ones. Therefore, his family is considered the worst off among the four brothers.

Compared to his three older brothers, Liu Laoba was mild-mannered and treated Aunt Xiao well. In the past, every year when Aunt Xiao returned with her children, he was the only one who would give his niece a copper coin. Today, Liu Gaoshi rushed over to deliver a message, and he felt very uncomfortable, not knowing how to bring it up with Aunt Xiao.

The house in front of him was truly magnificent. Liu Laoba walked in and was surprised to see all the old camphor wood furniture: "Sixth Sister, you've got old camphor wood tables and chairs in your house!"

Aunt Xiao was a little embarrassed. She had originally wanted Lao Ba to make a set, but Yan Ying felt that with so much furniture to make, it would probably take several months to finish. She was anxious to move and insisted on buying it herself. Since the money was in her hands, Aunt Xiao had no choice but to nod and say, "I can only keep it from your eighth uncle."

Although Yan Ying made the decision, Aunt Xiao herself wanted to move as soon as possible, so she kept the house-building a complete secret and didn't tell her family a word. Now, when she saw Liu Laoba talking about the house, she was full of shame.

When Yan Ying saw Aunt Xiao's appearance, she quickly came up and called out "Uncle". The uncle who came this time seemed to be an honest man, with thick lips and a simple look in his eyes. He probably wouldn't make things difficult for her family.

"Old Eight, this is Sanhua." Aunt Xiao pointed at Yanying: "Do you still recognize her?"

Liu Laoba glanced at her and nodded repeatedly: "Sanhua has grown so tall? It's like she's grown into a young lady in the blink of an eye."

Erhua brought over the tea and said with a smile, "Eighth Uncle, please have a seat."

Erhua had met Liu Laoba a few times and liked him very much, so she took the initiative to pour tea for him. Liu Ada took the teacup and saw that it was made of fine porcelain with beautiful floral patterns on it. The tea was clear and bright, with a few thin tea leaves bobbing up and down. It was obviously expensive, so she looked up and murmured, "Sixth Sister, your family is living the life of a wealthy family now!"

Aunt Xiao pulled him down to sit: "What rich family? It's just a little better than before."

"It's not just a little better, it's much better!" Liu Laoba chuckled, took a sip of tea, and felt a sweet sensation in his throat. "Sixth Sister, Mother said that tomorrow is Father's birthday, and she wants you to go home."

"Yin Sheng" is a celebration for deceased relatives. Generally, the direct descendants are expected to return. Aunt Xiao said, "Okay, I'll go back tomorrow."

“They… want you to take your nieces back with you.” Liu Laoba’s face suddenly turned red, and he stammered, “I…I…I think you’d better not take them back.”

Seeing Liu Laoba's embarrassed appearance, Yan Ying suddenly had a feeling that there was a conspiracy. She looked at Liu Laoba warily and asked, "Uncle Ba, what do you mean by this?"

"Sigh..." Liu Laoba kept his head down, not daring to raise it: "Sanhua, they, they... it seems they're plotting against you..." He couldn't continue, sweat pouring down his forehead: "They're even thinking of sending my second daughter to be a concubine!"

Erhua was so angry that her eyebrows shot up: "I knew Grandma and Uncle wouldn't give up!"

Liu Laoba was so startled that he almost dropped his teacup. Yan Ying smiled and said, "Second Sister, it's alright. Let's go over and see what tricks Grandma and Uncle are planning to play tomorrow."

Chapter 199 Returning Home

The misty morning fog was a thin layer of white, like looking through a veil, obscuring everything in the distance. But as you got closer, you could see your own five fingers if you stretched out your hand. A dark shadow slowly moved out of the fog, as if drawing back a curtain, with two soft, flowing ribbons trailing behind the carriage as it meandered away.

"Sanhua, how big is our Baixiang Garden?" Aunt Xiao asked, sitting on the mule cart with a basket full of vegetables in her hand, her eyes filled with longing. "Is it as big as our house with one courtyard?"

Yan Ying smiled and nodded: "Pretty much. This Bai Xiang Yuan shop is considered quite large on East Street."

Baixiangyuan originally only had three or four storefronts. Later, the shop next door terminated its lease, so Yanying quickly found the landlord, bought that storefront, and opened up the middle. Barbecue, spicy hot pot, cold dishes, zongzi, and other items were moved there, making it much tidier and less cluttered.

Aunt Xiao had never seen Baixiang Garden before. Today, she was going back to her parents' home, which would take her south from Yuzhou City, so Yan Ying decided to bring her here to see it. Aunt Xiao rarely went to the city and was very excited. Everything she saw seemed new and interesting. Sitting in the mule cart, she imagined what Baixiang Garden would look like. She could almost see a bright, large house with snow-white walls, a few vermilion eaves, and baskets of vegetables neatly arranged against the walls.

When she arrived at Baixiang Garden, she found that it was somewhat different from what she had imagined, but she was still very happy. Several shop assistants bowed respectfully and called her "Madam," which made her feel a little flustered. Yan Ying watched from the side and just smiled: "Mother, look how majestic you are now, the Madam of the Capital."