stingy landlady

Chapter 93 Early Cucumbers (1)

Guizhi pulled Dazhu straight to the cucumber patch. "Dad! The shopkeeper was urging me to deliver cucumbers again this morning! Let's quickly see how many we can pick and give them to him first!"

I was shocked when I started picking them; I picked over 100 jin (50 kg).

Dazhu asked worriedly:

"Guizhi, did we plant too many cucumbers? Why are we harvesting so many for the first time? And there will be even more later! Can the restaurant still accept this?"

Guizhi thought for a moment and said indifferently:

"Dad! Who cares! We'll know when we send it over tomorrow! Even if we don't take it, there won't be any left. There are plenty of people who want freshly picked cucumbers right now!"

Pan Sen and Pan Qiang were very diligent; they carried all the baskets of cucumbers to the new house. This was all because Gui Zhi said:

"These cucumbers can be eaten raw, and everyone would want to eat a couple. But if we take them to a crowded place, will there be any left? Even if we have these, it won't be enough to share!"

We have to cover it up and hide it! We'll take it to sell first thing tomorrow morning! Nobody's going to know, and only the money from the sale is truly ours!

He repeatedly instructed the two brothers.

"Brother Pan! Second Brother Pan! You can't go out and brag, our cucumbers are ripe! You can't even tell the family!"

We've worked so hard to grow these cucumbers, we can't even bear to eat them ourselves! How can we give them away for free? Let's be patient and wait until the vegetables are more readily available and cheaper before we eat them as much as we want!

The two brothers placed the cucumbers in the side room of the new house and covered them up. Only then did they come out, and Guizhi began making arrangements.

"Brother Pan, tomorrow morning, we need to hitch up an oxcart to deliver firewood to the woodshed in town. It's right at the entrance of Xing'an Academy. Do you know that?"

"Don't worry if we don't know. We'll go early tomorrow morning, and our carriage might be able to overtake you! Once we find Xing'an Academy, we'll find our Herb Garden!"

"On the way back, I'll also collect the swill from the restaurant's kitchen. We need to keep a swill bucket there too, so we can bring it back to feed the pigs!"

Dazhu went to Xu the carpenter's house to order an extra-long and wide long table for the woodshed, as well as a shelf for bowls, basins, and food boxes. He specifically ordered three, plus one for oil, salt, and other condiments.

I also settled the furniture bill for the new house. All that's left is for the front door to be installed before we can move in.

After making the arrangements here, Dazhu went to the west end to find the farmhands and asked them to put down their work for the time being, as it was time to plant rice seedlings.

Zhou Mingzhi went to Huanghua Village to guide seedling cultivation and land reclamation, and hasn't returned yet. Things are a bit chaotic at home.

Dazhu started muttering to himself that night:

"We're short-handed and there's no way to manage this, we're already overwhelmed!"

Look, we have to plant rice seedlings, pick cucumbers, harvest vegetables, and sell food in town—your mother has to go too. Someone also needs to look after the house! There's still a lot of finishing work to be done on the new house over there! We need to clean it, and the flower beds haven't been planted yet!

Is there anything else you've forgotten?

Li was completely confused.

"What are you talking about! I can't handle this mess, there's just too much trouble!"

Gui Hong said, "Dad forgot that it's time to harvest the wheat in a few days!"

Dazhu slapped his forehead:

"Oh no! My brain can't keep up! I keep remembering one thing and forgetting another!"

If Mingzhi were home, I wouldn't have to worry about transplanting rice seedlings and harvesting wheat!

Guizhi thought for a moment and said:

"Dad! Have Pan Sen lead the farmhands to plant rice seedlings and harvest wheat! Grandpa Zhou, continue harvesting vegetables. Cucumbers are only picked every two or three days, so have Grandpa Zhou and Zhou Qiong pick them during the day when they're not busy."

Aunt Zhou and Jinxiu cook, feed the pigs, chickens, ducks, and geese. We don't need to watch our house; just lock the door! There's nothing to steal!

As for the younger ones, Ping An, Ji Xiang, and Ru Yi are a bit older now, so they can plant the flowers in the flower bed. Clean every room in the new house thoroughly! Xi Le, herd the cattle, and when you come back, do whatever you can! Even just running errands or delivering messages will be helpful!

Guizhi paused for a moment and then said:

"Dad, Mom will lead us to do the work in town! Your job now is to go from place to place and check what's not done well or what's been missed, and make sure everyone makes sure it's done properly!"

"Father! You're the boss! No matter who causes trouble, you can't!"

Upon hearing this, Dazhu understood:

"Now that Guizhi has said that, I don't think it's a big deal anymore! Hehe! Guizhi is so clear-headed!"

Li rolled her eyes at him, "You're all that big! You're not even as big as a child!"

Dazhu also laughed at her:

"Fine! We're evenly matched, you're not as good as me!"

Li: "Virtue!"

Early in the morning, Dazhu called Pansen to follow him to the farmhands and arranged for Pansen to be the new foreman! Pansen would be in charge of the work in the fields!

Dazhu got up and went to find the others, making arrangements one by one according to the plan. Only then did he feel a weight lifted off his shoulders! So satisfying!

Pan Qiang drove an oxcart alone to deliver firewood to the grass and trees.

The old man was a little upset because he didn't see Dazhu in the morning.

Gui Xiang and Gui Hong had already placed the cutting board and rolling pin at the door, and also put the garlic press and garlic pestle together.

Gui Hong said:

"Dumplings taste better with minced garlic! We didn't have the means before, but now that we have a house, we can just put them on the table and let whoever wants some help themselves!"

"Only when the food is delicious will people think about coming back next time!"

Guizhi found the old man, "Grandpa! Let's go over there early today! Let's make dumplings and cook among the bushes. We'll eat over there today!"

The horse was unloaded from the carriage there, and Grandpa grazed the horses nearby!

The old man nodded, said goodbye to the old lady, and then walked east with Guizhi!

Old Zhou has already harnessed the horse-drawn carriage! Ping An, Xi Le, and the other children are helping to load vegetables onto the carriage!

Guizhi said:

"Don't take the pickled vegetables today! We're full. Let's go to the new house and pack the cucumbers there!"

Old Zhou knew what was going on; his children lived nearby and often helped catch bugs in the vegetable garden. They weren't surprised at all! It was the old man who was truly taken aback:

"Guizhi! Are your cucumbers ready to be harvested and sold?"

"Grandpa! Keep your voice down! Shh!"

Guizhi was afraid the old man would call out.

"Let's get the carriage there first!"

The old man didn't find the new house particularly novel; he would often come to visit it during his leisure time.

When Ping An and Xi Le brought out the cucumber, they were indeed surprised.

"Guizhi! You planted your cucumbers so early!"

"Grandpa! We didn't know if it would even grow, but the land was just lying idle anyway. Unexpectedly, by sheer luck! It actually produced quite a few cucumbers!"

The old man remained silent. He drove the carriage, picked up Li and her son, loaded the necessary items, and set off.

The horse-drawn carriage was indeed faster than the oxcart, and it overtook Pan Qiang's oxcart when they were almost in town. The old man gave them a general directions and told them to go to the woodshed first and open the door.

The group brought down the vegetables they needed for the day. Guiling continued on her way by carriage, while Guixiang and Li went to buy meat. Zhou Niangzi and Zhou Qiong had already killed and cleaned a duck and brought it over as well.

The old man, Guihong, and Guizhi, along with Guiling, arrived at Xiangmanlou. Purchasing Manager Li greeted them with a smile.

"So early today?"