Chapter 106 - 106: Planting Gourds_l

Translator: 549690339

After March, the Jiang Family began preparing for Jiang Cheng’s wedding.

Jiang Cheng managed to buy two large geese at several markets, clipped their wings, and kept them in a cage.

Yingbao’s eyes sparkled and she had a continuous grin watching her elder cousin.

“Baobao, what are you planting in the yard?”

Seeing her daughter busying herself in the small vegetable plot in the yard, Chunniang, who was sifting rice, asked.

“Gourds.” Yingbao buried two gourd seeds in the soil.

She planned to grow lots of gourds, sell them for money, and also give a few large ones to Wu Daozi. When Sister Wen came back, she would give her two as well.

Speaking of which, it was already the end of March, why hasn’t Sister Wen returned yet?

Just then, the sound of Mrs. Tang came from the courtyard entrance. “Is

Chunniang home?”

Chunniang instantly stood up: “Yes, yes. Auntie Tang, please come in.”

Mrs. Tang, leading her little grandson Xiao Yao, entered and appraised the courtyard with a smile, “Oh, your yard is very spacious.”

“Not really.” Chunniang laughed and moved a stool for Mrs. Tang to sit on. “I see you’ve also started making earth bricks on the South Slope. Are you building a house?”

“Yes, indeed.” Mrs. Tang sat down with a smile and gently pushed Xiaoyao: “Go and play with sister.”

Xiaoyao ran up to Yingbao and stood there without a word, staring at her.

Yingbao ignored him and continued to dig the soil and plant seeds.

Mrs. Tang said, “Once our house is built, we can visit each other often. Then I will also grow some vegetables in the yard for convenience.”

“You’re also building a house on South Slope?” Chunniang asked with a smile.

Mrs. Tang sighed, “South Slope has more space. Our Zhuzhu will have to divide the family property with his two elder brothers sooner or later. It’s better to divide it sooner than later. I’m still alive now, and the old man can take care of them a bit. Once I kick the bucket, who will care for Zhuzhu’s family?”

“Look at you, no matter what, he is still Uncle Chen’s biological son, how can he be so heartless.”

“Ah, Chunniang, you just don’t understand…” Mrs. Tang shook her head and didn’t continue on the topic.

She turned her head to Yingbao and asked: “Yingbao, do you still have those medicinal pills? I would like to buy some.”

While her family hasn’t divided yet, she needed to buy a lot of medicine in preparation. Surely the old man would not treat them all equally. If she didn’t spend some money now, it would all eventually go to the eldest and second brother later.

“Yes, Grandma Tang, how many do you want?” Yingbao heard Tang PoPo wanted to buy the pills and immediately ran over.

Mrs. Tang took out a five-tael little silver ingot, “Just buy this much.”

She had to beg the old man hard to get this silver. She had realized that nothing was as important as her own life. As long as she lived, Zhuzhu’s family would live peacefully.

Yingbao cheerfully accepted the silver, ran back into the house, and came out again, this time holding a ceramic bowl full of pills, “Here you go, a total of thirty pills. You can only eat one a day.”

This was the Harmony-preserving Pill she had made a while ago. It was composed of hawthorn, fermented grain, pinellia, poria, tangerine peel, forsythia, radish seed, and a little bit of Wudingzhi.

This pill targeted people like Mrs. Tang, who had a high-fat blood type.

Mrs. Tang pocketed the pills in her large sleeve, called her grandson over, stood up, and bid Chunniang farewell.

Shortly after Mrs. Tang left, Sister-in-law Jiang came over and called over the three sisters to sew wedding quilts.

There was a custom regarding the sewing of wedding quilts, it could only be done by those blessed with good fortune.

A total of four quilts were sewn for the wedding, all of them had a silk surface, a cotton lining, and were stuffed with soft cotton floss.

Sister-in-law Jiang did not look happy as she sewed the quilts and chatted with the three sisters.

“The matchmaker from the Chu Family came yesterday, suggesting that we give a hundred taels of silver for a bride price. Oh, I don’t know what they are thinking.”

Although the Jiang Family made good money last year, they’ve just started to get on their feet, and they’ve just built a new house, with new furnishing throughout.

And what about those bamboo cages they built, and the other necessities they bought, don’t these cost money too?

“Didn’t you give the Chu Family thirty taels as an engagement gift last time? Plus a pair of silver bracelets, now they’re asking for a hundred taels?” They must think the Jiang family is loaded.

Jiang’s sister-in-law sighed: “Yes, if it weren’t for the fact that we’re engaged, and that Dacheng is especially fond of her, I’d be thinking about breaking off this engagement.”

Which farming family ever spends so much on a dowry? It’s as if they’re marrying into a high-class family.

A hundred taels, only the Chu Family could come up with such an idea. Even if our family pooled all our money, it would be no more than seventy taels.

Chunniang did not respond, but her dislike for the Chu Family’s daughter grew.

But that girl is already her nephew’s prospective daughter-in-law, so it’s not her place to object.

“We initially talked about the daughter of the Chu Craftsman, I don’t know why, but the matchmaker brought up the horoscope of the legitimate daughter of Chu Village, saying it matches perfectly with Dacheng’s, oh…” Jiang’s sister-in-law grew more and more frustrated as she thought about it.

She had seen the daughter of the Chu Craftsman; while not as refined as the legitimate daughter of Chu Village, she seemed like a decent girl.

It was as if they were blindfolded by lard, and agreed to consider the legitimate daughter of Chu Village.

Chunniang silently shook her head.

A case of notorious fame inviting trouble, word about the Jiang family’s cultivation of gold ear mushrooms must’ve spread far and wide. Otherwise why would the Chu family force their daughter’s horoscope upon them? It would be humiliating if the prospective groom’s family refused.

Once the quilt was mended, Chunniang went home to wash rice, cook porridge, and make some pancakes.

In the evening, Sanlang Jiang came back from the fields, with his two sons who he had picked up from school.

Xiaojie and Xiaowu have now started their formal education at the village school, going to and from school with Huzi and Yuanbao. Occasionally, Jiang Sanlang would go and pick them up.

Both children were very bright; even the Master praised their quick wit.

Chunniang brought the food to the table and served the porridge and pancakes to the children. Pancakes filled with fried chives and little dried fish were delicious.

Yingbao ate three in one go and drank half a bowl of porridge, her stomach round and full.

“Chunniang, we won’t be planting ramie this year, I’ve already bought a large number of saplings to plant on the North Mountain,” said Jiang Sanlang, biting into a pancake.

Chunniang replied: “If we’re not planting ramie, we’re not planting ramie. It’s too much work. We can just plant more cotton this year.”

“Mhm, I’ve planted ten acres of cotton. My eldest and second brothers also planted ten acres. We should finish sowing the seeds in a few days.”

Jiang Sanlang took several sips from his bowl of porridge, put it down, and said, “Once we’re done with the cotton, we can start planting the gold ear mushrooms.”

The strains of his gold ear mushrooms are still covered under the straw curtains; they anticipate considerable work ahead.

Immediately, Yingbao chimed in: “Dad, later, I will give you the premium gold ear and Xue’er strains. Others can have the regular ones.”

Jiang Sanlang’s eyes lit up. “How many premium strains do you have, Baobao?” “There are several hundred strains. We can separate six hundred strains and each of your elder and second brothers can have three hundred.”

To grow premium gold ear and Xue’er mushrooms, a special nutritional base is required. Once the nutrients in the base are exhausted, the mushrooms that grow next are just regular golden ears.

Therefore, others simply can’t grow the premium version.

“Great.” Jiang Sanlang was very pleased, not caring at all about where his daughter was storing these golden mushroom strains.

Oh, wait, her gold ear strains are kept separately in a bamboo cage in their courtyards, covered by a grass curtain. He just never went in to check..