Miao Jie'er didn't take it immediately. Instead, she stood in front of Xu Zhi, performed a proper curtsy, and thanked her before accepting the zongzi.

Xu Zhi nodded secretly upon seeing this, and said to Ping Shi, who was pouring tea for her, "Sister-in-law Feng, look, your Miao Jie is so well-mannered at such a young age, it's truly remarkable."

Ping sat down and said with a smile, "Not at all, we all came from the village. We only learned these things after we left. We don't know anything about etiquette. Here, this is tea that I picked from the wild tea trees in my hometown and processed myself. Please, Madam Zheng, try it and see how it tastes."

Xu Zhi looked at the clear blue tea soup in the white porcelain bowl. As soon as she picked it up, she smelled a refreshing aroma. She took a small sip and found it slightly bitter at first, but then sweet. After tasting it carefully, she felt a lingering fragrance on her lips and teeth, and couldn't help but take another sip.

Xu Zhi put down her teacup, gave Ping a thumbs-up, and said, "Sister-in-law Feng, your tea tastes really good."

With a smile on her face, Madam Ping said, "Madam Zheng, you're enjoying it. I'll pack some for you to take home and enjoy slowly later."

Xu Zhi couldn't help but feel close to Ping Shi, and said with a smile, "Sister-in-law Feng, we'll be neighbors in the future, so you don't need to call me Madam. I'm the ninth child in my family, so you can just call me Xiao Jiu."

Ping waved her hands repeatedly and said, "How can that be? I'll call you sister instead."

Xu Zhi smiled and called out "Sister-in-law Feng" before slowly beginning to inquire about things in Miaozhou City.

Xu Zhi stayed at the Feng family's house until noon. The third daughter of the Feng family, Sui Jie'er, who had been sleeping in the backyard, woke up and was carried to the front yard by a maid. When she saw Ping Shi, Sui Jie'er stretched out her arms and wanted her mother to hold her. Ping Shi held Sui Jie'er and said to Xu Zhi, "Sister, our Miaozhou is actually a good place. The land is fertile and the crops grow well. It's just that in years with a lot of rain, the Miao River is prone to flooding. As long as the Miao River doesn't flood, we can accumulate a lot of harvest that year."

It's wheat harvest time now, but it's not the rainy season yet. After the wheat is harvested, we'll plant corn, sweet potatoes, soybeans, sorghum, and other crops.

Looking at the bright sunlight outside the shade of the sycamore tree, Xu Zhi nodded and said, "'Wheat ripens in April and in May.' This year, the Grain in Ear solar term falls in April, so the wheat in the fields ripens early. The sun is shining brightly these days, so we can harvest it and let it dry in the sun for a few days before storing it in the granary."

Sui Jie'er, nestled in Ping Shi's arms, was very curious about the basket on the stone table. She stretched out her arm to reach for it, and Ping Shi quickly moved her closer to the stone table. Once Sui Jie'er could see what was inside the basket, Miao Jie'er, who had already unwrapped a layer of bamboo leaves with Bai Ying's help and was about to eat a zongzi, quickly brought the zongzi in her hand to Sui Jie'er's face and let Sui Jie'er take a bite first. Only then did Sui Jie'er stop fussing.

Ping gently stroked Sui'er's back and said with a smile, "I heard from my husband that Ninth Sister and Lord Zheng are both from prominent families in the capital. It's rare that Ninth Sister even knows about the farming seasons."

Xu Zhi smiled. She had lived with her parents in Hexi since she was a child and had often worked in the fields with them. She knew quite a lot about farming and proverbs.

Xu Zhi liked the lively and talkative Miao Jie'er very much. She pulled Miao Jie'er to sit next to her and said to Ping Shi with a smile, "Sister-in-law Feng, since this is the first time you've met us three beautiful girls, you should give us a gift. We came in a hurry and didn't prepare anything. I'll invite you over for lunch tomorrow. I brought some dried goods from the seaside with me. Let's soak them and cook them."

After a few polite words, Ping agreed. Having grown up in the village, she was used to the friendly exchanges of food among neighbors. She wasn't quite used to the city's custom of sending invitations for meals. Smiling, she said to Xu Zhi, "I'll make you some qingtuan (green glutinous rice dumplings) tomorrow. Although the mugwort is old now, I picked some tender ones during Qingming Festival, dried them, and made mugwort powder. It tastes great when used in cooking."

Qingtuan is a popular snack in southern China, and Xu Zhi had naturally tried it before. Just thinking about the sweet aroma of mugwort and glutinous rice made her feel a little hungry, so she quickly nodded in agreement.

Seeing that it was getting late, Xu Zhi bid farewell and went home. Ping Shi and her three daughters saw her off at the gate. Miao Jie'er said goodbye to Xu Zhi with reluctance, which amused everyone.

After seeing Xu Zhi off, Madam Ping led her back to the front yard. He Jie'er said reproachfully to Miao Jie'er, "Miao Jie'er, you were a little rude on our first meeting."

Ping didn't say anything, but while tidying up the teacups on the stone table, she watched with a smile as He Jie'er educated her younger sister.

Miao Jie shook her head, the ribbons tied to her twin buns swaying with her movements. She wouldn't accept her sister's criticism, pouting as she said, "Big sister, I wasn't rude. Madam Zheng is so beautiful, I like her so much, how could I be rude to her? Dear sister, shall we eat some zongzi first? The one I just ate was with cured meat, it tasted really good. Aunt Baiying said there are also red bean paste and mung bean paste ones. The bean paste was made with frosting sugar that Aunt Baiying and the others brought from the capital, it's very delicious."

Ping knew that her second daughter was trying to change the subject and didn't want her older sister to continue lecturing her. After washing the teacups, she pulled her two daughters aside and said earnestly, "He'er, Miao'er, you both did very well today. Our He'er is very polite and knows how to behave properly when meeting guests. I think He'er did a great job."

Miao girl quickly grabbed her mother's hand and said, "Mother, Mother, what about me? What about me?"

This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!