Zhou Chunlan had asked someone to give a message to the matchmaker today, so after returning from the town, she did not go to the vegetable garden to work, but just waited at home for the matchmaker to come.

Winter vegetables are hard to sell, so she usually doesn't go to town to sell them. This winter, Zhou Chunlan plans to dry more vegetables and pickle them, hoping to sell them in town. Last year, she saw vendors selling pickled vegetables in town, and locals would buy some to try. Even if they couldn't sell any, they could just eat them at home, as they would keep for a long time.

At three quarters past noon, the matchmaker's voice finally reached the door. Zhou Chunlan left the door open, and the matchmaker walked right in, smiling and saying, "Aunt Lin is busy. Am I here at the right time?"

Zhou Chunlan was washing the mustard greens for making sauerkraut. She used large-leaf mustard greens, washed the dirt off the roots, removed the outer leaves that were not good, and then put them in a basin and washed them clean.

"I'm waiting for you, come and sit down." Zhou Chunlan said with a smile. She went to the kitchen and poured two bowls of water, one of which was still filled with sugar.

"Brother Yan is not at home again?" The matchmaker looked around.

"He's busy in the vegetable garden. I'm going to pickle some sauerkraut and beans, so I asked him to help me pick them."

The matchmaker smiled brightly: "Brother Yan is really hardworking and filial." Then she lowered her voice, "Does he agree to that?" This was something that had not yet happened, so it was not good to speak loudly to the villagers.

Zhou Chunlan said, "He has no objection and listens to me." She didn't dare tell the matchmaker that Lin Yan had gone to peek at other people.

Hua Matchmaker was secretly delighted. This was another success. The matchmaker's fee was small, but wouldn't her reputation be even greater? "The Zhao family's betrothal gift is six taels of silver. Do you agree?"

"That's the market situation. I don't have any disagreement with it. I just hope that after Yan'er gets married, they can live happily together, have a baby soon, and get along well with her husband's family. That will satisfy me."

The matchmaker comforted her, "Don't worry, Aunt Lin. Yun is pretty and has a good temper. She will definitely not let Yan'er suffer any grievances. You also know Aunt Zhao. She is a kind person and she is not the kind of person who would treat her daughter-in-law harshly. After marriage, the couple will definitely live in harmony." Zhou Chunlan smiled and nodded, her heart full of anticipation.

Hua the matchmaker said carefully, "After Yan'er gets married, you will have to take care of the vegetable garden by yourself. Can you handle it?" She was a matchmaker, so she subconsciously worried about Lin's life alone.

Zhou Chunlan's smile faded. She knew what the matchmaker meant, but she had grown accustomed to living with Yan Ge'er for so many years and hadn't considered starting a family again. Besides, her child was grown up, so it was unrealistic to think about it. "Don't worry, I can handle it. I'm used to this kind of life."

The matchmaker understood her meaning but didn't continue. "Okay, I'll go to the Zhao family and ask for a date to propose marriage. I'll let you know when the date is set."

"Hey, okay, thank you for your help."

"No trouble, no trouble," the matchmaker waved her hand and left.

*

Zhao family

Zhao Shiyun soaked the beans to be ground tomorrow in a large basin, then washed his hands and prepared to eat.

Li Yuemei had already prepared the meal and brought it to the main room. Today she had fried some bacon with garlic sprouts and a simple scrambled egg, which she served with brown rice. Compared to other families' meals, this was already excellent.

"Boss, Shiyun, Brother Yu, it's time to eat!"

After a busy day, Zhao Shiyun was already hungry. He ate a few mouthfuls of rice when he heard Ah-mo say, "A few days ago, I asked a matchmaker to look for someone. She mentioned Yan'er from the Lin family. He's a good kid. The matchmaker has already gone to sound him out."

Zhao Shiyun paused for a moment, and for some reason thought of the boy he had met on the mountain that day. He wondered if he had agreed to the marriage. Then he shook his head. Whether he agreed or not was none of his business. "It's all up to my mother."

"Don't you have any girl or boy you like?"

Before Zhao Shiyun could answer, his father, Zhao Qiming, said, "He's at the tofu shop every day and rarely goes out. How could he find someone he likes?"

Li Yuemei chuckled, "That's true, she's like a girl, never leaving the front door or the back door."

Zhao Shiyun's younger brother, Zhao Shiyu, also lowered his head and tried to suppress his laughter.

Zhao Shiyun blushed immediately, "Oh, I don't have that!"

"Okay, okay, I won't bother you. If you really don't have any objections, wait for Hua Matchmaker to reply, and then Ah Mo will make the decision for you."

Zhao Shiyun nodded.

*

Li Yuemei was going to town today to buy items for the marriage proposal. The day before yesterday, the matchmaker had told her to prepare everything and choose a date to come and propose. Li Yuemei was very happy. She discussed with Zhao's father and planned to buy two pieces of cloth, one red for the wedding dress and one of another color. She would also buy a few pounds of pork, a pot of wine, a cake of tea, and two boxes of snacks. She would also ask her son to go to the mountains to see if he could shoot a wild goose. If there were no wild geese, they would have to make do with buying a large goose.

There are donkey carts at the entrance of the village that go to town, and they cost one penny per person. However, Luoyang Village is not far from town, so most people choose to walk. Only when they have bought a lot of things on their way back will they choose to take a car.

Zhao Shiyun finished making tofu for the day and packed up to head up the mountain. With Yu Ge'er and his father at home, they could handle it. He couldn't shoot, so the family only had a simple slingshot. He'd just pack his backpack and pick up a few small stones on the way up the mountain, and he was ready.

Perhaps it was God's blessing that Zhao Shiyun was quite lucky today. Not long after he went up the mountain, he encountered a pheasant. He held his breath and approached quietly, touched a stone, put it in the rubber band of the slingshot and pulled it back.

“Swoosh~”

"Clack~"

The pheasant screamed and ran away...

Zhao Shiyun sighed and continued walking inside.

The mountains were mostly populated by small animals like pheasants and rabbits, with the occasional wild boar. However, Zhao Shiyun knew that further down the mountain, near a lake in a valley, there was a greater chance of encountering wild geese. He walked cautiously, fearing to disturb the surrounding animals.

After walking for about half an hour, Zhao Shiyun heard a fluttering sound. He was delighted and looked up to see a flock of geese flying overhead. He quickly found a secluded spot, took out his slingshot, and fired a stone. Unfortunately, he only hit one goose on the wing, and it fell to the ground crookedly. Zhao Shiyun hurried over. The goose was flapping its wings on the ground, trying to fly. He quickly grabbed the goose's feet and tied it up with a rope.

After collecting the wild geese, he didn't stay long and walked down the mountain. On the way, he came across a chestnut forest, and the ground was covered with chestnuts under the chestnut trees. The chestnut shells are covered with sharp thorns, which can easily prick your hands. Some chestnuts will crack after falling, and you can directly see the chestnuts inside. These are easier to pick up. Zhao Shiyun didn't bring any tools, so he picked up the chestnuts with cracked shells first. When he had picked up most of them, he picked up a branch from the ground and carefully pried open the chestnuts with intact shells and took out the chestnuts. At this moment, there was a rustling sound in the bushes. Zhao Shiyun became alert and tightened his grip on the slingshot. He saw a little deer sticking its head out and looking at him curiously. He breathed a sigh of relief, it turned out to be a false alarm. He was not a hunter, so he didn't plan to shoot the deer.

Seeing that the harvest in the backpack was almost enough, Zhao Shiyun set off on his journey home.