After returning to the storeroom and finding the snake repellent,
Xiao Wei hesitated the whole way before finally mustering up the courage to speak: "The snake repellent is ineffective on rainy days."
"Moreover, it can only drive away snakes in our backyard. If there are snakes upstream or downstream, they will still come over."
Before Bailu came to tend to the vegetable garden, Xiao Wei had encountered snakes several times in the weeds by the river.
Although I manage to scare them away each time and apply snake repellent, the snakes always come back after the rain washes away the powder.
Xiao Cheng glanced at the little guy standing by the river. He didn't want to talk to him, but seeing the worry on his face, he remembered what Bai Lu had said earlier.
After a moment of silence, he spoke in a calm tone: "Wrap the roses with bamboo, then sprinkle them with medicinal powder."
Xiao Wei looked down at the few remaining bamboo stalks, actually only eight left, and frowned slightly.
"But there aren't enough bamboo plants." There are so many flower bushes.
Xiao Cheng raised his eyes slightly and glanced at the chestnut tree by the vegetable garden, at the large branches on the tree.
“Bai Lu said that pruning the branches at this time would damage the chestnut tree,” Xiao Wei decisively quoted Bai Lu.
This dissuaded Xiao Cheng from cutting down tree branches to surround the flower bushes.
Xiao Cheng clicked his tongue impatiently and gave him a cold look. "Go to the woodshed and bring some firewood over."
Xiao Wei turned and ran, but after a few steps, he suddenly remembered something, stopped and turned back.
“It’s long,” Xiao Cheng said.
The little figure ran away like the wind.
There wasn't much long firewood in the woodshed; if there had been, Bailu wouldn't have needed to borrow it from Wang Cuihua.
But even after picking and choosing, you can still find about ten, but even ten isn't enough!
How should I surround the flower bushes, brother?
Xiao Wei, carrying a long piece of firewood, rushed out of the woodshed and almost bumped into Bai Lu, who was collecting clothes.
What are you going to do with the firewood?
Bai Lu held a clothes pole in one hand and the clothes of the three people in the other, her face full of confusion.
Xiao Wei pulled back the long piece of firewood that had almost poked her, and said seriously, "I don't know."
"It's what my elder brother wants."
After saying that, he grabbed the firewood and ran towards the backyard.
It's all very mysterious.
Bai Lu was a little curious and wanted to go take a look, when suddenly there was a rhythmic knocking sound at the door.
I had no choice but to put the clothes back in the main house and go open the door.
As soon as Wen Xiuyun saw Bai Lu outside the door, she immediately greeted her with a smile and handed her the black plastic bag in her hand.
"Bai Lu, this is a preserved duck and duck leg that we brought back from our ancestral home in the countryside yesterday. It tastes especially good. The ducks are all raised in our own fields. The duck meat is very chewy. Take it back and try it."
Before Bailu could refuse, the plastic bag was already slung over her hand, the opening untied, revealing its contents.
Three large preserved ducks, six preserved duck legs.
In this small town, eating a piece of meat is a luxury, and they even gave us three whole, unopened ducks and duck legs as a gift.
"You can't accept a gift without doing something right," Bai Lu said. "Auntie Wu is too kind. Two duck legs chopped into pieces make a whole plateful. Ah Cheng, Xiao Wei, and I can't eat much. Two duck legs are enough for us to try."
"You need to set up a fruit stall and your children need to go to school, so the ducks must be being looked after by the elderly in your family. How can I ask for so many of the ducks you've raised with such care? If you insist on giving them all to me, then I'll have to ask about the price first."
After asking about the price, the next step is definitely to pay.
Paying money means you're buying, not giving it away.
Wen Xiuyun hurriedly said, "No, I already said it was a gift for you, how can I ask for money? What's the difference between paying money and buying it on the street? We have a lot of preserved ducks and duck legs at home, enough to make more preserved ducks even after the next batch of ducks is harvested."
"There are only three ducks and six duck legs in here, not even enough to fill a tooth gap. Just do me a favor and take it back to try it. Don't be polite with me."
Knowing that Bailu dislikes roundabout ways and accepting gifts for no reason, if things dragged on any longer and the neighbors saw it, who knows what kind of gossip would spread.
After finishing her sentence, Wen Xiuyun immediately stated her purpose: "Bai Lu, I heard that you also went back to the countryside to pay respects to your ancestors yesterday. Did you bring back any good news?"
Bai Lu understood now.
With a knowing smile, he replied, "I have good news. Acheng and I ordered a batch of chestnuts from the countryside. The kernels are plump, soft, sweet, and there are hardly any shriveled or cracked ones. They are just as high quality as the last batch."
Wen Xiuyun said with a happy face, "That's great! You don't know, during the days when the supply was cut off, customers couldn't buy roasted chestnuts, so they went to Li Shuixian's shop across the street to buy some roasted chestnuts to satisfy their cravings. As a result, after they finished eating them, they all came to me to complain bitterly, saying that they regretted it to the core."
"It doesn't taste the same at all. At first, I couldn't swallow it. Later, I could swallow the ones I bought, but the taste was never right. It was never the taste I wanted."
"Everyone's urging me to stop selling fruit and hurry home to roast chestnuts, saying they'll take as many as I have..."
Wen Xiuyun held Bai Lu's wrist, her smile making the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes look younger: "Didn't my husband take some roasted chestnuts to the city for customers to try before? You don't know, in just one Qingming Festival, the number of orders they placed was more than the number of roasted chestnuts we sold in several days."
As he spoke, he turned his head to look behind him.
Following her gaze, Bai Lu saw a motorcycle parked there, with a kind-looking middle-aged man on it, smiling and nodding at her.
Bai Lu smiled and nodded in response.
Although everything was as expected, receiving good news so quickly was still a bit unexpected.
Moreover, regarding the amount of preserved duck and duck legs... Bai Lu guessed that Wen Xiuyun probably had more to say.
As expected, after Wen Xiuyun finished reporting the good news one by one, she exchanged a few pleasantries and chatted about everyday matters.
Finally, she asked in a soft voice, "Bai Lu, today Aunt Wu was selling fruit at her stall. She saw Wang Cuihua from next door going to the market to buy vegetables. She told everyone she met that she was going to start a business too. People asked her what kind of business she was going to do."
"She said she also sells roasted chestnuts... and that they taste exactly the same as the ones I sell, the most authentic ones..."
Wen Xiuyun's statement was somewhat abridged.
Wang Cuihua's answer at the time was that she was in the same place, getting the same authentic sugar-roasted chestnuts.
Wang Cuihua lived next door to Bailu. Her deceased husband was said to have been Xiao Cheng's brother for many years.
Where else could Wang Cuihua get the most authentic sugar-roasted chestnuts besides from Bailu?
Wen Xiuyun's heart clenched immediately, worried that Bai Lu's partner might have been changed to Wang Cuihua.
What about those loyal customers whose palates have been spoiled by authentic sugar-roasted chestnuts?
With so many pre-orders, where do she and her husband find the most authentic sugar-roasted chestnuts to serve their customers?
Wang Cuihua has taken over the market. Will those customers who came back to her because of the roasted chestnuts turn around and go back to buy from Wang Cuihua instead of patronizing her business again?
Thinking of the heavy losses, Wen Xiuyun could no longer sit still. She quickly sent the preserved duck and duck legs that she had promised to sell to her old customers as gifts to Bailu, and also to inquire about the situation.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
