Chapter 471 The Grapes Are Ripe
Zhao Ergou quickly recounted what had happened.
Cheng Wanwan asked Granny Wu to help the Zhou couple up, and also asked Ye Zi to bring over tea.
"You two don't need to be so polite, please sit down."
Shopkeeper Zhou and his wife dared not sit down. They barely touched the stool with their bottoms, their backs straight, their faces filled with fear.
Their family had been ordinary people for generations, living a quiet and law-abiding life. They had never even seen a county magistrate, let alone an official of higher rank.
The couple mustered up the courage to come over, and when they finally saw Cheng Wanwan, they didn't dare to breathe.
This was the first time Cheng Wanwan had ever seen anyone so afraid of her. Did she give off a fierce vibe?
Zhao Ergou coughed lightly.
The blame lies with that storyteller. He said his mother was strong-willed, upright, and intolerant of any wrongdoing. He also said she was very famous, and that the village children would stop crying as soon as they heard the words "Sui'an people," lest they be kidnapped by them... I don't know how he made up all this nonsense.
He didn't take it seriously, but clearly, many ordinary people believed it to be true.
“You are the managers of the first branch of Daheyan. In business, our two companies are equals, so there’s no need to be so formal.” Cheng Wanwan tried to soften her tone. “You trusted Daheyan back then, and Daheyan will not let you down. Everything you have earned is your own hard work. You don’t need to kowtow to me.”
Manager Zhou replied repeatedly, "Yes, yes, yes."
This genuine trepidation left Cheng Wanwan both amused and exasperated.
She began, "Second... Jingcheng."
Now that there are many more servants in the house and outsiders around, she no longer calls her son by his nickname, since the name "Er Gou" (meaning "Second Dog") isn't very popular outside.
Zhao Ergou stepped forward: "Mother, what are your orders?"
"Take Manager Zhou and his wife for a walk around the village, especially those farmers who supply vegetables to Manager Zhou. Let Manager Zhou go and see the fields."
"yes."
Zhao Ergou led the Zhou couple out.
After leaving the huge house, the couple finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Even though the people of Sui'an are very gentle, for some reason, the two of them felt uneasy, always afraid that they might offend them by saying the wrong thing.
"These are Uncle Zhao's fields. The green beans and eggplants in your shop are all supplied by Uncle Zhao's family," Zhao Ergou pointed to the fields in the distance. "Over there are Aunt Zhao's fields. From now on, winter melons, pumpkins, and the like will all be supplied by Aunt Zhao's family. And here too..."
To ensure the freshness and quality of the ingredients, Dahe Banquet strictly controls the raw materials. These families grow vegetables exceptionally well, with one crop after another that they can't possibly finish eating, which is why they were selected as suppliers.
In the summer, every household in the countryside has leftover vegetables. If they can't finish them, they just rot in the fields. With this sales channel, these families have extra income.
The other villagers looked on with great envy.
However, Cheng Wanwan has already said that when the second branch opens, they will select suppliers, provided that the vegetables grown in the fields are of good quality.
It turns out that no one cares about growing vegetables. As long as the seeds are thrown into the ground and there is no flood or drought, the vegetables will always grow. Especially in the summer, there are more vegetables than you can eat. Who would bother to keep an eye on the vegetable garden and control the quality?
But now, everyone feels that we should still pay attention and spend 15 minutes each day inspecting the fields, and the vegetables will grow better than others.
The Zhou couple took a stroll around the village and were quite impressed. This village was truly different from the others. Even so late, torches were lit everywhere in the fields, and many farmers were busy at work. They didn't seem to feel tired at all, chatting and working in the fields at the same time, creating a wonderful atmosphere.
The scenery gave the couple a much-needed boost, and they rushed back home.
As the weather gets hotter, Cheng Wanwan has been having trouble sleeping at night.
Ninglan brought over the hand fan and stood at the bedroom door, saying, "My lady, let me fan you."
Cheng Wanwan sat up: "It's so late, go to sleep by yourself, don't worry about me."
Even with a grown man fanning her by her bedside, she couldn't fall asleep no matter what.
Ning Lan was about to leave helplessly when Cheng Wanwan said, "Go and bring me a few basins of cold water to put in my room."
"yes!"
Ninglan went off happily.
She was Lady An's personal maid, but Lady An didn't need her to serve her at all. Except for when she combed her hair every morning, she always felt that she was superfluous.
She quickly brought over four basins of water and placed them in the four corners of the room to cool it down.
After Ninglan left, Cheng Wanwan immediately got up, bought a lot of ice from her space and threw it into the basin. She placed a small electric fan next to the basin, and the wind blowing over it brought a refreshing coolness, which finally made her feel a little more comfortable.
It seems that ice could already be made with saltpeter in this era, but saltpeter was too expensive, and only royalty and high-ranking officials could afford it. Ordinary people would store ice in winter and use it in summer. Of course, ice blocks were also sold on the market, but the price was prohibitive.
She can afford to buy it now, but her family probably won't be willing to use it.
Fine, she can just hide away and use the ice by herself.
By summer, Cao Yingying was more than two months pregnant. She had gotten a little nauseous, but her appetite was still not very good.
Early in the morning, Cheng Yuanyuan picked grapes and brought them over.
At this time of year, the grapevines in the yard were laden with grapes. The green grapes were very tempting, and most importantly, they had no seeds.
Cao Yingying loves eating sweet and sour grapes; they whet her appetite and allow her to drink a bowl of soup afterwards.
"Do these grapes also know how to please people?" Lu Yingxue popped a grape into her mouth. "Over the years, my family has harvested countless grapes. Not to mention they were sour, one bite and your mouth was full of seeds. They were too troublesome to eat, so I didn't like them. I didn't expect that when they were planted in Dahe Village, these grapes would be so clever and not grow seeds. They are also so sweet. They are really delicious."
Cheng Wanwan said in a serious tone, "Oranges grown south of the Huai River are sweet oranges, while those grown north of the Huai River are bitter oranges. This means that different soils and waters will produce different fruits. If you want to eat grapes in the future, come to my house."
She dared not say that she had secretly replaced the grapevines with a new variety developed in modern research, which was of course seedless and had just the right amount of sweetness.
A plate of grapes was emptied in no time.
Ninglan immediately brought out sliced melons. The melons in the field were all ripe, and their sweetness was naturally exceptional; one could easily eat a whole one in one go.
After Cao Yingying had finished eating, she stood up and said, "The clothing shop is opening today, I have to go and take a look. Mother, would you like to join in the fun?"
"Of course I'll go."
Cheng Wanwan also wanted to see what kind of shop her second daughter-in-law had opened.
The shop is located in the market. It is newly renovated and has a more stylish feel than some of the food stalls in the area. The signboard reads: Dahe Clothing Shop.
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