Presenting melons to the palace was a major event in Suijintan, a top priority every year.
The village boys played rock-paper-scissors for half an hour to determine the four winners for the four spots as escorts on the truck.
The four victors have been so arrogant these past few days because of this, which has made the other losers grit their teeth and crack their fists, wishing they could teach them the rules of entering the palace first.
Unfortunately, the village chief had already warned them not to use their fists, otherwise they would all be beaten black and blue, and that would be a disgrace to the whole village!
In the sweltering summer, even though the sun has only just risen, the earth is already scalding hot.
The cicadas were chirping listlessly, but the number of idle people in the teahouse continued to increase.
Humans are social animals. We can eat and drink less and dress simply, but we absolutely cannot shut our mouths and confine ourselves for a few days!
After all, we haven't even heard the name of the new husband the young widow at the end of the street has found, or what he does for a living!
A certain third-rank official took a sixth concubine. Whether the mistress was ill from anger or was truly ill, it was still unclear.
Not to mention the heated debate in the imperial court over tax reductions, these people haven't even had a chance to offer their opinions or insights.
In short, life may go on, but we must eat our fill of gossip!
Just as the sun was about to rise high in the sky, the real melons arrived in the capital.
The cart, adorned with vibrant green and golden hues, sat brightly on the platform, decorated with numerous melon vines, looking incredibly fresh.
To ensure the emperor could enjoy the food immediately upon its arrival at the palace, the carriage was equipped with two buckets of ice, each containing a jade melon and a dozen or so golden fruits.
When the sun shines, a faint chill emanates from it, making it look incredibly cool and refreshing, which is extremely enviable.
The street leading to the palace was already bustling, but this cart of melons suddenly made it even more lively!
First, a young shop assistant, feeling sleepy, went to the door to get some fresh air in order to wake himself up.
Upon seeing the Li family's carriage and mule cart from afar, he became excited and shouted, "Oh my, the people from Suijintan are here to present melons to the palace!"
"What? The melons from Suijintan have been presented to the palace! Oh my, the melon garden is open, we can go buy melons now!" A guest sitting by the window heard the noise, turned his head and exclaimed in surprise.
The customers in the teahouse all rushed to the door, took a closer look, and became delighted.
"What a juicy melon from Broken Gold Beach!"
"It's finally open! I've been waiting so long!"
"Go buy a few quickly, I've been waiting to give them as gifts!"
"Don't panic, wait for me."
The crowd chatted and laughed, rubbing their hands together in anticipation. They had finally waited for this moment and all wanted to rush to buy a few to take home.
In fact, the Jade Melon and Golden Fruit were already being sold in the market ten days ago.
But to be honest, the taste wasn't terrible, but it was very different from what I remembered.
The taste I remember is that clear and sweet flavor from Suijintan.
Some people said to do it, and they immediately sent their servants to queue up at Suijin Beach.
Those who didn't have any attendants with them, or whose families were of modest means, also hurriedly left the city to queue up in person.
After two years of selling jade melons and golden fruits at Broken Gold Beach, everyone had figured out how to do it.
Neither the Li family of Suijintan nor the villagers of Xincun ever looked at the buyer's identity or background, let alone sold jade melons and golden fruits in bulk.
They sell only per person, with a maximum of two jade melons or ten golden fruits per person.
This amount is enough for gifting, or for the whole family to enjoy something fresh.
If you want to buy and sell, that's fine, but there are only a few a day, and no one will be allowed to make a fortune from it.
By doing this, Suijintan naturally hopes that more people can enjoy the fruits and vegetables they grow and share in the blessings of this auspicious place.
Instead of letting middlemen inflate melon prices and make a fortune!
After the village saw off the procession that was going to present melons to the palace, they had already made plans.
Almost everyone, young and old, came out to surround the melon field, preventing customers from entering freely.
Outside the melon field, there were two stalls, one selling jade melons and the other selling golden fruits.
The prices of the jade melons and golden fruits will remain the same as in previous years, but this year a willow basket will be given as an extra gift.
The basket was lined with dry grass to ensure that the jade melons and golden fruits wouldn't be damaged even if they were bumped or knocked.
Meanwhile, the village heads of Dahuaishu Village, Dawangzhuang Village, and Xiaowangzhuang Village also brought their villagers over. They set up three stalls under the shade of trees not far away, selling the village's jade melons and golden fruits.
In this world, you always reap what you sow.
Especially when it comes to matters in the fields, there is absolutely no possibility of deception.
The villagers braved the scorching sun to carry water to irrigate the land three times, taking care of every melon seedling.
Although this year's jade melons are smaller, they are still bright green and round; the golden melons, which were originally golden yellow, are now a deeper color with a touch of orange-red.
Both kinds of melons look so appealing that they make your mouth water.
However, the jade melons and golden fruits from Dahuaishu Village, Dawangzhuang Village, and Xiaowangzhuang Village vividly illustrate what it means to have crooked melons and cracked fruits.
The shapes of the jade melons vary, some are long, some are square, and some are crooked on one side. The golden melons are even bigger, with a bulging belly button the size of a fist.
Even without tasting it, everyone knew it was far from satisfactory.
Therefore, these three stalls can only open after the goods in the new village are sold out, and they will have to voluntarily reduce the price by half...
In the village of Dahuaishu, Jingli was waving his pipe, seemingly wanting to knock the heads of the villagers next to him into the same hairstyle as Buddha.
He was so disappointed in you that he complained and scolded you: "I asked you to carry water to irrigate the fields, but all you do is slack off. You all have headaches or sore butts. The carrying poles are like burning your shoulders. You just don't want to carry water. I, an old man, almost lost my voice before you finally finished irrigating the fields!"
"Last year you said the new village was being stingy and that the melon seedlings they gave us were no good. This year you saw with your own eyes that the melon seedlings they planted were the same as ours, but this is what happened in the fall. Don't you feel ashamed?"
"The villagers in that new village are much more diligent than you. They never slack off. They can grow dog poop and it will bloom into flowers, while you can grow a golden nugget and it will turn into pig manure!"
The village heads of Dawangzhuang and Xiaowangzhuang also sighed.
The village head of Dawang Village said, "If we don't work hard, how can good things grow in this land? It's too late to say anything this year. Next year, anyone who dares to slack off will be kicked out of the village."
All the villagers were so humiliated by the scolding that they didn't dare to utter a single word in rebuttal.
Seeing the clinking of silver ingots being thrown into the money box and a long queue forming in front of the stall in the new village, while no one was interested in their stall, everyone felt bad.
If they had known this would happen, they would have worked harder in the spring... Unfortunately, there's no going back!
With nothing to do at home, Grandma Li brought Shuiyun to deliver a large bucket of honey passion fruit drink to the melon patch, with ice added, of course.
With the weather hot, Jiayin taught Shuiyun how to make ice, so the family had plenty of ice to keep cool during the summer.
The villagers were sweating profusely from the heat, but their faces were beaming with smiles.
They took large earthenware bowls, scooped up ice water, and gulped it down. One of the villagers quietly gestured for Old Lady Li to look at the money box, and whispered boasting, "Aunt Li, look, so much silver!"
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