The village chief was overjoyed. He helped Uncle Zhao, who was still a little unsteady on his feet, and shouted to everyone at the entrance of the mountain path, "Be careful, lift the saplings up, don't rub off the bark."
"These saplings are very precious; if the bark is damaged, it will take many days to heal."
"Hey, Dazhu, I'm talking about you. You're carrying fewer trees at a time. Do you think you're the fourth one?"
"Remember to dig the tree pit bigger and deeper, don't be lazy."
Madam Cui grew up in Weizhou and knows quite a bit about fruit trees.
At this moment, she carried Jiayin forward and spoke to the village chief and several other old men.
"Uncle Village Chief, are these fruit tree saplings that the General found? They look really good, judging by their thickness, they're already two years old."
Upon hearing this, Jiayin secretly felt her heart leap into her throat, afraid of giving herself away. She quickly pointed to the mountaintop and shouted, "Master, let's go play, let's go play!"
Madam Cui quickly patted her and gently coaxed, "Good girl, Fu Niu, things are busy up the mountain, let's not go up. Your aunt will get you some snacks later."
Jiayin then hugged her neck and fell silent. This interruption, as expected, caused the village chief to respond with a worried expression.
“Madam Cui, if you don’t come over, this old man was planning to go and talk to you.”
"Uncle, is there something you need my help with? Please tell me." Madam Cui readily agreed. The village was so busy, and she planned to visit often in the future, and even build a house next to the Li family's.
At this moment, she really wanted to help, but she couldn't get involved.
To be honest, she loved reading since she was a child, and her father supported her. She disliked and was not good at the household management that ordinary women were good at.
These things can be seen from the fact that she didn't personally take care of her dowry after marrying into the Marquis's family.
Now that the family estate and properties have been reclaimed, it was Liu Jiayi's sworn brother who helped with the reorganization, and then it was handed over to Sister-in-law Qiong again, who once again became a hands-off manager...
The village chief found a large rock in a sunny spot and invited Madam Cui to sit down.
“Madam Cui, we come from the north. Planting sorghum and millet is no problem for us. But now that we have to plant so many fruit tree seedlings, we are really unsure of what to do. We have eaten fruit before, but no one has ever seen how to grow wild fruit trees in the mountains. Does Madam Cui know anyone who can help us hire a fruit farmer? We are willing to pay high wages, as long as he is reliable and capable.”
This was no difficult task, and Madam Cui immediately nodded. "Don't worry, Uncle. I'll be going back soon, and I'll find a suitable person in the village to deliver it."
The village chief beamed with joy, "Our village is truly blessed. We can pick up two people randomly in the woods, and they're both important people. You and Mr. Wen have really helped us so much."
“Uncle, we’ve been through thick and thin together, so there’s no need for such formalities. After I build a house in the village, I’ll still need to visit often. Your politeness makes me feel like an outsider.”
Madam Cui smiled and stood up, then suddenly remembered something and said, "Uncle, should we intercrop grains under the fruit trees? Sorghum probably won't work, so how about millet? I'll bring some good seeds to the village while I'm at it."
"That's great! We were thinking of going to the nearby villages to find someone to exchange it with."
Uncle Zhao and the other old men listened with shining eyes, responding in unison, "Family members are always more reliable than outsiders. The villagers around here seem a bit arrogant towards newcomers, and we really don't dare to deal with them."
Madam Cui nodded, took Jiayin back, and told Old Lady Li that she wanted to return to the city.
Jiayin suddenly felt playful and clung to Madam Cui's neck, refusing to let go.
Madam Cui then discussed with the old lady, "Auntie, let me take Fu Niu with me. It's nearby, and we'll be back this afternoon."
Grandma Li tapped her granddaughter's forehead, but didn't stop her.
"Go ahead, don't underestimate Fu Niu just because she's little. She knows everything and is very smart. If she causes trouble, just scold her, don't be fooled by her, understand?"
Madam Cui couldn't help but laugh, "I know, Auntie, let's go and come back quickly."
Sister-in-law Qiong drove the carriage, but when she got on, Dongmei jumped onto the other side of the carriage shaft. When she saw Sister-in-law Qiong looking over, she said, "When our Marquis left, he instructed me to take care of Miss Jiayin at all times."
Upon hearing this from inside the carriage, Madam Cui said, "Let's go. It's good to have another person lend a hand."
The carriage rolled forward and soon left the gravel beach and got onto the official road.
Jiayin was extremely excited. She was small and had short legs, so without someone to carry her, it was difficult for her to leave the gravel beach even by one step.
Now that she finally had a chance to go out for a walk, she clung to the car window almost the entire way, much to Mrs. Cui's amusement and exasperation.
Madam Cui reclaimed two estates, the largest of which covered more than 300 acres.
This village also has the largest grain reserves, and there are about a hundred tenant farmers.
For the past few days, Liu Zhiheng has been spending his time here with his men, taking inventory, registering, and making lists, fearing that his sworn sister, who is not good at trivial matters, might be deceived by the servants and suffer losses in the future.
He was also aware of his acquaintance and friendship with his sworn sister on the gravel beach.
So he came back, which surprised him somewhat.
"Jinrou, you're back so quickly! Did something happen over there?"
Madam Cui smiled, hugged Jiayin, and bowed, "My sworn brother guessed right. I've come back to ask you for help."
Liu Zhiheng was curious about what his sworn sister wanted from him, but he was even more curious about the chubby baby in her arms.
"Sister-in-law, this child is..."
Madam Cui said, "This is the Li family's little granddaughter, and I like her very much. The Li family is busy, so I'll help take care of her for a while."
Liu Zhiheng secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He was afraid that his sworn sister might get involved in something outside and give the Marquis's mansion something to use against her, which would cause trouble again.
Jiayin was so clever. Knowing that she was being misunderstood, she hugged Madam Cui's neck and called out in a childish voice, "Auntie, Auntie, I'm hungry."
Liu Zhiheng's family is full of boys, and he especially likes cute little girls, not to mention that Jiayin is too good-looking.
Not only is she chubby and adorable, but her big eyes are also as watery as black grapes, and her little mouth is as red as a cherry. She is completely unlike the skinny, timid children from farms.
"This child is so beautiful, her family must love her very much."
Just as Liu Zhiheng was about to reach out, Jiayin hugged his neck, making him beam with joy.
"Oh my, oh my, this little girl is so cute! She's probably not even two years old, but she speaks so clearly!"
He repeatedly called out to the servants he had brought with him, "Quickly tell the kitchen to prepare lunch, cook some meat porridge for the child, and a bowl of steamed egg custard too, remember to use less salt!"
Madam Cui covered her mouth and laughed as she listened, but Jiayin kept calling him "Uncle," coaxing Liu Zhiheng until the meal was over and he didn't let go of her.
Hearing that they were looking for a reliable fruit farmer and good seeds at the gravel beach, Liu Zhiheng said, "It's hard to tell who the people in your estate are for now, since they've been in the Marquis's hands for too long. I'll send someone back to my estate to look for someone."
"That's wonderful, sworn brother, that's what I was thinking too." Madam Cui said happily. "And sworn brother, could you also help me find some superior seeds?"
Liu Zhiheng nodded and then said, "You have a lot of coarse grains stored in your manor. Do you want to send some over to the gravel beach?"
Madam Cui thought for a moment and then said, "Alright, a thousand catties is fine. More than that won't do, I'm afraid the village chief and the others might have other plans. Also, I see there are mules in the village, could you ask someone to help me get a cart? I want to give it to the Li family. The Li family used to have a mule, but it was shot by an arrow at the dock and ran away."
Jiayin thought of Daqing and subconsciously touched the back of her head.
That fall was so hard that even now, she still gets dizzy occasionally.
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