Dongmei took a deep breath and replied, "It's a cold melon vine, a vine that bears cold melons."
Cold melon?
The village chief and Uncle Zhao exchanged a glance, both somewhat bewildered.
"Sister-in-law Ye, is the cold melon you mentioned the kind that's very precious and came from a foreign tribe in the west?"
"Yes," Dongmei nodded, feeling uneasy, after all, she had never seen a winter melon seedling before, but that little darling had just clearly told her, and even had a method for planting it.
She couldn't figure out where the young master had found the winter melon vine, or even... perhaps the young master hadn't found the vine at all.
Of course, she couldn't say the second half of that sentence, nor did she dare to.
The village chief and Uncle Zhao rushed to the melon vines, and the lush greenery filled them with joy.
"If you plant these seedlings, they'll grow into winter melons? I heard that a single winter melon can weigh over ten pounds!"
"I guess it's like a pumpkin, the kind that climbs with vines."
"What are we going to do? We don't know how to plant it. Where did Young Master Ye find such a precious thing? If we can't plant it, it will be a waste."
Dongmei could only say, "Cold melons like sandy soil, so this is the perfect time to plant them on the riverbank. They don't need much care on a daily basis; just pinch off the tips in another month."
"So easy?" The village chief and Uncle Zhao were even more delighted and hurried back to urge the villagers to get up.
The riverbank area hasn't been cleared yet. We need to gather all our manpower and plant the winter melon seedlings on a few acres of land first.
Still half asleep, the villagers shouldered their hoes and followed the village chief to the fields in a flurry of activity.
Upon hearing that the winter melon seedlings that Young Master Ye had found were extremely valuable, everyone became incredibly excited.
Even if the cold melons that eventually grow can't be sold, it's still good for everyone to broaden their horizons and satisfy their cravings, young and old alike.
Right now, Jiayin is sleeping soundly on her blanket, drooling.
It's a pity that she's so young, and she stayed up most of the night. It's really hindering her from gaining weight.
Seeing that she was sleeping soundly, her family members moved quietly, not wanting to wake her.
But they waited until noon, and the old lady got anxious. Although her granddaughter didn't have a fever or seem unwell, she couldn't let her sleep like this forever.
"Fu Niu, Grandma has steamed egg custard for you. Get up and eat!"
"Sleepy, let's go to sleep," Jiayin replied, turning over to continue sleeping.
The old lady became even more worried, holding her granddaughter in her arms and playing with her.
"If you don't get up, your brother will steal the steamed egg custard."
Jia'an and Jiaxi immediately started making wolfing noises next to them, and even shouted at the end.
"Delicious, so delicious!"
"It smells so good! I wish I could eat steamed egg custard every day."
Jiayin had no choice but to open her eyes with a yawn, her dutiful granddaughter forced to perform her duties.
The old lady was overjoyed. She coaxed her granddaughter to eat half a bowl of egg custard, and gave the remaining half bowl to her grandson.
Afraid that her granddaughter would fall asleep again and get sleepy at night, she grabbed a bamboo basket and carried her granddaughter to the riverbank to watch everyone plant melon seedlings.
Jia'an and Jiaxi certainly couldn't miss out on the fun, so they followed behind, occasionally picking wildflowers from the roadside and giving them to their younger sister, making a ruckus like two jumping monkeys.
The village chief was standing at the edge of the field, puffing on his pipe, when he saw Old Man Li coming over, he smiled.
"Little sister, even if you don't come to me, I'm going to come find you."
"Village chief, is something wrong?" Although Old Lady Li's arrow wound had healed, she was still weak and was out of breath after walking such a short distance.
Jiayin quickly struggled to get off the old lady's back and only hugged the old lady's leg.
The village chief tapped the winter melon vines in the field with his pipe, "These are the gold nuggets that Young Master Ye found. I was worried that wild animals from the mountains or some people from the neighborhood might come and cause trouble. Since the boys from various families are idle and mischievous, I've given them something to do."
"From now on, they'll be in charge of guarding this melon field. Jia'an and Jiaxi are the smartest and most resourceful, so let them lead the team, working two shifts during the day. It's too dark and dangerous at night, so let Lao Si and the others be in charge!"
Jia'an and Jiaxi were overjoyed to hear that they could take on such an important task.
They looked at their grandmother expectantly, afraid that she would disagree.
Grandma Li was more than willing to agree. She had been thinking about this ever since her grandson misbehaved and almost burned her granddaughter.
But these kids are neither too old nor too young, so it's really hard to assign them tasks. If they get hurt or overworked, there's no going back.
Now things are much better; guarding the melon patch is a perfect job for me.
So she readily agreed, "Okay, brother, go ahead and arrange it. Give the boys something to do, so they won't run around causing trouble."
"Ah, great! We have a job too!" Jia'an and Jiaxi were overjoyed and immediately went to tell their friends the good news.
Jiayin hugged her grandmother's leg, secretly grinning mischievously.
The brothers are so naive. Watching the melons is an easy job, but it's also boring.
They probably won't last two days before they regret it.
But unexpectedly, Jiayin guessed wrong this time.
Jia'an and Jiaxi, along with seven or eight mischievous boys, diligently took on the role of melon-watching farmers.
One shift in the morning, one shift in the afternoon, guarding a few acres of melon fields. Not only are small animals not allowed to nibble on the melon seedlings, but even birds aren't allowed to land...
Leaving aside the area around Suijintan, where everyone, young and old, is busy to the point of exhaustion, let's talk about Jiaojiazhuangzi. Wu Gouzi's wife hasn't slept well for two or three days.
Old Hu said he would be back in two days, and once he found out the details about the Li family's little girl, he would not stay any longer.
Although their union is somewhat shameful, they are currently deeply in love, and it's impossible for Hu Laosan to have fallen for someone else and run away without coming back.
Something must have happened to Hu Laosan!
Unable to bear it any longer, she secretly tried to go to the vicinity of the master's courtyard to take a look, since Hu Laosan was arranged by the master to be a spy.
As a result, when she arrived near the master's courtyard, a group of people came from outside the estate, some on horseback and some in carriages.
And behind the tall horse ridden by the man in front, Hu Laosan was being dragged along.
After being dragged for an unknown distance, Hu Laosan was covered in blood and half-dead.
Wu Gouzi's wife screamed and pounced on him.
"Third brother, what's wrong, third brother!"
The man who dismounted was none other than the Marquis of Dingbei. He frowned deeply, his anger finding no outlet. Seeing a woman rush forward, he kicked her away.
"What is that? Tie it up!"
Immediately, guards stepped forward, tied up Wu Gouzi's wife, and threw her together with the unconscious Hu Laosan.
Mr. Wen and Liu Zhiheng got off the carriage, glanced at it, and ignored it.
But their gazes toward the Marquis of Dingbei held a hint of disdain.
A dignified military commander, yet he manages his household poorly, instead taking his anger out on servants and women. What a magnanimous attitude!
Marquis Dingbei didn't care what they thought and stepped into the courtyard.
Madam Jiao was also worried in the house. The people she had sent out had not returned to report for several days, and she always felt uneasy.
But Madam Jiao didn't care at all. "What are you worried about? They're just a bunch of lowly people. Even if they find something wrong, what can they do? You are the wife of the Marquis of Dingbei!"
Jiao wanted to say something, but swallowed it back.
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