Chapter 85: Satisfaction
This was mainly because the children she brought up were so curious and active - they would carefully observe and ask questions about every new thing they encountered; every time they walked a distance, they would try to stop and pick up all kinds of interesting little gadgets that fell on the ground, as if they would never get tired.
"oops!"
Suddenly, Zhao Chunhua noticed that there seemed to be some familiar weeds growing on a mound of earth not far from the side of the road.
It was the smell that attracted her at first - as the old saying goes, the sixth day of the sixth lunar month, when the weather is hot, is the time when sweet potatoes are ripe.
The large patch of obovate leaves in front of you, shining with emerald green in the sun, is what people commonly call sweet potato or ground fruit.
This thing is also called wild sweet potato. It is a creeping vine that likes to grow in fields, on the edge of woods and even at the foot of mountains.
The fruit is round and orange or dark red, like a small lantern hanging on a short stem.
At the end, there are bunches of fruits, which are very tempting.
There are many small protruding dots on the epidermis, like unique patterns of nature.
When these fruits are fully ripe, they become soft and sticky, and emit a strong fragrance that makes people want to taste them.
There is a plant that looks very similar to it but is actually poisonous. It is called "sow melon" by the locals.
The flowers and leaves of the two look very similar, and even their shapes after fruiting are very similar.
However, the "sow melon" remains hard and not soft even when fully ripe, and you cannot find that unique aromatic smell when you smell it carefully, not to mention that the structure inside is completely different after you open it.
Zhao Chunhua can usually quickly distinguish the real from the fake just by identifying the scent, ensuring that she finds the real fruit.
The mature ground fruit is not only sweet, but also rich in various nutrients. It can be used in traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions to exert medicinal effects.
It is said that this plant can also strengthen the body and prevent minor illnesses.
After searching carefully in the leaves for half a day, Zhao Chunhua finally found five or six ripe peanuts that were slightly larger than ordinary peanuts.
As soon as you pull them out of the soil, an extremely rich fragrance immediately hits your nose, which is simply intoxicating.
The surface of these fruits has a slight luster, and you can tell at a glance that they are very ripe.
There were still some fruits hanging on the branches in the orchard, but when she squeezed them gently, she found that they were still hard and obviously not fully ripe.
After picking these few fruits, she was very satisfied and felt that she was lucky this time. Although there were no more ripe fruits to pick, she believed that it was impossible for all good things to fall on her alone.
This kind of gain was enough for her.
There was clear water flowing in the small canal nearby. Zhao Chunhua approached the stream, washed a few wild fruits in her hands in the cool water, then sat quietly by herself and began to taste them.
Goudan stood aside with his eyes wide open, watching her intently as she enjoyed the food. It was not until Zhao Chunhua finished eating the last fruit that he realized that he had not yet gotten a share. Suddenly, a feeling of loss emerged on his face, and his eyes gradually became moist, as if he was about to cry out loud.
Zhao Chunhua noticed this immediately, and quickly took out a small and exquisite pastry from the small bag she carried with her and handed it to him.
It turned out that she had already thought of this before going out, and carefully hid some snacks in it as a preparation.
It was not too early now, and the sun was rising higher and the ground was beginning to heat up, so she quickly placed the child in a prepared basket, carried the child on her back and walked towards home.
She had placed several pieces of old clothes and some clean and soft diapers at the bottom of the basket in advance, which would not only give the child enough space but also prevent him from moving around in the basket and causing unnecessary trouble.
Not long after returning home, Zhang Sanbao walked in with half a basket full of fresh cucumbers on his back. He was sweating but couldn't hide his excitement.
"Aunt, come and see if there are enough cucumbers in this basket I picked?"
While speaking, Zhang Sanbao picked up a bamboo cup with exquisite floral patterns on it and started drinking. Helping Zhao Chunhua with farm work over the past few days had obviously made her relationship with this family more intimate and natural.
"Hmm... looks like a good number."
Zhao Chunhua walked forward and checked it carefully. "But have you weighed it?"
Hearing this, Zhang Sanbao smiled and replied, "When I weighed it just now, it was over 16 kilograms! But according to the rules we agreed on beforehand, my mother said that we should just round it up to 15 kilograms."
According to the prevailing market prices, ordinary cucumbers only cost about one copper coin per catty, but considering that the other party is a neighbor and helps with the work, Zhao Chunhua decided to give a higher price, that is, two catties can be exchanged for three cents; as for another vegetable - eggplant, it is the most precious one, and it costs two cents per catty, but she will still try to give more benefits.
"The reason for doing this is to pick the ripe fruits earlier. If we wait until they grow bigger, they will become heavier and difficult to transport and store."
Hearing this, Zhao Chunhua nodded with satisfaction and said, "Okay, that's settled. How about you put down your tools for a while and take a break before going back to the fields to collect those purple melons?"
After the other party agreed, he put down the bamboo tube cup in his hand and set off again.
When we mention purple melon, it is actually just another name for the long eggplant that is well known to the public.
Although it is also suitable for making various pickled products and preserving them for slow consumption, Zhao Chunhua already has a clear plan in mind this time - she hopes to cut this batch of freshly baked ingredients into thin slices and dry them, so that she can use them to make soup when she is in urgent need of vegetables in the future.
It is also worth noting that pumpkins that are relatively tender and soft during the growth stage can also be processed in a similar way, that is, cut them into evenly thin slices and expose them to the sun until they are completely dry, and then stir-fry them with other ingredients such as pork to create a delicious dish.
At this time, Goudan, who had been awake and playing with the adults, had already fallen asleep.
In order not to wake him up and to provide a better resting environment, Zhao Chunhua gently placed the basket containing the child under the awning in front of the door as a temporary simple bed, and casually found a soft and clean towel to cover his abdomen to increase the sense of security and warmth;
Afterwards, she carefully hung up a layer of carefully designed homemade mosquito-proof curtains to ensure that no pests would disturb the children's sweet dreams.
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