Chapter 833 Division
Mrs. Tang immediately asked someone to go back to get the silver and bring the beautiful flower pots at home.
There was no way she could do anything about it. She looked down upon the flower pots in Manbao's yard.
Such a precious orchid naturally needs a precious and beautiful flowerpot to match it.
Zhou Lijun brought tea, placed it on the stone table in the yard, and invited them to drink it.
Mrs. Tang then sat down to chat with Manbao, saying with a smile, "People these days love peonies, like the Princess of Yizhou and Madam Ji Er. They all like to spend a lot of money on peonies, but Mrs. Zhang and I prefer orchids. I prefer plain colors, but she prefers red. I'll introduce you two to each other when I have the chance."
Mrs. Tang said with a smile, "You should take good care of the Shimenhong first. When it has flower buds, you can divide it and pot it. Only then can you sell it for a high price."
She took another look at the Shimenhong and felt that the leaves and plants looked quite healthy, but she didn't know the color of the flowers, so she didn't dare to make a conclusion.
However, since Manbao said that Shimen Red is better looking than Mao Su, the color should be quite bright.
Manbao, however, was focused on another point. "You said the Princess of Yizhou likes peonies?"
Madam Tang glanced at Manbao, then smiled and nodded, "Yes, the Princess of Yizhou is famous for her love of peonies."
Manbao nodded and did not discuss the topic any further.
The servants quickly brought money and flower pots from home, and Manbao rolled up her sleeves to transplant the orchids herself. Zhou Lijun was afraid that she would damage the orchid worth a hundred taels, so he quickly rolled up his sleeves to help.
Zhou Lijun avoided Madam Tang and whispered to Manbao, "Auntie, please be gentle."
"Don't worry, I've memorized all the precautions for dividing the plant. It won't be hurt."
Zhou Lijun was stunned and asked, "Doesn't division mean splitting it in two? I saw my mother move it with a handful of soil to avoid damaging the roots."
Manbao said: "We don't do that."
She decided to follow Koko's instructions. Manbao dug down from the periphery and carefully removed the soil from the orchid. She carefully observed the roots of the orchid and confirmed that the leaf buds and fleshy roots were in good condition. She smiled and carefully separated the clump of orchids.
She decided to divide the flowers into two pots, each with four seedlings. One of the flowers had two sepals. She asked Zhou Lijun to get a pair of scissors. Mrs. Tang stood aside and watched at first. When she saw her holding the scissors, she quickly reached out to stop her. However, Manbao was very fast. With a flick of his hand, some roots and leaves were cut off.
Seeing Madam Tang's distressed expression, Manbao said, "Don't worry, Madam Tang. These are all burdens. It would be better if they were removed."
Mrs. Tang looked skeptical, "Really?"
Manbao nodded seriously, "Of course, since I sold it to you, I naturally have to ensure that it survives, and I sold it at such a high price."
One hundred taels! Their family didn’t know how many wheat seeds they had to sell to earn one hundred taels. Not to mention Zhou Silang and Zhou Lijun, even Manbao was shocked.
So Manbao carefully repaired the roots of the orchid, carefully selected the right soil and potted it, and then began to plant...
Mrs. Tang saw that she even used wood ash to smear the freshly cut part before planting it in the pot.
Manbao instructed Mrs. Tang, "Don't water it for the next one or two days. Keep it warm. On the third day, give it a small amount of water. If you think it won't survive, send someone to call me and I'll go over to take a look."
Mrs. Tang smiled and said, "I have a gardener at home, and I know a little about growing orchids. I think it's quite strong, so it should be fine."
Mrs. Tang handed the money to Manbao and said with a smile, "If you have white orchids or yellow orchids in the future, you can come to me. I like these two orchids the most."
Zhou Lijun couldn't help but turn his head to look at the study, but Manbao nodded without turning his head to indicate that it was okay.
After sending Mrs. Tang away, Manbao went back to the yard and took out the roots she had just cut. She trimmed them again, and finally only a small tuber was left. Zhou Lijun took a look and found that there was a bud in the tuber, but it had been hidden before, and even she didn't notice it.
The clever Zhou Lijun understood immediately and said happily to Manbao, "Aunt, now we can plant orchids again. But orchids grow very slowly. It will take two or three years for such a small plot to be divided."
Manbao also nodded regretfully, "Go get the flowerpot. We won't plant this in the garden, we'll plant it in a flowerpot."
Zhou Lijun: "But I think it will grow better and faster if planted on the ground."
"Of course. It's in direct contact with the earth, so it can absorb the soil's nutrients faster and grow healthier and faster. But I've already promised Madam Tang that I'd sell her all my thatch, so I can't sell any more of them, at least not the same one." Man Bao said, "If I plant them in the garden, it would be embarrassing if County Magistrate Tang saw them next time he came to our house for tea."
"Will it be invisible if it's planted in a pot?"
"I planted it in a pot for my husband, and I'm not selling it."
Zhou Lijun paused and looked at the small piece of rhizome in his hand, and finally remembered, "Aunt, you seemed to have said that you wanted to divide a pot of white orchid for Mr. Zhuang."
Manbao sighed and nodded, "Yes, the price Mrs. Tang offered was too high. I didn't think about it for a moment, and only remembered it when I was about to move the pot. By then it was too late to regret it."
She held the tuber in her hand and said eagerly, "So I must grow this one. I decided to put it in my room and look after it day and night."
That way, Keke can help take a look every day. Manbao asked Keke in his heart, "right?"
Koko remained silent.
Manbao thought it agreed.
Zhou Lijun continued to look at the study and whispered, "Aunt, isn't there a pot of yellow orchid in the study?"
Manbao also looked conflicted, but still shook his head and said, "Forget it, Mr. Wang also likes that orchid very much, so don't sell it."
Among the flowers and plants that were dug up together, there was only one orchid that could be grown in a pot. At that time, Manbao didn't know it was an orchid. It was simply because it had the highest points, so she thought it was the most delicate. She was afraid that it would be damaged by wind and rain in the garden, so she grew it in a pot.
Its leaves are very slender, but it bloomed last autumn with a bunch of very small, delicate light yellow orchids.
Mr. Zhuang likes it very much, so Manbao is usually placed on Mr. Zhuang's desk, and occasionally he will take it to the corridor to bask in the sun.
From what Mrs. Tang said, it seems that yellow orchids are also very expensive.
Manbao had planted the Maosu rhizomes, but before he could bring them back to his room, Mr. Zhuang came back.
This time period is usually when Manbao studies. When Mr. Zhuang saw her squatting in the flower garden, he couldn't help but look up at the sun in the sky, then frowned and said, "Why aren't you studying?"
Manbao immediately wiped off the dirt on his hands and said, "I'm coming, I'm coming."
Mr. Zhuang nodded, but as he nodded, he realized something was wrong. He squinted his eyes and looked at the flowerbed, asking, "Why do I feel like there are a few less orchids?"
The next update will be around 6:00 PM
(End of this chapter)
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