Chapter 246: Matchmaker Looks at Faces
Matchmaker Zhao was very happy. "Yes! Only those who have farmed the land know that the seedlings all over the ground are just like their own children!"
Aunt Zhang interrupted, "Let me tell you, my Xixi loves this."
"When she heard that you needed emergency help, she was more anxious than I was."
Matchmaker Zhao looked at Gu Xixi gratefully and agreed, "Hey, Boss Gu is so nice!"
"Boss Xiao Gu has done me such a big favor. If you need anything, just let me know."
Gu Xixi said, "Madam Zhao, you don't have to be polite. In fact, this time I am just repaying you for your favor."
Matchmaker Zhao was puzzled, and Aunt Zhang was also a little confused.
Gu Xixi smiled slightly, "Thank you, Madam Zhao, for seeing that I don't want to get married and not accepting the job at my house."
Everyone suddenly realized.
He Jinglan smiled and said, "I see. Then you really have to thank Madam Zhao."
"We have never met each other, but we have a close relationship. It is something you can only encounter but not seek."
"If it weren't for the difference in generations, the three of us should have sworn brotherhood right here and now."
Everyone laughed after hearing this.
Matchmaker Zhao waved her fan and laughed so hard that she fell backwards. "Oh, Miss He is truly an educated lady from a noble family. Her little mouth is so lovable!"
"But I've been doing this for a long time, and I can tell whether this girl is likely to get married soon."
After she said that, she really looked at Gu Xixi's face carefully.
"For people like Mr. Gu, it's obvious that he's not making excuses, he really doesn't want to start a family for the time being."
Gu Xixi was very interested, "In that case, Madam Zhao, please help me take a look at Jinglan again."
He Jinglan wanted to hide, but was caught by Gu Xixi, who turned her body over to show to Zhao the Matchmaker.
Matchmaker Zhao took a look and smiled, "Oh, your eyes are full of autumn water and your face is full of peach blossoms."
"Although Miss He is a little confused right now, I think her luck is in the air and good things are about to happen."
He Jinglan blushed, "Mrs. Zhao is a matchmaker, why is she still learning to read faces?"
Matchmaker Zhao didn't try to be mysterious and said frankly, "I don't know how to read faces. I'm just looking at your reactions."
"Just now when we talked about marriage, I looked at Boss Gu. Her eyes were clear and I could tell at a glance that she didn't have someone in her heart that she had to marry, nor had she ever fantasized about getting married."
"Ms. He is... a little different."
He Jinglan was a girl after all, so Matchmaker Zhao just smiled and left it at that without saying anything specific about the differences.
She stood up and brought an open earthenware pot and put it on the table.
"Here, this is what I grew myself. I picked it for the first time this year. Let's enjoy it together."
Gu Xixi looked down and smiled, "Good stuff."
"Mrs. Zhao is really willing to spend so much to entertain us."
He Jinglan also looked into the pot, but didn't recognize it. "Is this... beans? Boiled vegetables?"
Matchmaker Zhao said with a smile, "It's true that they are beans, but we don't eat the pods."
As she spoke, she picked one up to demonstrate.
"Look, break it open like this and eat the tender beans inside."
The pea pods are still green at this time, and are definitely a fresh delicacy in the north during the summer.
Mature old peas are food. They have a high starch content and can be fried to make dry food, or ground into powder to make staple foods such as jelly and pea salty paste.
But young peas are different. They are fresh and juicy, and can only be eaten as a snack. If they are picked before the ripening season, not only will they be lost, but they will also not be able to fill your stomach.
Therefore, ordinary farmers think it is a waste and few are willing to use tender peas to entertain guests.
After trying it, He Jinglan was amazed.
"It's a little doughy, but so tender! It has a sweet aftertaste and a fresh, moist flavor."
"Why are they nothing like the yellow peas I ate before?"
Aunt Zhang was a little amused and said, "Otherwise, you are a child who grew up in the city."
"The kind you're talking about is the mature beans harvested in the fall, dried and stored, and has a variety of uses."
He Jinglan became more and more skilled at shelling beans and couldn't stop eating them.
"So green peas are the childhood of yellow peas."
Gu Xixi explained, "Green peas can be old or young."
"The beans like the ones picked by Madam Zhao are just at their fullest, with lots of moisture and the sweetest and tenderest taste."
"And this good time only lasts for five days."
"After the season, tender green peas are still delicious, but they are different from what we eat now."
He Jinglan nodded and said, "That is to say, if you pick them too early, the beans won't grow big and can't be eaten."
"If you pick it too late, the taste will be different."
Gu Xixi smiled and said, "After the young pods are picked, they will age, so even if you can buy them on the market, the taste will not be as good as the ones that are freshly picked and cooked."
"So we are treated to a treat today and get to eat this rare thing."
Matchmaker Zhao was delighted to hear this and kept asking everyone to feel free to eat as much as possible.
The young peas are boiled in salt water with only coarse salt, slices of ginger and two star anises.
There is no need to take the water out after boiling. Soak the pot together with the water in freshly drawn well water. Change the water several times to allow the soup to cool thoroughly.
During this process, the bean pods are soaked in salt water, which allows them to absorb more flavor.
The simplest refreshing salty taste highlights the sweet aroma of the tender peas, making it irresistible.
Seeing that the sun was almost overhead, Gu Xixi gave Aunt Zhang a wink.
It’s getting late, we can’t stay at someone else’s house for lunch.
Aunt Zhang understood, stood up and said, "Then we will go back first."
"Just do as Xixi said. If you find anything wrong, come to my house anytime."
Matchmaker Zhao agreed and wanted to keep him for dinner, but Aunt Zhang tried her best to decline and left.
Matchmaker Zhao accompanied the three people to the village entrance.
Before leaving, she said to Gu Xixi solemnly, "I dare not say how much I can help you."
"But as long as you need me, I will do my best."
Gu Xixi respected this woman from the bottom of her heart, and said seriously, "Mrs. Zhao, don't underestimate yourself. You have been a matchmaker for many years. How many people have you met from the villages to Qingtian County?"
"How can this network of contacts be compared to that of ordinary people?"
She cupped her hands and said, "Maybe one day when I really need Madam Zhao's help, I will definitely not be polite."
After making a lot of money, some of the things Gu Xixi had planned to do began to gradually unfold.
The hired carpenter came to work at home that day and built a bathroom according to the drawings given by Gu Xixi.
To make the bathroom sturdy and waterproof, it needs professionals.
The sewer pipes carved out of bluestone had to be buried underground, and these things were not cheap. In order to save money and allow the carpenters to do their work at the same time, the site was chosen near the toilet.
Gu Xixi has long wanted to have a place to take a shower.
It is too inconvenient to change the water when taking a wooden tub bath, so you can’t take a bath every day in summer. You can only scrub it with warm water every night.
He Jinglan was curious, "When you say shower, do you mean pouring water on your body from a high place to wash it?"
"Yeah." Gu Xixi nodded, "This is much more convenient."
"You can wash whenever you want until it gets cold."
As they were talking, they saw Aunt Zhang coming back angrily, wondering what had happened.
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