Chapter 70 Is Xiuxiu a beauty?
On Friday afternoon, Village Chief Qiao called me and said, "Tomorrow is the weekend, and it's going to be sunny and warm, which is great weather for fishing. You should come early."
Thinking that I could learn some fishing skills, I agreed without hesitation.
At nine o'clock on Saturday morning, we rushed to the home of Village Chief Qiao.
There are only him and his wife at home.
Village Chief Qiao said, "Let's go. Director Zhang won't be here until ten o'clock. Let's go up the mountain."
I know he was teaching me the fishing method, but why did he go up the mountain?
He didn't say and I didn't ask.
After climbing for a while, they reached a flat area. Village Chief Qiao said with a smile:
"First, let me introduce you to the grass used as bait."
Then he taught me to identify three kinds of grass: one with broad leaves, one with long and narrow leaves, and one with serrated edges.
"Crush these three kinds of grass, mix them with rice, roll them into a ball, throw it into the water, and the fish will come."
Village Chief Qiao said mysteriously.
I grew up in the countryside, so I remembered it after seeing it once. I was secretly amazed:
It turns out that these ordinary grasses can be combined into fish bait. It is like a layer of paper if you point it out. If you don’t point it out, you will never know.
Village chief Qiao was busy picking grass leaves, and I was busy picking grass seeds.
Coming down the mountain, I watched Village Chief Qiao make fishing bait. My master had taught me some herbal medicine. I learned that the ones with serrated leaves are the "main herbs."
After reading it, I started to do my own part.
Village Chief Qiao watched me pounding the bait and said with a smile, "You understand pharmacology."
It was ready in a moment. I chose a corner of the pond and cast the bait in. Oh my god, I saw a large group of fish swimming towards my hook.
Pull it, one.
Pull again, one.
My goodness, even if I were unemployed, I could go fishing in the river every day. With this bait, at least I wouldn’t become a complete proletarian.
A gentle breeze blows, and the water ripples.
My heart is filled with joy, and I hum a little tune:
"I don't want to be a god or an immortal. I just want to live by the water, fishing in rivers and lakes, and using my daily catch to buy wine..."
Sing and clap your hands at the same time.
In less than ten minutes, I'd landed five. Never mind, I couldn't eat all that. I put away my rod.
At this time, an off-road vehicle drove onto the ground.
"This is Director Zhang," Village Chief Qiao introduced him to me.
A middle-aged man in his forties nodded to me gracefully.
For some reason, the Director Zhang in front of him looked very easy-going, without any official airs. He looked like an acquaintance, but he couldn't remember who he was.
Director Zhang shook my hand and said with a smile, "I'm the master's apprentice. I've heard of your great name for a long time. The village chief has told me about it many times."
At this time, another person got off the car, and my eyes were immediately blinded. Isn’t this the romantic proprietress Yu Meiren?
Poppy ran over and opened her arms exaggeratedly: "Come here, brother, give me a hug."
After we hugged each other symbolically, she looked at me lovingly:
"You've gained some weight. You need to move around more."
I couldn't figure out what her relationship with Director Zhang was, so I smiled and said, "Aren't we out fishing today?"
At this time, Director Zhang smiled at Village Chief Qiao, who was holding a bowl of bait:
"When will you teach me how to fish with your bait?"
Village Chief Qiao smiled and said, "I won't pass on my skills to outsiders. But if you want bait, I'll make as much as you need."
I was secretly shocked. It seemed that the village chief thought highly of me.
Director Zhang, holding his fishing rod, said as he walked, "You stingy guy."
Poppy waved at me: "I'll go over and take a look."
I didn't go over there.
The village head's wife came over, looked at my fish bucket, and said with a smile, "Xiao Wan, let me teach you how to cook fish."
I followed the village chief's wife into the kitchen.
She was very skillful and she cut open a big fish in just a few seconds.
A neighbor lady had already helped her light the wood stove.
She said, "You have to use a big fire to cook fish."
After that, she put oil in the pot and put the whole fish into the pot until it was 80% cooked. Suddenly, the pot started to sizzle.
The fish was fried in oil until slightly browned. She picked up the thermos and poured boiling water into it, then taught me:
"The key to boiling live fish is this technique. You can't use cold water, you have to use boiling water. The resulting broth is like milk, and the fish is incredibly tender. There's nothing else to it, just this one trick."
I smiled and said, "Thank you. I'll show my skills to my parents when I get home."
At this time, there was a commotion outside. I walked out and saw that many people were watching the village chief catch a big fish, which weighed more than ten pounds.
Director Zhang also finished work. He caught six or seven fish.
At noon, the Qiao family prepared a delicious meal: boiled fish, winter bamboo shoots fried with bacon, tripe, and stewed chicken...
Especially the fish soup, which is extremely delicious, sweet and tasty.
During the meal, Director Zhang joked, "Shanhong, let me be your matchmaker. The village chief has three daughters. The two older ones are married, and the youngest daughter runs a clothing store in the city. She's very beautiful."
He turned to ask Village Chief Qiao: "Why didn't Xiuxiu come back?"
Village Chief Qiao smiled and said, "She was going to come back, but it happened to be her sister's birthday, so we sent her as a representative."
Yu Meiren smiled and recited a poem: "Shanhong is extremely talented, Xiuxiu is as beautiful as a flower. It is truly a match made in heaven. The village chief's family has plenty of land, so you can build a villa here in the future."
Director Zhang looked at me and smiled. "You're famous now, and you'll be even more famous in the future. Famous people don't have to live in the city. Good wine needs no bush. People will drive their cars and line up to see you."
Director Zhang turned around and teased Village Chief Qiao: "Village Chief, if you can get a thousand square meters of land for Shanhong, three hundred square meters will be enough for Master Shanhong's villa, but the parking lot must be large enough."
The village chief and his wife just laughed.
Poppy looked at me meaningfully: "Shanhong, you haven't expressed your opinion yet."
I also joined in the joke, "Follow my sister's instructions."
She scowled, "It's not enough to just obey. This requires both of you to be willing. We're just matchmaking."
The village headwoman said, "Eat fish, eat fish. It tastes okay."
I nodded repeatedly: "Well cooked."
Director Zhang looked very happy: "Shanhong agreed. Let's find a chance to meet next time."
I blushed with embarrassment.
After the meal, the Qiao family gave us each a bag of fish. Some we caught ourselves, some by Village Chief Qiao. It was a truly rewarding return.
When I passed by Youran Ju, I brought three fish to give to my master's wife.
Back at the Foshu Noodle Shop, I handed the fish to my mother.
My mother poured the fish from the bag into the pond and exclaimed, "Oh my! There's another one this big!"
I looked over and saw that it was the big fish that Village Chief Qiao had caught.
"How much is one pound?" my mother asked.
"My friend's fish pond, free."
As I spoke, I ran downstairs and found an empty vase in the backyard. I planted the grass seeds there.
Back in my room, I lay on the bed, ready to take a good nap.
But I couldn't fall asleep.
Village Chief Qiao taught me the technique of making fish bait individually... and gave me the biggest fish... Director Zhang and Yu Meiren were joking at the dinner table.
Putting all these things together, does the Qiao family really want to marry their daughter to me?
Whether or not I have a relationship is secondary. I want to see how others see my worth.
If she is like the "Three Balls" girl, the daughter of Chen Ersao, whom my sister introduced to me, it proves that I, Wan Shanhong, can only find a "low-quality woman".
What if she was a beautiful, lovely girl? This would prove that in the eyes of others, I, Wan Shanhong, was a "potential stock" with a promising future.
When I thought about it this way, I suddenly had an impulse.
I want to see the girl Xiuxiu whom I have never met.
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