Reborn as a Landlord-Chapter 690 - 353: Foreign Chili Pepper_2

"... stealing green stalks to feed the livestock at home,... caught... wanted me to step in, said that since corn stalks were broken, we should send him to the County Yamen for strict handling,... I didn’t agree. ...He was in the wrong, for sure. According to village rules, we give a beating, exact a compensation, teach him a lesson not to do it again, and that should settle it. If we really send him to the County Yamen, the County Magistrate is watching this closely, it might not be easy to explain to Master Shen Liu, and they might even flay him alive. Stealing green stalks is detestable, and he should be punished accordingly. But we can’t abuse Sixth Master’s power..."

"That’s right; one is one, two is two," Lady Zhang agreed.

Hearing this, Lian Manman finally fully woke up. She moved, and Lady Zhang, sitting beside her, could feel it.

"Awake now? Go wash your face," Lady Zhang said.

"Mmm," Lian Manman sat up, "Dad, when did you get back?"

"Just got back not long ago. The sweet melons in the field ripened, so I picked a few, just washed them, and put them in the well; they should be cool now. Want some?" Lian Shouxin asked.

Lian Manman knew that Lian Shouxin had just returned from the field. During spring plowing, Lian Shouxin had planted a small patch of sweet melons, and now it was the season when sweet melons ripened.

"I’ll go wash up and then have some melon," Lian Manman said as she got down from the large wooden bed.

Lian Zhizhi also set aside her needlework and followed.

In the backyard of the shop, there was a well surrounded by a stone well ring. This well had been newly dug in the past two months. The shop used a lot of water, and before, when they had been living at the temple front lodging, they used the temple’s well. After moving out, they decided it would be more convenient to have their own well. With some spare money at hand and time available, they dug this well.

The soil and water in Thirty Mile Camp were good, with abundant groundwater. A typical well reaches water at about six or seven meters, but to ensure better water quality, Lian Manman’s family dug their well to a full nine meters.

In the summer, they would clean fruits and vegetables and then hang them in baskets in the well to chill before eating. Even leftover meals could be cooled in the well in baskets, and they wouldn’t spoil even if eaten the next day.

This well was practically a natural refrigerator.

Lian Manman and Lian Zhizhi approached the well, and Lian Zhizhi started cranking the windlass.

"Manman, don’t use the freshly drawn water from the well to wash your face, use the water in that jar over there; it’s warmer. Mom said, even in the height of summer, we best not be too keen on the cold," Lian Zhizhi told Lian Manman to prevent her from washing her face with the chilly well water right after waking up.

Lian Manman nodded, scooped water from the nearby jar to wash her face and by this time, Lian Zhizhi had already pulled up the basket hanging in the well. Inside the basket were several oval-shaped, green-patterned sweet melons.

Lian Zhizhi took a small basin, picked up a few sweet melons, and after Lian Manman had dried her hands and face, she also took a basin, and the two sisters walked back.

The family of four all grabbed a sweet melon to eat.

Lian Manman sat back on the large wooden bed, took a sweet melon, and saw the ripe patterns on the rind. Still, she brought the melon close to her nose for a sniff. Only when she smelled the sweet aroma was she satisfied.

Without a knife, Lian Manman with her little hands and feet, found it quite tough to pull the melon apart. She giggled and handed the sweet melon to Lian Shouxin. He took it, effortlessly tore it in half with both hands, and the yellow melon pulp and seeds spilled out.

The melon pulp and seeds all went into the small basin Lian Manman had brought, as they couldn’t be thrown on the ground, even though this was outside the courtyard.

This was a rule in their household, proposed by Lian Manman. Littering was not allowed, not just inside the house—which was a given—but unlike most tenant farmer families, the rule extended to outside the courtyard as well. In Lian Manman’s family, whether it was inside the house, the courtyard, or outside the courtyard, it was the same. All rubbish had to be promptly and uniformly thrown into a manure pit that was located a fair distance from the courtyard.

By doing so, the living environment was kept clean, and the breeding of flies and mosquitoes was reduced.

After eating two sweet melons, it was approaching evening, and Wu Lang and Xiao Qi returned from school.

"Wash your hands and eat a melon before doing your homework," Lady Zhang said with a smile to Xiao Qi, who had thrown himself into her arms.

After eating the melon, Wu Lang went to do his homework, but Xiao Qi didn’t. He wasn’t in the same grade as Wu Lang, and his homework pressure wasn’t as great.

"Tomorrow is a day off, mom, I’ll go pick up duck eggs first, then I’ll do my homework after that," Xiao Qi negotiated with Lady Zhang.

Lady Zhang nodded, and Xiao Qi ran off with a basket. In a short while, he was back with the basket neatly lined with a layer of duck eggs.

"With these, plus what we’ve saved up over the past few days, we can pickle another jar," Lady Zhang said with a laugh after counting the duck eggs.

Now, Lian Manman’s family sold chicken and duck eggs, apart from consuming them. Pickled, oil-rich salted duck eggs, sugar-water poached eggs, fried poached eggs, boiled spiced tea eggs, and steamed hairy mussel with chicken egg custard were all items that regular customers specifically ordered every day.

Lady Zhang went to pickle the duck eggs, but Xiao Qi didn’t go do his homework as he had told her. Instead, he sidled up to Lian Manman.

"Sis, let’s go to the field," Xiao Qi implored, batting his large eyes at Lian Manman.

Lian Manman could tell from Xiao Qi’s expression that he either wanted to eat something or play with something.

"It’s almost dark, what do you want to do in the field?" Lian Manman asked. "We’ve got enough herbs and wild greens for today."

"Sis, sweet potatoes," Xiao Qi said, looking up with a grin that revealed his sharp little canines. "Didn’t you say that the sweet potatoes would be ready in these next few days?"

Lian Manman laughed, as she indeed had said that.

"Sis, let’s go dig up some sweet potatoes," Xiao Qi pleaded.

***...***

Here’s the first update, there will be a second one tonight. It’s almost the end of the month, so I’m asking for everyone’s pink support.

PS: If you’ve voted with pink tickets, you can click on the "Fan Call" on the homepage to enter the draw. If you’ve subscribed, it seems you can also enter the draw. The grand prize is a mobile phone.

Another PS: Ruoyan only ever won experience points in the draws, sigh. (To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes, monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)