Transmigrated as A Farm Girl Making Her Family Rich-Chapter 165 - 164 The Pleasure of Picking Fruit by Hand
Chapter 165: Chapter 164 The Pleasure of Picking Fruit by Hand
Chapter 165 -164 The Pleasure of Picking Fruit by Hand
Meng Ruixiang had grown up and had accompanied his mother to other people’s estates to escape the summer heat. It was summer then, too. Among those estates he visited, he never saw fruits and vegetables that made one want to pick them.
The old saying was right, “Traveling thousands of miles is better than reading thousands of books.” Rote learning really won’t do; it helps one’s studies to get out more.
Meng Ruixiang hadn’t finished reflecting when he saw that the usual noble ladies and children, along with their maids, were entering the estate.
Some were thinking that since they were already there, they might as well pick a lot. They used the guards to carry stuff, picking fruits and vegetables for free. Some people even picked watermelons themselves for the fun of it.
Many people arrived at the watermelon patch. There was a trick to choosing watermelons, which was to knock on them.
Knocking on watermelons was like beating on a drum, and the watermelon garden echoed with “thud thud” sounds.
Today, some vendors also came to buy. Seeing so many wealthy families’ relatives there, sending their servants to pick as if it cost nothing, they realized a thing or two.
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They saw that rich people also liked to take advantage of a good deal, tsk tsk!
The Ye family welcomed the guests into the estate and let them pick whatever they wanted. They didn’t mind how much was picked, as long as it could be transported out, they could take it.
The Ye family had their exceptions, genuinely concerned whether these guests picking so much would actually pay.
Mrs. Lai was always watching these guests, continually counting in her mind, but there were so many people picking fruits, she couldn’t keep up.
Tang Shunyan and the Ye family’s five young girls, with his friends in tow, passed by the watermelon garden on their way to Lychee Garden to pick lychees.
Meng Zhaojun wanted to follow Tang Shunyan, so her brother tagged along too.
The group walked a while and reached the foot of the hill inside the estate, where from afar, they could see lychee trees laden with clusters of bright red fruit.
Upon arriving at the lychee trees, Tang Shunyan’s declaration from the day before with his friends—that their wish to climb the lychee trees would be thwarted—held true. These trees were only as tall as an adult.
Many lychees hung from the trees at the foot of the hill. Two days earlier a lot of the bright red ones had been picked, leaving the less ripe ones behind. Today, the other lychees seemed ripe as well.
“Tang Shunyan, we really can’t climb the trees.” One of the friends, observing his plump body, wondered if the lychee tree could bear his weight.
Seeing the slim branches substantiate so many lychees made one feel that the lychee trees were quite exhausted already.
“I already told you, didn’t I? These lychee trees have only been planted for a bit over a year. They are all saplings, okay?”
As Tang Shunyan spoke, he didn’t miss out. While chatting with his friends, he, with a certain haughtiness, also picked lychees to eat.
Meng Zhaojun’s gaze was fixed on the Ye family’s five sisters the entire time, especially on the youngest one, the little tot over one year old, Ye Shiqi.
She had seen the sisters before. They looked different now compared to last year. Perhaps it was because they had grown.
The older ones among the little girls had matured in appearance and didn’t resemble farmer girls at all.
What was dazzling was their skin. Which farmer girl could boast such tender and fair complexion?
Their hair was black and shiny too, complementing their pale skin, and their natural reddish lips that needed no rouge. Although their features might not be the most exquisite, they were considered fine among the rural children.
The most peculiar was the youngest. Her features were more delicate than those of her elder sisters. Meng Zhaojun felt a mix of jealousy and admiration over the fact that, with her skin and features, this little girl looked more like a Miss than she did, despite being a Miss herself.
A girl barely over a year old has already turned out like this; what will happen when she grows up?
Just by looking at her appearance, one might think a phoenix had fallen into a dog’s nest. If it weren’t for Mrs. Li giving birth to her at home, with marks of childbirth evident, she would have been mistaken for an adopted daughter of noble lineage.
Meng Zhaojun dared not voice another thought, although she had never seen a Princess or any Commandery Princesses, this little girl’s appearance seemed even more noble than theirs.
Meng Zhaojun felt quite fortunate that the girl before her was merely a pseudo-phoenix, whose status could not compare to her own.
Meng Zhaojun’s scrutinizing gaze was too conspicuous, and others also cast curious glances at her and her sisters, although none carried the same hostility that meng Zhaojun’s eyes held.
This was the second time Ye Shiqi had seen this young girl, whose stature and mature demeanor belied her young age, a Miss performing actions that defied guessing.
This was also the second time Ye Shiqi felt hostility from this young Miss, and upon seeing Meng Zhaojun’s caring behavior towards Tang Shunyan, she could not help but wonder—are all ancient people so precocious?
How could a girl who looks to be only four or five ponder such mature thoughts?
This strange feeling continued to linger in Ye Shiqi’s heart, and in the presence of more strangers, she had grown accustomed to putting on a genuine child-like expression and speaking as little as possible.
She would let her elder sisters handle everything, providing protection for herself and also reflecting the way her sisters shielded her.
“Are we still going mountain climbing? This mountain isn’t that tall! It’s not as high as the neighboring one.”
Driven by a craving for lychees, Tang Xiyue ate one after another, even consuming an entire bunch nonstop, quenching her appetite after more than a dozen lychees.
“If we can pick fruit around here, let’s not bother going up the mountain,” suggested a chubby playmate, echoing the old adage ‘Litchi Lazy Chopping Wood.’ Usually averse to exercise, he preferred to avoid the effort if climbing wasn’t necessary.
Hearing his friends’ suggestions, Tang Shunyan could only nod in agreement. Leading so many up the mountain would indeed be problematic, so they all waved their hands, instructing the guards and servants they had brought along to go pick the fruit.
These boys and girls would pick a little themselves, just to make their own snacking more enjoyable, leaving the rest of the task to others.
The noble ladies who had been touring the fruit garden now gathered under the lychee trees, indulging in the pleasure of picking lychees by their own hands.
What noble ladies dreaded most was visiting the estate, with its many mosquitoes, especially under the lychee trees where the mosquitoes were larger. They took great care in their defenses, usually dressing lightly due to the heat.
But today, to protect against mosquitoes, they dressed warmly; their skirts reached their feet, and they wore leggings underneath to prevent mosquitoes from biting their legs beneath the long-sleeved dresses.
They also carried medicinal oil as a precaution against insects or getting scratched by wild plants when going up the mountain.
It was only upon arrival at the Ye family’s estate that they realized their prior defenses were unnecessary.
In the air of the Ye family’s estate, the fragrance of fruits wafted, and not a mosquito was seen flying around the vegetable patches or under the lychee trees, where there were few wild plants.
Occasionally, bees were spotted on the estate, posing no harm to people.
In the hot air of May and June, a touch of coolness could be felt here, and the noble ladies, who had dressed in extra layers to fend off mosquitoes, did not feel hot.
The Ye family’s estate lacked extra houses to serve as a summer retreat, nor was there a preparation for hosting others seeking to escape the summer heat.
After this brief visit, a single day seemed too short. To be able to spend an entire summer here, away from the heat, is a yearning many hold dear.
