Unlimited estates for rural beauty-Chapter 47: No one visits the temple of the Three Treasures without a cause
Before dawn, Feng Xuxu crawled out of bed, startling Sister Jiaojiao beside her.
"Xuxu, why are you up so early?" Sister Jiaojiao rubbed her eyes, puzzledly asking as she watched Feng Xuxu get dressed.
"Sister Jiaojiao, I need to run some errands in town today. You should sleep a bit more; it’s still early before daylight." After Feng Xuxu dressed herself, she turned to see that Sister Jiaojiao had fallen asleep again, remarking that her speed of falling asleep was really quite fast.
After washing up and without time for breakfast, the three of them decided to have something to eat in town and then go buy livestock.
Sitting in the ox cart, Feng Xuxu felt rather helpless, rubbing her behind, which was nearly split in two from the ride. She thought about buying a horse, considering it was fast and less bumpy, but she didn’t know how to ride. However, that was okay;, she could have Xiaobai train it, and with some practice, she supposed she’d manage to ride it. Taking it slow was fine, and just like that, she made her cheerful decision.
By the time they arrived in town, it was just getting light. After having a bowl of wonton each, they headed straight for the livestock market.
The bustling livestock market was brimming with activity and constant shouting; a foul odor could be smelled from afar, growing stronger the deeper one went. Feng Xuxu had no choice but to cover her nose and mouth, continuing to follow Brother Yijiang as he inspected the animals. "Fellow villager, how much for this ox?" Yijiang patted the ox, asking the old man who sat on the side, his face full of worry, smoking his pipe. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞
"My boy, you’ve got a keen eye. Look at this ox of mine, shiny coat, thin, soft, and elastic skin, robust limbs, hardworking, with dense bones and well-proportioned flesh, truly a fine ox. I’m selling the ox to pay for my grandson’s medical treatment. This ox is thirty taels of silver," the old man said while praising his ox and touching it reluctantly.
Yijiang nodded to Feng Xi and Feng Xuxu, and without bargaining, he handed over thirty taels of silver. Feng Xi looked at the ox, furrowing his brow; having an ox without a cart wasn’t practical. He decided to buy a cart as well, which would be useful to carry things and give them a ride back.
"Brother Yijiang, I also want to buy a horse." Brother Yijiang looked at Feng Xuxu in surprise but said nothing, just nodded and turned in the direction of the horses.
Two hours after buying the ox and horse, Feng Xuxu, Feng Xi, and Brother Yijiang went their separate ways. Feng Xuxu headed toward the restaurant, while Feng Xi and Yijiang led the ox and horse carts to buy daily necessities. The three agreed to meet at Zuiyun Pavilion Restaurant when noon approached.
"Uncle Ma, I’m here, look at what I’ve brought you." Feng Xuxu had prepared a basket of Egg Yolk Fruits for Uncle Ma the night before and took them out of her space only after she arrived at the corner of Zuiyun Pavilion’s backyard.
When Ma Fei turned around and saw it was Feng Xuxu, his eyes gleamed with a smile, "Girl, what kind of treasure did you bring your Uncle Ma?"
Feng Xuxu dangled the basket in front of Uncle Ma’s eyes. Under the sun’s rays, the Egg Yolk Fruits seemed even more brilliantly golden and dazzling.
Ma Fei reached out for the basket of fruits, but Feng Xuxu swiveled away, smilingly watching Uncle Ma. "You little rascal, hurry up, let me see. What’s this golden thing? It’s so pretty, and it smells nice too." Ma Fei’s eyes stayed on the fruits, sniffing deeply the rich fragrance.
Giggling, "Uncle Ma, did you inquire about my fish fry?" Seeing Uncle Ma’s eyes glued to the fruits, Feng Xuxu decided to hand over the basket before she angered the old man, who might just snatch it from her anyway.
Uncle Ma snorted at Feng Xuxu, giving her a reproachful look and grumbling with his mustache, "You only visit when you need a favor." He then indulged himself looking at the glistening fruits before speaking contentedly, "I have inquired about your fish fry;, you can go pick them up anytime."
"I knew there was nothing Uncle Ma couldn’t handle. Thank you, Uncle Ma! After some time, I’ll brew some wine for you, a kind you’ve never tasted before."
"Oh, you know how to brew wine? I didn’t see that coming, girl," Uncle Ma gave Feng Xuxu a look of disbelief. "As someone who runs a restaurant, is there any wine I haven’t tasted?" The old man thought to himself. He had even drunk the imperial wine. What kind of wine hadn’t he tried? He shook his head, pondering.
"If you don’t believe it, forget it, but when the time comes, don’t you beg me to brew some for you, huh, I’ll show you," Feng Xuxu pouted.
"Hehe, you little sprite, by the way, why are you inquiring about fish fry? Are you planning to raise fish?"
"Yeah, I plan to raise fish in the rice fields, to harvest paddy fish. This way, farmers can have an additional source of income." Actually, it would be possible to raise rice, fish, and ducks together, but it’s not the right time yet. Some data haven’t been analyzed.
"Raise fish in the rice fields? Did you come up with that too?" Ma Fei squinted his eyes, reassessing Feng Xuxu. He couldn’t believe that a teenage peasant girl could have such great capabilities.
"Hehe, Uncle Ma, here’s what I think, if the aquatic weeds in the pond can support fish life, then if I turn the pond into a rice field, I reckon it should work," Feng Xuxu couldn’t explain in terms they would understand, so she gave a nonsensical explanation.
Ma Fei stroked his beard, the light in his eyes masked by his eyelids, but when he raised his head, his face beamed with a smile. "Xuxu, your potential is limitless. Too bad you’re a girl. If you were a boy, it would be incredible," he said with a sigh.
"Uncle Ma, ’women can match men in their abilities,’" Feng Xuxu winked at Uncle Ma.
"Haha, well said, ’women can match men in their abilities.’" Ma Fei showed his large white teeth, praising Feng Xuxu.
Ma Fei took a fruit from his basket and asked Feng Xuxu how to eat it. Feng Xuxu peeled it for Uncle Ma, and then peeled one for herself too, savoring the soft sweetness. The space-produced fruit was something else. Feng Xuxu enjoyed it thoroughly.
Seeing how sweetly Feng Xuxu was eating, Uncle Ma also took a bite. It was soft and sweet, fragrant and delicious, making him squint his eyes to savor the taste. After he finished, he felt invigorated, as if he’d grown a few years younger. Offhandedly, he asked, "Girl, what’s this fruit called? It’s delicious, where did you pick it?"
"This fruit is called Egg Yolk Fruit, I found it on the mountain, just picked it. Seeing it’s soft, I thought it would suit your teeth, so I brought it over for you."
"Are you implying that I’m old?" Ma Fei swallowed the last bite, grumbling at Feng Xuxu.
"I didn’t say it; you’re the one who said it," Feng Xuxu chuckled, giving Uncle Ma a look that said ’you are old.’
Feng Xuxu mooched a meal at Uncle Ma’s, and noticing the time was almost midday, she went to wait for Big Brother and Brother Yijiang at the back door of Zuiyun Pavilion.
"Big Brother, Brother Yijiang, I’m over here," Feng Xuxu called out as she saw Big Brother turn into the alley. She then ran a few steps forward to check the items on the ox cart. "Big Brother, did you buy everything?"
"We got everything, the bedding and all that, just didn’t buy clothes," Feng Xi, covered in sweat, answered his sister.
"Good, then let’s go buy some clothes and fabrics, and we can haul them back together on the ox cart." Then Feng Xuxu led the two men toward Yunyi Workshop.
