Splendid peasant girl busy farming

Chapter 12098

Si Xi also showed a simple and apologetic smile, and nodded slightly to the few potential customers who left empty-handed.

Seeing how tactful and approachable the young couple were, Old Yang and Yang Huaming exchanged glances again, both seeing the same thing in each other's eyes: this young couple, though young, were very good at handling things and had the makings of a business.

Xiu Hong made savory dishes for Old Yang and sweet dishes for Tan Shi. After presenting them to Old Yang with both hands, she sent another person, Sixi, to deliver them to Tan Shi at the carriage.

Next, she was going to start preparing for Yang Huaming and Liu Shi.

“Xiuhong, I like salty food, I want all kinds of dishes,” Liu said, pulling up her sleeve and pointing to the side dishes on the small table. Then she pointed to the fried dough sticks: “Wrap another fried dough stick inside!”

Xiu Hong looked up and smiled with a hint of difficulty: "Fourth Grandmother, it's not that I'm reluctant to part with that fried dough stick, but this rice ball can't hold that many, and it won't hold its shape."

"Even if you use more force, you still can't knead it?" Liu asked.

Xiu Hong was utterly speechless. She glanced at the glutinous rice at the bottom of the wooden bucket. "There's not much glutinous rice left. If we want it to take shape, we'll need to increase the amount of rice. That means we won't be able to make the rice ball for Fourth Grandfather..."

Yang Huaming waved his hand: "It's alright, it's alright, I'm not hungry, you can give it all to Fourth Grandma..."

Liu turned to look at Yang Huaming, very pleased with his generosity, "We can eat together later! As long as you don't mind my drool!"

Yang Huaming rolled his eyes. This woman, could she not be so blunt? It's really disgusting!

“Xiuhong, you’re going to do it, do it, listen to your fourth grandfather.” Liu Shi directly used Yang Huaming as a shield.

Helpless, Xiu Hong could only nod, scrape the last grain of glutinous rice from the bottom of the wooden bucket with a spoon, spread all the side dishes, fried dough sticks, and poached eggs on top of the rice, and began the arduous process of rolling, kneading, pinching, and pressing...

She has been open for almost ten days, and sells nearly 50 rice balls every day. In ten days, she has made nearly 500 rice balls in total, and her technique is already very skillful.

However, the rice ball that Xiu Hong was making for Liu was a challenge she was facing!

"If every customer had an appetite like my great-grandmother, I'd be exhausted!" Xiu Hong thought to herself as she made rice balls.

However, if that were the case, they would probably earn a lot!

The giant rice ball is finally ready. Liu held it in her hands; it was even bigger than the Northeastern Chinese vegetable rice ball!

"Wow, it's so big, where should I take the first bite?" Liu asked with a smile.

Just as Yang Huaming was about to offer some guidance, he saw Liu suddenly open her mouth wide.

I go!

Yang Huaming was almost frightened. He had known Liu for so many years, but he had never seen Liu's mouth open so wide when she opened it with all her might!

She was like the mouth of a giant python; the bones in her jaw seemed to suddenly loosen, and with one bite, half of the huge rice ball was bitten off!

No wonder they say pythons can swallow elephants!

This, this, this is simply... simply unbelievable!

"Do you want some? If you keep spacing out, I'll eat it all and leave none for you!" Liu's cheeks bulged out from being stretched, making her speech unclear.

Yang Huaming was still terrified by what he had just experienced. At this moment, his internal organs were filled with shock, and he had lost his appetite.

"You eat first, I'm really not hungry," he said.

Just then, Old Yang, who was standing nearby, suddenly pulled out a handful of copper coins and placed them on the stall table. "Xiuhong, this is the money for these rice balls. Please keep it safe!"

Xiu Hong and Sixi were shocked to see Old Yang actually settling accounts for a few sticky rice balls.

"Great-grandfather, this is unacceptable! This is a family treat to a meal, how can we accept money!" Xiu Hong picked up the money on the table and stuffed it back into Old Yang's hand.

Sixi nodded vigorously beside him, "We can't accept this, we can't accept this. This is just a small token of our appreciation!"

Despite his advanced age, Old Yang had considerable strength. In a back-and-forth struggle with Xiu Hong, Xiu Hong couldn't gain the upper hand!

Old Yang even had the energy to speak: "I appreciate your filial piety, but let's keep things separate. The money still needs to be given!"

Yang Huaming nodded in agreement, "That's right. Next time we go to your house, we won't pay for any rice balls, no matter how many we eat. But we should pay now at the stall!"

Like a big hamster, Liu was munching on a large rice ball with both hands. When she heard what Old Yang and Yang Huaming were saying, she nodded as she ate.

But his mouth was already full of food, so he couldn't make a sound.

However, Liu's eyes were not idle either. She estimated that the old man could get at least 20 copper coins by grabbing out that handful.

Although she was illiterate, she had done small business before, so she recognized a few basic characters. Therefore, when she saw the sign next to the stall, she roughly calculated the price of the three glutinous rice balls in her mind.

The old man and the old woman's rice ball together cost 10 copper coins. Even if my rice ball is extra large, it would only cost about 8 copper coins at most.

Giving Xiu Hong and the others a total of 18 copper coins would be very generous.

As a result, the old man grabbed a handful of coins, conservatively estimated at 20 copper coins, maybe more, nearly 30!
Tsk tsk, Xiu Hong has really struck gold again!

After a fierce and intense struggle, Old Yang and Yang Huaming emerged victorious, while Xiu Hong and Sixi were defeated.

After watching Old Yang, Yang Huaming, and Liu Shi board the carriage and continue their journey, Xiu Hong finally looked away after a long while.

"Sigh, although all the glutinous rice I brought today was sold, the 30 or 40 coins I earned all came from family and relatives, which makes me feel quite embarrassed!"

As Xiu Hong turned around to continue packing, she whispered to Sixi.

Si Xi understood Xiu Hong's meaning and comforted her, "Don't be embarrassed. Whether it's Uncle Luo or your great-grandfather, we sincerely wanted to treat them to dinner. We never thought about making money off them."

"They were just being too polite. They probably felt sorry for us since we're new to business, so they didn't want us to suffer any losses. We're all sincere people!"

Sincere people usually have one characteristic: they are unwilling to let the other party they deal with suffer a loss, and would rather suffer a loss themselves.

Xiu Hong gave Sixi a strange look and said, "You're usually so quiet, but now you're talking so eloquently."

"To be honest, I think what you said makes sense, but there's one thing I need to correct."

"Just a little bit?"

“You say both sides are sincere people, but my fourth grandparents aren’t so sincere,” Xiu Hong said. “Just now, those thirty coins came from my great-grandfather’s pocket. My fourth grandparents didn’t even intend to pay.” “In other words, either I or my great-grandfather will treat us to this meal. Anyway, it’s none of their business.”

Sixi carefully recalled the scene at that time, "Hey, that's really true. But since you're going to say that, I'll correct you a bit more based on what you said."

"Oh? There's something that can be corrected? Tell me about it." Xiu Hong looked up, her curiosity piqued.

Si Xi said with a smile, "Your fourth grandmother is very sincere when it comes to rice balls. She wants both savory and sweet ones. If every customer were as sincere as her, would we still have to worry about not having business?"

Xiu Hong suddenly remembered how Liu had held a huge rice ball in both hands, trying to open her mouth wide to bite it, stretching her cheeks so much that they looked like she had been stung by a wasp, and she burst out laughing.

She gently punched Sixi's shoulder: "Stop talking, are you trying to make me laugh until my stomach hurts?"

Si Xi chuckled and scratched his head. "Alright, alright, I won't say. So, what do we do next?"

"Of course, I should pack up the stall and go home to rest!"

"Aren't we going to eat lunch?" Sixi asked again.

Xiu Hong shook her head. "Eating at the shop is too expensive. Let's focus on opening up the source of income and cutting costs. There are still two bowls of leftover rice left from last night. We'll go home later, crack two eggs, and make fried rice. We also have two spoonfuls of pickled vegetables left today, so we can make do with the fried rice. Take a good nap this afternoon, and I'll take you to my parents' house for dinner tonight. We can save money wherever we can!"

As the two passed by the entrance of a blacksmith shop in town, Sixi paused for a moment.

"What's wrong?" Xiu Hong asked.

Si Xi hesitated, wanting to say something but then stopped, his eyes constantly glancing towards the blacksmith shop.

"Oh dear, you've become a silent gourd with its mouth sawed off again!" Xiu Hong rolled her eyes at him: "Are you still not giving up on the wire?"

Si Xi smiled ingratially, but still nodded vigorously.

These past two days, the couple set up a stall at the school gate before dawn. Once it was fully light and most of the students had entered the school, they would move their cart to Washikou to continue selling.

When I was stationed at Washikou, it happened to be the end of the month when the area held its big market.

Si Xi noticed that some mountain people were bringing wild game they had hunted in the mountains to Washikou. These mountain people seemed even more dull than he was, and they didn't know how to hawk their wares at all.

However, as soon as the mountain produce was brought over, customers would immediately gather around it, and it would be quickly devoured. The mountain people could barely say seven or eight words from beginning to end, and in the end, they would leave with pockets full of money.

Si Xi looked at it more and more and felt that this area had potential.

The couple relied on the mountains and rivers for sustenance, and while they seemed to be able to make a living by running this stall, in the long run, the stall was still too small.

As the man of the house, he can't always hide behind his wife, nor can he always rely on his in-laws to lend a hand.

He has to stand up on his own, earn money to support his family, his wife, and his children.

We can't have Xiu Hong feeling unwell one day and unable to set up her stall, leaving the family without any income that day, can we? That would be ridiculous!
So last night he mentioned to Xiu Hong that he wanted to sell the glutinous rice balls and buy some wire to make rabbit traps to catch rabbits in the woods and at the foot of the mountain.

It can both improve one's life and generate income, achieving two goals at the same time.

But when Sixi first mentioned it to Xiuhong last night, he was met with a denial from Xiuhong.

Xiu Hong had several reasons for her rejection: First, Si Xi had always followed his father and brothers to manage the farm work, and he was a complete novice when it came to hunting.

If you go into the mountains without experience, forget about catching rabbits. You won't even know where rabbits are, or what their habits and preferences are. How are you going to catch one?

Secondly, spring is just around the corner, and wild animals that have been dormant throughout the winter are gradually awakening and coming out to hunt for food.

The mountains are dangerous at this time of year. Three years ago, Uncle Shuanzi was killed by a hungry leopard while he was in the mountains!
Xiu Hong didn't want Sixi to suffer the same fate as her.

Thirdly, their small business has just started to take off, and Xiu Hong needs Sixi to help her, so she really doesn't have time to do anything else.

"Isn't it good to focus on doing one thing well?" At this moment, Xiu Hong smiled bitterly as she looked at Sixi, who was standing outside the blacksmith's shop, unable to move.

“If you’re indecisive, you’ll end up with nothing!” she added.

How much does wire cost? Even if it's a little more expensive, she can afford it.

She genuinely felt there was no need to buy it.

Si Xi sensed Xiu Hong's attitude and chuckled dryly, "I'm not indecisive, I just don't want to put all my eggs in one basket."

“Your intentions are good, but I explained the reason to you very clearly last night,” Xiu Hong said.

Her tone softened considerably, as if coaxing Sixi like a child: "Buying wire is actually very simple, let's just go inside."

"But the problem is, you have to learn how to catch rabbits and how to make rabbit snares first."

"Right now you don't know anything, you're just full of enthusiasm but nothing else. Even if I buy you seventy or eighty pounds of wire, it'll just sit in the corner and rust."

Although Xiu Hong's words were a rejection, they were not a complete rejection, leaving Sixi with a glimmer of hope.

A glint flashed in Sixi's eyes, and he no longer slumped like Yan'er. He immediately straightened his back and excitedly said to Xiuhong, "Don't worry, if I run into those hunters and mountain folk who come to the market again in the next few days, I'll go and ask them for advice on catching rabbits!"

Xiu Hong shook her head: "That won't do."

Si Xi was stunned for a moment, and just as the light in her eyes was about to go out again, Xiu Hong smiled and said, "You only have your mouth to ask for advice. Who would be so kind as to teach you?"

"I'll make you two sticky rice balls to take with you. When you're learning a new recipe from someone, you have to show some sincerity, right?"

Si Xi's eyes truly shone brightly this time, and he nodded repeatedly, his mouth agape with joy!

"Honey, you're so good to me. I'll definitely study hard, and once I've learned, I'll go catch rabbits and make money!"

……

Meanwhile, on the carriage, Liu's rice ball was really too big. While Old Yang and Tan had already finished eating their rice balls, Liu was still holding the rice ball and gnawing on it.

"These rice balls taste pretty good. Stuffing fried dough sticks and sugar into sticky rice makes them... taste surprisingly delicious!"

In the carriage behind them, Mrs. Tan, who had finished eating, shared her experience of the sweet rice balls with Old Yang.