Chapter 660: Chapter 432: Grapes
Potatoes actually have to be cut into pieces and planted, as long as each piece has an eye on it.
This planting method also really broadened Wei Ziang’s horizons, but thinking about it, sweet potatoes are transplanted from vines, too, so it didn’t seem that strange.
The two of them didn’t do anything else all afternoon, just ran all over the nearby hills, burying a few pieces here and throwing a few pieces there.
They even used Spiritual Energy, directly running to mountains several kilometers away, planting some there, then running back.
By the time it was getting dark, the two of them had already planted several hundred kilos of potatoes here and there, and even Xiaomi was quite surprised—thinking it over, it didn’t feel like they’d planted that many.
"It’s getting late, let’s head back."
Wei Ziang stretched lazily; they’d been running around all afternoon, and his Spiritual Power was almost completely used up.
Xiaomi nodded. "Ling’er has already gotten the popsicles ready. When we’re almost home, we’ll find a place to take them out."
If they took them out too early, they’d melt; too late and the Forbidden Army would be on patrol, so they had to get the timing right—at least take them out before the Forbidden Army saw the two of them.
So after a bit of discussion, they took a detour onto the official road behind the village, and only when they were almost at the village entrance did they take out the large bamboo baskets Ling’er had prepared.
Wei Ziang had already called people over; he happened to run into two Forbidden Army soldiers patrolling at the village entrance and asked them to help carry the baskets.
In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the big bamboo baskets were carried back. Wei Ziang told them each to take one popsicle for themselves, just leave the bamboo tubes, then took a few more back for his parents.
On the other side, Xiaomi delivered the rest to the other hundred-some villagers. No matter where they used to live or what their lives had been like, they were all registered residents of Anning Village now.
The two Forbidden Army soldiers who’d carried the baskets left as soon as they’d set things down, and Xiaomi called everyone who had already come home over to get theirs.
By the time Xiaomi dragged a basket of bamboo tubes back, she happened to hear her parents asking Wei Ziang questions.
"Mom, Xiaomi and I bought these ourselves. We just happened to run into someone hauling two carts of them on the official road, so we thought we’d buy some back for everyone to try."
The head Xiaomi had just poked out snapped back in an instant, but clearly, it was already too late.
"Xiaomi’s back?"
Jiang Yu’s unhurried voice came from inside the house.
Xiaomi walked in with an awkward laugh.
In the afternoon, her brother had already told her that their eldest brother was too sharp; he’d seen right through them at a glance. Basically, aside from the part about the space not being confirmed, he already knew everything else.
Of course, not confirmed didn’t mean he hadn’t guessed.
"Big Brother, how is it, does it taste good?"
She glanced around. It seemed like no one was especially suspicious; their mother’s questions to her brother sounded like casual curiosity, and everyone was currently focused on eating popsicles.
The popsicles were big. Each person had one in a small bowl, taking light bites and eating slowly.
"The taste is pretty good," Jiang Yu was eating very neatly and politely as well. "It’s just that, if they were a bit smaller, that’d be better. With such a big one, I probably won’t feel like eating dinner later."
As soon as he finished speaking, Second Aunt shot him a glare. "You should be grateful we even bought them for you. And you’re still being picky."
Jiang Hu snorted twice, gave Xiaomi a meaningful look, then properly went back to eating his own.
Xiaomi let out a quiet breath of relief. Good, good. Just like her brother had said, only their eldest brother knew. As for the others, whether they truly didn’t know or were just pretending not to, at any rate they weren’t going to press them on it.
Still, Big Brother was too scary—he’d actually chosen this moment to rattle her like that.
"Xiaomi, hurry over here. Yours is still over here. After you finish and rest a bit, we’ll be having dinner."
Second Aunt scolded the eldest, then called Xiaomi over. Xiaomi ran over in little hops, and as she passed her eldest brother, she even made a face at him.
Jiang Yu could only shake his head.
Jiang Hu had already finished his in a few big bites. He came over with a wooden basin, scooped up the crushed ice from under the bamboo basket Xiaomi had dragged back, and filled the basin with it.
"I’ll put this under the dining table. We’re having soup today. With this ice, it won’t be so hot while we eat."
The nights here actually weren’t that hot, but there was nothing they could do about it at mealtimes, especially when drinking soup—sweat would roll down in big drops.
If they had some ice on the table, it would feel much cooler.
The sky wasn’t completely dark yet; everyone was sitting in the courtyard, eating popsicles and cooling off. It couldn’t have been more comfortable.
Second Aunt asked Xiaomi and Wei Ziang what they’d been up to in the afternoon, why they’d gone off without saying anything. If someone hadn’t told them, they would have thought the two had been napping in the house the whole time.
The main thing was, the two of them had gone out empty-handed and come back with nothing but popsicles, which was a bit strange.
In the past, whenever they went out, it was always to hunt, and they’d bring game back.
Fortunately, they’d already prepared an excuse.
"Mom, we didn’t really do anything. It was just hot at home at noon, so I asked Brother to take me to the river to cool off. We just accidentally walked a bit too far. We’d planned to catch some fish, but we forgot to bring any tools."
"You... it’s still fine if you’re going out with Ziang, but once your brother leaves, don’t go running all over by yourself, especially don’t go to the river alone."
Xiaomi nodded repeatedly. "Don’t worry, Mom, I know. When the river rises, it’s really scary. I wouldn’t be that stupid."
Second Aunt was slightly reassured. "That’s good. But even if you go somewhere else, you still have to tell the family first."
"Okay, I got it, Mom. I definitely won’t be running around on my own."
After they finished their popsicles, everyone sat in the courtyard a while longer before going to eat.
There really was soup that night. The small fish they’d caught in the afternoon had been boiled into a big pot of milky-white, rich fish soup. The fragrance was everywhere and extremely tempting.
They ate while talking about the popsicles from earlier, especially the grapes inside the popsicles.
Back in Xiangmu Village, they themselves had planted a lot of grapes and had been eating them for years. Every year when the grapes were harvested, they couldn’t meet the demand, and the price was especially high.
Many people said their grapes were even tastier than the ones shipped in from outside, and most importantly, they were fresh!
After all, even with ice to keep things cool and extend the grapes’ shelf life, the journey was long.
But their grapes were fresh; they could eat them right after picking them off the vines.
Since grapes weren’t hard to grow, and because they needed pruning every year, the branches they cut off were picked up by people who wanted to use cuttings to grow their own vines.
They believed that before long, there would be plenty of grapes around Cheng County.
Of course, there would be some here as well, because the branches cut off during this year’s pruning would be brought over here to be used as cuttings.
But that wasn’t the main point. What surprised everyone more was that the grapes inside today’s popsicles were even tastier than the ones they themselves grew.
Wei Ziang and Xiaomi listened to everyone’s discussion, nodding along vigorously in agreement—yes, yes. As for who had sold these grapes and how they’d been grown, they claimed to know absolutely nothing.
Only Jiang Yu seemed to sigh a little and say that it would be great if they could buy those grapes again next time.
Xiaomi and Wei Ziang exchanged a glance.
They both felt that what their eldest brother had just said was deliberately meant for them to hear.