My Husband Comes from the Future
My Husband Comes from the Future Chapter 149.1

Chapter 149: Good News Continues 1/3

Ah Qing visited the chili peppers shortly after they were planted a few times, but eventually stopped, as he was clueless about farming and feared that offering suggestions might harm their growth. He even mentally prepared himself for the possibility of failure, especially considering the recent extreme heat.

But to his surprise, the chili peppers sprouted successfully? 

With the children off to school and Jin Xiaoye busy with her own work, Ah Qing decided to visit the chili pepper field.

“I’ll come too! I’ll come too!” Li Laogen immediately volunteered, then turned to Ah Qing. “Ah Qing, let’s get a boat.”

Although Ah Qing didn’t mind walking, he didn’t want to in the scorching heat. He waited in his backyard for a while and then hailed a passing boat.

On the boat, Li Laogen turned to Zhao Laosan and said, “Laosan, it’s been a while since you visited me.”

“Brother, I’ve been busy planting chili peppers recently and didn’t have much time,” Zhao Laosan replied with a simple smile.

“Is it troublesome to grow this stuff? How do you do it?” Ah Qing asked.

“In the summer, when it’s too hot, many things won’t grow. I was afraid they’d wither from the sun, so I made a straw curtain… ” Zhao Laosan explained. He had built a simple frame with bamboo strips over the chili pepper field and covered it with a straw curtain to provide shade. To cool it down, he watered the straw curtain several times a day.

Listening to Zhao Laosan’s explanation, Ah Qing understood that he must have put a lot of thought into growing these chili peppers.

“Uncle San, thank you very much,” Ah Qing said sincerely.

“I didn’t do much… Actually, I could’ve handled it myself. But you got two extra people… We were free, so we made a fence and set up a straw shed…” Zhao Laosan rambled on.

Ah Qing had hired people to plant the chili peppers, promising to pay them five hundred wen a month just for taking care of them. He didn’t expect them to be so dedicated, even building a fence and shed. Most likely, it was due to Zhao Laosan’s sense of responsibility.

Feeling grateful, Ah Qing resolved to treat Zhao Xiaodou better. Little did he know, Zhao Laosan was also thinking about putting more effort into caring for the chili pepper seedlings.

Zhao Laosan had always thought that his son could be a servant when he grew up, maybe even a shop assistant would be good enough. But then Ah Qing sent Zhao Xiaodou to school…

Given the current situation, Zhao Xiaodou might end up being in charge of Ah Qing’s shop in the future! This was such a huge favor!

Even though all he did was help with planting some vegetables, Ah Qing insisted on paying him five hundred wen a month. No matter how much effort he put in, it was well-deserved.

Ah Qing and Zhao Laosan had been chatting all this while, and finally, Li Laogen couldn’t bear it anymore. “Are you finished chatting?” he interrupted.

“We’re done,” Ah Qing replied, puzzled. “Dad, do you need something?”

“Yes! Laosan, I have something to tell you!” Li Laogen pulled Zhao Laosan aside. “Do you know what? I had dinner with Magistrate Gou a few days ago! Magistrate Gou came to our house, and we sat at the same table to eat…” Li Laogen had already told this story to several people recently, as he frequented the teahouse and the alleys, chatting with people multiple times a day. But he hadn’t told Zhao Laosan yet, so he had to share it now!

Zhao Laosan admired him greatly. “Brother, you’re amazing!”

“Laosan, I even talked to Magistrate Gou! Magistrate Gou praised me for raising such a good son…” Li Laogen felt like he could boast about this accomplishment for a lifetime.

Zhao Laosan was particularly supportive. “Brother, you’re too amazing!”

Li Laogen cleared his throat. “That’s nothing. Let me tell you something that will shock you!”

“What is it?” Zhao Laosan asked eagerly.

“I also had dinner with Governor Zhang, the one who killed Magistrate Yan of Linhu County. We sat at the same table too! Governor Zhang is particularly imposing, and his gaze is… well, let’s just say it’s menacing! People dare not speak in his presence, but I talked to him…” Li Laogen bragged about his “achievements”.

Ah Qing was speechless.

While it was true that Li Laogen had dinner with Magistrate Gou and Governor Zhang, he had kept his head down the whole time and barely said a word. He didn’t even dare to pick up the dishes and just looked pitiful. Both Magistrate Gou and Governor Zhang had tried to start conversations with him, but all he could manage were a few “uh-huhs”.

Both of them could tell Li Laogen was timid, so they didn’t speak to him again afterward. But now, Li Laogen was making it sound like he had had a great conversation with Magistrate Gou and Governor Zhang…

His father was really good at boasting!

Ah Qing didn’t bother to interrupt Li Laogen’s bragging. In fact, because Li Laogen’s stories were so exaggerated, most people didn’t believe him at all! Only Zhao Laosan believed everything he said.

They soon arrived at Ah Qing’s chili pepper field, which Zhao Laosan had taken good care of. He had built fences and sheds.

After looking around, Ah Qing noticed that the chili pepper seedlings had grown quite tall. Zhao Laosan asked Ah Qing, “Ah Qing, when we used to plant vegetables, if the seedlings grew this tall, we’d transplant them. Do you want to transplant them now?”

“Uncle San, let’s transplant some of them,” Ah Qing replied. “But let’s not transplant all of them. Leave some in their original spots.” Transplanting vegetables after sowing them can help them grow larger, but if not done properly, they might die during the process. So it’s best not to transplant all of them at once.

“Okay,” Zhao Laosan nodded.

At this moment, Li Damao came over to Zhao Laosan again, talking to him about the lantern festival, boasting about how much he bought at the festival and how he went to the festival every day with Magistrate Gou’s son.

Ah Qing could see what was going on. Despite the scorching weather, Li Damao insisted on coming along just to show off and brag in front of Zhao Laosan.

To allow Li Damao to boast a little longer, Ah Qing invited Zhao Laosan to have dinner with them at home. This way, Zhao Laosan could spend the afternoon talking to Zhao Xiaodou.

Ah Qing had asked Li Damao and the others about lunch. When he wasn’t around, lunch was usually simple, mostly consisting of dishes the female workers ate, with maybe some braised pork or chicken, at most a soup.

Now that he was home, he could make a bit more effort… Ah Qing made cucumber salad, preserved egg with tofu, stir-fried eggs, and a pot of winter melon, pork rib, and dried bamboo shoot soup.

Of course, there were also preserved meats! He sliced some and placed them on the table.

A table full of dishes suitable for summer was quickly prepared. When Zhao Laosan sat down to eat, Li Damao was still talking to him. “Laosan, the chair you’re sitting on has also been sat on by Magistrate Gou!”

Zhao Laosan almost didn’t dare to sit.

Jin Xiaoye couldn’t help but laugh and urged Fang Jinniang to eat more.

Recently, because of the hot weather, Fang Jinniang hadn’t been eating well and seemed a bit listless. But today, she ate quite a bit, especially enjoying the two cold dishes.

Seeing this, Jin Xiaoshu said to Jin Xiaoye, who came over to have lunch, “Xiaoshu, learn from your brother-in-law and make two cold dishes for Jin Niang for lunch in the future.”

Jin Xiaoshu agreed eagerly, looking at Ah Qing with hopeful eyes. “Brother-in-law, can you teach me?”

Many people are unwilling to teach their skills to others, but surely his brother-in-law would be willing to teach him?

“Sure.” Ah Qing explained how to make cold dishes.

There are many things that can be served cold, besides tofu and cucumber, there’s seaweed and fungus, and even if you buy some braised pig’s head from Juewei Zhai, slice it and serve it cold, it will taste delicious.

Leave A Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

@

error: Content is protected !!