Free Web NovelChapter 427: Chapter 225: Daughter
She and Xiu admired the turtles for a moment before Juhua said to Liu Sanshun, "Honestly, I’m just raising them for fun. They grow so slowly, and we don’t really know how to feed them properly. At this size, who knows how long it’ll take for them to grow up. Putting them in the fish pond is mostly to make up the numbers. At least it shows the pond has a little of everything: fish, shrimp, loaches, eels, turtles, and soft-shelled turtles—it’s not lacking a single thing."
Xiu found her words so amusing that she couldn’t help but let out a little laugh. But then she remembered Liu Sanshun was standing right there, felt it was improper, and her face flushed crimson. She stole a quick glance at the chubby boy and saw him smiling, pointing out fish to Juhua that she hadn’t seen before. He hadn’t noticed her at all. She finally relaxed, but for some reason, she also felt a pang of disappointment.
Liu Sanshun helped Juhua pour all the fish from the bucket into the fish pond. In the blink of an eye, the fish that had just been sharing a bucket scattered in all directions, disappearing from sight.
After releasing the fish, Sanshun squatted down and washed his hands in the pond.
He gazed at the lush reeds and calamus leaves growing around the fish pond. In the center, fresh, tender lotus leaves were just beginning to emerge. Some were still tightly curled, while others had just started to unfurl a narrow sliver, like a painted scroll slowly unrolling to reveal the full picture. The new water bamboo shoots were spreading across the water’s surface. Green duckweed, each piece no bigger than a fingernail, floated everywhere, linked together like a sheet of green floral fabric spread upon the water.
He turned his head, looking up at Juhua with a smile. "Your fish pond is really starting to look impressive. When the lotus roots are ready, you’ll have to let me try some."
Juhua looked at the still-sparse lotus leaves in the pond, her heart filled with joy and pride. She nodded at him. "I’m planning to clean out the pond at the end of the year and dig up some lotus roots at the same time. There were too few last year, not even enough to keep for seeding, so I didn’t dig any. But they’ll be ready to eat around July or August. The lotus roots are at their most tender then."
She then turned to Xiu. "Xiu, when the time comes, let’s go to the round pond to pick the water bamboo shoot greens and harvest the water bamboo shoots. We can just sit in a big wooden basin while we do it. Last year, Meizi, Mei, and I picked lots of the greens to eat, but you didn’t join us."
’This year, I’m definitely going to pick some water bamboo shoots to cook and eat,’ she thought. ’I wonder who ends up picking all of them from the round pond every year.’
Perhaps because Liu Sanshun was nearby, Xiu became extremely shy. Her face flushed as she nodded. "Okay! You have to remember to call me then. I... I don’t go out much. Just give me a shout whenever you’re doing anything. My mom won’t stop me if she knows I’m going out with you all."
Looking at Xiu’s bashful expression, Juhua thought, ’Is her mother just really strict, or is she naturally this shy? Either way, both Xiu and Cui are such gentle girls. I really like both of them.’
Liu Sanshun was used to his sister’s frank and adorable personality. Even Juhua, whom he had grown closer to, was generous and outgoing. He hadn’t really interacted with a girl as gentle and shy as Xiu before. Seeing her face flushed red, he felt a bit awkward on her behalf and didn’t dare to start a conversation, afraid that talking to a boy would only make her blush more.
’How come Zhou Xiaoman’s sister is so shy?’ he wondered.
In truth, delivering the fish fry was just an excuse; Sanshun had really just wanted to come see Juhua. After releasing the fish and making some small talk with her about fish farming, he stood up. "I should get going," he said to Juhua. "I don’t want to keep you from your work. It’s almost noon, aren’t you heading back? Be careful not to get a headache from the sun; it’s really hot out now."
Juhua smiled. "I’m heading back soon, there’s just a little left to plant. Thank you, Brother Sanshun. Sorry to make you come all this way."
Liu Sanshun chuckled. "It’s no trouble! In a few days, when the plums are ripe, come over to my place to have some." He thought for a moment, then added to Xiu, "Xiu, you should come too. My sister Mei often talks about you."
Xiu seemed not to have expected him to speak to her; she had been staring blankly at the lotus leaves in the pond. At his words, she nodded in a fluster, her face instantly flushing crimson again. The sight made Sanshun’s own face grow hot with discomfort, and he quickly grabbed his water bucket and fled.
Juhua found this amusing. ’Xiu is a good person, and Sanshun is too,’ she thought. ’Hmm, maybe there’s a spark there!’
In the afternoon, Huai Zi’s mother, He, came over to get some chili seedlings. After pulling them up, she planted them in the plot by their house’s foundation. That field was already planted with sweet potatoes, with soybeans growing along the edges of the furrows. Now, with chili peppers dotted here and there, it looked just as much of a hodgepodge as Juhua’s land.
Mrs. Yang helped her with the planting, and the two women chatted intimately as they worked.
