The old lady was extremely embarrassed. "I'm so sorry to have made you all laugh at me... I never imagined there wouldn't be a place to eat in this scenic area..."
Upon hearing this, Shen Wuqiu simply smiled, glanced at her son eating around the table, and hesitated to suggest that he sit down and eat with her. After a moment of hesitation, she politely said, "You're too kind. If you don't mind, please have some with us."
"That's too much trouble," the old lady said, waving her hands repeatedly.
“What are you saying? Food is the most important thing for people.” Father Shen also stood up and gestured for them to sit down at the stone table. “Come and sit down here to eat. We don’t have any good dishes to offer you…”
"Meow~" The little ones looked up as their grandfather got up.
Only then did the old lady notice that several kittens were eating around the table, and she got up to look at them with interest.
Seeing her looking over, the kittens fearlessly met her gaze, sizing up the unfamiliar visitor. Sanmao even greeted her enthusiastically again with a "Meow~".
"Oh my..." The old lady was overjoyed. "This is the first time I've ever seen such a beautiful and intelligent cat."
"Grandma, you don't know, Snow White is really popular online now." When talking about cats, the old lady's granddaughter chimed in enthusiastically, "When we came here, the cat on those promotional posters on the roadside was Snow White."
When Gu Miaomiao, who had been sent to cut the watermelon, came out with the watermelon, she happened to hear this sentence and immediately corrected the little girl: "Our Sanmao is not named Baixue."
"Oh, right, right, she should be called the Third Princess." The little girl quickly corrected herself.
"Meow~" Sanmao was so excited when he saw the red watermelon, and he eagerly waited to be divided up.
Ever since Su Yunzhi bought a watermelon from Er Aizi and his friends, Sanmao has fallen in love with eating watermelon. However, her stomach is intolerant to watermelon, and she gets diarrhea every time she eats it.
Su Yunzhi placed the melon platter on the stone table and warmly pulled the old lady to sit down. "In our countryside, we don't have so many rules and regulations. As long as you don't mind, having a meal together is no big deal." As she spoke, she noticed her kittens and then seemed to remember something, "Don't be fooled by our kittens eating at the same table as us; they're very well-behaved. They haven't touched the food in their bowls..."
Who would have thought that the slap in the face would come so quickly?
Before Su Yunzhi could finish speaking, Sanmao, eager to eat the watermelon, started secretly reaching into the fruit plate to scoop some more watermelon.
"Sanmao!" Su Yunzhi exclaimed awkwardly, "Well... this little rascal just loves eating watermelon..."
"Hahahaha..." The old lady laughed from ear to ear. Seeing Sanmao shrinking back with a pitiful look, she quickly picked a piece from the fruit plate and placed it in front of her. "Eat it."
Sanmao glanced at the watermelon, then at Su Yunzhi, and then secretly at Shen Wuqiu. He stretched out his foot and poked at the watermelon, wanting to eat it, but only licked his lips and then glanced at his eldest sister.
"Meow~" Sanmao felt wronged, but still reluctantly pushed the watermelon further away, then jumped off the high stool and ran away.
"..." The old lady was very surprised. "What is this?"
"The little one has a sensitive stomach; she got diarrhea after eating watermelon, so we usually don't let her eat it at home," Shen Wuqiu explained, before inviting the family to sit down for dinner again.
"This is truly amazing," the old lady exclaimed.
"What's so strange about that? Don't you even know whose child he is?" Gu Miaomiao was a little smug seeing their bewildered expressions.
"..." Shen Wuqiu rolled her eyes inwardly and tugged at her, "Go and get a few more sets of bowls and chopsticks from the sterilizer."
"Oh, please don't be so polite. We already feel bad for disturbing your family's meal." The old lady quickly stood up to refuse.
Su Yunzhi pressed her back down, "Is it because you don't like the food? Tell me what your taste is like, and I'll cook a few more dishes for you."
"This..." The old lady waved her hands repeatedly, but seeing how hospitable the family was, she stopped refusing. "Then I'll trouble you."
Since the old lady had said so, the younger generation in her family naturally stopped putting on airs and took their seats.
Da Mao looked at the table, which was completely full of people, meowed at Shen Wuqiu, and then jumped down with A Shu and Er Mao.
"Good boy/girl." Shen Wuqiu patted Da Mao's head, then helped them take the unfinished porridge back to the living room.
"Oh my, I've really seen something amazing today." The old lady and her family were all smitten with the spirited cats, especially the little girl. "Sister, you definitely wouldn't sell such cute cats. Can you tell me where you bought them?"
"..." Shen Wuqiu didn't know how to respond.
Gu Miaomiao was much more confident, "Give up, you can't buy it."
These words were a bit too blunt and hurtful, so Shen Wuqiu quickly tried to smooth things over, saying, "They're just pets we raise ourselves."
The young girl was sensible and didn't press the matter further.
The old lady and her family consisted of five people, young and old. They must have cooked too little rice, so Su Yunzhi cooked another pot of rice and stir-fried two new dishes. This made the old lady and her family feel very embarrassed. After the meal, the old lady and her family insisted on paying for the meal.
Shen Wuqiu declined several times before the old lady finally gave in, saying, "I'm really sorry to have troubled your family today."
"I told you not to be so polite. As the saying goes, fate brings people together even from a thousand miles away. This is also fate." Mr. Shen was used to taking a nap, so when there were guests, he asked Su Yunzhi to brew a large pot of tea. He and the old lady's son sat in the yard chatting. When they heard that the other party knew how to play chess, they immediately invited the family to stay and rest a little longer.
The old lady's family didn't postpone it; both families gathered in the courtyard to chat.
During the meal, Su Yunzhi served homemade zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) and freshly picked bayberries as dessert. The old lady ate them with great relish, especially the bayberries. Upon hearing that Shen Wuqiu had a bayberry orchard, she immediately took down Shen Wuqiu's phone number, saying she wanted to introduce clients to her.
The two families chatted happily until four o'clock in the afternoon, when the old lady's family finally took their leave.
The old lady and her family had just gone down the mountain when Zheng Xinghe brought Zhou Xingxing back.
I don't know how the two of them fared from watching the dragon boat race today. They were both silent when they came back. Zheng Xinghe dropped them off at home, but without even getting out of the car, he drove off on his flashy motorcycle.
"Oh my, have you fallen for each other?" Su Yunzhi teased Zhou Xingxing, noticing her reluctant gaze as she left. "Look how red your little face is."
"It's from the sun." Stephen Chow said coquettishly, putting Si Mao down from his arms. "Nothing happened between us."
"Tsk tsk tsk, we haven't even said anything yet," Shen Wuqiu teased her. "Is this what they call love at first sight?"
Gu Miaomiao said in a serious tone, "We also fell in love at first sight."
Shen Wuqiu ignored her and went to talk to Zhou Xingxing: "How did you two get along today?"
Stephen Chow said shyly, "Oh, what do you mean by 'how well we got along'? We just went to watch the dragon boat race together..."
Si Mao suddenly interjected, "Meow~"
Su Yunzhi couldn't understand cat language, but Gu Miaomiao and Shen Wuqiu could.
Shen Wuqiu stared at her with wide eyes: "Is it progressing so quickly?"
"What do you mean by rapid progress?" Stephen Chow feigned ignorance. "We just came to see..."
Gu Miaomiao: "Si Mao said you kissed someone."
“…Ah…” Zhou Xingxing was about to collapse. He looked at Shen Wuqiu and then at Simao. He was almost crying. “Nonsense.”
Si Mao ran off in a flash.
"Really, no..." Seeing everyone's obvious disbelief, Zhou Xingxing had no choice but to give in and explain, "There were just too many people watching the dragon boat race, and everyone was pushing and shoving. In order to protect Si Mao, I... I accidentally got bumped into..."
Gu Miaomiao: "Don't explain, I knew you had ulterior motives for taking Simao out."
"..." Stephen Chow was so choked up he almost couldn't catch his breath. "I'm too lazy to talk to you."
Gu Miaomiao got up from the rocking chair and stretched lazily. "Don't deny it. I could smell it in the car."
Stephen Chow: "What does it taste like?"
Gu Miaomiao: "The smell of you humans in heat."
"..."
Seeing that Stephen Chow was about to lose his temper, Shen Wuqiu quickly sent the silly cat away, "Si Mao has been out running all day, go and help her wipe herself down."
Although reluctant, Gu Miaomiao obediently went to wash her daughter.
Zhou Xingxing stood there and took three deep breaths to calm herself down. After calming down, she raised her arm, smelled it, and then asked Shen Wuqiu, "Is it really that obvious?"
"???"
"Cough cough...Does it really have a smell?"
Shen Wuqiu thought for a moment and said truthfully, "Lingyu and her group have a more sensitive sense of smell."
Stephen Chow licked his dry lips. "So... is it that obvious that it's love at first sight?"
"So, you've really fallen for her?"
Stephen Chow was a little embarrassed, "I do have a little bit of a crush on you..."
Hearing her admit it herself, Shen Wuqiu felt a little conflicted. On one hand, she was happy that her straight best friend had found someone she liked, but on the other hand, she was a little worried, since her daughter's crush was her rival in love.
Seeing her ever-changing expression, Stephen Chow was somewhat displeased: "What kind of expression is that?"
"I just feel like you've gained this favor so easily..."
Stephen Chow, carefree and without much thought, chuckled and said, "Love comes too fast, like a tornado..."
"..."
*****
Not long after Zhou Xingxing returned, Shen Yan brought Secretary Cao, Secretary Fang, and others to the village. After making a brief visit to Lao Du's Gesang flower base, they headed straight for the Yangmei Garden in Xishan.
Since several leaders had already gone, Shen Wuqiu naturally had to go as well. Because she was worried that no one would help her pick the bayberries, she called Gu Miaomiao and Zhou Xingxing over as well.
Nourished by the bright sunshine during the day, the bayberries on Xishan Mountain looked even redder in the afternoon.
Secretary Cao and other grassroots cadres often go to the countryside, so seeing this kind of orchard is not surprising. However, Secretary Fang's family members were very excited. As soon as they entered the orchard, they couldn't wait to grab baskets and pick bayberries.
After tasting the bayberries, Mrs. Fang, dressed in a cheongsam, couldn't sit still. Every now and then, she would jump up to pull at the branches and pick a few. The woman, who usually appeared dignified and elegant, was quite unreserved at this moment. She would casually wipe the bayberries she picked with a tissue and put them in her mouth, praising them repeatedly: "No wonder my old lady still misses these bayberries. Last year, I happened to be traveling and didn't get to try them. I thought it was because she was picky, but now I know that after eating bayberries like these, her palate has become quite discerning!"
"You're quite capable, young lady. You've really grown these bayberries well. I'm afraid your bayberries will be the grand finale at our city's bayberry festival this year." Secretary Fang strolled around the bayberry orchard, not idle, occasionally picking a couple of bayberries from the tree and popping them into his mouth. "However, if everyone eats your bayberries, I'm afraid they won't be able to eat any other bayberries in the future."
Shen Wuqiu smiled and said, "It's not as exaggerated as you make it out to be."
"I'm not exaggerating. My old lady got addicted to last year's batch of bayberries. This year's bayberries are even better than last year's, but I can't quite put my finger on why. In short, you don't have to worry about selling the bayberries in your garden."
"Then I'll take your kind words."
"However, I'm also telling you seriously, there will be a bayberry festival in the city in mid-June. I'll talk to the higher-ups and see if we can use the name of your Jingrong Village to participate in the exhibition. Don't worry, although it's in the name of the village, the profits will still be yours personally."
Fearing that Shen Wuqiu might not understand the implications, Shen Yan took the initiative to explain to her, "If we could participate in the exhibition, that would be even better. Right now, the government is strongly supporting township enterprises. If we can participate in the exhibition, the government will definitely allocate funds to support our subsequent planting."
The implication is that if the bayberries from Xishan can be featured in the county's bayberry festival exhibition hall, they will not only open up new markets but also receive government support. However, most of the bayberries featured in the city's bayberry festival belong to township collective industries, not privately contracted industries like this.
However, in the past two years, there has been an increase in privately contracted planting, and in order to promote the local planting industry, various regions will also report privately contracted plantations in the form of collectives.
Shen Wuqiu was very grateful for the secretary's kindness, saying, "If that's possible, that would be wonderful."
“Your bayberries are fine, I just don’t know if they’ll make it in time.” Secretary Fang didn’t mince words and told her the truth. “Didn’t the customs have a new policy last year that bayberries can be exported? If your bayberries can be included in the bayberry festival, then exporting them won’t be a problem.”
If it becomes an export product, it will naturally become a brand, and then large buyers will come to purchase it, making harvesting and selling much easier.
Shen Wuqiu made a quick decision: "Then I'll have to trouble Secretary Fang to put in a lot of effort."
Secretary Fang waved his hand and joked, "Your bayberries are so good, I'm just afraid that once they become a big brand for export, we won't be able to eat them anymore."
"Look at what you're saying! As for these bayberries, you can come and pick them whenever they're ripe."
"Then it's settled."
As the group chatted, Gu Miaomiao quickly filled about ten small picking baskets.