Chapter 207: Don’t Be Afraid, Beautiful Lady
Tao-ya quietly shared the details of what had happened with her uncle’s family with Jian Xingxia.
Only then did Jian Xingxia realize the kind of people Lin Sanniang had to face upon her return.
“So how are things now? After getting the land back, has your uncle’s side tried to cause trouble? And what about your grandmother? Do you really have to take care of her every day?”
Jian Xingxia felt a wave of sympathy.
At twelve or thirteen years old, Tao-ya would only be a sixth-grader in the modern world. Yet, she had to care for her younger siblings—even though they were very sensible—learn embroidery, and now deal with a malicious old woman.
Jian Xingxia herself couldn’t bear to order Tao-ya around too much!
But Tao-ya handled it all with a positive attitude.
She lowered her voice further and whispered to Jian Xingxia, “Not at all. I took my brother and sister to the city gate to collect the relief porridge, and then we wept all the way to Uncle’s house, making sure the entire street saw us. We brought the porridge, which we couldn’t even bear to drink ourselves, straight to Grandmother.”
“Grandmother complained that the porridge was too thin, so she threw the bowl at me to smash it. I dodged it, and then I ran out crying.”
Naturally, after running out, she had no intention of going back.
Jian Xingxia gave Tao-ya a big thumbs-up. “How clever!”
Still, she worried whether Tao-ya and the others were getting enough to eat. “Does your family still need to collect relief porridge? Is there not enough grain?”
Tao-ya hastily shook her head. “No, no, we have plenty of grain. We eat until we’re completely full every day. Now that Mother sometimes goes back twice, we even eat three meals a day.”
Tao-ya’s smile was full of contentment and a touch of mischief. “Xing-ya, Shu-ger, and I hide at home every day eating delicious things, and Grandmother’s side has no idea. What’s more, by the middle of next month, we’ll be able to claim half the harvest from our family’s twelve mu of land!”
Jian Xingxia finally let out a sigh of relief.
Fatty Aunt, who had only one child of her own, absolutely adored A-feng and Tao-ya the moment she saw them.
After asking for Jian Xingxia’s permission, Fatty Aunt boldly set to work in the kitchen, preparing snacks for A-feng and Tao-ya. Upon hearing that Tao-ya had two more little siblings at home, Fatty Aunt clapped her hands. “That’s perfect. I’ve recently learned a few new snack recipes over the past couple of days. I’ll make them so you can take them home.”
Glancing around the kitchen, Fatty Aunt decided to make fried sweet potato fries and blueberry Chinese yam.
As for these fries, Fatty Aunt had heard about them from the tourists.
During the three days of the trial opening, Fatty Aunt’s culinary skills had received widespread acclaim.
However, there were always a few unconventional individuals who, after wandering around the mountain, would look around and mutter under their breath, “I don’t really want to eat this stuff; I want a burger and french fries!”
Fatty Aunt had no idea what a burger was, but she figured fries were just strips made from sweet potatoes, right?
Strips of sweet potato, deep-fried.
Fatty Aunt reckoned they ought to taste pretty good.
In this world, there was practically nothing that didn’t taste delicious after being deep-fried.
Why, even during locust plagues, wealthy families would catch locusts and deep-fry them for food.
Fatty Aunt said to Tao-ya and A-feng, “Today I’ll make you some fried fries, so you can taste what the distinguished guests enjoy!”
Tao-ya and A-feng jumped for joy.
They didn’t actually know what kind of food fried fries were, but neither of their families was wealthy. Wanting a filling meal usually depended entirely on whether heaven blessed them with food.
Now that food was available, and it sounded like it was fried to boot, how could they not be delighted?
The scholar was still instructing Lin Sanniang on how to place the flower pots, water vat, and fish tank delivered by Little Hu Liu into their proper positions.
After moving things around for a while, Lin Sanniang finally caught on. “Why am I the only one doing the heavy lifting? You’re a young fellow, aren’t you going to expend a bit of muscle?”
The scholar blinked. “I am a scholar…”
Fatty Aunt chanced to pass by and chimed in, “What’s all this about being a scholar or not? Once you come to the mountain villa, everyone is a worker! What’s that phrase the Villa Owner always says?”
A-feng chimed in, “We workers have strength!”
“Right, right, we workers have strength!” Fatty Aunt truly looked down on the scholar’s refined, frail physique that couldn’t even lift a chicken. “You’re a young lad; you should exert as much strength as you can. Look at Da-hei and Shang Yue, how hard they work!”
Since there were no guests at the villa today, Da-hei and Shang Yue were also able to come to the old house to rest and eat together.
By now, everyone could be considered well-acquainted.
Fatty Aunt particularly favored tall, sturdy-built men like Da-hei and Shang Yue… oh wait, they were tall enough, but neither could be considered sturdy just yet.
Nonetheless, Fatty Aunt was highly confident. “It won’t be long before I fatten them up properly!”
Fatty Aunt possessed plenty of experience in this regard.
Hearing mention of food, Da-hei and Shang Yue couldn’t help but salivate as well.
The two were busy working in the vegetable patch outside the backyard, fashioning a bamboo fence for the garden and laying down bricks to form a path.
The scholar looked at the two “giants” who were a good deal taller than him and shrank his neck. “How could I possibly have that kind of strength…”
But despite his grumbling, the scholar ultimately began lifting the flower pots and fish tank under Lin Sanniang’s arrangements.
While everyone else was busy, Jian Xingxia was still pondering: whom should she invite with this final reward slot?
Originally, it would certainly be better to save it for the official grand opening.
However, the reward slot provided by the system was only valid for a single day. If it wasn’t used today, it would expire and become void.
Therefore, she had to invite someone today no matter what.
After turning it over in her mind, Jian Xingxia decided to invite a newcomer. Almost all the familiar faces were already here, and Old Man Xu, who wasn’t present, lived a relatively stable life; currently, the villa didn’t have any tasks that aligned with his specific expertise either.
Given her relationship with him, wasting a valuable slot just to invite Old Man Xu over to hang out felt like a bit of a waste.
It had been a long time since a newcomer had joined the villa, and Jian Xingxia felt a flicker of anticipation. Why not, just as the scholar had suggested, invite a musician, a singer, or a dancer?
Once the villa opened officially, relying solely on natural scenery might not be enough; they would need some entertainment activities as well!
With this plan in mind, Jian Xingxia posted a new hiring notice.
[Hiring Requirement: One temporary worker. Job Description: Singing, dancing, cultural performances. Working Hours: 6 hours.]
With so many people at the villa today, Jian Xingxia had plenty of help and wasn’t worried about a newcomer causing trouble.
Furthermore, since the system mostly selected people experiencing hardships, extending the hours a bit might very well save a human life.
Thinking this way, Jian Xingxia took Tao-ya down to the foot of the mountain.
Yet, just as they reached the base, a panicked cry rang out: “Help! H-help me—”
Jian Xingxia’s eyes were sharp, catching sight of a figure darting behind a tree.
Tao-ya instantly grew alert, stepping in front of Jian Xingxia just as she had done when Da-hei first arrived.
“Who goes there!”
Perhaps it was the childish tone of Tao-ya’s voice that caused the figure behind the tree to lower her guard slightly.
The figure slowly revealed half of her face from behind the tree—only half, but it left both Jian Xingxia and Tao-ya utterly spellbound.
Tao-ya blurted out instinctively, “What a beautiful older sister.”
Jian Xingxia couldn’t help but gasp as well. She was truly… an incredibly delicate, natural, and elegant beauty!
The woman behind the tree wore a light, translucent outfit of cyan-green gauze, her long hair cascading down. A red beauty mark rested between her brows, and her eyebrows were slender and curved, currently knitted slightly in distress as she looked fearfully at Jian Xingxia and Tao-ya.
“Who… who are you?”
The beauty’s voice was ethereal and light, like a startled fawn stepping through the morning dew amidst a thin mist.
Jian Xingxia instinctively wiped at her non-existent drool, uttering the words that sounded most like a smooth-talking scoundrel in her entire life.
“Don’t be afraid, beautiful lady. I’m not a bad person…”
