Chapter 201: Professor Wen’s Lecture Time
Humming a little tune, Wen Yao walked toward the fields. From afar, she could see Professor Wen squatting in the middle of a plot, with a crowd of people gathered around him.
Oh, so Professor Wen’s mini-classroom was in session?
As she drew closer, Wen Yao looked at Wen Xiuyi, who was surrounded in the center talking eloquently. She suddenly recalled the time right after her mother passed away in their previous life. There was no one to look after her and her brother, so Professor Wen had no choice but to take the two of them along with him whenever he went to work.
Back then, Professor Wen and his colleagues frequently went down to the countryside to teach the villagers how to farm. She and her brother would play in the fields. At that time, Professor Wen was surrounded by everyone just like this, answering questions one by one as they were raised.
She had thought that after arriving here, the trajectory of their lives would change. Yet, it seemed that both Professor Wen and Doctor Wen had found their own life paths.
As for her, the greatest goal in this life was to make money, make money, and make even more money.
“Dad, busy?” Thinking that business shouldn’t be delayed, Wen Yao squeezed her way in and smiled.
Seeing Wen Yao arrive, the villagers stopped asking questions, and Wen Xiuyi also looked toward her. “Why did you come out here?”
“I have something to talk to you about,” Wen Yao said directly.
Hearing this, the surrounding villagers all spoke up with smiles, “In that case, Scholar Wen, go ahead and attend to your business first. We’ll come back later.”
“Right, right, right. We’ve troubled Scholar Wen for half the day already. Let’s head back to our own fields and take a look first.”
“Thank you, Scholar Wen.”
Being thanked by everyone left Wen Xiuyi a bit embarrassed. He waved his hand. “It’s nothing, it’s nothing. We’re all fellow villagers. If you have questions, just feel free to come and ask.”
Only after the crowd dispersed did Wen Xiuyi clap the dirt off his clothes and come over to Wen Yao. “What is it?”
“Dad, I have to say, you look exactly the same now as you did when you used to go down to the countryside.” The only difference was that his face looked a bit different, hahaha.
Wen Xiuyi gave her a reproachful glare and said, “Out with it, what’s the matter?”
Wen Yao explained what Uncle Qin and Old Madam Luo had said this way and that.
“This…” Wen Xiuyi still frowned subconsciously, but he recovered very quickly. He nodded. “Alright then, we’ll go make another trip to see Old Deng.”
His daughter was right; he had to slowly get used to and adapt to these things.
After dinner, Wen Yao brought out the trial samples as usual. The types of fruit available for purchase in Yunwu Town were too limited, and the fruits inside her space couldn’t be brought out to use, as that would be far too conspicuous. After all, the household now had two more outsiders, plus Xie Anyi and Jin Xiuyi, who had already moved in to practice martial arts every day.
“Sister Yao’er, what is this called? It’s so delicious, much better than all the previous ones.” Jin Xiuyi held his cup and took a huge gulp, feeling nothing but the aroma of milk in his mouth. It was icy cold and had mung beans inside, making it exceptionally effective at beating the heat.
After drinking, he couldn’t resist licking his lips.
Jin Xiuyi acted as the spokesperson for the others, and everyone nodded along one after another.
Wen Yao raised her head proudly. “This is called Mung Bean Milk Ice. It has milk, mung beans, and shaved ice inside. How is the texture? Is there anything that needs improvement?”
Datou, Jin Xiuyi, Xie Anyi, and Wen Ying—the four youngest—shook their heads like rattle-drums.
The others also shook their heads. They simply thought it was delicious. After all, it was sweet and icy, so it tasted wonderful no matter what. Aside from “delicious,” they couldn’t find any other words.
On the contrary, Li Yi, who had remained as quiet as a mouse the entire time, offered a comment after tasting it carefully, “It is slightly too sweet. The main components of this drink should be the milk and mung beans. If it is too sweet, it will instead cause people to overlook their inherent flavors. If the sweetness is reduced just a bit, it might be slightly better.”
The term “sweetness level” was something Wen Yao had taught them over the past few days, and Li Yi had adopted it very quickly.
Wen Yao’s eyes lit up. She directly pulled over a stool to sit right in front of him, asking, “What else? Taste it more carefully.”
A kindred spirit! Sure enough, one still needs to communicate with someone who knows how to eat.
Being stared at so suddenly by Wen Yao, a faint warmth instantly rushed to Li Yi’s cheeks. He forced himself to remain calm and continued to taste it.
“The cooking time for the mung beans is slightly off; they aren’t soft and smooth enough.”
“Mm, what else?”
“Has the milk been processed? It is not the original flavor, though it is quite good this way. It removes a lot of the gamey odor.”
Wen Yao nodded. “What else?”
Li Yi finished the entire cup.
“Nothing else. Miss Wen, this drink is excellent,” Li Yi said shyly.
Wen Yao earnestly noted down the areas that needed improvement and grinned. “As expected, we still have to rely on Young Master Li. I’ll alter it again tomorrow. It’s just a pity that the milk Sister Qiu sent over is a bit too sparse; I’ll have to trouble her to get more. Also, the variety of fruits is far too limited. It’s still more comfortable in the south, where the fruit varieties are numerous and there’s so much more that can be made.”
Wen Yao was muttering to herself subconsciously, but it was caught by Li Yi’s ears.
“Is milk very difficult to obtain here?” Li Yi asked.
Wen Yao nodded. “I heard from Sister Qiu that very few people raise dairy cows in Yunwu Town, so it’s very difficult to get fresh milk. If the milk is brought in from other places, the long journey means there’s no way to guarantee its freshness. Therefore, I don’t plan to make too many products that contain milk.”
Li Yi frowned slightly. He liked these drinks with milk very much; they tasted wonderful. He could be considered someone who rather enjoyed drinking milk.
Li Yi shot a glance toward Xun Feng, and Xun Feng understood in a split second.
“Miss Yao’er, that’s simple. Just get some dairy cows to raise yourselves, and then you’ll have as much milk as you want,” Xun Feng said.
Wen Yao tucked her little notebook away. “You make it sound easy. The buying and selling of cattle must all go through the government office, let alone dairy cows. Being able to raise one or two is already amazing.”
Xun Feng raised his eyebrows. The government office? His young master was well acquainted with that.
Receiving a look of indication from Li Yi, Xun Feng began to show off. Clearing his throat, he said, “Well, Miss Yao’er, to tell you the truth, toward the direction of the capital, my master… our mistress has a manor, and quite a few dairy cows are raised inside. Right, Young Master?”
Xun Feng very appropriately tossed the words back to Li Yi.
Li Yi caught it in a split second, nodding. “Indeed. My mother has a manor that raises quite a few dairy cows, specifically to supply those nobles in the capital. If you truly wish to raise them yourself, I might be able to help.”
“Really?” Wen Yao’s eyes lit up, but on second thought, her enthusiasm deflated again. “Forget it, forget it. I’ve already troubled Young Master Li enough, so I won’t trouble you further.”
Xun Feng: My young master isn’t afraid of trouble at all!!!
“Miss Yao’er, since my young master has said so, don’t stand on ceremony with him. It’s not some major matter either, right, Young Master?” Xun Feng hurriedly nudged Li Yi.
Li Yi pursed his lips and nodded. “Mm.”
Then he added another sentence, “These past few days, I heard Grandpa Wen mention that you want to plant fruit trees on the mountain. I can also help you find a way regarding the tree saplings.”
Looking at Li Yi, Wen Yao suddenly felt a massive urge to kowtow to this buddy.
“Young Master Li, will it really not trouble you?” Wen Yao said with a bit of embarrassment—ignoring, of course, the fact that her jaw was splitting into a wide grin that reached all the way behind her ears.
Li Yi smiled faintly, like a gentle spring breeze. “No trouble at all.”
