Chapter 43 - Sweet and Cheap Watermelon

The people outside were envious when they saw the Shi family carrying bags of gifts because of their granddaughter, Gu Qingming.

They wondered how much stuff had been bought and how much it had cost. They had to be gifts that farmers like them could hardly afford.

Knowing that Gu Qingming was coming today, Big Grandpa, Little Grandpa, and some others also came over.

The three families gathered in Eldest Uncle’s courtyard and living room. The spacious place suddenly became crowded and lively.

After Gu Qingming met the elders of the three families, a slightly plump woman in a floral dress came over with a plate of cut watermelons. She looked at Gu Qingming and said with a smile, “Aiya, whose daughter is this? She’s so good-looking.”

Two young women followed her. They covered their mouths and laughed at their mother-in-law’s words.

Gu Qingming looked at the woman and greeted her with a smile, “Aunt!”

Her aunt’s expression turned fierce and she said in a slightly dissatisfied tone, “Tsk tsk, you still know that I’m your aunt. If you didn’t call me, I would have thought that you had forgotten about me. Otherwise, why didn’t you come to see me all these years?”

Gu Qingming immediately went forward and held her aunt’s arm. She said in an embarrassed manner, “How could I dare to forget you? I remember how much you dote on me.”

Her aunt glanced at her and said angrily, “You little girl, I didn’t dote on you for nothing!”

Gu Qingming put down her aunt’s arm and greeted her second and third aunts one by one.

Finally, she looked at her three aunts and said with a smile, “Eldest Aunt, Second Aunt, Third Aunt, it’s been a few years since we last met. I see that you’re getting younger and younger.”

Gu Qingming was telling the truth.

The three of them looked younger than before. Their skin was paler than before. In addition, they knew how to dress up better than before, such as doing up their hair and putting on lipstick.

A person would become beautiful as long as she dressed up a little.

Speaking of the reason, of course, it was because the days at home were getting better.

They had a house built, a car, a son who married a wife, another that went to university, and a son who had yet to marry but had a partner.

Her son and daughter-in-law were filial, and her grandson was lively and cute.

With less fatigue and less worry, one’s mentality would become young. One’s mentality would be young. One would look young.

Any woman liked to hear pretty things about being younger and prettier.

So did her three aunts.

His aunt smiled and said, “It’s been three years since we last met. Ming’er’s mouth is getting sweeter and sweeter.”

“Aunt, I’m telling the truth. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Grandpa and Grandma,” Gu Qingming said with a smile.

“Haha, Ming’er was right. You three sisters-in-law are indeed getting younger.” It was Big Grandpa who said this. “Look at you. You look like you’re only in your early forties. If you go out and say that you have a few grandchildren who are about to graduate from primary school, no one will believe you.”

In the countryside, many people got married early, at the age of 17 or 18. By the time they were 37 or 38, they were already grandparents.

However, as transportation and communications developed, more and more young people went out to work and grew knowledgeable, causing them to delay marriage.

There were fewer and fewer grandparents in their thirties or forties. Even if there were, they would even be jokingly called Young Madam. Gu Qingming’s three aunts looked like they were all worthy of that address now.

Her aunt picked up a piece of watermelon for Gu Qingming and said, “You must be tired from the journey. Come, eat a piece of watermelon first. We planted this watermelon ourselves. It’s sweet and grainy. It’s delicious.”

Gu Qingming held the watermelon helplessly.

She had checked online. Pregnant women had to abstain from watermelons.

She was careful with the child in her womb.

She couldn’t tolerate the loss of her child now.

Grandma was the first to notice Gu Qingming’s expression. She asked with concern, “Darling, what’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”

Gu Qingming looked at the circle of people outside. Then, she lowered her head and asked softly, “Grandma, can pregnant women eat watermelons?”

Grandma immediately understood Gu Qingming’s concerns. She smiled and said, “Don’t worry, Ming’er. We all know about your pregnancy. We will pay special attention to your diet. It’s not that pregnant women can’t eat watermelons, but they can’t eat too much. You can still eat this piece of watermelon.”

Gu Qingming’s fair face could not help but blush, feeling a little embarrassed.

Her grandmother and aunt clearly doted on her so much. How could they let her eat food that she should abstain from?

She had been too careful.

Her aunt looked at the watermelon in the basin and said with a smile, “This watermelon is the best when chilled in the well. It’s just that you can’t eat iced watermelons now.”

Gu Qingming took a small bite, and her eyes lit up.

This watermelon was really too delicious. Just as her aunt had said, this watermelon was sweet, grainy, and juicy. When she took a bite, the taste filled her entire mouth. It was delicious and comfortable.

“Delicious, so sweet!” Gu Qingming said sincerely and even gave it a thumbs up.

Grandpa smiled and said, “This watermelon is sweet, right? This was planted by our family. We’ve never used pesticides or any sweeteners. We use farm fertilizer and peanut residue. Everyone who has eaten our watermelon finds them delicious.”

“So, even if our watermelons are more expensive than others’, many vendors are still fighting for them.” Shi Yu smiled and said, “Cousin, if you like them, I’ll pluck them for you every day.”

As soon as he finished speaking, his uncle slapped him on the head and said angrily, “Does your sister want to eat it, or do you want to eat it yourself? Your sister can’t eat too much of it now.”

“Huh?” Shiyu was dumbfounded. “Why?”

As soon as he said this, he attracted his aunt’s attention again. “There’s no reason. If you can’t eat more, you can’t eat more, you silly boy. You’ll know when you get married.”

“Oh!” Shiyu touched the spot where his parents had slapped him and replied in confusion.

He really did not understand why his cousin could not eat more watermelons. It would be a pity not to eat more of such sweet watermelons.

When Gu Qingming heard her fourth cousin’s words, she was a little puzzled. “Sell? Grandma, do we grow a lot of watermelons?”

Grandma nodded. “Yes. Your eldest uncle’s family planted ten acres. Second Uncle planted twelve. Third Uncle planted less. Five acres.”

Although Gu Qingming did not understand how many watermelons there were in an acre of land, she knew the area.

When she heard her grandmother’s words, she said in surprise, “You planted so much?”

“Our family doesn’t have much,” Shi Yuxin said excitedly. “That Dachun family has a lot of plants. They planted 30 acres of watermelons.”

Gu Qingming was shocked again.

She asked curiously, “How much are these watermelons for?”

Eldest Uncle said, “That depends on the weather. If it’s hot and there’s no rain, we’ll sell it for a higher price. 80 or 90 cents, more than a dollar. If it’s cold and it rains all the time, the price will fall to 40 or 50 cents. One year, the price even fell to 10 or 20 cents, but no one wanted it. It can only rot in the ground.”

Gu Qingming widened her eyes and said in disbelief, “So cheap?”