Chapter 39

Chapter 39

While working on finding materials and building a trellis for the melon vines, Gu Jinchen also chopped down a few bamboo poles to make winnowing trays.

Originally, there were only two trays for sun-drying fruits. Now, with more fruits to be dried, those would not be enough.

With time on his hands, he casually made a few new winnowing trays.

But this time, with the increased quantity of fruits, it took almost two days to sun-dry them all.

"Husband, are you free now? Let me take your measurements."

The fabric she had bought previously was set aside, and now she planned to use this free time to make his clothes.

July had already passed for several days, and the intense summer heat had subsided. Soon, it would start to cool down, so she might as well make his autumn clothes directly.

"I'm free!"

Hearing this from outside, Gu Jinchen immediately stopped what he was doing and ran inside, obediently spreading his arms for her to measure.

"I noticed that your clothes often get torn at the armpits and shoulders. This time, I'll make the sleeves and sleeve joints wider. Does that work?"

He probably moved his arms a lot while hiking in the mountains, practicing martial arts, and hunting, which caused these areas to easily tear.

Every piece of clothing had patches in those two spots.

"Yes," Gu Jinchen nodded repeatedly.

"Umm...what I'm saying is, this is the first time I'm trying to cut clothes by myself. If I don't do it well, don't blame me."

Previously, she had always asked Wang Sister-In-Law for help with cutting, but it wasn't convenient to keep bothering her. She had to learn herself.

So this time, she decided to do it herself and set his expectations first.

"No problem, I'm not picky about these things. As long as I have something to wear, it's fine."

Hearing Luo Ge's words, the joy on his face was evident. He didn't expect that this would be her first time! He was the first to receive something made by his wife's own hands.

Hearing him say that, Luo Ge felt reassured.

"Okay, I've got your measurements. You can go about your work now. I should be done in a couple of days."

"Mm."

The trellis for the melon vines in the vegetable garden was completed, and the dried lychee fruits were also done. But Luo Ge mentioned that in the future, fruits from her space might also need to be dried, so many more winnowing trays would likely be needed.

Therefore, Gu Jinchen took the opportunity to make some more.

The slanting sun shone into the small courtyard. Luo Ge sat by the door, sewing clothes, while Gu Jinchen wove winnowing trays in the yard.

The two little ones played in the corner, entertaining themselves with the chicks they had caught the previous day from Auntie Luo's place. Everything painted a picture of peaceful tranquility.

Looking at his petite wife, then at the two carefree little ones, Gu Jinchen felt an overwhelming warmth in his heart.

This was his small family, filled with coziness...Reead latest chapters at novelhall.com

"Oh, by the way, you mentioned going to check on the rice seedlings today. How was it?" While fiddling with her needle and thread, Luo Ge suddenly remembered this matter.

They still had two or three rice paddies that hadn't been planted yet. Without elders to guide them, the two of them lacked experience, and the rice seedlings were sown a bit late.

Now, other families had already planted their rice seedlings, but theirs were still not planted. If it weren't for watering them from her space, they would have had to delay even further.

"I've looked at them, and they're ready to be planted now. I've already plowed the paddies. Tomorrow, I'll borrow Brother Wang's harrow and rake, and then we can plant after leveling the fields."

"Mm, okay."

She had seen those few paddies, and they weren't too large. At most, it would take two days to plant them all. Many other families had also just finished planting within the past couple of days, so they wouldn't be too late.

"Knock, knock!"

Just as they finished speaking, someone suddenly knocked on the courtyard gate.

Hearing Li Shopkeeper's question, Luo Ge smiled and stroked Older Baby's little head.

"I'm just an ordinary farmer's wife. Serving my husband and raising my children are my main responsibilities.

For now, I'm just taking advantage of this season to make some wild fruit preserves to earn a bit of pocket money. How could I have any major plans?"

"The reputation of our Fuxin Shop must be something Young Mistress Luo Ge has heard of. Young Mistress Luo Ge's culinary skills are truly admirable.

To be honest, our proprietor has the intention of inviting Young Mistress Luo Ge to work as a master chef in our shop, specifically overseeing preserved fruits and candied fruits. The monthly salary would be 20 taels of silver. I wonder what Young Mistress Luo Ge thinks of this?"

Seeing Li Shopkeeper's indirect probing of her thoughts, Luo Ge pondered for a moment and then spoke frankly.

20 taels of silver per month was indeed a very high price. If it were not for him emphasizing to the proprietor that aside from making dried lychees, Luo Ge also had other culinary skills, this price would not have been offered.

Regarding having other skills, Luo Ge had previously mentioned it to Li Shopkeeper when they were selling dried lychees. At that time, she did so to pave the way for the fruits from her space in the future.

Upon hearing this, Luo Ge was not too surprised. From his earlier build-up, she had already guessed this matter roughly.

Under Li Shopkeeper's expectant gaze, she gently shook her head.

"This young wife knows that this must be Shopkeeper's kind overestimation of me. To refuse like this is to turn down your good intentions, but this young wife truly does not wish to do so."

"However, if Shopkeeper trusts my skills, this young wife would still be very willing to continue our cooperation in the future. For example, your shop can provide the fruits, and I can process them into dried fruits, candied fruits, and the like.

In that case, I can also sign a contract with you."

Learn from our predecessors and sell recipes? Only profit once?

No, no, no, that would be too much of a loss. It's better for her to start a kind of processing plant and earn the price difference.

If they're willing to share the profits, selling the recipes is also fine!

Of course, all of this would depend on their willingness.

To become their master chef is pretty much the same as selling her recipes, so she naturally doesn't want that.

Although the method of making these dried lychees seems simple, the time management and other details are crucial.

If any single step is done incorrectly, it would be impossible to achieve these results, which is why it can be considered a real skill.

It must be said that upon hearing Luo Ge's words, Li Shopkeeper's heart wavered. When she refused to become a master chef at Fuxin Shop, his mood dropped.

But when he heard her subsequent words, he felt delighted again.

Since she was willing to help with the production, and he had witnessed the customers' positive reactions, he naturally trusted Luo Ge's skills and thought it was quite feasible.

However, he could not make this decision himself and would need to report back to the proprietor first.

With this in mind, he spoke plainly to Luo Ge.

"No problem. I'll go and discuss it further, and Young Mistress can await my good news."

She knew this was a significant matter, and it would not be resolved so quickly.

Moreover, she had only provided the dried lychees so far. They would still need to evaluate her other skills to see if they met their standards before making a decision, right?

"Very well, then Mr. Li will take his leave first."

"Alright."

Luo Ge gave Li Shopkeeper around ten pounds of the earliest batch of dried fruits, and Li Shopkeeper paid her two taels and seven maces of silver separately.

She said to count it as part of the deposit and not accept payment, but Li Shopkeeper insisted, leaving her no choice.

After seeing him off, Gu Jinchen pinched Luo Ge's nose playfully.

"Wife, how did you become so capable?" After Li Shopkeeper's visit, he knew their dried fruit business would be stable in the future.

"Is that so? But isn't it all because of you helping me, Husband?" Luo Ge tilted her head and smiled.

Hearing this, Gu Jinchen also smiled, and the two young ones looked at each other with a clueless expression.