Chapter 157 (1/2)
Chapter 157: 157
Early in the morning, a large red sun rose from the sea to the sky . The sea breeze gently blew on the waves, which softly beat against the golden beach . At this time, the tide had receded, so the hard-working villagers of the fis.h.i.+ng village had brought along their tools to search for seafood by the sea with their friends and family .
In the spring, the sea water felt cool and refres.h.i.+ng as it brushed against the fishermen’s bare feet . The selfless sea had nurtured generations after generations of fishermen . At this time, there were countless gifts from the sea on the sh.o.r.e, waiting to be excavated by the fishermen like treasures .
“Xiaocao—Xiaocao—” Zhou Shanhu’s clear voice had crossed over the high wall and traveled into the Yu Family’s courtyard . The little girl’s slender figure quickly appeared at the entrance of the yard . Xiaocao and Xiaolian, who were busily working in the vegetable garden, looked at her at the same time .
Zhou Shanhu was slightly stunned as she looked at the two identical faces . She blinked her big eyes and laughed awkwardly and said, “Xiaolian is also at home ah! That’s even better!! I have good news for you guys!”
Xiaolian pursed her lips and asked, “What’s the good news that made you so happy? Did your mother also arrange a good marriage for you?”
Zhou Shanhu’s older sister Zhou Linglong had just gotten engaged last month . Her fiancé was the son of a general store owner . This general store owner also started out as a street peddler like Linglong’s father . He was a clever man, so he had quickly saved up a fortune and rented a shop in town to sell general goods .
The general store owner had a good relations.h.i.+p with Zhou Linglong’s father, so the two families had a close relations.h.i.+p . Right now, most of the goods sold by the Zhou Family were supplied by the general store . There was a son in that family who was around the same age as Zhou Linglong, and they had also met before when they were younger . He was a good-looking young man . It was almost a matter of course for the two families to become in-laws . Zhou Linglong was now embroidering her dowry at home and waiting to get married . Zhou Shanhu wasn’t someone who could stay idle, so she often came over to the Yu Residence to bother Xiaocao . Well, who knew what trifling matter she was going to exaggerate about now .
Zhou Shanhu was a year older than Xiaocao and her sister . The ten year old girl already knew when to feel embarra.s.sed . She glared at Xiaolian with a flushed face and said, “Xiaocao, you’re always bullying me! I’m going to tell Auntie Yu!”
Xiaocao, who was bending over to gather vegetables, felt like she had been shot while lying down . She pursed her lips and said, “I say, Shanhu ah, before you go complain, shouldn’t you make sure who the other party is? I haven’t said a single word since you came in . How did I bully you?”
Madam Liu, who had put the vegetables into the basket, smiled warmly as she looked at the three flower-like young girls . She felt that, no matter how much she looked at them, they were pleasing to the eyes .
When Zhou Shanhu heard that, she realized that she had mixed up the two sisters again . She smiled embarra.s.singly and said, “Aiya! You guys look too similar, so I made a mistake again! Xiaolian, when did you learn to speak so recklessly?”
‘Okay! So what she means is that I usually speak with a filter ah!’ Xiaocao immediately retaliated, “Xiaolian and I are twins, but we’re not exactly the same . Your older sister has never mistaken us before! It seems like you have a worrisome IQ ah!”
“IQ? What is an IQ?” Zhou Shanhu widened her eyes and asked with a foolish expression .
Xiaocao picked off a lettuce, gently shook off the soil, and said with peeved expression, “You won’t understand even if I told you! Anyways, you don’t have that thing, so what’s the point in asking about it?”
Xiaolian was laughing her head off beside them . Zhou Shanhu finally realized that Xiaocao must had said something bad about her . She puffed up her cheeks and said, “Xiaocao is always bullying people . Xiaolian, tell me, what exactly is an IQ ah?”
Xiaolian pointed at her own head and laughed, “Think about it yourself!”
Zhou Shanhu wrinkled her brows and thought hard about it . Then she suddenly revealed an angry and embarra.s.sed expression and shouted, “Ok, Yu Xiaocao, you actually said that I’m brainless! I’m not stupid! I’m really smart!!”
Madam Liu watched as the girls made a racket . Though it was very lively, she was afraid that her daughter would actually anger Shanhu . So, she hastily said, “Xiaocao! You’re not allowed to bully Shanhu anymore, do you hear me? Shanhu ah, didn’t you say that you have some good news to tell us?”
Zhou Shanhu smacked her own forehead and shouted, “Aiya! I almost forgot about proper business! Xiaocao, Doctor Sun of Tongren Medicine Hall came to our village in person and said that he wanted to collect spoon worms for a high price!”
With a face full of doubts, Xiaolian asked, “Collect spoon worms? What does he need that for? Is spoon worm also a type of medicinal herb?”
Xiaocao had studied many books on medicine with Doctor You, so she immediately said, “Spoon worm is also known as sandworm . It is cold in nature, and has a sweet and salty taste . It has the effect of nouris.h.i.+ng the yin, decreasing internal heat, and clearing the lungs and restoring deficiency . According to the medical books, sandworms are the most suitable food for symptoms such as hectic fever, night sweat due to yin deficiency, asthmatic cough, tightness in chest, phlegm, postpartum lactation insufficiency for women, and so on . For symptoms such as tuberculosis cough, neurasthenia, spleen deficiency or dryness in children, it is an effective treatment to drink soup brewed with sandworm, ginger slices, and lean meat . Sandworm can nourish the yin and kidney, so the consumption of sandworm congee will have good therapeutic effect for children with kidney deficiency and people who suffer from frequent nocturnal urination…”
“Aiya! So spoon worms are actually so useful . It’s no wonder Tongren Medicine Hall offered to buy them for one hundred copper coins per catty! Xiaocao, Xiaolian, let’s quickly go! Otherwise, all the good spots on the beach will be taken!” Before Zhou Shanhu had even finished speaking, she already ran home to get her tools like a gust of wind .
Xiaolian pouted and didn’t seem very optimistic, “It’s not that easy to find spoon worms . They’re all hiding in the sand, and as soon as there’s any movement, they would swiftly hide in an even deeper place . Even after digging for a long time, we still might not necessarily be able to find even one of them!”