Joyful Motherhood in a Rural Family

Chapter 678: Chapter 678: The Fragrance of Guihua Flowers in August
 

Liu Sisi took out the prepared melon seeds, peanuts, candy and pastries to entertain everyone, and the entire courtyard was filled with people, laughter, and continuous chatter.

Guihua also received the news and hurried over. Zhang Family had initially taken care of YingEr at Di Residence, and upon seeing YingEr’s recovery and crops in the fields were ready to be harvested, they had to bid farewell and rushed back to Upper Village.

It has to be said that the people of Upper Village are enthusiastic! However, their enthusiasm seems to be mingled with a hint of alienation compared to before.

It’s understandable because the villagers abruptly became powerful officials, which would lead to thoughts in everyone’s mind.

Although Di Family’s home had been empty for nearly half a year, it still maintained its original appearance from when they left. Since Elderly Mr. Di planned to live here for a long time, people had already been sent to clean it up yesterday, so it was just right to use it today.

The crowd was making a commotion, with many auspicious words coming from their mouths.

Taking advantage of the situation, Liu Sisi strolled around and carefully observed the changes in her old home.

When she left, it was the early spring, and now it was the golden August of autumn. The house remained the same, and the osmanthus tree beside it was still flourishing, with the fragrance of osmanthus flowers filling the entire courtyard. New branches had grown on the fallen tree stump, and now it was even more lush and dense.

In the place where chives were originally planted in the courtyard, it was still full of lush chives and wild lettuce. Occasionally, the clumps of nail flowers that had grown between them had already passed their flowering period, and only one or two small flowers remained at the top.

The area surrounding the stable was also cleared, and now several horses were tied up, making it particularly crowded.

The original chicken coop had been dismantled, revealing a beautiful view on the other side – the small pond along the corner of the wall was full of dense lotus leaves covering the water surface, almost completely covering the entire pond, growing in clusters, with the green color fading, exposing tall lotus pods, some still emerald green, while others had gradually turned old and black.

Several differently colored small dragonflies paused on them, some red, yellow or black. As people approached, they flew lazily, hovering in the air and occasionally landing on other lotus leaves or pods.

The kingfisher that had been perched on Di Family’s courtyard wall flew away quickly when people arrived.

“I really didn’t expect that the lotus flowers I planted casually last year would actually survive!”

Di Yelei walked leisurely from the other side, holding a large cluster of crystal-clear green grapes in his hand.

“They did survive! It seems we are in luck today! Let someone go into the water to fetch a few sections of lotus root, and we’ll have more dishes for dinner tonight!” Liu Sisi was genuinely happy and eagerly walked to the small pond’s edge.

“Alright, I’ll order the servants to do it right now.”

As he spoke, he handed over the green grapes: “Here, these are freshly picked from the grapevine in our own courtyard. I just tasted one, and the flavor is not bad.”

“Our own?”

Liu Sisi hurriedly accepted them. They were still with water droplets, and she picked one to taste. Sure enough, it was sweet with a hint of sourness and a natural ripe grape flavor, making it quite delicious.

“Yes, isn’t it?”

Following the direction of Di Yelei’s finger, in the corner of the courtyard where the wild grapevine was located, clusters of green grapes hung. These brightly transparent green grapes were a local variety with a particularly refreshing sour and sweet taste. Currently, there were two ladders leaning against the grapevine, and Da Niu and Er Niu were happily climbing on it, picking grapes.

Liu Sisi, with a keen interest, hurriedly walked over to see the excitement and picked a few to taste as she went.

Now the grapes had concentrated at the top where people couldn’t reach. Judging from the vines on the ground, it seemed that the local children hadn’t eaten too few grapes from the grapevine.

“Don’t go there! There are quite a few caterpillars on the grape leaves – one touch and you’ll get a big swell. Didn’t you see Da Niu and Er Niu wearing thick clothes?”

That’s right! This is ancient times without any pesticides!

Liu Sisi quickly stepped back several times, almost falling straight into the small pond, but luckily, Di Yelei caught her in time, causing him to burst into laughter.

This also attracted the attention of others, with even Guihua teasing them, “What a lovely couple you two are.”

“Not at all… It’s just his shameless behaviour!”

An embarrassed Liu Sisi stared fiercely at Di Yelei, her face blushing.

“Yes, yes, Madam is right, it’s all Ye Lei’s fault.”

Di Yelei earnestly took the blame, showing a simple and honest smile: “Hehe! I, Di Yelei, finally found such a good wife, of course, I must cherish her.”

This statement made Liu Sisi even more embarrassed, as she couldn’t even raise her head, surrounded by their relatives and friends!n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Di Yelei really had thick skin!

However, she couldn’t help but feel her heart skip a beat because of those sweet words, just like eating honey.

“Alright, everyone, stop laughing. My wife’s skin is delicate, if you continue, maybe when we go back to our room tonight, we’ll have to change the abacus again,” said Di Yelei, winking and beaming.

“Abacus? I don’t think we have one at home, because I’m not used to….” Liu Sisi’s words were cut short as she suddenly realized the meaning behind and immediately put her hands on her waist, “Ah! So you’re talking about the kneeling on the abacus punishment? Fine, Da Niu, remember to buy twenty abacuses when you go back. Your master can’t enter the room until he breaks all of them. Got it?”

The crowd buzzed and broke into roaring laughter.

Da Niu, who was climbing on the grape trellis, responded promptly, “Madam, rest assured, I’ll buy the best-quality fragrant rosewood abacuses, and I promise the Old Master will be satisfied!”

His reply made the laughter around them even louder, and some young people even started to whistle, clearly enjoying the fun!

The fellow villagers joined in the discussion, dispersing any previous awkwardness. The atmosphere turned lively in an instant.

And that was exactly the result Di Yelei wanted.

He smiled satisfactorily, secretly giving Liu Sisi a grateful glance, before continuing to tease in a loud voice.

“It’s just twenty fragrant rosewood abacuses in the end! Today, my wife said she’ll add more dishes for lunch, and those dishes include the lotus roots from this small pond here! Who wants to join?”

“I’ll do it!” “Me too!” “I want to join too!”

The crowd laughed and rushed towards the small pond.

Zhang Yun was quick to act and had already started taking off her shoes to get into the water.

The small pond was a long, rectangular strip, dug deep along the courtyard wall, with a constant flow of water all year round.