Upon hearing Lin Chuxia’s explanation, Lin Fu Lang felt relieved. He suddenly remembered that Jing’s father and Jing Yi were still there, so he led Lin Chuxia over to thank them first.

 

“Chuxia, this is your Uncle Jing and Cousin Jing. We are grateful to them for taking care of us. Just now, Cousin Jing was going to come with me to find you. Hurry up and thank them,” Lin ‘father said with a relaxed expression now that Lin Chuxia had returned.

 

“Thank you, Uncle Jing and Cousin Jing, for taking care of my father and younger brother,” Lin Chuxia sincerely expressed his gratitude.

 

When the young man spoke, his voice carried a fresh and gentle aura. It was so pure, like the cheerful oriole in the valley or the bubbling spring in the creek. It gave a feeling of a bright moon in the summer sky and a gentle breeze.

 

Of course, all of this was Jing Yi’s perception, unrelated to Jing’s father.

 

Jing’s father simply expressed the normal care for the younger generation and exchanged pleasantries with his peers.

 

After he finished speaking, he realized that his son hadn’t said a word for a while and hurriedly gave him a typical male hint, “Xiao Yii, don’t just stand there dumbfounded. Your Aunt Lin and Chuxia are talking to you.”

 

Before Jing Yi could respond, Father Jing became anxious. His son had never been this slow to react before. He glanced at his son’s face and asked anxiously, “Are you suffering from heatstroke? Your face is so red. Do you feel dizzy or nauseous?” He was about to come over to support Jing Yi.

 

Jing Yi: … Truly my straight and clueless dad.

 

“It’s fine, Dad. It’s a bit hot, but I don’t feel uncomfortable. Could you get me a glass of water?” Jing Yi quickly dismissed his father to avoid embarrassment.

 

Picking up the topic again, Jing Yi looked at Lin Chuxia and said to Lin Fu Lang, “Aunt Lin, you are being too polite. We should be the ones thanking you for recognizing this stall from the beginning. Our family has benefited a lot.”

 

Then he turned to Lin Chuxia and said, “Don’t be too polite, Chuxia. It’s not easy for us rural folks to do business. We should help each other.”

 

He knew he couldn’t keep staring at the other person all the time. Being in ancient times, he had to remind himself to maintain some reserve.

 

But only he knew in his heart that the saying “a millennium-old iron tree blossoms, a ten thousand-year-old fruit tree sprouts” had unexpectedly come true in this life. He had encountered someone who completely matched his aesthetic preferences.

 

Lin Chuxia had a healthy and fair complexion. It was evident that she had a good foundation, and years of labor hadn’t tanned her much. His figure was slender and tall, with delicate eyebrows, bright eyes, a straight and beautiful nose, and slightly plump lips. Most importantly, he had a pair of well-defined eyebrows that added a touch of masculinity to his face, making him less pretty but more handsome.

 

Jing Yi was itching to chat with Lin Chuxia, but his usually smooth tongue suddenly became clumsy. Fortunately, he managed to maintain a calm demeanor.

 

Little did he know, just as he was struggling to find the right words, Lin Fu Lang had already tidied up and was ready to take Lin Chuxia and the twins back home.

 

The urgent situation made him calm down instead. Now, the immediate priority was to behave well in front of his potential mother-in-law and postpone the pursuit of Lin Chuxia for now.

 

He then stepped forward and picked up the Lin family’s bamboo basket from the ground. He followed them, walking alongside, so as not to appear abrupt. Fortunately, he often lent a helping hand when he had nothing else to do.

 

Once Lin Fu Lang was seen off, their business gradually picked up, and they became busy, temporarily leaving no time to think about other matters.

 

After the bustling business at the Jing family’s stall came to an end, the father and son returned home.

 

Once Jing Yi arrived home, he went to his room to carefully consider his plans for his future.

 

The original owner of this body was born on September 12th, which meant that this body was still two months away from turning sixteen. Although he appeared mature on the outside, in Jing Yi’s heart, he was still a kid who hadn’t even entered high school.

 

“I wonder how old Lin Chuxia is. But since Lin Fu Lang asked him to call me Big Brother Jing, he must be younger than me.”

 

With nothing else to do at the moment, he sat in the room and let his imagination run wild.

 

First, he felt a bit worried because they had to be eighteen to marry for the sake of both parties’ physical and mental well-being. But upon further thought, being able to date for two or three more years before getting married seemed even more delightful.

 

In the future, he would have to make use of the limited time they spent together as two families to extract as much information as possible related to Lin Chuxia.

 

He didn’t dare to ask Lin Fu Lang directly about many things, but it was still possible to ask the twins. Lin Dongjiang, the older twin, was cautious at such a young age. Although he admired Jing Yi as his big brother, he didn’t have the personality to blurt out anything and everything.

 

After much contemplation, Dongshan, my little brother, it’s up to you.

 

Also, he needs to speed up the process of making money. His responsibilities were no longer limited to just his own family; he also had his wife to consider. In the future, when he had the means, he would have to support his wife’s family as well.

 

All those things like tea eggs and cold desserts that he had been lazy to add before should be added now.

 

Previously, there were customers who complained that his stall didn’t offer any snacks to go with their food, so they had to go to other stalls to buy them. However, Jing Yi managed to get by with his thick skin.

 

Now, for the sake of his future wife, he had to make an effort.

 

In the courtyard, Jing’s mother, who was selecting vegetables, felt that her eldest son had been inside the house for quite a while without any movement. It was so stuffy to stay indoors on such a hot day, so she asked Jing’s father, “Did something happen today? Xiao Yi has been in the house for a long time without any activity.”

 

“The business is doing well. Don’t worry too much. Xiao Yi is probably settling the accounts,” Jing’s father replied nonchalantly, fully focused on splitting firewood.

 

Since the family’s situation improved, Jing’s father became even more rough in his mannerisms.

 

“It takes so long to settle the accounts. It’s so hot, and he’s cooped up in the house. He’ll get overheated.”

 

Jing’s mother couldn’t stand Jing’s father’s indifference.

 

Finally, the word “hot” seemed to trigger something in Jing’s father, and he quickly informed Jing’s mother, “You’re right. Xiao Yi’s face turned red around noon, and he seemed a bit absent-minded. But I made him drink some water, and he was fine afterwards. I’ll handle it, don’t worry.”

 

“Forget it, I’ll check on him myself,” Jing’s mother said, washing her hands and entering the inner room.

 

At this moment, the money box was quietly placed on the table, motionless.

 

Jing Yi was still resting his chin on his hand, looking at the sky. When Jing’s mother saw this, she quickly used her hand to test his forehead’s temperature and asked, “Xiao Yi, are you feeling unwell? Your mother noticed you’ve been in the house for a long time.”

 

The sensation on his forehead and the voices around him finally brought Jing Yi back from his reverie and daydreams about his future.

 

Upon hearing Jing’s mother’s question, he thought for a moment and decided not to disclose anything about Chuxia for now.

 

He was used to being independent, and now that the old house was on fire, he wanted to handle anything related to Chuxia on his own, without others interfering. When there was progress, he would naturally inform his parents.

 

Of course, this self-confidence would be shattered in a few days, so let’s wait and see.

 

“It’s nothing, Mother. I was just thinking that we should add some snacks to our small stall. Firstly, it keeps customers interested with new products, and secondly, whenever a business becomes popular, there will always be imitations. We need to stay ahead so others don’t surpass us.”

 

He wasn’t just trying to appease his mother with these words. Jing Yi was also surprised that there hadn’t been any imitations in such a long time. It seemed like he had accurately described the production process of the sour plum soup earlier.

 

“Hey! You startled your mother. I thought you were feeling unwell. Come on, let’s go to the courtyard and think. It’s cooler outside, and we’ll come up with some ideas for you.” When she heard that it was a serious matter regarding the family’s stall, Jing’s mother’s expression turned serious and joyful. She took Jing Yi out of the house.

 

In the courtyard, seeing that his father and two younger brothers were present, Jing Yi took the opportunity to refine his previous plan and share it.

 

Anyway, at this moment, every household was either cooking or eating. Nobody would be so oblivious as to eavesdrop everywhere. There was no need to worry about others overhearing.

 

Firstly, there was the small cold dessert that was mentioned earlier, made with simple ingredients such as rice, glutinous rice, sugar, and Jing Yi’s suggestion to add milk. It was both visually appealing and delicious, and also nutritious. This was a sweet snack that went well with the sour plum soup.

 

Next is tea eggs, one of the famous traditional delicacies and also Jing Yi’s main focus.

 

According to his observation, this method hasn’t appeared in this area yet. He felt that this time, with tea eggs, the Jing family might lead a trend. Compared to the seasonal drink like sour plum soup, tea eggs were savory and delicious, suitable for all ages.

 

In the modern era, they could be seen everywhere in the streets and alleys every morning. Despite our picky taste buds, they have always remained on the breakfast menu.

 

The method for making tea eggs is not difficult. The ingredients needed are eggs, tea leaves, salt, soy sauce, Sichuan peppercorn, and fennel seeds.

 

The first few ingredients are quite common, and Jing Yi even saw a wild Sichuan peppercorn tree on a small hill behind the village last time.

 

Only fennel seeds haven’t been seen before. Jing’s father and mother didn’t know either. It seems they would have to go to the pharmacy in town tomorrow when selling things. Many spices originally appeared as medicinal ingredients.

 

Jing Yi’s proposal received approval from the entire family, and they quickly divided the tasks: Jing’s mother knew how to make the cold dessert, and the only difference was the addition of milk. This didn’t pose a problem for her, so she took charge of preparing the dessert.

 

Tea eggs were something new, so Jing Yi explained the ingredients and steps to his father and mother.

 

Jing’s mother said they had some at home, and if they didn’t have enough, they could buy more from the village. Salt, soy sauce, and Sichuan peppercorn didn’t need to be mentioned since they were already in the kitchen.

 

In fact, people in rural areas rarely used Sichuan peppercorns in cooking because adding oil to dishes with Sichuan peppercorn didn’t taste good. However, the Jing family still had some in stock.

 

As for tea leaves, Jing Yi thought about going to Xiao Fengshan someday to gather tea leaves from the wild tea trees.

 

Finally, there was the milk that Jing Yi brought up separately. Cows were precious livestock in Dayuan Dynasty, and having a cow in an ordinary household was a symbol of wealth. The Jing family, who hadn’t encountered any trouble before, couldn’t afford to buy a cow.

 

The whole family sat together, thinking for a long time, but couldn’t come up with a place to buy milk. Even if they found it, considering its scarcity, it would likely be considered a top-tier ingredient that they couldn’t afford. The atmosphere instantly became gloomy.

 

“I might have been thinking too far ahead. If we can’t buy milk, goat’s milk can work! Or we can omit the milk and add a layer of red dates in the middle. It won’t be bad either.”