Chapter 509: Chapter 509: Chattering and Babbling Chapter 509: Chapter 509: Chattering and Babbling Although the two baskets were quite large, they only held six watermelons.
Indeed, a single watermelon could weigh over a dozen pounds, and considering its rounded shape, it couldn’t fit snuggly, leaving lots of empty spaces inside the baskets.
The ox cart came to a stop, Shopkeeper Fan and Madam Xie got off the cart and saw Big Bull approaching with two baskets of watermelons.
“Oh my! Brother Bull, you’ve really worked hard,” said Shopkeeper Fan eagerly.
It couldn’t be helped, the paths in the fields were getting narrower, and the horse-drawn carriage couldn’t continue towards their field, so they had to manually carry it for about a dozen meters. Thankfully, it wasn’t a long way, just a few steps.
“What’s hard about doing manual labor? It’s Shopkeeper Fan who has to go to town to sell these watermelons; that’s the hard part!” Big Bull laughed.
“These are rare varieties, it’s worth all the fatigue and effort,” Shopkeeper Fan said, beaming with joy.
“Yes, yes, my wife is so smart, always liking to mess around with novel things.”
“Brother Bull will be blessed in the future.”
A group of children trailing behind saw the watermelons in the baskets and gathered around, curiously peering with wide eyes.
Madam Xie was a kind soul, already famous in Mo Family Village. Seeing a big crowd of children around the watermelons, she picked a large watermelon from the basket and cut it open on a large rock by the roadside.
“Wow! Old Lady, what kind of melon is this? Why is it so red?” The children were curious and bombarded Madam Xie with questions.
“It’s a watermelon from our farm. Take it and try it, it’s really sweet,” said Madam Xie as she handed out pieces of watermelon to them.
“Thank you, Old Lady.”
The children, having something to eat, were extremely happy.
Indeed, in the countryside, they hardly had snacks all year round, so they were especially excited on the rare occasions they did.
The children, each holding a large piece of watermelon, hopped and skipped towards the village.
Shopkeeper Fan was very meticulous, not only bringing two helpers but also a large scale to weigh the watermelons before loading them onto the horse cart.
He also stood by with a notebook, weighing the watermelons and noting down the figures.
Seeing this, Madam Xie felt a bit embarrassed and said, “Shopkeeper Fan, do you really need to note it down so precisely?”
Shopkeeper Fan laughed and stopped writing, saying, “As the old saying goes, even brothers keep clear accounts, let alone us in business; we definitely need clarity in figures for our cooperation to last long, don’t we?”
Madam Xie agreed and didn’t say more; after all, she didn’t understand the nuances of business.
Several people in the field continued to load watermelons, including the two helpers brought by Shopkeeper Fan, who also helped carry the watermelons to the horse cart.
Everyone was bustling with activity, and soon, the cart was filled with watermelons.
Shopkeeper Fan then started his journey to the town, eager to test out how well the watermelons would sell today!
A large group of children, each holding a piece of watermelon, played and ate as they wandered through the village.
Lady Li was puzzled when she saw them and grabbed one of the children to ask, “What are you all eating there? Why does it look so red and pretty? Did you pick some wild fruit from the mountains? I’ve told you, the wild fruits in the mountains can be poisonous, and you sure shouldn’t eat them carelessly.”
The children laughed upon hearing this, “Auntie, don’t worry, we’re not foolish enough to eat wild fruits from the mountains.”
“Then where did these melons come from?”
“They’re from Chuner’s mother, they grew them. They’re so sweet and delicious.” While speaking, the children even held the watermelon up closer to Lady Li’s face.