Chapter 137: The Qi Family’s Gratitude

Gu Chengyong was somewhat taken aback. "Brother Jianyuan, it's neither a festival nor a holiday. What kind of sudden invitation to dinner is this from Uncle Qi?" Although Gu Chengyong had a very good relationship with the Qi family, there was no reason for them to be invited over for a meal out of the blue.

Qi Jianyuan pulled up a stool and sat down. He then explained how Jiaoniang had helped them process melon seeds. "Big Brother Dayong, that little girl of yours is truly remarkable. Right now, my family's remaining melon seeds are just waiting for Jiaoniang's help. My father said we should invite all of you over so our two families can have a lively gathering and then discuss this melon seed venture."

Gu Chengyong was dumbfounded. His own daughter had actually conjured up something like this? It came as quite a shock. "Melon seeds? What kind of thing is that? I've never even heard of it. That little girl really has a lot of nerve, daring to tinker with such things! How did she ever come up with it? Such a little rascal, she's quite capable." The term "little rascal" in Gu Chengyong's mouth was clearly an affectionate endearment for Jiaoyan, entirely different from how Madam Li used it.

"Big Brother Dayong, don't worry about how she came up with it. The point is she has her brilliant methods. Come on, let's go to my house. My wife and the others have already prepared fine wine and delicious food, just waiting for you." Qi Jianyuan didn't care about the details; his only mission was to escort Gu Chengyong's family back.

Gu Chengyong thought about it and realized there was nothing wrong with this, so he stood up. "Wait a moment, I'll go call your sister-in-law and the others." With that, Gu Chengyong stepped into the house to call Madam Feng, who was tending the cooking fire. Not long after, Madam Feng and the others all emerged from the house, naturally including the elfin-like Jiaoyan.

Jiaoyan's watery, bright eyes were full of smiles. She looked at Qi Jianyuan and asked with a chuckle, "Uncle Qi, how are the melon seeds selling? Pretty well, right? Hehehe, is this an invitation to dinner to thank me? Well then, I certainly won't be polite!" She had guessed long ago that once those melon seeds hit the market, they would definitely be sought after. She had absolute confidence in this.

"Of course it's to thank my eldest niece for her clever hands! Shall we go? The food is all prepared at home, let's go eat." Qi Jianyuan was amused by Jiaoyan's words and burst into hearty laughter.

Gu Chengyong led his family to the Qi household, where they were received with great warmth and hospitality. Qi Changwen promptly invited them inside and had Xuemei and Xuelian serve tea, pastries, melon seeds, dried fruit, and garden plums and crabapples.

"Eldest Nephew, Niece-in-law, quickly come and sit down. Jiaonniang, get up on the *kang*, hurry along." Grandmother Qi was also beaming with smiles, reaching out to invite Jiaoyan onto the brick bed.

Jiaoyan stood on ceremony not a bit. She slipped off her shoes, climbed onto the *kang*, snuggled up next to Grandmother Qi, and picked up a bright red plum to bite into. "Grandma, the plums from your tree taste so good. Delicious."

"If you like them, I'll have them pick some more for you to take home. We might not have much else, but fruit trees we have plenty of. Whenever you want to eat them, just come over and pick them." The old lady had always been fond of Jiaoyan, and with this melon seed affair, she cherished her even more.

"Grandicultural Uncle, are you only inviting my family for dinner? What about my master and Brother Shaoyuan? They contributed quite a bit of effort too." At this moment, Jiaoyan tilted her little head, fixed her large eyes on Qi Changwen, and asked with a mischievous smile.

Qi Changwen slapped his forehead. "Oh my, I truly forgot about that! Quick, Second Son, hurry over to the Miao family and invite Miss Miao as well. Of course, we troubled them quite a bit the other days, so we ought to thank them too." Qi Changwen hurriedly dispatched someone to fetch Miao Suwen.

The Miao family lived close by, and before long, Miao Suwen and her son were invited over.

Once everyone was seated inside, Qi Changwen finally brought up the matter of the melon seeds. "Jiaoniang, Grandpa told you before that once those melon seeds were sold, Grandpa would give you half the money. Grandpa keeps his word. Today I'll give you your share of the money first, but in the future, we'll still have to trouble you to help process the rest into those five-spice flavored melon seeds. How about it?"

Upon hearing this, Gu Chengyong felt displeased that his daughter was helping others and taking half the money. His face darkened, and he was about to scold Jiaoyan.

Before Gu Chengyong could speak, Jiaoyan smiled brightly and said, "Grandpa, that was what you said, but I never agreed to it. When our family came back from outside, thanks to Grandpa's help, we were able to gain a foothold in the village. The Qi family has been nothing but kind to us, and this was just a matter of lending a helping hand. How could I possibly take money from you? Grandpa's family works bitterly in the fields all year round just to earn that tiny bit of income. If I took half of it, what kind of person would that make me?"

"Grandpa, just give me back the money I spent on ingredients last time. For the future batches, you can pay for the materials yourselves and make the melon seeds at your house. I'll just teach the aunts and let them do the work." Jiaoyan had never intended to take money from them in the first place. With total sales of only ten or twenty taels of silver, if she took half, what would be left for the Qi family?

"Besides, didn't Grandpa save thirty melons for me as seeds? With those, our family can plant several mu of land next year. That's worth more than anything else." Jiaoyan was not someone greedy for wealth. Perhaps due to a privileged upbringing in her early life, even now she didn't place heavy importance on money.

Gu Chengyong, who had been full of displeasure just a moment ago, finally felt his heart ease upon hearing his daughter's words. As expected, his daughter possessed such a shrewd mind, how could she ever do something so foolish? Gu Chengyong nodded secretly, then looked up at Qi Changwen. "Uncle Qi, Jiaoniang is young and doesn't know much, but what she said makes complete sense. Jiaoniang cannot take this money. It is already a great kindness for Uncle Qi to give us a portion of the seeds."

Qi Changwen, however, grew embarrassed at this. "No, how can that do? We agreed beforehand that if they sold for money, half would go to Jiaoniang. How can we just drop it now? Wouldn't that make me a man who breaks his promise? No, this won't do." Qi Changwen waved his hands repeatedly.

"Grandicultural Uncle, stop being so stubborn. If you don't like hearing it, I haven't even laid eyes on your eight or ten taels of silver. My dad goes hunting in the mountains and might easily bring back more than that, but this money is something you earned through bitter farming, so I won't take it." Jiaoyan pouted.

Seeing this, Miao Suwen quickly chimed in. "Uncle Qi, since Jiaoniang doesn't want it, let it be. The child is still young, and having money in her hands isn't necessarily a good thing. If Uncle Qi is truly grateful, just look out for them a bit more in the future. Besides, when Jiaoniang grows up and gets married, you and Aunt Qi can give her a generous dowry—won't that cover everything?" Miao Suwen added the last sentence with a deliberate tease.

Jiaoyan's fur instantly stood on end. "Master, is there any master like you? Your apprentice is only six years old, and you're already in such a rush to marry her off!" She stood up, placed her hands on her hips, her small face flushed, glaring at Miao Suwen with her big eyes and puffing out her cheeks. She looked utterly adorable no matter how one looked at her.

Everyone in the room burst into laughter. Grandmother Qi reached out and pulled Jiaoyan into her embrace. "That's right, our Jiaoniang won't be getting married off anytime soon. With such a thoughtful girl, your parents will want to keep you around for a few more years. Very well, since you refuse the money, Grandpa and Grandma won't force you. However, you are not allowed to wash your hands of the rest of the melon seeds and refuse to help."

Snuggled in Grandmother Qi's arms, Jiaoyan narrowed her eyes in pure bliss. "Grandma can rest assured, I won't shirk my duties. Hehehe, Grandma is so wonderful, I almost want to just stay at your house and snatch Grandma away from Big Sister Xuemei."

Grandmother Qi was the very picture of a true grandmother; someone like Madam Li was truly a rarity, truth be told. Madam Feng had no parents, and Gu Chengyong's parents were of that wretched sort, so in this lifetime, Jiaoyan had genuinely never experienced the warmth and affection of elders. Snuggled in Grandmother Qi's arms now, the feeling was truly wonderful.

"Well, that would be lovely. Grandma would love nothing more than to have such a clever and lively little granddaughter chattering beside her every day to chase away the boredom. I'm just afraid your parents wouldn't bear to let you go." Grandmother Qi hugged Jiaoyan and said with a warm smile.

While everyone was chatting, the women of the Qi family finished preparing the meal. They set up two tables in the east room, and everyone sat down to eat together. Qi Changwen pulled Gu Chengyong over and insisted on drinking with him. Unable to refuse, Gu Chengyong began drinking with Qi Changwen and Qi Jianyuan.

Shaoyuan was seated next to Jiaoyan. He had participated in the entire process of making those melon seeds. At that moment, Shaoyuan whispered to Jiaoyan, "It's fine that you didn't take the money, but you must guard the recipe for those ingredients carefully. Don't let outsiders learn it behind your back. Keeping that formula might prove immensely useful later on."

Jiaoyan raised her eyes to look at Shaoyuan and flashed a sweet smile. "Mm, I know. Next time, I'll ask them for the silver to buy the ingredients, and then I'll mix them into the water myself. Don't worry, without my formula, even if they know the general method, they won't be able to make authentic five-spice melon seeds."

Jiaoyan had absolute confidence in this because she had added a special something to the five-spice seasoning. Without it, even if melon seeds were produced, they would turn soggy and spoil within a couple of days. Jiaoyan was willing to help the Qi family for free, but she could not leak the recipe to others. She needed to keep it so her own family could earn some money next year.

Knowing that Jiaoyan always had a head full of clever ideas, Shaoyuan didn't offer any further warnings. Instead, he picked up a piece of food and placed it in Jiaoyan's bowl. "Eat up. This stewed chicken is done very well, nice and tender. You've grown a bit thin lately, eat more to build yourself up."

Jiaoyan glanced down; the piece in her bowl was the finest cut from the chicken thigh. "Thank you, Brother Shaoyuan." Without standing on ceremony, she picked it up and took a bite. "Mm, it really is fragrant." Jiaoyan smiled happily and nodded repeatedly.

The Qi family women were quite skilled at cooking. The little chicken was stewed until it fell off the bone, and the flavor was superb. Jiaoyan thoroughly enjoyed it.