A Good Country Wife

Putting in extra hours, with Lan Fang, Dong Xue, and Musheng’s wife assisting, Lin Yue still took a full three days to rush to finish the products. Qian Feng and Mother Xu had already selected the specialties from the north, and all the items were ready. Lin Yue entered the storeroom to inspect the New Year’s gifts for each family. In a moment, they would be sent to the Capital City along with the last batch of goods for the Jiang Family this year, which included fresh vegetables that needed to be picked at the last minute to stay fresh, especially since they will be delayed on the journey. They wouldn’t be easily frozen or damaged if stored using the methods Lin Yue had prepared in advance.

This time, in addition to the Jiang Family’s staff escorting the goods, Lin Yue also sent Haishi along with a few servants to deliver the New Year goods. After all, this was not a casual addition to a shipment as before; it was a formal New Year delivery. First, there were so many items, and second, it was appropriate to send her own servants. Fortunately, when Zhao Erhu went abroad, he left her with a few capable men due to his concern for her safety, so they were not short-handed now.

Haishi was quite capable herself, having previously delivered New Year and festival gifts to her former master’s main house. She was adept at this task, displaying even more thoroughness than Lin Yue knew, allowing Lin Yue to simply issue the instructions and let the rest be handled without worry. Haishi took care of everything else efficiently, saving Lin Yue a great deal of effort.

Shopkeeper Liu had sent a message, they would depart early the next morning and meet up in the city. Lin Yue instructed the brothers preparing for the journey to rest well, so they could set off spiritedly the next day, while she led a group of servants to the greenhouse to pick vegetables at night.

With Haishi’s wife meticulously taking care of them and several experienced old farmers managing them, the greenhouse vegetables grew exceptionally well—crisp green beans, glistening cucumbers and eggplants, and various kinds of leafy greens. Lin Yue laid a thick layer of straw inside the wooden frames she had prepared beforehand, and carefully surrounded it before placing the freshly picked vegetables and fruits inside.

Others, like mushrooms and leafy greens, were wrapped in straw outside and placed delicately in exquisitely woven bamboo baskets inside a large wooden frame, looking very attractive and delicate. It was indeed a lot of work, but for gifts to the wealthy, wasn’t it all about presenting something fresh, exquisite, and rare? Their family had only risen from a peasant household and didn’t have much wealth to begin with; the storeroom didn’t have many valuable items. It wasn’t cost-effective to spend a lot on purchases, so to deliver satisfactory gifts, effort had to be made in this aspect.

However, the goods that were easily obtained by Lin Yue were rare commodities outside, and the gifts they sent were more loved and welcomed than other fabrics or curiosities. After picking all the vegetables, Lin Yue spent the night retrieving lotus roots from the storage pond.

In the Great Zhou Dynasty, lotus roots were rare for ordinary families to consume, but for the wealthy, they were not so unusual, only seasonally available because they were difficult to store. For instance, during the winter like now, it was rare to find them. Even the Empress in the Imperial Palace would have difficulty getting some to eat. Thanks to Lin Yue knowing the storage methods, she had kept quite a lot. The plump, clean lotus roots were packed, filling more than a dozen baskets, allowing each family to receive a generous share.

After a night of busyness, Lin Yue barely rested. She sent off Haishi and the others early the next morning and only then did she return to her room to catch up on sleep. Waking up around noon, she faintly heard excited voices outside.