Chapter 330
Chapter 330
They claimed they had come to pick grapes, but in truth, they were there to have fun.
They were all pampered young ladies. After working beneath the blazing sun for only a few minutes, they began complaining that they were tired.
Jiang Yunsui did not particularly enjoy physical labor either.
She ate grapes and wandered around, watching everyone else work.
Sometimes she picked grapes to feed the animals.
She even turned feeding them into a game.
Sometimes she threw a grape into the distance, and the animals raced after it like a gust of wind. Whichever one ate it first would wag its tail and run back to nuzzle Jiang Yunsui.
Other times she tossed one into the air, and the large birds fought over it most eagerly.
Huohuo, however, did not like joining the scramble.
It was afraid its beautiful feathers might be damaged in the tussle.
Hadn’t that silly golden eagle already lost several feathers?
There were plenty of grapes on the estate, so naturally there was plenty of wine to brew.
Ji Yan’an had even sent quite a few people to help.
Little Mushroom’s mouth went dry from giving orders alone.
Only after gulping down a large mouthful of sour plum drink did she feel better.
Then she hurried off again to drop Imperial Flowing Essence Balls into the brewing barrels where the grapes had already been soaked.
By the end of the day, she felt as though she had been drained dry.
The moment the moon rose that night, she found a quiet place to cultivate and absorb Moonlight Essence.
She did not sleep all night, yet was still brimming with energy the next morning.
What an extraordinarily tenacious little mushroom she was.
They stayed for several days.
At last, all the wine that needed brewing was prepared. This was only temporary, however; more work would follow after fermentation.
During this period, countless mushrooms sprouted where Jiang Yunsui cultivated, and the wild grass grew especially lush.
“Come on. Let’s pick mushrooms.”
“Huh? It hasn’t rained these past few days. There are mushrooms?”
Jiang Yunsui said, “If I say there are, then there are.”
And so everyone put on veiled hats and practical, close-fitting clothes, picked up baskets, and followed Jiang Yunsui up the mountain.
The animals followed as well.
“There’s so much grass here.”
The Ji women stared in astonishment.
At home, Jiang Yunsui always absorbed Moonlight Essence in a courtyard on her side of the residence. Early each morning, someone cut the grass and picked the mushrooms, so the Ji women still knew almost nothing about her ability.
Ji Yan’an glanced at Jiang Yunsui but offered no explanation.
The two horses were already happily grazing on the grass.
“Oh… I think there are deer over there!”
Jiang Yunsui had cultivated here for several days, so the lush grassland covered a broad area.
“What enormous deer! They look even bigger than oxen!”
Their enormous size made them easy to spot.
They were moose.
They were truly the largest deer Jiang Yunsui had ever seen.
There were eight adults and three young ones in all.
This was likely a herd of moose.
They, too, had discovered the exceptionally lush and delicious grass here.
Jiang Yunsui said, “Those are moose. I’ve even ridden one before.”
When they went to suppress the bandits that time, she had been spotted leaving the bandit stronghold and had fled at full speed on a moose.
Moose were herbivores, after all, and their temperaments were fairly mild.
They had noticed Jiang Yunsui’s group too. They merely stood quietly and watched for a long while, seemingly judging whether the newcomers posed a threat.
They grew somewhat restless when they saw Zuozuo Youyou and the white wolf.
Jiang Yunsui simply sent the carnivores somewhere else, farther away.
She did not want to fight the moose right now. They had come to pick mushrooms today, not to hunt!
Only after Zuozuo Youyou and the others left did the herd settle down.
In the end, everyone minded their own business. Those grazing continued to graze, and those picking mushrooms continued to pick.
At first, the Ji women had only followed along to search casually.
But as they uncovered more and more mushrooms among the grass, they became increasingly engrossed.
“I found an enormous cluster of matsutake!”
“Come quickly! There are termite mushrooms here – so many that I can’t dig them all up!”
“I found a huge patch of morels over here!”
“Wow! I found an enormous patch of shiitake! This fallen tree is covered in them, and they’re huge!”
Cries of delight rang out everywhere.
Discovering one patch of wild mushrooms after another was truly exhilarating, and picking them was wonderfully relaxing.
Before long, everyone’s basket held a considerable haul.
They even gathered together and began chattering excitedly.
“We’ll take these matsutake home and simmer them in chicken soup. It will taste wonderful.”
“These will work too. There must be more. Let’s keep looking.”
No one felt tired anymore.
Today had been a truly wonderful experience.
As Jiang Yunsui searched, she gradually made her way over to the moose.
Relying on Little Mushroom’s irresistible charm, she successfully climbed onto one of their backs.
“Look at me! Everyone, look at me!”
“Hahaha… Aren’t I amazing?”
Jiang Yunsui clung to the moose’s enormous antlers, laughing with tremendous pride.
Some of the others watched anxiously, while others thought she was truly impressive.
Ji Yang simply worshipped her with all her heart.
Old Madam Ji said, “Be careful. Don’t fall.”
Ji Yan’an was not worried. No one understood that little girl’s abilities better than he did.
In the end, Jiang Yunsui even gave the Ji women the experience of feeding wild moose.
None of them dared climb onto one, however.
Jiang Yunsui declared proudly, “If I opened a zoo, I’d definitely make lots of money.”
Ji Yan’an asked, “What’s a zoo?”
Jiang Yunsui said, “You make an enormous enclosure, keep some animals inside, and let people pay to look at them or feed them.”
Was that not the same as the animals kept in the imperial hunting grounds?
The difference was that the animals there were prey for the hunt.
He shattered her fantasy.
“It isn’t difficult for nobles to see wild animals, and poor people wouldn’t want to spend money just to look at them.”
Jiang Yunsui scratched her head. That did seem true.
“All right, then. This isn’t a suitable place to open a zoo.”
She would stick to brewing wine. That made money, hehe.
Only when it was almost time to eat did everyone finally return, carrying baskets packed full of mushrooms.
They headed home after the meal.
Several more carriages had joined their procession.
Those carriages were loaded with vegetables grown on the estate, baskets of grapes, and the mushrooms they had found.
These grapes were meant for eating or giving away.
They made a more than presentable gift.
Grapes spoiled easily, so early the next morning, the Ji Family Members busied themselves delivering gifts everywhere.
Jiang Yunsui also took a large basket brimming with grapes and went to the Cook Battalion with Fat Grandpa.
“Grandpa Shen, I brought you all something!”
Everyone was overjoyed to see her. One after another, they hugged her and stuffed all kinds of things into her arms.
There were snacks as well as some entertaining toys.
Here, Jiang Yunsui was a treasured little darling whom everyone doted on.
They poured all the love they held for their children and grandchildren into her.
Chiliarch Lin also received a basket of grapes, which he divided among his men.
The shadow guards and household guards received some too…
Even the women at the textile workshop and the children at Ji’an Orphanage received grapes.
For the women workers, they counted as an employee benefit. For Ji’an Orphanage, they were gifts for the orphans.
Many people were happy that day.
With Ji Yan’an deliberately guiding public opinion, Jiang Yunsui’s reputation also began to spread.
People brought up the things she had done in the past, and for a time, her reputation became exceptionally good.