CHAPTER 628: CHAPTER 628: EVEN MORE HANDSOME

The next day, Gu Jinli got up early and ran to the threshing ground to check on the rice.

Xiangzi was already there with three families, lifting the oiled paper to dry the grains. Seeing her, he said, "Young Master, don’t worry. Although half of the rice was soaked, it’ll be fine after drying for two days and won’t sprout."

Young Master values the grain storage a lot. The collected grains are never sold; instead, they are thoroughly dried and stored away.

Now, in the manor, there are five underground cellars and eight grain silos specially for storing the grains like rice, wheat, soybeans, sweet potatoes, etc.

Gu Jinli glanced at the sky with some worry: "The weather looks gloomy. It might rain again... Take out the bamboo mats and dry the rice on them. If it rains, we can just roll up the mats. That way, we won’t need to sweep the grains again."

Due to Yanfu Building using bamboo boxes to hold vegetables, in the past three years, Tianfu County has seen an increase in bamboo products; they’ve woven a very large bamboo mat in the manor, more than three meters in length and width, perfect for drying the grains.

"Alright, I’ll get them to switch right now." Xiangzi immediately called out to the Xiong Family’s three brothers: "Xiong Da, Xiong Er, Xiong San, follow me to the storehouse to move the large bamboo mats."

Before he finished speaking, Gu Jinli burst into laughter.

For more than two years, she couldn’t help but laugh every time she heard the names of the Xiong brothers. Xiangzi and the others had gotten used to it, leaving her to laugh without paying her any mind.

After strolling around the threshing ground, Gu Jinli left and wandered around the manor, looking at the medicinal herbs growing by the manor’s roadside and on the wasteland.

After buying Songzi Manor, she began planting medicinal herbs within the manor. Now, on the roadside, beside the streams, and around the ponds—wherever there was space—all kinds of medicinal herbs like Dipsacus, knee vine, calamus, and patchouli could be seen.

The previous summer, when the weather was scorchingly hot, she made Patchouli Qushu Pills, specifically for treating heatstroke, and they sold very well.

She checked the medicinal herbs growing by the roadside, and seeing that they were growing well without any signs of insect damage, she felt very satisfied.

Two hours later, Xiao Ji came running to call her: "Young Master, it’s time to go back for breakfast."

"Coming." Gu Jinli followed Xiao Ji back, and after breakfast, the two of them loaded their bamboo baskets with lunch and headed for Pine Tree Mountain.

She had also bought the mountain behind Songzi Manor, and they obtained a good amount of pine oil from it every year. But she didn’t sell the pine oil, keeping it instead. This stuff could be used to make "firearms" at critical moments.

Gu Jinli also planted medicinal herbs on Pine Tree Mountain, particularly a valuable one—Dendrobium.

Dendrobium can grow not only in crevices but also on trees. In her previous life, cultivated Dendrobium was grown on trees. After planting for three consecutive years, most of those on the trees survived and thrived.

Xiao Ji wasn’t interested in medicinal herbs; she came to look for pine mushrooms.

A delicious kind of pine mushroom could be found on the mountain, which she liked very much, and so did Young Master.

Seeing Xiao Ji poking around with a stick on the ground, Gu Jinli remarked, "It’s already late October now; there are no more pine mushrooms. You won’t find any."

The pine mushrooms on Pine Tree Mountain were very similar to matsutake mushrooms, although they didn’t taste as good, but they were still delicious.

Xiao Ji didn’t believe it: "There were still some last October. If I’m lucky, I might find some fresh ones to take back and make soup with."

Pine mushroom chicken soup is very savory.

Gu Jinli: "Alright, then keep looking. If you find any, I will eat the most."

Xiao Ji huffed: "Young Master always bullies me."

After fixing a piece of Dendrobium that was almost falling off a tree trunk with some clay, Gu Jinli responded, "How have I bullied you? I’m the nicest to you. I’ve even been thinking about finding you a good husband."

Xiao Ji almost jumped in shock: "Young Master, are you going to marry me off? I am still young!"

Gu Jinli chuckled: "You are five months older than me, already fifteen. You said yourself one should get married and have children at fifteen, so I hurried to find you a husband."

Xiao Ji nearly cried, hurriedly admitting her mistake: "Young Master, I was wrong, please don’t find me a husband, I want to stay with Young Master..." and enjoy the good life!

Speaking of which.

"I’m going to become the next Nanny Tao, not getting married."

Seeing her anxious look, Gu Jinli teased her a few more times, and the two stayed in Pine Tree Mountain until the afternoon. After checking all the Dendrobium, they finally descended the mountain with peace of mind.

Old Lady Mi had already prepared hot water, so as soon as Gu Jinli came back, she could bathe, wash her hair, change into clean clothes, and then get ready to go home.

At dusk, when the golden sun was setting, the sound of horse hooves echoed in the Manor.

Qin San Lang rode his horse swiftly into Songzi Manor to meet Gu Jinli. It only took him about half a quarter of an hour to reach the main courtyard.

When Gu Jinli heard the sound of horse hooves, she ran out and saw Qin San Lang, smiling joyfully: "Brother Qin, you’ve come to get me."

Qin San Lang sat on his horse, holding the reins in one hand and stroking the horse’s mane with the other, the glow of sunset illuminating him as he looked down at Gu Jinli... Three years had passed, and she had grown from a little girl into a proper young lady. Not only had her stature grown, but her features had become even more delicate, cute as a kitten when she smiled, and as fierce as a wolf from the mountains when angry, looking terrifyingly ready to tear someone apart.

But at the moment, she was smiling sweetly, seeming to have had a good time at Songzi Manor.

"Mm, I’ve come to get you," Qin San Lang dismounted and walked over to her, looking down into her eyes.

Gu Jinli raised her hand to compare their heights, complaining: "How did you grow taller again? If this keeps up, you’ll really hit one meter ninety."

Qin San Lang’s frame was tall and sturdy, the perfect model for a clothes hanger, barely eighteen, and already over one meter eighty. He might indeed reach one meter ninety if he grew a few more years.

However...

"You’ve gotten handsomer," Gu Jinli said with a smile, looking at Qin San Lang, feeling a sense of pride akin to seeing the boy next door grow up.

Upon hearing this, Qin San Lang’s ears turned red with embarrassment: "Xiao Yu, you’re talking nonsense again."

Gu Jinli: "I’m not talking nonsense, our Brother Qin is really handsome."

Qin San Lang’s face, chiseled and handsome, conveyed a martial nobility, mixed with the chilly aura of a military officer; Gu Jinli found him unbearably handsome no matter how she looked.

Xiao Ji came out of the courtyard carrying luggage, hearing Gu Jinli’s words and silently thought: Qin Family’s third son is indeed good-looking, but his looks don’t seem to attract the favor of old ladies in the village. The village gossips say that Qin Family’s third son has a menacing presence, looks like someone with a bad fate, not as clean and attractive as Village Chief Shang’s grandson.

But Young Master said, scholarly types are all weak, lacking any manly valor, which is not good.

After hearing both sides, Xiao Ji now didn’t know what was considered good-looking or bad-looking anymore.

"Young Master, my brother is already waiting outside the manor with the mule cart, hurry up, please," Xiao Ji said while heading out with the items.

Finally finding a moment, Gu Jinli glanced at her: "Got it, coming right away."

Qin San Lang asked: "Is there anything left to take? If there is, go get it and I’ll carry it on the horse’s back for you."

"There is, we’ve gathered a lot of pine mushrooms that are already dried. I’ll take them back to make something delicious for you," Gu Jinli turned swiftly and re-entered the courtyard to fetch the items.