CHAPTER 150: 150 PEOPLE WERE STUNNED

The mother suddenly knelt down, which startled Xiao Mi, and the official Xie was equally surprised.

But the second mother had never seen an official before, and when official Xie called her, she was scared and knelt down without thinking.

Fortunately, official Xie reacted quickly and hastily said: "Madam Jiang, please rise. I just thought the tea was delicious and wanted to ask how you made it; no need to be so nervous."

Official Xie’s voice was gentle, and the second mother felt a little less nervous.

"Oh." She said, patting her knees and standing up.

Xiao Mi thought her mother was quite careless...

The second mother looked at the tea cup next to official Xie and realized it was already empty.

Quickly, she refilled his cup with tea and explained how to brew chrysanthemum tea.

The method wasn’t particularly intricate, just a small pinch of chrysanthemum thrown into the teapot, a few goji berries and red dates added, and boiling water poured in – the real reason it tasted good was the chrysanthemum itself.

"This chrysanthemum was dried by me. We take care of the chrysanthemums carefully. If you like, you can take some back with you; there’s plenty and it’s not worth much anyway."

As she spoke, she pointed to an empty space between the thatched hut and the new house, where the chrysanthemums grew best and were frequently picked.

Beside her, Xiao Mi couldn’t help but hold her forehead.

Mom, even if this chrysanthemum isn’t worth much, you shouldn’t say it so plainly; it makes it seem too cheap, and official Xie won’t remember our kindness!

But official Xie was already excited, "Really? Thank you, Madam Jiang."

Suddenly, Xiao Mi felt cheerful.

This official Xie was calling her mother ’Madam Jiang’!

Don’t underestimate this title; it at least indicates two things!

First, this official Xie is a good official and respects the people.

Second, this official Xie has a good view of her father and respects her mother.

So when the second mother packed the chrysanthemum into a bamboo tube, Xiao Mi eagerly took it and trotted over to official Xie.

"Official Xie, this is the chrysanthemum my second sister and I picked. We pick the freshest ones every morning; mom says the freshest ones are the best."

Claiming credit like this, her parents surely wouldn’t, but she sure would!

Besides, she’s just an almost three-year-old little kid; who would think that she’s doing it on purpose?

Purposefully letting official Xie know that this chrysanthemum tea isn’t really that cheap!

Xiao Mi was adorable, fair skinned with bright black eyes, and a couple of dimples.

When she smiled at you, it felt as if your heart could melt.

Simply put, she was so cute, it was painfully adorable!

Humans are naturally powerless against cute creatures, and even official Xie was no exception!

Listening to her cute voice and looking at Xiao Mi running over with the big bamboo tube, official Xie’s face instantly filled with a radiant smile.

"Really? Did you pick it all by yourselves?" Even his voice was slightly coaxing, as if he was coaxing his granddaughter.

Xiao Mi proudly nodded her chin, "Of course, official Xie, here you go. Don’t drink too much; it’s not good for your health if you do."

With a proud face, she handed the big bamboo tube to official Xie.

Following close behind her, the second mother was a bit anxious, thinking Xiao Mi was being too impolite.

But seeing that official Xie was not angry, she resisted the urge to pull her daughter back.

Official Xie took the bamboo tube; it was clearly homemade – the tube was a bit thin, the lid a bit thicker, and the joint was shaved thin inside and out, just right to fit.

Official Xie used a bit of strength to open the bamboo tube, and immediately, a rich chrysanthemum fragrance wafted out.

The second mother carefully explained beside him.

"Official Xie, we don’t have those ceramic jars, and this chrysanthemum tea isn’t good to wrap up in oil cloth since it might get crushed, so we used bamboo tubes to pack them."

Official Xie nodded repeatedly: "This is a good method; sealing it this way prevents moisture and keeps it from breaking if dropped, very good."

Xiao Mi proudly patted her little chest: "My dad made it himself; my dad is amazing, even this tea cup was made by my dad!"

This was the cup from which official Xie was drinking tea.

It was made by cutting a bamboo section into the size of a cup and then carefully polishing it smooth and round, making a very practical tea cup.

Official Xie hadn’t noticed before, but hearing Xiao Mi say this, he looked carefully at the tea cup with some surprise.

"This cup was made by your dad? Your dad is really skilled."

Smooth and delicate, he had thought it was specifically purchased from town.

Xiao Mi pouted, "Not at all; I asked dad to carve flowers on it, like Grandpa Liu’s cups have, but dad couldn’t do it, so dad is dumb!"

She nodded vigorously to prove she was right; dad is indeed dumb!

Official Xie burst out laughing: "You little girl, didn’t you just say your dad was the best? How did he become a big dummy now?"

The second mother was a bit embarrassed and pulled Xiao Mi close: "Sorry for the child’s nonsense, official Xie; she doesn’t understand and talks randomly."

Official Xie waved his hand with a laugh: "This child is adorable; I haven’t laughed this happily in a long time."

By now, the grains had been weighed, and official Xie capped the bamboo tube, finished off the chrysanthemum tea in the cup, and walked over.

The second mother breathed a sigh of relief and took Xiao Mi a bit further away.

Though official Xie appeared always amiable, common folks naturally feared officials, and the second mother was no exception.

Seeing Zhang Hu’s astonished expression, official Xie knew there must be quite a bit and quickly asked, "Zhang Hu, how many jin?"

Zhang Hu gulped and looked at official Xie in disbelief.

"O-o-official, about..."

"Stuttering, tongue broken? Hand it over; I’ll see for myself!"

Saying this, official Xie snatched the ledger from Zhang Hu’s hands.

This ledger was specifically used to record Fu’an Village’s grain, and each village had one like this, keeping track of each household’s total production and tax obligations.

Since Zhang Hu was the manager, the ledger was with him, and others would keep their own records and eventually transcribe everything to the ledger after the harvest.

Looking down, official Xie saw the characters Jiang Hu and the word grain written underneath.

"Sorghum, three acres, two thousand five hundred and forty jin."

Official Xie read aloud, astonished, "So much! Over eight hundred jin per acre on average!"

To know, from his understanding, the yield of sorghum was at most only four to five hundred jin!

He quickly regained his composure, remembering that Jiang Hu had previously said the sorghum yield was seven to eight hundred jin per acre; he was aware!

He even glared at Zhang Hu, thinking Zhang Hu’s alarm was quite immature.

Zhang Hu understood and gestured, "Sir, would you continue with the corn?"

Official Xie thought, how much more could corn possibly yield? Even if it doubled, how could it be more than the sorghum? Enough to be so shocking you couldn’t speak?

But looking down, he was dumbfounded.

"Corn, three thousand four hundred jin!"

Yield per acre of one thousand one hundred! Three hundred jin more than the sorghum!