"No need, you guys chat amongst yourselves." Shen Xiaoyan waved a hand and walked out.
Watching Shen Xiaoyan's shadow pass by the window, Lu Taobao raised an eyebrow and said to Zheng Wei, "Brother Zheng, you're so different from before, you can even cook now."
Zheng Wei didn't respond to his comment, instead bringing up the vegetables. "I've already retrieved the custom-made cabinets. We can start planting in the next couple of days, and the first harvest should be ready in about a month. About the money, what do you say?"
Lu Taobao also grew serious, cleared his throat, and then said, "Whatever Brother says the amount is, I absolutely have no objections."
He then smiled at Zheng Wei, "I estimate we won't be able to grow much. Perhaps, it will all end up in the stomachs of our family members."
Zheng Wei nodded. He knew that Lu Taobao's family was large, and that many of these vegetables could indeed supply their entire family, and even spare some for friends and relatives. It was possible they wouldn't have any left to sell elsewhere.
Zheng Wei didn't care about these practicalities. What he cared about was whether the young woman's labor could be rewarded. After a moment of thought, he said, "There are few green vegetables in winter, and I don't need to tell you this, you understand it all. How about this, regardless of the variety, two cents per jin, what do you think?"
Upon hearing this, Lu Taobao slapped his thigh with all his might and exclaimed, "Brother, you're truly generous. To ask for so little money, it even feels too little to me."
Zheng Wei shook his head. "It's not little."
Indeed, it wasn't little. In normal seasons, the most expensive green vegetables were only a little over 10 li per jin. To be able to sell them at this price now was truly a lot.
After they settled on the price, Zheng Wei got up and headed outside. Lu Taobao quickly asked, "Brother, where are you going?"
"To help cook," Zheng Wei replied without looking back.
"I'm going too," Lu Taobao said as he stood up and hurried to catch up, walking alongside Zheng Wei towards the side courtyard. He added, "It's a good opportunity for me to learn, so I can cook a delicious meal for my parents at home."
Zheng Wei stopped and turned to look at Lu Taobao, then said lightly, "As long as you're not afraid."
After speaking, Zheng Wei continued to walk forward, but a hint of cunning laughter flickered in his eyes.
"Afraid? What's there to be afraid of in cooking? It's not like I've never seen it before." Lu Taobao was dismissive of this and didn't slow his pace, walking directly in front of Zheng Wei.
Just as Zheng Wei's foot crossed the threshold of the kitchen, he heard Lu Taobao's piercing scream from inside. Looking up, he saw Hua Diandian standing upright, its two front paws on Lu Taobao's shoulders, its tongue hanging out and panting at him continuously.
"Brother, save me." Lu Taobao's eyes darted to Zheng Wei as he entered and he immediately cried for help.
"Didn't you say you weren't afraid?" Zheng Wei crossed his arms, a smile on his lips. He nodded to Shen Xiaoyan, and then looked at Lu Taobao. "Didn't you say you weren't afraid?"
"I also, I don't know, I didn't know there was a spotted tiger here." Lu Taobao felt like crying but had no tears. If he had known there was a spotted tiger cub, he would never have come.
Come to think of it, why would a spotted tiger cub appear here?
"Look at your courage," Zheng Wei sneered, then waved a hand at Hua Diandian.
Hua Diandian immediately withdrew its paws and ran to Zheng Wei's side, rubbing its large head against Zheng Wei's leg.
The moment Hua Diandian left him, Lu Taobao felt his legs weaken to the point he could barely stand. Yet, he didn't want to lose face too much, so he forcefully steadied himself, all the while stealing glances at Hua Diandian from the corner of his eye, looking shaken.
"Don't be scared, Hua Diandian is very well-behaved," Shen Xiaoyan walked over to Hua Diandian, patted its head, and said to Lu Taobao.
"Well-behaved?" Lu Taobao's eyes widened in disbelief. Had he misheard? His little sister-in-law was actually calling a spotted tiger cub well-behaved?
Also, who was Hua Diandian? Was that the name of this spotted tiger cub?
Seeing Lu Taobao's suspicious gaze, Shen Xiaoyan smiled again and said, "Hua Diandian is its name. What do you think, is it nice?"
Lu Taobao felt embarrassed. A majestic spotted tiger cub, to be given the name Hua Diandian, was that really appropriate?
However, seeing the gentle expression on Zheng Wei's face out of the corner of his eye, Lu Taobao buried this thought deep in his heart and grinned fawningly at Shen Xiaoyan, "Of course, of course. Whatever sister-in-law names it is naturally nice."
Shen Xiaoyan had actually seen the change in Lu Taobao's expression but didn't intend to expose him at that moment. So, she said, "You don't need to be afraid. Hua Diandian has a very good temperament, and its parents are also good-tempered. As long as you don't harm them, they won't attack you."
"Its, its, its parents?" Lu Taobao was stunned for a moment after hearing Shen Xiaoyan's words, then pointed at Hua Diandian and asked tremblingly.
Shen Xiaoyan looked at his thunderstruck face and wasn't sure who he was asking. Nevertheless, she kindly replied, "Yes, Hua Diandian's family of three is all here with us. Their parents might be playing in the front yard. They haven't come over yet."
Lu Taobao slowly closed his mouth, his face still a picture of shock as if struck by lightning. He sidestepped Hua Diandian and shuffled out of the kitchen, "I, I'd better go back to my room. I can't help with anything anyway. Hehe."
It must be said that Lu Taobao's reaction amused both Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei, and they both burst into laughter.
Seeing this, Lu Taobao wasn't angry. He didn't feel embarrassed. It was perfectly normal to be afraid of a spotted tiger, wasn't it?
The attendant who usually accompanied Lu Taobao was named Wu Yong. The reason he hadn't come along was that Lu Taobao had sent him to deliver some small items to Shen Xiaoming.
As a result, the moment he entered the house, he saw two adolescent dogs, a black and a white cat, and most importantly, two large, yellow and white spotted tigers looking at him.
Wu Yong felt that he must have gone to the wrong place, or perhaps he was dreaming. Otherwise, what was with these animals in front of him?
"Brother Wu Yong, why aren't you coming over?"
But at this moment, Shen Xiaoming's voice reached Wu Yong's ears. He looked foolishly in the direction of the voice and saw Shen Xiaoming sitting on the kàng bed, holding a book in his hand, looking at him with a face full of pleasant surprise.
"Young, Young Master Xiaoming." Wu Yong swallowed, and spoke with difficulty.
Since Shen Xiaoming was here, he must have come to the right place. But, what was going on?
Shen Xiaoming noticed Wu Yong's fear at this moment. He quickly put on his shoes, got off the kàng bed, and pulled Wu Yong, saying, "Brother Wu Yong, don't be afraid, they won't hurt anyone."
Logically speaking, since Lu Taobao and Zheng Wei were like brothers, Lu Taobao's attendant should call Zheng Wei "Young Master" and Shen Xiaoming, as Zheng Wei's younger brother-in-law, "Young Master Xiaoming." However, Shen Xiaoming had been raised with harsh words since childhood and didn't understand the difference in status.
Wu Yong was older than him, treated him well, and played with him. He was happy to call Wu Yong "Brother." Shen Xiaoyan felt it was fine, and Zheng Wei didn't say anything either, letting him have his way.