Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Chapter 13 Melon Field

He did not go to Rongxi Hall to bid farewell to Jia Zheng.

After all, they are just uncle and nephew, so there's no need for them to be so insincere in paying their respects every day; everyone finds it troublesome.

Therefore, Jia Lian usually did not go to pay his respects to Jia Zheng and Lady Wang. If there was anything, the two of them would directly instruct someone to summon him.

Besides, Jia Zheng is probably still sound asleep in Aunt Zhao's room, embracing his beloved. It would be incredibly inconsiderate of him to disturb her so early in the morning.

However, he had to go to Jia She's place.

Of course, Jia She still didn't see him.

She walked out of the east courtyard with a leisurely air, and Zhao'er and the others were already waiting outside with their horses.

He wanted to shorten his journey south, so he didn't bring too many people with him.

Besides the servant Zhao'er and the attendant Wang'er, there were only five adult guards.

The so-called guards were all selected from the servants who were physically strong and used to guard the house. They also served as servants and attendants.

The Jia family's ancestors made their fortune through military achievements, and many of their servants had served as herdsmen for several dukes during their military campaigns. Although the family had enjoyed peace for many years and the older generation had either died or grown old, their children and grandchildren still served in the household.

Yesterday afternoon, Jia Lian personally tested them, and found that many of the guards outside the second gate could actually perform a few moves of military combat techniques, which must have been taught by their fathers and grandfathers.

So Jia Lian picked out a few of the most agile-looking men, thinking that with these men escorting them, they would be able to handle even petty thieves on the road.

"Second Master..."

Zhao'er led over the white horse that Jia Lian often used when going out, patted it and said with a smile, "The journey from the capital to Yangzhou is over a thousand li. I was worried that Your Highness's health might not be able to handle it, so I specially prepared this for you. How does Your Highness feel it?"

Jia Lian looked over at the sound and saw that Zhao'er had added a layer of fur, like silver fox fur, to the horse's back. Combined with the already impressive appearance of the clean white horse, it indeed looked even more noble and extraordinary.

"This thing is soft and absorbent, so Second Master will probably suffer less when riding it on the road."

Short-distance horseback riding may be enjoyable, but traveling hundreds or thousands of miles is definitely a physically and mentally exhausting experience.

Therefore, Jia Lian was very satisfied that Zhao'er was so considerate of him.

After mounting his horse, Jia Lian laughed and said, "It's not too late to regret it now. This trip will definitely be very arduous. If you want to go to Yangzhou, you can go down by boat with Xing'er and the others. Don't be reckless now, or you'll complain about the journey later."

Zhao'er chuckled and said, "Thank you for your consideration, Master. But if you're not afraid, why should I be? Besides, I'm used to serving you. I wouldn't feel at ease if I wasn't by your side."

Well, just by listening to that, you can tell he's definitely a lackey.

Jia Lian stopped wasting words, and seeing that everyone else was ready, he tightened the reins and gave a stern shout:

"Set off!"

……

In late summer and early autumn, the weather is hot.

Although Jia Lian and his companions made the most of the morning hours to travel, the sun became scorching hot after they had traveled more than a hundred li west of the capital.

Traveling under such a blazing sun, even the strong winds whipped up by galloping horses couldn't dispel the intense heat on our bodies.

"Second Master, there's a grove of trees ahead. Let's rest there for a bit; it's too hot to run anymore..."

Zhao'er had been feeling extremely tired for a while. She wanted to rest when she passed several teahouses and taverns, but Jia Lian wouldn't allow it, so she had to persevere.

At that moment, I felt so hot that I couldn't stand it anymore. Seeing that I had to pass through a dense forest ahead, I hurriedly shouted loudly.

Fearing that Jia Lian would still disagree, he quickly gave the others meaningful glances.

Laiwang said, "Yes, Second Master, even if we can manage traveling like this, the horses can't. If we exhaust the horses, it will really delay our journey. Let's rest a bit before continuing."

"That's right, that's right..."

Jia Lian was actually in no better shape than Zhao'er. The reason he insisted on continuing his journey was twofold: first, to reach Yangzhou as soon as possible, and second, to test the limits of his physical endurance and strength.

The result was alright. Although Jia Lian had been used to extravagance and debauchery, fortunately, because he was young and often went out on business, his physical condition was still quite good.

However, after glancing at the guards, Jia Lian felt that he needed to train more.

Most of them were just a little out of breath, unlike him who had already secretly wiped away sweat countless times...

Considering that Wang'er's words made sense, Jia Lian did not insist any further, allowing everyone to rest briefly in the woods and also to give the horses some water.

He was sitting and chatting with a few guards he didn't know very well, trying to find out about their families so he could focus on his work.

Suddenly, Zhao'er darted out from the tree-lined path beside them, laughing loudly, "Second Master, look quickly, what's this?"

Jia Lian looked over and saw that the boy had brought out a huge watermelon from somewhere!

"Hey kid, where did you get this?"

Laiwang, who was tending to the horses and giving them water, laughed and said, "Second Master, you don't know, there's a melon patch right across the street. This little rascal must have sneaked over there and stolen some."

Zhao'er chuckled, "It's so hot, wouldn't it be more refreshing to eat some of this before continuing our journey?"

After saying that, he ordered the others to draw their knives and cut the watermelon into pieces on the big rock, then eagerly brought the best piece to Jia Lian.

Jia Lian took a bite and found it exceptionally sweet, even better than anything he had tasted in later generations.

"You all eat too, why are you all staring at me?"

Upon hearing Jia Lian's instructions, everyone rushed forward.

Zhao'er was so anxious that she jumped up and down and rushed back, but she only managed to grab a small piece. She immediately started cursing at Laiwang and the others.

The others just laughed, one of them saying, "Look at you, so stingy. We'll pick two more after we finish eating, then you can have a couple more pieces."

Zhao'er reluctantly accepted it.

After finishing the melon in his hand, Jia Lian casually tossed the rind into the bushes behind him, stood up, and said, "It's not easy for farmers to grow melons. We can just pick one to try. If we want to eat our fill, we'll have to pay for it."

Let's go take a look together.

……

Following the path down the main road, we found several large melon fields, and it was the peak season for them. Watermelons of all sizes were scattered throughout the fields, a sight to behold, laden with fruit, a truly delightful sight.

Seeing a house on the hilltop, which they assumed was where the melon keeper was, Jia Lian and the others left two men to watch the horses while the rest of them walked up the hill.

"Woof woof woof~~!!"

Suddenly, a bark rang out, and two fierce dogs appeared. However, they were both on chains, so the group was not alarmed.

One of the men behind Jia Lian even laughed at Zhao'er, saying, "To be able to steal a melon right under the noses of two vicious dogs, you must be even smarter than a dog."

"Go to hell..."

Not long after the barking of the dog began, an old man and a young man appeared on the slope.

The old man was about fifty years old, thin and bony. Behind him was a boy, presumably his grandson. They were both dressed in coarse linen clothes, clearly true farmers.

Upon seeing Jia Lian and his party, they seemed somewhat afraid. Although they stopped the dogs from barking, they hesitated and dared not approach.

Jia Lian stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Old man, there's no need to worry. We were passing through this place and got thirsty because of the heat. Our servant, being impolite, stole a melon. We've come here to apologize."

The old farmer was relieved upon hearing this and hurriedly waved his hand, saying, "It's just a watermelon, young master, there's no need for this, no need for this..."

"Thank you very much, sir. However, I would like to buy some more melons from you to take on the road. Is that alright?"

"Gentlemen, feel free to pick as many as you like; they're all worthless stuff..."

Seeing that Jia Lian was dressed richly and behaved politely, and noticing the distinguished bearing of Lai Wang and the others behind him, the old farmer guessed that he was a young nobleman from a big city. Judging that he was not a vicious person, he invited, "It's very hot in the summer. Why don't you all come up and have a bowl of cool tea before you continue your journey?"

Then, as if remembering something, she pulled her grandson over, "Sanwa, hurry home and get some clean bowls!"

As he spoke, he pushed aside the menacing dog while smiling and inviting everyone up.

Seeing the old man's enthusiasm and the boy's obedient running quickly down the slope, Jia Lian inexplicably thought of Granny Liu and her grandson.

It seems that most farmers in this world are still simple and honest people...

As the old farmer went up, he came to a thatched hut facing east and west, presumably built specifically to guard the melon field.

Next to the house, there is a locust tree of moderate size, which provides just enough shade. Under the tree, there are two low stools and a wooden table.

What a simple and tranquil farm dwelling! It stirred in Jia Lian a desire to return to farming.

The old man respectfully invited Jia Lian to sit down, and Jia Lian did not refuse, but instead ordered Laiwang to take out five hundred coins.

"Where would I need so much..." The old farmer hurriedly waved his hand, refusing to accept it.

Jia Lian smiled and said, "This money is partly to apologize and partly to buy more melons. Please accept it, old man, otherwise we juniors will feel uneasy."

"Young master, please don't apologize anymore. As for the melons in the field, if any of you gentlemen find them appealing, please feel free to pick some and eat them. We really wouldn't dare accept your money..."

The old man sighed helplessly as he spoke.

Zhao'er didn't want to stay here any longer, nor did she care for their tea. Seeing the old man nagging, she said, "Just accept what our master gives you. Are you trying to force us to take advantage of you? It's not like we can't afford to pay."

"That's not what I meant..."

Jia Lian waved his hand and asked, "Old man, have you encountered some difficulties?"

Jia Lian noticed that the old farmer seemed to have a worried look on his face.

The old farmer hesitated for a moment, then sighed, "It's rare to find someone as kind as you, young master. But how could I possibly accept your money? As you can see, our melon harvest this year is quite good, but we're still not making any money."

One of the guards laughed, "You old man, you're really dishonest! This year, watermelons are selling for over ten copper coins a pound in the capital! I bet you have at least several thousand pounds of them on your vast field, and you're telling our master you can't make any money?"

"A dozen or so coins..." The old farmer's eyes grew even more dim, but he still hurriedly explained:

"That's the price in big cities. Here, it's really worthless... To be honest, in previous years, my family, along with several other families in the neighborhood who grow melons, could still make some money, but this year is different..."

Mr. Li, the wealthy man from Xicun, sent someone early in the morning to say that he would offer three coins to everyone to sell all the melons in their fields to him.

Although the price was slightly lower, we thought that he could help us buy them all at once, which would save us trouble, so we agreed.

only……"

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian asked, "So, he later changed his mind and didn't want it anymore?"

"It's not that we don't want them, but he said that the melons have had a bumper harvest everywhere this year, and that even if we transport them to the city, we won't be able to sell them for a good price. So he's only offering us one coin! Young master, you don't know, at this price, we can't even afford to pay the land rent. How can we possibly agree to that?"

After hearing this, Jia Lian couldn't help but sigh.

As expected, there are always middlemen making a profit! It makes sense, considering the inconvenient transportation and limited information in this era, coupled with some people relying on their wealth and power to seek exorbitant profits, the price difference between them is predictable.

"We refused, but he didn't force us. He just said it was up to us whether we wanted to sell or not."

Our families originally wanted to ask the previous merchants to come and buy it, but they were all afraid of the Li family's power and dared not come.

So we had to figure out our own way, having each family's son push carts to nearby towns to sell the produce. Although the price was low, we still couldn't sell many.

With autumn and winter approaching, I'm afraid those melons will just rot in the ground in the end.

So, gentlemen, if you like, please feel free to pick some and eat them; I wouldn't dare charge you any money."

The old man could only manage a wry smile.

Jia Lian found the old farmer rather interesting. He said that his melons were not selling and that he wanted to buy them, but told him that they were free.

He probably thought that the few of them could only pick two or three melons at most, which would be enough for them to eat. How could he dare to sell them for five hundred coins? If he said he would only charge ten or twenty coins, wouldn't that be deliberately humiliating him, a young master who looked to be rich and noble?

Or perhaps they are simply hospitable and don't want to make money off them.

With this in mind, Jia Lian made up his mind.