Chapter 372: Other Intentions

Translator: CokeZero Editor: Rainystars

Lu Jiao immediately turned around and said to Lady Xu and Jinxiu, “I have

some things to attend to. Both of you should still stay for lunch. In the afternoon, we can go together to the fields.”

Lady Xu saw that Lu Jiao had something to do, which made it difficult for her to insist on leaving. She agreed immediately.

“Okay, then Jinxiu and I will go to the kitchen to help Aunt Hua prepare lunch.”

“Sure, thank you.”

Lady Xu shook her head, “It’s fine.”

Lady Xu and Jinxiu stood up and headed towards the kitchen to assist Aunt Hua with the meal preparation.

Meanwhile, Lu Jiao walked with Ruan Zhu to the front courtyard.

As she approached Xie Yunjin’s room, she overheard the concerned voice of Xie Yunjin’s second brother, Xie Erzhu.

“How did you get injured when everything was fine? Your leg just recovered, and now you have a shoulder injury. Brother, your luck has been really bad lately. After your injuries heal, you should take sister-in-law to the temple and offer incense.’

Just as Lu Jiao entered, Xie Erzhu noticed her and instinctively greeted her, “Sister-in-law, you’re here. I was just telling my brother that you should all go to the temple and offer incense. His luck hasn’t been good this year.”

Lu Jiao nodded, “Okay, I understand.”

She gestured for Xie Erzhu to take a seat while she exchanged pleasantries with the other two people in the room.

The other two were also villagers from the Xie village. It was Xu Duojin and an elderly man named Xiao whom Xu Duojin hunted with. The villagers were addressing him as Uncle Xiao.

“Brother Xu and Uncle Xiao are also here,” Lu Jiao acknowledged.

Xu Duojin stood up and explained, “Xie Erzhu was coming to Qinghe County, and the village elders were concerned, so they sent me and Uncle Xiao to accompany him here.”

Xie Erzhu chuckled, “Actually, I could have come alone, but they were worried and insisted on sending me.”

He seemed quite confident in his abilities.

Lu Jiao and Xie Yunjin exchanged a glance and both smiled.

As long as Xie Erzhu was happy, it didn’t matter whether he could make money or how much he made.

Xie Yunjin turned to Xu Duojin and Uncle Xiao and thanked them, “Thank you, Xu Duojin and Uncle Xiao, for accompanying my brother here.”

Xu Duojin and Uncle Xiao shook their heads. Xu Duojin said, “It’s no trouble. Brother Xie is now a famous figure in our village, and naturally, we want to take good care of him.”

Xie Erzhu rubbed his head, seemingly helpless. However, he quickly thought of the matter of the leeches dying and his expression became serious. He looked at Lu Jiao and asked.

“Everything was fine with the leech farming, but in recent days, I’ve found that some of the leeches have died. Although it’s not a lot, I’m worried that more will die later. So, I want to ask my sister-in-law, are the leeches sick?”

Lu Jiao immediately asked about the specific details of his leech farming, and she found that Xie Erzhu was doing everything properly. Under these circumstances, the leeches should not have died.

She then inquired about the lighting conditions, and eventually, she discovered the cause of the leeches’ death: it was due to excessive exposure to light.

In September, the sun was slightly hitting the west, and although the leech pond was covered with water lilies and water hyacinths, there were no trees planted around the pond. As a result, when the sun was at an angle, it still shone into the pond.

Leeches are afraid of light, and if they crawl onto the shore, exposure to light would cause them to die.

Lu Jiao explained the problem to Xie Erzhu and advised him, “When you go back, plant trees around the leech pond to block any light from reaching it. This way, the leeches won’t die.”

Xie Erzhu understood and nodded emphatically, “I understand. I’ll have the villagers plant trees around the leech pond.”

“Good,” Lu Jiao affirmed.

She inquired about the situation in their village. The Xie family’s village was doing well, and due to the interdependence of their interests, the neighbors lived harmoniously together.

Xu Duojin and Uncle Xiao also exchanged a few words, and Lu Jiao asked them to talk to Xie Yunjin. She then excused herself to the back courtyard to arrange for lunch.

Xu Duojin and Uncle Xiao were embarrassed and got up to leave, “We should go back. ”

Lu Jiao warmly insisted, “As fellow villagers, you really can’t just leave without having a meal. Are you looking down on us, Xu Duojin and Uncle Xiao?” Xu Duojin and Uncle Xiao instantly shook their heads, “It’s too much work for you.”

Lu Jiao smiled and said, “It’s no trouble. Please just stay and have lunch.”

Xu Duojin and Uncle Xiao wanted to say something more, but Xie Erzhu interrupted, saying, “Don’t be reserved. My third brother and sister-in-law are not strangers to you. They are all very good people. Just stay and have a meal.”

Xu Duojin and Uncle Xiao stopped insisting and watched as Lu Jiao and the other three people leave the room to go to the back courtyard.

Xie Yunjin said concernedly from behind, “Then, in the afternoon, you can go and see the fields.”

“Yes.”

Lu Jiao replied before walking out. Xie Erzhu curiously asked Xie Yunjin, “What fields?”

Xie Yunjin didn’t want to conceal information from his own brother so he told him that Lu Jiao purchased some land and were planning on farming medicinal However, Xie Yunjin didn’t mention the exact amount of land she bought, so Xie Erzhu and the others assumed it was around one or two hundred acres.

Even with that assumption, Xie Erzhu and the others still thought highly of Lu Jiao.

“Brother’s wife is really impressive. In such a short time, she bought one or two hundred acres of land.’

Xu Duojin nodded in agreement, “Lady Lu has always been capable. The days ahead for the Yunjin family will only get better.”

Xie Erzhu and Xu Duojin praised Lu Jiao, and Xie Yunjin felt even happier than if they had praised him. He smiled as he watched the joyful conversation between the two inside the room.

On one side of the room, Uncle Xiao suddenly spoke up, “Do you need someone to take care of your fields?”

His words caught everyone’s attention, and they turned to look at Uncle Xiao.

What did Uncle Xiao mean?

Uncle Xiao spoke proactively, “If your fields have no one to take care of them, I can help you take care of them.”

Xie Yunjin was unsure how to respond because those were Lu Jiao’s medicinal fields, and he had never been involved in her affairs. Besides, he didn’t understand why Uncle Xiao wanted to take care of their fields.

Xie Yunjin looked at Uncle Xiao with a puzzled expression, and Uncle Xiao looked worried as he explained.

“I don’t have any land, and I’m getting old. Going hunting in the mountains will be difficult in the future. So, I’ve been looking for something suitable to do in my retirement. If your family’s fields have no one to take care of them, I’d be willing to watch over them for you.”

Xie Yunjin saw the sincere look on Uncle Xiao’s face. It seemed like he genuinely wanted to take care of their fields.

To be honest, Uncle Xiao was a fellow villager of the Xie family. Although he came to the village later, he had been a local for many years. Xie Yunjin trusted his character, and if Lu Jiao indeed needed someone to manage the fields, Uncle Xiao would be a good choice.

Thinking about this, Xie Yunjin said, “Lu Jiao has been handling the fields all this time, and I haven’t interfered. I’ll ask her about it later.’

Uncle Xiao didn’t say anything more and agreed to wait and ask Xie Yunjin’s wife when she returns..

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