Chapter 64: Watermelon
Shen Kuan, relying on his experience, immediately chose a ripe large watermelon.
He flicked his finger on the watermelon, and a crack suddenly appeared.
The unique sweet scent of watermelon immediately emerged.
Several heads gathered around, looking on with eager anticipation.
Shen Kuan took out a small knife and cut the watermelon open.
“Wow~”
The fresh red, plump pulp made Yun Jiao exclaim her desire to eat it.
Shen Kuan indulged her, handing her the first cut piece.
“Thank you, Eldest Cousin.”
Yun Jiao, who thanked him obediently, was so well-behaved that Shen Kuan couldn’t help but pinch her soft cheeks.
He had never seen such a well-behaved child.
Yun Jiao didn’t mind, her eyes were full of the watermelon she held in her hands. Taking a bite, the full juice burst in her mouth, making her utterly satisfied.
She found it troublesome to spit out the seeds, so she swallowed the black watermelon seeds.
Shen Xiuyuan, who was beside her, scared her when he saw this.
“If you eat watermelon seeds, they will sprout in your stomach and grow watermelon vines. Aren’t you afraid?”
Yun Jiao patted her small belly.
“I’m not afraid. If they grow watermelons, I can eat them wherever I go.”
The watermelon rind was still a bit thick at this time, and there were many seeds, but the watermelon flesh was delicious, with a slightly sandy texture. So much juice flowed down her hands and onto the ground with each bite.
This was the only downside.
Yun Jiao didn’t like the sticky feeling on her hands.
But she endured it, planning to find water to wash her hands after finishing the watermelon.
She ate one piece of watermelon completely clean, leaving not a trace of red flesh.
“Eldest Cousin, I want more.”
Shen Kuan had saved some for her; the middle piece was the best.
On the country field ridges, children of all sizes sat in a row. Shen Xiuyuan and Yun Xiaowu, along with other boys, stood barefoot on the muddy ground.
The sun set in the west, painting the sky red, creating a peculiar spectacle of fiery clouds.
The sky was very blue, and the wind was very refreshing.
After they finished eating one watermelon, Shen Kuan picked three more and put them in his backpack.
“Let’s put them in the well to cool, they taste even better chilled.”
Yun Jiao was looking forward to it, but now that her stomach was full, she wasn’t as greedy.
Shen Kuan, carrying the watermelons on his back, led a group of younger siblings back.
Yun Jiao yawned, feeling sleepy and wanting to sleep.
“Jiaojiao wants to sleep? Come, Second Cousin will carry you back.”
Yun Jiao yawned again and shook her head.
“I can walk by myself. Going down the mountain isn’t tiring.”
As she spoke, she yawned again, her round, deer-like eyes were hazy with moisture, and her curled eyelashes fluttered, making people feel an urge to pity her.
Yun Jiao wasn’t exaggerating; she could walk, and her short legs moved quite quickly.
However, as soon as they got home and she sat on a chair listening to everyone talk for a while, she tilted her head, leaned against the chair, and fell asleep.
Shen Yunlian directly picked her up: “Aren’t you afraid she’ll fall?”
Aunt Shen said, “Quickly take her to my room to sleep. She’s walked so far, don’t let her get tired.”
Yun Jiao doesn’t have many bad habits when sleeping, but when it’s hot, she seems to get stuffy and always kicks off her quilt.
Even if only a thin blanket was placed on her belly, she would kick it off in her sleep.
She would roll around on the bed with a wrinkled brow, feeling uncomfortable.
Shen Yunlian and Aunt Shen sat by the bed, sewing shoes by candlelight, covering her up from time to time.
Shen Yunlian complained, “This little girl is very afraid of the heat. In the hot weather, she loves to roll around in bed looking for a cooler place to sleep. The quilt can’t stay on her belly for more than a moment!”
“You say she’s afraid of heat, but she wants to go out to sea with her father and uncle every day. Sister-in-law, don’t be fooled by how small she is; she looks very well-behaved usually, but she’s bolder than anyone else. She’s only been learning to swim for a short time, and she wishes she could be in the sea all day.”
Aunt Shen looked at the restless little girl on the bed with envy.
“This shows that Jiaojiao is healthy. It’s good for children to be a bit lively. Jiaojiao is so beautiful; even the chubby babies in those New Year pictures aren’t this beautiful. Her skin is the fairest and most tender I’ve ever seen. If I had such a beautiful daughter, I would dote on her every day.”
“Since you’re here, stay for a couple more days. Although we don’t have many beds, sleeping on a mat on the floor at this time of year won’t cause dampness.”
Shen Yunlian nodded, “That would be a bother, Sister-in-law.”
Yun Xiaowu and the other boys were very excited to hear they could sleep on the floor.
“Mom, can we sleep on the roof? We can watch the stars too.”
Shen Yunlian glared, “I think you want to fly to the sky!”
Yun Xiaowu pouted, “If I can’t, I won’t.”
In the middle of the night, Yun Jiao woke up once to go to the toilet. After returning, she didn’t go back to bed and instead squeezed in among her brothers.
The mountain breeze at night was cool, and it wasn’t too hot even with the window open.
However, there were many mosquitoes.
Fortunately, Yun Jiao wasn’t the type that mosquitoes were attracted to; after a whole night, her body was clean and free of mosquito bites.
In contrast, Yun Xiaowu and the others had several bites on their faces and bodies and were still scratching when they vaguely woke up.
“Ah, it’s so itchy!”
Yun Jiao also felt annoyed because the buzzing sound of the mosquitoes was too irritating.
Aunt Shen brought a bottle of floral water; only about half of it was left, indicating it was used frequently.
“Here, put some floral water on.”
“Hmm…Jiaojiao really isn’t bitten at all.”
Yun Xiaowu and the others were extremely envious of this.
“Jiaojiao has never been bothered by mosquitoes since she was little.”
Yun Jiao rested her chin on her hands, her small brows wrinkled as she uttered one word: “Annoying.”
Aunt Shen asked with a chuckle, “What’s annoying?”
The little girl was beautiful no matter what expression she made.
“Mosquitoes, buzzing, noisy.”
There was quite a bit of resentment in her words.
Everyone in the room laughed at her.
“Today, I’ll ask your maternal grandfather to get some mosquito repellent from Doctor Wu. The mosquitoes in our mountains are quite potent.”
It was much better after applying the floral water.
When it was time to eat, Yun Jiao immediately forgot her annoyance and went to get food.
Breakfast consisted of cold dishes, pickles, and thin porridge.
The porridge was also cooked with diced sweet potatoes, and it tasted very good. Yun Jiao ate a large bowl.
“Jiaojiao, let’s go catch wild rabbits.”
Upon hearing this, Yun Jiao immediately finished the last bit of porridge, her little bottom already eager to move from the stool.
“Bring water, we need to bring a water kettle.”
Since they weren’t by the sea, her body was severely dehydrated.
But she wanted to go play; it was her first time at her maternal grandmother’s home, and she was curious about everything.
Yun Xiaowu patted the water kettle on his waist: “I’ve got it.”
Yun Jiao and the others went to bed early, so naturally, they woke up early.
They went up the mountain to catch wild chickens and rabbits; it wasn’t just for fun.
Grandma’s family also kept three sheep. Shen Xiuyuan carried his backpack and herded the sheep up the mountain.
Shen Kuan didn’t go with them; he had to work with the adults.
“Wait, I need to call my brothers too.”
The “brothers” Shen Xiuyuan mentioned were actually friends of roughly the same age from the same village.
Like Shen Xiuyuan, they carried backpacks; some herded sheep, and others herded cattle.
However, cattle were expensive and still a rarity, with only three cows in the entire village, while there were more sheep.
