Chapter 44

The other girls also looked surprised, the carriage and all.

"Jiajia, we didn't expect your brother-in-law to come pick us up in a carriage, that's so cool."

Before they came, everyone was worried that there wouldn't be much to do, but they encountered something fun right after getting off the car. These girls were all from the city and had never ridden in such an old-fashioned carriage before; it was really interesting.

Not to mention them, even Gaojia didn't expect her brother-in-law to come pick them up in a carriage.

'When did Brother-in-law learn how to drive a carriage?'

"Jiajia, I'm sorry, the horses walk slowly."

Li Dong turned the carriage, jumped down with a smile, and placed a stool for everyone to step on. "Everyone, get in the carriage, whoa."

The girls cheered and climbed into the carriage using the stool. There were long benches in the carriage, and sitting six or seven people on one side was no problem. "Jiajia, get in quickly."

"Okay."

Gaojia was a bit dazed. Where did Brother-in-law get the carriage from? "Brother-in-law, when did you learn to drive a carriage?" Gaojia asked softly as she sat next to Li Dong. Li Dong smiled and lowered his voice. "Just in the past couple of days, don't tell anyone, I'm still a new driver."

"Ah."

Gaojia thought to herself, Brother-in-law is quite bold, daring to drive a carriage to pick people up right after learning. The whole way, Gaojia was a bit nervous, afraid of any accidents.

The other girls, however, had no such concerns. They were all excited, taking photos and posting them on social media. It was really interesting; in the past, everyone wanted to ride in cars, but now cars were boring, and carriages were fresh and exciting.

When they posted on social media, many people asked where they could ride and how much it cost.

Gaojia had to admit, Brother-in-law's idea of picking them up in a carriage was a hit. "Jiajia, let's take a photo."

Liu Qing'er whispered playfully while taking photos. "Jiajia, I didn't expect your brother-in-law to be so handsome. Tell me, are you lying to us?"

To be honest, Li Dong looked about ten years younger, his skin was a bit dark but healthy, and his figure was good, really matching Gaojia.

"Don't talk nonsense, he's really my brother-in-law." Gaojia was both amused and exasperated. What, do you girls have some ideas?

"You must be lying." Xu Yue joined in. Everyone knew Gaojia's sister, and compared to her, Li Dong looked much younger. "Jiajia, don't lie to us. Your sister and brother-in-law divorced, and he looks too young."

Gaojia was helpless. Who would have thought that after Brother-in-law spent half a year in the countryside, he not only lost weight and improved his figure but also looked younger. After a lot of explanation, everyone finally believed her. "Really, he looks so young at thirty-six, some people even think he's in his mid-twenties."

Li Dong thought to himself, these girls really don't know when to stop. He was both handsome and young, what could he do?

"Wow, can we stop here?" At the village entrance, there were ancient trees, over a hundred years old, protected by the city.

There was also an old well and a stone mill, though now abandoned. A stone bridge added to the charm, but the stream was almost dry, which was a pity. "Brother-in-law, take a photo of us here."

Everyone called Li Dong "Brother-in-law" and handed him their phones. Li Dong took several group photos for them. "It's really comfortable. If there were some lounge chairs here, it would be perfect."

"It is. The village is so quiet."

Indeed, the village had few people, and it was early, so it was very quiet, except for a few bird chirps.

After a while at the village entrance, everyone got back into the carriage and headed up the hill to the farm. The sound of hooves on the stone path, accompanied by the chirping of birds and the green mountains and clear waters, made for a beautiful scene, especially with the beautiful girls. Li Dong smiled as he drove the carriage. As they approached the farm, a wild rooster flew onto Li Dong's shoulder, startling everyone.

After a moment, they reacted.

"Wow, what a beautiful bird?"

"A wild rooster?"

Gaojia had seen wild roosters a few times.

"This is a wild rooster. Catch it, that's great, it flew right to the pot."

The wild rooster was startled and flew away. Li Dong was both amused and exasperated. These girls were a bit too cruel. "This is my pet, Wild Rooster." He waved his hand, and Wild Rooster flew back to his shoulder.

A pet rooster, how strange, but the wild rooster was really beautiful. Everyone took photos, and some even wanted to take a photo with Wild Rooster. "Let's park the carriage first, then we can talk about this."

Taking photos wasn't a big deal, but blocking the farm entrance with the carriage was. They had to park it properly first.

After parking the carriage, the girls took photos in front of it, then with the horses and Wild Rooster. For a moment, they forgot they hadn't had breakfast, as there were so many interesting things to see.

This was something they hadn't expected before coming, and they started to complain to Gaojia. "Jiajia, why didn't you tell us about this place earlier?"

"Right."

Gaojia thought to herself, this was her first time coming, how could she know what it was like?

"Why are you all standing outside? Come inside."

These young girls, they wanted to take photos of everything. Li Dong, being older, didn't quite understand the mindset of young people in their twenties.

Laughing and joking, they entered the courtyard. Seeing the gourd trellis, they cheered. "So beautiful."

"Gourd boys."

"Really pretty."

"Jiajia, come over, let's take a photo."

The girls were delighted. The small courtyard with the gourd trellis was so beautiful, with gourds of all sizes, really pretty. They took photos, group photos, and Li Dong was amazed. Why couldn't they take a break?

Until their stomachs growled, the girls finally calmed down, but they were embarrassed to tell Li Dong. "Jiajia, ask Brother-in-law if there's anything to eat, we're hungry."

"Me too."

They had been busy for a while, taking photos, posing, posting on social media, and replying to comments. They hadn't had breakfast, and now they were even hungrier, their stomachs growling.

"Let me ask."

When they arrived, they didn't mention whether there was food. Gaojia found Li Dong and told him. "Ah, you're hungry, didn't you have breakfast?" Why didn't you say so earlier? Li Dong was both amused and exasperated. He should have prepared more.

"Let me make you something to eat."

Han Weiguo wasn't around, so Li Dong had to do it himself. He took a pair of scissors and cut a few gourds. "Brother-in-law, what are you doing? It's a shame to cut such cute gourds."

"I'm making gourd pancakes for you."

"Are gourd pancakes tasty?" Liu Qing'er's eyes lit up; she was really hungry.

Well, now they didn't think it was a shame. Li Dong smiled. "They're pretty good, try them later."

He boiled some corn, made gourd pancakes, and cooked a spicy and sour soup. The gourd pancakes were simple to make: first, cut the gourds and carrots into thin strips, add salt, squeeze out the water, mix in eggs, flour, and pepper to form a batter.

Heat the pan with oil, fry until golden brown, and serve. The pancakes were crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, one of the few gourd dishes Li Dong liked.

As soon as the golden, fragrant gourd pancakes came out of the pan, the girls lost their composure. They were so fragrant, and everyone wanted to grab one.

"Be careful, they're hot."

"Why don't we eat in the courtyard?"

"Okay, okay, Brother-in-law, we'll eat in the arbor."

Li Dong handed a plate of gourd pancakes to Gaojia and said, "I'll make you some spicy and sour soup." The spicy and sour soup was simple, more like a digestive broth. He added diced tofu, shredded enoki mushrooms, diced century eggs, diced wood ear mushrooms, and diced beef, seasoned, and thickened with a slurry, then added egg flowers.

The spicy and sour soup, along with a pot of fresh corn, was a feast. The girls enjoyed the crispy, fragrant gourd pancakes, the corn, and the spicy and sour soup.

They finished a pot of corn, three or four plates of gourd pancakes, and a large pot of spicy and sour soup, and were amazed. They wiped their greasy, white hands. "Did we really eat all this?"

"I can't believe it."

"Brother-in-law, the breakfast you made is so delicious, what should we do, we ate too much."

Liu Qing'er whispered to Li Dong as he cleared the dishes.

"Take a walk later."

Li Dong smiled. "I was worried you wouldn't like it when I was making it."

"We loved it. I never knew gourd pancakes could be so delicious."

"If you like them, take some gourds back. I have plenty, and I don't eat them often."

Gaojia helped Li Dong clear the dishes, and the other girls joined in. "No, no, I'll do it. Jiajia, go pour some tea for everyone, the tea leaves are in the cabinet."

"It's so comfortable here." Xu Yue, lounging in a chair, smiled.

"Right, the food is good, the environment is nice, I wish we could stay forever."

"Then I'll tell you a way."

Xu Yue whispered to Liu Qing'er. "Stay and be Brother-in-law's wife."

"Ha ha ha."

Zhao Xiaowan, Qian Tongtong, and Sun Xia all laughed. Liu Qing'er, who hadn't reacted at first, slapped Xu Yue, annoyed.

"What tea do you want?"

Gaojia, acting as a host, asked her giggling friends.

"I want some digestive tea."

"Me too."

"Digestive tea? How about some hawthorn?"

Li Dong wiped his hands and walked over.

"I'll try it."

The girls all went inside and were surprised by the variety of dried fruits. "Brother-in-law, you have so many dried fruits, where did you buy them? Introduce me, I want to buy some too."

"Oh, I collected them from the mountains, all wild fruits."

Li Dong smiled. "This is green tea, this is black tea, and this is summer枯草 I picked myself, good for clearing heat and reducing fire. In the past, it was used to make cooling tea."

"Then we'll take some with us."

One girl planned to go fishing. "Okay, I'll take you later."

"Brother-in-law, what are these small baskets for?"

A row of small baskets caught Liu Qing'er's attention. Li Dong slapped his forehead. "I almost forgot. These are the baskets I prepared for you to pick vegetables. The tomatoes in the garden are ripe, the cucumbers are ready, and there are other vegetables. You can pick some; they haven't been treated with chemical fertilizers or pesticides, so they're organic."

"Really, can I pick more and take some for my parents?"

"Me too."

The girls were excited about the organic vegetables and decided to go to the garden first. Li Dong smiled. "Okay, I'll take you, and Wild Rooster can help drive away snakes and bugs in the garden."

"Wild Rooster can do that?"

Li Dong told them about Wild Rooster's bravery in fighting a snake, and the girls were amazed.

Liu Qing'er and the others didn't notice Gaojia's expression. Was Brother-in-law really growing vegetables? He didn't seem like the type to do farm work.