Big Mouth Zhao hurriedly said, "Juhua, don't pay him any mind. Li Changxing is completely shameless. I caught a soft-shelled turtle yesterday, and I've just been keeping it—I haven't cooked it yet! It's yours. Just bring some extra dishes tomorrow and share a little with me."
Juhua's eyes lit up the moment she heard him, and her spirits soared. 'A soft-shelled turtle? That's incredibly nourishing food! My little body could really use a good meal like that.'
She quickly asked, "Really? Where is it?"
Seeing her interest in the turtle, Big Mouth Zhao said quickly, "It's at home. I'll go get it. Wait right here!" With that, he scrambled to his feet and ran off.
Seeing Big Mouth Zhao trade a soft-shelled turtle for tomorrow's meal, Li Changxing smiled at Juhua. "Juhua, we're from the same village, you know. You can't be stingy! Bring some extra food for me tomorrow, and I'll go catch some eels for you in return. Eels are delicious, too."
'Of course eels are delicious!' Juhua thought. 'Are these people fools? Don't they know how good these things are?'
But then she recalled her previous life. Her own mother wouldn't eat such strange things, either. She had classified eels, tortoises, soft-shelled turtles, and frogs as "weird food," saying that people only ate them in the old days when they were on the brink of starvation. And it was true; the local villagers didn't consider them delicacies.
It was only later, after the economy developed, that city dwellers began to prize these things as gourmet dishes. Then, the country folk started desperately catching them to sell in the city, to the point that frogs and eels vanished from the paddies, and tortoises and turtles disappeared from the ponds. Everything sold at the market ended up being farm-raised!
So now, hearing Li Changxing offer to catch eels for her, she wasn't about to refuse. She said in a soft, sweet voice, "Mhm, I love eel. If you catch some for me, I'll be sure to bring extra food to share with you tomorrow."
Li Changxing chuckled. "Great! Whenever I get a craving for meat, I often catch eels for a treat. I'm the only one in my family who eats them, though. My mother won't touch them; she says they look like snakes and are too frightening."
Qingmu saw that Juhua wasn't the least bit timid talking with these men, and they weren't staring at her like she was some kind of freak. He was both happy and astonished. 'My sister has really changed so much!'
Juhua noticed her brother watching from the side and gave him a quick wink and a small smile.
The small gesture warmed Qingmu's heart. He didn't say a word, letting Juhua carry on with her bartering. 'Since she likes to eat these things,' he thought, 'I'll have Dad weave some eel traps next time, and we can set them in the ditches. As for tortoises and soft-shelled turtles, I'll ask the village elders for the best way to catch them.'
Seeing how talkative Juhua became on this topic, Zhao San asked in surprise, "Juhua, you like to eat these things? Well, next time I catch any, I'll give them to you. I netted a tortoise in the Little Qing River last time, and your auntie cooked it, but even Shi Tou wouldn't eat it. Said it was too greasy and bland. We ended up throwing the whole thing out!"
Hearing this, Juhua wanted to stamp her foot and sigh. 'What a complete waste!' she thought. 'No wonder this place is so poor. They don't even know how to eat the good things available to them.'
She cast aside her modesty and said to Zhao San, "Then from now on, Uncle Zhao San, if you catch any of those, please give them to me! I love eating them!"
Zhao San readily agreed. 'I just worry,' he thought, 'that if my son hears Sister Juhua knows how to cook, he'll show up at her door looking for a free meal!'
And so, in no time at all, word spread across the construction site that Qingmu's "ugly" little sister loved to eat eels, loaches, tortoises, and soft-shelled turtles. It was odd for a little girl to enjoy such things. If they knew she also liked eating frogs, their jaws would have probably hit the floor.
When Big Mouth Zhao returned carrying a soft-shelled turtle that weighed over three pounds, Juhua was so excited her eyes practically glowed. 'Whoa! What a specimen! It's almost the size of a small millstone.'
'Tonight I can finally have a real feast! Eating this shouldn't cause a flare-up, right? Should I make a clear stew or red-braise it? Mmm, a clear stew. No chili peppers, just some dried mushrooms to bring out the original flavor.'
As if it had heard her innermost thoughts, the green-shelled turtle warily raised its head and met her gaze, deeply anxious about its impending doom.
The sight of Juhua staring so affectionately at the soft-shelled turtle drew a round of good-natured laughter from the crowd. Paying them no mind, she packed up her bowl and chopsticks, placed them in her basket along with the turtle, and got up to head home. She still hadn't eaten lunch!
"Juhua, you're here! I was just looking for you!" a young woman dressed in a magenta top and pants called out enthusiastically as she entered the courtyard, taking Juhua by the arm.
The courtyard fell silent. All eyes turned to this beautiful, flower-like young woman. Her brightly colored outfit was clearly out of place on a construction site, and it formed a stark contrast with Juhua's patched-up clothes.
Juhua looked with confusion at the girl's fair cheeks and almond-shaped eyes, racking her brain. 'Who in the world is this?'
Liu'er had stopped Qingmu just yesterday, though she hadn't said much. Seeing her grab his sister's arm today made him even more suspicious. The contrast between Liu'er's flower-like beauty and Juhua's supposedly ugly face was particularly stark in front of so many people, which deeply displeased Qingmu. He stood off to the side, remaining silent.
Seeing Juhua's utterly bewildered expression, it was Li Changxing who kindly made the introduction. "This is Liu'er, from Uncle Jin Shan's family!" He, too, gave Liu'er a curious look. 'Why is she looking for Juhua? I've never heard of them interacting before!'
'Oh! So this is Liu'er,' Juhua finally dredged the information from her memory. 'Isn't this the girl from the family Zhang Huai initially wanted to arrange a match with?'
She asked in a quiet, delicate voice, "Sister Liu'er, is there something you need?"
Liu'er glanced at Qingmu standing nearby and said softly, a little nervously, "It's nothing much, I just… I wanted to ask you for an embroidery pattern. Sister Juhua, why don't you come over to my house for a bit?"
'An embroidery pattern?' Juhua wondered. 'What good patterns could I possibly have?'
Juhua grew even more confused, but then she caught a glimpse of Liu'er, her face blushing as she looked at Qingmu, and it all clicked. 'Ah, it's the bloom of first love! She's fallen for my brother and is trying to use the 'sister approach' to get close to him!'
'Oh, dear! Your mother demands such a high bride price; my family could never afford you!' Juhua thought. Besides, she could see her brother standing off to the side with a stone-cold expression, clearly uninterested in the young woman.
Even though she sympathized deeply with the girl, there was nothing Juhua could do. 'It's just her bad luck to have a mother like that!'
"Sister Liu'er, I need to get home and eat," Juhua said truthfully. "I haven't done any needlework in ages, so I don't have any good patterns on hand."
Liu'er's heart sank. The curious stares of the people around her made her extremely uncomfortable. After all, she rarely left home, and as a young woman of marriageable age, it was hardly proper for her to be in a place swarming with men. Juhua, on the other hand, was younger and had a facial imperfection, so people paid less mind to her gender.
'But if I don't find a way to get closer to Qingmu, how will I ever marry him?' she thought desperately. 'I absolutely refuse to be sold to a rich family as a concubine!'