There is a happy inn in the capital.

Chapter 60 Just to See You

Aunt Zhang handed Li Shuchen a pure white undershirt.

Li Shuchen accepted it with both hands; it was pure cotton and very comfortable.

Li Shuchen replied with a smile, "Thank you, Aunt Zhang. These clothes must be very comfortable to wear."

Aunt Zhang smiled and said, "I'm glad you like it, Miss."

Li Shuchen watched Aunt Zhang sewing clothes. Where did Aunt Zhang get a daughter? Li Shuchen wondered what he had missed.

Looking at Li Shuchen's face filled with happiness, Aunt Zhang said, "I've adopted Lingyu and Yuling as my goddaughters. They've lost their parents, and I don't have any children, so it's perfect."

Li Shuchen nodded: "You all have the surname Zhang, so it sounds like you're family."

Aunt Zhang: "Yes, I don't ask for anything else, I just wish that the three of us can live a good life together."

Indeed, living a good life is more important than anything else.

Li Shuchen looked at the dim kerosene lamp: "Aunt Zhang, it's too dark, it's bad for your eyes, you should go to sleep early."

Aunt Zhang smiled and said, "Go to sleep after you finish sewing this one. Miss, you should go and get some rest."

Li Shuchen went upstairs. The people she had helped had unexpectedly become family, which was a kind of fulfillment in itself.

It drizzled all day on June 9th, and Li Shuchen stayed at the inn without going out all day.

June 10th was the day Uncle Cao said the melon and fruit seedlings should be pollinated.

Li Shuchen rented a horse-drawn carriage early in the morning and went to the orchard.

As Li Shuchen entered the village, he saw that many small yellow flowers had already bloomed on the watermelon vines.

Uncle Cao: "Miss is here."

Li Shuchen: "Hmm"

Li Shuchen recalled that insects could serve as pollinators.

He then asked, "This place is in the outskirts of Beijing, where there are many insects. Can't they complete the pollination?"

Uncle Cao replied, "What you say is true, Miss. However, there have been many rainy days these past few days, and the insects are less active. If Miss wants to improve the fruit set rate and increase the yield, she will need our assistance with pollination."

Li Shuchen is counting on these fruits and vegetables to earn money so he can buy his dream house; of course, the more produce the better.

Li Shuchen: "How should pollination be done?"

Uncle Cao: "There are two methods. One is flower-to-flower pollination: first, pick the male flowers that have opened that day, turn the petals outward to expose the stamens."

Gently apply pollen to the stigma of the female flower, allowing the pollen to be evenly distributed on the stigma. One male flower can pollinate 2-4 female flowers.

Secondly, the method of dipping a brush in powder.

Pick the male flowers that opened that day, and collect the pollen in a clean small bowl and mix them.

Dip a brush in pollen and gently dab it onto the stigma of the female flower a few times until the stigma is covered with noticeable yellow pollen.

May I ask which pollination method you would like to use, Miss?

Li Shuchen: "Let's use the method of dipping a brush in powder."

Uncle Cao: "Okay, we need to have someone pick the male flowers first."

Li Shuchen waved and called out to a group of people.

Li Shuchen: "Let's get to know Uncle Cao, distinguish between the male and female flowers, then pick the flowers and send them all to Uncle Cao so he can collect the pollen."

Uncle Cao: "Male and female flowers are easy to distinguish. The yellow flower with a small fruit underneath is the female flower, and the yellow flower without a small fruit underneath is the male flower."

Uncle Cao demonstrated as he spoke, and it was indeed easy to recognize.

Everyone got a tray and went to pick male flowers.

Li Shuchen also carried a tray with them, silently chanting to himself, afraid of picking the wrong fruit, "Pick the male flowers, pick the male flowers, there are no small fruits, there are no small fruits."

In no time, the plate was full of picks, which were then delivered to Uncle Cao.

Uncle Cao collected the pollen into a clean small bowl. After taking the pollen...

Each person was also given a small bowl with pollen, a clean calligraphy brush, and many red pieces of paper.

Uncle Cao: "When pollinating the female flowers, be gentle and wait until there is obvious yellow pollen on the stigma."

Everyone: "Understood"

Li Shuchen also went to pollinate the female flowers, carefully applying the pollen. It was quite fun. After pollinating, a red paper tag was hung to indicate that the female flower had been pollinated, thus avoiding repeated pollination.

After everyone has finished pollinating, Uncle Cao will check it again.

Li Shuchen looked at the small yellow flowers on the watermelon; some hadn't even opened yet. Pollination wasn't something that could be done in a day.

The pollination method for cantaloupes, grapes, citrus fruits, and sweet pears is the same; simply repeat the steps above.

Because pollination takes several days, Li Shuchen stayed at the orchard.

The next morning, Li Shuchen joined the others in pollinating the newly opened female flowers. By the afternoon, the fruits beneath the pollinated female flowers had grown larger, indicating that the pollination had been successful.

Li Shuchen felt a little more at ease. These fruits would be worth a fortune once they grew up, so she had to keep a close eye on them.

After spending five consecutive days at the orchard, the pollination was finally successful for all the orchards.

In the afternoon, while watering the melons and fruits, Li Shuchen secretly prepared growth regulators, buying fifteen bottles, one bottle per acre, which cost 1,500 taels of silver.

There are currently 1,150 taels of silver in the system space.

Li Shuchen can now sit back and wait for the fruits of her labor to ripen, make a fortune, and become a rich woman is just around the corner.

On June 16th, Li Shuchen set off back to the inn. Upon arriving at the inn's entrance, he happened to see Gu Ziying just alighting from her carriage.

Li Shuchen jumped off the carriage and said, "Ziying, what brings you here?"

Gu Ziying: "Shu Chen, I just happened to have something to discuss with you."

Li Shuchen pulled Gu Ziying up to the third floor, to the Three Treasures Hall.

The two sat down and drank a cup of tea.

Gu Ziying said, "Regarding the fruit and vegetable shop, we've already made our choices. There are currently two shops available for rent: one on West Street, opposite Yaqingxuan, and another on North Street, opposite the wonton shop. Where would Shu Chen like to place the shop?"

Li Shuchen: "West Street has a large flow of people, and Yaqingxuan is especially popular. There are also few fruit shops and little competition, making it a good location."

Gu Ziying: "Yes"

Li Shuchen: "But the rent for shops on West Street must be quite high."

Gu Ziying smiled and said, "Shu Chen, you don't need to worry about that. I don't do business at a loss."

Li Shuchen: "Alright, when the fruits ripen, I'll invite you to the fruit farm."

Gu Ziying: "Then I'll be the first person to eat the fresh fruits and vegetables you grow!"

Li Shuchen laughed heartily: "I couldn't be happier!"

The two looked at each other and smiled

Li Shuchen suddenly realized that Xiao'er's Xuan paper was almost gone. He had used the money he had saved to buy jewelry for himself, so he definitely wouldn't have any money to buy more Xuan paper. For a scholar, paper was absolutely essential.

He then said to Gu Ziying, "Ziying, I have something to do; I need to go buy Xuan paper for Xiao'er."

Li Shuchen got up to leave.

"Wait, Shu Chen, I'll go with you," Gu Ziying also stood up.

Li Shuchen: "Ziying is going too? That's too much trouble for you."

Li Shuchen knew that Gu Ziying wanted to send her away by carriage, after all, Li Shuchen's Wanbai was still a child.

Gu Ziying shook her head and said, "It's no trouble at all. Fortunately, I'm free right now. How about I give you a ride? My carriage will be faster."

Li Shuchen nodded: "Alright then."

Gu Ziying's carriage was indeed fast; they arrived at the Ink Bamboo Pavilion in the time it took to chat for a few minutes.

Li Shuchen went in and quickly picked out the kind of Xuan paper he had bought before, taking two reams (200 sheets).

After quickly paying the bill and coming out, I saw Gu Ziying standing at the entrance of the Ink Bamboo Pavilion, looking in one direction.

Li Shuchen glanced over but saw nothing.

He then asked, "Ziying, what are you looking at?"