As soon as these words were spoken, everyone was a bit stunned.
Looking across the eight or nine villages in Yinwan, there were only a few households raising ducks.
Duck eggs had a strong fishy smell, and duck meat was not as delicious as chicken. People ate duck only two or three times a year.
Moreover, they were not short of fish and rice. Although they didn't have meat with every meal, it was no problem to have fish and shrimp every two or three days.
Tang Guiniang was a bit puzzled. "Jiaoniang, if you want to eat duck, just ask Axia to buy one. Why raise them?"
Seeing the expressions on everyone's faces, Qi Jiao knew that they hadn't realized the benefits of raising ducks.
So she counted them one by one.
"Duck eggs can be processed further. Look, what A Li, A Jin and I made today are salted duck eggs. Wait and see the finished products in half a month. They are excellent for going with rice or as a side dish.
Ducks can also be made into roast duck, camphor tea duck, sour soup duck, salted duck, spiced duck, pearl duck, ginger-fried duck, eight-treasure duck, Zhou Hei Ya and so on.
Even the most useless duck blood can be made into duck blood vermicelli soup or cooked in hot pot. Duck down can be used to fill clothes for warmth. In short, ducks are treasures from head to toe."
Pei Xia said, "The others are okay, but what exactly is Zhou Hei Ya?"
Qi Jiao accidentally let the cat out of the bag. She laughed it off. "It's a well - known kind of marinated duck. It's a must - have for home and travel. It's very delicious."
She added, "Don't believe it? I'll make it once and you'll know."
Hearing Qi Jiao's eloquent introduction, Pei Li couldn't help drooling. "Brother, I think Sister Jiaoniang is right. If we turn all these ducks into delicious food, how much money can we earn!"
Pei Jin also nodded in agreement. "There are fish and shrimp by the sea. They can be used as food for the ducklings. It won't cost much."
Qi Jiao said seriously to Pei Xia, "If you're afraid of the risk, we can start by raising a small number. Wait until the profits are substantial, then it's not too late to expand the scale."
Pei Xia thought that the land would be left idle anyway. If it was really as Qi Jiao said, raising ducks could be an extra source of income.
He was always hard - working and never one to stand still.
So he said, "I understand what you said. Starting from the source, whether we sell duck products or make clothes later, as long as you're confident, this plan is feasible."
Qi Jiao smiled with her eyes bent. She assured him, "Don't worry. I'll surely succeed."
Pei Xia looked at Qi Jiao. Her words and deeds, her overall charm, didn't seem like those of a maid at all. But it was only for a moment, and he quickly hid his thoughts.
When the moon was high in the sky, Tang Guiniang changed the water for the fresh fish to be sold the next day.
They were all good things, but unfortunately they didn't keep well and had to be sold as soon as possible.
She carried an oil lamp and walked into the house. She saw that the light in Jiaoniang's room was already out.
Pei Xia went to sleep in Pei Li's room.
Tang Guiniang sighed softly. Love couldn't be forced. She'd just take things one step at a time.
The next day, after a few roosters crowed and dogs barked, Pei Xia got up. He was going to the morning market in the county to sell fresh fish.
If he was delayed for too long, the goods would not be fresh, and naturally they wouldn't fetch a good price.
After washing up, he came to the east wing and tapped on the window lattice twice. "Jiaoniang, get up."
Qi Jiao had slept fairly soundly last night, but the wound on her head still hurt badly.
She should go to the town to change the dressing today. Pei Xia had told her so yesterday.
Qi Jiao turned over, feeling a bit lazy. She really didn't want to get up so early.
But when she lifted the curtain, she could just see Pei Xia's figure standing by the window. It wouldn't be good to lie in bed and keep him waiting.
Qi Jiao got up with a pained expression on her face. She put on her clothes and went to the well to wash up simply.
Pei Xia put the wooden barrels filled with fish, shrimp, clams and scallops, as well as the scales and sundries for setting up a stall on a flatbed cart, then pushed the cart towards the village entrance.
Qi Jiao followed behind Pei Xia. It was still dark when they left home. The sea was dark blue, and the sound of waves came from afar.
Pei Xia had walked for a while and found that Qi Jiao was a few steps behind him.
He stopped, rearranged the things on the cart to make room, and said, "Get on."
Pei Xia was young and strong. Even when pushing the cart, he walked fast.
Qi Jiao tried hard to keep up, but still fell behind a few steps.
She was a bit out of breath and waved her hand. "No, your cart is already heavy enough. Adding me will make it even more strenuous for you."
Pei Xia scoffed. "How heavy can you be?"
Qi Jiao pouted, then lifted her leg and sat on the cart.
To be honest, it felt really good to be pushed around.
Pei Xia's hands were steady, and the cart remained balanced all the way to the village entrance.
There were mule - drawn carriages at the fork in the road at the entrance of Baiyun Village to pick up and drop off villagers.
It was about ten miles to the county town, and taking a mule - drawn carriage was more convenient.
Pei Xia carried the seafood onto the mule - drawn carriage one by one, then left his flatbed cart at a familiar villager's house at the village entrance to pick it up on the way back.
After Pei Xia had settled everything, Qi Jiao stepped on a small wooden stake and got on the carriage.
The carriage was rather simply decorated. There was only a dome on top. Although there were coarse cloth curtains around, the cold wind still managed to seep in.
Early in the morning, the wind made her forehead ache.
The carriage was filled with things, so Qi Jiao had to sit side by side with Pei Xia.
The village roads were dirt roads, and the carriage jolted all the way. Inevitably, their bodies would touch.
Qi Jiao forced herself to quickly get used to the ancient means of transportation. It was good enough to have a ride. The rest were minor matters.
So she tightened the collar of her clothes and closed her eyes to catch some sleep.
Unexpectedly, a ox - cart came from the front. The old man driving the mule - drawn carriage quickly tightened the reins. The mule neighed, the carriage lurched, and Pei Xia fell directly onto Qi Jiao.
Pei Xia frowned. He propped one hand on the carriage wall and supported Qi Jiao who was about to fall forward with the other.
After the mule - drawn carriage returned to normal, he slowly let out a breath. "Are you okay?"
Pei Xia looked down at Qi Jiao. There was no trace of fear on her face. Her clear and beautiful eyes even seemed to have a hint of mischievous smile.
Only then did Pei Xia realize that he had been a bit flustered due to his concern. He coughed a bit awkwardly and sat back in his original position.
They didn't say a word on the way. As the carriage swayed, Qi Jiao dozed off.
She vaguely felt that she was leaning against something warm. It was quite comfortable.
The morning glow dyed the horizon a lovely rose color. Soon they arrived at the county town.
Pei Xia led Qi Jiao to the morning market as if he was very familiar with the way.
The vendors in this area all knew Pei Xia. Seeing him bringing a delicate young woman to set up a stall, they all joked, "Oh! Look at this beautiful girl. She must be A Xia's new bride, right?"
"A Xia is a lucky one."
"Why is there still a bandage on her head? A Xia, you have to take good care of her!"
...
Pei Xia hooked the corner of his lips, nodded to them, and didn't say much.
Qi Jiao didn't know what to say either. She could only give a friendly smile.
Pei Xia often set up a stall here. People within a radius of two or three miles knew that his fish were big, fresh, and the prices were fair.
So they had customers soon after they arrived.
Gradually, a lot of sea bass, shrimp and shellfish were sold.
People at that time liked to buy live fish. They emphasized buying them home and killing them immediately. Pei Xia always threaded the fish with straw ropes for the customers. There was no need to kill or gut the fish at the stall, so the stall was always clean, which made people like it.
Seeing Qi Jiao shifting from one foot to the other beside him, Pei Xia knew that she was tired from standing. He borrowed a small stool from the aunt at the steamed bun stall next door and asked Qi Jiao to sit and wait for him.
The other things were secondary. Pei Xia's main goal was to sell the big yellow croaker at a good price. It had taken him a lot of effort to catch this fish. It was rare to catch one in the shallow sea in ten days or half a month.
So he directly put the basin in the most prominent place. A big golden yellow croaker was swaying in the water, attracting passers - by to stop and watch.