Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 511 - 509

Chapter 511: 509

"What does sister’s idea of building a zoo have to do with Miss Du’s estate?" Jinghao asked pointedly.

"There is a hot spring on the estate owned by Miss Du. I plan to build a hot spring resort near her property. If tourists from other places visit the zoo, they can stay at the resort. A hot spring is beneficial to health, so even if the zoo visitors do not need to stay overnight, many people in the Imperial Capital would still be willing to visit the resort for the hot spring."

Moreover, this would be the only zoo in the world. Xiao’er believed that it would never be short of audience.

Also, the ticket price she set would not be too high: adults (15 years and above) would be charged 80 coins, children (50 coins), kids below one meter and seniors above 50 years would be free. In the modern world, 50-year-olds still look young, but they are considered quite old in this era.

At such prices, many families with spare money would be willing to visit.

Xiao’er also shared her cooperation plan for the resort.

Everyone agreed that it was a good idea.

The next day, Xiao’er and Jingrui headed out early. Xiao’er took a carriage, while Jingrui rode a horse.

As the carriage drove out from the side door, Xiao’er heard a familiar voice, it was Zhao Yong’s greeting.

Xiao’er lifted the curtain, only to see Shangguan Xuanyi dismounting from his horse and then climbing into the carriage to sit next to her.

"I’ll come along with you."

Xiao’er had no objections, just felt that this certain someone was a bit too clingy.

Jingrui was somewhat annoyed at the sight of Shangguan Xuanyi, he glanced at his own horse, then at the carriage. He regretted riding his horse today. With the two of them sharing the carriage, his sister might get taken advantage of. Would it be too deliberate to stop riding his horse now?

Zhao Yong, oblivious to Jingrui’s internal struggle, spurred his horse and started trotting after Shangguan Xuanyi boarded the carriage.

Jingrui, feeling helpless, quickly followed suit. He vowed to never ride a horse again and keep a vigil against the wolf!

"Have you had breakfast?" Inside the carriage, Xiao’er pointed to the food box on the table and asked.

"Not yet. After I finished my morning training and took a bath, I was worried you would have left, so I didn’t have time for breakfast." Shangguan Xuanyi shook his head.

Hearing this, Xiao’er opened the food box. Inside were some pastries she had made in the kitchen of her special space: there was an assortment of jam pastries, mango coconut jelly cake, sweet potato yam cake, hazelnut pastries, and sesame smiling cookie balls.

"These are all sweet, which you don’t particularly enjoy." Had she known he was going to join, she would have prepared some savoury snacks. She had noticed that he seemed to have a more soft spot for savoury snacks.

As for Jingrui and herself, they loved desserts.

"It doesn’t matter, I’m not picky. Besides, I love whatever you make." Shangguan Xuanyi opened his mouth wide, waiting for Xiao’er to feed him.

Xiao’er gave him a glance: "Feed yourself!"

"My hand hurts." Shangguan Xuanyi presented his palm, indeed there were several knife wounds on it.

"How did you get those? You really need to be more careful." Xiao’er furrowed her brows at the sight of it.

Then she picked up a pair of chopsticks, picked up a piece of sweet potato yam cake, and fed him.

Shangguan Xuanyi ate the whole piece of cake in one bite.

"Did you like it?" asked Xiao’er.

"It’s nice, sweet but not overly so". Shangguan Xuanyi answered after he had swallowed the food in his mouth.

"Try them all! See which one you like the most so I can make more of this flavor for you in the future."

Xiao’er held out a piece of each flavor of cake for Shangguan Xuanyi to taste, asking each time whether he liked it or not.

Shangguan Xuanyi answered each time that it was delicious.

Xiao’er poured him a cup of sweet soy milk, "So which one do you like the most?"

Shangguan Xuanyi took the soy milk, emptied it in one gulp: "Girl, next time you make pastries for me, make them savoury."

So that meant he didn’t like any of them!

Although these cakes were sweet and delicious, he didn’t like them. This was so frustrating!

Xiao’er couldn’t help but punch him lightly: "If you didn’t like them, why did you lie and say they were delicious earlier?"

Shangguan Xuanyi put down the cup, held Xiao’er’s hand, pulled her into his arms and hugged her: "They were indeed delicious. These are the tastiest sweet cakes I have ever had. It’s just that I find your savoury snacks even more delicious."

In the past, he didn’t care about the taste of snacks, savoury or sweet...

"Such a sweet talker. Have you smeared honey on your lips?" Xiao’er teased after hearing his words.

"Try it yourself and you’ll find out!", Shangguan Xuanyi replied in a voice only the two of them could hear.

Their lips met in a tender kiss. Xiao’er, worried that her lips would be red and swollen and thus conspicuous, pushed him away.

"Don’t move. If you accidentally hit the carriage wall, what will we do if Jingrui discovers it?" Shangguan Xuanyi held Xiao’er tightly and leaned in again.

Xiao’er dared not resist. They were sitting leaning against the carriage wall. If they moved around too much and accidentally hit the carriage wall causing a noise, it would attract attention from the outside which would be very embarrassing.

Shangguan Xuanyi’s kiss was light and brief, he released her soon afterwards.

Xiao’er then started explaining to him the reason for their trip today.

The carriage soon arrived at Du family’s estate in the suburb.

Yijin Du was already waiting for them there.

The chief of the village and Yijin Du led them to see the hot spring at the back mountain of the estate.

"In winter, people from the village use the water from this hot spring for bathing. That’s why we built a bathhouse here." Yijin Du explained.

"Is the main income of this estate from the fruits and poultry?"

"You could say that. The farm produce is all kept for our own consumption." Although the estate had nearly a hundred acres of farmland, the food produced was just enough for the Du and Gu Mansions. They didn’t dare to sell any surplus, in case there was a natural disaster one day. What would the large family eat without any stored food? The thought made Yijin Du smile bitterly. She shook her head and continued, "The peaches in this estate are very sweet and big. Once they ripen, I’ll send a basket to the Sixth Prince and the Mistress of Rui’an County."

Xiao’er, observing the rich, leafy peach trees all over the hill, thought that in a few months they will be laden with fruit.

"Well, thank you. I love peaches." Xiao’er responded with a smile.

Shangguan Xuanyi remained silent. The fruits he was eating now were all sent by Xiao’er through Zhao Yong. Even the fruits from the Emperor and Empress don’t taste good to him.

The fruits that should be crisp were not crisp enough, the sweet ones were not sweet enough, and the juicy ones were not juicy enough!

Shangguan Xuanyi had been a picky eater and this trajectory had only intensified.

Yijin Du didn’t dare to expect the Sixth Prince to respond to her words. She was just being polite. After all, she couldn’t really deliver fruits to the mansion of the Sixth Prince.

There was also a pond on the estate.

Xiao’er pointed to the pond and asked, "Are there any fish here?"

Yijin Du shook her head, "Not anymore. We once tried to add some fish fry, but the village folks don’t know how to raise them. After a heavy rain, many fish mysteriously died. So, we stopped keeping fish. The water in this pond is only used for irrigation now."

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