Chapter 128: Old Zhu's parents also favor boys over girls

Wen Zhenyi said calmly: "Let her rest at home for a few days."

Ma Yinghe nodded: "Your grandma said the same thing, so we didn't bring Xiao Taozi with us today."

Old Scholar Shen sighed: "Old Zhu's parents used to favor sons over daughters. In fact, before Zhu Tao's father, they had several children."

Shen Hanxing turned to look at him: "Grandpa, what about their family members?"

"These children either died in infancy or the girls were sold by them."

"What?" Ma Yinghe's eyes widened when she heard this.

"Don't be so surprised. It wasn't until Zhu Tao's father had a boy that their family finally settled down. But I didn't expect that Zhu Tao's father would have to go through the same thing that Grandma Zhu Tao herself went through."

Wen Zhenyi found it quite understandable: “Grandpa Shen, was Grandma Zhu Tao having a hard time before?”

"That's right. Before Zhu Taodie was born, I was beaten and scolded. It wasn't until Zhu Taodie was born that life started to get better."

"Are there no boys among the children who died in infancy?"

"Yes, but my husband's family still blamed her for it, saying she was not healthy enough or something like that."

Wen Zhenyi rolled his eyes: "It's not the woman who decides whether to have a boy or a girl."

Shen Hanxing looked at her curiously: “What was the decision?”

Wen Zhenyi looked at him with a half-smile: "Man."

"Ah!" Everyone present stared at her with wide eyes.

"Don't look at me like that. This is complicated to explain."

"Then don't explain it, otherwise I don't think I can understand it." Wen Chengwen was the first to give up.

Wen Yongman and little Abu were playing nearby, and the two children seemed to be getting along quite well.

Ma Yinghe looked at little Abu and said, "Uncle Shen, how could little Abu's parents be so cruel as to leave such a young child here?"

Shen Xiucai said calmly, "They have a long journey this time, and they're worried that little Abu is too young to handle the bumpy ride."

"That's true. Such a young child needs his parents' care. It's not that I can't help it, but I can't bear it."

"They have no other choice. Some things have to happen, so they can only come to me for help."

"It's okay, just let little Abu live with us for a while. This child is very well-behaved and likable to look at." Ma Yinghe looked at little Abu with a gentle smile on his face.

Mr. Shen and his friends went back after dinner.

Wen Yongnan and Xiaoman also went back to the private school. After saying goodbye to them, they left with Chen Hanxing and the others.

Wen Chengwen closed the shop door and the backyard door and took little Abu to take a bath.

Ma Yinghe fanned Wen Zhenyi with a fan and said, "Yiyi, I have discussed the pig farming matter with your grandparents."

"How about it?"

"There's a question."

"What's the problem?"

"We used to feed our pigs with grass. Occasionally, when there wasn't enough grass, we'd feed them corn stalks and corn. But if we raised too many, feeding them would become a problem."

Wen Zhenyi thought of the pigs that his family had slaughtered before, which had more lean meat and less fat. "Mom, which pork is better to sell, the fat or the lean meat?"

"Of course it's the fat meat. Fatty meat can be sold for fifteen cents per pound, while lean meat and spareribs can only be sold for ten cents per pound."

Wen Zhenyi recalled some things she had seen before in her mind. She also knew something about the cultivation of food ingredients.

"Mom, generally speaking, little pigs are more difficult to take care of, but big pigs are less troublesome."

"Do you have a solution?"

"Yes, we can feed the piglets with beans and millet, and as for the older pigs, we can buy swill from the food vendors."

"What is swill?"

“It’s the leftovers that customers usually throw away because they can’t finish eating them.”

"Is this okay?"

"Okay, for the vendors, it's beneficial. It's another source of income for them."

"If this method is feasible, it will solve the pigs' feeding problem."

Wen Chengwen saw that little Abu was young and was worried about letting him sleep alone, so he simply brought him to their room to sleep with the couple.

Little Abu also knew that it was inappropriate for him and Wen Zhen to sleep together, and he had no objection to this arrangement.

Wen Zhenyi finished taking a shower and sat in the yard drying her hair. She heard some noises in the alley in the backyard, but she didn't pay much attention to it.

Sometimes pretending to be stupid is a required course.

She pretended not to hear and thought about the breakfast she would make tomorrow morning.

There are still some pumpkins at home, and she also bought some fresh corn today, so she can make corn pancakes and pumpkin pancakes tomorrow.

Breakfast for tomorrow morning has been decided and her hair is already dry.

She found someone observing their yard in the dark, but she pretended not to know and got up and went back to her room to sleep.

This feeling of being watched did not disappear until she closed the door. She lay in bed, not sleeping, but breathing evenly.

She could hear the sound of someone coming into the yard, but she didn't intend to make a sound.

The two people standing in the yard gestured to each other and began to rummage through the store. Their movements were very quiet, but in such a quiet night, they inevitably made some subtle noises.

Wen Zhenyi saw a figure flash past outside the window, and the yard returned to silence.

Only after she knew they had left did she close her eyes and fall into a light sleep. The night was relatively peaceful without any accidents.

The next day.

The whole family is used to getting up early, so they exercise in the yard for a while while it is still early, and then start their busy work for the day.

Wen Zhenyi and Ma Yinghe took out a pumpkin, peeled it, cut it into pieces, washed it clean, put it in a pot to steam, and then began to process the corn.

The corn husks were still wrapped, and Wen Zhenyi didn't want to waste them: "Mom, keep the corn husks and corn silk."

“What are you keeping things for?”

"Mom, this corn silk is a medicinal herb that can dissipate heat. It's perfect for making herbal tea today."

"Is this thing still useful?"

"Yes, as for the corn husks, I'll use them to wrap tortillas later."

"Okay, I'll keep them all for you. Do you want to wash them?"

"It needs to be cleaned."

Wen Chengwen lit the fire, steamed the pumpkin, and then came to help shell the corn kernels.

Wen Zhenyi had done this often before, so he didn't find it difficult. Wen Chengwen and Ma Yinghe did this even more often, and the three of them were quite fast at peeling corn.

"Dad, help me grind the corn into paste."

"Okay, I'll go now."

The pumpkin here has been steamed, and Wen Zhen started making pumpkin pie.

She took out the glutinous rice flour, mashed the slightly cooled steamed pumpkin into a paste, and poured it into the glutinous rice flour to make dough.

Wen Zhenyi looked at the pumpkin dough and was wondering whether to fry it or steam it.

Seeing that she did not take the next step, Ma Yinghe knew that she was thinking, so she turned around to help Wen Chengwen grind the cornmeal.

Wen Zhenyi finally chose to fry it. He kneaded the dough into a ball and flattened it slightly. He used a small bamboo stick to press out pumpkin patterns and set it aside.