Xiao Yunying returned to her parents' home, where her mother was sitting under a big tree by the door, chatting with the villagers.

"Sister Mu, your daughter is back."

Xiao Yunying jumped off the oxcart, but Mu Lianrong patted her on the shoulder: "What's the rush? Can't you wait until the oxcart has come to a complete stop before getting off?"

"It's okay, you won't fall."

A nosy old woman inquired, "Yunying, how much silver did you get for the tiger?"

Xiao Yunying gave a perfunctory smile: "We didn't sell many. The furs were damaged and they're not worth much. Mother, quickly call my eldest and second sisters-in-law to come out and move the things."

"Why are you buying so much fabric?"

"Of course it's to make new clothes for the family. Mom, stop nagging me and hurry up and finish moving things so we can cook dinner. Dad said he's inviting my second uncle and cousin's family to dinner tonight."

Mu Lianrong called her two daughters-in-law to help move things, and the children who had been waiting at home also came to help.

Xiao Yunying first put the most valuable jewelry into the supermarket when no one was looking, and then moved the fabric into Mu Lianrong's room.

After emptying the two oxcarts, Xiao Shanhai asked his two sons to call his cousin and his second brother's family over for dinner, while he went to the backyard to kill a rabbit.

Xiao Yunying asked them to deliver the pastry gift box, and Mu Lianrong said, "Take the oxcart back to your uncle, and have your uncle and second uncle's family come over. Bring stools and bowls and chopsticks; we don't have enough for our family."

There aren't as many rules in the village as in the city; people are very informal, and even when attending weddings or funerals, people bring their own bowls and chopsticks.

Xiao Yunying opened a package of pastries she had bought and gave it to the children: "Don't eat too much, save room for meat tonight."

"Okay, Auntie."

Xiao Yunying rolled up her sleeves to prepare to cook, and her mother and two sisters-in-law were used to helping her.

"Sister-in-law, could you singe off the hair on the pig's trotters and the pig's tail? Wash them clean and have my dad chop them into small pieces. Second sister-in-law, could you cut open the pig's heart and wash away the blood? Mom, there are many people tonight, so let's not steam buns. Kneading dough is too tiring. Let's just steam rice."

Mu Lianrong opened the lotus leaf package after smelling the odor: "Yunyun, why did you buy offal? It stinks!"

Xiao Yunying added water to the pot: "Mom, you don't know, the pig intestines smell so good when they're cooked. You can leave them for now, and let my brother wash them when he gets back."

When her two older brothers returned, Xiao Yunying unceremoniously handed them the basin containing the pig intestines, poured in salt and vinegar, and, too embarrassed to use flour in front of her mother, grabbed a handful of wood ash from the bottom of the pot.

Xiao Yunying taught them how to clean the large intestine: "Slice the large intestine open, rinse off all the dirt inside, wash away the mucus with wood ash, salt and vinegar, and tear off any excess fat inside. Go wash it by the river, it smells a bit strong."

Xiao Yunbo wrinkled his nose: "Little sister, you know this smells a bit strong, is this edible?"

Other offal is edible, except for the large intestine, which was usually thrown away when the pig was slaughtered.

"Second brother, please believe me."

The two brothers resignedly carried the large intestines to the riverbank. Xiao Yunying first put the pig's heart, pig's tail, and pig's trotters into a pot of cold water, added cooking wine, blanched them, and set them aside.

Carrying pig's trotters, pig's tail, and pig's heart, she went to the yard. Because she needed to cook for the craftsmen building the house, and there weren't enough pots at home, Xiao Shanhai built two earthen stoves in the yard and set up her two large iron pots on them. Xiao Yunying planned to stew the meat there and stir-fry the vegetables in the kitchen.

Put the pig's trotters and other ingredients into the pot, add water, ginger, salt, cooking wine, goji berries, and vinegar. Cover the pot, bring it to a boil over high heat, then simmer over low heat.

"Luo Chen, watch the fire, make sure your younger siblings don't touch it."

Luo Chen took a small stool and sat down: "Okay."

Mu Lianrong poured the rinsed rice and millet into the pot, lit the fire to cook, and felt very gratified watching her daughter busily working in an orderly manner.

Xiao Yunying chopped the cabbage: "Mom, tonight I'll make spicy pig's trotters, garlic ribs, braised rabbit, stir-fried cabbage with vinegar, braised pork with potatoes, stir-fried pork intestines with chili, a cold pig's heart salad with the cabbage hearts, and a cold red-root salad. Can we make eight dishes?"

"That's enough, it's almost Chinese New Year."

Xiao Yunying cut the peeled and washed potatoes that her sister-in-law handed her into chunks: "Mother, aren't you going to ask me how much silver I got from selling Dachong?"

"No matter how much you sold, it's all yours. As long as you know the amount, that's fine. I don't care, but I do want to know how much you spent on those fabrics."

Xiao Yunying laughed out loud: "Then I'll tell you secretly, Mother, I sold it for seven hundred taels. And I didn't just buy those cloths, I bought other things too. I'll show you after dinner."

Zhang was washing red-rooted vegetables: "Sold so much?"

Mu Lianrong wasn't too surprised: "Can an ordinary person fight a tiger? It's not right if it's cheap. Daughter, you can't go to Xishan anymore, it's too dangerous."

Well, we've come full circle.

“Mother, you don’t often encounter wild beasts. I really didn’t go very far. If you don’t believe me, ask Father. He said that Big Worm is quite old and was probably driven here by other wild beasts. It was purely by chance that I encountered it.”

"Isn't it true that your father only protects you and speaks on your behalf?"

"Hehe, Mom, let's not talk about this anymore. You should think about how to make new cotton-padded clothes for everyone in the family. I've already ordered the cotton, but it won't arrive for a few days."

Mu Lianrong stuffed firewood into the stove: "How much cotton will it take to make new cotton clothes for the whole family?"

"Sister Cheng Yue gave me a discount, and I've already paid, so there's no way I can get a refund."

“Your mother is getting old and her eyesight is failing. Making so many clothes will strain her eyes. Let your eldest and second sisters-in-law make them.”

Mu Lianrong said this, but she felt comforted inside; her daughter was so filial to her.