Bai Jiaojiao took half of it outside to freeze, and the next morning it turned into a rock-hard ice cream.

She wrapped one of each of the four flavors in an oil paper package, sent one package to Bai Shiqing, sent two packages to the Bai family, planned to keep two packages for herself, and gave the remaining five packages to Wang Fushun. He could keep them for himself or use them to do favors, it was up to him.

"Heng-ge, you should try it."

Bai Jiaojiao held a chocolate-flavored pastry to Shen Heng's lips, and Shen Heng took a bite with great pride.

"Is it delicious, Heng-ge?"

"tasty."

Milk powder, chocolate, and eggs are all good things; how could food made with these ingredients not taste good?

Bai Jiaojiao handed the rest to Shen Heng and took a red bean one for herself to eat.

Wang Fushun came back from selling his goods in town and stopped by Shili Village to pick up some snacks. Bai Jiaojiao handed him five oil paper packages: "These aren't expensive things. They're definitely not suitable as gifts for higher-ups, but I think they'll be useful for building relationships. My family tried them and said they were good. You should take them back for your aunt to try too."

Wang Fushun weighed the oil paper package in his hand: "What's inside?"

"Glutinous rice balls".

"Sister-in-law, you really know how to make things with glutinous rice. People around here don't eat this often," Wang Fushun said with a smile.

"We only used a little glutinous rice; you'll know once you taste it."

Wang Fushun didn't take it seriously, assuming it was something similar to a snow skin mooncake, so he put it in his bicycle basket, thanked him, and rode away.

He went back and put it on the table: "Mom, Heng's wife brought some snacks, take them and eat them."

"Eat what? I'm not that precious!"

Wang Fushun's mother was arguing with him. It was the end of the year, and all the young men and women in the village were looking for a wife. Wang Fushun's mother naturally wanted to find him a wife as soon as possible, but Wang Fushun refused no matter what.

“My dear mother, why are you still angry?” Wang Fushun went to town on an empty stomach this morning. “If you don’t eat it, I will. People said it’s something precious and it’s very troublesome to prepare.”

Wang Fushun opened a paper package and found four round dumplings inside that looked quite appealing. He pinched one, and it was soft and squishy, ​​but because it was made of glutinous rice skin, it felt very substantial in his hand.

He took the original flavor. With one bite, the rich milky aroma filled his mouth. Because it had been frozen a little, the filling inside the glutinous rice ball became sandy. The kang (heated brick bed) in their house was warm, so they weren't bothered by it. Who didn't steal sweet potatoes from home and freeze them in the snow to eat as popsicles when they were a child?

"My goodness, this is so delicious! No wonder my sister-in-law kept saying it's perfect as a gift! It would be so impressive to present this."

Wang Fushun felt that Bai Jiaojiao was being far too modest, even saying that it was embarrassing to offer gifts to superiors.

She didn't know that the prominent people in town nowadays were interested in these novelties; they were pursuing a higher quality of life, unlike them who only wanted as much money as possible.

"Mom, are you really not going to eat? If you're not going to eat, I'll pack it up and give it away."

Wang Fushun said this deliberately.

Wang Fushun's mother had eaten a lot of things that Bai Jiaojiao gave her, so she knew how good Bai Jiaojiao's cooking was.

She watched from the side as Wang Fushun took a bite of the translucent bun, and the filling inside looked like it was about to overflow.

"I won't eat!" Her attitude was very firm. She swallowed hard and turned her head to the side.

"Mom, I was wrong, okay? Please have one, my dear. My sister-in-law specifically asked me to bring it back for you to try. Please don't let me miss my deadline."

Wang Fushun gave his mother a way out, but she snorted and said, "I'm just giving her face."

Except for the chocolate flavor, which is black, the other three have white skins. You can see the red bean filling through the glutinous rice skin, while you can't see the red bean filling in the taro filling.

Wang Fushun's mother took a taro glutinous rice ball that looked exactly like the original flavor one in Wang Fushun's hand, took a bite, and her teeth hurt a little from the cold, but she couldn't help but savor the milky taste inside: "This thing is terrifying! Tell me, how come that kid Shen Heng is so clueless? Did they add milk powder to it?"

"Ah, they said they can't make much, just enough for their own people. Do you think it's just ordinary stuff?"

Wang Fushun's mother glanced at the five oil paper packages that Wang Fushun had brought back and said, "She really gave you quite a lot."

Wang Fushun also realized: "Sister-in-law is being too hospitable. I reckon that the milk coupons that Heng-ge got won't amount to much of this stuff."

Wang Fushun knew about Shen Heng buying milk powder, so he estimated that Bai Jiaojiao must have given him a large share.

Wang Fushun's mother said, "Eat less. Save those two for when a girl comes to meet you. I'll cut them out for you. Don't touch the rest of the bag. Leave it outside to chill."

Wang Fushun did intend to give away the remaining four packs as gifts, but it was impossible for him to only eat one.

"Mom, why are you giving such precious things to people who haven't even started dating yet?"

As he spoke, he quickly finished the plain glutinous rice ball in his hand and reached out his claws towards the chocolate one.

"You little brat! You'll drive me crazy one day!"

Days passed by, and the Bai family initially dared not continue. Deng Min hadn't come for several days, but after waiting for so long without any news, they believed Bai Jiaojiao's words and started their business again.

Because the brigade leader had made it clear to them that once the money from above arrived, the entire village would be mobilized to start road repairs, and they wouldn't have time to do it then.

"Is that matter really resolved? My brother-in-law is really amazing."

Deng Min sighed as she worked.

"Yan Xingmin submitted the complaint, and there has been no response for several days. How can he not be suspicious? That kid Wang Fushun has been causing trouble at his blacksmith shop for several days. He's even more worried now. He thinks we have a strong backer who can not only cover up the complaint but also retaliate against him. Do you think he would dare to make any rash moves?"

"Was he frightened?"

“My third brother’s master was a shirker. If he were really capable, he wouldn’t have treated my third brother like that.”

“Yes.” Deng Min wholeheartedly agreed.

Bai Jiaojiao added, "Wang Fushun told all the black market dealers what he had done, and now they've united to boycott him. His family members have also been exposed. In short, they're not letting him do even a single transaction on the black market."

For people like Yan Xingmin, whose family is well-off, his wife used to frequently go to the black market to buy things without needing ration coupons to improve their lives. Now, however, she can't get any bargains anymore.

“Everyone else is making money from that alleyway. If he dares to report Shi Bo, who knows who will be next? It’s better not to let him in.”