The heated oil was poured into a basin and placed on the stove to cool before being poured into an oil jar.

The remaining oil stains were collected in a small basin. Zhang Shuzhen ladled out a small half bowl and led the two children inside to eat.

The oil stains, fresh out of the pan, are crispy and crunchy. A little salt was added when frying the oil, so the oil stains also have a slightly salty taste, making them especially fragrant.

The two children, Sheng Xinhua and Sheng Xinyu, sat on the kang (a heated brick bed), reached out their little hands to grab two pieces of oily food from the bowl, put them in their mouths, and chewed them. The more they chewed, the more fragrant they became.

In no time, the two children finished eating all the oil stains in their small bowls.

"Grandma, I want more." Sheng Xinhua picked up the bowl and handed it to Zhang Shuzhen, looking at his grandmother with longing.

"No, that's all we can eat today. This stuff is all oily, and if we eat too much, we'll feel nauseous and won't be able to eat anything else later."

Zhang Shuzhen shook her head. She dared not feed such young children too much. If they got hurt, they might not be able to eat anything oily or greasy in the future.

Sheng Xinhua was unwilling to give up and pouted as if to cry, but no matter how much they argued, Zhang Shuzhen refused to give him any more.

Seeing that it wasn't fun anymore, the two kids stopped crying and went back to the west room to play with the tiger cub.

Once the two children quieted down, Zhang Shuzhen went out and hid the oil-stained basin on top of the cabinet.

The oil that had been heated had cooled down a bit, so it was poured into a jar.

Afterwards, Zhang Shuzhen went to the vegetable garden and picked some green beans and peppers.

The pot was covered in a layer of oil, and Zhang Shuzhen was reluctant to wash it, planning to stew some green beans for dinner.

There's quite a bit of oil residue from the frying today. Everyone, adults and children alike, loves to eat this stuff, so Zhang Shuzhen plans to stir-fry some chili peppers with the oil residue.

With these two dishes and some pancakes or something, dinner will be enough.

The two children played with Tiger Cub in the west room, and no one bothered Zhang Shuzhen, so dinner was prepared quickly.

When Sheng Xitai and his classmates got home from school, the green beans were already cooked, and the pancakes were almost ready.

"Mom, what delicious food did you make? It smells so good!"

"Ugh, it smells like lard! Is it greasy? Did you save any? I want some."

As soon as foodie Sheng Xitai entered the house, he smelled the lingering aroma from the kitchen and asked happily.

"Dream on! You want to eat it? Just because you want to eat it doesn't mean I have to give it to you. Shouldn't I save it for cooking?"

I was planning to use the oil stains to make some steamed buns tomorrow, but you ate them all. Why would I use your oil to make steamed buns?

Bear meat is very fatty, making it ideal for deep-frying.

As for the thin ones, they had to be left for Jiaojiao and Zhuangzhuang, and some also had to be given to General Hei to help him recover. There wasn't much left, so Zhang Shuzhen thought of using the oil to make steamed buns.

Most mothers in Northeast China are like this; no matter how much they love their children, they never hold back with their words.

Zhang Shuzhen was no exception; even though she had left oil stains on the children, she just wouldn't give them the oil properly.

Sheng Xitai was somewhat disappointed that he didn't get any oil stains to satisfy his craving, but when he heard that he would be using the oil stains to make steamed buns the next day, he thought it was acceptable and said nothing more.

The Sheng sisters, Sheng Yunfang and Sheng Yunfei, are in high school now. They get out of school later than they did in junior high, and after dinner, they have to go to school for evening classes.

There was only forty minutes for lunch and rest, so the time was a bit tight.

Zhang Shuzhen was too lazy to waste words with her son. She quickly took the pancakes out of the pan and told Sheng Xitai to go do his homework.

Sheng Xitai went to the east room to do his homework, and Zhang Shuzhen then chopped a few chilies and stir-fried them with oil.

Just as the chili peppers were stir-fried and the oil was seeping out of the pan, Sheng Liancheng and his son, along with the Sheng Yunfang and Sheng Yunfei sisters, returned one after another. So everyone worked together to serve the meal.

"Mom, didn't you say we should save the oil stains to make steamed buns?"

Sheng Xitai was doing his homework when he was attracted by the aroma. When he saw a plate of oil stains on the table, he immediately shouted happily.

"If there's something delicious, you should save it for the whole family. What's the point of letting me satisfy my craving all by myself?"

"Go wash your hands and eat quickly, your sister and the others have to go to class soon." Zhang Shuzhen slapped away her youngest son's hand that was trying to steal something and told him to go wash his hands.

Sheng Xitai quickly went to the outer room to wash his hands, and then the family sat down at the table to eat.

Stewed green beans, stir-fried chili peppers with oil, and flatbread—it's just ordinary home-cooked food, but the children are exceptionally happy with it.

When eating, everyone first focused on the oily stir-fried chili peppers.

The oil itself is already fragrant, and when paired with the small chili peppers grown in our own garden, the taste is absolutely amazing.

Sheng Xinhua and Sheng Xinyu also wanted to eat, but they were afraid of spicy food. Zhang Shuzhen had no choice but to make a small dish of oil for the two children.

"Eat it with the flatbread, but don't eat too much."

After dinner, the Sheng sisters, Sheng Yunfang and Sheng Yunfei, hurriedly returned to school.

Nowadays, the workload is heavy and the school is strict. What should be evening self-study time for homework is instead taken up by teachers to give lectures.

Evening classes lasted until nine o'clock. After returning home, the power went out at the forest farm. The two girls could only use all the time at school to finish their homework, and then they had to review by flashlight after returning home.

"When you have time, go buy some noodles or something. The two girls are tired from studying, and they might be hungry when they get back at night. Cook them a bowl of noodles or something, so they don't have to study on an empty stomach."

Seeing his two daughters rushing off, Sheng Liancheng felt a pang of heartache and gave Zhang Shuzhen some instructions.

"I've noticed that Yunfang and the other kids seem to be struggling with their studies much more than the second and third kids did back then. Now that the girls are in high school, they really do seem to be falling behind the boys."

"Dad, it's not that girls and children are having a hard time in high school, it's just that the situation is different now."

Nowadays, everyone knows that the college entrance examination is the best way out; who wouldn't take it seriously?

"Everyone from top to bottom values ​​it, and with each layer adding more and more pressure, students at the very bottom will definitely struggle to get ahead." Sheng Xiping shook his head.

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