Chapter 6: Her Voice is Really Loud

The clay pot was burning hot on the mud stove, and the shrimp heads inside had been fried until they were crispy. The shiny shrimp oil sizzled out, and the aroma mixed with minced garlic went straight into people's noses.

Wei Jinyun was quick and scooped a ladle of hot water into the pot. The soup turned milky white and bubbled along with the shrimps that had just been put in.

She grabbed a handful of noodles and threw them in, stirred them twice with a bamboo chopstick, cracked a few eggs, and the bright yellow eggs lay in the soup, gradually forming tender white edges.

After the shrimps are cooked and finally rolled over, I pick a handful of cleaned Artemisia selengensis from the bamboo basket. The green leaves soften when boiled.

“It smells so good.”

Wei Fuling moved a chair and sat beside the clay stove. She had already picked up the bowl in her hand and stared at the noodles rolling in the clay pot, as if she wanted to embed herself in the pot. "Is it done? Is it done?"

Wei Fuqiu tore off her towel and washed her hands, sighing repeatedly, saying that she was a newly picked up Soot Cat, as if she had never eaten soup noodles before.

The two aunts who were sweeping the house just stopped and followed the fragrance into the yard.

The round-faced aunt smacked her lips and said, "What a wonderful thing this is! It's enough to make my soul go away just by smelling it."

The other aunt smiled and washed her hands. "That's right. Just by smelling it, you can tell it's very delicious. No wonder it attracted the Soot Cat."

Wei Jinyun responded with a smile, and had already scooped up the noodles and put them into the porcelain bowl. The egg lying on it was trembling as she handed it to her sisters.

Wei Fuling blew hard, poked the dangling egg with chopsticks, stirred it, and put it into her mouth. She always liked to let the half-cooked egg flow into the noodle soup and then eat it together.

Wei Fuqiu picked up a piece slowly, but raised her eyebrows after tasting it.

The smooth noodles slide into your mouth, soft and chewy with a hint of crunch, each one absorbing the flavor of the soup.

Bite open the egg at the bottom of the bowl, the yolk inside mixes with the soup, the dense egg aroma wrapped in the freshness of the shrimp flows warmly into the throat.

The Artemisia selengensis is cooked to the perfect temperature, crispy and tender with a hint of sweetness, and it makes a crackling sound when chewed.

“It’s delicious.”

She lowered her head and spoke softly.

"Sister Qi'er always speaks in an awkward way."

Wei Fuling raised her sweaty face from eating, "If you want to praise me, then do it well...I wouldn't trade the soup noodles I made for the heavenly delicacy I made, just like that."

"You're the only one who can say that."

The two sisters were bickering with each other, and everyone was amused by them.

The two aunts have been cleaning for so long, but the host rarely invites them to eat together. They always get their own food and sit aside to eat.

At the moment, they were chatting with Wei Jinyun and the others, and teasing these two little kids who looked exactly the same but had very different personalities. They felt happy doing their job today.

The two sisters were busy eating noodles, and the hot soup made their little faces red.

Wei Jinyun took advantage of the moment to ask, "I just wanted to ask you, ladies and gentlemen, a question. Where in Pingjiang Prefecture is the best place to buy pots, pans, needlework, fabrics, and other items at the best prices? We've just packed up and don't even have a bed, so it's time to buy some more."

The round-faced woman slurped her noodles and replied, "If you ask me, don't go to those shops in front of Tianqing Temple or Shantang and get ripped off. Go to the market outside the city, you're guaranteed to get a better deal. Take the Louhe market, for example. Households from the surrounding villages bring in their extra belongings. They sell bamboo baskets and ceramic bowls at real prices, unlike the shops in the city, where they always charge a few cents more."

Another person came over and said, "That's right. The market at Changmen has a much more complete selection: cloth, hemp thread, iron pots... even thimbles for sewing. Most of those stalls are small businesses. If you ask a few questions and bargain, they'll sell to you. The other day I went to the market over there and bought a new clay pot. It was two cents cheaper than in the city. It stews really well, and you don't get those leaky, burnt pots."

Wei Jinyun nodded repeatedly after hearing this, and then continued to ask, "When is the best time to go to Caoshi?"

"Go early."

The two aunts said in unison, "The market opens before dawn. It's busiest before sunrise and the goods are fresh. If you go too late, the good stuff will be gone! Miss Wei is a great bargainer. I guarantee you can get the best goods for the best price."

After the round-faced aunt finished her noodles, she drank two bowls of soup.

The soup made with shrimp heads is so delicious that it makes your tongue tremble. The refreshing taste of Artemisia selengensis makes it not greasy at all, but fresh and bright, not inferior to the soup and noodle shops outside.

Wei Fuling chewed her noodles and mumbled, "Then I bought a new bowl, and sister made me soup noodles every day."

Wang Qiulan saw her round belly and quickly grabbed her hand that was reaching for more noodles, "If you eat any more, you won't be able to sleep tonight."

This little girl was provoked by Wei Fuqiu and wants to force it down her throat today. If I don't keep an eye on her, she might get indigestion.

After eating the hot soup noodles, the aunts felt warm in their stomachs and their hands were more energetic. They swept the shop inside and out, and even wiped away the mildew on the walls almost completely.

After all, this is more effective than some modern cleaning agents. Wei Jinyun wanted to find out the formula in their basin, but failed.

Her aunt joked with her that this was an exclusive secret recipe, and if she really wanted it, she could just make some for her.

The two worked for another hour, and Wei Jinyun paid them their wages. Today's cleaning was finally completed. However, looking at the empty shop, the four generations of grandparents and grandchildren were really at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

Those moldy cabinets are completely unusable, and the few benches that were picked out with great difficulty are still creaking. You might fall on your butt while sitting on them one day.

They didn't have much luggage, so they brought along a few quilts they'd found. Since there were no beds around, they had to push benches together, spread the quilts on top, and make a bed.

The "jointed bed" was hard and uncomfortable, and whenever Wei Jinyun turned over, the wooden stools would rock back and forth. Wang Qiulan was using a palm-leaf fan to help the two sisters keep away mosquitoes, humming a few lines of a ballad.

When she was a child, her grandparents also coaxed her in this way.

Perhaps most children in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas grow up like this, and it has never changed.

She still had about fifteen strings of cash in her hand, so she had to go to the market early in the morning to check and then figure out how to use it more reasonably.

Raindrops began to fall again at night, and the small windows in the house were not closed to dissipate the smell of the house that had been uninhabited for a long time.

She had already collected the leak in a wooden basin so that the rainwater would not flow freely.

The raindrops fell into the wooden basin, "tick-tick", Wei Jinyun was calculating money in his mind, and because he was really tired today, he fell asleep while thinking.

The first night in Pingjiang Prefecture passed slowly like this.

As soon as the sky began to light up, Wei Jinyun got up early. Her sister and grandmother were still asleep, so she carefully tucked in their blankets.

They were definitely not used to the new environment, and they were not used to sleeping on these wooden benches. She could always hear the sound of people tossing and turning at night.

I have to buy a bed today, otherwise my grandmother’s back won’t be able to withstand such torture as she is old.

Wei Jinyun brought the newly bought wooden basin to the yard and used some of the remaining clean water from yesterday to wash her face.

She held the toothbrush in her mouth while brushing her teeth and looked carefully at the well. The continuous rain had caused the water level to rise to the edge, and she could touch it with her hand.

Although the water on the top is clear, because it has not been used for decades, a lot of silt must have accumulated underneath. We have to ask a specialist to go down the well to remove the debris, unclog the gaps between the well walls, and repeatedly pump water to drain out the turbid water before it can be used again.

She spat out the Poria cocos water, slapped her head, and realized that she had to pay another labor fee.

After finishing cleaning, Wei Jinyun gently pushed open the door.

The front door of their house also needed to be repaired. The lock on the inside was old, and she had to tiptoe out, otherwise the door would moo, and she wouldn't have to raise a rooster at home to wake up her two younger sisters.

Li Ji Cooked Food Store had been open for a long time, and the brick and mud stove in the shop had already started roasting poultry, emitting a fragrant aroma.

When Wei Jinyun went out, Meng Ge'er felt that the house was too hot, so he moved a small chair and sat at the door to eat porridge.

He also ate heartily this morning. The white porridge was topped with pickled young ginger sprouts, salted cucumber strips, and shiny braised goose skin, without any ambiguity.

He was chewing deliciously, and when he saw Wei Jinyun, he grinned and greeted her, "Good morning, sister."

The door curtain of the stationery store on the left was lifted, and a handsome young man who was adjusting his clothes walked out.

He had his hair tied up meticulously, and wore a moon-white robe with black bamboo embroidered on the collar and cuffs, and a small green jade pendant hanging around his waist.

Zhang Renbai was going to buy a book, but when he looked up, he happened to see that a shop that had been closed was now open, and a girl dressed in green was quietly pushing the door open and walking out.

The morning light fell on her temples. She hunched over carefully, carrying a backpack, and slowly moved out from the crack of the door as if she had done something bad.

His behavior is quite cute.

Zhang Renbai watched for a while and saw that she turned around after greeting Meng Ge'er from Li Ji Delicatessen, and looked straight into his eyes, nodding and smiling.

A thin layer of red first appeared on his ears, then spread slowly along his cheeks. He hurriedly lowered his head and walked away.

"Is Brother Renbai so hot?"

Meng Ge'er took a few mouthfuls of porridge and saw that Zhang Renbai's face had turned red. He raised his hand and handed him the palm-leaf fan, "Take this and fan Brother Renbai."

Wei Jinyun didn't pay much attention to him. He looked like a scholar from his attire. She would wait until she finished shopping and tidied up the shop before dealing with the interpersonal relationships with the neighbors.

The grass market here in Changmen was even busier than when she came yesterday.

Early in the morning, the breakfast stalls are the busiest. Steamed cakes and siu mai in the baskets are emitting steam, and the pan-fried dumplings on the iron pan are sizzling with a sound, sprinkled with sesame seeds and chopped green onions by the vendors. The soy milk sellers are carrying buckets on their shoulders and shouting that a bowl costs two cents.

Wei Jinyun ordered a basket of meat dumplings and a bowl of sweet soy milk, and sat by the river to eat with most people.

The stalls here are so crowded that there is no space for a few tables and chairs. Diners are either squatting or sitting, and it is lucky to find a seat.

The dough of the freshly-cooked meat dumplings is as thin as a cicada's wing, and is pinched into a flower shape. The steamed dough is crystal clear, and you can vaguely see the meat filling inside. When you lift it gently, it is so full that it shakes slightly.

Take a bite, and the aroma of the gravy spreads on your tongue, wrapped in crispy bamboo shoots, fresh but not greasy.

Wei Jinyun moved quickly and finished the whole basket, then drank the sweet hot soy milk in one gulp.

Comfort, that’s the delicious taste!

After she finished shopping, she picked out some breakfast and packed it for her grandmother and sisters to take back.

After walking a few more steps, you will see various stalls. Wei Jinyun rolled up his sleeves and started bargaining because he would have the energy to work only after eating.

"No, no, I see you're so young, and you're chopping too hard. This iron pan of mine won't stick to fish or burn meat, so even if I sell it to you for three hundred coins, I'm not charging enough!"

"Two hundred and twenty wen. If you sell it, I'll take it. If not, I'll go look somewhere else. I just saw the ironmongery over there, and it seems busier than yours."

"Two hundred and eighty wen!"

"Two hundred and forty cents and a spatula."

"Two hundred and fifty coins!"

"I'm leaving first."

"Forget it! Now that I've met someone who knows what they're doing, I'll sell it to you at a loss! Don't pick a spatula that's too big!"

Lu Lan goes to work very early and rarely eats at home. Most of the time, he goes to the Changmen Grass Market to buy some breakfast food.

He had just bought a few pieces of crabapple cake from Grandma Cen when he heard the vendor beside him yelling "ba ba ba" at the top of his lungs...

There were several people gathered there, and the noises sounded shrill, so he thought something serious had happened.

Before he could go forward, he heard a voice louder than the vendor's, shouting, "Deal!"

How could the slender green figure among the crowd of people make such a loud noise, louder than when he caught a thief?

It seems to look somewhat familiar.

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[Poor] Meat Shaomai is really delicious [Cat’s Paw]