"Are you going to the city to buy goods? Are you going with your mother?" Yan Xin usually buys goods in the county town, and only goes to the city at the end of the year. Business is slow at other times, so it's not worth spending the travel expenses to go to the city.
“No, we’re all going,” Lin Xiazhu said.
Grandma Lin: "..." What does that mean?
"Your whole family is going, six people in total?"
“Yes, Chacha and the others have never traveled far from home. Now that they’re on summer vacation, they have the time to go out and broaden their horizons,” Lin Xiazhu said matter-of-factly.
"That will cost a lot in transportation fees. Is the little money your small shop makes enough to cover all that? How come you've raised a bunch of spendthrift women? You should save your money for tuition, food, and clothing." If they get into vocational school or university later, it will cost a lot of money.
Fearing that Grandma Lin would continue nagging, Lin Xiazhu quickly stopped her, "Grandma, Chacha, Xiao An, and I went into the mountains to pick a lot of mushrooms before. This time, we went to the city not only to play, but mainly to sell mountain products, as the prices are higher in the city."
"How much did you pick that's worth taking to the city?" Old Mrs. Lin was taken aback.
To prevent moisture, the items were all placed upstairs and sealed with plastic film. Lin Xiazhu didn't want to take Grandma Lin upstairs to see them, so she just gave a rough estimate of the quantity, without understating it, but without mentioning that there were Ganoderma lucidum and red mushrooms.
To avoid hearing it, which would only make Old Lady Lin and Zhao Yinxiu jealous and envious, those two are typical examples of having the desire but not the courage. They like to make sarcastic remarks in front of her, but when they see that they can't gain any advantage, they don't make any further moves. As soon as they are scolded by their uncle, they immediately shrink back unwillingly.
Humans are so contradictory and complex. Usually, Old Mrs. Lin treated their family quite well and would lend a hand in crucial moments. But when it came to money, she felt unbalanced and kept having ulterior motives.
Needless to say, Zhao Yinxiu had no blood relation to Lin Xiazhu and her sister, and always looked down on their family. She felt uncomfortable when she saw that their family had some money and wanted to get something out of them, although in the end she got nothing.
Lin Xiazhu didn't want to say more, so she turned around and went to the kitchen to take out a bag containing three Ganoderma lucidum mushrooms.
"Take this back and make chicken soup. It was picked from deep in the mountains and is quite old." The reason for specifically adding "quite old" was to prevent her from giving it away or having it taken back to her parents' home by Zhao Yinxiu.
Old Mrs. Lin has a sharp eye. After opening the bag and glancing at it a few times, she could tell that it was a Ganoderma lucidum that had been growing for decades. "This kind of thing is hard to find. Xiaozhu, keep the rest for yourselves. Don't sell it. For us country folk, health is our most valuable asset. It's not like we're so poor that we can't afford to eat."
The old lady was quite understanding and never made things difficult for herself or her family. Her uncle's family always had good food. Back when they lived in Linjia Village, they would buy pork stew with tofu once a week and often go into the mountains to hunt some wild game to improve their meals.
While others hunt wild animals to sell in town or county, my uncle's family always kept them for themselves, which is why they are all healthy and rarely get sick.
When Lin Xiazhu was presented with three Ganoderma lucidum mushrooms, Old Lady Lin guessed that she must have picked quite a lot. However, she still advised her to keep them for the family to eat. She said that if the second branch of the family ate well, their health would be good and they would not be a burden to the first branch.
After the old lady left, Xiao An came downstairs, his eyes sparkling as he looked at Lin Xiazhu. "Can I go to the city with her?"
"Of course, do you want to stay home and watch the house?" Lin Xiazhu teased deliberately.
"I don't want to look at houses, I want to stay with you all," Xiao An quickly expressed her feelings.
"Okay, let's all go together. We want to broaden our horizons. I'll treat you to some good food and buy you two nice outfits so you can experience the life of the rich." Lin Xiazhu was full of ambition. She decided to carry two thousand yuan with her when she went.
Since she decided to go on a trip, she couldn't hold back. At least she had to be able to afford the things. In this day and age, two thousand yuan is a huge sum of money. Only someone with a lot of savings would dare to spend so lavishly.
"I'll make chicken soup tonight," Lin Xiazhu said with a smile, lowering her voice. "Use that ginseng to make the chicken soup; it'll make you feel great."
Xiao An nodded vigorously. He also liked to eat delicious food. Before, when they came back from the deep mountains, they ate wild rabbit and pheasant for a long time. Lin Chacha was a good cook and ate different dishes. Today, there was pheasant stewed with Ganoderma lucidum, and tomorrow, wild rabbit stewed with shiitake mushrooms. Everyone gained several pounds.
Xiao An doesn't gain weight easily; her face has become much rounder, and she looks much healthier.
These past few mornings, Lin Xiazhu has been going out early every morning to buy pork liver and pork intestines. She's willing to spend money, and each time she buys a pound of pork leg meat, a certain amount of pork liver and pork intestines. After cutting them up, she cooks them with red mushrooms to make soup, and the taste is incredibly delicious.
"Sister, have you been eating so much lately? Won't you be overnourished?" Xiao An understands pharmacology and knows about balanced nutrition.
Surely not?
"Your constitution is too weak. These supplements are nothing. They're just food, not medicine. It'll be fine. Save the Ganoderma for later. Once you take the ginseng, your constitution will recover quickly. Cha Cha and I also need supplements. We're all growing."
Lin Xiazhu was very confident that there would be no nutritional excess, because she always controlled the amount of Ganoderma lucidum and red mushrooms she added. Take ginseng for example, if one person ate it alone, it would definitely be too much, but if everyone ate it together, it would be just right.
So when Lin Xiazhu started simmering the ginseng chicken soup, she asked Xiao An to go to the street and tell Yan Xin and Lin Chacha that they wouldn't be eating dinner at the snack shop, but would be eating at home instead.
Since opening the snack shop, they have basically eaten all their meals there. Zhang Yu's mother prepares the meals, and Zhang Yu and his sister often eat there as well.
When they want to eat good food, Lin Xiazhu's family will cook at home. The main reason is that the ingredients are so good that everyone can smell and see them when they are brought to the store. I wonder how many people will be envious. It's better to keep a low profile.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
