After planting two pots in a row, Ningxia collected the seeds of Chinese cabbage.
There are also pepper seeds. The trading point didn't distribute many, but she collected some on the road before. She planned to plant both and see the germination rate.
The pepper seeds distributed at the trading point are planted in the same way as Chinese cabbage, except that they are sprinkled regularly, unlike Chinese cabbage, which are not scattered randomly all over the flowerpot.
She planted the pepper seeds she picked herself in another pot and placed it together with the pot of peppers. Ningxia also made a mark to see which pot grew better.
She didn't know what kind of peppers the trading point distributed. They were just wrapped in brown paper with the word "pepper" printed on it.
"Sister Xia Xia, do you want to plant anything else?"
Ningxia rummaged through her pockets and said, "There's nothing left to plant. Other seeds are not suitable for planting indoors. The area is too small." She did have other seeds, which she had collected earlier, but they couldn't be planted in this pot.
The two of them worked together to move the pot to a place where the sun could reach, and then they were done.
"That's enough. There's no place to dry any more." Ningxia let out a breath, stood with her hands on her hips, looking at the pots, not knowing what she was thinking.
Sangsang looked up at Ningxia, then at her brother who agreed to remain silent, "Xia Xia, what are you thinking about~"
Ningxia looked down at Sangsang, her eyes lighting up. "Sang, you can't pee outside anymore. I'll find you a pot, and you can pee at home and give it to me."
Sangsang blushed and pouted, "Xia Xia...you...what are you doing!" In the past few days, Ningxia used the picture books at home to give Sangsang some physiology knowledge. The little girl finally learned to be shy.
Ningxia picked her up and pointed at several basins. "Sangsang needs to eat, right? Caicai also needs to eat. What Sangsang pees on is Caicai's meal."
Sangsang thought for a while before he understood Ningxia's intention and reluctantly agreed.
Lin Yi saw that something was wrong and turned around to run.
"Lin Yi, you too, don't go outside to pee. Just pee at home. You and Sangsang, each with a pot."
Lin Yi walked out without looking back. Of course, he still couldn't escape Ningxia's clutches and had to save his urine. This is a story for later.
That afternoon, a basin appeared in the corner of the yard. Ningxia had taken it out of the toilet, and it had a lid on it. Don't ask what it was used for. It was just Caicai's food. It was hot, so the fermentation was incredibly fast.
After planting the vegetables, Ningxia washed her hands and prepared to make lunch. She also had to make steamed buns for Sangsang to dip in jam as she had promised yesterday.
Ningxia used whole wheat flour lavishly, without adding any cornmeal. This stuff was too expensive, so she only got 16 kilograms in exchange. Adding the ones she hadn't eaten before, the stock was only about 20 kilograms.
Ningxia didn't pour out much, only about one pound. Because it was meant to be eaten with jam, Ningxia didn't add sugar.
After covering the kneaded dough and placing it in the sun to ferment on its own, Ningxia took down a large piece of snake meat hanging under the grape tree in the yard.
Sangsang and Lin Yi gathered around curiously. It was the first time they saw a skinned snake.
The pressure cooker in the kitchen came in handy. Ningxia boiled half a pot of water, chopped off half of a snake weighing four or five pounds into pieces and put it in the pot. She also put in the last few pieces of wild ginger and dried chilies, added a proper amount of salt, and then sealed the lid.
Ningxia started making steamed buns only after cooking the snake meat. After a while of busy work, smoke rose from the two fire holes under the grape trellis, and the whole yard was full of vitality.
Seeing that the snake meat was almost ready, Ningxia took out the last three palm-sized cassavas in the stairwell, peeled them, chopped them into pieces, and threw them into the pressure cooker.
By the time dinner started, the sun was already high in the sky. The two hungry children helped clear the dishes and bring them to the living room table. The starch from the cassava thickened the snake soup, leaving a hint of oil in the broth. The rich texture, combined with the chopped shepherd's purse and scallions, was so distinct that each mouthful offered a strange blend of flavors, without a trace of meaty aroma.
Amid Sangsang's cheers, Ningxia took out a jar of jam, generously poured out half of it, and divided it into three equal portions.
"Sangsang, it will take a long time before you can eat again after you finish eating today, because you are still young and your teeth will hurt if you eat too much sweets." Ningxia handed Sangsang's jam to her.
Sangsang nodded obediently, "I understand. I'll eat whenever Xia Xia gives it to me."
Ningxia touched her head and said, "You are a little devil."
"Hehe~"
A pound of wheat flour can be used to steam more than ten palm-sized buns. The texture is still not fluffy, but it is much more delicate than corn tortillas.
Sangsang dipped her slivers of jam in two before stopping. Ningxia suspected she would have had another if the jam in her bowl hadn't run out. They'd also finished most of the snake soup; the three of them were eating steadily.
"The steamed buns are delicious." After returning to the house, Sangsang was still savoring the taste.
Ningxia nodded at her unhappily, "The tortillas aren't delicious?"
Sangsang didn't respond, shaking his head. "They're all delicious. Everything Xia Xia makes is delicious. The jam is the best."
"It's no use praising me. You can't eat jam these days." Sangsang is already nine years old and has not yet changed her teeth. Ningxia is a little worried that her mouth of white teeth will stay with her until she grows old.
"Hey, I'm not lying, it's true!"
After dinner, Ningxia and Linyi moved the sofa inside and put it back in its original spot. It looked dirty, but after two days of exposure to the sun, the odor had faded. When Ningxia put the cleaned velvet cover back on, the dirt was no longer noticeable.
The sheets and quilt covers that had been taken down from the master bedroom had some stains on them that couldn't be washed off, and they wouldn't look good when put back on the bed, so Ningxia took them out and spread them on the sofa.
This way, next time you can just wash the sheets and quilt covers without having to remove the thick flannel.
The three of them lay on the sofa in the same position. Sangsang felt uncomfortable and moved around until he rested his head on Ningxia's thigh. "The sofa is so soft, softer than the bed."
Lin Yi also turned his head to look at Ning Xia, "Sister Xia Xia, do you want to take a nap?" The concern in his eyes was not concealed at all.
Sangsang also looked at Ningxia.
Ningxia blinked her eyes. She thought, rather than saying that the two children were lucky to meet her, it would be better to say that she was grateful that the two children came to her. It was redemption and the meaning of life, which prevented her from continuing to be decadent in the darkest days.
"No, I'm not going to sleep. I need to find a place to pack our luggage after a break. Anyway, it's an early night."
"I'll go up to the attic and clean out the attic bed at that moment."
"I want to help Xia Xia too!"
"Okay, okay, you are all great." Ningxia hugged one of them in each hand, with a gentle smile on her fair face.
Lin Yi blushed but didn't dodge, letting Ning Xia hug him.
The grain was piled in the stairwell, a small compartment facing the sun and very dry. There was a large empty space under the stairs, so Ningxia moved all the sealed grain bags into this space.
As for the few remaining dried eggplants and dried fish, Ningxia put them in plastic bags and placed them in the kitchen footstool.
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