"My daughter is really thoughtful. I didn't even notice your father said that. Okay, we have that kind of brown sugar at home. I'll bring it over later and make some."
Xu Qingzhi washed his hands and said, "I'll help you wrap it."
Wang Yanmei prepared the fillings for both flavors, put them in two bowls, and started rolling out the bun wrappers.
After a while, Xu Fuqiang also came back from outside. He had just gone to the brick factory to ask about the current price of bricks and agreed to go up and pick them up today.
Xu Qingzhi thought of the menu the customer ordered last night and said, "Dad, I'm afraid it won't work this morning. I have to pick the vegetables, and I can't handle it alone. By the way, Mom and Dad, do you know anyone reliable who can help pick the vegetables? There are a lot of vegetables today. How much would be a reasonable amount per day if I hire someone?"
"Usually your father and I help others do odd jobs. The normal price is one hundred yuan a day, the better ones pay one hundred and twenty yuan a day, and the more generous ones pay one hundred and fifty yuan a day." Wang Yanmei has already started rolling out a few sheets of dough.
"How much should we pay to hire someone to pick vegetables?" Xu Qingzhi asked.
Xu Fuqiang waved his hand and said, "Don't waste this money. You don't need to hire anyone. Dad can pick them all."
Xu Qingzhi felt that she had come back to retire, and she was happy picking vegetables on weekdays, but if it came to 500 kilograms, she would not be happy!
She casually picked up a bun wrapper, scooped half a spoonful of brown sugar in the middle, and wrapped it up with her hands skillfully, saying, "Dad, there are more than 500 kilograms, you can't pick them all."
"What, about 500 kilograms!" Xu Fuqiang was greatly surprised and stared at his daughter in astonishment.
Xu Qingzhi nodded, "Yes, so we can hire a few people today to see if it is suitable. If more and more people come to buy groceries later, we will definitely not be able to finish the work with just a few people at home."
Small picking brings joy, but large picking harms the body.
She wants to retire! She doesn’t want to pick so many vegetables!
Xu Fuqiang was still in shock at the weight of 500 kilograms, but Wang Yanmei had already started to recommend people with a smile, "Your Aunt Zhou is efficient and doesn't gossip. Let's charge her 120 yuan a day, which is not stingy. There are also a few aunts who play waist drums with mom, they are also nice people."
"Okay, Mom, call them later and ask if they're free and willing to pick vegetables. I'll charge you one hundred and twenty for now." Xu Qingzhi already had an exquisite little bun in his hand, which was placed aside and sprinkled with flour to prevent the bun from sticking to the skin.
"Hey, Qingzhi, when did you learn how to make dumplings? And they look so good, better than those sold outside." Wang Yanmei asked.
Xu Qingzhi paused and looked at the bun. Some memories of his time in the world of immortal cultivation emerged, and he casually said, "I learned it in the state capital."
"I wanted to make dumplings during the Chinese New Year last year, and you said you didn't know how, but it turns out you made them so well." Wang Yanmei said with a smile.
"I didn't know how to do it then, but I learned it later." Xu Qingzhi said as he skillfully wrapped another brown sugar bun.
Wang Yanmei took another look at the buns Xu Fuqiang made and burst out laughing, "Qingzhi, look at what your father made. I'm afraid it's just a steamed bun."
Xu Qingzhi took a look and burst out laughing, "Dad, let me teach you."
"Okay, if my daughter teaches me, I'm sure I can learn it in one go."
Not long after, Xu Zijun also came downstairs and joined the group making dumplings.
After we finished making the dumplings, it was only 7:30 in the morning. You can imagine how early the whole family got up today.
However, Xu Qingzhi discovered that in the village, most people generally got up early, basically as soon as the sun rose.
Wang Yanmei put the buns in the steamer and called the sisters she knew one by one to discuss coming to pick vegetables.
Some people hadn't had breakfast yet. Wang Yanmei said happily that she had steamed buns at home and they could come directly to her house for breakfast.
After hanging up the phone, Wang Yanmei asked curiously, "Qingzhi, why hasn't your grandpa come yet? Drive up there to look for him. I met him at the market yesterday and asked him to come to my house for buns this morning."
As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Dongru walked in from the door.
"Grandpa." Xu Qingzhi and Xu Zijun called out in unison.
Xu Dongru responded and reached out to take something out of his chest pocket. After searching for a long time, he finally took it out. "I got up early in the morning and went to the temple to burn incense. I asked for two amulets for you two siblings. I asked Master Ma Gong to bless you two to be safe and healthy."
The amulet is a red cloth bag with a piece of paper inside, tied with a red rope and can be hung around the neck.
When he was a child, Xu Qingzhi went to the mountains to play with his friends and fell.
Grandpa bought her a peace amulet, but she didn't understand what it meant at that time, so she tried to take out the paper in the bag to see what was written on it. As a result, grandpa scolded her and said that it would not work if she took it out.
Xu Qingzhi didn't believe in these things, but since the old man believed in Buddhism, she naturally respected him. Regardless of whether the amulet could really bring peace, she took it with joy, put it around her neck, and said, "Thank you, Grandpa. I'll go to the temple tomorrow to get you a longevity amulet."
"There is no such thing as longevity in this world. The emperor who wanted to live a long life died anyway. I, your grandpa, have lived for more than seventy years, and it is enough for me to have such a good body." Xu Dongru saw that his grandson was still holding it in his hand. He knew that young people nowadays did not believe in such things, so he found an excuse for himself and said, "You don't have to hang it around your neck, just put it on your body. It can protect you in the fourteen days."
It was inconvenient for Xu Zijun to wear it when he returned to school. He had to take it off every time he took a shower, so he put it in his pocket.
When the buns were almost cooked, the aunties who helped pick vegetables also came.
A pot of steaming buns came out of the pot.
Everyone started eating buns together.
This brown sugar bun is best when it is hot. The dough is still soft at that time. When you bite it open, the hard granules of brown sugar melt inside. For those who love sweet buns, this is simply delicious.
Xu Fuqiang enjoyed the meal very much. The memory of the sugar buns came into his mind, and he ate even more happily when he heard from his wife that his daughter had specifically mentioned that he liked them.
And today's meat buns are obviously better than sugar buns.
When you bite into the bun, the meat and chopped green onions are perfectly blended together, and some oil and water flow out. The bun skin is soft, the meat is delicious, and the chopped green onions bring an impact of fragrance.
In addition, most of these buns are wrapped beautifully and look appetizing.
Some people who had already had breakfast could not help but try a meat bun and said, "Yanmei, your scallion meat bun is so delicious, even better than the ones sold at the market. Mm, so delicious. I came here for breakfast, can I have another one?"
"Eat as much as you can. We made a lot of buns at home and I'm afraid we won't be able to finish them." Wang Yanmei said with a smile.
(End of this chapter)