Chapter 267
When Zhao Xiping came back with the two tails grinding bean flour, Sui Yu was frying pork chunks. The pork belly had been marinated before being put into the frying pan, and the soy sauce was mixed with honey. After being drizzled with oil, the pork chunks turned a maroon color.
The pickled radish shreds have been cut, the soybean sprouts have been picked and washed, the lard and lean meat shreds have been cut, and all we have to do is wait for the pancakes to be baked before we can start preparing to fry the oil residue and stir-fry the lean meat.
"Mom, the bean flour is ready." The kid ran in excitedly to report, "My dad asked where we can make pancakes."
"It's still in our yard. Ask your father to light the stove and ask your uncle to come in. Move the basin and pottery pot there." Sui Yu ordered. "Oh, by the way, I asked you to call your aunt to come to our house for dinner. Have you called her yet?"
"I called out, but my aunt is not coming. She is going to buy a camel."
"Oh." Sui Yu responded, "It seems your aunt made money this year."
"Well, Aning said his mother is very rich." The kid said while leaning against the door.
"Who's richer, your mother or his mother?" Cuisao teased him. She brought a bowl of pickled cabbage and walked in, asking, "Madam, do you have any extra oil residue today? I'll steam two baskets of pickled cabbage and oil residue buns for you."
"Okay, steam it tonight, and we'll have pancakes for lunch." Sui Yu instructed, "Don't touch the side dishes I prepared yet. I'll have someone come to notify you, then you can get them ready. Kid, go get me two handfuls of broad bean flour."
The kid ran off, only to return with his uncle. Sui Liang came to pick up the pottery cauldron. The warehouse held seventeen pots, some as tall as buckets and some as short as bowls. Not only did they vary in height, but they also came in two types: open-mouthed and closed-mouthed. The pot Sui Liang wanted to take was a short, open-mouthed one, shaped like a bowl, with an oval bottom, a flared mouth, and handles on either side. This type of cauldron was perfect for making pancakes.
The skin of the pork belly is fried until crispy. Sui Yu pokes the meat with a wooden skewer and puts it into the braising soup. The braising pot is placed on the stove at the back and simmered over low heat for an hour. The meat stewed in this way is the most flavorful.
"Mom, broad bean powder." The kid reminded.
Sister Cui took the earthenware bowl containing the lean meat strips and said, "Throw it in here."
Seeing that Sui Yu had no objection, the boy did as he was told.
"You haven't answered the question I asked you just now, right? Is your mother rich or your aunt rich?" Cui Sao asked again.
The kid kicked his feet and said nonchalantly, "I don't know."
"If you ask me, it's just that your mother is rich." Sister Cui nodded at him.
Sui Yu walked over wiping her hands and looked at the kid with a smile.
The boy tugged at her clothes and walked out happily. Once he was out, he turned around and said, "My mother has no money."
"Oh, look how stingy you are. You're afraid that we will know that your mother is rich." Cui Sao hissed at him.
The kid stuck out his tongue slightly, made a face, and ran away quickly.
A fire had already started in the yard next door, and the basin and table were set up. Sui Yu walked in and rolled up her sleeves. She took the basin and scooped five scoops of broad bean powder and two scoops of soybean powder. Finally, she scooped three scoops of wheat flour and mixed them in. She stirred them evenly and kneaded them with water.
"Brother Liang, bring me the dough board and the rolling pin." Sui Yu said.
"good."
"Mom, what should I get?" The kid was anxious to get the order.
"Go wash your hands and come back to make dough for me later."
The cub responded, got up and ran.
Now there were only the couple left in the yard, one guarding each side, one on the east and one on the west.
Zhao Xiping stuffed two sticks of firewood into the stove, then walked over and asked, "How about I roll the noodles?"
"Forget it, if the kid wants to eat the pancakes I baked, I have to take some action."
Zhao Xiping couldn't help but sneer.
Sui Yu looked up at him, then lowered her head to continue kneading the dough.
"Sister, bring the dough board and rolling pin."
"Mom, I've washed my hands."
Zhao Xiping walked away silently and continued to make a fire.
After the dough was kneaded, Sui Yu sat on the chair brought by Sui Liang. She pinched a handful of soybean flour and sprinkled it on the working board, then pinched a ball of dough and rolled it out with a rolling pin.
"Sister, can the clay pot be put on the stove?" Sui Liang asked.
"Yes." Sui Yu nodded. "Use a low heat. This time, the pancakes will be thinner. Turn them frequently until light yellow marks appear on both sides."
As he was talking, a bean cake was rolled out. The boy immediately handed over a piece of dough, and then took the cake and handed it over to fry.
The four people divided the work, one rolled the noodles, one lit the fire, one made pancakes, and there was another one who ran errands and delivered the pancakes. The four of them cooperated well and did not delay each other. As soon as the second bean pancake was rolled out, the bean pancakes in the pot were cooked.
"Come on, let's taste it first." Sui Liang took a breath, endured the heat and divided the pancake into four halves. He held one piece in his mouth, stuffed two pieces out in a hurry, and fed the last piece into Sui Yu's mouth.
"Not bad, not bad, it smells good." Sui Yu nodded, "The bean powder smells really good when it's cooked."
Zhao Xiping nodded, but still insisted: "It's not as delicious as the egg and chive box."
"Next year I'll have bean bread, egg and chive boxes." Sui Yu said deliberately.
Zhao Xiping quickly changed his tone: "Bean flour pancakes are just more fragrant than white flour pancakes."
Sui Yu gave him a blunt look, and he curled up the corners of his mouth in joy.
The second bean cake came out of the pot. This time, the four of them no longer swallowed it whole. Instead, they tasted it carefully. The bean cake had a hint of sweetness when chewed, and its taste was richer than that of pure flour cakes, especially the layer of bean powder floating on the surface. After it was cooked, it was extremely fragrant.
Ten pancakes were eaten right after they came out of the pan. Sui Yu had to stop them: "Don't eat anymore, especially little one. If you're full now, you won't be able to eat more when the food comes later."
The cub looked at his stomach regretfully. His stomach was not small, so why could it only hold a little food?
After more than half an hour, the large pot of dough was finally finished, making nearly three hundred pancakes. Meanwhile, Sister Cui brought over the side dishes: the braised pork was diced, the lean meat strips were coated in sauce, the lard scraps were freshly cooked and sprinkled with salt, crispy and flavorful, and the bean sprouts were blanched, drained, and divided with the pickled radish shreds on two plates.
Sui Yu picked up the bean cake that had just been taken out of the pan, scooped a spoonful each of braised pork cubes and lard residue and spread them on the cake, then wrapped it with lean meat strips and pickled radish shreds. Zhao Xiping didn't like bean sprouts, so she didn't take any.
The cub stared at the stacked bean cakes. He opened his mouth happily waiting to be fed, but unexpectedly the bean cakes floated past his eyes. He was dumbfounded with his mouth open.
Zhao Xiping was stunned for a moment, and the fragrant bean cake was about to reach his mouth before he reacted. In an instant, joy appeared on his brows. He stared at the playful face with a bright gaze and took the bulging cake in one bite.
The kid chewed twice in vain, then closed his mouth awkwardly, took a pancake himself, scooped a large spoonful of braised meat and spread it on the pancake.
Sui Liang had already started eating. He puffed out his cheeks and chewed with big mouthfuls, mumbling, "Sister, it's delicious."
"If it tastes good, eat more." Sui Yu took the pancake from the boy's hand and said, "You have a small mouth, so make less. I'll eat this one, and you can make another one."
"Oh..." the kid replied in a drawn-out tone. He took another pancake, but his eyes stayed on Sui Yu's face. Seeing that she was eating, he asked excitedly, "Mom, is the pancake I made delicious?"
Sui Yu nodded heavily, he was happy, and then he busied himself with eating.
As a courtesy, Zhao Xiping made a pancake for Sui Yu and a fist-sized pancake for himself, then went out to find his parents and Uncle Lao Niu and his daughter to have dinner.
"It's already noon, why don't you come back for dinner?" Sui Yu asked.
"Didn't you hear it in the yard? The boy named Kurban played the drum very well. He was also teaching Aqiang that girl to dance. We forgot about it." Mother Zhao said with lingering concern.
The boy saw Kurban waving at him through the gate. He remembered what he had promised in the morning, so he told Sui Yu that he would personally pack four pancakes and send them out.
Sui Yu remembered that there was an old teacher, so she asked Sui Liang to serve a bowl of kelp and tofu soup and pack ten pancakes and send them over.
There were many people and many eaters, especially Zhao Xiping and Sui Liang, who had big appetites. By the end of the meal, all the side dishes and soup were gone. Of the nearly three hundred bean cakes, only fifty were left.
"This kind of pancake won't taste good for the next meal. I'll eat a little more and then forget it when I'm done." Zhao Xiping said reluctantly, reaching out to take the pancake without any hesitation.
"Dad, please leave three or five for me, please leave five for me." The kid also likes to eat bean cakes. Compared with those wrapped with vegetables, he prefers to eat pure bean cakes, which are fragrant and sweet.
Sui Yu decided to divide the remaining fifty cold bean cakes into twenty for Xiaozai, asking him to give them to Dazhuang, and twenty for Ashui, asking her to give them to Huaniu and Aqiang. The remaining ten were Zhao Xiping's.
"I'll make another in a couple of days. If you don't enjoy it this time, we'll try it next time." Sui Yu made the decision, "Pack up your things and do what you need to do."
Sui Yu did what she said. Two days later, she baked another 300 bean cakes and had another meal to satisfy her craving. Only then did the old and young in the family no longer feel greedy.
The kang in the school was built and ready for burning after it dried. Sui Yu asked someone to move the tables and benches in.
On October 26th, the school started.
After dawn, Sui Liang took Xiaozai and Dazhuang, and A Shui took Aqiang and Huaniu. The six of them went out to eat together after running.
Aning had been brought here by his father. He was waiting nervously under the eaves, carrying a cloth bag.
"Brother, have you eaten?" asked the kid.
Aning shook his head and nodded. He hadn't eaten at home. When Aunt Yin came over and brought him a bun, he had already finished it.
"He ate a steamed bun." Grandma Yin came out and said, "Would you like to drink porridge or honey water?"
"Honey water!" they said almost in unison.
Liu Yaer brought two plates of buns and stuffed them into Ah Qiang's hands. Then she brought out a pot of honey water and handed it to Sui Liang, saying, "Let's go to the school after dinner."
On the first day of going to school, everyone except Sui Liang was nervous. They filled their stomachs quickly as if they were going to a war, and each of them went out with a cloth bag.
Zhao Xiping was not on duty today. He and Sui Yu stood in the open space south of the guesthouse looking at the jujube trees.
"Have the jujube trees borne fruit this year?" Sui Yu asked.
"No, they might bear fruit next year. If you come back early next year, you might be able to eat the dates in time."
"There's no shortage of dates outside the Great Wall." Sui Yu said deliberately.
A cold bird flew by. Zhao Xiping looked up at the sky with his hands behind his back. He was kicked and lowered his head.
"Are you mute?" Sui Yu glared at him.
Zhao Xiping couldn't hold back his laughter. He turned his head and said, "There's no shortage of dates outside the Great Wall, but there's a shortage of people to accompany you in picking and eating them."
Sui Yu wanted to say more, but a group of camels appeared on the road leading here. They were Captain Gu, Captain Yang and seven other captains and three small flags who were sending children here.
The seven thousand households sent a total of thirteen children, and the three small flags sent three.
"There is also a school in Captain Qu's mansion, right?" Sui Yu asked.
Zhao Xiping nodded.
"Brother Zhao, sister-in-law." Captain Gu came over, reining in his camel and dismounting. He said politely, "I've brought the two children here. If they don't behave and cause you trouble, just teach them a lesson. Don't worry about my reputation."
Zhao Xiping waved his hand and said, "It's not that serious. Mr. Chen is old and only teaches for an hour a day. In such a short time, they can't cause me any trouble. I won't say anymore. You guys go over quickly. My children have already gone."
"I'll lead you here." Sui Yu said.
Sixteen children followed her carrying baskets, and Zhao Xiping invited his colleagues and subordinates to follow him into the house to talk.
Sui Yu didn't bother them. She sent the children to school and watched them sit down at their tables. She also found an empty seat and sat down.
When Old Chen came and saw Sui Yu, he pretended not to see her. He first followed her wishes and rearranged the twenty-three children's seats according to their height. Then he gave each of them a brush and taught them how to hold the brush and how to apply force when writing.
Sui Yu took out her usual writing brush, dipped it in water and started writing on the table. Her posture of holding the brush was wrong, no wonder her handwriting was so ugly. She made an excuse for herself.
"Next, you will learn a poem from me. The poem is called 'East Wind'..."
As the sounds of repeating reading of varying lengths began, Sui Yu bent down and slipped out. When he went out, he met Liu and her three children wandering at the door.
Before she could speak, Sui Yu nodded and said, "There's an empty table in the room. Prepare a brush, a charcoal pencil, and a wooden board for each of the three children. Let them go in and learn tomorrow."
Liu was delighted. She said excitedly, "Thank you, Shopkeeper Yu. How much is the salary? I'll give it to you right away."
Sui Yu waved his hand, "From now on, you will be responsible for lighting the kang. In the room where Old Chen sleeps, the kang needs to be on fire all day and all night. As for the school, it only needs to be on for half a day. Is that okay?"
"Okay." Liu agreed immediately.
After the matter was settled, Sui Yu went back to find Zhao Xiping, but the visitor had already left, leaving behind a pile of gifts.
"The deer legs were sent by Captain Gu, the ox horns were sent by Captain Yang, and this red pottery basin was sent by Captain Li... This bag of dried dates was sent by Chen Xiaoqi, and this basket of rice cakes was sent by Qian Xiaoqi." Zhao Xiping explained one by one. "I didn't ask for their salary, but they gave me these things. I couldn't refuse, so I had to accept them."
"It's a token of their appreciation, so we'll accept it. When the snow starts to fall and we slaughter a pig, we'll invite these children to our house for a meal." Sui Yu took the horn, sat down next to Zhao Xiping, and said, "I'm not planning on hiring a teacher as a business. It's mainly for the purpose of teaching our own children. Everything else is just incidental. It's a pleasant surprise that I can help you make some connections. Hey, this horn doesn't seem to be the horn of a plowing ox?"
"Captain Yang said he bought this from a merchant two years ago. It's probably from a Qiang cattle horn."
After he said this, Sui Yu understood that this must be the horn of a yak, which has a more rounded arc. Compared with the horns of a plowing ox, the horns of a yak are slender and more beautiful.
"Is this ox horn still a medicine?" Sui Yu asked.
Zhao Xiping didn't know, and Captain Yang didn't say much.
"Put it away first." Sui Yu put down the ox horns and took out a sheepskin coat from the box. She wanted to put it on, but she felt that the dirt on the wool had not been washed yet, so she changed into another one.
"It's going to snow. Today is colder than the previous few days." Sui Yu stamped his feet.
"We'll also build a kang in our house," said Zhao Xiping.
Sui Yu shook her head and refused. "A warm bed can easily make people lazy. The barn next to the kitchen is warmer. I can sit there when I feel cold. When it snows and there's a fire in the teahouse, I'll go there and warm myself by the fire."
Speaking of the teahouse, Zhao Xiping said that in the summer, Kurban and Anle pestered Lao Xia to learn ventriloquism. They didn't learn any ventriloquism, but they did choreograph a few dances. Aqiang and Huaniu also learned two of them.
"Did Qin Wenshan take away his personal journal?" Sui Yu asked.
"I didn't see his caravan coming." Zhao Xiping took out the bamboo slips placed in the wooden box.
After a while, Sui Yu took the bamboo slips to find Mr. Chen. She showed him the slips. She originally wanted to ask him how to write a fu, but unexpectedly he was interested in the content on the slips. He took the initiative to take the job and asked him to write another fu for Qin Wenshan.
Two days later, Sui Yu took the opportunity to bring all her stories to Chen Lao. She discussed with him how to transform them into verses suitable for singing. She had heard him recite verses in the academy with such rhythmic rhythm and rich emotion, which was exactly what her stories lacked. As an outsider, no matter how much she tried to fit in, she could never grasp the tune of the ancients' verses, so how could she teach Qingshan and the others?
Therefore, Qingshan, Zhang Shun, Xiao Chunhong and Liu Yaer were also sent to school by Sui Yu, so that the four of them could be influenced by Mr. Chen.
Late at night, when everyone in the guesthouse had gone to bed, the sound of camel bells suddenly rang out in the wilderness, followed by the clatter of horses' hooves.
"It looks like a large caravan. I'll get up and take a look. You continue to sleep and don't go out." Zhao Xiping lifted the wolfskin mattress and got out of bed, saying, "It's November already, and there are still caravans coming back. We don't have to worry about encountering heavy snow."
As soon as he mentioned snow, Zhao Xiping saw the falling snowflakes as soon as he opened the door. He closed the door and strode out.
"It's snowing." Sui Liang also opened the door and came out. He stood in the snow, looking up, and said, "Finally, it's snowing. The snow came a little late this year, not until November."
"Uncle——" the kid shouted while lying in bed.
"Stop shouting, stop shouting. Go to bed early and play snowballs tomorrow morning." Sui Liang walked out quickly.
The little boy squinted his eyes at Sui Yu. He smiled and asked flatteringly, "Mom, can I play snowballs with my uncle tomorrow morning?"
"What do you think?" Sui Yu asked.
The cub shook his head, "My dad is going to beat me again."
"Do you still remember getting beaten for playing in the snow?" Sui Yu asked with a smile.
The boy nodded. After all, he had only received that one beating.
"Playing in the snow will make you sick. Have you forgotten how sick you were during Chinese New Year last year?" Sui Yu told him seriously, "Playing in snowball fights will make you sweat. If you sweat and then get hit by the cold wind, you'll get sick."
"I run, I grow stronger, and I won't get sick anymore."
Sui Yu could tell that he really wanted to play in the snow. She thought for a moment and said, "When the snow piles up thickly, we can use it to wash our sheepskin coats and wolfskin mattresses."
"We also want to build a snowman." The kid made another request.
Sui Yu heard footsteps in the yard. She said "hmm" perfunctorily and followed the footsteps in her mind.
"Three caravans have arrived. Zhang Shun and Li Wu are responsible for settling them. I came back first. It's so cold." Zhao Xiping threw off his sheepskin coat, kicked off his sheepskin pants, lifted the mattress and quickly got in.
A huge gust of cold air came in, and the little cub cried out in pain from the cold. He curled up into a ball, afraid that his father would tease him with his cold hands again.
"I didn't do anything to you. Your father didn't even get close to you." Sui Yu hugged him and smiled.
The boy looked back and saw Zhao Xi lying flat on his back, ignoring him completely.
"Has Hua Suichun returned?" Sui Yu asked. "Sister Liu is so worried about him every day that she's become so thin."
"They're back. Their caravan was unlucky. They were captured by the Xiongnu in the autumn. But they were lucky. A few days after they were captured, our army attacked them. The people were saved, but the goods were lost." Zhao Xiping told her the news he had just learned. "The army has also returned, and the war in Cheshi has been settled."
Sui Yu was not surprised that the army won. After all, the Protectorate had not yet been established in the Western Regions, and the wars outside the Great Wall were all minor. As long as Zhao Xiping did not go to the battlefield, she would not worry.
"The goods are gone, but the camels are alive, right?" Sui Yu asked. For a caravan, camels are a major asset, and losing a camel is more devastating than losing the goods.
"They were riding camels, so they probably weren't lost." Zhao Xiping warmed up and snatched Zhao Xiaozai away. He held Zhao Xiaozai's chubby little feet and asked, "Aren't you hiding from me? Why are you stepping on my leg now?"
The kid didn't say anything. He couldn't explain himself. He just felt like teasing someone.
"Go sleep with your uncle tomorrow night," Zhao Xiping said tentatively. Seeing him hesitate for a moment, he felt something was up and said, "It's snowing, and your uncle will be very cold sleeping alone. You're a little stove, so go and keep him company, or he'll catch a cold."
"Okay." The kid relented and turned around and said, "Mom, I'll come back to accompany you in two days."
"Okay." Sui Yu agreed with a smile, "I will miss you."
The little cub laughed and flapped his legs excitedly.
"Go to sleep." Zhao Xiping held his legs and said, "Go to sleep quickly. You have to go to school tomorrow morning."
The children sat in the warm school and learned to read, the merchants sat in the teahouse with a fire burning and talked, and the merchants and bodyguards who had returned last night talked loudly in the teahouse. They talked about the thrills and wars outside the pass.
Mr. Chen asked Sui Liang to teach his child how to write. He waded through the snow into the teahouse and sat aside to listen to the conversation between the customers.
A few screams of pigs were heard in the wind and snow. It was Gan Da leading people to slaughter pigs.
It was almost noon and the school classes were over. Sui Liang took his group of children to watch someone slaughter a pig.
Sui Yu hid in the corner and watched secretly. The kid looked at the snow several times, but probably because of her instructions, he never reached out to grab the snow.
"Brother, your aunt is peeking at you." Aning whispered, "I saw her red shoes."
The kid hissed slyly, "I saw it too. Let's not tell her."
The closer he got to the corner of the Tibetans' wall, the more uncomfortable the boy became. When Sui Yu came out in a pretentious manner, he couldn't hold it in any longer and laughed, "Mom, I saw you. Your red shoes are showing."
Aning glanced at him suspiciously.
Sui Yu looked back and saw half a footprint on the wall. She took out an inflated pig bladder from behind and said, "I want to give you a surprise. Take it and play with Aning."
After she finished speaking, she said to the other children, "Gu Dalang, I've sent someone into town to tell your father that you two brothers will have the pig-killing meal at my house for lunch today. The same goes for the others. You will all eat at my house, and after lunch, I'll send someone to take you back. Liang Ge'er, Xiaozai, and Aning, you three are the hosts, so please entertain your friends."
Sui Liangying is good.
The kid immediately gave up his pig bladder and said, "Let's go to the teahouse and play. I'll play the drums for you to listen to."
Aning thought about it and decided to go with his brother, even though the kid had just fooled him.
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