Chapter 010 No stomach upset
Everyone had their own opinions and there was no consensus. There was an old woman in the crowd whose triangular eyes were rolling around, and no one knew what she was thinking!
Su Wan returned to her yard with a thin layer of sweat on her forehead. She didn't know how to look at the sun, so she could only estimate the time based on her intuition. The room on the west side was where her brothers slept. Su Wan pushed the door open and walked in. The quilts on the kang were neatly folded. Su Wan took out all their dirty clothes, took out a wooden basin, filled it with water and soaked them.
They could tell whether the clothes were clean or dirty by the smell of sweat. The five brothers had a large basin of clothes. There was no soap for washing clothes in that era. The rich families had soap beans, and the rural people used wood ash, which could only remove the smell of sweat. They would beat the clothes with a wooden stick, and that would mean they were clean, as long as there was no smell of sweat.
It would be nice if there was soap, she thought silently in her heart. Making soap is quite simple. All you need is lard and wood ash, which will produce a saponification reaction.
Taking advantage of his free time, Su Wan walked around the house carefully and found that this family was really poor. Apart from some necessary furniture, there was no decent item. The furnishings inside were also very simple. There were holes in the cracks in the wall, and the sunlight came in and cast several circular shadows on the ground. Moreover, the furniture in the house was very old and tattered.
He swept the yard with a large bamboo broom, and then swept the land inside and out. Su Wan was thinking about what to make for his brothers at noon.
Given the conditions at home, there was definitely not enough rice. Su Wan found a few pumpkins in the cellar and decided to steam some pumpkin rice for lunch. Pumpkin is sweet and filling.
There were still a few bags of sweet potatoes and potatoes in the cellar. She would use the potatoes to make some pancakes. She remembered that when she came back, there were still a lot of purslane on the ridges of the fields. She would pick some and eat it cold.
Su Wan got to work right away. He took a small basket and went out to pick a basket of purslane. He picked and washed it, cut the pumpkin into small pieces and the potatoes into shreds. The preparations were almost done.
The river was not far from home, so I took my clothes to the river to wash them. After coming back, I hung them in the yard and then hurried to the well to get licorice water.
There are fewer people around the well. I guess they have all gone home to cook at this time. There are still a few old men sitting there chatting.
After getting the water, he ran away quickly. Su Wan didn't know where his brothers were working, so he could only ask someone. To the east of the village was a large golden rice field, and people were busy working in their own fields.
Su Wan asked along the way before he finally found the place. Everyone was confused when they saw this strange and beautiful girl. When someone asked her who she was, she generously said that she was the daughter of the Su family.
At this time, the five brothers were sweating in the fields. Su Yun was tired and sat on the ground complaining:
"I forgot that Yueyue is not here. I didn't bring any water to the fields. She's dying of thirst!"
Normally when they went to the fields, Gu Yue would bring them water to drink. Now that Gu Yue is gone, they all think that Su Wan doesn't have this awareness.
"Remember to remind me in the afternoon, I'll take it!" Su Jing said as he was cutting rice. He was not an ordinary weak scholar who only knew how to read and write. Born in the countryside, he still had a lot of strength.
"I'll go back and get some water!" Su Yi threw down the sickle in his hand, mainly because he was also thirsty.
"Brother!" A girl's voice was heard not far away. Su Jing looked up when he heard the voice, and the other four brothers also looked over.
The sunlight was so bright that they couldn't see clearly until Su Wan got closer and closer to them.
"Big brother, second brother, third brother, fourth brother, fifth brother, I'm here to bring you water!"
Su Wan was sweating all over. She was holding the jar of water and panting, with the loose hair on her forehead stuck to her face.
"Wanwan, how did you know we were here?" Su Jing threw down his sickle and came over to take her water jar.
"Brother, I have a mouth. Just ask and you'll know. It's so hot, you guys must be thirsty. I brought you some water!"
Su Chen, Su Mu, and Su Yi glanced at Su Yun, who was still complaining. Su Yun's face flushed:
"Why are you all looking at me? Didn't you expect this?"
He stood up and took the bowl covering the jar, poured water out and prepared to drink it. He found that the water was yellow and there were some tree roots in it!
"Su Wan, where did you get the muddy water?"
Su Yun poured out the water in the bowl without hesitation. Everyone waited eagerly for a drink of water, but...
"Fourth brother, this isn't muddy water. It's licorice water, sweet. I even took it to the well and stabilised it for a long time before bringing it over for you to drink!"
Su Wan pouted and explained unconvincedly, why do you always think so badly of yourself?
"Nonsense, how come I don't know that there is sweet grass in this world? It won't give you stomachache if you eat it," Su Yun continued.
"Su Yun, how can you talk like that?" Su Jing scolded in a deep voice.
Hearing the voice, Su Mu walked forward and snatched the bowl from Su Yun's hand, then poured out a bowl of water for himself, put it under his nose and smelled it, then raised his head and drank it in one breath.
"No, second brother, are you really that thirsty?" Su Yun admired his courage very much and was not afraid of getting diarrhea after drinking.
The cool liquorice water was very sweet when it went down his throat. It instantly dispelled the heat and dryness in the hot September. Su Mu was a little surprised. He glanced at Su Yun lightly:
"Shut up!"
Then, Su Mu poured the second bowl of water and drank it all. After finishing it, he wiped his mouth happily!
"This water is indeed sweet. It's licorice root!"
Su Jing then laughed, took the bowl and drank one too, with the same expression as Su Mu, and drank two bowls in a row. Then came Su Chen and Su Yi, who drank heartily, leaving Su Yun with a dry throat.
"Fourth brother, you really don't want to drink it? It's sweet!" Su Yi licked his lips with a smile.
"I don't believe it, is it really that delicious?" Su Yun said it with a disgusting tone but acted honestly, until he took a sip himself, then he held the jar and started drinking.
"Old Four, leave me a bite!"
Su Chen reached out to grab it. He had harvested the most rice and had the greatest strength, so he was naturally the thirstiest one.
"No more, no more, I'm done!" Su Yun drank it all in one breath and couldn't pour out a drop of water.
Su Wan felt so proud when he saw him being slapped in the face, thinking, little guy, can't I defeat you?
"It seems I have to make an extra pot tomorrow, otherwise it won't be enough for my brothers to share!" Su Wan smiled, revealing a few white teeth, which was very cute.
Su Jing also looked at her with a smile, and wiped the sweat from her forehead with his sleeve, very gently:
"Wanwan is so smart, how did you know this method?"
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