"Dad, are there any children in our village who have been abducted by human traffickers?" As soon as Yun Lao San finished speaking, several children stared at Yun the Butcher.
"There were cases a long time ago where children were abducted by human traffickers and could never be found. And the worse the years, the more rampant the traffickers become."
"When I was young, my father told me that some human traffickers were led into the business by others, while others were traffickers who were abducted. Traffickers have lost all humanity, so there's no need to pity them."
"Dad, is there a big difference between a matchmaker and a human trafficker?" Yun Yiyi was particularly curious about this.
"Matchmakers buy and sell maids and servants through legitimate means, but human traffickers use illegitimate means, including stealing, robbing, kidnapping, etc." Xie Zirui looked at Yun the Butcher without saying anything, so he explained it to everyone.
"Zirui, I didn't expect that you know so much despite your young age." Yun Lao San looked at Xie Zirui in surprise.
"Third brother, my teacher is very knowledgeable. During class, he tells me about the customs and practices of various places."
"Zirui, your teacher is quite good. I thought that when the teacher taught, he just made the children recite and copy books non-stop."
"Second brother, you are talking about the teacher in our town. I heard that the knowledgeable teacher's lectures are like telling stories, which are very interesting." Yun Yiyi retorted.
As soon as he finished speaking, the three Yun brothers all stared at Xie Zirui.
"Brothers, Yiyi is right. This is how my teacher teaches. But you must not get distracted during class. If you do, you will miss a lot of knowledge that the teacher has taught you."
"In the next class, when the teacher asks questions, if you can't answer them, you'll be spanked."
"Then your teacher is really strict. However, it seems that all teachers like to use thugs." Yun Lao Er had a frightened expression.
"Second brother, you'll get used to it." Xie Zirui said indifferently.
Yun Yiyi glanced at Xie Zirui and Second Brother Yun and chuckled. It seemed like students were always afraid of being hit by their teachers, no matter the time.
"Okay, it's getting late now, let's get ready to go to bed." Yun the Butcher looked at the darkening sky.
"Yes, go wash your feet, go to bed early tonight, and get up early tomorrow." Zhang also thought about having to get up to steam buns tomorrow morning, so she had to go to bed early tonight.
"I understand, Mom." Yun Lao Da acted like a big brother. He took his younger brothers and sisters to wash their feet and watched them sleep without any worries from his parents.
"Boss, please wake me up early tomorrow morning. I've already made the dough tonight, and I'm going to make dumplings tomorrow morning."
"Okay, I'll call you when I wake up. But, while everyone is still awake, let's cut the filling for the buns. If we cut it tomorrow morning, the noise will be too loud and will wake up the children." Yun the Butcher suddenly thought of this problem.
"Well, you have a point. Then light the lamp and I'll go cut the cabbage. Can you help me wash some radishes?"
"I'm thinking of making two kinds of stuffing tomorrow morning, one with radish and one with cabbage. The children can eat whichever they like."
"Then do as you say." Butcher Yun lit the oil lamp and placed it on the table to illuminate it. Then, he went to the cart and found a cabbage and three carrots.
Butcher Yun handed the cabbage to Zhang. Zhang peeled off the outer layer of the cabbage. She then washed it in a basin of water and began to cut it on the chopping board.
Zhang quickly shredded the cabbage and then chopped it into small pieces. She then rolled the cabbage into a ball with her hands and squeezed out the moisture.
Finally, she squeezed the cabbage clean and placed it in a clean clay pot. She added some ground Sichuan peppercorns she had roasted and ground, along with a tablespoon of lard. Then, she used chopsticks to mix the filling thoroughly.
Zhang didn't add salt, planning to add it the next morning before wrapping the dumplings. Adding salt too early would remove moisture from the cabbage and make the filling salty.
Zhang covered the prepared cabbage filling with a cloth and placed it in the mule cart. Then, using the same method, she prepared the radish filling for the next morning. Finally, she also placed the radish filling in the mule cart.
"Boss, remember to go to the city gate tomorrow morning and buy another water tank. I'm going to steam buns tomorrow, and I'll need quite a bit of water."
"Don't worry, I'll buy more water. Wife, you go to sleep. I'll watch the mule and the donkey finish their biscuits and give them water, then I'll go to sleep too."
Butcher Yun had just seen Zhang and secretly yawned several times. Zhang must be tired after such a busy day. Butcher Yun felt both distressed and guilty. If the family were more affluent, Zhang's life wouldn't be so tiring.
"Okay, boss, go to bed quickly after you finish your work. Also, you must wake me up tomorrow morning." Zhang reminded him again with concern.
"I understand, wife. I will definitely not forget it." Yun the butcher said with a helpless smile.
"Okay, then I'll go to bed." After saying that, Zhang went to wash her feet and then lay down on the mat to sleep.
Butcher Yun came to the mule and donkey with a lamp. With the lamp shining on them, they ate more happily.
Butcher Yun waited until the mule and donkey had finished their bread and water before washing his feet and going to sleep. By then, it was already dark and most of the people had gone to sleep. The woods were much quieter.
As Butcher Yun lay on the mat, he felt fatigue wash over him. Soon, he began to snore.
Nothing happened that night. Only the people on duty in Yunjia Village went to bed with peace of mind when they saw the village chief wake up at dawn to patrol the village.
Butcher Yun heard the village chief's footsteps and knew it was time to get up, so he nudged Zhang, who was standing next to him.
"Wife, it's time to get up."
Zhang was not sleeping soundly. When she heard Yun the butcher calling her, she opened her eyes.
"Boss, it's dawn so soon?"
"It's not daybreak yet, but it's almost here. Don't you want to make dumplings? We need to hurry up. Otherwise, we'll be late."
"Yes, yes, I still have to make dumplings." Zhang quickly stood up, put on her shoes and went to wash up.
Butcher Yun first added hay and water to the mule and donkey, then added cabbage leaves, water, and half a bowl of cornmeal to the old hen.
After finishing all this, he went to wash up. When he finished washing up, Zhang had already started kneading the dough.
"Boss, please add water to the pot and put some firewood on it, then come over and help me roll out the dough. It will be faster if two of us wrap it." Zhang arranged everything in an orderly manner.
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