"Haha, that's true. The boys are naughty in new ways every day, unlike this sensible little girl." In Yun the butcher's eyes, his daughter is the best. He is a complete daughter slave.
"Brother, your little girl and I have a good impression of each other. How about this, I won't sell them to you for five cents per tree, but three for ten cents." The woman selling vegetables said readily.
"Thank you, auntie. You are such a nice person." Yun Yiyi said happily.
The woman selling vegetables laughed happily after hearing this.
The cabbages were quickly counted; there were thirty-five in all.
"Auntie, can you sell the basket to us? We have nothing to put the cabbages in." Yun Yiyi asked embarrassedly.
"Okay, no need to pay, I'll give them to you. My family has no shortage of baskets. My husband's relatives in the village heard that we were growing vegetables and gave us a lot of baskets. I still have a lot and can't use them all. If you don't have any, just take them." The woman selling vegetables took a look at the fully loaded donkey cart and said.
"Thank you so much, Auntie. Yiyi has turned into a sweet girl now, and speaks very sweetly.
Yun the butcher paid for the vegetables, and the vegetable seller helped him push the vegetables onto the donkey cart. Yun the butcher covered them with oilcloth and tied them up with rope. Then they said goodbye to the vegetable seller and continued their shopping.
The vegetable stalls were all very close together, and there weren't many people selling fresh vegetables. Most of them were selling dried vegetables, pickles, and preserved vegetables. Passing by a jar of pickles, Yun Yiyi stopped.
"Dad, let's buy some pickles. These can be stored and won't spoil easily." Yun Yiyi said, pointing to a stall full of jars of pickles.
"Okay, let's go and take a look." Butcher Yun stopped driving the donkey cart.
"Sister, what kind of pickles do you have at home?" Yun Yiyi asked a young girl sitting behind the stall.
The girl was young, with long braids, a fair complexion, slender, white fingers, and a pair of bright, large eyes. She was particularly beautiful.
"Little sister, do you want to buy some kimchi? Let me tell you, my kimchi is especially delicious. My mother learned the skill of making kimchi from someone else. Therefore, the kimchi she makes tastes especially good. All the customers who have bought it say it's delicious. Therefore, many of my regular customers buy kimchi from me." The girl selling kimchi said proudly.
"Wow, sister. Your mother is so amazing. My mother can also make kimchi. Hers is delicious, too. However, we don't have much kimchi at home, and it's not convenient to make it now, so we have to buy it." Yun Yiyi said regretfully.
"Yes, there are fewer fresh vegetables this year, so my family didn't make as many pickles as in previous years. Little sister, come here and try the pickles my mother made. Isn't it delicious?" The little girl picked up a piece of red pickled radish from the jar with chopsticks and handed it to Yun Yiyi.
Yun Yiyi took it and broke the radish in half, stuffing one half into Yun the Butcher's mouth and the other half into her own. Mm, it was crispy and sour, with a hint of sweetness in the aftertaste. It was definitely better than Zhang's. When making kimchi, they must have added sugar, which is why it's so crispy and has a slightly sweet aftertaste.
Yun Yiyi glanced at the pickle juice in the jar again. It was a bright red, beautiful color, very clear, and without any stains on it. It must have been sealed with wine. The girl's mother's kimchi making skills were indeed amazing, no wonder she could sell it at a stall.
Yun Yiyi also knows how to make kimchi, and she's had a lot of delicious kimchi in her past life. When it comes to making kimchi, it's safe to say that everyone's kimchi tastes different. Even two apprentices taught by the same person can make different flavors. Furthermore, some people simply can't make kimchi properly; their kimchi is either raw or the kimchi water smells bad.
Zhang's kimchi is also delicious. However, every year, Zhang uses the same old kimchi water, adding dried vegetables and some cold, unrefined vegetables. Finally, they seal the jars with water. Because they make so much, they don't pay much attention to the taste when they eat it at home.
Therefore, Zhang's kimchi doesn't add sugar or alcohol. Adding sugar makes the kimchi crispier and more delicious. Adding alcohol prevents the kimchi from becoming watery and improves its taste. However, this increases the cost of the kimchi.
"Sister, your pickled radish is crispy and sour, and really delicious. What other pickles do you have at home?" Yun Yiyi asked.
"I have pickled peppers, pickled ginger, and pickled beans at home. I'll pick some out for you to try." The little girl said as she picked up some pickled peppers, pickled ginger, and pickled beans for Yun Yiyi.
Yun Yiyi broke off half of the pickled ginger and beans for Yun the Butcher to eat, and gave him the whole pickled chili pepper. Yun Yiyi thought the pickled chili peppers were too spicy and she didn't want to eat them. She had tasted Zhang's pickled chili peppers before, and they were sour and spicy. Cutting some and adding them to stir-fried meat, stewed chicken, or fish made the dishes extra flavorful and went well with rice. Yun Yiyi ate both the pickled ginger and beans, and they both tasted delicious.
"Dad, how does it taste? Is it delicious? Let's buy some too?" Yun Yiyi asked Yun the Butcher.
"I think it tastes good. Let's buy some of each." Yun the Butcher replied.
"Sister, how much do your pickles cost?" Yun Yiyi asked the little girl.
"My family's pickles are all in a jar of ten pounds. Pickled radishes, pickled peppers, and pickled beans are all the same price, two hundred coins a jar. Pickled ginger is more expensive. It's two taels of silver a jar. The price was cheaper in previous years, but this year there are very few fresh vegetables, so we bought them at a high price, and the cost increased, so the selling price is higher. You should have also noticed that there are very few fresh vegetables for sale now. Even if there are, the price is more expensive than in previous years." The girl explained.
Butcher Yun thought about the prices of vegetables in previous years and understood. The girl's offer wasn't high. Take pickled ginger, for example. The ginger they'd previously bought at the grocery store was 240 wen per jin. Ten jin of ginger would cost 2 liang of silver plus 400 wen. Besides, pickles also require salt, sugar, wine, and other seasonings. The price wasn't bad at all. They probably had farmers who delivered their vegetables. Otherwise, the price of the pickles would be much higher.
"Okay, then I'll take one jar of pickled radish, one jar of pickled beans, one jar of pickled peppers, and one jar of pickled ginger. Please tie the jars of pickles with straw ropes. This way, we can put them on the car more conveniently." said Yun the butcher.
"Okay, wait a moment. I'll tie the jars securely with some straw rope." As the girl spoke, she expertly pulled a large bundle of rope from the basket behind her and began tying them up. Soon, all four jars of kimchi were tied together, preventing any spillage along the way.
Butcher Yun stuffed the bundled kimchi jars into the cabbage basket to prevent the kimchi jars from bumping against each other. He then took a dozen cabbages out of the basket and stuffed them into a newly purchased clay pot.
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