When they saw Gu Qingshan come in, everyone hurriedly invited him to sit down in front of the brazier and then began to ask him if his trip to the city had gone smoothly.
To be honest, none of us have ever been inside Jiangzhou City! We have absolutely no idea what it's like inside.
"Jiangzhou City is very large, with many restaurants and taverns, and quite a few wealthy officials and nobles. I sold the wild boar to a tavern for a good price!" Thinking of Jiangzhou's prosperity, Gu Qingshan was quite longing for it. However, he still preferred the life of a mountain village, but he was afraid that Azhi would suffer with him. Fortunately, now that Azhi was with Qin Sanniang and He Xiucai, she had playmates and was doing quite well.
Hearing that Jiangzhou City was very prosperous, everyone was quite happy. This meant that their gloves and earmuffs could fetch a good price, and Qin Sanniang felt that her future plans could include Jiangzhou.
...
Before dinner, Liu placed sorghum and red bean rice, oranges, candied melon, candied winter melon, jujube cake, and millet cake in front of the Kitchen God's image. In addition, she also offered water and fodder for the horses, and an incense burner. A plate of freshly cooked dumplings was also placed on the table!
Finally, Liu smeared a chopstickful of honey on the mouth of the Kitchen God statue, hoping that the Kitchen God would "speak good words in Heaven and bring good fortune back to the palace!" and say good things to the Jade Emperor to bless the family with good health, peace, good luck, and a bountiful harvest in the coming year.
Nowadays, several families cook together in one place, so they also worship the Kitchen God together.
Qin San Niang solemnly followed the others and completed the entire process, which consisted of three steps: kneeling, kowtowing, and burning. As the eldest elder, Liu Shi began chanting incantations at the end. Qin San Niang couldn't understand what she was saying at all; it was more like she was singing than speaking. The general meaning was nothing more than blessings.
Most miraculously, Liu also smeared wine on both sides of the stove, meaning "to intoxicate the Kitchen God," so that the Kitchen God, in a drunken stupor, would not dare to speak recklessly in front of the Jade Emperor!
The process was quite solemn, with each step performed with great care. Like a puppet on strings, Qin San Niang followed the crowd, bowing and kowtowing repeatedly until Liu Shi finally exclaimed, "That's enough!"
The children cheered as they went to set off firecrackers. During the day, they bought a type of firecracker called "Little Mouse," which is made of bamboo and is not dangerous, so even young children can play with it.
Liu shouted for the children to come back for dinner, and they reluctantly put down their firecrackers and scurried back. But the thought of those big, thin-skinned, and generously filled meat dumplings made up for it!
The waiter led the cheers, "Happy Chinese New Year! Happy Chinese New Year!"
Wu Chunhua laughed heartily and said that this was just the Little New Year. When the big New Year comes, we will have to cook a big feast. I don't know how happy these mischievous monkeys will be then!
A table full of dumplings was served, along with several side dishes: cold pig's ears, cold cabbage hearts, crispy pork belly, and various spicy pickled vegetables! The last few dishes were naturally made by Qin San Niang!
For the people who had fled the disaster, this was the first time they had ever sat together to celebrate a festival.
Liu picked up her wine bowl and said a few words to everyone, nothing more than that the hard times of the past were over and that the coming year would be better. Everyone felt a pang of emotion and drank a bowl of wine as well; the wine tasted truly wonderful! Perhaps it wasn't the wine that intoxicated them, but the feeling itself!
"Grandma, the dumplings are so delicious! The meat filling is so good! I've never eaten dumplings before!" This little girl, Anan, has never eaten dumplings since she was born! And they're all filled with meat! It's really heartbreaking to think about.
Mrs. Liu wiped her slightly moist eyes and patted her granddaughter's shoulder. "It's good that you like it, my dear. What's so difficult about it? Grandma will make it for you often from now on. Just tell Grandma when you want some!"
"Thank you, Grandma!"
"Grandma, I like to eat it too! He Mingzhe also likes your braised pork buns!" Xiao Er saw that his daughter had received such a big benefit just by flattering him, but that wouldn't do! He had to keep up the good work.
Grandma loves children who are good at studying, and He Mingzhe is a good student. If you get him involved, Grandma will definitely grant your every wish.
Sure enough, hearing that the He family's children liked her homemade braised pork buns was the greatest affirmation she could receive! Liu readily agreed, saying that they could tell her what they wanted to eat anytime.
Qin San Niang and the others saw it all, but they were unwilling to expose the children's little tricks. You wouldn't understand the fun that children have!
The meal passed happily amidst the children's laughter.
The Little New Year has passed in the blink of an eye, which means that the New Year is not far away.
The next day, Gu Qingshan gave two pieces of leather to Qin Sanniang, saying that she could use them to make knee pads for Liu Shi, and the rest could be used to make a padded jacket. The reason, of course, was to thank them for taking care of him for so long.
"Is this raccoon fur?" Qin San Niang touched the smooth, glossy fur. This was genuine leather! Clothes made from this would definitely exude wealth and luxury!
"Yes, I met a traveling merchant in Jiangzhou and traded two rabbits with him." He definitely got a good deal. But coincidentally, the merchant needed to treat someone to a meal and wanted some game, and in this freezing weather, finding game wasn't easy. He happened to run into Gu Qingshan, who was selling pheasants and rabbits, and bought all of his prey, including pork, which Gu Qingshan introduced to a buyer.
Seeing the wealthy merchant's goods piled up in the yard, including a large bundle of raccoon pelts, he discussed with him exchanging the money from selling pheasants and rabbits for these two pelts. Business was tough these days, so the wealthy merchant naturally agreed, since wild animals weren't cheap either.
Most importantly, he acquired these hides for very little money, making it a highly profitable business. What might be precious to others was truly insignificant to him.
"This fur is really good, Brother Qingshan. I thank you on behalf of my mother. We'll use the rest of the fur to make some gloves and fur hats for you. They'll be very warm when you go hunting in the mountains!" Qin Sanniang was sincerely grateful for Gu Qingshan's kindness.
She has good judgment; it seems that the people she has casually saved are all grateful and repaying her kindness.
Gu Qingshan nodded. That thing would definitely be very warm to wear! He did have a leather hat, but Madam Qin's designs were always unique, so he was somewhat looking forward to it!
Qin San Niang was preparing to make those Lei Feng hats with earmuffs for everyone, a perfect way to keep warm.
Because they needed to make more earmuffs and gloves, they invited He Xing and Wang Guixiang, along with Liu Shi, Qin San Niang, and Pang Ya. The group worked together, and even the youngest, A Nan and A Zhi, did what they could.
The Qin family still needs their work, so they will definitely pay them! He Xing and Wang Guixiang were overjoyed. They came over early in the morning after breakfast, and their families naturally took over their work, afraid of delaying Qin San Niang's business!
That's two hundred coins a day! More than what a man could earn doing hard labor in town!
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