Wu Chunhua and Liao Hongying were sharpening their knives, "Third Sister, just tell us what you need us for! We'll make sure you're satisfied!"
Qin San Niang couldn't help but chuckle. She had already planned this out; she would just make a few simple ingredients that weren't available on the market.
Donkey rolls, sachima, and yam and jujube paste cake! These used to be some of her favorite foods!
"Let's make a few items first to test the waters and see what price we can sell them for?"
As she spoke, Qin San Niang assigned specific tasks to the two of them. Of course, the most crucial steps would still be done by herself, but the methods for making these pastries were simple, merely a matter of ingredient ratios. If someone were willing to try a few times, they might be able to figure it out. But she just wanted to make a quick buck! To try something new, after all, scarcity increases value!
"Alright, Third Sister, tell me quickly, what can we do? Just tell me what you need!" Liao Hongying said playfully. After spending a long time with Third Sister and the others, she had regained her cheerful personality!
"Alright, don't rush, don't rush, you'll be busy later! But these are all delicate tasks, so we really need you to do them! Let's start by rendering the lard and frying the soybeans. You can leave the lard rendering to Sister Chunhua, just don't burn it, otherwise the pastries won't taste good. Hongying, you can fry the soybeans, but you need to fry them slowly over low heat until they turn yellow and fragrant! Let's prepare the ingredients first. We also need to clean the pig offal! Otherwise it will smell bad. I'll show you my skills tonight!"
"I know, Third Aunt's pig intestines are especially delicious!" Wu Chunhua said excitedly. She had eaten them during the escape, and the taste was definitely not the pig offal they knew. If you didn't know, you would think it was some kind of precious meat!
Qin San Niang nodded, "Stir-fried pork intestines and peppered pork tripe soup, piping hot, perfect for this weather!"
She also told them a few things to keep in mind when making desserts. The supermarket had red bean paste and glutinous rice flour, but as a seasoned foodie, she believed that freshly ground glutinous rice flour would taste better, and the same went for red bean paste. So she soaked the red beans and would continue making the paste tomorrow!
This necessitates the use of a small stone mill. The large stone mill at the village entrance is unsuitable; it's too big, and you won't be able to find one if you only need a small amount of powder!
Yams are quite common this season. I had heard about them from Wang Guixiang before. She knew that yams were grown here, but they were called "shuyu".
While Wu Chunhua and the others were busy, Qin Sanniang arrived at Cheng's blacksmith shop and happened to see Cheng Shi working in the shop outside. He was wearing only a thin shirt and busy forging iron. Sparks from the furnace kept jumping out and bouncing with the rise and fall of the hammer.
"Brother Stone, is your Guixiang here?" The noise was too loud, so Qin Sanniang had to raise her voice and shout.
Upon seeing who it was, Cheng Shi's face immediately broke into a wide smile. This was a distinguished guest! His wife was right; ever since Madam Qin and her family moved in, business had picked up! Although it was just the sale of a few farm tools, his shop hadn't opened for two months in a row, and he hadn't had such a smooth winter!
"Madam Qin, come in and sit down. Gui Xiang has been talking about you these past few days!" Before Madam Qin could react, she called out Wang Gui Xiang's name to the inside.
This enthusiasm made Qin San Niang feel somewhat flattered! Could it be the effect of her five taels of silver? Wealth truly is blinding! If she knew that Cheng Shi and his wife were treating her like a noblewoman, who knows what she would think!
Previously, thanks to Cheng Shi's introduction, Qin San Niang and others were able to settle down smoothly. In return, Wang Guixiang kept her promise and gave Cheng Shi and his wife a thank-you gift of five taels of silver, which made Wang Guixiang and Cheng Shi feel a little embarrassed.
They all knew that the village headman had so readily agreed to let them settle here entirely because of He Yingyuan's scholarly achievements and his promise to open a private school in the village. Therefore, they absolutely refused to accept the five taels of silver, and only after much persuasion did they reluctantly accept two taels.
Wang Guixiang sighed many times that night, after all, that was three taels of silver! Enough for their family's expenses for a year, it was heartbreaking! If she were given another chance, she might not be able to bear refusing it!
Although Cheng Shi kept reassuring his wife not to think about it anymore, that Madam Qin and the others were benefactors who might bring them more benefits in the future, and that she shouldn't worry about three taels of silver, he couldn't help but feel a pang of regret when the night was quiet. After all, it was three taels of silver! He was comforting his wife while also comforting himself.
Before the couple could even calm down, a landlord from the next village asked them to make some hoes and sickles for them to use in the spring!
This landlord owns a hundred acres of land and employs farmhands from the surrounding villages. Naturally, he needs a lot of farm tools. So, let's have him make a few to try. If he's satisfied, we plan to order all the tools from here!
Cheng Shi no longer cared about the cost of the money; now he truly had a lot of hard-earned cash waiting for him. More importantly, he felt at ease holding this money—it was the fruit of his labor! The couple discussed it further and realized how fortunate they were that they hadn't accepted the money from Qin San Niang's family; otherwise, wouldn't they have offended a powerful figure? They might have even severed their ties with that person! They had reason to believe that Qin San Niang was indeed a genuine benefactor of the Cheng family!
In the backyard, Wang Guixiang was coaxing her daughter, Niu Niu, to walk. The child was a little late in learning to walk! Hearing that Qin San Niang had arrived, she quickly picked up Niu Niu and got up.
"Sister-in-law Third Sister, what brings you here? Is there anything uncomfortable about your accommodation?" Wang Guixiang asked, even though she thought the house Qin Sanniang and the others were staying in was already quite good! At least it was much more comfortable than her own stone house, which belonged to a clan elder of the Chen family!
"Oh my, Niu Niu seems to have grown up so much in just a few days! She's so adorable! Much more well-behaved than my naughty boys! Here, Auntie has some candy for Niu Niu." Qin San Niang handed Niu Niu a small bag of candy while teasing her. There were plenty of these in the space supermarket, so they were perfect for coaxing a child!
As for worrying about cavities? It's highly unlikely. At this age, even getting a full meal is difficult. If you have a sweet tooth, you'll probably be chewing on it all day. There's no need to worry about candy getting stuck in your teeth, and cavities? That's even less likely!
Seemingly used to Qin San Niang casually taking out nice things, Wang Guixiang generously let Niu Niu accept them, since her Niu Niu didn't usually have many snacks.
"Guixiang, the kids at home want to eat yams, oh, you know, sweet potatoes. I wonder where we can buy them? I heard you mention them last time!" She didn't know whether yams originated in the south or the north in this era. Qin Sanniang thought they were probably found in both, but the refugees in Lujia Village didn't recognize yams on the road, which was why she asked cautiously.
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