Qin San Niang returned home and helped Liu Shi prepare lunch.
Now that there's an adult and several officials, the menu can't be too monotonous.
"Mother, the work in the fields is almost done. I'll have Da Wa and the others bring the food to the fields later. The village head is bringing the Minister of Agriculture to our house for dinner, and I'll prepare a few more dishes."
Liu nodded. She had just stepped out of the courtyard and seen those officials, which frightened her. She didn't want to stay at home! It was too uncomfortable!
I just cooked a pot of rice, stewed a pot of mushrooms and chicken, and mixed in some pickled vegetables. That's enough for the men in the fields to eat.
The total paddy fields belonging to several families amount to only six mu (approximately 0.33 acres), no more, no less. If the families were to harvest on their own, it would take three or four days. However, with the help of so many villagers, they managed to harvest two mu (approximately 0.33 acres) in just one morning. Moreover, threshing and harvesting are being carried out simultaneously, and the work will be basically completed in about an hour. The remaining four mu (approximately 0.33 acres) will have to wait until tomorrow to be harvested.
"Qingshan, quickly call everyone over to eat!" Liu called to her godson from the edge of the field after setting out the food.
Gu Qingshan nodded and told the men to go to the field to eat first.
The men had only come to help for a short while and had already drunk some sweet mung bean soup. They didn't expect to be served rice, and they felt a little embarrassed.
But Da Wa's mother is very skilled, so Liu, her mother, must also be very capable. They can already smell the aroma!
Everyone washed their hands by the stream and then hurried over to prepare for dinner.
Liao Hongying and Wu Chunhua took several girls back to the Wu family home for dinner, so that the men could eat more comfortably.
Because it was the busy farming season, everyone only knew that the food would be better, but they didn't expect it to be this good!
"Auntie, is this chicken stew with mushrooms? Is it really for us?" A young man scratched his head, feeling like he had gotten a good deal.
They just wanted to come and see what rice planting method the eldest child's family used and how much the yield was. They also wanted to do the eldest child a favor so that when the eldest child sold seeds, they would be the first choice. They didn't expect to eat the eldest child's food.
The other men were practically drooling from the smell, but they shared the same thought and had their own purposes. They were somewhat embarrassed, wondering why they were being provided with meals after only half a day of work.
“Auntie, we can go home to eat. They’ve left us some food at home!” another young man said, and then turned to leave.
His parents had already told him that coming to work for the Qin family wasn't considered slacking off; it was all for next year's harvest, and they even left him food at home!
"Yes, yes, Auntie, you all eat these." Now that someone had started, it wouldn't be appropriate for the others to eat there. "Let's finish our meal and then come back to help!"
Liu feigned anger, saying, "Alright, none of you are allowed to leave! Your aunt's family can't afford to feed you! You've all worked for so long, how can we let you go home hungry? You still have to help us thresh the rice from these two acres this afternoon. The officials are waiting to see the yield per acre!"
Gu Qingshan had just carefully observed these men and knew their purpose: they simply wanted to see if their rice yield was really high, and by how much?
But it's true that they put in a lot of effort; these people are all skilled workers. Their request to go back for dinner wasn't an excuse, but rather a genuine feeling of embarrassment.
So he advised, "You're all men, don't be so hesitant, sit down and eat. After you've eaten, you must help me thresh the rice. If you delay, the official will blame Shiligou!"
Gu Qingshan was usually a man of few words and not good with words. These young people were both afraid of and respectful of him. Now that he had spoken, they dared not say anything about going back. They all obediently went to Liu Shi and waited for the meal to be served.
Looking at the tall, golden rice stacks in the field, Liu was overjoyed. She was very generous in serving them rice, as if afraid they wouldn't have enough to eat.
Each person received a large bowl of corn rice, plus a large spoonful of mushroom stewed chicken; the broth was incredibly fragrant.
This millet rice is the best food in the countryside! Even Qin San Niang knew that "an old friend prepared chicken and millet and invited me to his farmhouse" refers to millet rice with stewed chicken, which is probably the highest standard of hospitality in the countryside.
The men looked at the large bowl in front of them with smiles on their faces. It was piled high with chicken, a delicious meal that they couldn't even get during the New Year!
During the busy farming season, their family would eat dry rice, sometimes three times a day. But this dry rice, though dry, was just millet mixed with brown rice or broken rice, nothing like the pure millet rice in their hands! As for the side dishes, although they were supposed to have meat, there were always more vegetables than meat, and the meat slices were so thin that you couldn't even find them if you didn't have good eyesight!
Everyone was laughing heartily and quickly started eating, otherwise their stomachs would be rumbling with hunger!
The chickens were chicks that had been raised for more than half a year. Although they weren't very big, Liu had slaughtered two of them, so there was still a lot of meat. The mushrooms were mushrooms that had been picked from the mountain last year and dried. They were soaked in water, broken into pieces, and then thrown in. Although this method was rough, it was indeed authentic and original. Even Qin San Niang, who loved good food, had to give it a thumbs up.
Seeing the men in front of her sweating as they ate, Liu was overjoyed. No one could be unhappy that her cooking skills had been recognized. After they finished eating, she thoughtfully served each of them a bowl of water shield and egg drop soup, seasoned with salt and lard—fragrant and smooth.
Everyone said they had never tasted such delicious soup, which made Liu very happy.
After finishing their meal, everyone rested for a while before getting back to threshing the rice. Threshing is hard work; each person takes a handful of rice and threshes it against the side of the threshing floor, using the impact to knock the grains off. The men, having eaten their fill, were full of energy and worked with great enthusiasm while threshing the rice.
Da Wa and Lu Song originally wanted to thresh the grain with everyone, but they were a bit young and not strong enough, and they didn't use their strength skillfully. The young man who was going home quickly took their place and taught them how to use their strength skillfully.
Although Gu Qingshan had never done this job before, he was naturally strong and quickly became proficient.
The most astonishing thing was Fatty. The men initially thought she was a girl, just a bit older, but after witnessing her strength, they could no longer say anything to underestimate her. She threshed that large handful of rice as if it were a game!
I was so surprised!
From then on, Fatty's nickname "Big Strength" spread throughout Shiligou.
However, in this era, being strong wasn't a bad thing, even for women. Many women were looking for plump girls for their children and grandchildren—strong, able to earn money, and with a small family—where could they find such a good match!
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