Hearing their child praised, how could any parent not be happy? Wang Guixiang felt even closer to Qin San Niang and her group, and immediately led Wu Chunhua into the kitchen in a lively atmosphere.
It's past noon now, but people in Shiligou only eat two meals a day, so this way they can save food for dinner! Besides, there's not much work to do in winter, and people go to bed early, so there's really no need for dinner!
Remembering the cured meat and chicken that Qin San Niang had given her, Wang Guixiang decided not to be stingy anymore; vegetables were scarce in winter anyway. What to do? She steeled herself and took out some radishes, cabbages, pumpkins, and winter melons that she had stored for the winter—enough to last until after the New Year. Springtime would bring renewal; with wild vegetables, she wouldn't starve!
Scraping a thin layer of oil from the bottom of the oil jar, Wang Guixiang sighed. "If only I had bought some lard to render into oil yesterday! This little bit of oil is nowhere near enough!"
Wu Chunhua noticed her embarrassment and, while rolling up her sleeves and lighting the fire, said, "The cured pork is cut into thick pieces. When you fry it, the oil will come out. I used to live in a poor family, and when I cooked, I would just dip a pumpkin stem in a little bit of oil."
"I never imagined that my sister-in-law had also experienced hardship." Wang Guixiang was somewhat surprised. Wu Chunhua and the others were all wearing brand-new cotton-padded jackets, and they looked like they were on equal footing with everyone else. She had originally thought that Wu Chunhua was from a wealthy family, after all, those fine cotton clothes were not something that ordinary people could afford! The village head's wife and youngest daughter wore them last year for the New Year, and at that time, they were the envy of all the young wives.
Wu Chunhua laughed heartily, "You know, my life used to be like drinking bitter melon juice. It's all thanks to meeting Madam Qin and Aunt Liu that I'm living such a wonderful life, one I never dared to dream of before. Even though we're fleeing from disaster, I feel like I've fallen into a honey pot!"
As she spoke, Wu Chunhua recounted the events they had encountered along the way, though of course, she omitted and embellished many of them.
In short, Wang Guixiang listened intently, her eyes gleaming. This was far more interesting than listening to the old folks telling stories under the big banyan tree at the village entrance! Moreover, judging from this, this Madam Qin was truly capable. The Wu mother and daughter had only followed them around, driving carts and doing needlework, yet they received so many benefits. If her family had helped them settle down, they would surely have received just as much! Just from the cured meat and roast chicken, it was clear this family was generous! Even during festivals, people wouldn't be so willing to give such things as gifts!
Wang Guixiang was quick and efficient. In less than half an hour, she had prepared four dishes and a soup: stewed cured pork with cabbage, radish and chicken soup, scrambled eggs, steamed pumpkin, winter melon and egg soup, and diced roasted chicken. Although there were only four dishes, the portions were all large. The serving bowls were the size of washbasins, which she had borrowed from her neighbors, otherwise they wouldn't have such large soup bowls.
The staple food was white rice. Wang Guixiang didn't skimp on the bag of rice that Qin Sanniang had given her before, and cooked it all into white rice.
This rice is truly wonderful! The long, slender grains look crystal clear, and it has a rich, fragrant aroma! It's even of higher quality than the rice they grow! I wonder where Madam Qin bought this rice? Such high-quality rice must have cost a fortune.
Fortunately, Wang Guixiang was not a stingy woman. Even though her family hadn't eaten rice for a long time, she didn't think of taking anything from Qin Sanniang. She cooked all the rice and meat, which resulted in several bowls of dishes with sufficient portions.
Qin San Niang and the others didn't mind. They had been exposed to wind and sun all the way, and even with food, they rarely had such a hot meal cooked over a wood-fired stove. The children sat at their own table, while the others ate their meals without a care. With such good food, Wang Guixiang and her husband didn't stand on ceremony anymore and quickly ate their fill—something they couldn't even afford during the New Year!
Qin San Niang wasn't lacking in food, as she often went back to her spatial dimension to treat herself. The supermarket inside her space was practically emptied; now she had her own little plot of land filled with all sorts of delicious treats she'd stockpiled: steaming hot sesame cakes, scallion pancakes, and other scallion pancakes, served with mutton soup and spicy soup—it was truly wonderful!
Seeing that everyone had almost finished eating, Qin Sanniang exclaimed, "Guixiang's cooking is really good. This home-cooked meal tastes just as good as what you get in restaurants!"
Wang Guixiang was quite pleased to receive Qin Sanniang's affirmation. However, Qin Sanniang hadn't eaten much, and Wang Guixiang knew that Qin Sanniang was just being tactful and wouldn't actually believe that her cooking was better than that of a restaurant chef! So she smiled and said, "Mrs. Qin, you're too kind. It's all thanks to the generous amount of meat you provided. Otherwise, how could you have made such a delicious dish with just radishes and cabbage?!"
That's no exaggeration. After eating radishes and cabbages all winter, my mouth felt so bland. But as soon as I add a little bit of meat, the flavor comes back.
After the meal, we rested for a while.
Thinking that they still didn't have a place to sleep tonight, Liu was a little anxious and asked, "Third Sister, where are we going to stay tonight? The Cheng family doesn't have many rooms." Besides, even if they had enough rooms, Liu would be too embarrassed to take over someone else's place!
They could sleep outdoors, which was how they had done all the way, but the weather was a bit gloomy in the afternoon, and Liu was worried that it would rain.
It's true that the Jiangnan region is known for its rain! It's likely to rain and snow this winter, which would be unbearable to be outdoors!
"Third Aunt, Auntie, why don't we spend the night in one of those empty thatched huts at the village entrance?" Wu Chunhua interjected.
When Wu Chunhua first entered the village, she noticed some thatched houses at the entrance, with their walls leaning to one side or the other. She estimated that they had been abandoned for a long time, otherwise they wouldn't be in such a state.
But for them, it was a place to shelter from the wind and rain, since they often slept under the open sky along the way.
Thinking of the soft bed, Qin San Niang really couldn't stand sleeping on the hard ground anymore, nor did she want to curl up in the carriage, lying fully clothed every day, which didn't relieve her fatigue at all.
"Don't worry, I'll ask Mrs. Cheng later to see if we can find a place to stay." The Cheng family can't accommodate everyone, but Shiligou is so big, I believe it won't be difficult to find a place to stay with a little money.
Knowing that her daughter would be spending money again, Madam Liu felt a pang of heartache, but she couldn't voice any objections. Along the way, she had grown accustomed to obeying her eldest daughter in everything; her daughter had the help of a deity and possessed some wealth. Her only worry was that once they were settled, the deity would be gone—after all, he was very busy—and what would they do then? Therefore, they still needed to be careful with their money!
We should talk to Third Sister about these things properly after things have settled down. There are already enough things to do; we can't let Third Sister worry about them anymore.
Wu Chunhua knew that even if she offered money, Qin Sanniang wouldn't accept it. She could only think of doing more work so that, with time, she could eventually help Sanniang's family.
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