Chapter 128 Two-in-one (with nutrient solution) Breakfast dry rice + loose...
Breakfast in the courtyard is almost ready.
Lin Zhaodi was making the last two dishes according to the steps Lin Shu had given.
Lin Shu said she was there to help her, but in fact she didn't do much. At most she washed some vegetables and passed some things around, and then she sat on a bamboo stool and fanned herself.
It’s not that Lin Shu is lazy, it’s just that Aunt Lin doesn’t let her do anything.
When preparing breakfast today, Auntie Lin said the most: "Ah Shu, leave it alone, I'll do it!"
He Guixiang felt relieved when she heard this. When Lin Zhaodi asked her to borrow someone, she felt that this was inappropriate. After all, she usually didn't want Ah Shu to do any work.
Preparing food was easy when there were few people, but with more people, not only did the preparations have to be extensive, but cleaning up afterward was also quite tiring. That was why she had suggested that Lin Zhaodi come to her house and use the stove, while she would help with the other chores. Cooking and washing were things the village women were used to doing.
Of course, He Guixiang also wanted to help the other party. She had suffered alone in the past and knew the bitterness. Now Zhao Laosan and Lin Zhaodi's situation was similar to hers, or even worse, so she would help as much as she could.
At this moment, Lin Zhaodi prepared a spicy stir-fried dried radish under the guidance of Lin Shu. She fried garlic slices, Sichuan peppercorns and dogwood fruit in hot oil, soaked the dried radish, cut it into cubes and stir-fried it. During the process, she scooped two spoons of lard into it and stir-fried it until the surface of the dried radish was bubbled and browned. Then she added diced cucumber and other ingredients. The fried dried radish was shiny and oily.
The dish was out of the pot and on a plate. Lin Shu was about to take it when Lin Zhaodi quickly called out, "Shu, let me do it. Be careful not to burn yourself!"
He Guixiang laughed at her, "If you don't ask Ah Shu to do anything, then what do you ask her to do?"
Lin Zhaodi brought the dish to the table herself and replied, "I didn't originally want Ah Shu to help me with anything. I just think she has a lot of ideas, so I asked her to come over and give me some advice. Last time, Ah Shu suggested a lot of ways to cook the bamboo fungus from the mountain. I know Ah Shu is quite knowledgeable about wild food here, so I wanted to ask her for advice. But Ah Shu brought it up last night before I even opened my mouth!"
At this point, she suddenly remembered that she had only mentioned asking Ah Shu to help last night, and didn't say much else. Fearing that Sister He might misunderstand, she hurriedly explained a few more words, "If I were just looking for someone to help with the work, I would naturally go to the women in our village, such as Sister He, who has a lot of experience. Why would I need Ah Shu, a girl? I had originally agreed with Li, but when she heard that Sister He was here, she didn't come."
Just looking at Lin Shu's white and tender hands, Lin Zhaodi couldn't bear to let her work. Moreover, in her heart, Lin Shu was a princess!
Others mocked Lin Shu for being a fake daughter, but no matter how fake she was, she had been raised as a daughter of a marquis in a wealthy family for more than ten years, and was different from these village women.
"It turns out that Ah Shu is really capable. Look, she's made several more dishes than I originally planned! I followed the steps Ah Shu told me, and the dishes turned out delicious!"
He Guixiang was delighted to hear this. After all, who doesn't like their children to be praised? Ah Shu was perfect in every way in her eyes, so she naturally wanted others to think the same way.
Lin Shu fanned herself with a palm-leaf fan and sighed, "It seems that in Aunt Lin's eyes, I'm just a spoiled brat who can only talk but can't do any work. I'm so ashamed, I'm so ashamed. Today, I did even less work than Xiao Pu."
Lin Xiaopu chuckled. She didn't actually do anything, but she was very interested and moved faster than her elder sister, able to pass the colander, plates and chopsticks in time.
However, in Aunt Lin's eyes, she is probably more "capable" than her elder sister?
When the last dish of chicken mushroom soup was cooked and served, the two tables in the yard were filled with food.
Knowing that there were guests at home today, Lin Dashan, who was busy working in the fields, came back early.
He familiarly opened the bamboo water pipe in the courtyard and washed his face, then said cheerfully, "I just glanced across the street and saw everyone was busy. The two boys that Third Brother Zhao found are not bad. Of course, they can't compare to our Ah Ye."
He Guixiang glared at him and said, "Praise someone else if you want to, why mention Aye?"
Lin Zhaodi smiled and said, "Second Brother Lin is right to praise me. There is indeed no one in our Tianshui Village who can compare to A Ye."
Lin Dashan chuckled sheepishly, "If I had known your meal was ready, I would have just yelled at them."
"The food has just come out of the pot, so it won't take a while. Let Xiao Pu go and call people." Lin Shu looked at Lin Xiao Pu, "Xiao Pu, can you call Uncle Zhao and the others to come over for dinner?"
Lin Xiaopu immediately said: "Of course no problem!"
Isn't it just calling someone?
Lin Shu sent her to the gate of the courtyard, leaned close to whisper a few words, and watched her trot over.
Diagonally across the courtyard, several men were working hard, all of them covered in dust.
Lin Xiaopu looked at it for a while, cleared his throat, and shouted loudly: "Uncle Zhao, Aunt Lin and my mother have prepared breakfast and are calling you four to go to the courtyard to eat--"
After shouting, Lin Xiaopu let out a breath and then grinned.
What my sister said was indeed right. It was no big deal to just shout at people. She had a loud voice and the more she shouted, the more comfortable she would get with it.
Her elder sister had just quietly told her that when calling someone, she could just call Uncle Zhao. If her elder sister hadn't mentioned it, the first person she would have called would have been Brother Aye.
She didn't understand at first, but after she called everyone, she saw Uncle Zhao asking Brother A Ye and others to pack up and go have breakfast, and she suddenly understood.
Although Aunt Lin used her own stove, the rice, grains, and vegetables all belonged to Aunt Lin and Uncle Zhao's family. Most of the dishes for breakfast this morning were also prepared by Aunt Lin herself, with A Niang and the two of them helping out. They weren't the host, so they couldn't overshadow the guests.
There were four men, Uncle Zhao, Zhou Ye, the second son of the Liu family, Liu Erzhuang, and the eldest son of the Wang family, Wang Changshun.
There are so-called rich families and so-called poor families in Tianshui Village, and the Wang family is one of them.
Wang Changshun is already 25 years old this year but has not yet married because his family is poor. The land they own is barely enough to feed their family. Ping'er only sells some dried bamboo shoots and vegetables at the market, and they can hardly save a few copper coins in a whole year.
When Zhao Laosan approached the Wang family this time, Wang's father agreed readily. In addition to the fact that Zhao Laosan and Ping'er had helped them before, the family did not have enough food, so asking the eldest son to help would save them the trouble of cooking his share of the meal.
He knew that Zhao Laosan didn't get much in this division of the family property, so the two meals he prepared might not have much oil and fat, but he trusted Zhao Laosan's character. These dishes might not have much oil and fat, but they would definitely be enough for the rice. As long as his son could eat until he was 70% to 80% full, it wouldn't be in vain.
However, when Wang Changshun followed Uncle Zhao San into Uncle Lin Er's courtyard, he was dumbfounded.
If Uncle Zhao hadn't been walking in front and Zhou Ye hadn't been following behind, he would have thought he had entered the wrong door.
This, this big table of food is prepared for them?
Could it be that Uncle Lin has other guests at home today?
Liu Erzhuang was also a little surprised. Before he left, his father had specifically told him not to show any disdain if the food Uncle Zhao prepared was too simple, so as not to damage the harmony between the two families. He also told him how difficult Uncle Zhao's family life was and asked him to be considerate.
But... can this be called simple?
Liu Erzhuang immediately noticed the plate of fried fish on the table.
That's it!
The fragrance he smelled earlier was the fried fish pieces, which was so delicious.
The two people who came to help were both honest people. They had been busy since dawn and were already starving by now. They stared at the dining table with wolf-like eyes.
Not to mention them, even Zhao Laosan himself was a little shocked.
Is this the meal made by his wife?
When did his wife become such a good cook?
He knew his wife's personality, and most of the dishes on the table must have been cooked by her.
"What are you all standing there for? Come, come here and wash your faces. This bamboo water pipe brought from home is very convenient. You can use the water by pulling out the cloth plug. It's very convenient for cooking, washing rice, washing vegetables, and washing your face." Lin Dashan greeted them warmly.
Zhao Laosan came to his senses and took the lead to wash his face and hands. Liu Erzhuang and Wang Changshun followed, and Zhou Ye was the last one.
There were two tables of food in the courtyard, one for male guests and one for female guests.
The female guests were fine, and they chatted occasionally during the meal.
The male guests had just finished their work and were too busy talking to talk to each other. They just focused on eating.
The five men had big appetites, so the table was generous with the food. There was a large plate of fried fish, enough for each person to grab four or five pieces. There was also plenty of soup, a large pot, and various other dishes, each filling up the plate.
Wang Changshun doesn't like to talk, while Liu Erzhuang likes to talk, but his mouth is full and he has no time to speak, so he just talks in his heart.
This fried fish is so delicious! It smells good and tastes even better!
What's this shredded cucumber dish? Delicious!
What kind of soup is this? It’s delicious!
The dried radish is so crispy and fragrant, it must be made with lard!
This Chinese dish is more delicious than the one my mother cooks!
Seeing that the men were all wolfing down their food, Lin Zhaodi reminded them loudly, "There's plenty of dry rice. There's a whole bowl of it on the stove. When you're done, go get some for yourselves!"
Liu Erzhuang quickly swallowed the rice in his mouth and replied, "Ah, I see. Aunt Lin and Aunt He have worked hard today, so you should eat more too!"
Wang Changshun was a rather dull person, not good at saying anything nice, so he nodded quickly, still digging into the rice with the bamboo chopsticks in his hand.
He also ate a bowl of rice at home, but the rice in the bowl was never as full as this. This bowl of brown rice, along with the dishes on the table, would make him about 80% full. How could he have the nerve to scoop another bowl?
As a result, when Wang Changshun was eating slower and slower and was reluctant to put down his chopsticks early, he saw Zhou Ye, who was sitting next to him, scooping up the second and third bowls. Both bowls were full to the tips. Seeing that the third bowl was almost finished, Zhou Ye had no intention of stopping.
Wang Changshun was shocked, thinking that the rumors were indeed true. It was true that Zhou Ye was strong and could eat a lot. Thinking that although he did not work as much as Zhou Ye today, he also tried his best, he did not hesitate, he wanted to eat another bowl!
Wang Changshun took his empty bowl to the stove to scoop up some rice. Sure enough, he saw a wooden basin covered with a lid. As soon as he lifted the lid, he felt the residual heat. He looked closely and saw, oh my god, there was still half a basin of brown rice left!
Wang Changshun immediately used a wooden shovel to scoop two shovels of rice into the bowl. It wasn't as sticky as Zhou Ye's, but this second bowl of rice made him feel completely full!
If he had only eaten brown rice, he would not have been so greedy. It was simply that the dishes on the table were so delicious. Even the most ordinary stir-fried vegetables were full of oil, and the vegetable stems were shiny with oil, not to mention the large plate of fried fish. The fried fish was covered with gray flour and fried in a pan until it was golden brown. It was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, slightly numb and spicy, and your mouth was full of oil.
There was also stir-fried diced cucumber with dried radish, and a few other dishes he couldn't name, all of which were delicious. Finally, there was the mushroom soup, which was extremely fresh and fragrant, comparable to chicken soup. He drank three full bowls.
I didn’t expect that the soup made from mountain mushrooms could be so delicious!
Zhou Ye finished four bowls of brown rice, each overflowing with rice. Zhao Laosan and the others also ordered a second bowl, but it didn't overflow. Only Lin Dashan, who ate well every day and whose farm work wasn't too tiring, only ate one bowl before stopping.
Liu Erzhuang burped after eating and was so embarrassed that he quickly covered his mouth.
As if to cover up, Liu Erzhuang hurriedly said: "Uncle Zhao, I haven't finished the work just now. I'm done with my meal and will continue!"
Wang Changshun also stood up.
Zhao Laosan asked them to sit down. "You can't work after eating. Rest for a while before going."
Just at this moment, Lin Zhaodi and He Guixiang brought a few bowls of tea to the table.
Lin Zhaodi explained, "This is pine needle tea made by Ah Shu. She said it can relieve fatigue. You all should drink a bowl."
Lin Shu didn't follow him, and Zhou Ye couldn't help looking for Lin Shu. He saw her sitting at the table with female guests. After eating, she leaned her head on the table and was in a daze, not knowing what she was thinking about.
Lin Shu had just made the pine needle tea two days ago, using the fresh tender pine needles brought back by Zhou Ye. After it was made and dried, it could be stored. The pine needles were not completely dry yet, but it did not affect the tea making. After all, fresh pine needle tea could also be drunk.
Because the pine needles are not completely dry, the brewed pine needle tea is a clear yellow-green color.
Zhou Ye withdrew his gaze, picked up the bowl and slowly sipped the tea. The faint scent of pine made the drinker feel comfortable.
After such a filling meal, Liu Erzhuang and Wang Changshun felt embarrassed to rest for too long and went back to work.
If they want to rest, they should wait until noon when the sun is at its highest. While it is not too hot at this time, they should work harder. They cannot eat so much food in vain.
Zhou Ye didn't stay long, but just walked over to look in Lin Shu's direction.
He didn't know why Ah Shu didn't look at him. He felt quite regretful that he couldn't meet Ah Shu's gaze.
After the group of men had left, He Guixiang and Lin Zhaodi cleaned up the mess on the table together.
Lin Shu also wanted to help, but was kindly pushed aside by Lin Zhaodi, "A Shu and Xiao Pu can go play, your mother is here to help me."
"I can still do things like collecting dishes and wiping the table. Aunt Lin really treats me like a rich lady?" Lin Shu said with a smile.
Lin Zhaodi had no choice but to let her help clean up the dishes, but she would never let her touch any of the pots and dishes.
Before they had been busy for a while, Li Chunmiao came over. After greeting them, he rolled up his sleeves and joined in. "I just happened to have nothing to do today, so I thought I'd come over to see if you could help me. I guess it's a good timing for me to come here."
Lin Zhaodi was a good friend of hers, so she knew that she had deliberately waited until after breakfast before coming. She accepted her kindness, but she had to be polite and said, "It's just washing a few dishes and cleaning the stove. There's no need for so many people."
Li Chunmiao replied, "Not much, just a large basin of dishes and bowls. One person would take half an hour to wash them. Add in cleaning the stove, tables and chairs, and that would take about an hour."
Lin Zhaodi and He Guixiang were both amused by her.
How could it have been used for so long? There is a bamboo water pipe in the yard, which makes it convenient to wash dishes and change water.
Among the three women, one was washing the pots and cleaning the stove, one was arranging the tables and chairs and sweeping the yard, and the remaining one was sitting on a small bamboo stool, hunched over and washing dishes, chatting while working.
Lin Shu couldn't help much, so she took a short rest and went to her third aunt's house. Lin Xiaopu stayed in the yard and continued to tinker with her bamboo slingshot.
Seeing this, Li Chunmiao smiled and said to He Guixiang, "My son Yingen has been playing with this bamboo slingshot in the yard lately. He's been so engrossed in it that he doesn't care about anything else and naturally hasn't been causing trouble. This is all thanks to your Xiaopu. I heard from that naughty boy that Xiaopu is even better at using the slingshot than he is! But I didn't expect Sister He to indulge Xiaopu so much. The girls in our village, at this age, are either confined to the house doing needlework or doing chores like feeding chickens and ducks."
He Guixiang smiled. "I didn't expect Xiao Pu to be so good at this. Her sister always says to balance work and rest. When she's studying, she studies hard, and when she's playing, she plays hard. Ah Shu knows a lot, and I always listen to her. As for needlework, I won't force her. Just being able to thread a needle and mend clothes like me is enough."
He Guixiang didn't want her children to suffer the hardships she herself had endured. She rarely did needlework, not because she didn't have to, but because she spent more time working.
Her parents had made her work since she was very young, and even when her period came, she would still go to the river to wash clothes. The river water was very cold in winter, so cold that her hands trembled, but she still had to wash.
Later, her eyebrows and eyes grew and became more and more beautiful. Her parents decided to marry her to the town master as a concubine. However, although her face was pretty, her hands were too rough. The masters of wealthy families not only wanted pretty girls, but also those with delicate hands. So she escaped the disaster and had a blessing in disguise, doing much less work.
But her parents were never willing to give in. Relying on her beauty, they asked for an extremely high betrothal gift. At first, they asked for a sky-high price of ten taels of silver. Everyone in the village thought they were crazy. Later, when they really couldn't get it, they slowly lowered the price to five taels of silver, three taels of silver, and finally to one tael of silver.
A hundred coins at that time were not comparable to a hundred coins today. There were disasters, banditry and other things at that time, and it was not easy for people to save money. A hundred coins could be used as a life-saving money, and it was more durable than a hundred coins today.
When the matchmaker heard the sum, she came to the house less and less often. In the end, Lin Dashan insisted on marrying her and paid the hundred-dollar sum, which allowed her to escape from that home. Although she had done a lot of work in the Zhao family over the years, at least she had the care and concern of the head of the family, and she was content.
Later, her parents-in-law passed away and the three brothers of the Zhao family separated. She and Lin Dashan built a house at the end of the village, and their lives gradually improved. Then they bought A Ye, and then A Shu came back, and Xiao Pu's health also recovered... The fairy-like days that she had only dreamed of before were getting closer and closer to her.
He Guixiang thought about some random things and couldn't help but smile with satisfaction.
Li Chunmiao listened to her words, but the focus fell on the previous sentence, "Sister He, is Xiao Pu learning to read? Is he learning from Ah Shu?"
He Guixiang was stunned for a moment, a trace of regret flashing across her face. How could she have let it slip?
Fortunately, Ah Shu had anticipated this, so she hummed and replied, "As you know, Ah Shu came back from the capital. Xiao Pu envied Ah Shu for knowing so much, so she pestered her to learn to read. She's Ah Shu's biological sister, so how could Ah Shu refuse? But Ah Shu warned her that if she wanted to learn, she had to study hard. If she gave up halfway, she wouldn't be taught again in the future."
After hearing this, Li Chunmiao's hand movements gradually slowed down.
In fact, she had heard some gossip these days, saying that Lin Yushu from Lin Dashui's family came to Lin Dashan's house every day, and no one knew what she was doing there, but she would stay there for an hour.
At first, no one paid much attention to it, thinking that the two families were just beginning to repair their relationship and it was inevitable that they would visit each other more often.
But later some people said that Lin Yushu had not been to the fields for a long time, and it was his father Lin Dashui who was working alone in the fields. Others said that they heard the sound of reading coming from Lin Dashui's house.
Lin Yushu didn't go to a private school, so what kind of books did he study? And who did he study with?
Li Chunmiao had already guessed it in her mind. After breakfast today, she saw Lin Shu going out. She must have gone to Lin Dashan's house. Lin Yushu was studying with Lin Shu.
It was only after He Guixiang let it slip that Li Chunmiao realized that it wasn't just Lin Yushu, but a girl named Lin Xiaopu was also learning to read and write with Lin Shu?!
Li Chunmiao's mind suddenly became active.
Teaching one is teaching, teaching two is also teaching. Since Ah Shu can teach Xiao Pu, can she teach her family's Yin Gen as well?
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The author has something to say: Thank you all for feeding me the nutrient solution. Here comes the fat chapter~
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