Chapter 33 Gossip I see that Aye is enjoying it very much, the corners of his mouth are...
After a while, Zhou Ye nodded in agreement with Lin Shu's words and muffledly replied, "You're right."
"Just wait, I'll make you some Guanyin tofu today, and I'll also make some other snacks."
Zhou Ye glanced at her flying eyebrows and slightly raised chin, listened to the soft tone, and hummed in response.
"You're such a taciturn person! You didn't even tell me you were looking forward to it. Forget it, you don't seem to have any tact. I'm leaving now, so just wait!"
After saying this, Lin Shu pulled Lin Xiaopu to the back mountain, looking very busy.
Zhou Ye watched the two little girls walk away, the corners of his mouth raised slightly, and he also got busy on his own end.
The fish pond he dug was not small, and it was paved with gravel and pebbles. It probably took him more than ten or twenty trips back and forth, or even more.
Zhou Ye successfully borrowed two dustpans from Grandpa Gao's family. He carried the dustpans on a shoulder pole and slung a large bamboo basket on his back. The dustpans were filled with sand and gravel, and the basket with pebbles. The basket, full of pebbles, was heavy, but he lifted it gently with one hand and lifted it with the other, finally carrying it steadily. He then slung the shoulder pole over his right shoulder and made his way back in a short while.
Beneath a nearby old locust tree, several village women gathered, weaving hemp and chatting in the shade. This old locust tree was a favorite haunt of the women of Tianshui Village, especially on hot days. The vast expanse of shade offered a welcome respite, with a cool breeze blowing beneath.
Although they were a little far away, the women under the tree could see Zhou Ye's actions clearly. Seeing him carrying and lifting his arms, they were all curious, wondering what he was going to do.
Tianshui Village is full of thatched houses and bamboo fences, so even when building new houses and constructing courtyard walls, there is no need to use sand and gravel from the river.
A village woman, who had just joined them with some hemp from her own garden, explained to them, "I met Aye on the way and asked him about it. He said he was going to dig a fish pond behind the house, and the gravel was for paving the pond."
Several village women heard this and shook their heads and smiled.
"How could we possibly catch such a big fish in the small creeks and rivers of Tianshui Village? We even had to dig a special fish pond."
Someone lowered his voice and said, "Aye never thought about digging a fish pond before, why is he thinking about it now? I think it must be the one who just came back."
"She's only been back for a few days, and she's already taking care of Aye. The girl is pretty, but delicate and frail, and doesn't look like she's capable of working. If she and Aye really become a couple in the future, I guess Aye will do all the hard work at home."
"Tsk, these people are just lucky. They spent more than ten years living as the daughter of a marquis in the capital, and now they come to our Tianshui Village and get a capable man for free. They haven't suffered any hardship in their lives. You can't compare them."
"For a daughter of a wealthy family, coming to our countryside is already a hardship. Aye doesn't really think highly of her. She used to meet young masters from wealthy families in the capital. She has no choice but to make do with her life."
Seeing that the gossip was getting more and more off-topic, someone interrupted, "Please stop talking. I think that girl is very generous and nice. If it were someone else, would they be willing to come to our poor and remote place after living a good life in the capital? I ran into her once on the way home, and she even called me auntie. She's a good girl. No matter how you look at it, A Ye got a good deal. What's wrong with loving his wife more?"
The woman who had started the conversation earlier quickly responded, "That's right, I see that Aye is enjoying it very much, the corners of his mouth are all curled up."
"Oh my! This guy always has a stern face. How can he smile? I've never seen him smile once!"
"Pfft, that's right. It's quite strange. The couple is willing to fight and be beaten, so why should we outsiders interfere?"
The rather sarcastic woman from earlier defended herself, "I'm just worried that a good child like Ah Ye would be bullied by the daughter of a marquis from the capital. I have good intentions."
A cheerful woman suddenly sneered, "If you have other thoughts, just hide them. Are you afraid that others won't know about your little thoughts?"
The man was furious and his voice suddenly rose. "What do you mean? Explain yourself to me clearly!"
"Bah, just say it. After Lin Yao was taken away by the Marquis's Mansion, you thought about marrying your niece to A Ye. But as you thought about it, you started to feel bad about her because she was bought by Lin Dashan and had no family background. Not only would she have to look at the faces of Lin Dashan and his wife when she got married, but the sister-in-law at home was also a sickly person who spent a lot of money on medicine. It was a bottomless pit. But now you see that A Ye not only has a lot of strength, but also has the ability to hunt wild boars, you regret it. "It's a pity that my dear daughter is back, and you can't help but think about her. I advise you to put your mind to it, so as not to embarrass yourself!" "You! Lin Zhaodi, you old hen that doesn't lay eggs, you have the nerve to talk nonsense in front of me! If your mother-in-law didn't have the money to marry your husband another wife, believe it or not, she would have divorced you long ago?" Seeing her ugly face, the woman said, like a victorious rooster, with her hands on her hips, "Your own life is a mess, and you still have the mind to meddle in other people's affairs, bah!"
Lin Zhaodi threw the half-twisted hemp in her hand back into the basin, rolled up her sleeves and hit her in the face, "I'm going to tear your stinky mouth apart!"
Seeing that the two men were about to fight, the young woman who was spinning hemp with them was at a loss, and the older woman hurried out to separate them. After some persuasion, an unseemly fight was avoided.
Zhou Ye was unaware of this little episode. He carried sand and gravel back and forth, working very hard and attentively.
Lin Shu was busy with other things. She took Lin Xiaopu, her little tail, to the back mountain. As usual, she plucked most of the leaves of the Chinese angelica dahurica in the backpack and picked a handful of bamboo leaves.
Lin Xiaopu's eyes lit up immediately, and he asked slyly, "Sister, do you want to make rice dumplings?"
There are bamboos on the back mountain of Tianshui Village. My sister said that the bamboo leaves are used to make rice dumplings. It happened that my sister said she wanted to eat rice dumplings two days ago. If not for making rice dumplings, what else can we do with the bamboo leaves now?
Lin Shu tapped her nose and smiled, "You guessed right. I asked my mother, and we have some old glutinous rice at home. It's not much, but it's enough for one zongzi per person. I'll just treat it as a snack for everyone."
When Lin Xiaopu heard this, he started swallowing his saliva in advance.
The rice dumplings made by my mother don’t put anything in them, but they are delicious with just the fragrance of bamboo leaves. How delicious must the alkaline rice dumplings that my sister mentioned be?
When the two of them returned, Third Aunt Zhang Qiaohua had not left yet and was spinning hemp with He Guixiang, chatting and laughing.
"Everyone says I'm deft with my hands, but I think my second sister-in-law's hands are much defter than mine. Look at the hemp thread she twisted out. It's evenly thick and shiny white. Unlike me, I don't even know where to start with this mess of yarn..."
"You, stop teasing me. I've put so much effort into twisting these balls of twine, but the money I've earned from them is not as much as what my sister-in-law can earn from selling a few pairs of shoes and handkerchiefs."
Lin Shu chuckled. Sure enough, no matter where you are, there's always commercial hype.
Zhang Qiaohua came over to help Lin Shu with her weaving rice in order to repair their relationship. However, when she learned that Lin Shu was going to make food, and that the food was made of glutinous rice, she stopped weaving and quickly packed up her things and left.
Glutinous rice is more expensive than refined rice, and she doesn't have the face to keep it any longer. If she keeps it any longer, she will be begging for food, which is shameful.
He Guixiang quickly pulled her back and said, "It's still early, stay a little longer."
"It's getting late. It's time to prepare dinner soon. I can't let Yushu's father work on an empty stomach. Sister-in-law, I'll come find you tomorrow."
After saying this, he pulled away He Guixiang's hand that was trying to hold him back, picked up his bamboo basket filled with hemp, and walked away in a moment as if someone was chasing him.
Lin Shu smiled. This Third Aunt is indeed an open-minded person.
Just based on what A-niang said, Third Aunt was willing to stand up for her when her aunt bullied her, so she must be a good person. As for the previous disagreements, they talked it out and understood each other, and then put them aside.
"Xiao Pu, you've already seen how to make Guanyin tofu. I'll leave it to you today. Is that okay?"
Lin Xiaopu was entrusted with an important task. She immediately puffed out her chest and said, "No problem." Then she started to do it.
Lin Shu fiddled with the alkaline rice dumpling in her mouth.
There was indeed not much old glutinous rice left at home. He Guixiang took out a small ceramic jar with only the bottom of the glutinous rice left. She poured a bowl of it, which was about 700 to 800 grams. After soaking, the rice absorbed water and expanded, and the rice grains became plump. It was no problem to wrap five big dumplings. If the dumplings were smaller, ten would be no problem.
There are plenty of bamboo leaves, so there is no need to save them. Lin Shu plans to pack them smaller so that each person can eat two.
After washing the glutinous rice, put it in a basin and soak it in water, then start making alkaline water.
The branches and leaves of the yellow broom that were dried using a large bamboo sieve last time have been dried and are directly tied into small bundles and stored.
Lin Shu took out a small stove and started a fire. She took a handful of dry yellow broom branches and leaves and burned them all. She then filtered the ashes with boiling water, and thus obtained a bowl of pure natural alkaline water.
After half an hour, the glutinous rice has absorbed enough water and become plump. After draining the water, pour in the alkaline water made from yellow broom branches and leaves and stir evenly.
He Guixiang had thoughtfully prepared spoons, chopsticks, and straw ropes. She watched her busying around with a smile and asked, "Do you need help, mother? I don't know how, but I can learn."
Lin Shu smiled and declined, "Mother, go and do something else. I'll wrap these dumplings in a short while."
The glutinous rice, mixed with alkaline water, had already taken on a pale yellow hue. Lin Shu deftly placed two emerald green bamboo leaves back to back, rolling them into a pointed tube. She scooped a spoonful of glutinous rice into the tube and then used chopsticks to poke the bottom tight. Not bothered by the trouble, she continued to poke the tube with each spoonful until the tube was almost full. Then, she gently pressed with the bottom of the spoon, ensuring the cooked rice dumpling remained firm and not loose.
Lin Shu pressed the edge of the long leaf down, twisted the leaf around with her fingers again and again, pressed the tail into the gap, and tied it tightly with a straw rope. A slightly pocket-sized conical rice dumpling was wrapped.
After Lin Xiaopu had finished filtering the Guanyin wood and letting the juice settle, he came over to watch. Seeing that the elder sister was wrapping the zongzi as if she were weaving flowers, he exclaimed in amazement, "Sister, you have such a skillful hand! I didn't even see how you wrapped it, and she already finished the zongzi. Sister, can you teach me? I want to learn too!"
Lin Shu tapped her nose and jokingly said, "Although I'm your elder sister, you should still give me some respect as a disciple, right? Come on, praise your elder sister. If you praise me to my satisfaction, I'll teach you step by step. I guarantee you'll learn it."
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