Jin Dashan met Jin Erniu's gaze: "Uncle? Why, why can't he let go of Mother?"
Liu put the basket she was holding aside, pulled Zhang aside, and cursed, "How could the Liang family be so heartless? Back then, I saw others eating those mushrooms, so I kindly picked a basket for them. Who knew that short-lived wretch would eat them? Besides, I ate some myself back then. How can you blame me for this?"
"That's right, Mother didn't do it on purpose. Does Uncle still want to take revenge on us?"
Li Lanfang gestured to her two daughters-in-law to stop talking about it, but Liang Shuyan remained calm and composed, grinning as she said, "Alright, today is a good day, Mother will go and prepare some delicious food for us!"
Li Lanfang was also confused. Why wasn't she angry at all?
The old woman's head throbbed with pain as a flood of memories forcibly entered her brain. When they first arrived, some of the old woman's memories were fragmented, but with this, she finally remembered.
It turns out that the original owner's family was the Liang family of Kaoshantun. She was also a widow with two children, and her family was poor. The original owner would give all the food and drink she had to her family. That year, there was a severe drought, and everyone was short of food. The original owner learned that there were mushrooms to eat on the mountain, so she took her two wives to the mountain and picked two baskets. One of the baskets was given to her family. Who knew that the Liang family's only precious grandson died after eating it? From then on, the Liang family of Kaoshantun regarded the original owner as an enemy and rarely had any contact with her.
Li Lanfang was worried that her daughter might seem fine on the surface, but was hiding something inside, and that this would cause health problems in the long run. She was concerned about her daughter's health.
Liu, carrying a basket, tossed some mushrooms aside: "Mother, let's not eat these!"
"Why not eat them? Eat them, eat them all, let's see if they kill anyone! Now pick up these mushrooms, clean them, and wash them with clean water, hurry up!"
Zhang stammered, "Mother, I'll help you decide what we're having for dinner today!"
"Look, there are still some chives in the basket. Pick them clean, wash them, and then bring them in!"
Liu peeked into the water vat and, finding it empty, called out, "Erniu, the water vat is empty! Go fetch some water!"
Jin Dashan said, "Forget it, I'll fetch the water!"
Thinking about what happened today, Jin Erniu stopped Dashan: "Brother, you'd better not go. Otherwise, people will gossip about you. Even though you were wronged, the mouths of those women in our village are like invisible kicks—you can't see them, but they're incredibly powerful!"
Jin Dashan looked at Erniu gratefully, patted Erniu on the shoulder and said, "Erniu, I didn't expect that you, who don't talk much usually, would suddenly become so cultured!"
Liang Shuyan, who was cooking in the shanty, poked her head out and called out, "Dashan, come here for a second!"
When Dashan heard his mother calling, he quickly crouched down and ran into the shanty. He rubbed his hands together and said, "Mother, it's all my fault for being so useless today. I've made you think of all those bad things."
"Alright, that's not why I called you here. Look, I've had quite a haul today. Take these 20 coins and go to Butcher Zhang's to buy two catties of meat! Also, buy some rice!"
Da Shan seemed to have witnessed his mother's power today. He stared at Liang Shuyan with great admiration and respect: "Okay, Mother, Da Shan is off!"
Liang Shuyan had a good harvest on the mountain today, but the wild boar meat could only be stored in the system for the time being and could not be taken out. If pork and rice appeared on the dinner table, she would not know how to explain it to the children, especially Liu Shi, who was a curious cat!
Therefore, she decided to have Zhang Dashan buy some, so that when she took some out of the system, it wouldn't arouse their suspicion.
In no time, Dashan returned, carrying a piece of meat and a pig liver, which was dripping blood.
"Didn't I tell you to buy some meat and rice? Why are you carrying a pig liver again?"
Zhang Dashan said breathlessly, "Mother, this pig liver was given to us by Butcher Zhang. I don't know why he gave it to us, but he seemed very happy. He even said that if we need to buy meat in the future, we can always go to his house!"
"Go and help your grandma wash some clothes. Her arms aren't very good, and she can't use cold water."
Da Shan nodded and went out.
In the kitchen, Liang Shuyan got busy. The water in the pot boiled, so she first blanched the pork, then took it out and let it cool for a while. She then took out the spice packet for braised pork from her spatial storage, and prepared the scallions, ginger, and garlic, putting them in a small bowl.
After washing the rice, she put it in the pot to steam. She tested the water level with chopsticks before putting the lid on.
"Mother, the chives are picked and washed. Let them drain here!" Zhang came in and placed the chives in a bamboo basket.
"Start a fire and quickly cook the rice!"
Liu came in carrying a winnowing basket. She washed the mushrooms she had picked and placed them in a basin, then stirred them with her slender fingers. "Mother," she said, "I didn't expect these to smell so fragrant."
Liang Shuyan rolled her eyes: "You're so good at talking. It wasn't even stir-fried, so where would the aroma come from?"
There's only one iron pot in the house. You have to wait until the rice is cooked and put into a bowl before you can wash the pot, pour in the oil, and start cooking.
Cut the picked chives into even sections, then squeeze the water out of the mushrooms a few times by hand before placing them on a plate.
With a sizzle, a fragrant aroma wafted out—the scent of mushrooms. Zhang couldn't help but sniff: "Mother, these mushrooms smell so good! How could something so delicious be poisonous?"
Liu pulled Zhang's arm hard: "Sister-in-law, you really have to bring up the one thing you don't want to talk about."
Upon hearing this, Zhang, who was usually reserved, quickly stuck out her tongue and fell silent.
"Oh my, where is this delicious smell coming from? It smells so good!" Aunt Liu from next door was filling the kang (a heated brick bed) in the backyard when she smelled the aroma and muttered to herself.
The Jin family and the Liu family were separated by a low wall. Aunt Liu sniffed through the crack in the wall: "That's right, it's the Da Shan family! How could Da Shan's mother bear to eat such good things? She used to always send things to her parents' home, but ever since that short-lived bastard died, she's changed her mind and started feeding her lazy, good-for-nothing brother-in-law. He's worthless. Has she finally come to her senses?"
After stir-frying the mushrooms and chives, Liang Shuyan quickly washed the wok and poured in the oil.
He added chopped green onions and ginger slices, along with the spice packet, and then took two cans of beer from the system, placing them aside when his two daughters-in-law weren't looking.
As soon as the meat chunks hit the pan, they sizzled, and she started stir-frying them. In ancient times, people used soy sauce in blocks, just like brown sugar. She threw in a small piece, and sure enough, it quickly took on color. However, the color didn't develop as quickly as modern soy sauce!
After adding seasonings and stir-frying for a few moments, I poured in the prepared beer, gulped it down for a while, and a rich aroma mixed with a faint sweetness wafted out.
"Okay, go and call your grandma over for dinner!"
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