Chapter 176 Tasting
Xiao Qian looked at the time and estimated that it was almost time, so she handed the spoon to Zhou Dalang and instructed him, "You stay here and grind it with the fourth brother. When you are done, bring it back to me. I will go to the school to cook first."
Zhou Dalang agreed.
Xiao Qian stepped forward, grabbed a child and pulled them out. "Let's go. It's time for class. Be careful that the teacher won't be able to find you and spank you."
The mill was not far from the school and could be reached in just a few dozen breaths, so as soon as they left the crowd, they ran forward a few steps, turned a corner, and saw Mr. Zhuang standing at the intersection looking over here.
Mrs. Qian quickly took the two children and stepped forward to pay her respects, apologizing, "Mr. Zhuang, these two children have caused you trouble."
Mr. Zhuang smiled and said, "Nothing, it's time for get out of class to end. Why is it so lively over there?"
Little Qian smiled and said, "Isn't the winter solstice coming soon? The villagers are grinding some things to make snacks for the children."
Mr. Zhuang nodded and smiled, "Not bad."
The school is also closed during the winter solstice, and the holiday lasts for three days.
Mr. Zhuang announced the good news before school that day, and everyone was extremely happy.
Manbao was also very happy and had already been discussing with Bai Shanbao where to go for fun in the next three days.
Mr. Zhuang, however, dragged the two children into the courtyard just as they were about to run outside. Manbao was the first to say, "Sir, we have finished the homework you assigned us."
"That's right," Mr. Zhuang nodded, "so I decided to arrange some more for you in the next three days."
The interval between holidays this time was too short. The winter solstice holiday came just two days after the last holiday. Mr. Zhuang always abides by the rules, so even though he knew that the students would be restless, he did not cancel the holiday.
Mr. Zhuang knows how to balance work and rest, and he doesn't assign too much homework during each holiday. However, he makes an exception for Bai Shanbao and Manbao. This time, Mr. Zhuang assigned them two extra texts.
These were two texts they hadn't read yet, so Mr. Zhuang asked them to memorize them. "I'll check them when we get back from vacation."
The two children had no choice but to agree, took their homework and left.
Bai Shanbao and Manbao were walking together, and Manbao invited him, "My family is going to make tofu, do you want to go and see it?"
Bai Shanbao didn't understand, "What's so interesting about making tofu? I want to go catch loaches."
"There's no more. My fourth brother and his men have already crossed both banks," Manbao said. "We'll have to wait until next year. Otherwise, if we catch them all now, there won't be any left to eat next year. Aren't you curious about how beans turn into tofu?"
Bai Shanbao was not curious, but he still followed Manbao to Zhou's house to take a look.
When Liu heard that the Zhou family wanted to order tofu, she specially asked Aunt Rong to go and teach Xiao Qian how to order tofu.
When they arrived, the tofu had already been ordered and was placed on the table in the yard, wrapped in a layer of gauze and pressed down by a bucket of water.
Manbao came forward curiously to take a look, and Xiao Qianshi lifted a layer of gauze to let her take a look, and said with a smile: "Thanks to Aunt Rong for helping me, otherwise I really couldn't have done it."
After that, he said to Bai Shanbao, "Young Master, take some back when you go back later, and try our tofu tonight."
Manbao saw that it was white, so he took a piece and put it in his mouth while no one was paying attention. Bai Shanbao turned around and saw it: ...
Manbao spit it out secretly, and when she saw Bai Shanbao staring at her, she whispered, "It doesn't taste good if it's not cooked."
Bai Shanbao: ...Isn’t this nonsense?
The Zhou family made a very successful plate of tofu, and there was plenty of it.
Manbao had not told me how much tofu could be made from one pound of beans, so Xiao Qian estimated that she soaked five pounds of beans, thinking that the family should be able to eat them all. Who knew that so much tofu could be made.
Xiao Qian estimated that the two plates of tofu weighed about 40 kilograms.
She poked it and felt it was ready, so she picked up the knife and cut the tofu.
Qian stood under the eaves and watched, then nodded and said, "Divide it into two basins. Send one to the Bai family and one to the village chief's house. As for the rest, pack some and send it to Mr. Zhuang."
She checked the time and said to Zhou Silang, "Mr. Zhuang will probably be in town today. You should take him there now."
Zhou Silang responded. Because he was afraid that the tofu would break, he put some dried lotus leaves at home under the basket before putting the tofu in.
Seeing that Xiao Qian had divided up all the food she wanted to give away, Qian said, "Leave the rest for tomorrow. You can go back to your parents' home and take some back so that your family can have a taste of it."
Xiao Qian and others were delighted to hear this and responded one after another.
Manbao ran to Qian's side, tilted his head and asked, "Mom, do I have to go to my uncle's house tomorrow too?"
Qian smiled and said, "Your elder brother and the others can go. Can you stay at home with mother?"
Manbao pouted, not very happy, "I haven't been to my uncle's house to play for a long time."
Qian patted her little head and said with a smile, "We have guests at home tomorrow, so mother can't leave."
Unless Qian Shi goes back to the Qian family in person, Manbao usually doesn't go back to the Qian family. Most of the time, Zhou Dalang and Xiao Qian Shi bring a few children back, and the same is true during the Chinese New Year.
When Manbao heard there was a guest at home, he immediately perked up and asked curiously, "Who is it?"
"Dear guest, there is a beautiful girl here. Please help your mother to take a look tomorrow and see if you like her."
Manbao was clever. He immediately thought of the teasing Zhou Silang had received this morning. His eyes rolled and he said, "Oh," "I see. You're here to see Fourth Brother, right?"
Qian smiled and said nothing.
It was indeed Zhou Silang who came.
Before Zhou Silang went out to serve in the army, Qian had looked for a matchmaker, but the matchmaker had never responded. She also knew that people in the surrounding villages had probably heard about the fourth son's gambling, so they were not happy about it.
It was not until the Zhou family's house was completed that the matchmaker came to the house and proposed two candidates, but Qian was not satisfied without having to meet either of them, so she naturally refused to see them.
Probably because the candidates suggested by the matchmaker were not very good.
Although Qian rarely went out, she knew everything that happened in the villages. She had many sons, and they were growing up one after another. As soon as they grew up, they had to be arranged to marry. So when Zhou Dalang first started to propose marriage, she visited several nearby villages.
She knew everything about how many girls each family had, the family traditions, and the reputation. Even though she had seldom gone out in recent years due to poor health, people often came to visit her. In addition, she had three daughters-in-law, Xiao Qian, Feng, and He. It would be impossible for a matchmaker to fool her with bad girls.
This time, she finally agreed to meet him. Firstly, she wanted to meet the girl, and secondly, she wanted her two children to meet him.
Man Bao couldn't hold back her words and immediately ran to Zhou Silang, asking him to dress up nicely tomorrow. To this end, she even helped Zhou Silang snatch the clothes Zhou Wulang had made last year. "Fifth brother, I'll return them to you after you see my beautiful sister."
Zhou Silang didn't mind it at all, but looked at him doubtfully, "Can you fit into this?"
(End of this chapter)
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