When Ye Jianguo cuts pork, he wields the knife with incredible speed and skill.
He deliberately left the meatier side, and when he saw Fu Wan bringing over the washed chestnuts, he proudly pointed them out to her.
"Take half of this with you tomorrow!"
Half of it?! Fu Wan was so shocked her eyes almost popped out.
What does half a wild boar mean? This wild boar weighs over 200 jin (100 kg), and half of it would weigh at least 100 jin (50 kg) of pork.
If we bring this back, it'll take forever to eat it.
They don't have a refrigerator at home right now, and if they took it back, it wouldn't even fit in the well.
Fu Wan waved her hands repeatedly in refusal. Fu Ming was cleaning the wild boar's internal organs nearby and found it amusing to see his younger sister arguing with his uncle.
"Uncle, why don't you leave a leg and a few ribs? We really can't eat any more than that."
The weather wasn't really suitable for making cured pork, and Ye Jianguo saw that Fu Wan and Fu Ming didn't seem to be politely declining, so he listened to their suggestion and set aside a large, fat pig hind leg and a few nice ribs.
The dinner was naturally very lavish. Li Chunhua was generous and prepared a rabbit stewed with chestnuts. She also went to the backyard to pick a lot of chili peppers to make a stir-fried rabbit, as well as braised wild boar, stir-fried pig liver, and stewed a fish that she caught at noon. Even the three little girls, Ye Xiaofeng, Fu Ling, and Qin Mingzhu, ate a whole bowl of mixed grain rice.
Ye Xiaofeng was going to sleep at her own home that night. Ever since Ye Jun and Liang Cuifen had a falling out with their families, they had rented an empty old house in the village and had been living there for less than a week.
When Ye Xiaofeng returned home, Ye Jun was cooking in the kitchen. The food here was nothing like what Ye Jian's family ate at home.
Liang Cuifen sat by the door, supporting her large pregnant belly. She pouted when she saw Ye Xiaofeng come in.
Did your grandparents have a good meal today?
"Couldn't you bring me a bowl of meat to eat? I'm pregnant with your little brother!"
Ye Xiaofeng wiped her mouth. "Mom, if you want to eat meat, why don't you go help Grandpa and Grandma? I've already helped them wash the vegetables."
"My aunt said that labor is the most honorable thing. Only through labor can we have food to eat!"
Liang Cuifen, who had done farm work since becoming pregnant, felt she had been subtly insulted and immediately became furious.
"You little good-for-nothing, how dare you lecture your mother!"
She was about to go find something to hit Ye Xiaofeng when she said that. Ye Xiaofeng wasn't stupid, and she wasn't about to stand there and let her hit her. She ran into the kitchen in a flash.
Ye Jun was busy in the kitchen, completely overwhelmed. He wasn't exactly a good cook, and it took him ages to finally manage to make a bowl of dumpling soup.
"Alright, stop fighting, let's get ready to eat!"
Liang Cuifen was somewhat displeased when she saw the bowl of dumpling soup that contained no meat at all.
"Why is it dumpling soup again? I've had dumpling soup for several meals now."
With a quick glance, she ordered Ye Jun, "Honey, why don't you go to the old house and get some pork back?"
She saw that Fu Wan and the others had caught a lot of fish today, and she also heard that they had caught a whole wild boar. She figured that taking any of it would be enough for her to have a good meal.
“I’m not going. I’ll just have this noodle soup. After I finish eating, give me the money from home. I want to use it to buy some chicks to raise.”
Liang Cuifen was furious, "You're not going!"
"Don't even think about taking the money. I'm saving it to buy baby formula for my child!"
"You have to take it whether you want to or not. I can't possibly ask my parents for it again."
Seeing her parents arguing again, Ye Xiaofeng ran back into the house in fear.
Adults are so scary. She should just go to sleep. If only she could stay at her grandparents' house and not have to come back.
...
The next morning, just after Ye Jianguo had finished breakfast, Fu San arrived on his tricycle to pick him up.
Ye Jianguo enthusiastically pulled him over, which startled Fu San.
However, he soon understood why Ye Jianguo was so enthusiastic.
"Brother, this turtle looks pretty good!"
Don't let his job as a seafood dealer fool you; he's well aware of the value of turtles.
Ye Jianguo took out a bag from his pocket, inside were cigarettes that someone had given him, cigarettes that he couldn't bear to smoke.
He took one out and handed it to Fu San, who didn't mind and took it, clipping it to his ear.
"Third, look at this turtle, how much can I sell it for?"
Since the goods wouldn't fetch much money in Qingshan Village, Ye Jianguo wanted to ask Fu San about his connections.
Fu San scratched his head. "I don't know either. I'll have to go to the county to ask."
Just then, Fu Wan and Fu Ming loaded the chestnuts that Li Chunhua had given them into the car and overheard the two of them whispering about this.
“Oh, Uncle, if you want to take this turtle to the county town to sell, just give it to my third uncle. After deducting the profit that my third uncle should make, you can have Brother Lin bring the rest back.”
Ye Jianguo waved his hand, "You don't need to give this money to Brother Lin. You caught this turtle, and I was thinking of exchanging it for money for you."
Fu Wan then realized that Ye Jianguo was so particular about things. "No, I was just joining in the fun. If I sell this turtle, consider it my contribution to Brother Lin's house construction. Brother Lin can help us move a few more boxes of fish later."
Ye Lin was in need of money right now, so she didn't need to be so particular about it.
Ye Lin wanted to refuse, but seeing his wife's happy face, he couldn't bring himself to say it.
I'm only thinking that when I go back this time, I must do my job well and bring back more fish.
The turtle was arranged, and Ye Jianguo also packed the honey he had cut yesterday into a large enamel jar for Fu Wan to take with her. She didn't refuse, as honey soaked in water is a good thing.
After Fu San and the others finished moving their things, he started the car and drove towards Fu Family Village with Fu Wan, Fu Ming, and the two children.
As for Ye Lin, with the Mid-Autumn Festival just around the corner, it's best to let him come after the holiday.
When Fu Wan returned home, it was almost noon. Ye Xiaocui had been sitting outside the courtyard gate mending fishing nets while waiting for them to return. As soon as she saw them, she hurriedly got up to greet them.
"Why are you back so late? Oh my, why did you pack so much stuff?"
"We got all of this on the mountain yesterday, I'll tell you later. Mom, where's Dad?"
"Your dad went fishing at the beach!"
As soon as Fu Ling and Qin Mingzhu got out of the car, they went to the next door to find their friends. Fu San helped Fu Wan and Fu Ming unload their things and were just about to leave.
"Third Uncle, take some of these wild boar ribs back and stew them for my aunt. Also, take these chestnuts; they're all wild from the mountains."
Fu San saw that they were all good stuff and didn't refuse. "Okay, I'll talk to you when I find a buyer for this turtle."
As soon as Fu San left, Fu Laoda returned carrying a fishing rod and humming a song.
"Hey, Lao Fu, you caught a big fish?"
When Boss Fu was suddenly called that, he realized it was his own daughter.
"What are you yelling about? Look, I caught a grouper that weighs over a pound. I'll have your mother steam it for lunch."
Ye Xiaocui was unaware that Boss Fu had increased her workload again. She had just taken out a pig leg weighing at least 20 or 30 pounds from the snakeskin bag.
"My goodness, you guys went hunting wild boar?"
Fu Wan nodded. These past two days in Qingshan Village had been incredibly exciting, but none of it had been her home turf.
Her home turf is in the sea!
"Mom and Dad, the Mid-Autumn Festival is the day after tomorrow. Why don't we go out to sea to the island for a trip tomorrow?"
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