Time flies, and in the blink of an eye it is early March. An Ning opened the window and looked at the drizzle outside. She couldn't help but sigh: This rain comes at the right time. Yesterday she was still worried that if it didn't rain today, she would have to find a way to water the fields. Unexpectedly, it rained tonight. It is said that "spring rain is as precious as oil", and this is really true.
An Ning thought the rain would not stop for a while, so she decided to take a break and have a good sleep in the house. An Ning took off her coat, lay back on the bed, pulled the quilt folded beside her and went to sleep again. It was almost noon when the rain gradually stopped. An Ning got up, stretched, and prepared to make lunch.
An Ning went to the old courtyard to cut a bunch of chives. The newly grown chives have the best chive flavor, and An Ning likes to eat them the most. Back in the kitchen, An Ning first boiled corn porridge in the pot, and then planned to make some chive boxes.
An Ning first picked the chives, then washed them and set them aside to drain the water. Then she took out a dough bowl, mixed the dough with half of the water and the other half with cold water, kneaded them together, and set them aside to rise. While the dough was rising, An Ning began to prepare the filling. She beat five eggs in a bowl, scrambled them into egg crumbs, and then put them in a bowl to cool for later use.
Drain the moisture from the leeks and cut them into small pieces, put them into a porcelain bowl, mix the cooled chopped eggs with the leeks, add a spoonful of lard and a spoonful of sesame oil, then add salt and seasonings, stir well and you can wrap them.
An Ning kneaded the dough into long strips, cut it into small pieces, and then started to wrap the chive dumplings. After wrapping everything, she lit another pot, put oil in the pot, and then put the chive dumplings in. She used medium or low heat throughout the process, because if the fire was too strong, it would easily burn.
As soon as An Dashan entered the room, he smelled a burst of delicious food and said, "Ningning, what delicious food are you making again?"
An Ning said: "I saw that the chives were growing well, so I cut a handful and made some chive dumplings to eat."
An Dashan washed his hands, reached out and picked up a piece of fried chive dumplings and started eating. He nodded as he ate, and swallowed the chive dumplings in his mouth before saying, "Ningning, your cooking skills are amazing. I've never eaten chive dumplings that are so delicious."
An Ning smiled and asked, "Dad, what were you doing just now?"
An Dashan said, "I went to the fields to see how the wheat was doing."
An Ning said: "You can't see anything now. The wheat should turn green in two days."
An Dashan nodded and said, "Last time you said you wanted to build a row of sheds in the backyard to raise rabbits. I see the weather is getting warmer now, why not prepare it in the next few days!"
An Ning thought about the increasing number of rabbits, nodded, and said, "Okay, I don't understand any of this, so you can take care of it!" While he was talking, all the chive dumplings were ready.
An Ning asked An Dashan to bring the chive boxes to the table, and then she poured the cooked corn porridge into a basin and brought it to the main room.
Gao also came out when she heard the voice. She was now five months pregnant. Due to good nutrition, her complexion was rosy and she looked much younger than before.
An Ning watched Gao come out and said, "Mom, the weather is getting warmer now. When it clears up, you should go out for a walk more often. The doctor said that walking more will make it easier to give birth."
Gao nodded, smiled, and said, "Okay, I understand, little housekeeper. What did you cook today? I can smell the fragrance in the house."
As An Ning poured porridge into the bowl, she said, "I saw that the leeks were growing well, so I made some leek boxes. I just tried one and it tasted pretty good."
The family of three ate all the chive dumplings with corn porridge. After lunch, An Dashan went to the village to find someone to build the back house before the busy spring season.
An Ning was not idle either. She went to the old courtyard to feed the rabbits. Since An Ning always took out the grass in the space to feed the rabbits, after a winter, the rabbits not only did not lose weight, but grew a lot fatter, and their fur was smooth and shiny.
After feeding the rabbit, An Ning returned to the new courtyard. At this moment, Xiao Hei came running over with a rabbit in his mouth. An Ning reached out and touched Xiao Hei's head, saying, "Good job, Xiao Hei. Today this rabbit is yours. I will stew it for you later."
As if Xiao Hei understood, he jumped and danced around An Ning happily. An Ning never let her family eat the prey that Xiao Hei brought back from the mountain, for fear of infection with rabies virus. Medical technology was not well developed in this era, and if someone was accidentally infected, there would be no way to save him.
At dinner time, An Ning kept her word and prepared the rabbit that Xiao Hei had brought back. She stewed it in the pot she used specially for Xiao Hei, and then poured the pot into Xiao Hei's bowl after it had cooled down.
In the blink of an eye, two days passed. An Ning was making breakfast that day when she saw An Dashan rushing in. Seeing An Ning, he said excitedly, "Ning Ning, the wheat has really turned green. Come with me after dinner to take a look."
An Ning looked at the excited An Dashan and felt excited too. Although she knew that there was an 80% chance that this winter wheat would succeed, she was no less excited than An Dashan when she heard that it had turned green again.
An Ning calmed down her agitated mood and said, "Dad, go tell my mother the good news. Although my mother doesn't say it, she is also concerned about this matter in her heart!"
An Dashan agreed and left the kitchen. Gao had heard An Dashan's loud noise a long time ago. She was craning her neck to look over here. When she saw An Dashan coming out of the kitchen, she quickly asked, "Dashan, what did you say just now? Is it true?"
An Dashan nodded and said, "Really, really, after dinner, I will support you and let you go and see for yourself."
Gao clapped her hands happily and said, "Great! Great! Go and help Ningning cook. After dinner, we'll go and take a look."
An Dashan smiled and nodded, saying, "Okay, okay, go into the house quickly, I'll go help you right away."
The father and daughter quickly brought the food up. For breakfast, they had corn porridge, steamed buns, and a plate of stir-fried vegetables. The bean sprouts were newly grown mung bean sprouts from An Ning, which were just right for eating at this time.
After the meal, An Dashan supported Gao, and An Ning carried the bamboo basket on their backs and went to the fields. Gao watched the wheat, which used to be grayish yellow, turn green again, and she finally felt relieved.
After seeing this, An Ning felt relieved and started looking for shepherd's purse in the field. Shepherd's purse is the freshest at this time. An Ning couldn't help drooling when thinking of the thin skin and large filling of shepherd's purse wontons, so she shouted: "Dad, let my mother stay there for a while, we will go to dig some shepherd's purse and make shepherd's purse wontons for you at noon."
When An Dashan heard that they wanted to eat, he became excited. After telling Gao not to wander around, he started to dig shepherd's purse with An Ning.
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