Chapter 18 Going to the Market: What kind of food is Ruyi going to make this time?
Jasmine had barely swallowed a bite when she was captivated by the rich aroma of the braised egg. Her little hands gripped Aunt You's wrist tightly, refusing to let go, and she immediately wanted a second bite. The egg wasn't very big, and soon, to Aunt You's astonishment, Jasmine had finished the whole thing.
Previously, we always had to ask someone to scoop out the egg yolks beforehand, but this time we ate them all, not leaving a single bite. After finishing, we even licked our lips, looking like we wanted more.
Cheng Niangzi was even more smug than Yao Ruyi: "Look how much Jasmine is enjoying her food! Is Jasmine delicious?"
Jasmine nodded vigorously: "Delicious! I want to eat it again tomorrow!"
Xiao Song chimed in, "Me too!"
Sister-in-law You was both surprised and delighted. She hugged her daughter and kissed her, then took out a handkerchief to wipe her mouth. She said softly, "Alright, alright, tomorrow I'll go to Sister Ruyi's house to buy some." Then she turned to Ruyi and said, "Ruyi, please make a lot more tomorrow and save some for me. I can't get up early because I'm taking care of the child. I'll bring you the money when I get home. I'll save five coins for my house tomorrow."
"My family needs twenty," Aunt Yu chimed in. "My second son is on duty at the Dali Temple. He's been so busy with some big case these days, he's been working day and night and hasn't even had time to eat. These are perfect; a couple of bites will fill his stomach, and he can share them with his colleagues." As for her old man, she had no intention of leaving any for him. Anyway, that jerk always hoards his birds when there's something good to eat; he doesn't deserve any good food. He might as well gnaw on tree bark.
Yinzhu's sister-in-law chimed in, "I'll keep twenty for my family too, and I'll send some to my uncle's family as well."
Only Madam Cheng took Ruyi's arm and said with a smile, "I can get up. I'll come and buy it myself tomorrow."
"Business is coming!" Yao Ruyi smiled, her eyes crinkling, and readily agreed.
The group continued chatting and laughing as they walked towards Ma Xing Street, the autumn sun making them feel warm and comfortable.
They paid and boarded a Song Dynasty-style intercity bus—an open-top longboard cart pulled by six slow horses, seating about ten people, costing three coins per person. After settling in, they quickly moved on to other topics. Aunt Yu was practically the neighborhood's informant; she had endless things to say and chattered incessantly throughout the journey.
First, there was a scholar named Zhu at the Imperial Academy who was extremely fond of taking advantage of others. He was stingy and miserly, often going to students' homes to complain and collect apologies in return. He lived off the meat and vegetables he extorted every day, barely having to spend any money on himself. Aunt Yu sneered, "No wonder he's still unmarried at his age. Who would want to marry someone like him?"
It was also said that Mencius' father beat his son every day, and Mencius' mother, Guan, beat her husband every day, making the whole family very chaotic; finally, the Lin family was mentioned. Yao Ruyi thought it was the Lin family next door, but she didn't expect there to be another Lin family in the alley, right across from the Cheng family's tailor shop, the Lin Si Cao family who worked at the Kaifeng government office.
Aunt Yu was talking about Madam Ying, the wife of Lin Si Cao. She had already given birth to five sons, and now, in her forties, she was pregnant with her sixth. Lin Si Cao was so anxious that he prayed to gods and Buddhas everywhere, not only for his wife's safe delivery but also hoping that this time she would have a daughter. But Aunt Yu said with certainty, "I see her belly is pointed, and since she got pregnant, her nose has gotten bigger, and she has developed a lot of bumps on her face. I'm afraid it's another boy! Let me tell you, daughters are the most tender. When you're pregnant with a daughter, your skin is as smooth as a peeled egg."
Sister-in-law You covered her mouth with her handkerchief and chuckled softly: "If she really is carrying a Lin Liulang in her belly, wouldn't Lin Si Cao faint from crying again?"
When Lin Wulang was born, Lin Si Cao waited anxiously outside the delivery room like a donkey pulling a millstone. The midwife came out beaming, carrying a big, chubby baby boy, and congratulated him, "Congratulations, Lord Lin, mother and child are safe!" His face turned pale instantly, but he forced himself to go over and lift the swaddling clothes to take a look—sure enough, it was a boy!
With a sudden "ga" sound, his eyes rolled back and he fainted.
Yao Ruyi couldn't help but laugh when she heard this.
Although in ancient times it was believed that having many children meant many blessings, it varied depending on the circumstances. The Lin family only had a few rooms, and they relied entirely on the salary of Lin Si Cao, a seventh-rank official, to support the family. According to Aunt Yu, his five sons were all more lively than monkeys when they were young, and they continued to cause trouble as they grew up. None of them were steady or mature. The five children could jump and run around non-stop for twelve hours a day. Lin Si Cao couldn't stand it anymore. When he saw other people's sweet, soft, and well-behaved daughters, he was so envious that tears welled up in his eyes.
They hadn't planned to have any more children, as the couple was getting on in years, but unexpectedly, Aunt Ying got pregnant again.
The cart swayed and wobbled out of the city. Yao Ruyi, sandwiched between her aunt and sister-in-law, listened with great interest, wishing she had a handful of melon seeds to crack open. She was also occasionally amused by Aunt Yu's teasing and witty remarks.
At this moment, the still-scorching autumn sun shone down, giving her a sense of joy as she prepared for an autumn outing.
After all, the autumn outing was a group activity that she could only watch from the sidelines for many years. She used to sit behind the counter of the convenience store and watch the school organize autumn outings. The students, holding red flags and wearing class uniforms, would pass by her in long lines, which made her extremely envious.
As the sun rose higher, the noise of the market drifted over, and they finally arrived at the market.
A few arrows' distance south of the city gate, bamboo pole and tarpaulin stalls had been set up along the way.
The noise was like a surging tide.
The vendor selling steamed buns lifted the lid of his steamer, and plumes of white steam billowed up, carrying the aroma of oil into the crowd. The vendor selling roasted meat pushed his wheelbarrow, found a quiet spot to rest, and scraped his iron shovel against the pan with a clanging sound, chanting, "Hot and crispy lamb!" Meanwhile, porters and idlers squatted against the wall, slurping down lamb offal soup from rough porcelain bowls, glancing at passersby as they waited for work.
Upon entering the market, it was packed with people, shoulder to shoulder, like ants swarming into a nest, and all sorts of smells wafted through the air. Madam Cheng and Aunt Yu quickly sandwiched Yao Ruyi between them, holding her arms tightly on either side, as if afraid she would get lost.
Sister-in-law You and Liu Yinzhu had already picked up the two children and held them tightly in their arms. While the adults were tense, the children were extremely excited. Jasmine stretched out her slender arms to reach for the painted clay dolls on the peddler's shoulder in the distance, almost trying to break free from her mother's arms: "Mom, I want that one, I want it!"
Xiao Song glanced at her mother and saw that her mother was struggling to carry her, so she stopped making a fuss and tugged at her sleeve: "Mother, I want one too."
Cheng Niangzi said, "You all take the children and go buy them. We'll go to Hanjia Kiln to buy some needles and thread."
Aunt Yu, however, set her sights on an old man selling quail wontons, saying, "I'm not going to suffer in that ash heap. I'll just have a bowl of hot soup here. You two can come back and find me when you're done." With that, she swayed her thick waist and squeezed under the old man's newly erected oil-paper umbrella, also asking for two extra golden fried dough sticks from his basket. Humming a little tune, she sat comfortably waiting for her food—Aunt Yu hadn't really wanted to buy anything; she'd only gone out for a bit of fun.
They split into three groups. Cheng Niangzi, dragging Yao Ruyi, weaved through the crowd, squeezed onto the post road, and walked westward along the city wall for a while. They came to a clearing filled with patched-up shacks and several huge earthenware kilns. One kiln was open, and waves of heat, along with sparks, billowed out. The shirtless kiln workers, their faces flushed and covered in sweat, were using iron hooks to retrieve red pottery bowls and cups from the kiln racks.
At the entrance of the kiln, squatting was an old kiln worker with disheveled sideburns and a wretched appearance. In late autumn, he wore only a sleeveless cloth jacket, which was open to reveal his hairy chest, which was tanned black like iron, and his muscular body. He was slurping down mutton soup and flatbread.
He didn't get up when people came, until Madam Cheng called out to him, "Old Han, business is here."
The man then looked up and asked, "What are you burning?"
Yao Ruyi hurriedly took out the pattern she had drawn with a brush. Besides being good at math, she also had the ability to draw a little bit. Of course, no one taught her; she just learned it on her own from a content creator on a certain bishouji (a Chinese online community for sharing and discussing literature) when she was bored in the hospital.
It's not very well drawn, but it's still understandable.
Old Han took it and squinted at it: "Oh, a double-eyed stove? With a ceramic plate on top? But the legs are easy to break if they're made of clay, they have to be made of copper or iron, that will cost extra."
That's normal, so Yao Ruyi explained the size to him in detail.
Cheng Niangzi wondered: Some of those baking pans had recessed grooves, some had six round pancake slots, some were flat round pancake griddles, and there was even a deep pot divided into nine compartments. What kind of food was Ruyi going to make this time?
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I ran to 7-Eleven to buy rice balls and cooked food during my overtime shift.
After browsing around, my first thought was: This, this, that, that... wait, what?! My Ruyi (a type of scepter) is for sale too! [Sprinkling flowers]
(Write this down, write this down)
Well, writing has driven me crazy again [crying emoji]
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