Chapter 84: The eagerly awaited Shopkeeper Song
Jiang Tangtang stirred the winter melon strips in the pot with a spatula and said, "This is not ordinary water, it's sugar water."
Hu Yan, who was sitting behind the stove and making fire, was shocked to see that Jiang Tangtang was not on guard against him at all and actually told him the recipe so openly.
She actually trusted him so much.
The Lu Jingcheng brothers tilted their heads and looked at the winter melon strips in the pot thoughtfully.
When the sugar water in the pot was almost dry after being boiled over high heat, Jiang Tangtang told Hu Yan to start cooking over low heat, still stirring with a spatula.
Lu Tiantian looked at the changes in the winter melon strips in amazement and said excitedly: "Mom, the winter melon has changed, there is sand on it."
"Yes, it's sandy, but it's sugar sand, and it's delicious." Jiang Tangtang answered her daughter's words, and her hands kept moving. She kept stir-frying until the water in the winter melon sugar was completely dry, and then she scooped up all the winter melon sugar in the pot.
"That's good." The three brothers and sisters gathered around the big bowl of winter melon candy.
Jiang Tangtang put a plate on the side and said, "Go to the yard and stretch your legs. You can eat it after it cools down."
A few of them licked their lips, slurped their saliva, glanced reluctantly at the winter melon candy on the plate, and went to the yard to exercise with a grunt.
Jiang Tangtang was originally thinking about teaching a few children radio gymnastics, but she didn't expect Lu Shiyan to have already taught them a set of exercises to strengthen their bodies.
Although they had not practiced for several months due to exile, the children still remembered the movements clearly and could do them quite well now.
After watching the children move around for about a quarter of an hour, Jiang Tangtang went over and touched their backs. She found sweat on their vests, stuffed a small towel into their vests, clapped her hands, and said, "Go wash your hands, then go back to your room and have some candy! Remember to brush your teeth after eating, or your teeth will hurt!"
They washed their hands and started eating the candies. Jiang Tangtang also called Hu Yan, He Meifang, and He Hu, who were taking care of the pheasants in the yard, to join them.
For children from farming families, sugar was a precious commodity. Only during the Chinese New Year would their parents buy some for them to taste. And even then, they would only buy the cheapest and worst quality sugar.
The few of them had never seen winter melon candy like Jiang Tangtang's. The youngest, He Hu, couldn't resist the temptation and grabbed a piece.
He Meifang, however, held back her saliva and said, "My sister-in-law said this was made to sell, so I won't eat it." Then she said to He Hu, "Huzi, just eat one piece."
"It's okay, try it and help me see how it tastes." In Jiang Tangtang's eyes, thirteen-year-old He Meifang is still a child!
Moreover, this little girl is very hardworking. She doesn't have to worry about the pheasants at home. She cuts weeds and digs up earthworms every day to feed them.
She even rushed to wash the clothes of the whole family. She was so sensible that it made people feel distressed.
After hearing Jiang Tangtang's words, He Meifang took a small piece of winter melon candy and ate it carefully.
Jiang Tangtang could see that, apart from the young and naive He Hu, He Meifang and Hu Yan were both very restrained.
Jiang Tangtang simply wrapped a packet for each person in oil paper and said, "Let them sit and eat slowly."
"Mom ate it too!" Lu Tiantian took a piece of winter melon candy and fed it to Jiang Tangtang's mouth.
Jiang Tangtang felt her heart melt in an instant. She didn't know if it was because she had put too much sugar in the pickled winter melon, or if it was because her daughter was so thoughtful, which made the winter melon candy much sweeter.
I was happily eating winter melon candy when suddenly there was a noise outside.
Jiang Tangtang took off her apron and walked out, and saw Lu Shili carrying a big wild boar and coming in from the courtyard gate with sweat all over his face.
"My God, this young man from the Lu family is so capable. He can actually carry such a big wild boar by himself."
"Being able to carry it isn't a skill; the key is being able to hunt such a large wild boar. This one must weigh at least two or three hundred pounds!"
"I heard wild boars are very ferocious. Wasn't Gu Yunqin's brother crippled by a wild boar?"
"That's right! Who would have guessed that this young man from the Lu family might look frail, but he's actually quite strong! His wife will be blessed in the future."
"Dahua, your daughter hasn't found a husband yet, right? How about pairing her up with a young man from the Lu family?"
…
The villagers were talking about Lu Shili's strong body and his marriage, which made Lu Shili feel embarrassed. He dropped the wild boar and ran away.
Ge Shuanniang, who was hiding in the crowd, regretted her decision to the core.
This Erlang of the Lu family actually has good legs and feet.
If she had known earlier... she should have arranged the marriage when the Lu family just arrived in the village and was unfamiliar with the place. It was hateful that the ugly girl Zhang Dahua actually set her eyes on the second son of the Lu family.
"Mrs. Lu, are you selling this wild boar?"
Some people were eyeing Lu Shili, while others were asking about the wild boar.
Jiang Tangtang looked at the villagers gathered around and smiled, "I'll sell it, but no one in my family knows how to take care of this pig, so I plan to send it to a restaurant in the county town."
The people who originally wanted to share two pounds of pork with her also gave up the idea.
It would be much more cost-effective to sell such a big fish directly to the restaurant.
Besides, the Lu family is not a stingy family. They just sent food to each household a few days ago. It would be embarrassing to take advantage of them now.
Jiang Tangtang originally planned to go to the county town the next day, but due to special circumstances today, she had to change her plan and make a temporary trip to the county town.
After she asked a few villagers to help move the wild boar onto the donkey cart, she went into the house and called Lu Shili, "Are you still shy?"
Lu Shili was like a cat with its fur standing on end. "Who's shy? I'm not a grown-up girl!"
Jiang Tangtang laughed and said, "If you're not shy, come out and work!"
Lu Shili had already taken a quick shower and changed into clean clothes. In some ways, he and his older brother were very similar.
For example, the same love of cleanliness.
Lu Shili said, "I don't know how to kill pigs!" If it weren't for the fact that this woman was working so hard to support the family, he wouldn't have gone hunting in the mountains!
"Who asked you to kill the pig?" Jiang Tangtang said with a smile, "Come with me to the county town. We'll go to the restaurant and sell the wild boar."
Lu Shili said embarrassedly, "Why didn't you say so earlier!" and strode out of the room.
Jiang Tangtang packed the winter melon candy she made today and put it in the car, then went to the county town with them.
Because Jiang Tangtang had a bad impression of the owner of Zuixianlou, she bypassed Zuixianlou this time and went directly to Baiweizhai where she had sold cakes last time.
When the owner of Baiweizhai saw Jiang Tangtang, he excitedly said, "Master Jiang, you're finally here!"
Jiang Tangtang had already guessed the reason for Song Guanghao's enthusiasm, but she looked puzzled and asked, "What's wrong? Manager Song, do you want to talk to me about something?"
Song Guanghao said, "Isn't it something? I've been so worried these past two days. Jiang Dongjia, did you bring some egg yolk pastries today? I'm relying on your pastries to survive!"
Jiang Tangtang apologized, "Shopkeeper Song, I'm so sorry. I came here with my brother-in-law to sell wild boars today, and I left in a hurry..."
When Song Guanghao heard that no egg yolk pastry was brought, he felt a pang of pain in his heart.
"Does your restaurant accept wild boars?"
Jiang Tangtang asked calmly when Song Guanghao looked as if his father had died.
"Of course I have to take it in!" Song Guanghao calmed down after a long while and said quietly, "Your family's methods are quite wild..."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
