Chapter 108 Buying Eggs
The postman's voice came from the courtyard gate. Lu Mingyue ran over and saw two coarse cloth packages.
It was sent by my parents-in-law and godmother. The accompanying letter said that these things are very popular in the local area and are specially given to supplement the children's nutrition.
Lu Mingyue felt a warm glow in her heart as she touched the fine salt grains on the dried goods. She immediately decided to pick out some local dried goods and seafood to send back to her parents-in-law the next day.
As they were tidying up, familiar voices came from outside the courtyard gate. Zheng Xiuhua and Zhu Xiaofang walked in carrying bamboo baskets: "Mingyue, do you want to come with us to the village to buy eggs?"
“The chickens at home don’t lay many eggs, the children are growing, and the men need supplements for training, so we’re never getting enough to eat,” Zheng Xiuhua explained with a smile.
Zhu Xiaofang nodded in agreement: "Although children need supplements, we mothers can't neglect ourselves. We take care of the family every day, so we also need to eat well to nourish ourselves."
Lu Mingyue smiled upon hearing this and put down the bundle in her hand: "That's right, then I'll go with you and buy more to pickle into salted eggs so we can eat them slowly."
They went inside to get their money pouch, and the three of them chatted and laughed as they walked toward the door.
They were going to a resident's home in a nearby village, a place not far away, just a short walk away.
The children will be temporarily left at Sister Wang's house for her to look after; they will return as soon as possible.
As the three of them approached the chicken farmer's house at the village entrance, they saw the villager squatting at the gate collecting eggs.
"Uncle Wang, please save thirty free-range eggs for each of us." Zheng Xiuhua greeted with a smile. The villager looked up and saw that it was her, and happily responded. He turned around and picked up the eggs from the bamboo basket. Each egg had a round and smooth shell.
When it was time to pay, the villager suddenly picked up a bunch of bright green bok choy from the corner of the wall: "These were just picked this morning, without any pesticides. Take them with you."
Lu Mingyue hurriedly declined, but her fellow villager stuffed the food into her hands: "Don't mention it. You're always here to support our business, this little bit of food is nothing."
Grandpa Wang didn't have many eggs left; there were less than twenty in his bamboo basket.
“This isn’t enough; we need to gather more to make salted eggs.” Lu Mingyue was worried, but Grandpa Wang waved his hand.
"Don't worry, I'll take you to ask a few neighboring shops. They all have free-range eggs laid by their own chickens, so they're guaranteed to be fresh."
After visiting two villages with Grandpa Wang, they finally collected enough eggs. Lu Mingyue wanted to give them more money at the market price, but the villagers all waved their hands.
"We're all neighbors, so let's just go by the price set by Grandpa Wang. Giving more would make us feel distant."
She couldn't refuse, so she thanked him repeatedly and carefully put the eggs into the bamboo basket.
As she walked back carrying two full baskets of eggs, Zhu Xiaofang smiled and said, "The villagers are really honest and straightforward."
Lu Mingyue nodded.
Upon returning home, Lu Mingyue first picked up Yao Yao and brought back half a basket of local eggs from the village. She immediately got to work as soon as she entered the house.
She first picked out about twenty smooth, crack-free ones, mixed them with salt water in a bowl, and then added a layer of coarse salt to the jar.
Wipe each egg clean and dry, carefully place them into the jar, pour in the prepared salt water, and finally seal the jar tightly.
"In half a month, we'll be able to eat those oily salted eggs."
She planned to use the remaining eggs to make tea eggs, which were Lei Lei and Huo Zheng's favorite.
I put cold water on a wok, put the eggs in the cold water, added some peppercorns and star anise, and also grabbed a handful of coarse tea that I always keep at home.
Once the water boils, she gently taps the eggshells with a spoon to crack them, allowing the broth to seep in. Then she adds two spoonfuls of soy sauce and a piece of rock sugar, and simmers it over low heat.
Before long, the kitchen was filled with the rich aroma of tea and soy sauce.
Huo Zheng returned from training and sniffed the air as soon as he entered the courtyard: "Did you make tea eggs today?"
Lu Mingyue peeked out from the stove and smiled, "Go wash your hands quickly, we'll be able to eat in a bit."
Yao Yao also stood on tiptoe and peered over the stove. Lei Lei came home from school, threw down his schoolbag, and came over: "Mom, can I try one first?"
"Can."
Lu Mingyue scooped out four eggs, and each person held a tea egg to tide them over.
Looking at the eggs and bok choy in the basket, and remembering the cured pork ribs my parents-in-law had sent, I simply rolled up my sleeves and went into the kitchen.
She soaked the dried shrimp until soft, chopped them, mixed them with beaten eggs, and steamed them into a smooth and tender egg custard.
I also made a pot of pork rib soup with dried cuttlefish, and finally stir-fried a plate of refreshing bok choy.
At dinner time, as soon as the steamed egg custard was served, Leilei scooped up a spoonful and put it in his mouth, his eyes lighting up: "Mom, the steamed egg custard is so delicious today!"
Yao Yao nodded in agreement, her little hands gripping the spoon and bringing it to her mouth.
Huo Zheng tasted the pork rib soup and looked at Lu Mingyue: "This tastes like dried goods sent by Mom and Dad, right?"
Lu Mingyue smiled and nodded, placing a piece of pork rib on each of the children's plates: "Tomorrow I'll send the dried goods from home back so they can also try our local specialties."
At dinner, Lu Mingyue served Huo Zheng a bowl of corn porridge. Remembering the new neighbor she met that afternoon, she casually mentioned, "A new family moved into the compound today. The woman's name is Yan Huajing. She seems quite quiet, but she speaks rather harshly to the old lady who came with her."
Huo Zheng paused, picking up food with his chopsticks, and recalled the recent transfers in the camp: "Oh? A new comrade was just transferred here. I heard he came from another unit, not one of our comrades."
He took a sip of porridge and said, "Although we don't know each other, we're all neighbors in the same residential compound. When we're not busy on the weekend, let's bring some things over for a visit, so we can look out for each other in the future."
Lu Mingyue nodded, recalling the exquisite beauty that Yan Huajing couldn't hide under her gray cloth jacket, and added, "That aunt doesn't look like someone who usually does rough work. She must be lacking something since she just moved here. I'll bring more of our pickled dried goods with me."
Huo Zheng smiled and agreed. The food on the table was steaming hot. The couple chatted back and forth, keeping the matter of their new neighbor in mind.
Early on the weekend morning, Lu Mingyue scooped out a few shiny salted eggs from the jar and packed a bag of freshly steamed cornbread. Huo Zheng, on the other hand, led Lei Lei and Yao Yao, and the family of four headed to their new neighbor's house.
As soon as I reached the gate of the courtyard, I heard the old lady's voice coming from inside the house: "You can't even do this little chores properly, what's the use of keeping you around?"
Immediately following was Yan Huajing's quiet response.
Huo Zheng raised his hand and knocked on the door, and the sounds inside immediately stopped.
Yan Huajing opened the door, and when she saw them, she was clearly taken aback for a moment before smiling.
The old lady also came out of the house, her face expressionless.
"Auntie, we are Huo Zheng and Lu Mingyue from next door. We heard you just moved in, so we came to visit."
Huo Zheng smiled and handed over the things in his hand. Lu Mingyue also quickly stuffed the salted eggs and cornbread into Yan Huajing's hands: "These are homemade salted eggs and cornbread. You can try them."
Leilei took the opportunity to tug at Yan Huajing's sleeve: "Auntie, my name is Leilei, this is my little sister Yaoyao, can we play together in the future?"
Yao Yao also called out "Auntie" in her childish voice.
The old lady's expression softened, and she stopped talking.
A warm feeling flashed in Yan Huajing's eyes, and she quickly stepped aside to let them into the house: "Come in and sit down, the house isn't ready yet, please don't mind."
After entering the house, Lu Mingyue deliberately pulled Yan Huajing aside to ask about tidying up the house, while the old lady pulled Huo Zheng aside to chat about the daily life in the camp, and the atmosphere gradually warmed up.
Before leaving, Yan Huajing saw them to the door, quietly thanked Lu Mingyue, her eyes full of gratitude.
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