Put it indoors?
Hearing this, Xu Xiangyang quickly stopped him, "Alright, let's put it outside. Even if it's not hot in the room, it still has some temperature. What if it breaks?"
He didn't want to get an upset stomach from eating anything. Medical conditions weren't very good at the time, and if he really got sick from something he ate, he would have no one to blame but himself.
Wang Xiumin hesitated for a moment, but finally agreed. However, where to put it was a problem; she would be heartbroken if it were stolen.
There was nowhere to hide things outside, and they hadn't built a storage room when they first arrived home. These two pounds of meat stumped the three of them.
For the first time, Xu Xiangyang was worried about what to do with two pounds of meat. He deeply felt that in this era, only food could make people think.
Finally, taking advantage of the darkness, Wang Xiumin tied a rope to the pork and threw it onto the roof of the shed.
The roof beams of the thatched house were bare, but to prevent rats from getting in, they were covered with rags and then buried with a thick layer of snow.
Once the meat is hidden, all that's left is the lard.
They didn't bring back much, just five catties, but they can render a good amount of oil from it. It'll be enough for them to eat for a while after Xu Xiangyang leaves after the New Year.
At this time, we didn't cook often, so a little oil could last a long time.
Wang Xiumin was a little worried. Refining oil was good, but the smell was too unpleasant to smell.
It's not that I'm afraid the neighbors will come and cause trouble, but I'm afraid other people will come.
You have to understand that back then, oil was something most people couldn't afford to buy. They would save up a few ounces of oil coupons and have to eat them for a whole year.
Want to buy lard for oil refining? No problem, you can't buy it there.
"Dog Egg, this lard is hard to buy. How did you manage to get it? And you even have meat coupons?" She turned her head and suddenly asked.
Xu Xiangyang was taken aback by the question, then said, "I just met a good brother who saw how pitiful I was from the countryside. His family runs a slaughterhouse, so they have plenty of this stuff. I'm just spending a little more money; they don't want the ticket."
Xu Xiangyang himself didn't believe this, but he had no better excuse, so he just hoped that no one would ask anymore.
Hearing this, Wang Xiumin looked at him suspiciously, "Are all the people in the city so stupid? They sell meat so casually."
"Why do you keep asking these questions? Wouldn't it be better to just sell you something?" Xu Guangtian interrupted her, then continued, "It's a good thing that the child is capable and willing to make his own way in the world. Why are you asking so many questions?"
He actually wanted to ask that question too, but then he thought about it and realized that it was all for the sake of the family, and the children had never been to the city.
I've heard that city people eat half of their food and then throw the other half away. If that's really true, who can say for sure?
Wang Xiumin rolled her eyes, but ultimately didn't ask any more questions.
Xu Guangtian is right. Even if they ask and find out, what can they do? They might even owe someone a favor.
The couple pondered how to refine the oil. Xu Xiangyang breathed a sigh of relief and quickly went to sit on the kang (a heated brick bed).
It's good to have a job here, since it's in the city and I know a lot of people.
But now he's unemployed, what should he do?
If his wife and son found out he lost his job, they would probably be very disappointed.
Xu Xiangyang sat on the kang (a heated brick bed), watching Wang Xiumin's busy figure, his face full of expectations for the future.
Even in the original owner's memories, she had never seen her with such an expression.
The family of three ate corn porridge and pickled vegetables for dinner. They had eaten quite a lot at noon, so they didn't eat much for dinner.
At this time, people usually eat two meals a day, since no one wants to waste food if they're not working.
In the Northeast, a vast and resource-rich land, people might be starving to death in other places, but not here.
At worst, they won't starve. There are all kinds of wild vegetables on the mountain. If they work hard, they can get enough food to eat all year round.
It was past midnight, and Xu Xiangyang still hadn't slept. The couple next to him were snoring so loudly that it was impossible for him to fall asleep.
Just then, the sound of crunching snow came from outside. Although it was very quiet, there were no other sounds at all in the middle of the night.
He was a little confused. Although everyone lived in the same big courtyard, they were separated by a fence. The distance between them was not so great that you could hear each other walking to the toilet from one side.
Therefore, Xu Xiangyang felt that someone was loitering around his house.
He got up and looked out the window. A dark figure was lurking around the house, trying to reach the roof.
Rooftop?
He suddenly remembered what he had hidden today. Could it be that someone else had seen it?
That's right.
When Xu Guangshan went to the toilet today, he saw Xu Guangtian jumping around in front of the house.
Upon closer inspection, it turned out that he was holding a huge piece of meat.
He saw the man throw the meat onto the roof beam and tie it with a rope.
But after wandering around for a long time, he still couldn't find the rope. It had been half an hour, and if he didn't go home soon, he would freeze to death.
Having no other option, Xu Guangshan had to return empty-handed, finding nothing this time.
But he remembered that piece of meat very clearly.
It's definitely pork belly; you can see a white layer even at night, so it must have a lot of fat.
Xu Xiangyang listened from inside the house as the person left. He glanced at the figure carefully and saw that it was heading towards Xu Guangshan's courtyard next door.
What is he here for?
I don't understand what's going on, so I'll just go to sleep for now.
He had been listening to the noises outside and had gotten sleepy.
The next morning, Xu Xiangyang got up to use the toilet and saw that there were no footprints left in the yard.
It's snowing outside, so you can't see anything.
Looking at the snowflakes falling from the sky, he turned to look at the other houses, where everyone had gotten up early to push snow and clear their yards.
The three households next door were no exception; it was their family that had just gotten up.
After using the restroom, Xu Xiangyang cleared the snow from the yard.
There's nothing he can do; what can he do when he's stuck with parents like that?
When Wang Xiumin got up and saw that the yard had been cleaned, she immediately went inside and slapped Xu Guangtian, who was sleeping.
"What time is it? Why aren't you up yet? Who's going to serve you?" She completely forgot that she had just gotten up herself.
Xu Guangtian was a little dazed by the camera. When he looked up and saw that his wife was angry, he quickly got up.
"What's wrong?" He scratched his head, completely clueless about what had happened.
Wang Xiumin rolled her eyes, feeling annoyed. "Gou Dan works so hard in the city, and he finally gets a holiday to come home, and instead of helping out, you make him do all the work? Can't you be more mindful?"
Xu Xiangyang is now the breadwinner for the family. She didn't think much of it before, but now she feels heartbroken whenever her child does chores.
After all, Xu Xiangyang used to do nothing, only moving when ordered around, and he never did any work at all.
Now that her child is older, she feels sorry for him doing even the simplest chores.
When Xu Guangtian heard her say that, he looked out the window and there Xu Xiangyang was indeed working.
“You’re right. Gou Dan works hard enough in the city. We can’t let him have it easy when he comes back. I’ll get up and get to work now, don’t worry.” He said as he quickly put on his clothes.
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