Jiang's mother took down a piece of braised meat and handed it to Li Taohua: "Taohua, try it and see how it tastes."
Er Ya nervously watched Li Taohua, wondering what her reaction would be. Although she kept saying that this product would sell well, she was still a little unsure. After all, everyone's tastes are different, and she didn't know if someone else would find something delicious to her.
Li Taohua took the piece of fatty intestine, took a bite, and found it to be fragrant and delicious, rich but not greasy. After chewing a few times, she found it tender and refreshing, leaving a lingering fragrance on her lips and teeth. This was so delicious! Was it really just the pig offal that had been washed? It was so good!
Er Ya could tell from Li Taohua's expression that the taste was definitely right. That meant it was a good product. If this was taken out to sell, people would line up with money to buy it.
"Sister-in-law, this really is made from pig offal! It's so delicious!"
Jiang's mother smiled and said, "How could it be fake? If you think it's delicious, take some back with you later and let Gou Dan try it too."
Li Taohua said embarrassedly, "How can that be? This is all money you make. Look, we still need to use wheat flour. The food I just ate was spicy, so we'll definitely need a lot of chili peppers. These are all precious things."
Jiang's mother filled a bowl and insisted on giving it to Li Taohua, saying, "Look, we're all neighbors, why are you being so polite with me? Take this home for your child." She then counted out two mao (0.2 yuan) from her pocket and gave it to Li Taohua as well.
Li Taohua accepted the gifts, deeply moved. Ever since her mother-in-law became paralyzed, she had been on medication every day, and the medical expenses had left her with a mountain of debt. People in the village avoided her like the plague, afraid of having to borrow money from her. But her sister-in-law was so kind; she not only helped her with chores but also didn't look down on her.
Jiang's mother was most afraid of seeing that look in other people's eyes, so she quickly pushed Li Taohua out: "Alright, you've been out for half a day, hurry home and see my aunt, let them try this while it's hot, and I'll call you again next time there's work to be done."
After seeing Li Taohua off, Jiang's mother called Er Ya over and asked what to do next, and what the purpose was of having Lin Jianguo whittle so many bamboo sticks.
Er Ya, who was feeding the pigs, heard Jiang's mother call her, put down the basin and came over. She cautiously looked at the door and asked, "Mother, has Aunt Peach Blossom left?"
Looking at her daughter's expression, Jiang's mother laughed until her stomach hurt: "Your aunt isn't a wolf or a beast, why are you so afraid of her?"
Er Ya was relieved when Li Taohua left: "It's not that I'm afraid of her, it's just that she's always too enthusiastic, and I can't handle it."
"You little rascal, your Aunt Peach Blossom likes you, isn't that enough? Now that the meat is ready, you can tell me how to skewer it. Once it's done, take it to the market and see how it goes. I'll braise this whole pot at home while it's still in the pot."
Er Ya responded and took out the bamboo sticks that Lin Jianguo had shaved. The weather had been good these past two days, so she had washed and dried the bamboo sticks early in the morning to disinfect them. She then asked Jiang's mother to cut the braised meat into chunks and put six chunks on each skewer.
Two sets of pig offal, pig heart, pig liver, and large intestine were boiled and then shrunk. About a hundred skewers were made. The skewered braised meat was put into the prepared chili sauce and soaked in the broth for about two hours.
After discussing the price with Jiang's mother, we finally decided on one cent per skewer. Actually, the profit wasn't very high, since we spent a lot on materials and such. Fortunately, the braising liquid could be reused. Jiang's mother said that the older the braising liquid, the better it tastes, and the more fragrant the braised meat becomes.
They found a basket, carefully placed the bowl of meat inside, covered it with a cloth, and then Lin Jianguo and Er Ya prepared to go to the market. It was already noon, and each of them took a flatbread and ate the freshly braised meat with relish. Old Man Lin, drooling, kept turning around to see what they were eating and kept swallowing his saliva.
Er Ya noticed that Old Man Lin's eyes kept darting between the meat in his hand and the meat in his hand, so she tore off a piece of fatty intestine and handed it to him. Old Man Lin took a bite and found it to be fresh, fragrant, spicy, and delicious. He felt like he hadn't even tasted the flavor of the intestine before it was gone.
Not wanting to ask the little girl for lunch again, Old Man Lin could only suppress his cravings and try to concentrate on driving, though the aroma still wafted into his nose from time to time...
After arriving at the market, Lin Jianguo took Er Ya to the stall where they were selling things, paid a stall fee, and took out the braised meat from the basket. The spicy aroma attracted an old man of about forty or fifty years old who was selling cabbage next to them.
It turned out to be a little girl of about four or five years old, and next to her was probably her father, who looked to be in his twenties. He went up and looked at the braised meat in the basin, which was covered with a thick layer of chili oil, and the smell was coming from there.
He asked Er Ya, "Little girl, what is this? It tastes pretty good."
Seeing that someone had come to ask questions as soon as she arrived, Er Ya quickly and diligently used a small knife to cut a piece of pig liver into small pieces, skewered it with a bamboo stick, and handed it to the old man:
"Grandpa, try this. This is braised meat made by my mother. It's a secret recipe passed down from our ancestors. In the past, this was exclusively for the emperor."
The old man took it, put it in his mouth and chewed it, his eyes lit up: "How much are these? Give me a skewer of the kind you just gave me."
"Grandpa, what I just got for you is called pig liver. It's good for your health. Some people are anemic, and eating this will immediately help them recover. It's all one cent a skewer here, which is a great deal. Look, it's all meat on it."
The old man thought to himself, "It's just a dime. I just sold some vegetables, so I might as well use it to buy the pig liver the little girl mentioned." He handed Er Ya a dime.
Because some people have different tastes, Er Ya makes different kinds of skewers, some are skewered individually, while others are skewered with pig liver and pig heart, so that some people can try different things on one skewer.
She took the money and put it into the small handbag that Jiang's mother had specially made for her. She picked out a skewer of pig liver and handed it to him: "Grandpa, here you go. I guarantee you won't regret spending this penny. If you like it, buy a few more skewers later so that your grandma and aunts can all have a taste."
They divided the braised meat into small pieces. Luckily, they had brought extra bamboo sticks with them. Holding the plates, they called out, "Come and see! Free meat! Grandpas, grandmas, uncles, and aunts are welcome to come and try it. It's free to taste, but there aren't many left!"
Upon hearing that there was free meat to eat, about ten people crowded over, each grabbing a bamboo stick and starting to eat. One woman, not satisfied with just one piece, was about to fork another piece with her stick while there were many people around when the sharp-eyed Er Ya spotted her and said with a smile, "Auntie, is our braised meat delicious?"
To be continued!
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