Reserve the old dough, pour the remaining dough onto the work surface, and knead it vigorously to evenly combine the fermented dough and the thin dough.
Once the dough is smooth, sprinkle a thin layer of flour on the bottom, cover the dough with a bowl, and let it rise again.
At this point, add the marinated minced meat to the chopped green onions and vegetable filling in batches, and stir well with chopsticks.
The large-leaf celery itself has a special aroma, and when mixed with seasonings, minced meat, chopped green onions, etc., the room is immediately filled with a fresh and fragrant smell.
Zhang Shuzhen originally intended to steam buns, but the dough had risen a lot. If she were to change it to steamed dumplings, she would probably have to steam several batches.
Zhang Shuzhen glanced at the wall clock; it was almost four o'clock.
School ends at 4:30, and if you add in the cleaning duties, it'll probably be almost 5:00 before those kids get home.
Forget it, I'll just start wrapping them myself. I can do it slowly by myself, and I can lend a hand when the other three finish their work outside.
And so, Zhang Shuzhen cut a piece of dough, kneaded it into a long strip, then cut it into small pieces, and rolled out the wrappers and filled them all by herself.
The dough made from two types of flour is not as elastic as pure white flour, so it cannot be used to make round buns with too many pleats. Therefore, Zhang Shuzhen still shaped them into long buns, just like making dumplings.
Zhang Shuzhen was quick and efficient, and since the buns were large, she produced a full tray of buns in no time.
Zhang Shuzhen was making dumplings inside the house, while Sheng Xiping and his two younger brothers were dividing the meat in the basin and delivering some to several families they knew in the forest farm.
With the weather getting warmer, Sheng Xinhua has become restless and can't stay at home. As soon as his father is about to go out, the little guy insists on following him.
Sheng Xiping looked at the situation and wondered what to do. He decided to lead the way.
And so, carrying the meat in one hand and leading Sheng Xinhua with the other, Sheng Xiping first went to Wang Jiachuan's house, and then to Li Zhenggang's house, delivering three or four catties of meat to both families.
During the busy season, each family sends one person up the mountain to cook and knead cow hair.
Even Wang Jiachuan was no exception; he led his two sons into the mountains to gather cattle hair and increase their income.
Sheng Xiping left the meat for Wang Jiachuan and Li Zhenggang's wives, then led Sheng Xinhua home, carrying another seven or eight jin of meat. They left home and headed west to the Liu family's house in Dajianchang.
The road is long, and Xiao Xinhua gets tired after walking for a while.
There was no other way, so Sheng Xiping carried his son in one arm and the meat in the other, the two of them chatting as they walked, which made Xiao Xin very happy.
The Liu family's situation was similar. Liu Changde went up the mountain with Liu Yujiang and Liu Yuhe, while Qin Qiuyan and her two wives were collecting half-dried cowhair.
Liu Yujiang's third child is almost one year old, and Liu Yuhe's wife also gave birth to a baby boy after the New Year. He's not even three months old yet, and they both need constant care.
So no matter how anxious the two wives were, they couldn't go up the mountain.
When Qin Qiuyan saw Sheng Xiping and his son arrive, she was quite surprised. "How come you have time to come over during this busy season?"
"Oh, little Xinhua, come here and let Grandma give you a hug."
Qin Qiuyan was overjoyed to see Sheng Xinhua and quickly took the child and held him in her arms.
Sheng Xinhua was not afraid at all when Qin Qiuyan held him in her arms. Instead, he hugged Qin Qiuyan's neck and affectionately called her "Grandma".
Qin Qiuyan was overjoyed and kissed Sheng Xinhua on the cheek several times.
"Come on, come inside, Grandma will give you some candy."
"Xiping, come inside, let's talk inside. Eldest daughter-in-law, quickly boil some water and make tea for Xiping."
"Master's wife, don't bother. Sister-in-law, don't listen to what my master's wife says. Why boil water? I'm not thirsty."
Upon hearing this, Sheng Xiping quickly stopped Liu Yujiang's wife.
"I was digging salt pits and catching fish on the mountain a couple of days ago. Today I went for a walk and caught a deer. I also ran into two black bears. Perfect timing, I'll bring some home."
Everyone's busy right now, and working is tiring, so we should eat some meat to replenish our energy." Sheng Xiping raised his hand and handed the two pieces of meat he was carrying to Liu Yujiang's wife.
"Oh, you've run into a black bear? You'd better be careful." Qin Qiuyan was startled when she heard this.
For these veteran hunters, encountering a black bear in the mountains was an extremely dangerous thing.
Back then, they used old-fashioned cannons, the kind that loaded gunpowder and fired lead bullets. After firing one shot, they had to reload the gunpowder and bullets, which was a lot of work.
Moreover, the old-fashioned cannons were not powerful enough to deal with the thick-skinned bears. If things went wrong, the bears would kick them.
So back then, when hunting, several gunners would go into the mountains together and take turns firing so that they would have time to reload their guns.
"Yeah, I'm with the dog and carrying a five-six-half bag, it's fine." Sheng Xiping knew that his teacher's wife was concerned about him, so he explained.
"Yeah, you know what, the guns we use now are so much better than the ones we had back then."
With its long range, high lethality, and ability to fire in bursts, hunting is no wonder it's so easy these days. The gun is just right.
"Sigh, I just don't know how many prey animals will be left in the mountains in a few years if things continue like this?"
Qin Qiuyan nodded upon hearing this, and couldn't help but sigh as she recalled the days when she and her husband dominated the mountains and forests.
The older generation of hunters had many rules when going into the mountains, such as not hunting in spring and summer, not hunting females, not hunting those with cubs, and so on.
Hunting was not the goal, but a way to make a living in those days. It was a necessary means to support one's family. Back then, hunting was a profession.
So many rules have been passed down from generation to generation for the sake of long-term development.
Nowadays, people don't care about those things anymore, and with the development of guns, they have indeed posed a certain threat to wild animals in the mountains and forests.
“Master’s wife, if that day ever comes, the government will take care of it.”
The main problem is that ordinary people like us are struggling to make ends meet, and in order to eat, we have no choice but to risk our lives in the mountains.
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