Chapter 63: Stir-fried Pork Liver. The third brother is a big mouth.
Everyone in the village knew about the Zong family's affairs, but no one expected that it would be brought up again after so long.
Especially now, a newly married daughter-in-law actually said such words directly to the elders in front of outsiders.
The Third Elder of the Zong clan nearly fainted from anger. He pointed at Qiu Xuan's nose and cursed, "Who do you think you are? You have no right to speak here."
After he finished speaking, he continued to scold Zong Xiao: "Look at the wife you married. How can she talk like that? Are you trying to piss me off to death? Your mother is short-sighted, and you are short-sighted too."
"He has a short vision, but you are blind." Qiu Xuan had long been fed up with these people. She now wished she could break up with them and never have any contact with them again.
"You!" Zong Lao San had never been humiliated like this, let alone lost face in front of everyone. He raised his hand and slapped Qiu Yun directly in the face.
There was no slapping.
Qiu Xuan raised her hand to stop him. She grabbed Zong Lao San's wrist with her left hand and pushed him back hard with her right hand.
Zong Lao San stumbled and almost fell to the ground.
"The relationship is over, so stop putting on airs in front of me. If you're shameless enough to come and scold me again, you'll be like Zong Lao Er, and you'll have to lie down on the kang."
Qiu Xuan turned around and looked at Zong Xiao. She didn't know whether the third brother had touched his wound when he attacked him just now.
Zong Lao San had never seen such a daughter-in-law before. He cursed, "Zong Xiao, you just watched your uncle being humiliated and watched your wife slap your uncle in the face like that, didn't you?"
Zong Xiao has always been an honest and decent person since he was a child. He doesn't like to talk to people. The villagers' impression of him is that he has a cold, scarred face and does nothing but hunting.
Now, after hearing his third uncle shouting like that, everyone stopped buying meat and just stared at the fun with their eyes wide open. They thought Zong Xiao would definitely protect his third uncle. After all, he was his real uncle, they all had the surname Zong, and they were a family.
But Zong Xiao took Qiu Yun's hand and pulled her to his side. His eyes were cold, without a trace of affection. "Third Uncle, you and I both know what happened in the past. We all pretended to be ignorant and didn't bring it up all those years ago. You also know why. Now that we're no longer related, don't come to my house and cause trouble. Why bother at your age?"
Everyone sighed.
Who could have imagined that such a person would say such outrageous words.
"Let's go home." Qiu Xuan didn't even look at Zong Lao San again, turned around and took the two of them away from Li the Butcher's house.
What was originally a happy day was ruined by Zong Lao San's actions, and Qiu Xuan was in a bad mood.
She didn't say a word along the way, just holding their hands and walking home.
"Don't be angry. We won't have any contact with them from now on." Zong Xiao was afraid that she was holding back her anger and had nowhere to vent it, so he said, "If you're angry, just tell me."
"Why should I be angry?" Qiu Yu asked angrily, "Do you think I did something wrong?"
Zong Xiao naturally didn't think so. He immediately said, "No, you did nothing wrong."
Qiu Xuan nodded in satisfaction, "I did nothing wrong, so there's no need to be angry. Let's go home and make you some pork liver."
Huaixue couldn't get a word in. She looked up and looked here and there, with a lot of questions in her mind but she didn't ask any questions.
However, as soon as she got home, she immediately ran into the house and told her grandmother everything that had happened.
She described it vividly and gestured with her hands, imitating how Zong Lao San pointed at them, scolded them and wanted to hit them.
"Did he hit you? Are you hurt?" The clan mother frowned, stood up suddenly and pulled Huaixue to her front to take a closer look.
"Grandma, I'm fine." Huaixue put her hands on her hips and continued, "At that time, Second Auntie descended from the sky like a fairy and stood directly in front of my Second Uncle, scolding Third Grandpa."
The clan mother breathed a sigh of relief. She took Huaixue into her arms and asked, "What happened next? Did your second uncle not refute or defend your second aunt, but just let your second aunt speak?"
"Of course my second uncle said that we won't have any contact with each other anymore, and he even held my second aunt's hand." Huaixue leaned on her grandmother's arms and asked innocently, "Grandma, do we have to stop associating with my second and third uncles' families in the future? Will I be unable to visit them anymore?"
Children always ask questions that adults don't know how to answer.
The clan mother rubbed her little face and asked, "What about Huaixue? Do you want to go to their house to play?"
"No." Huaixue is no longer the ignorant Huaixue from her childhood. At least now she can clearly sense who likes her more. "Grandma, Dazhuang always bullies me. I don't want to go to their house to play anymore. I want to be with Grandma and my aunts."
The Grandmother: "Okay. Then we won't go."
In fact, the mother of the clan has never completely let go of this matter. She said that day that she would break off the relationship with the second son of the clan, but it was just talk.
Now that this has happened, she thought she should find a day for the three families to talk it out and live their own lives without any further contact.
The kitchen was steaming hot.
Zong Anji was showing off his cooking skills to Yueyang. He had already fried half of the side dishes on the table. They looked good, but as for the taste, no one had tasted them yet.
Seeing Qiu Xuan come in, Yue Yang was the first to call out, "Sister-in-law, mother said you went to buy meat?"
Seeing that there was pig liver inside, Yueyang couldn't help but take a step back.
Her father was a butcher, and the family slaughtered pigs and sold meat every day. He would never let her eat things like offal, and she had never tasted pig liver.
Qiu Xuan pointed at two pig livers and said, "I've fried this one, and I'm thinking of braising this one. We'll be able to eat it tomorrow."
Qiu Xuan soaked the fresh pork liver in water. Since it was eaten directly, she did not use wood ash to clean it. Instead, she sprinkled a handful of flour, which was considered a great luxury.
Fortunately, this thing is not difficult to clean. Just add some vinegar and wash it a few times and it will be completely clean.
She cut the pork liver into slices and marinated it with seasonings. This step is crucial, otherwise the fishy smell cannot be suppressed.
"Sister-in-law, how do you fry this? I can do it." Zong Anji stood in front of the iron wok. The heat made him sweat all over, but he didn't care at all. After all, his wife was standing next to him watching.
Worried about his cooking skills, Qiu Yu said politely, "I'll do this. Your second brother wants to eat what I cook."
"Ouch." Zong Anji winked at his brother, his thoughts almost written on his face.
Zong Xiao knew this was an excuse, but his ears still turned red after hearing this.
The pork liver only needs to be marinated for a stick of incense, and the time passes by while a few people chat for a while.
Put the marinated pork liver into the pot with hot water and take it out quickly after a few seconds. It cooks quickly and will become tough if cooked for a long time.
"Is that all?"
"How can that be? It tastes better after being stir-fried." Qiu Xuan took the side dishes and seasonings handed to her by Yue Yang.
There were two pots in the kitchen, one was still boiling water, and the other had just been used to serve food.
Qiu Xuan asked Zong Anji to make way and walked over. She added cooking oil to the wok, added green onions and radishes, and when they were almost done, she put in the cooked pork liver.
Because it was to replenish Zong Xiao's qi and blood, Qiu Xuan did not put chili peppers in it. She only made some simple seasonings and finally cooked it over high heat until the sauce thickened.
This was the last dish of the lunch. Everyone sat down as soon as the dish was served.
There were ten dishes on the square wooden table, six of which were meat dishes. This was a scene that had never been seen in previous years and could only be seen once during a banquet.
The grandmother brought out Tusu wine and filled everyone's glasses: "Although tomorrow is the real New Year, for our family, today is the New Year."
"This year, our family is blessed to have you two married. I finally have no regrets." The clan mother smiled as she glanced at everyone and muttered, "Although we have separated, I hope you two brothers will always be of one mind and never follow the same path as your uncles."
"Won't."
"No."
The two brothers spoke at the same time, then smiled at each other.
"Mom also hopes that will never happen. Okay, okay, today is a good day. Let's not talk about this anymore. Come on, let's have a drink together. I just hope that we can live in peace and happiness in the coming year and continue to make money."
Perhaps because she had been drinking, the mother's eyes were wandering and she didn't notice Zong Xiao's abnormality.
But it was different for Liu Yueyang, who was sitting opposite Zong Xiao. She remembered that there was no left-handed person in her family, so why did her second brother suddenly eat with his left hand today?
But when she looked at Qiu Xuan, she saw that her face was calm, as if she had long been accustomed to this.
She suppressed her doubts and said nothing, waiting until after dinner to tell Zong Anji about it.
Yueyang was a little worried. After all, her second brother's family was kind and treated her well. She tugged at Zong Anji's sleeve and said, "Do you think my second brother is injured? I see his right hand hasn't moved much. Why don't you go ask him later?"
"Second brother eats with his left hand?" Zong Anji was surprised.
"You were sitting across from my second brother, how could you not have seen this?" Yue Yang patted his arm. "You should go and ask. It will put your mind at ease."
Yueyang is very smart. When she thought about the plate of tender pork liver at noon, she had a vague guess in her mind.
She stood on tiptoe and whispered a few words into Zong Anji's ear.
"No way?!" Zong Anji widened his eyes, somewhat unable to believe it.
"You'll know when you go there. Go quickly." Yueyang pushed him out of the house.
After dinner, Qiu Xuan and his wife returned home.
Nowadays, there is nothing to do at home in winter, so they will take a nap when they have time. As soon as they got home, Qiu Xuan had already made the kang and was just waiting to go up and rest after applying the medicine to Zong Xiao.
"Take off your clothes quickly so I can take a closer look. Don't let your blind uncle touch your wound." Seeing that he was clumsy, Qiu Yu took over herself.
Her hands were warm, and when she placed them on Zong Xiao, he couldn't help but shudder.
"Does it hurt?" Qiu Xuan instantly slowed down her movements. She lifted the gauze and saw blood on it, and her brows furrowed.
Bleeding is still oozing out. If this continues, when will the wound heal?
Qiu Xuan gently wiped his wound, and after disinfecting it, she sprinkled medicinal powder on him. This step was the most painful, and cold sweat broke out on Zong Xiao's forehead.
"Don't move around these few days. Stay at home and take good care of yourself. If you really can't make it, I'll tell mom and I won't be there for dinner these few days."
Qiu Xuan cut the gauze, and just as she was about to wrap it up, the door was suddenly pushed open from outside.
This was not the first time this happened. Qiu Xuan secretly vowed to lock the gate next time.
"Second brother." Zong Anji's voice was trembling. He didn't believe it at first. His second brother was such a powerful man and had never been injured when hunting in the mountains.
But after hearing Yue Yang's words, he was very worried, and then the silent voice came.
The gate to the yard was not locked, so he could just push it open and come in. When he reached the house, he heard conversation inside before he could call anyone.
He couldn't eavesdrop any longer, so he pushed the door open.
The black and red wound reflected in his eyes, and Zong Anji, a man as old as him, burst into tears instantly.
"Second brother, how did you get hurt? Why didn't you tell me that you were injured so badly?" Zong Anji rushed to Zong Xiao's side, but considering the injury on his shoulder, he didn't reach out to hug him.
Zong Xiao sighed, he had wanted to hide it but failed to do so.
He raised his hand and patted Zong Anji on the head, "I'm fine, this injury will heal in a few days."
"You're lying! How can such a big wound heal?" Zong Anji felt horrified. If such a wound were to happen to him, he would definitely not be able to bear it, but his second brother said nothing...
If he didn't wrap it up, he would have to apply the medicine again. Qiu Xuan said, "I'll fix it for him first. You two brothers can talk later if you have anything to say."
She moved skillfully and finally tied Zong Xiao's underwear.
"Mom, don't you know either?" Zong Anji wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and asked.
Zong Xiao nodded.
"You are my biological brother. How could you hide such a big thing from us? You are my only brother!"
Zong Anji sat down on the ground with his head resting on Zong Xiao's legs. He spoke with a wronged tone, just like when he was a child.
"Second brother, why did you hide this from me? Am I not your biological brother? I swear I won't be like my second uncle and third uncle. If I do, I will be struck by lightning."
"Shut up." Zong Xiao frowned. "How can you say such things? You are my brother, and you will always be my brother. I didn't tell you about my injury because I was afraid you would worry. It's almost Chinese New Year."
Qiu Xuan came out of the house and quickly brought back a bowl of black medicine.
Zong Anji saw it and sniffed, "I was wondering why I could smell medicine these days..."
"Don't tell mother about this. This injury will heal in a few days. I will tell mother when it is almost healed." Zong Xiao knew that his third brother was a big mouth and could not hide anything.
"Then can I tell Yueyang?" Zong Anji asked tentatively.
Qiu Xuan rubbed her brows and answered for Zong Xiao, "Okay, but besides Yue Yang, you can't tell anyone else."
"Okay. I won't tell you."
Zong Anji wiped his face clean and returned home reluctantly.
Unexpectedly, as soon as I entered the yard, I ran into Huaixue who had skipped her nap and sneaked out to play.
"Uncle San, why are you crying?" Huai Xue's voice was so loud that Zong Anji was so scared that he quickly stepped forward and covered her mouth.
"Little ancestor, please keep your voice down and don't wake up your grandma."
Huaixue was puzzled. "Okay, but why are you crying even though you're already so grown up, Uncle San?"
"I..." Zong Anji looked around and saw that his mother was still awake. He breathed a sigh of relief. He squatted down and said to Huaixue face to face, "If Third Uncle tells you something, you must not tell your grandma."
"Okay!" Huaixue nodded obediently, "Uncle San, you can tell me. I promise not to tell anyone."
Zong Anji came forward and whispered, "Your second uncle was bitten by a wolf."
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