Chapter 259 How about a bowl of lard rice while it’s hot?
On the tenth day after Sang Zhixia returned to Luobei Village peacefully, Uncle Xu, who had been out of seclusion for nearly five months, finally stepped into his home on the melting winter snow.
"It's not that I don't want to come back, it's just that I really don't dare to move for the time being."
Uncle Xu, still covered in dust, smiled wryly under Aunt Xu's angry gaze, "There's really nothing we can do."
"There's famine inside the Great Wall, and the situation outside is also dire."
"This winter has been incredibly harsh. Many people outside the Great Wall have had their cattle and sheep frozen to death. In previous years, we could exchange food and salt with people inside the Great Wall to get us through to spring, but this year, people inside the Great Wall are starving to death in droves. Where is the food left to trade with them?"
Uncle Xu sat by the charcoal brazier, rubbing his hands vigorously. Thinking of what he had seen along the way, he couldn't help but sigh: "Frozen cattle and sheep, people who died of starvation and freezing were all over the road. If it weren't for..."
"Hmm."
"People inside and outside the pass were trapped and didn't know how to survive. They were almost going crazy. The hungry people on the road rushed up to the passing carriages and horses without caring about anything and started smashing and looting. There was no morality at all, and no one could stop them. In this situation, I really didn't dare to move."
Hide in one place and save your life. You can worry about other things later.
After hearing Uncle Xu talk about how he had spent the past few months outside the Great Wall, Aunt Xu felt her heart pounding and her eyes turned red.
Aunt Xu said angrily, "I told you not to go, but you insisted on going!"
"You've suffered so much since your last trip. Let's see if you dare to ask for permission to leave again!"
"Come out! Why don't you come out?"
Uncle Xu said without hesitation: "Our wine is good stuff after it passes through the customs. The silver outside the customs is just like spilled on the ground waiting for me to pick up. Of course I have to go and make money!"
"Even in this situation, you're still only thinking about making money?!"
“If you don’t make money, what do you do?”
Uncle Xu blinked in confusion and asked, "Isn't the purpose of opening a winery to make money?"
"This is a lot of money, Madam, are you still unhappy?"
"you……"
"Uncle San just came back, why are you so anxious about the next time he leaves?"
Seeing that the situation was not right, Sang Zhixia interjected at the right time and nudged Xu Yu with her elbow.
Without even looking up, Xu Yu said, "It's not convenient for me to go out these days."
"Uncle San just came back and doesn't know yet, but the imperial envoy has arrived from the Northwest Camp and may not leave for the time being. It's better for our family to stay out of the house for the time being."
Although Chen Nianhe helped to cover it up, it would not be justifiable if the mistake was made by someone from the Xu family.
Uncle Xu hummed and sighed, "Even if he wants to go out and sell wine again, it can't be at this critical moment."
We can’t even afford enough food to survive, so where would we get the extra grain to make wine?
Even if it is brewed, not many people can afford it.
However, what he saw during this trip gave Uncle Xu a different inspiration.
He said, "Apart from wine, salt, tea, and cloth, these are all rare items outside the Great Wall that are hard to buy with silver."
"Salt permits are hot stuff and can't be touched. But other things are not so worrying. When the chaos dies down in the spring, I will collect these things and send them out to test the waters."
In short, once the goods leave the border, the price will double immediately.
Those guarding the border are all from the Northwest Camp. With the relationship established between Sang Zhixia and Chen Nianhe, no accidents will happen.
Uncle Xu rubbed his hands eagerly and talked about his next plan.
When he had almost finished speaking, Sang Zhixia said cautiously, "Uncle San, it's okay to have a small fight, but if you're determined to expand your business, you should first inform General Chen."
Let each other know and leave a safe space.
Chen Nianhe made things very convenient for the caravan formed by Uncle Xu Sanshu, so of course he had to show some appreciation for the caravan's earnings.
To put it in a more sophisticated way, it is mutual benefit.
To put it more bluntly, it is collusion between officials and businessmen.
Chen Nianhe was not a person who cared about the breeze and the bright moon.
When it comes to making money, it's a good thing for everyone. No one has the right to throw away the benefits that come to your door.
Uncle Xu guessed what Sang Zhixia meant as soon as he heard it, and said with a smile, "Don't worry, I thought of this a long time ago."
"It's just that I can't communicate with Chen Nianhe. In the end, I'm afraid I'll have to go through you, girl, to talk to you."
Chen Nianhe was arrogant. Except for restraining a little bit of his arrogance in front of the old man, he looked down upon anyone from the Xu family.
The only one who could retain some face in front of Chen Nianhe was Sang Zhixia.
Sang Zhixia couldn't help but smile and nodded.
Uncle Xu San added to Xu Yu with a worried look on his face: "Don't get too close to Chen Nianhe. Watch your legs."
Xu Yu hadn't expected this to even concern him. He frowned and silently pulled Sang Zhixia over: "Didn't you say yesterday that you wanted to try some handmade soap? We've got the lard ready. Shall we go now?"
"Yes, yes, yes, if Xu Yu hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten about it!"
Aunt Xu had been interested in handmade soap a few months ago. She slapped her thigh and stood up, saying excitedly, "The molds have been made a long time ago, and we're just waiting to try them out."
"Since we have nothing to do these few days, let's go and give it a try!"
No one had ever heard of using lard to make soap before Sang Zhixia mentioned it.
Looking at the white pig fat on the chopping board, Xu Wenxiu couldn't help but hesitate and said, "It's so greasy. Won't the food made from it also be greasy?"
What does it feel like to touch the greasy thing?
Aunt Xu was also nervous, but she thought Sang Zhixia never spoke empty words, so she rolled up her sleeves and said, "It's not a big deal, we can just give it a try."
If it really doesn't work, it's just a matter of hanging some lard.
This loss is a minor issue.
Xu Wenxiu held her forehead with her hands, feeling both amused and helpless, and said okay.
Xu Mingyang carefully dug up the ashes from the freshly burned wood on the ground with a stick, turned around and called out, "Sister-in-law! Do you think this is okay?"
Sang Zhixia leaned over and took a look: "Yanran, bring the basin."
“Here it comes!”
"Hot water is coming too!"
Xu Yanran placed the wooden basin on the ground, and Sang Zhixia shoveled the still warm wood ash from the ground into the basin. Second Aunt Xu, who had already learned the whole process, picked up the kettle and slowly poured the water down.
Sang Zhixia said as she stirred, "Don't pour the water too quickly, or the food will be ruined."
"Add hot water and stir until it becomes like porridge, then..."
"Gauze, gauze, this is the gauze you wanted."
Xu Wenxiu, holding the gauze and ready to go, immediately covered the mouth of the basin with the gauze, and waited for Sang Zhixia and Aunt Xu to grab the two ends of the gauze, pick up the wooden basin and slowly pour it down.
The wood ash water filtered three times through gauze is black and has a unique rice aroma.
Sang Zhixia clapped her hands and said, "Let the wood ash water settle for a while. Once the lard is fried, we can move on to the next step."
Xu Yu had been busy cutting pork fat without saying a word. After Sang Zhixia gave the next instruction, he silently put down the kitchen knife, turned around and picked up the spatula.
The hot pot bottom collides with the snow-white lard, instantly emitting a strong aroma.
Xu Yu turned around amidst the sniffling little ones and asked seriously, "Zhizhi, do you want your oil residue saltier or lighter?"
"How about a bowl of lard rice while it's still hot?"
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