Chapter 12: Braised Pork with Preserved Vegetables is really worth the money!
It took six or seven miles to walk from Tianqing Temple to Changmen, but Wei Jinyun was in a good mood and walked at a relaxed pace, arriving much faster than the day before.
Since she had invested manpower and material resources to "rebuild" the wall for the Zhang family, if someone actually knew that her land had been occupied in the future, they would have no way to deal with her.
Could it be that there will be a commotion out of thin air?
Wouldn't that be like the thief crying "stop thief"? If the situation gets out of hand and the land deed is shown to everyone, it turns out that the property was simply returned to the original owner, and then his family will have no way to explain themselves.
I could only swallow my anger. In the past, I would thank her when I saw her because she helped me repair the wall.
When she arrived at Caoshi, she was in no hurry to buy things or cut pork belly. Instead, she took a stroll around Wangji Carpenter Shop first.
As soon as I walked in, I was greeted by the delicate fragrance of wood. Carpenter Wang was half-bent over, squatting on the ground, concentrating on hammering away at her small, almost finished cart.
In just two or three days, her cart had taken shape, with wood chips and shavings piled all over the ground.
"Shopkeeper Wang's business is booming."
Wei Jinyun exclaimed happily, "You are worthy of your reputation in the carpentry and stonemasonry industry. It has only been a short time, and you have already completed the work so quickly!"
Carpenter Wang looked up at the voice. He felt so relieved by the praise that even the wrinkles on his face smiled with him. "Madam Wei is here. Come and see if I did it right. It's a bit strange and embarrassing to say this, but I saw that your drawings were novel, so I started working on this car first. But don't worry, the tables, chairs, and steamers you ordered will be ready before delivery."
After he finished speaking, he yawned twice, and there were bloodshot eyes.
Carpenters like him usually receive about the same amount of work every day. Now that he had received a new blueprint, he devoted himself to studying it, not even having time to eat a few bites.
Wei Jinyun walked around the cart, carefully checking its frame position, especially the space underneath for the clay stove, and tried the height and grip of the push handle, and was very satisfied.
"Shopkeeper Wang's craftsmanship is truly amazing. This cart is even better than I imagined."
She couldn't help but praise him. To do woodworking, one must be a professional and experienced craftsman.
"Don't worry, Madam Wei. I used solid materials, so it's guaranteed to be stable when pushed. I also added a three-inch high wooden block on top. Even if someone accidentally bumps into it in our market, the things on the table won't fall off."
Carpenter Wang patted the thick tabletop with some pride.
"I don't do business in the Grass Market."
Wei Jinyun stared at the wooden block and nodded with satisfaction. "Please, Manager Wang, carve some simple patterns on the visible part of my countertop."
Carpenter Wang became interested and asked, "What kind of flowers would you like to carve, Madam Wei?"
"It doesn't have to be too complicated, just some simple patterns. For example, bamboo leaves, orchids, autumn chrysanthemums, and winter plums. The lines should be smooth and recognizable at a glance... The main thing is to make this cart look more lively."
She wanted to make pastries, but she didn't go to Caoshi. She focused on selling at a low price but high volume, and she didn't want to follow Xu Ji's scenic spot effect of "travel to Pingjiang Prefecture and take a bag of special pastries home to try."
She didn't have that much strength, and she had to take care of her grandmother and sisters in the shop. She couldn't handle going back and forth to Caoshi every day, and she couldn't compete with the century-old heritage of "Xu Ji".
It is not spring now, so it is not the flower viewing season in Pingjiang Prefecture. However, when the weather gets hot, Buddhist temples, Taoist temples, gardens, and other places are covered with lush ancient trees and the environment is quiet, and tea parties for literati are held one after another.
Since it was going to be opened in front of Tianqing Temple in the future, the pastries had to be exquisite and targeted at scholars to increase its popularity.
She has already thought of a good location for the audience...
"Yes, yes, let alone these things, even if you teach me to carve peonies, I will carve them for you."
After making so many tables, chairs and benches, he likes to challenge himself with more difficult tasks.
The three large steamers have been completely woven, stacked together, and placed on the counter at the entrance of Wangji Carpentry Shop.
Wei Jinyun reached out and felt around, and sure enough, he didn't find any burrs at all.
"Shopkeeper Wang, I'll take a steamer first."
Wei Jinyun thought for a moment and paid a hundred coins separately. "Madam Wang is truly a skilled hand. If it's convenient, please ask her to weave six small and exquisite bamboo food boxes, four bamboo baskets, and twenty palm-sized lace bamboo bowls for me... This will be paid separately. Madam Wang is not here right now, so if it's not enough, I'll make up for it when I come to pick it up in two days."
Most people who bought woven bamboo backpacks bought them ready-made, paying only a few cents more. Lady Wang, with her deft hands, could grind the bamboo strips well and weave them meticulously, but her business was far less successful than her husband's.
It only took two days to finish making the big steamer, and the remaining three small ones would take an afternoon. Now I have free time, so I went out to buy some groceries.
When Carpenter Wang heard she was looking for a helper for his wife, he was even more delighted and readily agreed, "You can come back in two days to pick up your cart! She has all the bamboo strips ready-made, and she's an expert at weaving these. I guarantee she'll make it exquisite and durable for you!"
He carefully collected the money for his wife, thanked her profusely, and went to look for a carving knife, chisel, and hammer.
After leaving the carpenter and stonemason's shop, Wei Jinyun went to the bridgehead to buy some second-hand small cabinets, picked out some exquisite flower plates from the pottery stall, and asked for some free broken porcelain pieces.
The vendor had no idea and gave her a lot of it. These days, there are still people who want broken porcelain pieces. What are they going to do with them?
When she got off the bridge, she saw someone shouting and selling bags.
Recruitment bags, knapsacks, hiking gear...backpacks, shoulder bags, everything you need, buy three get one free.
The patterns on it are intricately embroidered, even with buckles, and decorated with tassels woven from rattan.
She gritted her teeth and paid the 180 cents on the spot.
Finally, she cut the pork belly, made some Fenjiu, bought some seasonings, and collected two baskets of jasmine from the vendor.
The man carrying the load was overjoyed and immediately put Wei Jinyun's small cabinet on the stretcher and carried it away.
When she returned to the shop, her two sisters were sitting at the door waiting for her again.
Wei Fuling sat on a stool, bored, watching the ants move, her skirt half drooping to the ground. Wei Fuqiu played with a bamboo dragonfly, occasionally glancing toward the intersection.
Seeing Wei Jinyun arrive, the two of them quickly ran down the stone steps at the door, holding up their skirts.
They prepared tea for her, and each of them held a small palm-leaf fan. They surrounded Wei Jinyun and fanned her with their arms, making the wind rustle.
Like an artificial electric fan.
The two of them helped Wei Jinyun unload the goods from the basket on his back.
Wei Fuling was sharp-eyed and immediately spotted two cloth bags of the same style but different colors. The straps were thin and soft, just enough to go around her shoulders.
"One for each of you. Sister bought it for both of you."
"It's a shoulder bag!"
She reached into her bag and fumbled around, then pulled out a freshly picked up pebble and stuffed it in, shaking it. "Sister, this can hold a lot of little things. I'll put the dragonfly and cricket that Grandpa Li gave me, as well as my own dolls, in here. It'll definitely be convenient for me to carry this with me when I go out with Meng Ge'er."
She smiled with her face tilted up, tugging at Wei Jinyun's sleeve and shaking it left and right, "Sister is so nice."
Wei Fuqiu took it and gently draped it over her shoulder, letting it fall just below her waist. She held the bag up to her face, examined it, and zipped up the cloth buckle.
"very beautiful."
She whispered, and when she raised her eyes, her gaze paused on Wei Jinyun's face, then quickly lowered her head, her hands subconsciously clutching the straps, and she whispered, "Thank you, sister."
"It would look even better if grandma embroidered a sparrow and a butterfly on it."
Wei Jinyun rubbed the furry heads of her two sisters who were hiding in her arms.
This is money well spent!
Xiao Zhang and Erniu first built the wall between Zhang and Wei's families today. Naturally, the sooner this work was finished, the better, as Zhang Renbai's parents might suddenly come back at any time.
The wall was now mostly built, much higher than before. Wei Jinyun dumped the broken porcelain pieces in the yard, and asked them to mix the sharp pieces with mud and spread them on the wall after they finished building the wall.
“It does need to be paved.”
Xiao Zhang glanced at the porcelain pieces while laying bricks. "After all, Miss Wei's family is full of children and women, so this is better."
Even Meng Ge'er could easily scale the original wall surrounding Wei Jinyun's house. Now that the four of them had moved in, she had to be more careful about preventing thieves and thefts.
Even though she had heard the young man brag about how peaceful Pingjiang Prefecture was when she first arrived, she felt safe leaving the doors unlocked at night with Lord Lu around.
Lord Lu is not a spider with eight legs. How can he take care of a small family like theirs? He doesn't even have enough time to patrol a few city gates every day.
Wang Qiulan was sitting on a stool, smiling as Wei Fuqiu helped her thread the needle, and Wei Fuling stood beside her cracking walnuts for her.
Her granddaughters were obedient and well-behaved. Not only were there sparrows and butterflies, but she would also embroider them all on her double-sided embroidery.
Wei Jinyun put the two baskets of jasmine in a cool place and turned to deal with the pork belly he had bought.
The preserved vegetables were a gift from her great-aunt, and they had been soaked before she left. She fished them out, drained them, chopped them into small pieces, and placed them in a bamboo basket to drain.
The pork belly should be blanched with the green onion and ginger in cold water to avoid the pork smell.
When the water boiled, she scooped out the blood foam and scallions and ginger, then put the pot back into the pot to boil some sugar color. Now she fried the meat again in the sugar water, added a bowl of rice wine and soy milk, smashed the scallions and ginger, added water and let it simmer slowly.
While the meat was stewing, she stir-fried eggplant, beans and amaranth, and mixed them with pickled cucumbers.
The meat cooked quickly under the high heat of the clay pot. Wei Jinyun poked it with chopsticks, fished out two strips of pork belly and sliced them. The blade of the knife made a "dong dong" sound on the chopping board, and the pork belly was cut into half thick slices, skin-side down, and stacked with salted preserved vegetables.
When the rice in the steamer is cooked, the meat on top is also done. The juices from the meat seep into the rice during steaming, making it oily.
The two sisters helped to serve the dishes. Wei Jinyun took a plate and turned the bowl upside down on it. With a flip of her wrist, the neatly arranged pork with preserved vegetables appeared.
"I need to eat my fill today."
Xiao Zhang picked up his chopsticks before Erniu, "Hold it in!"
The thinly sliced pork belly is crystal clear, with wrinkled skin that sways easily when picked up with chopsticks.
The first thing you put in your mouth is that it almost melts on your tongue, so soft and glutinous that you don't even need to chew it. Although it looks shiny, the fat has already been steamed, leaving it rich but not greasy, with a dense fragrance.
Preserved vegetables are really more delicious than meat. They absorb enough soup and when mixed with rice, they have just the right sweet and salty taste and are very oily.
The eggplant and beans are fresh and tender, the purple juice of the amaranth seeps out and dyes the rice, and the sour cucumber is crunchy.
"I can't help it, it's too fragrant, this is divine meat."
While Xiao Zhang was taking a sip of Fenjiu, when he opened his eyes, Erniu had already gulped down a large bowl of liquor.
"What Erniu? You are a wild bull! Cows need to eat more grass."
Wei Fuling was giggling beside her, and even Wei Fuqiu, who didn't like fatty meat, ate two more pieces.
After eating the meat and Fenjiu, people will naturally work harder.
"My sister bought a lot of jasmine flowers."
After the two sisters took a nap, they sat beside Wei Jinyun and took care of Jasmine for her obediently. "So much tea, wouldn't it be fragrant all summer after drinking it?"
"That's more than that."
Wei Jinyun threw the jasmine into the flat basket and said, "Sister, you need to use them to earn money and buy candy for Sister Qi and Sister Ling."
Jasmine is a beautiful and delicious flower.
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[Cat Head] Going to make money
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