Grandma and the others went to the fields before dawn. The wheat harvest needed to be rushed, otherwise a rainstorm would destroy everything.
Even their parents, eldest sister, and second eldest sister rushed back from the city. The whole family of eleven worked from dawn till dusk to harvest the ten acres of land.
Only two-year-old Ajiu was left at home.
Breakfast was made by Sister Cuihua. After it was made, she took it to the field, planning to work for a while before eating. It's normal not to feel like eating right after waking up.
Ajiu didn't sleep in; she got up early to feed the animals at home, then put on her rubber boots and scooped water to wash them.
Along with the sewage, the wastewater was flushed out and then swept into the composting sewage. This water was a good resource for strengthening the land.
Working in the early morning isn't too hot, but you still sweat a lot after a while. After cleaning up the animals in the backyard, she had to water the vegetables in the front yard again. By the time she lay down to rest, it was already past seven o'clock.
Grandma left her a boiled egg, a bowl of goat milk, and a small potato. The little girl doesn't eat much, so these three things were enough for her to have a full meal.
Grandpa and Grandma Zhou from the front yard had also taken their two grandsons home to harvest wheat, so she was the only one left in the yard.
After finishing her work, she would start thinking about getting them something to eat, but she couldn't go too far.
Ah Jiu entered her warehouse. There was no need to buy meat; her father had brought back a piece yesterday, which had already been placed in a deep well and hung up with salt. She figured her grandmother would cook it by noon, and besides, meat was too conspicuous and would be easily discovered.
Grandma made some dough this morning, thinking we'd have noodles and stir-fried vegetables for lunch, so she decided to cook a big pot of mung bean soup first, adding a handful of rock sugar and simmering it over low heat so the mung bean flowers would bloom more beautifully.
In early June, the vegetables in the small garden were not yet ripe; they were too dense and many were not fully mature.
So Ajiu grabbed a handful of long beans, a large bunch of green beans, four cucumbers, six tomatoes, two huge green eggplants, and five or six green peppers from her space. Anyway, they had all these planted in their yard. If they picked the small ones, they wouldn't be able to taste anything special. So she simply took them from her space and would figure out a way to deal with it when her grandmother asked.
With these vegetables, the meat my father bought, and such a generous bowl of noodles, there should be enough to eat.
Since she couldn't get the seafood out of the cold chain, she went to the fruit section and picked out two K City sandy potatoes that were bigger than basketballs.
I specifically chose seeded melons, as seedless melons are not quite suitable for this era.
Grandma also grows watermelons in the backyard, but they're not ripe yet. Today, she chose two that are ripe and fresh enough to be taken to the field, killed, and eaten. They'll definitely be refreshing and thirst-quenching.
Around 11 a.m., Grandma, wearing a straw hat and scarf, carrying an enamel mug and smelling strongly of sweat, knocked on the front door.
"My little Jiu is so smart. From now on, she'll ask who it is before opening the door, understand?"
"Okay, Grandma, you've worked so hard. Go wash your face. I picked a lot of vegetables today, enough for us to have for lunch."
"Really? I was thinking that if there were no vegetables available by noon, I would try my luck at the street corner and see if anyone was out selling vegetables!"
"No, no, Grandma, look, I picked so many!"
These past few days have been busy with farming, and Grandma really hasn't had time to look after her vegetable garden. At most, she can stand outside and take a look around, but there are always things she doesn't notice properly inside.
She washed the vegetables with well water early in the morning and soaked them. When her grandmother saw the neatly arranged vegetables after washing them, she happily touched her cheek.
"My little Jiu is amazing! This dish is enough for lunch and dinner, not just lunchtime. Good job! Oh, you made mung bean soup. Hey, what are these two big watermelons? I went to check on them yesterday, and they weren't even that big yet. How did they grow so big overnight? My goodness, how did you carry them back? They're so heavy! It would be such a waste if they broke!"
"Grandma, I put it in a basket and dragged it in. It's okay, I was careful. You all worked so hard, you'll get these watermelons to the field in a little while. By the way, who's coming to pick you up later?"
"No need to pick them up, they'll all come back to eat. Leave your grandpa to watch the field, and after your dad has eaten, we'll send some over to him. The two of them can stay in the field, there's some shade, so they can take a break for a while and then continue working after four o'clock in the afternoon."
With more people this year, the work is much faster. Her three daughters are all skilled at farm work, which makes her grandsons seem slower in comparison.
Perhaps it's because they're putting in a lot of effort that they seem to be working exceptionally well this year.
As soon as Grandma finished speaking, she quickly went to knead the dough. Today, she's going to steam some flavorful fried dough rolls.
Ajiu didn't need her grandmother to tell her what to do; she simply broke the green beans into pieces.
"Grandma, this needs to be cooked thoroughly. Should it be served with meat?"
Grandma glanced at the green beans and nodded.
"Okay, then let's stir-fry this with meat. I'll also roll some small oil rolls and steam them around the edge of the pot. Your older brother and sister love this kind of dish with vegetable broth; it's so flavorful!"
"And the eggplant? How do you cook it? Do you need me to peel a head of garlic?"
"Hey, this is good. In a bit, roast the eggplant on the griddle, tear it into strips, and mix it with garlic sauce. Your parents love this the most."
Smash the cucumber and mix it with cold salad.
Stir-fry tomatoes with long beans.
Two hot dishes and two cold dishes, all farm-style meals, large portions, should be enough for everyone.
In the last pot of meat dishes, Grandma added potato chunks, green beans, and slices of fatty pork, making two large basins. The cut meat looked to weigh about a pound, and there was still a pound left, which she planned to eat again tomorrow. Afterward, she lowered the meat back into the well.
My older siblings are at a crucial stage of growth, and they worked so hard this morning. Grandma was worried that it wouldn't be enough, so she also made a cold salad of scallions, wood ear mushrooms, and carrots with vermicelli. In total, there were six dishes, all served in bowls, which looked quite impressive.
Just as the food was ready, my parents brought my older brother and sister back, and my grandmother finished packing the food she had brought for my grandfather.
She instructed her father, "You all eat first. I'll go to the fields to eat with you. Your daughter made really good mung bean soup. Take some with you when you come back this afternoon. And drink some wine. Take a nap this afternoon and Grandma will come back to keep you company. Be good at home and don't run around. There are a lot of thieves around now, they just want to steal from kids who are home alone, you know?"
Ajiu nodded vigorously, "Grandma, watermelon, give the watermelon to my grandpa."
The sliced ​​watermelon was packed into a lunchbox, Father said as he washed it.
"Mom, I'll go over after I finish eating. You can come back and rest for a while then!"
As Grandma walked, she casually brushed the dirt off her clothes with a towel.
"No need, you can rest at home for a while and then go over."
After the older siblings washed the watermelon, Mother brought it out. Seeing that Grandma had only cut off one-sixth, Mother simply cut off the rest. The remaining whole watermelon would be taken to the fields in the afternoon so they could work until dark.
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