Chapter 257 Pineapple Rice
"Isn't it too cheap? Comrade Ajin, you don't have to take care of us, just charge us as much as we should."
When I was in the county town, a pound of fruit cost at least one or two yuan. In the past two years, the harvest has been bad, and the price of fruit has increased several times.
Pineapples at one cent per pound...it's really too cheap.
Ah Jin smiled and said, "It's not cheap anymore. The fruit production on the island is huge, so the price is cheap anyway."
He was not telling the truth. When fruits were sold cheaply on the island, they were only a few cents, about one or two cents per pound.
But those were the last fruits left to be sold. Not only were they crooked and cracked, but some were also rotten and bad.
For someone like Gu Cheng who comes to the mountain to pick fresh fruits, it would cost at least 20 or 30 cents per pound.
Moreover, the harvest has been bad in the past two years, and the price of fruits from the mountains has also increased a bit.
Liu Yinyin didn't quite believe it in her heart. She glanced at Gu Cheng, and when she saw him nod, she didn't say anything.
When dealing with people, you also need to understand some of the ways of the world.
Ajin thoughtfully prepared a small knife and a basket for picking pineapples for them.
Gu Cheng asked him to mind his own business.
After they finish picking the pineapples, they can pay for it themselves.
Liu Yinyin picked a pineapple with a knife and cut it into pieces.
The family of three tried it first.
The sunshine hours on the island are long, and the pineapples are sweet and delicious.
Not only her, Gu Yanyan also likes to eat pineapples. He nibbles on them with his little mouth and enjoys the food very much.
In fact, perhaps because there were no pesticides or nutrient solution, the pineapples at this time were not very big.
A big pineapple weighs only about one pound, not to mention a small one. There is very little flesh left after peeling the skin.
However, it tastes delicious.
Seeing this, Gu Cheng said, "Pick more and take them back. They're not expensive anyway."
It’s the season to eat pineapples. If you don’t eat more now, you’ll have to wait until the second half of the year to eat them.
Liu Yinyin also had this plan. She would buy more and take them back. It didn’t matter if she couldn’t finish them, she could make them into canned pineapples.
Otherwise, it could be dried into a pineapple, right?
Liu Yinyin didn't take it easy and picked the big pineapples.
The two of them picked a large basket of radishes, estimated to be around a hundred pounds, before they stopped.
If there's more, I won't be able to finish it.
After picking the pineapples, I went down the mountain and found Ajin to pay him.
I weighed it first, and found that the basket of pineapples weighed 106 kilograms.
At 1 cent per pound, the price should be 10.6 yuan.
After the deal was done and the money was paid, I prepared to go back.
Director Li came over again at this time and said that he wanted to treat them to a meal here.
Gu Cheng declined, "Next time."
They didn't get to have dinner, so Director Li helped arrange a boat to take them back to the island. Coincidentally, there was a batch of pineapples to be shipped to the island.
It's just something that happens along the way.
Gu Cheng did not refuse this time, otherwise they would not be able to go back for a while, and the ship that came here would not return until everyone was gathered.
Before it got dark, the family of three returned home.
Liu Yinyin gave four pineapples to Ma Guilan, and Ma Guilan gave her three swimming crabs in return.
Perhaps having tasted the sweetness of success, she went to the beach again in the afternoon.
The harvest was not much this time, but I was lucky and caught a few swimming crabs.
Ma Guilan didn't know how to make this, but thinking that Liu Yinyin was a good cook, she originally planned to give it to her.
Liu Yinyin was not polite, she loved eating swimming crabs.
After thinking about it, Liu Yinyin packed four more pineapples and went to the next door to knock on the door.
Zhou Zhian's wife was resting at home at the moment. Her body had not fully recovered yet. When she opened the door, her face did not look very good.
"It's you, what's up?"
Liu Yinyin smiled and said, "I just bought a lot of pineapples. I'm giving these to you guys to try."
Zhou Zhian's wife was stunned for a moment, but she didn't refuse directly. She just said, "It's not cheap, how much? I'll give it to you."
Liu Yinyin said: "It's just a few cents, not expensive."
Zhou Zhian’s wife didn’t accept her gifts in vain, and gave her a bag of coconut candy in return.
It was hard to refuse Liu Yinyin's kindness. Supplies were scarce at that time, but that didn't mean everyone liked to take advantage.
On the contrary, most people are simple and honest, and they cherish what they eat.
The interactions between neighbors are also give-and-take, and no one will just think about taking advantage of others.
After giving away eight large pineapples, we still had nearly 100 kilograms of pineapples at home.
Liu Yinyin was thinking about sending eight each to Brother Liu.
It just so happens that I am going to have dinner at a state-owned hotel tomorrow, so I can give him some food then. In addition to the pineapple, there is also a can of spicy dried fish.
It's the same with Brother Liu. It's even simpler for him. He works in the army cafeteria. Tomorrow morning, just ask Gu Cheng to give it to him on the way.
For the remaining pineapples, keep some for eating at home and share some with comrade Gu Cheng, and dry the rest into pineapple jerky.
There are so many pineapples that you definitely can’t finish them all at once.
Anyway, Liu Yinyin was free and bored, so this was a good way to kill time.
The next day, Liu Yinyin started making dried pineapples.
After peeling the pineapple, there is actually not much flesh left.
The method of drying pineapples is similar to that of drying sweet potatoes.
First, cut the cleaned pineapple flesh into slices and place them in the sun to dry.
After that, after three dryings and two steamings, the dried pineapple is almost dried.
At noon, Liu Yinyin suddenly felt like peeling two pineapples and cutting them into small pieces.
Ingredients such as eggs, shrimps, and carrots were also prepared.
She cooked a pot of pineapple rice.
"Yinyin, you really can eat something delicious." Ma Guilan couldn't help but say something when she smelled the fragrance.
During this period, Liu Yinyin was able to come up with new dishes every day that were both beautiful and delicious.
Moreover, Gu is the head of the group at a young age, and his family is small, so the food is much better than that of other families.
Liu Yinyin brought a bowl of pineapple rice to her and said, "Sister-in-law, let the eldest and second girls have a taste."
On weekdays, Ma Guilan would occasionally give Gu Yanyan some food.
Just this morning, she sold some clam cakes and gave two pieces to Gu Yanyan. They tasted delicious.
Ma Guilan thought of her two daughters and said with a smile, "They love the food you cook."
Pineapple rice is sweet and children love it.
Gu Yanyan ate two bowls of rice in a row, and his belly was bulging.
It was the first time for Gu Cheng to eat this thing. It felt fresh and he ate a lot.
Liu Yinyin thought of something and said, "Sister-in-law Guilan just discussed with me whether we should give two things to Zhou Zhian's wife to help her recover."
Zhou Zhian will invite both families to dinner later. They are neighbors, and since he knows that his wife is not in good health and has just been discharged from the hospital.
There should indeed be some expression.
Gu Cheng said nothing: "Just make your decision."
As a grown man, he is not good at these interpersonal relationships.
Liu Yinyin thought for a moment and said, "I'll buy a bag of brown sugar and a bag of red dates from the supply and marketing cooperative and send them over."
Giving brown sugar and red dates as gifts at this time is quite presentable and not too expensive.
In the afternoon, Liu Yinyin cleaned up the remaining pineapples and dried several baskets of dried pineapples.