Chapter 16: Pork Tripe and Chicken Soup
The next day, as usual, Shu Tong and Dong's mother went out to set up the stall before five o'clock, leaving breakfast in the pot.
At six o'clock, Su Yanli and his two sons washed up and had breakfast. After breakfast, at about half past six, he went to work, Su Dalang went to the study to read and practice calligraphy, and Su Ruojin tidied the kitchen while giving her mother a snack.
In addition to eating the same breakfast as everyone else - fried dough sticks and soy milk, steamed dumplings and shaomai - sold at home, Cheng Yingzhen also has a different dish every seven days, such as red dates and longan porridge, codonopsis and angelica pork kidney soup, and assorted chicken porridge, all aimed at replenishing her blood and qi to replenish her energy.
Today it was wontons' turn. Su Ruojin originally wanted to make shrimp wontons, but unfortunately Bianjing was in the north and it was not easy for ordinary people to find prawns, so she had to give up.
The freshly wrapped wontons were neatly arranged on the plate, ready to be cooked as soon as Cheng Yingzhen woke up and fed her fourth brother. Su Sanlang was young, only three years old, so Su Ruojin would also bring him a portion when she gave her mother confinement meals.
Hearing the noise in the master bedroom, Su Ruojin hurried in, "Mom, wake up!"
"Yeah." Cheng Yingzhen was feeding her youngest son. She looked up at her daughter and asked, "Is Sanlang awake?"
"Not yet." Su Ruojin asked, "Have you finished eating, little brother?"
Cheng Yingzhen nodded: "Almost done."
Su Ruojin stood at the head of the bed and saw that Su Silang's chubby little face was so cute that she couldn't help but reach out and touch it gently, "Mom, his little face is chubby, and when you look at it from the side, it really looks like a little butt. No wonder people call him a little brat... a little brat, it turns out he is really like this!"
So cute!
Cheng Yingzhen smiled like a loving mother: "Silang is more blessed than Sanlang. He eats well and is chubby. His little face looks like a little butt."
The mother and daughter teased Su Silang for a while until the little kid closed his eyes and fell asleep again.
"Mom, I'll get you some water to wash up."
"No, I'll do it myself." Cheng Yingzhen tried her best not to let her six-year-old daughter do anything she could do herself.
"fine."
Su Ruojin slipped out and came back with a small copper kettle after a while. At this time, Cheng Yingzhen had already put on her clothes and got out of bed. She quickly took the copper kettle, walked to the washstand, and washed herself.
"Go and bring Sanlang over. I'll wash him, and then we'll have breakfast together."
"Okay."
Cheng Yingzhen took Su Sanlang to have breakfast in the bedroom. After eating and tidying up, Cheng Yingzhen went back to bed, taking care of the child while half-closing her eyes to rest.
Su Ruojin sent Su Sanlang to the study and asked Su Dalang to take care of him. She went to the kitchen to do some housework and found that the soy sauce was gone. She put on her hat and gloves, carried the small jar and went out of the house. She walked out of Guihua Lane against the north wind and crossed two alleys. There was a grocery store selling soy sauce.
She was almost hit by someone just as she was leaving the alley. She quickly dodged to the side. The middle-aged woman pulled a little girl of about 11 or 12 into the alley. While running, she did not forget to ask Su Ruojin: "If someone chases us, please say that you didn't see us."
Without waiting for Su Ruojin to respond, he ran away into the depths of the alley.
It was too cold. Su Ruojin pulled the scarf under her hat and continued to go to the grocery store. After walking for four or five minutes, three or five people, both men and women, came running towards her. They rushed forward like robbers: "Don't let them run away, hurry... don't let them run away..."
Su Ruojin was quick-witted and dodged to the side again. In broad daylight, wouldn't the people from the Military Department do anything about it?
"Brother, there are three alley entrances here. Which one should we enter to chase him?" Several people stood at the criss-crossing alleys and felt worried.
The area around Xiqiao Lane is like a maze if you have not lived there for a long time. If a newcomer does not have anyone to guide the way, it will be like a ghost wall and he will not be able to find the exit.
Even if the five people were divided into three groups, it would still be terrible. The six-year-old Su Ruojin didn't mind her own business and was even wary of the strangers. She quickly ran away to get some soy sauce.
It was a cold winter day, and before the afternoon sun was at its warmest, there were usually few people in front of the grocery store, but today it was crowded with people, in groups of three or five, chattering non-stop.
Su Ruojin put the small jar on the counter: "Boss, ten cents for soy sauce."
The boss' eyes were fixed on the alley in the distance, and he seemed to be worried, as if he didn't hear anyone wanting to buy soy sauce. Su Ruojin had to remind him again, "Boss..." He had no intention of doing business at all.
Su Ruojin had no choice but to wait patiently for her to react while she pricked up her ears to listen to the gossip. After a while, she had heard most of it.
It turned out that the mother and daughter who had just escaped were from the north. The man in the family died, and the clan members not only seized the family property, but also wanted to sell the mother and daughter for the money. The mother and daughter fled to the capital to find a distant cousin who ran a grocery store. The cousin felt sorry for her and settled the mother and daughter in her home. However, the cousin's mother-in-law could not tolerate the mother and daughter, and secretly sent the news of the mother and daughter back to the cousin's husband's home. Now, the clan members came to arrest them.
If you can't tolerate it, just let others go. Why push them into the fire pit? What is the human heart made of?
Su Ruojin shook her head, picked up the small jar and walked back.
When we entered Guihua Lane, those tribesmen were standing in front of the soldiers patrolling the streets, bowing their heads and being extremely fawning, chattering in a variety of ways. It was easy to tell what they were talking about.
Su Ruojin sighed deeply, lowered her head and walked into the alley to go home.
Su Yanli was a scholar with many books at home. Shu Tongshu was often fooled by Su Ruojin into bringing back gossip from the market, so she knew that in the Dayin Dynasty, which was similar to the Song Dynasty, it was tacitly accepted that the family would be wiped out, as it was considered family property and widows and daughters who were going to get married in the future had no right to enjoy it.
Under normal circumstances, clan members can take possession of the family property openly, but they do not have the power to sell widows. Widows can remarry, but in reality, in ancient times when productivity was extremely low, once clan members caught a family with no descendants, how could they easily let the widow go? They would think of various ways to sell the person and divide the money.
It's just so ugly.
Su Ruojin returned home in a depressed mood. She first went to her mother's bedroom door to listen. It was quiet inside. The mother and son were probably asleep. Then she went to the study. Su Dalang was playing nine-linked rings with Su Sanlang. When they saw her coming back, they hurried over to greet her.
"I'm going to prepare lunch, do you want to come with me?" The weather was cold, so Shu Tong went out to buy enough food for three or four days.
There was a fire in the stove and the kitchen was warm. The two brothers of the Su family hurried to catch up with Su Ruojin.
Su Ruojin has already thought about what to eat for lunch today: stir-fried mung bean sprouts, fried tofu, stewed cabbage with meat, and pork tripe and chicken soup. Three dishes and one soup, both meat and vegetarian, and rich in nutrition.
First, make the most time-consuming dish, pork tripe and chicken soup, which is one of the famous Guangdong Hakka dishes.
The ingredients prepared include chicken, pork tripe, wolfberry, etc. It would be even better if there was ginseng, but unfortunately the Su family cannot afford ginseng at the moment. Su Ruojin can only add more red dates. Salt, sugar, onion, ginger, garlic, and cooking wine are essential.
After all the ingredients are prepared, take out the pork tripe and chicken that Dong's mother had prepared last night. First, put the pork tripe into the pot and boil it over high heat. Take out the blanched pork tripe, then stuff the chicken pieces into the pig tripe. Add onions, ginger, and garlic. Then prick the opening with a toothpick, put it into the pot and simmer on low heat. Add salt, sugar, cooking wine and other seasonings, then add red dates and wolfberries and stew together.
(End of this chapter)
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