Chapter 14
When she woke up in the morning, the two little ones had gotten up earlier than her and had already run outside to wash up.
Chen Ning returned to the room and saw that her sister-in-law had woken up. She ran to the bedside and told Sang Luo happily and shyly that she had dreamed of making money to buy food last night. Sang Luo then realized that she was not the only one who was happy.
She instantly became full of energy, threw off the quilt and got up.
Seeing Sang Luo getting up, Shen Ning turned around and walked around the stone where the bowl was placed. When he came back, he handed Sang Luo a handful of impatiens: "Sister-in-law, here, my second brother and I picked them this morning!"
The ancient version of a simple toothbrush is made from the rhizome of a plant called Imperata cylindrica. After rubbing off the root bark, you can chew and eat it. Because it contains a lot of cellulose, poor people who pay attention to hygiene will use it to chew and clean their teeth and mouth.
Sang Luo had already experienced it yesterday.
Now seeing that the little brother and sister had even prepared her share, she smiled and rubbed Shen Ning’s little head: “Thanks.”
He took the Imperata root and went out to wash up.
When she went out, she found that the ramie she had soaked in the pond last night had been fished out, and Shen An was using the ramie picker she borrowed from the Chen family to pick the ramie. Although she was young, her movements were extremely skillful.
Sang Luo was a little surprised. This was not something you could learn just by looking at it.
Considering Li's personality, it's not surprising.
When Chen An saw Sang Luo getting up, his eyes lit up: "Sister-in-law, can we go get the fish basket now?"
He started thinking about it as soon as he woke up in the morning.
"Okay!" Sang Luo smiled and said, "Let's go after I wash up."
Shen An and Shen Ning were so happy. Sang Luo was still washing up, so the two little siblings went to get ready.
The two children were experienced this time, so they put away the hemp peeling knives, one of them picked up the empty backpack brought home last night, and the other took the broken clay pot used for cooking, just to avoid taking up the backpack. They caught the fish so that they could set two more fishing traps.
The fish that were set at night were collected in the early morning, and the harvest was better than that in the daytime. However, the fish this time were not very big, and the largest one was not even as big as a palm.
Even so, the three of them were very satisfied.
Chen An and Shen Ning treasured those fish and shrimps very much. They even scooped water into the earthenware jar, hoping that the fish would live longer. Sang Luo let them do as they pleased.
But it was only a short trip. When they got home, they would have to wash the clay pot and use it as a pot. They certainly couldn't leave it for the two little ones to raise fish. As for the bucket and pottery basin borrowed from the Chen family, they were used by the Chen family to get water and cook. How could they let them smell like fish? Besides, they would have to use them to cook food and sell it in the next two days.
Chen An also knew this, and as soon as he got home he asked Sang Luo what to do with the fish and shrimp.
"Leave three or four fish for lunch, and serve the rest in bowls. I'll need them later. Wash the shrimps, boil them in a clay pot, and dry them on the stone slab from last night. Save the water used to boil the shrimps."
Although Chen An didn't know how his sister-in-law was going to arrange the half bowl of fish, it didn't stop him from listening to his sister-in-law and doing as she said.
In the morning, porridge was still cooked. Perhaps he had a way to get food. This time, when he saw Sang Luo taking rice, although Chen An still felt pained, he finally resisted the urge to take back a handful like he did the day before. However, the expression on his face was still very interesting.
Sang Luo found it funny and took the time to teach him: "Don't be stingy with your rice. It is said that you should not be empty-handed in the morning and full-hearted in the evening. If you want to have a good body and have good energy all day, you can't skimp on breakfast."
Shen An was embarrassed: "Sister-in-law, I didn't say anything."
Sang Luo smiled, skimmed off the foam on the surface of the boiling hot water in the clay pot that had been used to cook shrimps, and put the washed rice into the pot, stirring it from time to time.
When the rice was cooked in the clay pot, she sprinkled some salt into it and added a handful of finely chopped wild onions. The aroma was so fragrant that the two children squatted on the side with their noses twitching and they could hardly hold back their saliva.
River fresh, river fresh, the word "fresh" is not just for nothing.
With the freshness of shrimp and the fragrance of green onions, a bowl of salty shrimp porridge is ready.
It’s a pity that there is no ginger, otherwise the taste would be even better. But for three people who eat wild vegetables every day, what is there to complain about such a delicacy?
There were only two usable bowls left at home. Sang Luo smiled and served half a bowl to each of the brother and sister: "You eat first, I'm going to go to Grandma Chen's house."
He went out with the half bowl of fish.
Shen An and Shen Ning looked at each other, and neither of them asked what the fish was going to be used for.
It was natural for the sister-in-law to arrange how to catch the fish. Besides, it didn't matter if it was for Grandma Chen, because Grandpa Chen and Grandma Chen saved their sister-in-law's life.
…
Sang Luo did give fish to the old lady, but it had nothing to do with whether her life was saved or not, and it was not a free gift.
She was so shameless that she wanted to exchange the half bowl of fish for a piece of maltose from the old lady.
"I'm afraid people won't buy fresh food because they don't know the taste, so I thought I should make some for people to taste at the beginning, so I thought of dissolving it in sugar water and bringing it with me."
It's a serious matter.
After hearing her purpose, Mrs. Chen did not take the bowl from Sang Luo's hand. She just said, "Wait," and went into the house. After a while, she came out and handed her two pieces of maltose: "Go back quickly, take the bowl and put it aside. Shake it outside today and the sugar will melt."
Sang Luo took it with a smile on her face, "Grandma, do you want to put this fish in a bowl?"
Mrs. Chen took out four pieces of malt sugar in two days, and she felt very distressed, but she had seen with her own eyes the situation at the Shen family's eldest house. There were only a few fish, and she didn't know whether they were caught after soaking in the stream for a day. How could she ask the children for food?
He waved his hand and sent the man away: "We don't need this kind of food at home, you can take it back and keep it for yourself."
Sang Luo: "...Look at what you said, then I took your candy for nothing? Then what have I become? If you say it's an exchange, then it's an exchange."
As he said this, he went to the kitchen and pulled Qin Fangniang to his side in a familiar manner: "Aunt Youtian, can you please use a bowl to put it in?"
How could Qin Fangniang dare to accept something that her mother-in-law didn't want to accept? She leaned over to see her mother-in-law's expression.
When Sang Luo saw what was happening, she didn't wait any longer. She turned around and looked around the kitchen. She quickly found the cupboard and went over to it swiftly. She took out a bowl and poured half a bowl of fish into it.
Then she looked at Old Lady Chen with a grin and said, "Grandma, I have one more favor to ask of you. Can you lend me another bucket? I'll use it at the market tomorrow and I'll come back to get it in the evening. I promise I won't delay your use of the bucket today. I'll return it to you tomorrow when I get back from the market."
Old Mrs. Chen and her daughter-in-law: "..."
It was because it was too shy before, but now, if you give it a tail, it will be like a clever monkey. It can climb up by itself without you handing it a pole.
Mrs. Chen felt that she was being cheated. She glanced at Sang Luo unhappily and said, "One bucket is not enough for you to sell? Do you think the money at the market is rain from the sky? It's so easy to make money."
The people who go to the market in the village are all farmers, and in this year, few of them are willing to spend money on food.
Sang Luo was embarrassed: "That's not the case. If it's just a bucket, you have to carry it. It's seven miles from here to the market."
She pinched her thin arms and said, "Look, with my body, if I carry a bucket of tofu for seven miles, I'll be exhausted, not to mention my arms."
"So I'd like to borrow another bucket from you so that we can share it on both sides and it will be easier to carry it."
At this point he gave the old lady a flattering smile and held out a finger: "Borrow another pole."
That flattering look...
Mrs. Chen nodded helplessly: "Okay, okay, I'll come get it in the evening."
Then he got a bunch of good guy cards from Sang Luo, a monkey spirit, who spoke sweet words like they were free.
Mrs. Chen's mouth twitched when she heard this. She wanted to laugh but tried hard to keep it together. She waved her hand and sent her away: "Okay, we have to open the stall tomorrow. You'll be busy today. Come back quickly."
Sang Luo was contented as she walked out of the Chen family's courtyard with her empty bowl and two pieces of maltose. After walking a few steps, she heard a sarcastic and slightly exaggerated "Yo!"
Li leaned against the gate of her own courtyard, raised her chin slightly and glanced at the empty bowl in Sang Luo's hand, and raised the corner of her lip: "Did you change the beggar? What? Didn't you get any?"
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