Before he knew it, Lin Yan had been setting up a tofu stall in the town for nearly half a month. During this half month, business was not so good every day. Lin Yan observed that there were more people buying tofu during the market, and on weekdays only people who lived nearby came to buy it.
That old man, oh, his name was Uncle Qian. Lin Yan later asked him his last name. But he came to buy things every now and then.
The family discussed it and decided to sell tofu at the market every three days, just as Lin Yan did when he was selling vegetables at home. Firstly, when they were not selling during the market, there wouldn't be a lot of people, so they could only sell one or two boards at most, and they would have to wait on West Street for half a day. Secondly, selling tofu every day would leave them no time for other things.
After making the decision, Lin Yan finally had time to prepare for planting peppers. He had to expand the soybean planting area at home by two acres, so there was no extra space to plant peppers.
Lin Yan thought about finding a suitable plot of land to grow peppers. He circled the village several times and found a patch of wasteland at the east end. It was neither too big nor too small, just right for growing peppers. If it wasn't enough, he could harvest from other farmers.
It is not accurate to say that it is a wasteland. This land has been cultivated and belongs to the hunter Zhao Zhen at the east end of the village. Zhao Zhen goes into the mountains to hunt all year round and often hunts good prey. He lives a decent life.
A few years ago, Zhao Zhen accidentally encountered a blind bear while in the mountains. He narrowly escaped death, but his leg was lame. Since then, Zhao Zhen has become depressed, staying at home and living off his previous savings. Her husband left after seeing her like this. They don't have any children yet, so Zhao Zhen now lives alone.
Zhao Zhen hadn't planted the land, so it had been abandoned for several years. It wasn't that no one in the village had their eyes on it, but Zhao Zhen, a frequent hunter, had a violent temper and a scar on his face. The villagers were afraid of him and didn't dare approach him.
Lin Yan thought about it and decided to go find the village chief and ask him to help negotiate with Zhao Zhen to see if he could rent the land.
So, after breakfast that day, Lin Yan carried a basket containing a bowl of tofu and a can of chili sauce. He arrived at the village chief's house. The door was open, and no one was in the yard. Lin Yan stood at the door and called out, "Is anyone there? Is the village chief home? Is Aunt Zhao here?"
Zhao, who was in the house, heard the voice and quickly responded, "I'm here, I'm here." She came out and saw that it was Lin Yan, and hurriedly welcomed him into the house, "Brother Yan, sit down."
Lin Yan sat down in the yard: "Aunt Zhao, is Uncle Zhao home? I have something to discuss with him."
"He's here, in the backyard. I'll go call him."
"Okay, thank you for your help, auntie."
"It's no trouble, no trouble." Zhao smiled.
When the village chief heard Zhao say that Lin Yan was looking for him, he was very confused. What could this Yan brother want to ask him? He quickly washed his hands and went to the front yard.
When Lin Yan saw the village chief coming, he quickly stood up and said, "Uncle Zhao."
"Hey, Brother Yan, sit down, sit down, no need to be so polite."
Zhao brought over two bowls of water, and Lin Yan put the basket on the table. "I brought a bowl of tofu and a can of chili sauce for home. This chili sauce is homemade, so don't be disgusted."
The village chief waved his hand and said, "No, no, I can't accept it. Tell me what you want from me first."
Lin Yan got straight to the point: "Uncle Zhao, I want to rent a piece of land at the east end of the village."
"Oh? Which one?" asked the village chief.
"The one belonging to Hunter Zhao."
"Hunter Zhao? Why did you think of renting his land?"
Lin Yan took out the hot sauce from the basket and said, "I'm doing business in town now and I need this hot sauce. I want to plant an acre of chili peppers. I need to expand my land to plant soybeans, so I don't have any extra space. I've been walking around the village a few times these days and found that the land of Hunter Zhao is quite suitable. It's the only unused land."
"Okay, I'll ask for you," the village chief agreed. "But you take this chili sauce back with you."
After hearing this, Lin Yan could only say, "Uncle Zhao, just take it and help me taste it to see if it tastes good."
Zhao had already smelled the aroma of the hot sauce nearby. She stared at it intently, and only stopped when the village chief touched her leg. "Okay, just this once, and it won't happen again."
Lin Yan nodded happily, "Then I'll wait for Uncle Zhao's good news."
*
Back home, Lin Yan began preparing chili pepper seeds. The Zhao family hadn't grown many peppers before, only a small patch for their own consumption, so they didn't have many seeds. Zhou Chunlan was the same. So, while setting up his stall a couple of days ago, Lin Yan took the time to stop by the grocery store and buy a bag.
He carefully screened the pepper seeds, picked out the fuller ones and set them aside. After he finished picking, he filled a basin with warm water and soaked the seeds in the warm water for two or three hours. After taking them out, he wrapped them in a wet cloth and placed them in a warmer place to germinate.
It usually takes four to five days to germinate. Lin Yan put the seeds away and waited for good news from the village chief.
*
There were some beans left at home, and Lin Yan planned to make some braised noodles tonight. He washed the beans and cut them into small pieces. He also cut a piece of lean meat into slices and chopped the green onions, ginger, and garlic.
Once the preparations were complete, they lit the stove. Added lard to the pot, heated it, and sautéed the scallions, ginger, and garlic until fragrant. Then, added the beans and stir-fried them. They sizzled and gradually turned a vibrant green. Then, they added the lean pork and stir-fried it evenly. Lin Yan added a suitable amount of salt and a dash of soy sauce, continued to stir-fry, then added water to cover the beans, covered the pot, and simmered.
While the beans were cooking, Lin Yan took out the dough he had kneaded early in the morning, rolled it out, folded it, cut it into noodles of even thickness, and shook it out.
At this time, the beans were almost cooked. He spread the noodles evenly on top of the beans, covered the pot again, and simmered on low heat.
At this moment, there was a sound of footsteps outside the door. Lin Yan stuck his head out and saw that it was the village chief. Lin Yan hurried to greet him.
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