With today's business settled, Cheng Yue was in the mood to prepare her household belongings.
There were too many things missing at home, so she and Chen Lin carried two baskets on their backs, which could only hold a limited amount of things.
Food and meat were the most important things, so she decided to buy a little of each and take out the items from her spatial storage when she got home.
The mother and son went straight to the grain shop and bought two catties each of wheat flour and refined rice. Cheng Yue then spent a few coins to have the grain shop owner specially change to a larger cloth bag.
The grain shop owner was puzzled. Why use a cloth bag that can hold fifty pounds when there are only two pounds of grain? He didn't know what he was thinking.
He's dressed in rags, yet he has money to buy fine rice and flour. What a strange person.
However, since the other party had bought the grain and paid for it, he was naturally all smiles and didn't want to do a one-off deal.
After buying the grain, Cheng Yue took Chen Lin directly to the butcher shop.
People nowadays love to eat oily food, especially since they need to render oil at home. After thinking about it, Cheng Yue bought three catties of fatty pork and two catties of pork belly, as well as two large pork bones with meat on them.
The big stick has little meat and bones, but it's good for making soup if you crack it open.
She remembered that there was still a lot of pork frozen in the refrigerator, which she could take out and eat.
Since there were no pots and pans at home, Cheng Yue went and bought seven or eight rough earthenware bowls of various sizes and two large soup basins.
After thinking about it, I bought a large earthenware jar and seven or eight small earthenware jars. It was just right to take out the oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar from the storage space and pour them into the earthenware jars.
The porcelain bowls in the space had fancy patterns and were obviously not from this era. These bowls and jars were made of coarse pottery and didn't cost much, so I bought them.
When the time is right, she will tell Chen An the secret, since he can help her cover it up, otherwise it's too tiring to be sneaky like this.
It's like having a bowl of braised pork in front of you, but not only can you not eat it, you also have to chew on a piece of vegetable leaf. Why make things difficult for yourself?
Having bought almost everything, Cheng Yue headed straight to the fabric shop.
Chen Lin followed Cheng Yue in a daze, not knowing what to say. How much money did his mother spend?
The cloth shop only sells cotton, linen, and silk. After all, it's a small town, and very few people can afford to wear fine silks and satins. The shop mainly sells relatively inexpensive fabrics.
Cheng Yue bought two bolts of fine linen and two bolts of fine cotton. The linen was for the outer garment, and the cotton was for the inner garment, which was just right.
Finally, I bought five pairs of ready-made cloth shoes so I could change into them immediately. Straw sandals were very inconvenient to wear and could easily prick my feet.
They bought some scraps of cloth and made a pair of shoes for each person to wear in rotation.
Cheng Yue asked the cloth shop owner to tie the cloth into two bundles, and then took out a hemp rope to tie horizontally to the basket. After testing that it was not heavy, she carried it on her back.
The shop owner had offered to deliver it to her home, but Cheng Yue refused, lest the commotion cause unnecessary inquiries.
She wasn't afraid to ask, she just didn't want the hassle.
When leaving the town, Cheng Yue saw an old lady selling vegetables at a stall. She only had bok choy, chives, and the like, so she bought some.
I didn't buy any snacks; I have plenty of space. I'll just say I bought them when I take them out, and they probably won't think much of it.
The mother and son carried two full baskets of things on their backs. On the way back to the village, they were inevitably asked questions. Cheng Yue only said that they were daily necessities for the new house.
Now the whole village knows that they have separated their households, and it is necessary for them to prepare household items. No one asked any questions, and they just told Cheng Yue's family to live a good life and to ask for help if they need anything.
The people of Houshui Village are mostly simple and honest. Cheng Yue appreciated their kindness, said a few words, and went straight home.
"Mother! Eldest brother, you're back!"
Da Ni and Er Ni went to pick a basket of wild vegetables early in the morning. After washing them, they were about to hang them to dry when they saw Cheng Yue and Chen Lin return. Like two little butterflies, they stretched out their arms and rushed over.
Seeing the two children smiling happily, Cheng Yue's heart softened. "So happy! Mom bought you some delicious food, I'll give it to you in a bit."
Then he carefully put the basket down; it contained many bowls and basins, and it would be a disaster if it broke.
Da Ni and Er Ni smiled, and Chen Lin put down his basket and said from the side, "Look, all of this was bought by Mom. It cost a lot of money."
Da Ni and Er Ni only saw the fabric on top, but after Chen Lin reminded them, they noticed that the two baskets were also stuffed full.
Mom, how much stuff did you buy?!
"Xiao Lin, don't worry, you still have enough money to get married."
Cheng Yue couldn't help but tease Chen Lin when she saw his face scrunched up in a frown. Chen Lin indeed stopped talking, picked up the basket, and sat down next to Chen An with a red face.
Chen An smiled and asked, "Ah Yue, did you go to the dock today? Is it a good idea?"
As Cheng Yue took the new shoes out, she explained everything to Chen An in detail.
After listening, Chen An nodded and said, "Third Master Chen, I know that man. He is indeed quite righteous. Five coins is not much. Have you thought about going?"
Cheng Yue handed the new shoes to Chen An and told Chen Lin, Da Ni, and Er Ni to quickly change into them before saying, "Of course I'm going. I've decided to sell he luo noodles."
With someone in charge, it's worth even five coins. The lady selling wontons is right; when doing small business, you just have to be down-to-earth.
As for making big money, she's not considering it for now; she'll have to take it one step at a time.
"Hele noodles?"
Cheng Yue looked at Chen An and the three children with puzzled expressions. Could it be that they didn't know?
"It's a type of noodle, one I read about in a book. Some are made with buckwheat, some with sorghum, but I wanted to make it with sweet potato flour."
Buckwheat and sorghum yields are low here, but sweet potatoes are plentiful. Almost every household has sweet potato flour, which is mostly used to make cornbread.
"Is it delicious, Mother?" Erni swallowed and blinked, her eyes lighting up whenever food was mentioned.
Cheng Yue smiled and said, "Of course it'll be delicious. I'll make it for you to try and you'll see."
Then, remembering something, he asked Chen An, "Making he luo noodles requires a certain tool. Does anyone in our village know how to do carpentry?"
Chen An initially felt guilty because he had never heard of or eaten this food and couldn't offer any help.
Upon hearing Cheng Yue's question, her eyes immediately lit up with a smile: "I can do carpentry, Yue, tell me what kind of tools you need."
His father was a carpenter, and he often helped his father with carpentry work when he was a child. However, his father passed away, and his good days came to an end.
My older brother had a sweet tongue and was my mother's favorite. Later, he went to town to find work, and all the work in the fields was left to him. He either farmed or did odd jobs, and he no longer had time to work with wood.
"That's great, I'll draw it for you." Cheng Yue said as she went to the kitchen to pick up a piece of charcoal and then moved a stone slab from the doorway. She drew and gestured as she explained how to use it.
After listening, Chen An exclaimed in admiration, "Ah Yue, you're amazing! You remember it so clearly. Making noodles this way saves a lot of effort and is so convenient!"
I remember it clearly because her family had a noodle-making machine, and my grandmother loved to eat glutinous rice noodles, so she often made them for us.
When I was a child, the heluo noodle making machine was made of pure wood. When I grew up, it was replaced by a machine, but the principle is the same.
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