Ah Fu packed the grain and carried it onto the oxcart.
"Brother Zhang, we still need to buy seasonings and lard."
Wei Yuyan initially forgot about the lard.
"Okay, let's go buy the seasonings first."
Brother Zhang nodded and drove the oxcart forward.
The two quickly bought pork fat, salt, soy sauce, and sugar.
"Brother Zhang, stop here for a moment and go buy a roast chicken."
Wei Yuyan saw the roast chicken shop and quickly called for them to stop.
"Sister, how much is this roast chicken?"
Wei Yuyan smelled the aroma; the roast chicken smelled quite good.
"Thirty coins each."
The older woman opened her own pot lid and said that she could choose whichever she wanted; they were all about the same size.
"This is it."
Wei Yuyan chose one with thin skin, otherwise it would be too greasy, and took out thirty coins.
The two returned to the shop, where Sister-in-law Xiuhua had already cleaned up. The group then sat down in the room.
After all, there were no chairs in the lobby, so there was no place to sit, and the chairs in the backyard were too sunny.
"Brother Zhang, there's one more thing I need you to do. Tomorrow at the beginning of the Yin hour, the butcher will deliver the meat to us."
They should be slaughtering pigs around that time too. Once they've slaughtered them, they should bring them to us first. There should be enough time.
Wei Yuyan was unsure whether the butcher would slaughter the pig so early.
After saying that, he took out seventy-six coins and handed them over, which amounted to two catties of fatty meat and seven catties of lean meat.
"Okay, I'll go right away."
Brother Zhang put the money away.
"Xiuhua, we're back."
After unloading the grain, Brother Zhang was about to go find the butcher, so he quickly called Xiuhua out to help him carry the things.
"Here you are! You bought so much, including pork fat."
Sister-in-law Xiuhua was surprised. How much money must this cost?
"Yes, we need to render lard quickly."
Wei Yuyan washed the lard, cut it into a small piece, and started frying it.
Xiuhua's sister-in-law went to wash the vegetables, as Wei Yu had picked them in the morning.
"Would you like to wash some chili peppers and stir-fry them with pork cracklings later?"
Xiuhua's sister-in-law asked Wei Yuyan.
"No need, just wash some green beans. I just bought a big roast chicken, so I'll just put a few pieces of pork crackling in the green beans later."
Wei Yuyan figured the pork cracklings wouldn't spoil anyway, so she could eat them tomorrow, and if she couldn't finish them, she could take them home.
"Oh, you also bought roast chicken? Why waste that money? A few dozen coins could buy several pounds of meat."
Xiuhua's sister-in-law was worried that Wei Yuyan didn't have enough money, mainly because her recent expenses had been high.
The rent for the shop, along with the benches and food, must have cost more than one tael of silver.
"Today is our first meal here, so how can it not be a bit lavish?"
Wei Yuyan looked mischievous.
"Sister-in-law, it's so boring without Xiao Hei and Xiao Hua."
Qianqian couldn't help but come over and act coquettishly again.
"If you want to go home and keep them company, then go home with Brother Zhang tonight and let Brother Zhang sleep in the same bed as your brother."
Wei Yuyan respected her own opinion.
"Then forget it. I miss my sister-in-law even more if she's not here."
Qianqian gently rested her head on Weiwei Yuyan's wrist.
"Okay, what is brother doing?"
Wei Yuyan did not see Xiao Lei.
"My brother is cleaning out the storage room. He said there seems to be some charcoal left in there."
Qianqian responded.
"Okay, let's eat right away."
Wei Yuyan saw that the lard was almost ready and she could start cooking rice soon.
I forgot to buy a clay pot, but luckily I have a steamer, so I just put the rice in the steamer to steam it.
"Sister-in-law, Xiuhua, I'm back."
Brother Zhang returned covered in sweat.
"Brother Zhang, how did it go? Did the butcher agree?"
Wei Yuyan quickly got to the point.
"He agreed, saying he would slaughter more than just the pigs he wanted to sell every day."
"I also help others slaughter pigs, so I get up early and can deliver them at this time."
Brother Zhang poured himself a bowl of well water and drank it; it was so refreshing!
"That's good. You can rest for a bit, dinner will be ready soon."
Wei Yuyan was in a great mood because everything was going so smoothly, and it felt wonderful.
"Time to eat."
Half an hour later, the meal was all ready. Luckily, Sister-in-law Xiuhua brought bowls and chopsticks from home today, otherwise we would have had to buy more.
"Wow, there's even chicken!"
Xiao Lei and Qian Qian were practically drooling.
“Come on, Xiao Lei and Qian Qian, one chicken leg each. Xiu Hua and I will eat chicken wings, and Brother Zhang will eat chicken breast.”
Wei Yuyan was afraid that everyone would feel embarrassed to eat, so she simply divided the chicken up for everyone.
"This roast chicken tastes good."
Sister-in-law Xiuhua nodded as she ate, wondering how this roast chicken was made.
"This is my first time eating roast chicken, it's so delicious."
Qianqian was absolutely thrilled with it.
Wei Yuyan thought to herself that this was probably her first time eating it, and she thought it was just so-so.
After a hearty meal, everyone unanimously decided to take a nap, since there wasn't much else to do, and it was also too hot.
Anyway, I don't need to mince meat. I just need to chop chili peppers, mushrooms, knead dough, and cook red bean paste. I can finish these things in the afternoon.
After getting up, Xiao Lei and Qian Qian stood outside the shop to look around, while the adults were busy in the kitchen.
"Brother Zhang, I think this kitchen window is too small. It's so hot when we're working while we're cooking.
"Why don't you call a helper the day after tomorrow to modify this window and widen it both front and back?"
Wei Yuyan felt her back was soaked with sweat. It wasn't even July yet, but it was just too hot being next to the stove.
"Okay, I can handle this little thing by myself, I don't need any help."
Brother Zhang took a look and said it was just a small matter; they could just knock down a bit of the wall.
"Then I'll have to trouble you then."
Wei Yuyan expressed her gratitude.
"There's no need for thanks between us. You're my employer, I should be thanking you for letting me work so freely."
Brother Zhang felt incredibly fortunate to be working alongside Wei Yuyan.
It's not tiring, and I have personal freedom. I just need to do my best to fulfill the tasks assigned by my younger siblings.
"We've helped each other achieve success."
Wei Yuyan finished kneading the dough and covered it up. Finally, she could rest for a while.
We made over ten kilograms of dough, and both my hands and Sister-in-law Xiuhua's hands were sore. Next time, we'll have Brother Zhang knead it so we can take turns.
I can cut mushrooms, but I'm not so good at cutting chili peppers because my hands get spicy too.
After finishing these tasks, Wei Yuyan couldn't wait to take a shower, but she couldn't, otherwise she would be covered in sweat again when she ate.
"Brother Zhang, after you finish eating, you should go home. For the sake of the safety of our two families' property, this is the only arrangement we can make for now."
There's some leftover noodle soup in my kitchen from this morning. Could you feed it to my three puppies when you get home? Here's the key.
During dinner, Wei Yuyan handed her house key to Brother Zhang.
"Okay, sister-in-law, don't worry, I'll take care of both sides."
Brother Zhang figured that before he went to sleep, he played with his three puppies at his younger brother and sister-in-law's house, and when he got sleepy, he went back to his own house to sleep.
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