Chapter 5 The food is burnt.
A four-pound pheasant is enough for the He family to eat for several meals if they are frugal.
That day, He's mother was very generous. She was happy that her daughter had caught a pheasant in the back mountain, so she asked her eldest daughter-in-law to fry half a chicken for a meal. The next day, when she was cooking, she couldn't bear to give it up, so she divided the remaining half of the chicken into two portions, so that she could have two more meals.
The He family had no objection to this.
It was good to have meat to eat, and it would not be tiring to work in the fields with a little oil in the stomach. It was good to eat more meals if you could save some.
Of course, every time she fried chicken, He's mother would first pick the fat and tender chicken legs for her daughter to eat, and then share the rest with everyone.
He Susu was not polite. She usually ate the best food at home, and this pheasant was brought back by her. If she didn't pick the best food, her family would be surprised.
In this way, the He family had meat for several days after eating chicken every other day, and the children said it was like Chinese New Year. The adults were full and had plenty of energy when working in the fields, with smiles on their faces, which made the nearby workers curious and ask if there was any good news at home.
He Susu also rested for a few days, no longer worrying about earning hard work points. Of course, she checked the items in the shopping system and kept in mind the hard work points required for the items she wanted to exchange.
A can of malted milk requires 5 points of diligence, a box of vanishing cream requires 3 points of diligence, five pounds of flour requires 4 points of diligence, five pounds of refined rice also requires 4 points of diligence, and 1 pound of pork requires 2 points of diligence.
She had always been thinking about the sweet taste of malted milk that she had drunk by chance many years ago. This thing was nutritious and delicious. If she had the chance, she would naturally exchange it for a can and drink it every day.
Vanishing cream is something for wiping the face. Her classmates in the city would use it to wipe their faces every day to protect their faces. When He Susu first learned about it, she was very excited. She acted like a spoiled child with her mother for a long time before she persuaded her to take out three yuan to buy this small box of vanishing cream.
He Susu took good care of her pretty face and applied it every day, so naturally the box of vanishing cream ran out. But after that, she had no money, and no matter how much she acted like a spoiled child, her mother was reluctant to buy her more, so she never used vanishing cream again.
When she accumulates enough diligence points, she will definitely exchange them for two boxes of vanishing cream, one for herself and one for her mother, so that she can also try the effectiveness of the vanishing cream.
He Susu naturally wanted to exchange rice and flour. Who doesn't want to eat rice every meal? She was really tired of eating sweet potatoes and corn steamed buns. Of course, these were not bad foods in this era.
She had seen that 2 points of hard work could be exchanged for a pound of chive dumplings, but now she was thinking that only 8 points of hard work could be exchanged for 5 pounds of flour and 2 pounds of pork, which she could bring home to make dumplings for her mother and sister-in-law, weighing several pounds. No matter how she looked at it, the latter was more cost-effective.
Thinking about it this way, she needs to earn a lot of diligence points.
After eating the last meal of chicken, He Susu knew that it was time for her to work hard again to earn diligence points.
Last time she broke a bowl, and the bowls at home were all in a fixed number, and she hadn't bought new bowls yet, so He's father had been eating with plates these days. She didn't dare to wash the dishes anymore, in case she broke another bowl, it would be hard to explain.
When washing clothes, He Susu was afraid of rubbing holes in them, as her clothes could not stand such damage.
After thinking it over, she decided to cook a dish for her family.
So at noon that day, He's mother came back early to cook in the kitchen. When she was just frying some vegetables, her daughter came in. She asked, "Susu, what are you doing in the kitchen?"
My daughter never likes to go into the kitchen. She says that the smell of cooking fumes makes her feel uncomfortable and it can easily stain her clothes.
He Susu smiled and said, "I just thought that I have never cooked a meal for you, parents. I don't know how to cook much, so I thought of helping you stir-fry the remaining dishes."
He's mother was happy to hear this: "Well, it's enough that you have this intention. Go out quickly, I will cook."
He Susu walked over and took her mother's arm, insisting, "Mom, just give me a chance. Cooking is so simple, I'm sure I can do it."
Mother He's heart softened, thinking that she didn't need to pay attention to the heat when cooking, so she agreed: "Okay. I've already washed the cabbage hearts, and the stove is hot, so just stir-fry it."
Thinking that it was her daughter's first time cooking, she would be happy if everyone praised her cooking, so Mother He generously said, "There is still some lard in this jar. You can scoop some out to cook with later. It will definitely be delicious."
He Susu smiled and agreed. After her mother put the fried shiitake mushrooms on a plate, she stood in front of the stove, took the can of lard, scooped half a spoonful of it into the pot, and stirred it with a spatula to melt it. When the oil in the pot sizzled, she put the washed cabbage hearts into the pot.
The next step is just stir-frying.
Seeing her daughter cooking well, He's mother was relieved and took the plate of mushrooms out of the kitchen and put it on the dining table. Just then, her grandchildren came back from school, and she asked them to wash their hands by the well, and she couldn't help nagging Kejie for playing with muddy hands.
In the morning, Guifang, Guixi and Kerou were studying in the brigade primary school. Guimian and Kejie were not old enough, so they played with the other kids in the village and went home with their brothers and sisters at a certain time.
In less than a moment, the He family members who were working in the fields also returned home.
Qian Chunhe had a keen sense of smell and felt something was wrong as soon as he walked into the hall: "Why does it seem like there is a smell? Is something burnt in the kitchen?"
When everyone heard this, they looked at He's mother. "Mom is here, so who is cooking in the kitchen?"
"Oh no!" After being reminded by her daughter-in-law, He's mother also smelled something wrong and hurried to the kitchen, where she saw her daughter hurriedly scooping the cabbage hearts into the plate.
He Susu was helpless. She was doing fine at the beginning, stirring the food from time to time with a spatula. Later, she thought that she didn't need to be so diligent and just stir it occasionally, so she didn't stir it much. Besides, Dad had bad teeth and had to eat vegetables that were cooked softer, so she just let the vegetables continue to cook in the pot.
Unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, she smelled a burnt smell and hurriedly turned over the cabbage heart with a spatula, but the leaves underneath were all burnt.
After listening to her daughter, He's mother comforted her, "It's my fault. I forgot to tell you that the cabbage heart needs to be cooked until it's soft. Just add some water and cover the pot and simmer. It's okay. As long as it's the vegetables you stir-fried, it's delicious even if it's burnt."
Fortunately, the Chinese cabbage is grown in my own yard and is free. It’s already this late and it’s impossible to pick the vegetables and cook them again, so I just have to make do with one meal.
He Susu was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. How could she burn the dish she cooked?
The He family looked at the dish of choy sum on the table. Five of the leaves were mushy, but the others were edible after careful selection. Knowing that this was He Susu's first time cooking, He's father and the eldest and second brothers didn't have the heart to say anything. They picked some out of respect and kept praising, "This choy sum is well-cooked and delicious!"
The five children were very smart. They usually didn’t like to eat vegetables, but now they all picked up the mushrooms with their chopsticks.
Zhao Miling ate the vegetables, but she had to endure the burnt taste before she could swallow them. She thought about what to say, "Aunt, let us do the cooking from now on."
Qian Chunhe nodded: "Yes, little aunt, the work at the stove is dangerous, I hope you don't get hurt."
He Susu secretly looked at the shopping system and saw that she still earned 1 hard work point even if she burned the food. She smiled and said, "It's okay. I can still do some more work."
No one in the He family dared to speak.
One point of hard work can't be exchanged for anything, so He Susu decided to save it first. There are many things that can be done at home, but whatever she does, there will be problems, so He Susu is somewhat cautious.
After dinner at night, Guifang was holding a broom and preparing to sweep the yard. She hurried over and said, "Guifang, give me the broom, I'll sweep the yard."
Guifang quickly hugged the broom and said, "Aunt, sweeping the yard is my job. Just sit and watch me sweep."
He Susu: "No, I've never swept the yard in my life. Let me do it for once."
Guifang couldn't persuade her sister-in-law, so she had to hand the broom to her.
He Susu took the broom and began to sweep the yard. She had never swept the yard at home, but she had helped clean the classroom at school, so it was not difficult for her to sweep the floor.
The He family's yard is neither big nor small. The left side is a vegetable plot made of mud, and the rest of the area is mostly covered with dust that blows in when the door is opened, as well as fallen leaves from the ivy on the yard wall.
She swept back and forth with the broom, then shoveled it up with a wooden shovel, and the yard was clean.
This job is simple and there is no chance of making mistakes. He Susu checked the shopping system and found that there was an extra diligence point. She thought that she could make sweeping the yard a daily task in the future.
In a good mood, she handed the broom to Guifang and asked her to put it away. Guifang also took the wooden shovel to the door and poured out all the leaves and dust inside.
After taking a shower at night, He Susu was drying her hair in the room, thinking about something.
She could say that she caught the pheasant by chance in the back mountain, but she couldn't use that excuse if she exchanged it for pork or rice. She had to think of a way to at least let her family know that she could make money, so that she could bring the things she exchanged from the system back home as if she bought them herself.
At this time, He's mother knocked on the door and came in. She looked at the wound on her daughter's forehead and said, "Fortunately, the wound healed well. Now, apart from a little redness, basically nothing can be seen."
Two days after He Susu woke up, she removed the gauze on her forehead. The wound scabbed over and fell off quickly. Just as Doctor Wang said, there was no scar left.
Mother He talked about business: "Oh, the vegetables in the vegetable garden have grown a new crop. You can go to the county town tomorrow to send these vegetables to your eldest sister. It's also the time for your third brother to send money back. You can go and get it. Also, you have to go to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy a bowl."
He Susu has an elder sister named He Xiuxiu. She is a proud person. She is used to the days in the countryside where she can only eat a few meals of meat a year. She has always envied the city dwellers who have jobs and can eat commercial grain, and she is determined to marry a city dweller.
Fortunately, she bumped into a male employee of the steel plant when she went to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy something. They fell in love with each other at once and started dating after a few contacts. The man's family was well-off, his father was also an employee of the steel plant, and his mother was the director of the women's department of the neighborhood. At the insistence of the man, his family had to agree to the marriage, and He Xiuxiu successfully married into the city.
After living the good life she wanted, He Xiuxiu did not despise her mother's family, and she saved up good things from time to time to subsidize her mother's family.
He's mother was not happy to accept the things her eldest daughter brought back. She was even more afraid that her in-laws would think that they were taking advantage of her and therefore looked down on her. Knowing that they had to go out to buy vegetables in the city, she would always pick some and send them to her whenever a crop of vegetables grew in the vegetable garden. Give and take, that's what in-laws do.
The He family members had to work in the fields during the day, and if they took a day off they would lose eight or nine centimeters. He Susu always loved going to the city, and her eldest sister would secretly give her some delicious food or money every time, so she had always been responsible for delivering the vegetables.
After hearing what her mother said, He Susu immediately agreed: "Okay, I'll go to the city to deliver the vegetables tomorrow."
He's mother took out two yuan, a candy ticket and a grain ticket from her pocket and said, "Take this money and ticket. After buying the bowl, use the remaining money to buy half a pound of White Rabbit candy."
This is what we promised before.
He Susu was not polite and took it with a smile.
Seeing that her daughter was in a good mood, He's mother thought for a while and asked tentatively: "Your third sister-in-law is living with Dabao and Erbao at her parents' home recently. How about you bring more vegetables and send some to your third sister-in-law's parents' home. This way, we will feel more comfortable."
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