Chapter 52
Jiang He chuckled and said, "Oh, is that so? That was Second Grandfather's fault. Second Grandfather apologized to Sisi."
Jiang Si was delighted.
Jiang Hai also bought a lot of firewood in the afternoon and is still chopping it. The chopped firewood is piled up in front of the wall and is already knee-high.
Niu Xiaolu thoughtfully picked up the chopped wood from the ground and carefully placed it away.
He said with a smile, "Xiao Lu is indeed well-behaved. I don't know how Niu Dali and the others raised her."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Si became unhappy again. "Grandpa, Si Si and her brother are very well-behaved."
Jiang Hai laughed heartily, "Yes, yes, Sisi and Suisui are also well-behaved. It's just that our Sisi has never eaten fruit since she was little and has always wanted to try it, so she was a little absent-minded when helping with chores today."
Jiang Si immediately felt a little embarrassed and said crisply, "Grandpa, I didn't want to eat it because it tastes good, I wanted to eat it because I was curious!"
Everyone burst into laughter, even Jiang Jun was amused.
Jiang Zhi said with a smile, "So our Sisi is curious about the taste of fruit? What if your aunt can't buy any fruit that suits your taste?"
Jiang Si quickly replied, "No, my brother said that all fruits are delicious!"
Everyone laughed again when they saw the little glutton's expression.
Ye Qingyun was sewing overcoats with Yuan Ying and the others in the hall when he heard Jiang Zhi's voice and poked his head out: "You're back? What did you buy? How much did it cost?"
Jiang Zhi was both amused and exasperated. "Mom!"
Before she could answer, Ye Qingyun beckoned and said, "Come in quickly. I spent the whole afternoon making this coat. Try it on to see if it fits."
When Jiangzhi returned to the hall, she saw that the grains in the hall had been neatly arranged.
In the corner, several burlap sacks were open, filled with dark, shiny yam beans, and several had fallen to the ground.
In the bamboo basket beside them, potatoes were piled up like a small mountain, their skins still covered with fresh soil, nestled together in varying sizes. Sweet potatoes, on the other hand, were neatly stacked in the corner, their red skins glossy, some cracked open to reveal their golden flesh inside.
Looking down at the ground, there was a small handful of earthworms drying in a winnowing basket, dark brown and curled up dry.
The sight of such a full load of grain is enough to bring joy to anyone.
In the center of the hall was a pile of mole skins, and several women sat among them, chatting and sewing coats for their families.
Ye Qingyun put the thick, long coat on Jiang Zhi. The coat, which was about 1.5 to 1.6 meters long, made Jiang Zhi look like a child wearing adult clothes.
The women in charge couldn't help but laugh when they saw this.
Yuan Ying: "A-Zhi said this doesn't seem to fit quite well."
Grandma Jiang: "It's alright. In winter, you have to be bundled up to stay warm. You can wear one or two cotton-padded coats underneath, which will be just right."
Although winter hasn't arrived yet, based on the summer's conditions, everyone subconsciously feels that the winter after the cataclysm will be unbearably cold.
The Jiang family members are all from the south, but Ye Qingyun married into the family from the north. She had experienced temperatures of minus ten or twenty degrees Celsius, so she described the northern winter in detail, which terrified the other women.
Finally, everyone agreed that—wear whatever keeps you warm, like a padded coat or cotton-padded jacket!
The mole fur, after being sun-dried, had a faint fur smell, which wasn't too unpleasant. Jiangzhi was sweating profusely after wearing it for only a short time.
She quickly took it off, saying, "This coat is really warm."
Wu Xiu laughed upon hearing this: "That's right, we were so hot all afternoon sewing these jackets, your mother almost got heatstroke just now."
Yuan Ying said, "It would be great if we had air conditioning, otherwise everyone would get prickly heat if we kept going like this."
Grandma Jiang laughed: "You should be content. When winter comes, you'll miss this time."
Upon hearing this, the group all laughed.
Ye Qingyun took the coat from Jiang Zhi and said, "It looks a bit big. It might be inconvenient for you to move around in it. Let your brother try it on later."
Just as Jiang Zhi was about to say something, her stomach suddenly made a "gurgling" sound.
Seeing the way the two little ones were looking at her, Jiang Zhi couldn't help but blush.
Grandma Jiang slapped her thigh, "Look at me, I was so busy that I forgot to cook on time!"
She put down the mole skin in her hand. "You guys go ahead with your work, I'll go cook."
Ye Qingyun said, "Mom, let me do it. You rest for a while."
Upon hearing this, Grandma Jiang said, "Alright, I'll stir-fry some pickled cowpeas tonight. They'll be perfect with porridge. You can decide on the rest."
Ye Qingyun smiled and went to the kitchen.
Grandma Jiang handed the antique needles that Ye Qingyun had used to Jiang Zhi, saying, "Here, you can help sew a few stitches too."
After Jiang Zhi sat down, Yuan Ying asked, "Zhi, how's it going? Does Lei have any good stuff?"
Jiang Zhi nodded and recounted what she had seen at Han Lei's place. "Brother Lei's business is booming now, and he didn't charge us any handling fees today."
Yuan Ying was very happy to hear this. Han Lei was someone she had watched grow up. He used to have a good relationship with Jiang Wen and was almost like a son to her.
Hearing that the other party is doing well, Yuan Ying is genuinely happy.
"This child is also a sensible one."
Jiang Si chimed in eagerly, "Auntie, you haven't told us what you bought today."
Grandma Jiang laughed out loud and tapped her little nose, "You little glutton, how could we let you go without food?"
Jiang Si pouted, "My brother said there's a fruit called grapes that's really delicious. It's sweet and sour, and very juicy. Sisi wants to try it too..."
Jiang Si was young and had never had a good life since she could remember, so the adults in her family were happy to spoil her.
Ginger twigs are no exception.
She patted Jiang Si's little head and said, "Auntie didn't manage to buy grapes this time, but I did manage to buy several kinds of mutated fruits. Auntie promises you that she'll pick more grapes for you to eat next time, okay?"
Jiang Si was overjoyed and nodded vigorously, "Great!"
Grandma Jiang asked curiously, "What kind of fruit did you buy this time?"
Jiang Zhi then listed them one by one, saying, "There aren't many varieties, and the quantities aren't large either."
If the mutated fruit weren't so big, we wouldn't have gotten this much weight.
The old lady opened her mouth, but Jiang Zhi immediately called out, "Stop! Grandma, don't ask me how many points I spent, I won't tell you."
Grandma Jiang was both annoyed and amused. "I knew it cost a lot even if you didn't tell me. Those tomatoes you bought from the base store cost 1,900 yuan. Even if Ah Lei got them for a cheaper price, how much cheaper could they have been? You still wanted to hide it from me."
Jiang Zhi assumed the old lady was using reverse psychology and refused to mention the price.
At this moment, a faint, sweet aroma of soft, sticky food wafted from the kitchen stove.
Jiang Shugou sniffed the air.
He called out, "Mom, what did you cook? It smells amazing!"
Ye Qingyun's voice came from inside, "Get to work!"
Jiang Shu shrank back, suppressing his restless heart, and obediently continued to help Jiang He with his work.
"Second Uncle, shall we start sawing from here?"
Jiang He: "Let me see."
Jiang He is always very serious when he works.
Jiang Shu always felt that if it weren't for the great catastrophe, his second uncle might have become a non-hereditary inheritor.
Jiang He flicked the ink line onto the wood, then had Jiang Shu pull the wood saw back and forth along the ink line. The saw teeth made a "crunching" sound, and fine wood shavings flew around the yard.
After the tenons and mortises of the cabinet were finally assembled together with a "click," Jiang He had Jiang Shu step on the newly made cabinet legs to test their stability.
Jiang Shu helped out for half a day and immediately realized that everyone has their own expertise.
This job is tedious and monotonous; he really couldn't stand doing it all day long.
He preferred the extra effort of going out of town to collect the materials.
Jiang Jun checked the time. "My second brother and the others have been gone for so long, they should be back by now, right?"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Hai frowned slightly. "It's past six o'clock... He should usually be back by now, but the No. 15 collection area is quite far, and more and more people are going there these days, so it's normal for him to be back a little late."
That's what they said, but everyone started to worry.
Niu Xiaolu, who was originally playing with Jiang Si, couldn't help but come over.
Jiang Jun: "Should we go check out Area C?"
Jiang Shu immediately dropped what he was doing. "I'll go take a look."
Jiang Hai said, "Big Tree, I'll go with you."
Grandma Jiang walked into the yard and instructed, "If anything happens, call back. Don't be stingy with those points."
The two agreed, and each of them took a weapon for self-defense and went out the door.
Yuan Ying and the others were also somewhat uneasy, and they all put down what they were doing.
Grandma Jiang comforted them, "Don't worry, Awen and the others have Dali and the others with them, and Xiaoxu is still alive, so nothing will happen to her."
In fact, something not so bad happened to Jiang Wen.
The reason was that there were too many people going to the No. 15 collection area today, and there weren't enough vehicles to go back and forth. In order to get back as soon as possible, Jiang Wen and his group stuffed dozens of kilograms of pumpkins into the queue ahead of them.
As a result, this traffic jam caused problems. When the people in the same car saw that the group had made too much money, they had ulterior motives. After returning to the base and leaving the C area parking lot, Jiang Wen and his group were stopped by someone.
With Niu Dali around, Jiang Wen and his group were naturally not afraid, but their fight inside the base was discovered by the patrol team, and they were all taken back to the base police station for a record, which delayed their return home.
By the time Jiang Hai and Jiang Shu learned what had happened and went to the police station to pick up the people, it was already 7 p.m.
Fortunately, the guard handled the matter impartially. After investigating the whole story, the group compensated Jiang Wen and his companions with several hundred kilograms of bitter lettuce from the No. 15 collection area today.
Furthermore, that group of people were criminally detained for 15 days. They would have to pay a huge fine to be released early.
This is quite a gratifying thing.
In the end, the two families divided the "stolen money," with each family receiving over 230 jin of bitter lettuce, which could be considered an unexpected windfall.
Finally, Jiang Shu and Jiang Hai helped carry the large baskets home.
It was clear that the people near the C parking lot were very wary; getting even slightly close would elicit a reprimand.
It's likely that what Jiang Wen and his group encountered was not an isolated case.
Fearing further complications, the group decided to split up and travel separately.
Niu Dali was strong, so he and Liu Xu were responsible for taking most of the things back to the Niu family first. When there were fewer people, Jiang Shu and Jiang Wen would go and bring back their share.
When the group returned home, they were greeted by a strong, pungent smell of chili peppers as soon as they opened the door.
Jiang Shu couldn't take it anymore. He swallowed hard, closed the door, and shouted, "Mom! Mom! We're back!"
Ye Qingyun came out of the kitchen carrying a large plate of food, looking annoyed. "Are you trying to call back the soul? What are you shouting for? Go set the table."
Jiang Shu's eyes were glued to the dish once he saw it—a potato sandwich with plenty of side dishes and chili powder.
Not only Jiang Shu, but several young people couldn't help but swallow their saliva when they smelled the spicy and delicious aroma.
Ye Qingyun used a traditional method from a certain province in central China.
Potatoes are roasted directly over charcoal until the skin is charred and the inside is soft. Then, they are cut open and stuffed with a mixture of various ingredients, chili powder, and salt. The result is a dish that looks and smells delicious.
Jiang Wen and Xu Na had never seen anything like this before, so they joined in, asking, "Auntie, what are you making? It looks like a hamburger."
Xu Na said, "This shape looks more like a roujiamo (Chinese hamburger). It's amazing. Is the outer layer made of potato?"
Ye Qingyun nodded with a smile: "That's right, the filling contains some chopped chives, wild vegetables and chili peppers. I don't know if you guys can get used to it."
When you get close, the aroma of burnt potatoes mixed with chili peppers fills your nose, and the smoky sweetness is wrapped in the smell of charcoal, like ice cream wrapped in warm steam.
Jiang Si and Jiang Sui are still children, and even though they tried their best to control themselves, they couldn't help but drool from the corners of their mouths.
Only Niu Xiaolu, like a little adult, looked preoccupied.
Ye Qingyun asked, "Xiao Lu, what's wrong? What are you thinking about?"
Niu Xiaolu's eyes immediately reddened. "Grandma Ye, are my parents never coming back?"
Everyone was taken aback by the question.
Then it dawned on them—they had completely forgotten to explain to Niu Xiaolu!
Niu Xiaolu was beautiful with rosy lips and white teeth, and was also well-behaved and cute. The sight of her red eyes made the Jiang family feel extremely guilty.
Ye Qingyun slapped Jiang Shu on the shoulder, "You brat, all you see when you come in is food. Don't you know how to explain things to Xiao Lu first?"
Jiang Hai had already called home when he found the person, but Niu Xiaolu was in the house with Jiang Si at the time and didn't know.
Jiang Shu quickly picked up Niu Xiaolu and smiled apologetically, "Oh dear, Xiaolu, it's all my fault for not explaining things clearly to you. Your parents have returned, and they will come to pick you up soon."
No sooner had Niu Xiaolu finished speaking than someone knocked on the door. Jiang Wen opened the door and there was none other than Niu Dali and his wife.
Seeing that the Jiang family was all there and looked like they were about to eat, Liu Xu suddenly felt a little embarrassed.
Generally speaking, anyone who is sensible knows that they shouldn't visit someone's home during mealtimes.
"We've come to take Xiaolu back."
When Niu Xiaolu saw his parents, he immediately rushed over to them.
Liu Xu smiled and said, "I'm sorry, Xiao Lu has caused you trouble."
Ye Qingyun: "Xiao Lu is very well-behaved and hasn't caused us any trouble. Sisi and Suisui both like him very much. From now on, you can leave Xiao Lu with us when you go out."
Liu Xu was touched. She asked Niu Dali to bring out a basket. "I just bought this when I passed by the base store. I heard it tastes good, so please don't mind it."
Ye Qingyun was immediately shocked when he saw it; it was a mutated cucumber, a rare and precious item. He hadn't expected Liu Xu to be so generous. Although the quantity wasn't large, he estimated it would cost two or three hundred points.
Ye Qingyun pushed it back directly, "Take it back quickly. What kind of behavior is this? People who don't know better will think we're a daycare center."
Liu Xu wasn't about to give up. She picked up Niu Xiaolu and dragged Niu Dali away, saying, "Aunt Ye, we still need to cook, so we won't keep you any longer. Remember to have someone come and pick up the things later."
Only those two mutated cucumbers were left forlornly in front of the door.
Ye Qingyun was delighted.
Liu Xu knew that this was a gift she had specially bought for them to thank them for helping take care of Niu Xiaolu.
Jiang Shu scratched the back of his head. "Mom, this cucumber..."
Ye Qingyun glared at him and said, "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and put your things away so we can eat."
Jiang Shu quickly and efficiently retrieved the cucumbers.
"Mom, can we add another dish later?"
How could Ye Qingyun not understand what his son was thinking?
I just wanted these cucumbers.
The family's financial situation was getting better and better, and Ye Qingyun didn't intend to be too stingy.
"What? You don't want to eat meat dishes anymore?"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Shu's eyes widened immediately. "Meat?! Is it mole crickets or dried earthworms?"
Grandma Jiang smiled and said, "No, these are not the same. Here, this is the dried meat you had someone process before. Someone just drove over to deliver it."
Following Old Mrs. Jiang's gaze, Jiang Shu saw three or four wooden boxes filled with dried meat placed against the wall. One of the boxes was open, revealing something dark inside.
When Jiang Shu took them out, he saw that each piece of meat was made into the size of a brick, hard as a rock, similar to the smoked meat he had seen before.
He couldn't believe his eyes: "That's all?!"
Nearly two thousand kilograms of meat could only be made into a few boxes of jerky, leaving Jiang Shu both heartbroken and happy.
The heartache comes from the fact that so much meat has shrunk so much, but the joy comes from the fact that the family finally has decent meat to eat, and they no longer have to eat non-mainstream meat like cotton aphids or mole crickets.
I used to think that more than a thousand pounds of meat could last me a year or two.
Looking at it now, he was still too young!
Grandma Jiang said with a smile, "It's already good that there are so many. I've checked them all. All the moisture has evaporated. If you eat them directly, they'll be so hard they'll break your teeth. But that's good too, they can be stored for a long time."
At the very least, it's much better than what they did themselves.
The others were also very satisfied.
These days, meat is a luxury. Their family suddenly has so many "luxury items," it's almost like they've become rich overnight.
Jiang Wen also looked through the dried meat and asked, "Grandma, how long will this dried meat last us? Is two years enough?"
Yuan Ying said with a smile, "It depends on how you eat it. If we ate it the way we used to, this much meat wouldn't be enough for a year."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Shu immediately lay down on the ground, looking as if all his energy had been drained. "Alas, the revolution is not yet complete, comrades must continue to strive..."
His listless tone amused everyone.
A few months ago, who could have imagined that they would be living a life where they have no worries about food and drink, and even meat?
Having family around them, working together towards a common goal, gives them a sense of fulfillment.
Jiang Shu's dejection lasted only a second before he exclaimed, "Mom, I want to eat meat!!"
Today's harvest was good; in addition to dried meat, Jiang Wen and his wife also brought back a lot of Chinese cabbage and pumpkin.
Now that life is getting better, we can't neglect ourselves.
Ye Qingyun also felt that it would be a shame not to cook a good meal on such a nice day, but he didn't want the kid to get too cocky, so he said, "Go away, go away, don't get in my way, I haven't finished cooking yet."
Ye Qingyun prepared a feast entirely made of potatoes.
Besides "potato sandwiches", there is also stir-fried diced potatoes with dried meat.
Cut the potatoes into large chunks and soak them to prevent them from turning black.
Then soak the dried meat in warm water until soft and cut it into pieces.
Ye Qingyun specifically chose pieces of meat with a good balance of fat and lean meat.
When dried fat is placed under a light, it appears as a white layer. After being sliced, it becomes transparent. Once it's put into a pan and the pan heats up, the fat is immediately rendered and coated with a glossy sheen.
You don't even need to add oil. Just add chili peppers to sauté until fragrant, then add dried meat and stir-fry until flavorful.
Even with years of experience as a chef, Ye Qingyun couldn't help but swallow hard at the smell of the pork.
It's been so long since I've eaten pork.
In the past, when life was better, people would complain about eating pork every day when buying groceries, wondering what other flavors they could try.
Now we finally get to eat a meal.
A joy that came from the depths of my soul welled up inside me.
Once the mutated pork was half-cooked, Ye Qingyun added potato chunks and stir-fried them.
Add water to cover the ingredients, bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are soft and the broth is thick. Season with salt and clam shell powder.
This dish is incredibly fragrant. The potatoes have absorbed the flavor of the dried meat and are soft and fluffy, while the dried meat is also chewy and satisfying. It's definitely a perfect dish to eat with rice!
Ye Qingyun thought happily—that kid Da Shu would definitely want to swallow his tongue in a moment.
Be aware of what you are thinking.
Ye Qingyun couldn't help but laugh again.
Honestly, why did I suddenly think of that brat, Big Tree?
After making the braised pork with potatoes, Ye Qingyun finally took out the cucumber that Liu Xu had given him, washed it, and smashed it.
Then roast the potatoes and peppers over charcoal until the eggplant is soft and the peppers are charred. After roasting, peel off the charred skin, tear them into strips, and finally add crushed cucumber and diced pickled cowpeas. Season with salt and fruit juice, and mix well. A cold dish is ready!
Now, Ye Qingyun and Grandma Jiang are using the sour fruit juice as vinegar. It not only tastes similar but also has a fruity aroma, adding a unique flavor to dishes.
The others, hearing the "thump-thump" sound of a cleaver hitting the cutting board from the kitchen, felt that sense of happiness well up inside them once again.
Not to mention the two children, even Jiang Shu couldn't help but drool as he stood around the stove, his eyes glued to the glistening slices of meat in the pot.
Jiang Wen also wanted to move over to take a look, but he was too embarrassed. Jiang Hai looked at the children and said with amusement, "Alright, come over and help dig the cellar, otherwise there won't be any room to walk in our living room."
Their living room isn't very big, and the family usually spends time there. But now that they've stockpiled so much food, it feels very crowded, and they have to eat in the yard now.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Shu reluctantly shouldered his shovel and walked over.
In Lao Jiang's family, these physical tasks are all men's work; if there are enough people, women won't get involved.
After discussing it back and forth, the men finally decided that it would be safer to dig the cellar near the boundary of the self-built housing area.
If a petty thief were to break into your home, the kitchen would be the first place to suffer, so you definitely shouldn't dig in the kitchen.
After agreeing on the location and the size of the cellar, they started figuring out how to dig it.
Old Jiang's family used to have a cellar.
But that cellar was dug by the older generation in the 1970s or 1980s. When conditions improved and the family had a refrigerator, the cellar was used as a place to store miscellaneous items.
The location was chosen by Jiang He; it's a shady and dry spot against the wall, perfect for a cellar.
Jiang He instructed Jiang Wen to draw a square on the ground using firewood that had been burned to charcoal.
After the drawing was completed, the group began to use pickaxes to remove the loose soil.
The Jiang family had many men, and they dug a pit half a person deep in no time.
As Jiang Shu smelled the faint aroma wafting from the kitchen, he imagined how many bowls of barley rice he would eat later, and worked with great effort.
Ye Qingyun then made another dish: braised potatoes.
Peel the potatoes, cut them into chunks, put them in a pot with water and simmer over low heat. Add some salt, cover and cook for 15 minutes.
While waiting, Ye Qingyun splurged on a tomato.
The mutated tomatoes are five to six times larger than those we've seen before.
Upon cutting it open, the air was filled with the fresh aroma of tomatoes. Ye Qingyun diced one-third of the tomatoes, chopped the small red chilies, and added chopped chives.
The mutated chives have a unique pungent smell. When shredded and added to dishes, they taste somewhat like garlic.
Finally, mince the soaked wild boar meat.
Once these side dishes are prepared and the potatoes are cooked, remove the potatoes and set the potato soup aside.
Then Ye Qingyun poured a little more lard into the pot. After the oil was hot, he added the minced meat and stir-fried it until it was half-cooked. He then added chopped chives to bring out the pungent aroma of the chives. Next, he added diced tomatoes and small red chilies. After the tomatoes were stir-fried until they were soft and crumbly, he added the pre-cooked potatoes and seasonings.
Finally, pour in the broth from boiling the potatoes.
The Jiang family prefers a thicker consistency, so Ye Qingyun mashed the potatoes until they were soft, then cooked them for another ten minutes, stirred them a few times, and they were ready to serve.
The moment the lid was lifted, a cloud of steam carrying fragrant heat "poof"ed onto my face.
The golden-yellow potato chunks simmered and bubbled in the thick broth, absorbing its rich flavor. The edges were cooked until slightly sandy, and you could tell at a glance that the taste was sure to be good.
Last night, Ye Qingyun then sliced the remaining tomatoes, ground sugar into powder, and sprinkled it on top, turning it into a cold tomato salad.
The dishes were served quickly.
Since there wasn't enough room in the hall, Wu Xiu and the others set up their dining table in the courtyard.
Several dishes were placed on the table, steaming hot.
Grandma Jiang called out, "—Everyone, come and eat!!"
Upon hearing this, everyone put down what they were doing, grabbed stools, and sat down at the table.
Jiang Jun took the homemade fan out of the yard.
An old palm-leaf fan was tied to a small motor and secured crookedly with wire. When the switch was turned on, the fan blades spun around with a "creaking" sound, and the wind blew wildly, sometimes strong and sometimes weak.
Occasionally, the fan ribs would bump against the plastic frame, making a "tap-tap" sound, like a beat. Although it couldn't compare to a proper fan, it could still provide a brief respite from the heat.
Everyone was pleasantly surprised.
On a day like this, being able to feel a warm breeze is an incredibly blissful thing.
Wu Xiu asked happily, "Ah Jun, did you make this?"
Jiang Jun laughed and said, "I saw that you guys were sweating too much while working, and I was thinking that making a fan might help. I didn't expect it to work."
Jiang Shu exclaimed exaggeratedly, "Brother! You're sooooo awesome!"
The two little ones followed Jiang Shu's example and surrounded Jiang Jun, shouting loudly, "Dad, you're sooooo awesome!"
Ye Qingyun glared at Jiang Shu warningly, then said to the two children, "Children shouldn't swear!"
Jiang Sui and Jiang Si immediately covered their mouths, "Auntie, we won't say anything more."
Everyone laughed again.
Jiang Hai looked around the homemade fan and praised it, "Ah Jun, your craftsmanship is quite good. It would be great if you could make a few more, so we could put one in each room and it wouldn't be so uncomfortable to sleep at night."
Jiang Jun: "We need to ask my second brother to help us collect some used motor wire from secondhand stores, otherwise we won't have enough materials."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Wen immediately smiled and said, "No problem."
Everyone sat down at the dinner table.
With the fan on, everyone felt much more comfortable.
Jiang Shu's eyes lit up instantly when he saw the dishes on the table, and he rubbed his hands together, muttering, "Wow!"
"Mom, did the sun rise in the west today? You're actually not stingy anymore?"
Ye Qingyun slapped him across the face, "How dare you talk like that?"
Xu Na served everyone a bowl of dry food.
Ye Qingyun prepared two portions specifically for Grandpa Jiang and Jiang Shan.
Seeing this, Jiang Shu remembered what Lin Yuan had said earlier and immediately said, "Mom, pack another one."
Ye Qingyun: "What are you going to do?"
Faced with the stares of everyone, Jiang Shu stammered, "Mom, Grandpa Lin next door has been home alone these past few days, and no one's cooking for him. I was thinking of taking some over..."
Jiang Zhi covered her forehead.
Her brother can't even lie.
Jiang Zhi couldn't stand it anymore and directly told him that she wanted Grandpa Lin to help her make a space device.
Only then did the family realize that the brother and sister had such an encounter when they went out with Captain Luo.
Jiang Jun was very interested: "A-Zhi, can I see that stone?"
Jiang Zhi readily agreed and immediately retrieved the space stone, about the size of an adult man's fist, that she had found in the mutated wild boar's droppings inside the house.
After returning home that day, Jiangzhi washed the stone clean.
The surface of the space stone is uneven, looking much like an ordinary stone. No wonder Luo Yonghui said that space devices are rare; this thing is obviously hard to find.
Without the dashboard indicator, Jiangzhi probably wouldn't have been able to find it.
Jiang Jun looked at it for a while but couldn't figure it out. However, when he touched it, he felt like there was something inside.
Jiang Zhi sensed something. "Big Brother?"
Jiang Jun withdrew his hand and smiled, "It's strange, but I always felt like there was a large space inside."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Wen took the hand and examined it several times, turning it over and over. "Really? I don't feel anything at all?"
As he spoke, he handed it to his wife, Xu Na, to try.
Xu Na said, "I don't feel anything either."
This spatial stone changed hands several times, and apart from Jiang Jun, no one sensed anything unusual.
Looking at the ordinary stone, Wu Xiu sighed, "The world has really changed. I never thought that such an ugly stone could be made into a space device. We would never have dared to imagine that before."
Yuan Ying: "Do you think the base will be able to build cars that fly in the sky, just like in the movies?"
Wu Xiu: "It's really hard to say. These days, mutant creatures are so strange. Who knows, they might come up with one someday."
Upon hearing this, Grandma Jiang chuckled: "Then we'd better try to live as long as possible. I really want to see what the world will be like in the future."
Ye Qingyun's attention, however, was on Old Man Lin.
"It seems that our self-built housing area is really full of hidden talents. I always thought that old man was quite greedy, but I didn't expect that he could actually make this kind of spatial device."
Jiang Shu then said, "Then Mom, from now on, we'll have meat in our family..."
Ye Qingyun has a good eye for development. He waved his hand and said, "From now on, whenever we cook meat dishes, your grandma and I will prepare an extra portion!"
Even without this incident, the Jiang family would still cook an extra portion for the other party, considering that the other party had been sending them meat from time to time.
The preciousness of spacecraft goes without saying; ordinary people have no chance to even see one.
If we could get Old Man Lin to come out of retirement and make one for us, we'd make a profit no matter how much it cost.
Jiang Shu immediately beamed with joy: "As expected of our mother, she's so generous."
Ye Qingyun said, "I know how precious spacecraft are, even if you don't tell me."
Putting aside other things, in situations like going to the No. 15 collection area, having a spacecraft would allow us to pay significantly less food.
Grandma Jiang said, "Alright, Da Shu, hurry up and take the vegetables over, or they'll get cold."
This won't do.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Shu hurriedly grabbed his lunchbox and ran out the door.
It was a time when the lights were on full display, but the Lin family's house was quiet and devoid of any signs of life.
Jiang Shu knocked on the door a few times.
"Grandpa Lin, it's my big tree! Open the door!"
The door opened shortly afterward.
Old Man Lin glanced at him. "What is it?"
Jiang Shu was in a hurry to go back for dinner, so he shoved the lunchbox in his hand into Old Man Lin's hand and said, "This is what my family made today. Please have a taste."
Just as Old Man Lin was about to speak, Jiang Shu turned and ran off, turning back halfway and saying, "Grandpa Lin, I'll come back for the bowl later."
Old Man Lin watched Jiang Shu's hurried departure, but swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
I opened the lunchbox and took a look.
The aroma of caramelized potatoes mixed with the refreshing scent of cucumbers wafted through the air, while the stewed potatoes next to it sizzled and steamed, like the bubbling smoke from a kitchen stove.
Old Man Lin chuckled: "Those who offer unsolicited kindness are either up to no good or are thieves."
That's what they said, but they actually ate with great relish.
When Jiang Shu got home, he saw that everyone had already started eating, so he quickly ran over and said, "Wait for me, wait for me, I'm back!"
Ye Qingyun scooped a large spoonful of stir-fried potatoes and meat into his bowl, saying, "Don't worry, I won't forget you."
Jiang Shu was delighted to see so much meat.
He took a bite, and the potato absorbed the rich meat juices. The mutated wild boar meat had a wild aroma, mixed with the pungent spiciness of the chopped chives, which hit his nose in the heat and made his throat water.
"Slurp, slurp, delicious! Mom, this wild boar meat is really good!"
The best is a mix of lean and fatty meat.
Jiang Si loves to eat stewed potatoes, and her mouth is always covered in the bright yellow broth.
The sweet and sour juice is very appetizing.
Everyone ate incredibly fast. Ye Qingyun made nearly 20 potato sandwiches, wrapping potatoes in bitter lettuce. Jiang Zhi picked one up and took a bite.
The first sensation is the smooth texture; the crunchy potato flesh melts on the tongue, followed by a savory and salty flavor that rushes down the throat, mixed with the spiciness of chopped chives and the freshness of wild vegetables. You slurp it all down in one go, so hot that you're panting for breath but you still don't want to put it down.
Jiang Zhi picked up another piece of smashed cucumber and dipped it in the stewed potatoes. The fresh, sweet, salty and fragrant taste immediately filled her mouth.
Jiang He's favorite is the tomato salad with sugar. One bite, and the sweet and sour juice explodes in your mouth, cool and refreshing. The sweetness of the sugar blends with the tartness of the tomato, making it crisp and not greasy. The slightly grainy fruit melts in your mouth. A plate of this in summer is incredibly satisfying and comforting!
Meanwhile, Jiang Shu, standing next to him, was licking his fingers with relish, his belly round and full, beads of sweat on his forehead, his eyes filled with pure bliss.
The others were the same; everyone was eating with their mouths greasy.
The old man kept saying "be careful," but once he put the food in his mouth, he couldn't help but smile.
Luckily, they kept the door closed; otherwise, the aroma from the whole table would have permeated the entire alley.
Jiang Zhi sighed.
Before the cataclysm, I was busy every day looking for a job after graduation, and I felt somewhat numb to that kind of life.
In this era where everyone is struggling to get enough to eat, earning enough for three meals a day actually brings a great sense of happiness.
Jiangzhi concluded that people really shouldn't eat too much.
After eating and drinking their fill, everyone sat at the table and chatted.
Grandma Jiang savored the taste of the stewed potatoes she had just eaten.
Old people love to eat soft foods like this.
"I have to say, this way of using chives gives the dish a unique flavor. I initially thought it would be pungent, but after eating it a lot, I found that it was tasteless without being pungent."
Ye Qingyun laughed and said, "My great-grandfather once said that when we were poor, we would eat tree roots and soil. Our country has so many delicious foods because the people were poor and couldn't get enough to eat, so they tried them one by one."
It's actually pretty much the same now as before.
There wasn't much food to eat, but for a master chef like Ye Qingyun, it was the perfect opportunity to experiment with new dishes.
Grandma Jiang listened with a sense of sympathy, "That's right. I heard that those Westerners used to not like to eat offal. I think they were just not poor or hungry enough. If they were really starving, see if they would eat it."
Grandma Jiang suddenly remembered something, "Oh dear, look at me, I forgot to put the millet peppers that Dashan brought back into the eggshells that Azhi brought back. These peppers are very flavorful, we need to get more."
He hurriedly took all the small red chilies hanging at the kitchen door back into the house.
Speaking of eggshells, Ye Qingyun asked Jiang Zhi, "By the way, Zhi, your grandma said you took the copied energy stone away today? What does it look like? Is it the same as the original? Can you show it to us?"
After being bombarded with these questions, Jiang Zhi suddenly felt a little guilty.
She scratched her face and whispered, "It's sold."
Ye Qingyun was stunned. "Sold? So quickly? How much did it cost?"
Jiang Zhi held up a number on her fingers, and Ye Qingyun was delighted to see it, saying, "Wow, not bad! You got so many points for free! I'm short on points, so I'm thinking of going to the base store with your aunt and uncle tomorrow to buy some materials to make you a few pairs of shoes."
She held out her hand and said, "Transfer the points over."
Jiang Zhi: ...Why doesn't Mom play by the rules?
She glanced at her brother, and Jiang Shu quickly lowered his head and pretended to be dead.
All right.
She can't count on her brother.
Jiang Zhi resignedly replied, "No."
Ye Qingyun's voice rose sharply, "No points? Didn't you say it sold for 27,000?"
A bad feeling rose in her heart, "Could it be that they've all been spent?"
Jiang Zhi smiled ingratiatingly, "As expected of Mom, you guessed right."
Ye Qingyun's breathing became rapid—
"Didn't your aunt give you 20,000? No way..."
Adding them all up, it's probably around 40,000 to 50,000!
That brat, she actually bought so much, what a spendthrift!
Jiang Zhi quickly said, "Mom, the fruit alone cost a lot of money..."
Ye Qingyun thought about how the tomatoes he bought at the base store only weighed a few kilograms but cost 1900 points, and forced himself to calm down. "How much fruit did you actually buy?"
Just as Jiang Zhi was about to answer, the detector in her hand beeped.
"Sister Zhi, this is Ayu, Brother Lei's little brother. Is it convenient for you to open the door now? We've delivered your goods!"
The ginger branch opened its door, and the ginger tree, upon hearing this, quickly went to open it.
There were three tricycles parked outside the door. Jiang Shu recognized them at a glance as the henchmen who followed Han Lei.
Ayu: "Hello, aunties, shall we push the things inside first?"
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