Chapter 31: Simple life

13.7K 408 19
                                    

Translated by: NekoCat

--

Juhua Niang calculated, if she were to sell shrimps to Gu Chunzu, she didn't need to pay tax and didn't need to go to work in town, she could also fish several bowls of shrimps.

Gu Chunzu's charge of 3 copper plates per bowl was a reasonable price.
She thought of her little brother-in-law who had been fishing for several days, their family was tired of eating shrimp.

"Wangqin's wife, if someone wants to sell shrimp, I'll let them go to your house!" Juhua Niang told Gu Chunzhu.

"Alright." Gu Chunzhu said her goodbye and went home with the children. An An's greedy eyes would occasionally fall on the osmanthus candy.

Back home, Sister Fu was sitting on the wooden pier waiting for them.

Seeing them back, Sister Fu patted her legs and stood up, "How is it? You must have been wronged." She looked at the red handprint on Xiao Cheng's face with heartache and issued a distressed "gee" on her mouth.

"Qiu have apologized. Thank you for looking after the house."
Gu Chunzhu opened the oil paper bag and grabbed a handful of Osmanthus candy and melon seeds and handed them to Sister Fu.

Sister Fu hurriedly refused: "how can I take your things? I've only looked after your house for a while, it's okay. Save it for Xiao Cheng and An'an to eat."

"Then give it to your little guy. Im now earning money from selling river shrimp. Sister-in-law also saw that I bought pork fat to cook lard. We're now different from before. " And will only get better and better.

This sentence made sister Fu happily accept it.

Seeing that Gu Chunzhu was indeed different from before, she nodded happily and asked," Do you really make money selling shrimp? " 

Gu Chunzu told her the same she told Juhua Niang.

Sister Fu said she would also catch shrimp and let Gu Chunzhu sell it on behalf of her.

They exchanged a few words and went back to cook their own meals.

Gu Chunzhu asked An'an and Xiao Cheng to sit in the yard and have a snack.
She turned around preparing to do some work in the kitchen when An An caught her hand.

A sweet osmanthus candy was stuffed in her mouth. It was made of flour, dried osmanthus and a little sugar. It tasted sweet after chewing carefully.

"Is it delicious?" An'an's big eyes stared at Gu Chunzhu's face.

"Delicious, as sweet as your heart. An An and XiaoCheng should eat it. Mother will cook lard and pick the pork residue to give you a snack."
She said as ran to the kitchen to cook

The stove was filled with firewood and was burning, the iron pot heated with a trace of white smoke.
Gu Chunzhu poured the sliced pork fat down.

With a "Ziii" sound, the pork fat begin to release oil, she turned it a few times not letting it stick to the pot. When more oil came out, she set aside the crispy pork residue.

Three big pot of lard was produced from 5 pounds of pork fat.

Gu Chunzhu couldn't help but knock her head. She bought so many, enough to last a year!

In addition to the lard, there was also a big bowl of crispy pork residue, Gu Chunzhu put some in a small bowl and sprinkled it with some salt. She took it out for the two children to eat.

"Have you finished your osmanthus candy and melon seeds?"
She saw the oil paper bag wrapped up and placed on a wooden pier next to them. It looked slightly deflated than before, alot was still left.

"Brother said he can't eat so much and let An An keep it for tomorrow to eat."
An An said while shaking her head.

Really two sensible and distressing children, Gu Chunzhu passed the small bowl over and touched her braided hair: "Here, eat the crispy pork residue."

"Mother should eat too" An an  thoughtfuly said.
She carefully held the small bowl in her lap while xiaocheng quietly sat on the edge. Each of the children picked up one and put it into their mouths to chew.

The pork fat was drained of oil and was very crispy. Gu Chunzu ate one herself, it tasted good. She warned the two children, "You can't eat alot of these, If you eat alot you'll have a greasy mouth. "

Both of them obediently nod.

Considering there was a bowl of pork fat residue left in the kitchen, Gu Chunzhu thought of a way to cook it on fire. If its mixed with vegetables and stuffed on dumplings, it'll taste pretty good.

Gu Chunzu scooped a pound of brown rice and went to Sister Fu's house to exchange it for course flour.

Course flour was a little more expensive than brown rice, and white flour are much more expensive. Sister Fu insisted on giving her a pound of course flour, Gu Chunzhu thanked her. She will send her some dumplings later.

When she came back, there was Su Wangqin, he was holding An An and throwing her a meter high. An An also gave a silver like giggles.

"Brother Wang, thats dangerous. Put the child down!" Gu Chunzhu hurriedly pushed the door open, that scared her soul out.

An An smiled at her.
Gu Chunzu gave a light smack on her small buttock, saying : "If your Father did not catch you, your small buttock will fall into pieces."

"Hee hee." An an knows that Gu Chunzu didn't really hit hard, the stiffness on her bottom soon faded without a trace

Su wangqin and Gu chunzhu went to the stove room together, Gu chunzhu took the flour and told him:“ I traded some flour to Sister Fu, lets eat dumplings stuffed with fried pork residue and vegetables"”

"I'll knead the flour" Su Wangqin pulled up his sleeve to wash his hands. Seeing that he also wants to wash his face, Gu Chunzhu helped to scoop out water and goes outside. Su Wanqin followed.

After washing his hands, Gu Chunzhu thought of Su Wangqin's business and asked, "did you pay for the shrimps?"

"Yes, took some time. I bought some shrimps from an old friend who lived in the the mountains. We grew up together, He taught me how to make traps and hunt. When his mother heard that needles could be made into shrimp hooks to catch shrimps, she bent one and caught a whole barrel. Their family couldn't eat it all and was worried."

Su Wangqin said in a good mood. He could not only make money but also help others.

He shook the water on his hands and said, " 27 coppers for 9 bowls of shrimps. I'm glad that his mother got the money back from the needle."

"Sister Fu and Juhua Niang would also sell shrimp to us.We should accept it. Anyway, we already sold a barrel. If our business is good, we should sell more. "
Gu Chunzhu simply explained the matter to him and Su Wangqin just nodded his head.

Su Wangqin mixed the flour with water and began to knead. Gu Chunzhu swept a bowl of salted vegetables on the stove and asked, "where are these salted vegetables from?"


TN:
Please help me correct the grammatical mistakes, i know there's alot. My head hurts 😭😂
It'll be a big help. Thanks

Lucky Peasant Woman: Raising kids and making wealthWhere stories live. Discover now