By Jia Xiuzhen

Back in the courtyard, Nanny Chang and Suyun both looked worried, and Li Wan told them everything without waiting for their inquiries.Yan Momo hurriedly asked Yan Ming to go outside to find out about Jia Zheng's clean-up ministers.It didn't take long for everyone to know that the weather was unfavorable year after year, and the grain harvests were poor. Although some big business houses shipped rice and noodles from Fanguo to solve the urgent need, it was not a long-term solution after all.

On the day of worshiping heaven in the beginning of winter this year, the governor of Sichuan and the governor of Fujian simultaneously submitted a form to report the harvest of new crops planted in the area under their jurisdiction.Sweet potatoes, jade wheat, and soil yams not only have high yields, but also do not choose land or time. Both of them have attached the yield per mu of high, medium, low, and mixed fields for three years, and those with more yields thousands of catties.Especially this year, both places suffered from natural disasters, but because of planting more of these crops, they were saved from the misery of hungry people.

The sage was overjoyed when he heard the play, and praised the two as ministers who "diligently serve the country and benefit the people", and he was greatly rewarded.The governor of Fujian directly promoted the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, and turned into a big official in Xinjiang.Although the governor of Sichuan was not promoted, he was conferred a title. His son was promoted to the Minister of the Ministry of Households, and took over the promotion of new grain crops.When these two people looked closely, they were all members of the Wang Xin family. Now four or five princes have been entrenched in the south of the Yangtze River for a long time, with deep roots. The governor of Fujian was promoted to the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang. Another storm.

Although the Qing Ke kept by Jia Zheng didn't have much political skills, they were the best at talking about good news.Yan Ming went out for a trip, and learned the original words to Yan Mama without a meal.

Only then did Li Wan know the origin of Mrs. Wang's evil fire, because he said with a smile: "The wife of others will be angry when she becomes an official, how can she be angry? Besides, this matter will be under the control of the Ministry of Household Affairs no matter what. , those things don’t pick the ground, and even the water conservancy is saved, there is really no business for the master, how can we get involved?"

Nanny Chang said: "Ma'am, I'm afraid I only heard about King Xin and those sweet potatoes and potatoes, but we ate them at our stove meeting last year. This year, someone turned around and used this to make a big deal out of it." The benefits, it is inevitable that there is a bit of injustice. We sent these things to Prince Xin's Mansion again, so naturally we are more thoughtful."

Li Wan sneered and said, "Isn't this just wishful thinking? I've been planting it for three years, and I've planted it in various fields before I can report to the Holy One. We all pick up the leftovers in our small village, and ask others for some." The seeds are planted fresh and fresh, how can it compare?"

Yan Momo nodded and said, "Madam has really thought about it."

Mother Chang laughed and said, "If you follow my wife's thinking, the current Chief Assistant Master Song claims to rule the world with half of the Analects of Confucius, and Second Lord Bao also read the Four Books, wouldn't you be even more angry?"

After hearing this, everyone thought about it in detail, and couldn't help being happy.When others get benefits by virtue of something, they themselves have a little bit of it, as if the benefits were taken away from themselves.If you really want to be like this, you can't live this day.

Li Wan said with a smile: "In this case, I'd rather it's because my wife is looking for me and not here. If she really has that kind of thought in her heart, no one will live a peaceful life in the future." Can't help nodding.

Although they thought so, they couldn't control others' thoughts. After a few days, Mrs. Wang said that Li Wan was weak and had to take care of her young son. Mrs. Wang pitied her for her hard work and spared her daily service.As soon as these words came out, everyone had their own guesses.At first glance, this sounds like pity, but when you think about it deeply, there is no sense of disgust and indifference in it.

When Jia Mu heard about this, she called Jia Zheng to ask about it, and when she learned about the new crop, she sighed, "How can this be something she, a woman in the back house, can understand? Zhu'er is gone again. Even officials who are officials don’t know anything about it, and Zhu’er’s daughter-in-law, a widow in a deep house, probably has never heard of it, so can she be blamed for her lack of talent?”

Naturally, Jia Zheng couldn't control the affairs of the rear house, and Mother Jia didn't want to meddle between his daughter-in-law and grand-daughter-in-law, not to mention Mrs. Wang had a very nice name, so she had no choice but to give up, and threw it away after a few words.

Nanny Chang and Nanny Yan are at odds again on this matter, although they are both angry at Mrs. Wang for being unreasonable, they just have to care about etiquette after all, even if the mother-in-law feels pity and is angry, the daughter-in-law should pay for it and be careful to coax it away It's right to come here.The other felt that it was just what he wanted, and since he hated seeing each other, it would be better not to see each other.

Li Wan naturally had the latter idea, and instead persuaded Madam Yan: "My wife doesn't like my current appearance, and I don't bother to bother with it, so I might as well throw it aside. As a daughter-in-law, I understand my wife. I mean, I don’t have the spiritual ability to cultivate like a phoenix girl, so why bother to go forward to make fun of myself? It’s okay for me to show my face, but the more I give up, the more I’m afraid I’ll be angry, madam , so, it is not filial. What do you think, Mammy?"

Yan Momo was choked for a moment, and seeing Li Wan's increasingly shameless appearance, she just sighed: "There is a way of doing good and bad, grandma is acting like this now, when my brother grows up Home, how does grandma get her mother-in-law's money?"

Li Wan said with a smile: "Isn't it better if you can't get the mother-in-law's money? There is a saying, when is the time to repay the injustice." One sentence made everyone laugh.Seeing this, Yan Momo no longer forced herself.

When Nanny Xu entered the mansion this time, Li Wan explained the incident in detail. Nanny Xu knew the temperament of Nanny Yan and Nanny Chang, and now that she had been outside for a long time, she was not So cautious.He just said: "Soldiers come to cover up the water and the soil, see the tricks and dismantle the tricks, anyway, grandma doesn't want to be afraid of anything now, she can be more comfortable if she can." Li Wan felt more at ease when she heard Xu Nanny's words.

Talking about the new crops again, Madam Xu recalled how Ji Liang had brought people to ask questions. The three-year crop doesn't necessarily take three years to grow, but she wouldn't say it out loud.

Then he smiled and said to everyone: "I don't know about the other things, anyway, we have inherited the benefits of these things."

When everyone asked, she replied: "In the past, the dining hall on the village was busy all day long, but after this wave of autumn harvest, it suddenly became deserted. Even the people who work in the village are rarely here. I ate in the canteen. I was puzzled at first, but then I found out after asking the head of the village that the harvest had been poor in the past two years, and each family had no surplus food. It would be more economical to buy rice and noodles outside than to eat directly in the canteen.

Now this autumn harvest, there is another saying from Peng Qiao that he still rented a house, which family does not plant some sweet potatoes and yams.Once the harvest is collected, the family has food, so they will naturally eat at home.No matter how cheap the canteen is, you have to pay in cash. For farmers, a penny is money.The melons and potatoes plucked from our own fields don’t cost money, and they can be eaten after steaming, which is also convenient.In this way, there will be fewer people coming to the canteen. "

Li Wan said with a smile: "In this way, it's a good thing to fall down, and I have to be free for a while."

Mother Xu shook her head and said, "It's really hard to say, one yard is worth one yard. This canteen is free, but Peng Qiao collected a bunch of sweet potatoes and yams for rent. These things are no worse than millet and wheat. , it can be stored for a few years after drying, at most it can be regarded as old grain. But these things are water-based, and if they are not stored properly, I am afraid they will rot in the house at that time, but they will be in vain. I have collected the rent this time."

Nanny Chang asked, "Can't we sell it?"

Nanny Xu shook her head and said, "It can't be sold at any price, nor can it be sold for much. This year's harvest is good, and the town has enough rice. Although this thing is fresh, it's just for tasting."

Nanny Chang nodded and said, "This is really a matter. There are so many people in the village who use this as food, and they can eat a lot of it."

Mother Xu shook her head again: "It's this trouble. If it was a year of starvation, it would be a good thing. I usually eat it every day, but I can't stand it. The jade wheat is fine, and the sweet potato is sweet. Children I am happy to eat one or two yuan, but I can’t eat it every day. Adults can’t use it as food. It’s sweet and not wordy, and it doesn’t taste good with pickles. Nowadays, there are a lot of porridge made by chopping pieces, but it’s still not enough. host.

As for the jade wheat, steaming it when it is tender is also good, but who has the time to hold it and nibble on it?It takes so much effort to eat a meal!The old jade wheat that is harvested today cannot be boiled or chewed, nor can it be eaten.I was thinking about stroking it down and grinding it into powder.Soil taro has a bland taste, and it is not unpalatable to eat as a pickle, but this thing is still a glutton, and it will be much better if it smells of meat.It tastes good when used to stew meat and stewed bones, but it can't help but keep it. "

Grandma Chang couldn't help softening her complexion when she heard Xu Nanny's long talk, patted Xu Nanny's hand and said, "Thank you for your hard work, how do you usually understand these things?" Beheaded.

Nanny Xu smiled and said: "It's rare that you feel sorry for me once. Thank you even more." Nanny Chang was puzzled, and Nanny Xu said: "Isn't it your paper apprentice! Now it's her who leads the people As for the idea, I have already tried a few, and I think it looks very different. I praised her a few times, but she has pushed you, the master."

Since Qiao Niangzi got Nanny Chang's "true biography" last time, she has written letters with Nanny Chang from time to time. At the beginning, she couldn't write anything, and they were all written by the second generation.Or add a message to the finished product, and Nanny Xu will bring it to Nanny Chang, asking her for advice.The fate of people has never been clear, so it is said that the white hair is as new as before.The two of them have never met each other, so they just come and go, and there is really a bit of master-student friendship.

Mother Chang clapped her hands and laughed after hearing Mother Xu's praise, "It goes without saying, it's not like a famous teacher produces a great apprentice."

Li Wan heard that it was interesting, so he asked: "Didn't you say that you have nothing to do in the kitchen? How come Mrs. Qiao was abducted by the nanny to get these things again? Isn't this the business of Peng Qiao and his wife?"

Mother Xu smiled and said, "Peng Qiao and those two only care about planting and harvesting, so how can they care about the rest? They are only happy to see the things in the yard and house, and they don't care whether they eat or not. Last time That spicy eggplant was something that Peng Qiao begged Mrs. Qiao to think of. Now it’s very exciting to make both sauce and dry ones.”

Nanny Chang laughed and said: "That thing smells so domineering, it's really good to make porridge with shredded bamboo shoots and pickled vegetables."

Li Wan said with a smile: "Although the capable ones do more work, there is no reason for Mammy to give one wage to make people do two jobs."

Mother Xu said: "It's not my trick, she really likes it herself. That day I saw her busy in the kitchen early in the morning, so I advised her a few words. Guess what she said? She said it was to see I feel happy from the bottom of my heart when I eat rice grains. I think about how to make those things, how to use them, how to eat them, and how to make them full. I just love to think about these things. Apart from this, I am also busy making sauces and marinades for pickling. Well. It is said that I got a lot of prescriptions from Mammy, and I want to try them all."

Mammy Chang sighed, "It's nothing unusual, I've really been hungry, I'm not just happy to see the grain in my storehouse full!" Mammy Xu and Mammy Yan also nodded, "That's the reason."

Li Wan said casually: "It's best if she loves this, and I'm afraid it tastes better when she's happy to make it. Look at those frowning cooks in our house, the soup they make is full of hostility."

Everyone laughed, and Li Wan said again: "It's just that we can't take advantage of people's diligence for nothing. This mama can figure it out." Madam Xu nodded in agreement.

After this fight, I don't know what kind of muscle Li Wan is holding. She is very concerned about the new crops that make her lose Mrs. Wang's heart. Seeing that she cares, Madam Xu is naturally willing to say more Listen to these things with her, just when she is a widow and lonely and loves to hear something new.Of course she would not know that Li Wan had told the second wife of the Zhang family, Mrs. Lao Shi, about all these trivial matters. As for Lao Shi, like her, whether he used it as a boredom thing or for other purposes, she had no way of knowing. .

It's winter now, and when the sun slant, it's very cold. Sun Dabao took Da Niu to clean up the chicken coop, put on the food one by one, looked at it twice before beckoning him to go home. Come and take a look.Now all the work in the field is done, and the wheat is waiting to turn green next year, but this year, I have taken the job of raising chickens, and there will be no "winter leisure" in previous years.Tightening the cotton robes on their bodies, the father and son walked home.

Xiaosan and Xiaosi got home a little late, and when Da Niu saw that Xiaoer hadn't come back, he simply went to the village entrance to pick him up.The kitchen is steaming, and the aroma of the food is warm in the cold wind of this winter evening.

Seeing Sun Dabao enter the room, Mrs. Qiao whispered, "Liu'er and Xiao Qi are still lying on the kang, tired from playing just after noon."

Sun Dabao asked, "Where's Xiao Wu?" Qiao Niangzi said, "I've been making a fuss about going to the stall with his second brother, so I let him go."

Sun Dabao said: "Don't worry about it, boy, it's so cold at night, listen to the wind."

Qiao Niangzi said: "Second son drove the car over in the village this afternoon, otherwise I wouldn't be able to let Xiao Wu go there, he can walk anywhere for such a long distance, and Er son did not hug him empty-handed."

Just as he was talking, there was movement outside, so Sun Dabao went out of the main room to look, and sure enough, Daniel welcomed Xiao Er and the others back.

Xiao Wu was leaning on Daniel's back, so Sun Dabao asked Xiao Er: "Is the car back?"

Xiao Er nodded and said, "I returned it after feeding and drinking."

Sun Dabao nodded and said, "That's the reason." Then he asked, "How is the business today? Why are you thinking of driving the car there?"

Xiaoer put together the baskets he brought back and put them in the south room, and said: "It's getting colder today, and it's getting cold when I take it here. Most of the old men in the North Teacher's Mansion Who is willing to heat it up, cold food can’t be sold. I got two stoves over there, connected to a few pots. If there are too many things, I asked the village to borrow a cart.”

Xiao Wu said from the side: "There are already a few steamed buns nearby, and the business is better than ours." Xiao Er smiled and patted his head.

Several people came into the house while they were talking, and Mrs. Qiao shouted from inside: "Wash them all up, San'er calls Liu'er and Xiao Qi up, clean up and eat."

While talking, a bunch of radish heads came out from the west room, Xiao Qi was still lying in Xiao San's arms, both of them had red faces, they looked like they had just woken up.But after a while, they were already sitting in a group, the third and fourth were helping to carry the bowls and chopsticks, the second went in and came out with a basket of mixed noodles and solid steamed buns, and Mrs. Qiao brought a steaming big pottery pot and put it in the middle of the table, and took the bowls one by one Serve hot soup.

I saw that the slightly sauce-colored soup was full of translucent coarse vermicelli sticks, with golden oil stars floating on it, scooped a small spoonful of water-milled spicy eggplant sauce, put a handful of green garlic leaves, and the nose was fragrant with beef.Take a sip, the hot soup is salty and fresh, with a hint of spiciness, the vermicelli is soft and somersaulting, and it is eaten with steamed buns, which is just right for this time.For a while, the room was filled with the sound of snoring and snoring, and Xiao Er's eyes began to shine after taking a sip.

Sun Dabao finally stopped his chopsticks, and asked, "Why is there still beef soup? Is this mung bean flour fish? It doesn't look like it."

Qiao Niangzi was wiping Xiaoqi's mouth, and Xiaoqi's bowl was filled with extremely fine powdered knots, and she was scooping it up with a porcelain spoon and eating it deliciously.Hearing Sun Dabao's question, he smiled and said: "Now I'm starting to prepare the things for the mansion in the new year. I'm going to make some beef strips. The whole fan of beef bones is left. Sister-in-law Qiu asked me to take two pieces, which just happened to be boiled for soup. .”

Pointing to the vermicelli, he said, "It's not made of mung beans, it's made of sweet potatoes. I finally made something that doesn't taste sweet."

Xiao Er drank the soup in the bowl in one gulp, stretched out his hand to add more, tilted his head and asked Mrs. Qiao, "Mother, is this easy to get?"

Qiao Niangzi said: "You're playing tricks again! It takes a little effort to wash out the powder, and it's the same as making powder. It's not easy. Take it out and dry it for a long time. Only the powder is dried. I can also let it live."

Xiaoer said: "How many vermicelli can be produced from this catty of sweet potatoes?"

Lady Qiao glanced at him, and said: "You have already caught up with Guanshi Peng, and Guanshi Peng just counted this. A catty can only produce more than one or two. Don't do anything else, this is enough for us to work in the kitchen for a while."

Sun Dabao said: "A few days ago, they were crushed and washed. How could the people in your kitchen do it? How about those sweet potatoes? They must weigh tens of thousands of catties. If you want to do this, you must start from The village is looking for someone to do work."

Qiao Niangzi nodded and said: "The first one is easy to talk about, but the latter one can't make it without counting. It takes a chef to make it."

Xiaosan laughed and said, "Mother has done a great job this time."

Qiao Niangzi said with a smile: "What merits have you done? It's all the work that should be done. How can you still watch so much food go to waste?! And it's not a new idea to make vermicelli. Noodles, rice noodles, and mung bean noodles are all like this. made."

Xiao Er had just made up his mind when he heard Mrs. Qiao's words, and then smiled and said, "I just said that our stall's business is not doing well now. It just so happens that this happened. My mother said hello to the chief manager. I went to the owner of the village and Guanshi Peng and told them to sell this in this cold weather, it must be a good one, and we also have spicy tomato sauce, so it will be warm in winter." Everyone said it was a good idea.