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◎ Second update ◎
Early in the morning of her day off, Liang Baozhen got up early to buy some meat at the supply and marketing cooperative. Xu Shengjie didn’t go with her; he was helping at the Hong family’s place to make furniture. Hong Saner’s sister was getting married, and they needed to build a set of cabinets.
By chance, Cheng Caili came to find her early in the morning, inviting Liang Baozhen to go together. The beginning of the month is the peak period for buying meat. Everyone had just received their salary and was eager to eat meat, so the meat shop was the busiest. It could take hours to line up for some meat.
There are three meat shops in the west of the city. The closest one is more than a ten-minute walk from Crescent Alley. The meat shop and the vegetable shop are next to each other, and there is a grocery store next to them, which makes it more convenient to buy things, but there are too many people, and there are often long queues.
After waiting in the meat shop until their legs were tired, the two of them finally bought a pound of pork belly in the crowded shop. Liang Baozhen thought about the potatoes she still had at home. Since the vegetable shop had received a few trucks of fresh potatoes, she bought over thirty pounds to store at home.
“Mister, could you get me two pounds of lard as well?” Cheng Caili’s family was almost out of lard, so she needed to buy some to render into lard at home.
There were so many people in the meat shop that you had to shout to be heard. Liang Baozhen patted Cheng Caili on the shoulder and pointed to the other side where pork bones were sold, and raised her voice, “I’m going to buy some bones.”
“Sure, I’ll come find you in a bit.” Cheng Caili was still focused on her lard and responded hurriedly.
Liang Baozhen planned to buy another two pounds of pork bones to make soup. Pork bones weren’t very popular since they didn’t have much meat on them and weren’t fatty enough. People would definitely prioritize queuing for fatty meat to satisfy their cravings. However, pork bones were cheap and didn’t require tickets, and they made a good soup.
Pork was 90 cents a pound, while pork bones were only 40 cents a pound. Liang Baozhen came early today, so she picked two pieces of ribs, paid 80 cents, wrapped them in oil paper, and went back home with Cheng Caili.
The two of them had gotten up early, so by the time they finished buying the meat, it was only a little after eight o’clock. The sky was pale, and the weather was not very good today. It looked gloomy. When they reached the entrance of the alley, they saw quite a few neighbors from the nearby courtyard heading home with their meat.
“Xiao Cheng, Xiao Liang, you went to buy meat too?”
“Yes, it’s the beginning of the month, so we have to eat some meat.”
“The meat today is really good, very fatty!”
“Alright, see you later, Sister Chen.”
Each person was carrying two bags of oil paper. The fishy smell of pork went straight into the nose, and the children at the door started to drool when they saw it.
“Mother, are we going to eat meat today?” Song Xinhe and Chen Yulian were heading out when they bumped into Liang Baozhen and Cheng Caili coming back. The three of them nodded at each other without saying much.
Chen Yulian, holding her eldest daughter’s hand, was about to head to the meat shop, but she didn’t know if they could still buy meat at this time. “Let’s see what’s left. If there’s meat, we’ll buy some.”
“Well, there must be more!”
Since getting married and moving into the courtyard, Liang Baozhen had hardly spoken to Chen Yulian, but she had a deep impression of her. Chen Yulian always dressed neatly and fashionably and had a certain charm.
Chen Yulian is very beautiful, with delicate features. She always has a smile on her face and makes jokes from time to time. Her life seems to be pretty good.
However, something was a bit strange. Liang Baozhen heard that she had no job and was a widow living with her two daughters, but she lived a good life.
“Chen Yulian said that her husband left some money behind, but no one believed her.” Cheng Caili didn’t know much. She only knew that Chen Yulian’s husband died of illness. At the beginning, it was very difficult for the widow to raise two children, and they often didn’t have enough to eat, with all three of them going hungry.
Her husband used to be a worker at the State Cotton Factory. He had always been in poor health, and it was said that he had a genetic disease. However, at that time, he was still a formal worker, and it was no problem for him to support his wife and children. But after her husband passed away, Chen Yulian and her children had a hard time.
“At that time, the people in the courtyard helped the mother and her two daughters a lot. They often receive some sweet potatoes, corn, and other things. But everyone was struggling, and they could only help for a while, not for a lifetime.” ” The year Cheng Caili came, she met Chen Yulian and her two daughters who looked so thin that it was heart-wrenching to look at.
“So, what happened later?”
“Later, Aunt Luo wanted to introduce a man to her so that she could remarry. Having a man at home would make life easier, but Chen Yulian refused.” At this point, Cheng Caili was a bit mad. “Aunt Luo’s matchmaking was bad enough, but the man she introduced was really no good. I get that a widow can’t be picky about a good match, but you can’t settle for someone like that.”
Recalling the shrew-like widower she had encountered; Cheng Caili was overcome with nausea and discomfort. “Aunt Luo said that he’s a fourth-level worker at the match factory, with a high salary, but his wife died, and he has three sons. But he was very ugly, with a birthmark on his face! And none of his three sons were decent; they are all delinquent. Tell me, Chen Yulian is so beautiful, why should she marry such an ugly man with a birthmark?”
“Sister Caili, was he really that ugly? It’s been so many years, and you still remember?” Liang Baozhen couldn’t help but laugh as she saw Cheng Caili getting a bit worked up.
“Of course! I can still remember what he looked like. Chen Yulian was living such a hard life but still didn’t agree. At that time, many people in our courtyard said she was foolish.”
“Wasn’t there anyone else who tried to introduce her to someone better?”
“It was difficult. Who wants to marry a widow or a widower seriously? And with children too? But considering Chen Yulian’s appearance, she should have been able to find someone decent. After that incident, there’s a divorced man with no children in the next street who wants to marry her. He has a job and looks decent. He works in a steel factory and does transportation. It was almost settled, but then the family changed their mind right before the engagement.”
“Why?”
“The bad thing is that she gave birth to two daughters before. I don’t know where the rumor came from, but it was said that Chen Yulian was too beautiful but couldn’t give birth to a son. The man’s mother didn’t agree. She was worried that Chen Yulian would not give birth to a son after she got married, which would cut off their family roots. She refused to let her son marry Chen Yulian.”
Liang Baozhen listened to Cheng Caili for a while and thought of Chen Yulian whom she had met, but she couldn’t put it together. “Then why is her family living quite well now?”
“She has a man outside.” Cheng Caili sighed, not sure how she felt about it. “You haven’t seen what Chen Yulian looked like back then. How is she the same as now? Now she loves to seduce people everywhere. I don’t know why she has become like this.”
Cheng Caili finished her story vaguely, and before Liang Baozhen could fully understand, they had already arrived home, and both of them hurried back to prepare lunch.
Today, pork belly is being cooked in the pot. The braised pork is soft and tender, with a golden color and smooth texture, and it exudes an enticing aroma. Even the rich, brown sauce is equally tempting.
The whole family sat at the table and enjoyed the meal. There was a pound of meat for five people, so naturally each person could only eat a few pieces. In the end, everyone ate all the potatoes and dipped the steamed buns in the soup. Everyone was very full afterwards.
Xu Shengya hadn’t had braised pork in a long time, and with each bite, the rich flavor of the meat juices burst in her mouth. It was so delicious she almost wanted to swallow her tongue.
“Sister-in-law, this meat smells so good, even better than Aunt Zhang’s.”
“Then eat more.”
“Sister-in-law, can we eat braised pork every month when you get your salary in the future?” Xu Shengwei was already imagining the next meal before they had even finished this one. If it can happen, he wishes his sister-in-law would get paid every day!
“It depends on your performance. If you can do well in the exams, we will eat it every month.” Liang Baozhen heard Xu Shengjie say that Xiaowei’s academic performance was average, much worse than Xiaoya’s, so she had to give him some motivation.
“Then I guess I won’t be able to eat it.” Xu Shengwei sighed heavily and instantly felt that this would be his last meal of braised pork. However, he still had hope. “If Xiaoya gets 100 points in her exam, we should reward her, right?”
Zhou Yun couldn’t help but smile as she listened to her grandson’s calculations. “Are you hoping your sister gets a reward, or are you just thinking about eating more meat yourself?”
“Hehe~” Xu Shengwei grinned at his grandmother, his teeth stained with soup and his mouth full of oil.
After the satisfying meal, Liang Baozhen brought a bowl of soup she had saved earlier to the Wei family. It was half a bowl with a few pieces of meat and a pile of potatoes. It looked delicious. The Wei family had become close to them after Liang Baozhen and Xu Shengjie had saved their grandson and had given them food several times. So, this time, when Liang Baozhen made meat, she decided to share a bowl with them.”
Biaozi enjoyed the pork belly cooked by his godmother and kept saying it was delicious. After the meal, he came to play with his “little uncle” and “little aunt,” although he was unwilling to admit it.
“Biaozi, your aunt will be out soon. Your uncle will go play marbles with you first.” Whenever Xu Shengwei saw Wei Guobiao, he always had to tease him a bit, acting like the elder and felt that he needed to show some authority as the ‘uncle.’
“Xu Shengwei! Don’t talk nonsense. You are only three years older than me. Aren’t you ashamed?”
“What’s there to be ashamed of? Don’t you call my brother godfather? Then do you have to call me uncle?” Xu Shengwei had all the family connections figured out. Looking at this nephew he picked up for free, he always felt that he had made a big profit.
“Brother, let’s go!” Xu Shengya came out of the house and saw Wei Guobiao there too. She nodded at him. “Biaozi, did you eat the braised pork? Was it delicious?”
“Yes, the food godmother makes is really delicious, even better than at state-owned restaurants!” Wei Guobiao now feels that everything about his godfather and godmother who saved him is perfect. Even the chef of a state-owned restaurant can’t compare to them!
While the group of children were playing in the open space in the courtyard, Liang Baozhen was called over by Jin Hong, her neighbor who lived in the east wing.
Jin Hong lives with her family of three. She actually lives close to the Xu family and has frequent interactions with them. Today, when she smelled the aroma of meat from next door, she was eager to learn a few tricks. Her cooking was average, and even with meat and vegetables, she couldn’t create such a fragrant smell.
Liang Baozhen didn’t have any secret recipe; she just went through the steps one by one. “The key is to be generous with the ingredients. It’s hard to get meat, so don’t be stingy with oil and seasonings; otherwise, it won’t be satisfying.”
This is indeed the case when Jin Hong cooks; she only uses a little oil and seasoning. She was being frugal since they could only get a little bit of oil every month and was always trying to save it. In the end, she can still manage to cook a big dish, but when she compares the smell of food from next door, she realizes that what she made is far from satisfactory, so it is better to just prepare it without being frugal so they can eat to their heart’s content.
“Okay, I’ll try it next time!” Jin Hong held Liang Baozhen’s hand, ready to show off her skills next time. “Our Binzi just smelled the meat and was so greedy.”
“Just do it this way; the taste will be similar.”
“Xiao Liang, your cooking skills are really good. We were so hungry just now.” Jin Hong’s husband, Fang Hongming, had just come back from washing the dishes. He put the dishes and chopsticks away and turned his head to say, “I told Honghong that we must buy a pound of meat tomorrow.”
“We haven’t used our meat tickets this month. We were planning to save them for Binzi’s birthday next month, but after thinking about it, we’ll use one pound of the tickets now.”
“Then you can still satisfy your craving first.”
“By the way, do you and Xiao Xu want to go to the movies?” Jin Hong thought of this. Fang Hongming, was a movie projectionist working at the People’s Cinema in the south of the city. Yesterday, the cinema offered employees discounts on tickets. Since she had troubled Liang Baozhen today, she had to return the favor. “Movie tickets are only ten cent each.”
“Ten cent each?” Liang Baozhen heard from Cheng Caili that movie tickets in the city cost 20 cents a ticket, and they were hard to buy and in great demand. She had only watched open-air movies in the commune for free and had never been to a cinema. She thought that since her birthday was coming soon, it would be a good opportunity to experience it. “Okay! Then I’ll take a few tickets.”
Liang Baozhen’s birthday is the day after tomorrow. There will be a movie showing called “Sunny Days” at 6:30 in the evening. She and Xu Shengjie should be able to make it in time if they rush to the cinema after getting off work. She just wasn’t sure if Xiao Wei and Xiao Ya wanted to go as well.
There was no sign of the two children in the courtyard, but her godson Biaozi was there.
“Biaozi, where’s your uncle and aunt?” Liang Baozhen walked up and asked.
“They went out with Xiaolong to buy something.”
“Okay, then keep playing.”
After his godmother left, Biaozi continued to play marbles. As he was playing, he realized something was wrong. Why did he agree to it just now?
He doesn’t want to recognize his uncle and aunt!
The author has something to say:
Biaozi: Tsk! Why couldn’t I keep my mouth shut!
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