Chapter 48 : A distinguished visitor

Three iron colanders were made according to Jiang Sui’s request, each with many small round holes of the same size and diameter chiseled out in the middle.

When the sweet potato starch is diluted, the colander is used to evenly pour it into the hot water, allowing the chewy sweet potato starch to form. After it sets, rinse it with cold water and place it in the sun for a few days.

The ready-made sweet potato vermicelli is bundled into bundles, which can be stored for a long time and are easy to carry, simply perfect.

After getting the items, the mother and daughter went home, ready to devote themselves to making sweet potato flour.

Upon arriving home, the four women didn’t dare to delay for a moment and started working right away. Jiang Sui was responsible for diluting the starch, as the ratio had to be just right, which affected the taste of the sweet potato flour.

Xiao Lanlan was in charge of lighting the fire and boiling water, Mother Xiao was responsible for sifting the sweet potato starch, and Zhou took care of cooling and drying the vermicelli on bamboo poles that had been prepared in advance.

The weather in June was very hot, and the sun was especially scorching during this time. They made good use of the hot sun to dry as much sweet potato vermicelli as possible for later use.

From 500 kilograms of sweet potato flour, they produced more than 200 kilograms of sweet potato starch, which would be enough to sell for a long time.

If the business was good, they would continue to purchase sweet potatoes and extract more starch.

After working all day, the entire yard was filled with sweet potato vermicelli. Fortunately, the Xiao family had many rooms and a large yard.

Since there was no place left to dry the vermicelli, they began making sweet potato skins. Using a special mold, it was very convenient to scald the skins, and it only took a few minutes to make one.

They cut all the potato skins into large strips, spread them on a winnowing basket, and placed them in the sun to dry.

The mothers and daughters were busy as always, and the more they worked, the more motivated they became. When they thought about making money, they were full of energy.

At this time, Father Xiao and his eldest and second sons had already found jobs in the county.

Every year, many new houses were built, and old houses were renovated in the county, with workers being recruited everywhere.

The three of them found work just three days after arriving in the county. Because they were tall and strong, it was easy for them to find jobs.

This type of hard labor was tiring, but it was also very profitable. The father and his two sons became construction workers, each earning 40 cents a day, with food provided.

In a month, each of them could earn more than one or two taels of silver.

However, regardless of where they lived, the father and his two sons rented a room in the county and shared it with other construction workers.

Many fathers and sons came to the county to find work, mostly doing hard labor. The alley was full of such people, with several families sharing a yard, and each family having a room.

They were all men, so there was no need to be particular. As long as they had a place to lie down and sleep when they returned at night, that was good enough.

It wasn’t easy to send letters to Xianhe Village, so Xiao’s mother and the others didn’t know the current situation of the father and sons. They could only wait until they had time to rest and then go home to inform them of the situation.

Xiao Yi built a cattle pen behind the yard and brought back a lot of hay from the fields to make a roof. In the pen, he also made a water trough out of mud. Everything was arranged perfectly, showing just how much he cherished the cow.

Mother Xiao told him that he should stay at home and help herd the cattle, and she would pay him wages every month. Then, she would let him bring his wife back to live a good life.

Of course, Xiao Yi was very happy. He could stay at home and earn money every month. How could he not be happy?

And he could see his beloved ox every day.

That’s right, under these circumstances, he felt very sorry for his father and two older brothers, who worked hard and got dirty outside every day, while he could simply feed the ox comfortably at home and make money.

But Mother Xiao also said that how much he would be paid each month would depend on how much money they made from the stall. Even though he was at home, he might not earn as much as his father and brothers did outside.

The next day, the sweet potato flour was still drying, but a group of people suddenly arrived at the Xiao family’s house.

Near noon, several carriages stopped at the gate of the Xiao family’s yard, and several elderly men in their fifties wearing silk robes got off.

They all had long beards, were well-dressed, and had attendants with them.

The villagers saw this and, curious, followed the carriages all the way, only to find that these luxurious carriages had all stopped in front of the Xiao family’s gate.

The attendants began unloading many gifts from the carriages, including gorgeous fabrics, exquisite cakes, and several valuable supplements packed in gift boxes.

Each of the old men was carrying a large wooden box, which looked like the kind a doctor would carry.

Everyone pointed and whispered, wondering what the relationship between these people and the Xiao family was.

The Xiao family was also confused when they saw these people coming to their door.

After they got off the carriages, the visitors moved a lot of things into the main room, and the gifts filled the entire table.

It wasn’t until Mr. Zeng came out to greet them personally that the Xiao family realized these were actually Su Yanqing’s uncles and disciples of Mr. Su Wubing.

They had come all the way from the distant Jeju Prefecture, a journey that took them five or six days. After arriving in Huaxi County and resting for a night, they didn’t dare to delay and came straight to the Xiao family today.

“Mrs. Xiao, these are just small tokens of our respect. I hope you don’t mind,” one of the old men said respectfully.

Mother Xiao looked at the gorgeous cloths and exquisite gift boxes and smiled awkwardly.

“My goodness, how can all these valuable things be just a small token of appreciation?”

However, it was also the thoughtfulness of the other party. If they had come here directly, they should have brought a small gift. Mother Xiao had no reason to refuse and could only warmly entertain them.

“Don’t mind, don’t mind. Guests are always welcome. I’ll go prepare lunch now. Please don’t mind our simple meal. I think we are not hosting you well enough,” Mother Xiao said with a smile. Since there was no good tea to serve, she asked Xiao Lanlan to make some sugar water for the guests.

She immediately took out some money and asked Xiao Yi to go to the village to buy two chickens and some fish from Zhang’s fish pond so that they could prepare lunch for the guests.

She also went to the vegetable garden to pick some fresh vegetables.

Jiang Sui and Zhou stayed at home to entertain the guests. They took out the leftover melon seeds from the banquet, then went to light a fire and wash rice.

The elders were very considerate and drank up all the sugar water Xiao Lanlan had prepared in one go. They thanked her repeatedly and then went to the room to meet Su Yanqing.

Even the attendants and the groom Xiao Lanlan brought with them weren’t left out, and each of them was given a bowl of sugar water.

Xiao Hechuan now watches Goudan study and practice calligraphy every day. This was the task his older brother gave him before he left, and he has always kept it in mind, not daring to slack off.

Goudan was also a very obedient child. He was diligent and studious. Whenever he didn’t recognize a word in his book, he would ask his uncle. As a result, he knew how to read and even write the words before the teacher had taught him.