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The two sisters made dinner together. Previously, it was always Zhang Lan who handled the cooking, as she was reluctant to let the children help. Wang Xuan used to assist her mother here and there, like gathering firewood or adding grass to the fire, but today was the first time she was alone at the stove. Naturally, she felt a bit flustered.
Wang Qian, being an adult in her previous life, had spent a lot of time cooking with her grandmother when she was young. So she knew how to cook. She saw her sister trying to help share their parents’ burden like a little adult, but she was also a bit inexperienced. She could only offer a few tips based on how their mother usually cooked.
The amount of food in the Wang household was always measured to avoid waste, especially considering their current situation. If they make too much, they won’t last until the end of the month, thus, they have to save more.
Wang Xuan used a ladle to scoop a small amount of cornmeal, added something like baking soda, and scalded the meal with the water that had not yet boiled in the pot. She then started making pancakes, patting a handful of dough into a ball and slapping it onto the edge of the pot. The size of the pancakes was based on what their mother usually made. After making the pancakes, she rinsed the leftover dough in the bowl with the water from the pot and poured it back into the pot to avoid any waste. She then added a bit of cornmeal to the pot, creating a semi-liquid mixture.
Why make a semi-liquid mixture? Because dry rations simply weren’t enough for everyone, so they made some to fill their stomachs. This time, the sisters didn’t add sweet potatoes, as they had to be even more frugal. After mixing the semi-liquid, they added a bowl of cabbage and oysters to the pot and covered it.
Wang Qian added grass to the fire, and soon the pot began to steam. At this time, Zhang Lan and her husband returned from work. They saw smoke coming from their chimney and hurried inside. They found their daughters looking a bit disheveled, which was both amusing and touching. It was heartening to see the children of poor families taking responsibility. The children had grown up and were now helping to cook.
“Mom, Dad, you’re back. Dinner will be ready soon, but we still have one dish to make,” Wang Xuan said, seeing her parents return, but also feeling a bit worried.
Seeing her daughter’s concerned expression, Zhang Lan smiled and said, “What dish needs to be made? Let Mom handle it.”
Wang Qian ran over and showed her mother a bowl of bean sprouts. “Mom, look at what we picked today. We plan to stir-fry these tonight.”
Mingcheng and his brother came out of the room, taking Zhang Lan to see the slightly dried soybeans on the kang. “Mom, look at this. We picked a lot today. We’ll go again tomorrow and collect more. If we save enough, we can make oil and tofu.”
The brothers were excited to show their parents what they had achieved today. The couple had not expected to find so many soybeans in the field. Seeing their children’s unexpected harvest, even Wang Zhenhe was a bit surprised. He cautiously said, “Children, be discreet when you go to collect things in the future. Don’t let others say we’re digging into socialism.”
“Okay, Dad, we’ll be careful in the future,” the children responded in unison.
“Children, come and see the delicious food we brought for you,” Wang Zhenhe took out a handful of peanuts from his pocket.
After dividing them among the children, the sky had darkened. Mingcheng lit a kerosene lamp, which cast a dim light in the room. Unfortunately, they still didn’t have electricity, so they had to rely on kerosene lamps in every household.
Wang Qian approached Wang Zhenhe, hugged his neck, and stuffed a few peanuts into his mouth with her small hands.
“Dad, you eat too,” Wang Zhenhe, holding his young daughter, happily responded. “Sure, Dad will eat. You all eat.”
Soon, Zhang Lan finished cooking the meal, and the family sat on the kang to eat dinner by the dim light of the kerosene lamp. Because they had stir-fried fresh bean sprouts that day, and because the children were very hungry, they finished every last bit of their meal, including the bean sprouts.
Zhang Lan cleaned the pot and helped the children wash their feet. To save kerosene, the whole family soon climbed into bed to chat.
“Dad, please make us a bathtub soon so that we can all take a bath, otherwise we will be itchy all over.”
When talking about taking a bath, she felt very itchy on her body. She scratched her back with her hands, but her arms were too short to reach it. “Dad, please scratch it for me, it’s itchy.”
Wang Zhenhe reached out from the quilt and carried the child into the couple’s quilt. He scratched the child from top to bottom.
“How are you, are you still itchy?”
“Dad, it feels so good. It doesn’t itch now.”
His daughter’s praise made the father feel happy, and he kissed the child’s little face and said, “Baby, it’s time to go back to your own bed.”
Wang Qian crawled back into bed with her sister and lay down. Although they were lying on the bed, neither of them felt sleepy.
“Dad, let’s chat a bit. By the way, has our family’s private land been measured?”
Wang Qian remembered this incident, mainly because this place was related to the family’s annual food supply, so she had to pay attention to it.
”Yes, when will they come over to measure the land? It’s already spring, so it’s time to transport fertilizer to the land.”
Wang Zhenhe was lying on the pillow, unable to see clearly the expression on his face, and said slowly, “I urged the captain again today, and he said he would send someone to measure it tomorrow. The place is next to the river in the south, with the third aunt.” The home lands are close together.”
“Let’s live next to his house.” Zhang Lan’s voice was a little drawn out. Wang Qian heard that her mother didn’t want to, but she didn’t hear the rest.
“Dad, it’s time to get a toilet in our house, otherwise we will not have excrement to use as fertilizers to grow vegetables.” Mingcheng’s voice came from the darkness.
The whole family fell into silence for a while. Yes, they had to build one, otherwise their old lady might not be willing to give them some shit.
“Dad will find someone to come over and help us make one tomorrow.” Wang Zhenhe said in a resolute tone from the dark.
“Mom, our oil lamp is almost out of oil. Please remember to buy some,” Wang Xuan interjected.
“Mm, I know,” Zhang Lan’s voice sounded hesitant.
“Mom, is there no money in the house?” Wang Xuan asked directly.
Zhang Lan’s hesitant voice came from the darkness. “It’s okay. I’ll go borrow some. You don’t need to worry about money. Your father and I will take care of it.”
Lying on her pillow, Wang Qian finally understood. It was indeed difficult to live without a penny. Her mother had even repaid the debts with the money her grandmother had given. Alas, it was not easy for this family to truly start living a life.