Chapter 38: Making Quilts

Chicken frames need to be fried twice for the best results. After the first fry, they should be taken out to air for a while before being fried again.

When Jiang Liyun took them out, Jiang Liping couldn’t wait and said, “Quick, let me taste it.”

Jiang Liyun replied, “It needs to be fried again.”

“Is it that troublesome?” Jiang Liping looked at the fried chicken frames eagerly and asked, “Did you come up with this method yourself, or is it really from a foreign source?”

Looking at the wooden board with the words “Fried Chicken from Abroad,” Jiang Liping turned it over and discovered it also had “Northeastern Pan-fried Dumplings” written on the other side.

“Look in the newspaper; there’s news about foreigners opening a fried chicken shop here.” Jiang Liyun handed the newspaper to Jiang Liping.

After reading for a while, Jiang Liping whispered to Jiang Liyun, “Did you come up with this method after reading the newspaper?”

Jiang Liyun smiled without saying anything, tacitly confirming.

Seeing this, Jiang Liping went to chat with customers, boasting about how authentic their fried chicken was, which she learned from her sister, a foreigner in the provincial capital.

Jiang Liyun mentioned this yesterday but only briefly; now, with free time, Jiang Liping added details and spun tales about their chicken stand.

She spoke continuously, and customers buying fried chicken listened in awe, finding the small chicken stand strangely impressive.

In the midst of it, Jiang Liping said to Jiang Liyun, “Liyun, give me another serving of boneless chicken tenders!”

Seeing her promote their stand, essentially attracting business for herself, Jiang Liyun fried another serving for her.

Holding a bamboo skewer, Jiang Liping chatted with customers, then asked Jiang Liyun, “Can I have another fried chicken leg?”

“No,” Jiang Liyun refused without hesitation.

“So stingy,” complained Jiang Liping.

Jiang Liyun sighed. “Sis, you’ve never been generous to me either.”

That’s true; Jiang Liping conceded.

Jiang Liyun had very good business today, with a constant crowd around her stall.

However, since she made fried chicken manually, the speed was relatively slow, limiting the quantity she could sell.

Jiang Liyun remembered that later on, hamburger and fried chicken shops had specialised machines for frying chicken meat. They had a set process for temperature and time, making their service exceptionally fast.

She couldn’t achieve that. After selling five chickens, she felt tired and surrounded by the scent of fried chicken.

Thinking about it, Jiang Liyun decided to buy some protective masks to avoid inhaling too much cooking fume, which could be harmful to her lungs.

Protective masks are usually for people working in dusty environments, and they can filter out most of the cooking fumes.

She recalled that in her previous life, by the 1990s, brick factories had started providing masks to employees. She wondered if they were still available on the market now.

After selling out the chicken, Jiang Liping left with the chicken frames, while Jiang Liyun handed a portion of boneless chicken tenders she saved to Feng Yi, saying, “Feng Yi, taste these boneless chicken tenders!”

Feng Yi shouldn’t be left out of what Jiang Liping has. On the other side, Jiang Liping, not too far away, took a piece of chicken frame from the bag and started munching on it.

After enjoying several pieces of the meaty chicken frame, she carried the remaining portion back to the Li family. Expecting them to be happy with the chicken frames she brought, Jiang Liping entered the house with a cheerful smile, only to find Mr. and Mrs. Li sitting at the table with serious expressions.

The joy in Jiang Liping’s heart instantly vanished, replaced by a hint of displeasure.

“Liping, did you argue with the Yang family this morning? And did it escalate to using a knife?” Mrs. Li inquired.

“She insulted my sister and parents, so I had a disagreement with her,” replied Jiang Liping.

“You’ve been saying that your family mistreats you. Isn’t your relationship with your family just average? Why offend the Yang family over a trivial matter?” Mrs. Li was displeased.

“We’re all family, connected like bones and tendons. My relationship with my family isn’t that bad.” Jiang Liping also felt displeased.

Mrs. Li said, “Regardless, it’s not right to have a big quarrel with people. You end up making a spectacle of yourself for no reason.”

Jiang Liping used to listen to Mrs. Li’s advice willingly.

She always thought that people in the town were more cultured compared to those in the countryside.

However, Mrs. Li first opposed her taking Li Xuyang to the provincial capital, and now she was siding with Mrs. Yang… Jiang Liping had a sour expression. “She insulted first. If anyone loses face, it’s not me losing it.”

Having said that, Jiang Liping retreated to her room.

Li Xuyang was in the room, playing with building blocks. In a bad mood, Jiang Liping walked up and knocked down his blocks.

Li Xuyang didn’t mind and looked up with a playful smile, saying, “Wife!”

Seeing him like this, Jiang Liping’s irritation dissipated. She sat on the bed, took out the chicken frame, and offered it to him, saying, “I brought you something good. Give it a try.”

Li Xuyang stared at the chicken frame, eyes fixated!

Jiang Liping stuffed a piece of chicken into Li Xuyang’s mouth and asked, “Yangyang, am I good to you?”

“Good,” Li Xuyang nodded.

Jiang Liping said, “Go and bring the food for me; I’ll eat in the room today.”

Without a word, Li Xuyang went out to fetch the meal.

Seeing their son bring in the food, particularly picking the best dishes, Mr. and Mrs. Li felt a bit disgruntled.

Their son was almost becoming Jiang Liping’s servant!

Previously, Mr. and Mrs. Li had always pampered Jiang Liping, treating her exceptionally well, fearing that she might find their son inadequate and leave.

Initially, Jiang Liping just asked their son to do some chores, and they could tolerate that. However, lately, Jiang Liping has been involved in too many things.

Taking their son to the hospital, working outside, and today’s quarrel with someone, even involving a knife…

Mr. Li whispered, “I always said she’s restless and won’t settle down.”

Mrs. Li comforted her husband, “She’s just a countryside girl with limited knowledge. Let’s just appease her; once she gets married to Xuyang and has a child, things will settle down.”

The two murmured for a while, deciding that they needed to appease Jiang Liping a bit more.

Their son was not doing well and was often mocked by others. When it came time for him to get married, they didn’t want to end up with an unsuitable daughter-in-law.

They wanted people to know that even if their son was a bit slow, he could still find a smart and beautiful daughter-in-law.

Jiang Liping was indeed beautiful and well-mannered, having completed junior high school, which did give them face, but she was hard to control.

Yet she was just a countryside girl, unfamiliar with the ways of the world, and not close to her family. A bit of cajoling should suffice.

The next day, Jiang Liyun continued to set up her stall in the town to sell pan-fried dumplings.

She thought that the Yang family wouldn’t dare to set up a stall near hers again, and her observation turned out to be correct.

Today, the person selling buns next to her was still there, but the Yang family, who copied her stall, was absent.

Jiang Liyun arranged her stall and continued selling pan-fried dumplings as usual.

People in this world are often curious.

Jiang Liyun noticed that their business was exceptionally good today, and many customers who came to buy pan-fried dumplings inquired about yesterday’s incident.

She suspected that these people were more interested in gossip than buying pan-fried dumplings.

What was even more amusing was that some people stood by her stall and spoke ill of Mrs. Yang, recounting how she used to mistreat others.

It was evident that Mrs. Yang didn’t have a good reputation in the town.

In short, many people mentioned Mrs. Yang to Jiang Liyun today: “That woman has a sharp tongue, always gossiping about others.”

“It’s great they’re not setting up a stall here anymore, so I don’t have to keep going there to buy.”

“You have no idea; I bought uncooked dumplings from their stall before!”

“Your dumplings here are still the best.”

…

Jiang Liyun smiled contentedly. She refrained from speaking ill of Mrs. Yang, not wanting to lower herself to the same level. She simply thanked the customers for their support.

Those customers were delighted and, in the end, not only bought all her dumplings but also cleaned out her tea eggs.

Jiang Liyun had prepared less filling and dough than usual the night before, but the preparation from the night before remained the same as usual.

So, when she did the math after returning home, she found that she had earned around thirty yuan today.

Jiang Liyun was in a particularly good mood. After dinner, she asked Wu Xiaochun to help buy some cotton pockets; she planned to make two quilts.

Wu Xiaochun whispered, “Two quilts aren’t enough; you should have at least six.”

“Six quilts?” Jiang Liyun didn’t catch on at first.

Wu Xiaochun explained, “When they get married now, they bring along six quilts, and some even bring eight. Why don’t you wait? My health is much better now, and next year, I’ll be able to raise silkworms. By then, I can make them for you. Your sister’s quilt was made by me.”

When Jiang Liping got married, she prepared four quilts, using up all the stored cotton pockets at home. When Jiang Liyun got married, she would certainly need to prepare four quilts as well. With a bit more money from Jiang Liyun, she could make six…

Jiang Liyun sighed. “Mum, I need to make them now! My quilt isn’t warm enough, and Feng Yi’s quilt is the same.”

Feng Yi would need three more years before getting married, and they currently had nothing. She genuinely hadn’t thought about marriage.

People who dated for several years before getting married were everywhere, and Jiang Liyun felt that a few more years with Feng Yi wouldn’t hurt.

Wu Xiaochun suddenly felt awkward. “Oh, I see. I’ll ask your second aunt then.”

Jiang Liyun suggested, “Mum, ask my aunt for help, not the second aunt.”

Her second aunt wasn’t a bad person, but she surely had her own thoughts and might not be willing to help.

If her mum sought help from her second aunt, she might face gossip behind her back.

Seeking help from her aunt would be different. Her aunt had a good relationship with her dad and had an easy-going personality, so helping with something like buying cotton pockets to make a quilt wouldn’t be an issue for her aunt.

Just treat her aunt to a meal later.

“Okay,” Wu Xiaochun obediently agreed.