The Daily Life of Farming and Raising Children in Ancient Mountain Residences
The Daily Life of Farming and Raising Children in Ancient Mountain Residences Chapter 53.2

Chapter 53 2/2

Shen An thought about it and realized it was true. Lately, he often felt like he was living in a dream, as if it weren’t real.

He nodded.

Seeing her little brother-in-law’s slightly improved expression, Sang Lou didn’t say much more. She just smiled and said, “Remember to entertain your little friends this evening, An Ning and you. Today’s dinner is not only for ourselves but also a thank-you banquet for the uncles and aunts who helped us build our house and for your little friends. Your sister-in-law will be very busy today and might not be able to attend to everything. So, at that time, you and An Ning will take care of the children’s table, alright?”

Shen An listened attentively. “Don’t worry, sister-in-law. I can take care of it.”

When they returned home, it was already late morning. Perhaps their voices had carried over, even across a distance, as Shen Ning came out from behind the house, her eyes lighting up when she saw them, and she eagerly ran towards them.

“Sister-in-law, Second Brother, you’re back!”

Sang Lou noticed her dusty hands and asked with a smile, “What were you doing behind the house?”

“I was tying the fence. I tied a small section this morning, and when it’s all done, we can let the chickens out to raise them.”

She was quite good at finding things to do for herself. Sang Lou hadn’t instructed her to do any of this when she left, so she couldn’t help but praise her. “An Ning is really capable!”

Shen Ning smiled brightly and then approached Sang Lou’s basket, asking, “What did you buy, sister-in-law?”

Before Sang Lou could answer, Shen An had already listed everything they bought. Finally, he said, “It’s precious. Almost all the money we earned today has been spent.”

He sighed inwardly.

Shen Ning: “Ah…”

Shen An: “But Sister-in-law said it’s necessary. Everyone who helped us build the house has worked hard. Today is about the banquet, but it’s also about expressing gratitude. We understand the importance of gratitude. When we need help in the future, people will be willing to help us.”

Shen Ning listened carefully. When she heard about needing help, memories of previous days made her a bit apprehensive. She nodded repeatedly, saying, “I’ll listen to Sister-in-law.”

As they chatted, the siblings followed Sang Lou back to their house.

Before, while Shen Ning was behind the house, the courtyard gate was closed. She ran over to push it open and waited for Sang Lou inside the courtyard, saying, “Sister-in-law, not long after you and Second Brother left this morning, Grandma Chen, Grandma Lu, and Aunt Shi all came by and brought a lot of vegetables. I put them all in the kitchen.”

This was something Sang Lou knew early in the morning. She nodded, “Okay, I’ll check them out later.”

She rested her basket at the door of the kitchen, carried the bucket inside, and Shen Ning followed closely behind. “Grandma Chen and Grandma Lu said they would come to help this afternoon, so Sister-in-law, you don’t need to rush in the morning. There will be three of them, and it’ll be enough time to prepare by noon. They’ll bring bowls, plates, and utensils, and the uncles will bring tables and chairs in the evening.”

Sang Lou thought about the dishes she had prepared. It would indeed be rushed to prepare them by noon.

But she still smiled and nodded, indicating that she understood.

After taking out the things from the bucket in the kitchen, Sang Lou also saw the vegetables brought by several families. There were really a lot of things. With the contributions from three families combined, they wouldn’t be able to finish them all today. And they wouldn’t need to eat wild onions and garlic today, as none of the families had held back on providing them.

Sang Lou had a clear idea of the evening’s menu.

She looked at Shen An. “Xiao An, I have a task for you. Go to Grandma Chen’s house and borrow a pair of scissors for Sister-in-law. We’ll need them later when we slaughter the chickens.”

Chicken giblets and duck giblets were rare and delicious dishes. You really needed scissors to handle the chicken and duck intestines properly.

Shen An responded and headed down the hill.

Sang Lou turned around and filled a pot with water using a ladle, calling on Shen Ning to help with starting the fire.

Shen Ning was puzzled. “Sister-in-law, are we making lunch so early?”

“We’re not making lunch. We need to slaughter the chickens and ducks first. We’ll need to scald them to remove the feathers, and this process takes time. If we wait until the afternoon, it might be too late.”

Ah, Shen Ning had done this before. It really took a long, long time to pluck them clean, especially the duck feathers. That was really difficult to clean up.

The young girl rolled up her sleeves. “Sister-in-law, I’ll help you.”

She turned and went out to fetch firewood.

Shen Ning boiled water while Sang Lou took two large pottery basins outside and brought out two bowls, each filled with half a bowl of salt water. She then came back and tucked a kitchen knife into her pocket.

The two chickens and ducks she bought yesterday were kept in the newly made bamboo chicken coop. Sang Lou opened the bamboo door and took a low look at the two creatures inside.

Whoever comes first, will be the first to deliver the vegetables.

The hen cautiously poked her head out.

Alright, it’s going to be you.

As soon as the chicken came out of the coop, Sang Lou grabbed it precisely.

After closing the coop door, she carried the chicken by its wings to the side where the basin and knife were placed. She swiftly cut its neck to let the blood flow. By the time Shen An returned with the scissors, both chickens and ducks in the two basins were already slaughtered, and the chicken and duck blood had been brought back by Sang Lou to the kitchen to coagulate.

After boiling two pots of water, they scalded the chickens and ducks. When the water was no longer scalding hot, Shen An and Shen Ning began the arduous task of plucking feathers.

Shen Jin had left Shen Yin and Shen Jin at home to look after the sweet girl. When he arrived carrying the goose eggs delivered by half a basket of stones, he immediately spotted the two basins where the chickens and ducks were being plucked.

He exclaimed, and the basket of stones in his hand suddenly felt light. He carried it, rushing a good distance. When he reached Shen An and Shen Ning, he put the basket down, squatted between them, and looked at the chicken and duck alternately with joy. He was drooling with excitement.

“Shen An, are there still chickens and ducks for dinner tonight?!”

“Are you willing to slaughter the chickens and ducks you bought two days ago for dinner?”

He raised his claws and pinched his own cheeks, then pinched them again. “Is it really for dinner tonight? Can I have a piece?”

Shen An:…

“Yes.”

Shen Jin was thrilled beyond measure, eager for dinner to come immediately. He was very enthusiastic. “I’ll help you pluck the feathers. I know how to do this!”

He didn’t dare to approach Shen Ning, so he went to Shen An’s side.

On the Shen family’s side, the kids were plucking feathers with great excitement. Meanwhile, on the Zhou family’s side, Mrs. Zhou had already prepared lunch and was carrying it to the fields in a basket.

The whole family had breakfast early and went to the fields. After working for several hours without rest, they were starving. When they saw the food delivered to their home, they all sighed in relief, stopped working, and prepared to eat. After finishing their food, they went back to the field.

Sitting under a tree by the field, they drank some water from the bamboo tubes placed on the ground. After catching their breath, they approached the food basket.

As they picked up their food, the aroma of the meat and vegetables wafted out when the lid of the basin was lifted. The sons waiting by the food basket were stunned.

“What kind of dish is this?”

Mrs. Zhou, who was originally drinking water, stretched her neck to see what was going on when she heard the puzzled questions from her sons and daughters-in-law.

???

She pushed her son aside, took the bowl and chopsticks from her youngest son’s hand, and picked up a piece to inspect it closely. She looked shocked. “Li Qi? Where did this come from?”

2 Comments
  1. M&M's has spoken 5 months ago

    I’m surprised Sang Luo would slaughter the newly-bought chickens and ducks, although I thought the ducks were just freshly hatched, so I don’t understand how they’re big enough for food, lol. Also, I’m a bit confused about Mrs. Zhou and the surprise from the lunch she made. Was the shocked looked supposed to be from her family rather than her?

    Thanks for the chapter! 😀

    Reply
    • JShaw has spoken 2 months ago

      I thought it was pretty clear that she bought at least one duck and chicken to use for the feast, though seems like she instead took one from the ones she both from the village, not the market. That or she bought two of each from the market but I thought it was only one?

      Anyways, most likely adults or fleshy enough, the ones she picked to harvest.

      As for Ms.Zhou, got confused there as well. Not sure if it’s the same Ms.Zhou from earlier, if someone else cooked, or if the food came elsewhere hence she was surprised.

      Doesn’t help that their are multiple of the same names, that and they get mixed around here and there.

      Reply

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