Chapter 140

This year in the Su family village, on the twenty-eighth day of the lunar month, besides being a day for cleaning up, it was also the day to slaughter the well-fed pigs raised for a whole year. In previous years, the pig slaughter would happen on the twenty-ninth day, but this year, with the commune’s approval, the production team raised several more pigs. 

Yang Nanhuai, with his extensive knowledge and talents, adopted pig-raising methods he had learned from some farming books. He successfully fattened each pig by several tens of kilograms, surpassing the production targets. In addition to the mandatory weight to be handed over, the commune allowed the production team to keep two pigs for everyone to enjoy during the New Year.

Although getting a few extra pounds of meat for each household might seem like a small matter, for the weathered farmers facing the hardships of life, it meant filling their stomachs and having a few more bites of meat. For those poor families that eagerly awaited pork during the New Year and rarely had meat throughout the year, having a few pounds of pork preserved could mean enjoying it for several months—a truly prosperous year.

Actually, at the beginning, everyone didn’t believe Yang Nanhuai, they thought he was just a useless scholar without any practical skills. Who would believe he knew anything about raising pigs? However, Su Weimin trusted him. He said the worst-case scenario would be raising pigs the same way as the previous year. As long as the pigs weren’t raised thin or died, there wouldn’t be any loss. Trying it out wouldn’t hurt, and if it succeeded, it would be a great achievement. Besides, Su Weimin would shoulder the responsibility, ensuring it wouldn’t affect other commune members.

Since the team leader had already stated his position, there was little opposition. Teacher Yang and his wife were not young, and Mr. Dong wasn’t in good health, usually avoiding labor. Su Weimin assigned two young and robust guys with a straightforward character to assist Teacher Yang in pig farming. They were to follow Teacher Yang’s orders, with Teacher Yang avoiding heavy physical work as much as possible due to his age.

Raising pigs is a relatively easy job, at least it doesn’t require exposure to sunlight or rain. The two young men are naturally eager to do it, as they do physical work while Teacher Yang does mental work. This collaboration made the work less tiring.

As a result, this year they became the well-known pig breeder role model in the commune. They went to the commune together with the team leader to receive an award. Initially, Yang Nanhuai should have been the representative, but he found an excuse not to go. Instead, the two young men accompanied Su Weimin and received praise from the leaders. Each of them was rewarded with an enameled basin and an enameled cup. They returned to the village in a splendid manner, making everyone envious.

This is the first time these two young men have seen such a “grand scene.” When they returned, they walked with light steps, as if floating back, eager to immediately thank Teacher Yang.

Of course, Su Weimin didn’t forget the reward for Mr. Yang. He personally delivered it to him in a high-profile manner.

In addition, Yang Lin, who had been helping the team as a bookkeeper for the past two years, was also an honest and diligent person. When the office wasn’t busy, he often helped with farm work. Although he was clumsy at first and didn’t understand anything, he was willing to learn. After everyone taught him, he diligently worked in the fields, and after finishing the fieldwork, he returned to the team to help record scores.

So, after two years of getting along, everyone knew who Teacher Yang’s family was, and their attitudes towards them had improved quite a bit. However, both Yang Nanhuai and Yang Lin were pragmatic individuals, not good at socializing, and certainly not good at bonding with everyone. 

Dong Mingyue, like her husband, is leading a secluded life, and doesn’t interact much with others, nor does she exchange pleasantries with everyone. The commune members were aware that they didn’t share many common topics with these intellectuals. So, even though the attitudes had changed, the interactions were not much different from before.

This year’s pig they needed to slaughter was heavier than usual. Su Weimin was worried they couldn’t finish it in a day, so he called the young and strong guys from the team a day early to slaughter the pigs.

Su Xiaoxiao hadn’t eaten blood sausage in many years and wanted to try making it. Early in the morning, she instructed her father to bring a plate of pig blood and a set of pig intestines, asking for less meat.

In previous years, those who helped slaughter the pigs would share the entrails and take them home to eat. Su Weimin never took any in previous years; when he selected people to help, he chose those facing financial difficulties. They would take the entrails home to eat, and he didn’t keep any for himself.

Since his daughter wanted to eat blood sausage this year, Su Weimin had already informed them that he wanted the blood and intestines from the first pig. Because his daughter wanted it, he exchanged some meat with the other members. Several commune members who had worked with Su Weimin for years knew his character and insisted that there was no need; in previous years, they had taken them, and it was only fair that he took some this year.

…..

At 5 o’clock in the morning, the first pig had already been killed. Before 6 o’clock, Su Zhenhua had already returned with a plate full of pig blood and pig intestines.

Su Zhenhua put the things down, “Mom, Xiaoxiao wants to make blood sausage. I’ve put the blood and intestines in the kitchen. When she gets up, let her know. I’m going back to help.”

The children liked scallion pancakes. Li Yufeng was pulling small onions from the vegetable garden to make scallion pancakes when she heard her son come back and say, “The porridge in the pot is ready. Have a bowl to warm yourself before going out.”

Su Zhenhua said, “Dad has cooked pig liver and sausage porridge in the tavern. After finishing this work, we can all eat together.”

Li Yufeng had forgotten about this routine, which was the usual practice in previous years. Due to going to work in the early morning, they weren’t able to eat breakfast, so they would cut some pig entrails on the spot, cook a pot of porridge, and everyone would eat it together. It was a way of rewarding everyone.

Li Yufeng handed him a bunch of small onions. “Take some small onions over. Cutting some green onions into the porridge will make it fragrant and eliminate the fishy smell.”

Su Zhenzhong nodded and took the small green onion handed over by Li Yufeng, then turned and left.

Li Yufeng entered the kitchen and saw a large plate of pig’s blood. After some thought, she changed her mind and decided not to make scallion pancakes today. Instead, she went back to the vegetable garden and picked a bunch of leeks.

Li Yufeng boiled a pot of water and added a generous amount of ginger shreds, a pinch of salt, a bit of sugar, and a few drops of peanut oil. She used high heat to bring the water to a boil. Then she removed the fire, leaving only the charcoal. She went to cut a piece of pig’s blood into small pieces and placed it in the water. She added a few drops of white wine, covered the pot, and let the pig’s blood simmer in the residual heat. At this point, no flame should be used; otherwise, the pig’s blood would become tough, making it less enjoyable.

Today, the five cubs woke up together and came out of the house together. Xiao Fantuan sniffed and asked. “Grandma, what are you cooking today? Why does it smell so good?”

Li Yufeng said, “Today, the village is slaughtering a pig. Grandma made pig’s blood soup. Hurry up, wash up, and come to eat.”

The children exclaimed and held hands as they were heading to the bathroom to wash up.

Li Yufeng placed the chopped leeks at the bottom of each bowl, added a few pieces of pig’s blood, and then poured hot soup over them. The aroma of leeks instantly merged with the pig’s blood, creating a seamless combination. Pig’s blood with leeks was a perfect match, making it mouthwatering just by the smell.

Li Yufeng arranged the bowls on a small table and then retrieved the roasted sweet potatoes from the stove. She placed one on the side of each bowl and, in the middle, added a plate of pickled radishes that had been marinated a few days ago. A delicious and appetizing breakfast was ready.

The children quickly finished washing up and came to sit down for breakfast.

As the weather was cold, eating freshly cooked pig’s blood would burn their mouths. After waiting for a while, the temperature was just right. Li Yufeng served herself a bowl and stood while eating, cautioning, “Be careful; the pig’s blood is hot. Xiao Roubao, eat slowly.”

The cubs said, “It’s not hot anymore, just right.”

Xiao Doubao sat next to Xiao Roubao. He blew on a piece of pig’s blood with his spoon, took a bite, confirmed it wasn’t too hot, and then passed it to his younger brother.

The older children had eaten pig’s blood soup before, but Xiao Roubao was having it for the first time. He took a smooth bite of the pig’s blood, which melted in his mouth. Without even chewing, he swallowed it effortlessly. The taste and texture struck Xiao Roubao’s taste buds, and he widened his eyes, nodding towards Grandma. “Grandma, it’s delicious!”

Li Yufeng wasn’t worried about the older children but was concerned about Xiao Roubao getting burned. However, the little one wouldn’t let others feed him; he insisted on eating by himself. Li Yufeng had to keep a close eye on him. 

The clever little guy lifted a piece with his spoon, brought it to his mouth, took a small bite to ensure it wasn’t too hot, and then started eating in larger bites. Li Yufeng was now confident that this little one could handle any food without any difficulty.

“Even if it’s delicious, you have to eat slowly. Each person only has one bowl; once it’s finished, there’s none left.” Li Yufeng cut a large piece of pork liver, making sure Xiao Roubao’s portion was the same as his older brothers. They couldn’t let him eat more.

Xiao Roubao understood and began to slow down his eating speed. He even reached out to grab a piece of radish and ate it with relish.

When it came to eating, Xiao Roubao had an absolute talent. Everything he ate seemed more delicious than others. In his eyes, there was no such thing as bad food, only tasty and tastier.

The sweet potatoes they dug yesterday tasted delicious when roasted today. After the three older siblings were almost done with the pork blood, they also ate the sweet potatoes with the soup.

Da Bao, Xiao Bao, and Xiao Doubao are both full, only Xiao Fantuan, who particularly likes to eat roasted sweet potatoes, ate one and then another.

Three big cubs were responsible for washing dishes, and Xiao Doubao led his brother back to the house. At this moment, Su Xiaoxiao and Xiao Tangyuan woke up.

Xiao Roubao, a foodie, shouted anxiously to his mother and reported. “Mommy, yum yum!”

Xiao Doubao squinted and added, “Mama, grandma made a delicious pork liver soup. You and sister, go and have some.”

Su Xiaoxiao rubbed the heads of the two children and said, “Alright, after Mama finishes freshening up, we’ll go.”

Li Yufeng took Xiao Tangyuan from Su Xiaoxiao and said, “You go freshen up first. Today, it’s Xiao Tangyuan’s turn to have a neat hairstyle. Grandma will help her tie two beautiful little buns.”

When Su Xiaoxiao was young, Li Yufeng loved tying various braids for her. Even when Su Xiaoxiao was in her twenties, she sometimes still did it for herself. Now, it was her granddaughter’s turn.

Zhang Chunying also woke up with Yaobao, and the four of them had eaten pig red soup together. Li Yufeng had already washed the pig’s large intestine clean.

Li Yufeng said, “Why did you suddenly think of eating blood sausage? This thing is so difficult to cook, and it’s not very delicious. Braising pig intestines is tastier.”

Su Xiaoxiao said, “We always had the chance to eat marinated large intestine. Such fresh pig red is not common, and we might not get to eat it for years. Mix the pork blood with seasoning and stuff it; it’s not complicated.”

Li Yufeng knew her daughter liked experimenting with food, so she didn’t argue, “You handle the kitchen. In the afternoon, when Zhenzhong and Zhenhua come back, we’ll clean the kitchen. I’ll take Da Bao, Xiao Bao, and Fantuan to the riverside to wash small things. We’ll leave the larger items for Zhenzhong and Zhenhua to move in the afternoon. Xiao Doubao, take care of your younger siblings at home. Chunying, clean the spider webs on the roof. Both of you keep an eye on the kids at home.”

Su Xiaoxiao and Zhang Chunying echoed, “Got it, Mom.”
I know my mother.”