Chapter 94 : Delivering Meat

When Wang Fengqin heard that they had received 100 yuan from the other party, she understood there was no way to change the situation and smiled in consolation.  

“Just keep them. The older one is already four years old. In two or three years, he’ll be able to help with work. When you and Zhenyu have a baby, they can even help take care of their younger siblings.”  

Su Xieqiu smiled and nodded. “That’s exactly what Zhenyu and I were thinking.”  

Seeing her take it so lightly, Wang Fengqin sighed inwardly and said, “Zhenyu’s wife, why don’t you come in and sit for a while?”  

“No, sister, my family is waiting for me to eat,” Su Xieqiu replied.  

“Alright, wait a moment. I’ll return your bowl,” Wang Fengqin said as she went into the kitchen.  

She transferred the dish into one of her own bowls and noted that it was filled with a generous portion of meat. She couldn’t help but think the couple next door was far too kind and straightforward. She resolved to bring over some cabbage for them later and perhaps advise Zhenyu’s wife not to live so extravagantly.  

After washing the bowl, she filled it with a portion of homemade soybean paste. Although it wasn’t much, it was better than sending her back with an empty bowl.  

When Su Xieqiu returned home with the bowl of sauce, she saw that no one had started eating yet. Even Chenchen was sitting obediently, likely waiting for her.  

“Didn’t I tell you all to eat first? Why are you still waiting? Chenchen must be starving,” she said.  

“Auntie Su, I wanted to wait and eat with you,” Chenchen replied with a smile.  

“What a sweet and well-behaved child,” Su Xieqiu said with a smile, patting his head. She set the soybean paste on the table and said, “Alright, let’s eat quickly before the food gets cold.”  

As they ate, Han Zhenyu brought up how to handle the meat. “We can’t finish all of it. How about taking half to the city to sell?”  

“What’s the rush to sell it? Let’s keep it for ourselves,” Su Xieqiu said. “We’ll send a pig leg each to Grandpa and Aunt’s house. Tomorrow, we can roast some dried meat and pork slices to give to Comrade Gu. The rest we’ll store and eat slowly.”  

Gu Fangxun quickly waved his hand in refusal. “I won’t take it. Dried meat isn’t convenient to eat on the road, and I still have some food coupons. I can buy something for the journey.”  

Not arguing further, Su Xieqiu simply smiled and nodded, though she was already planning to prepare something for him tomorrow.  

“Zhenyu, when will you deliver the meat? The wild boar skin also needs to be handled soon,” she said.  

Although the weather wasn’t as hot as before, the daytime temperatures were still high enough to spoil the meat if kept too long.  

“We’ll go after dinner,” Han Zhenyu replied with a smile.  

“Take the pig’s blood with you as well,” Su Xieqiu added. “We can’t finish such a large bucket. Leave a small basin and take the rest.”  

After a moment’s thought, she said, “It’s pitch dark tonight, not even a single star visible. How about asking Comrade Gu to go with you? I heard from Sister Fengqin earlier that Daqiao from our village was robbed a few days ago while delivering food to his father-in-law’s house. They even took his new coat.”  

Gu Fangxun nodded with a smile. “Alright, I’ll go with Zhenyu.”  

After dinner, Han Zhenyu packed a large pork leg and the wild boar skin for his aunt’s family into a sack. For his grandfather, he packed another pork leg and the pig’s head in a separate sack. He hung both on the front beam of his bicycle, while Gu Fangxun sat in the back carrying a large bucket of pig’s blood.  

The two men took flashlights and headed first to the closer aunt’s house.  

After they left, Su Xieqiu quickly took out a few packets of salt from her storage space and began marinating the remaining pork strips.  

She thought, ‘This salt isn’t nearly enough. I’ll need to go to the sales point tomorrow to buy some coarse salt.’  

Each team here had a sales point that carried basic daily necessities like oil, salt, vinegar, and thread. Occasionally, there would be snacks or candies, but they often ran out quickly.  

Meanwhile, An An rubbed her eyes sleepily and said, “Brother, where is Uncle? Let’s go to bed.”  

Hearing her, Su Xieqiu quickly finished handling the pork offal, washed her hands, poured water for the children to wash their faces and feet, and then tucked them into bed, coaxing them to sleep.

Then she smiled and discussed with Jiang Lichen “Chenchen, how about you and your sister sleep with Aunt Su tonight? Let your uncle and Uncle Han use that room.”  

Chenchen thought for a moment and whispered, “Aunt Su, my uncle is leaving soon. Can I sleep with him for these two days?”  

Hearing this, Su Xieqiu hadn’t considered the idea before. But seeing his earnest and cautious expression, she quickly smiled and nodded, “Of course you can.”  

Chenchen then beamed and said happily, “Thank you, Aunt Su!”  

—

When Han Zhenyu and Gu Fangxun arrived at the Yanjia Brigade, some houses in the village had already turned off their lights.  

Although it was just past eight o’clock, there wasn’t much to do for entertainment in the countryside at night. After a long day’s work, most people went to bed early to rest and save on lamp oil.  

Yan Guowei had just laid down on the kang (a traditional heated bed) while Du Chunmin sat under a lamp mending pants.  

When they heard a knock at the door, neither moved initially.  

From the west room, where Yan Daqiang and Yan Erqiang were sleeping, the sound of footsteps approached, and they opened the door.  

“Who is it?” Yan Daqiang called out.  

Han Zhenyu lowered his voice. “Brother, it’s me.”  

“Zhenyu?” The two brothers exchanged glances before quickly opening the door.  

Seeing the bags hanging from his bicycle and a man carrying a large bucket behind him, the brothers refrained from asking questions and quickly invited them into the courtyard.  

Han Zhenyu pushed his bicycle straight into the main room.  

Hearing his voice, Yan Guowei and Du Chunmin emerged from their room.  

“Aunt, Uncle, Eldest Brother, Second Brother,” Han Zhenyu greeted them warmly, then introduced Gu Fangxun. However, he made no mention of the foster child situation, describing Fangxun simply as a good friend.  

The Yan family welcomed them warmly. Du Chunmin offered, “You two haven’t eaten yet, right? I’ll whip up some noodles and scrambled eggs.”  

Han Zhenyu quickly stopped her. “Aunt, we’ve already eaten.”  

He unloaded a large sack from his bicycle and said, “Fangxun and I came across a wild boar in the mountains today. We brought you some meat and this wild boar skin. Uncle, please process it so you can stew it.”  

Du Chunmin frowned and playfully patted Han Zhenyu’s back. “You rascal, did you go into the mountains?”  

Han Zhenyu chuckled and quickly reassured her, “Aunt, we didn’t go in deep. We were lucky. We stumbled upon this injured wild boar while chopping wood this afternoon.”  

Not wanting to be scolded further, he placed the items down and said, “Aunt, Uncle, I need to head to Grandpa’s house now. I’ll visit you properly another day.”  

He then winked at Gu Fangxun and began pushing his bicycle out of the courtyard.  

“Wait, take some pig blood for your grandpa,” Du Chunmin called after them. She poured out half of the bucket for her family and handed the rest to the two of them.  

Gu Fangxun accepted it with a smile, and they headed off together.  

Yan Guowei and his two sons accompanied them to the courtyard gate. “Zhenyu, don’t go chopping wood in the mountains by yourself. Once we finish the busy season, I’ll bring your brothers and help you chop wood for a couple of days.”  

“I understand, Uncle,” Han Zhenyu replied.  

Before leaving, he added, “Uncle, when you have time, could you help us weave a few baskets and bamboo containers for carrying things?”  

“I’m already working on it,” Yan Guowei said. “I’ll bring them to you when we go chopping wood.”  

After the two men left on their bicycles, the father and his sons returned home.