Chapter 56 ☆ Save eggs to eat dumplings (Part 1)

Early in the morning, the Xie family’s courtyard was still shrouded in the faint morning light, and the morning air was filled with moisture and the fragrance of flowers and plants. Cheng Yaoyao was brushing her teeth in the yard with her hair tied up, her head nodding, and her delicate cheeks still had the marks of the mat that had not faded.

Xie Fei was sitting in the yard washing clothes while Grandma Xie was busy in the kitchen. She said through the window, “Yaoyao, go pick up the eggs, or the hens will peck them!”

“Okay Cheng Yaoyao woke up with a start, rinsed her mouth, and wiped her face.

The chicken coop was separated by a bamboo fence. The three hens were small in size but very clean and energetic. Cheng Yaoyao used a broom to drive the hens away, and there were a few red and white eggs in the straw pile.

“One, two, three, four, five…” Cheng Yaoyao picked them out carefully. Each egg was as smooth as jade and still warm. She shouted happily, “There are five eggs today!”

Cheng Yaoyao held them up to show Grandma Xie, who said happily, “There really are five of them, and they are much bigger than the original ones!”

Xie Fei ran over upon hearing this and counted them carefully, saying happily, “There really are five! Sister Yaoyao, you are really amazing!”

Cheng Yaoyao held her head high with pride. Grandma Xie deliberately said, “You feed the hens so many cicadas and grasshoppers every day, so of course the hens can lay more eggs.”

“It’s obviously me who fed them well.” Cheng Yaoyao grumbled, unconvinced, and gave three eggs to Grandma Xie.

Grandma Xie asked, “Why? You won’t give me those two eggs?”

Cheng Yaoyao said confidently, “You made a bet with me last time. If I can make the hen lay five eggs a day, the extra eggs will be mine!”

Cheng Yaoyao found a small basket, filled it with rice bran, and carefully placed the two eggs in it, imitating Grandma Xie’s basket. Grandma Xie’s basket was large, with thirty or forty eggs in it, while Cheng Yaoyao’s basket was small, with only two lonely eggs in it.

Grandma Xie laughed at her: “How many eggs can you save?”

“Just wait and see!” Cheng Yaoyao was very ambitious. Sooner or later, she would save more than Grandma Xie.

These days, Goudan and his children catch cicadas for her every day. Cheng Yaoyao’s family was tired of eating them, so they only fried a lunch box for them every day and kept the rest for cicadas to hatch. They could get a few taels of cicada shells every day. The hatched cicadas were used to feed the chickens. Goudan knew that Cheng Yaoyao was feeding the chickens, so he caught a bunch of Cicada for her every day, which made the hens energetic.

I don’t know if it’s the Spiritual Spring or the grasshoppers, but the hens finally broke through the three-egg barrier today and laid five eggs! I just regret that every household is only allowed to raise three chickens these days; otherwise, it wouldn’t be difficult to pick up a dozen eggs a day.

Cheng Yaoyao ran to the chicken coop and filled it with water and chicken feed. While Xie Fei was not paying attention, she added some Spiritual Spring water to the water. The originally leisurely hens rushed over all of a sudden, ignoring the chicken feed and rushing to drink water.

Cheng Yaoyao washed her hands and poured the remaining water into the vegetable garden. These vegetables have been growing very fast recently. The cucumbers are growing in clusters, and the vines are breaking. Grandma Xie picked all the cucumbers to make pickles, but she couldn’t stop their crazy growth.

Breakfast was millet porridge and pickled cucumbers cooked by Grandma Xie. The millet porridge was very hot, and Cheng Yaoyao took a long time to finish it. She wiped her mouth and ran away, leaving Grandma Xie behind: “I’ll roll the dough, and you mix the dumpling filling tomorrow.”

“Okay…” Cheng Yaoyao obeyed obediently.

Cheng Yaoyao took three eggs and stirred them, then fried them with a little oil until they were tender yellow. Yesterday, she bought a two-finger-wide strip of pork belly, chopped it up, and marinated it with soy sauce and cooking wine. She chopped the chrysanthemums and used salt to kill the water. She mixed the three ingredients together to make the most suitable three-fresh dumpling filling for summer.

Two pounds of white flour and one pound of cornmeal, cracked in two eggs, added a little water, and stirred until it became flocculent, then kneaded it into a smooth and tough dough with her hands. Grandma Xie is very patient, and the dumpling skins she rolls out are smooth and chewy.

Grandma Xie knew how to make dumplings in many different ways. She taught Yaoyao and Xie Fei as she made them: “Don’t put too little or too much stuffing, or they’ll all open up when you put them in the pot.”

Xie Fei learned very seriously and followed Grandma Xie’s method to make the dumplings. Cheng Yaoyao placed red beans on the dumplings and showed them to Grandma Xie and Xie Fei: “Goldfish!”

Grandma Xie said with amusement and annoyance, “Nonsense, the red beans can’t be cooked in the pot!”

“It looks good.” Cheng Yaoyao took the opportunity to set the dumplings down and said, “Grandma, there are melons being sold at the threshing ground today. I want to go and take a look.”

Grandma Xie was wrapping dumplings and said, “Even if you buy them, you can’t bring them back. Brother Zhao will be back at noon; let him buy them. You should wrap the dumplings first.”

Cheng Yaoyao made a bitter face, and Xie Fei hurriedly said, “Grandma, I’ll help you make the dumplings. Let Sister go and take a look.”

Grandma Xie finally gave in. Cheng Yaoyao couldn’t wait and happily ran off.

Xie Fei smiled secretly and said to Grandma Xie, “Sister Yaoyao wants to go to the village entrance to wait for her brother.”

“Stop talking nonsense!” Grandma Xie scolded, neither too lightly nor too harshly, with mixed feelings.

The road surface was a bit wet in the early morning, making a rustling sound when stepped on. Cheng Yaoyao went out and met Goudan’s mother, Jin Nier.

Jin Nier lived two doors away from the Xie family, and her husband, Lin Youzhi, was one of the few people who had a good relationship with Xie Zhao. Since Cheng Yaoyao and Goudan had a good relationship, Jin Nier and Cheng Yaoyao also became close.

Jin Nier carried a shoulder pole and walked with Cheng Yaoyao: “Why are you going out so early?”

Cheng Yaoyao smiled and said, “I’m going to the village entrance to buy some watermelons.”

Jin Nier laughed and said, “Watermelons are expensive right now, but next month, they’ll be two cents a pound, half the price!”

Country people live carefully and spend every penny wisely. Cheng Yaoyao smiled and said, “I’ll buy one to satisfy my craving first.”

Girls in the city just don’t know how to live. Jin Nier thought, looking around to see if there was anyone around, and whispered to Cheng Yaoyao, “This month, every household needs to send two people to look after the melon fields, and the Xie family also needs two.”

Cheng Yaoyao frowned: “There are so many idle people in the village; why do we have to ask the Xie family to provide two heads? This is bullying!”

Jin Nier sighed, “Xie Zhao is going to learn tractor skills, so he’s in other people’s way. Well, I’m leaving first. Come to my house when you have time. Goudan misses you every day!”

A few villagers approached, and Jin Nier and Cheng Yaoyao parted ways.

There was an oxcart under a big tree at the entrance of the village, piled with many fruits: pink peaches, frost-covered plums, and seven or eight large watermelons, with juice still seeping from the broken ends of the vines. The old forester in charge of the orchard rolled up his trouser legs, his ragged clothes soaked by the dew: “Peaches and plums are all 6 cents, and watermelons are 4 cents. They are all early-ripening and will be gone once they are sold!”

The price of these fruits is not expensive in the city, but it is different in the countryside. By next month, watermelons will be ripe in abundance, and the price will be 1.5 cents. Villagers will look at them more but buy less.

When Cheng Yaoyao approached, she happened to see Lin Jiajun. Lin Jiajun was holding a big watermelon weighing seven or eight kilograms, like a little pig. When he looked up and saw Cheng Yaoyao, he greeted her happily, “Cheng Zhiqing, are you here to buy watermelons too?”

Unexpectedly, Cheng Yaoyao’s face became stiff and cold, and she walked to the oxcart as if she hadn’t seen anything, lowering her head to look at the fruits. Old Lin smiled and said, “Girl, would you like to buy something? Do you want watermelon or peaches?”

“I want a watermelon.” Cheng Yaoyao tapped the watermelon with her slender fingers, and it made a tapping sound.

The watermelons were all emerald green with black streaks, and because they matured early, they were not very round. Cheng Yaoyao knocked on each one, unable to decide between the two: “Which one is sweeter?”

Lin Jiajun pointed at a large melon with a white belly and said, “Pick this one. It’s guaranteed to be ripe.”

“Then I want this one!” Cheng Yaoyao immediately chose another one.

Lin Jiajun: “…”

Cheng Yaoyao picked a few more peaches and plums.

Old Lin weighed the melons and said, “Five pounds and six ounces, I’ll give you twenty-five cents! Together with the peaches and plums, the total is forty cents.”

Cheng Yaoyao paid the money and looked at the watermelon with concern. It was so heavy—how could she carry it home?

Lin Jiajun was still standing aside and quickly took the opportunity to show his courtesy: “Cheng Zhiqing, this melon is heavy. I will help you carry it back.”

“No need.” Cheng Yaoyao turned away.

No matter how dumb Lin Jiajun was, he knew Cheng Yaoyao did this on purpose. But how had he offended her? They had dinner together in the city that day, talking and laughing, right? Lin Jiajun stared at Cheng Yaoyao’s beautiful face, his face flushing and his neck thickening.

“What are you doing here?” Lin Jiaqi came over, pushing his bicycle, and saw his brother’s eyes fixed on Cheng Yaoyao’s face. Cheng Yaoyao’s delicate face was filled with anger. She said in a deep voice, “Wait until you go to work.”

“Brother, I’m just buying melons,” Lin Jiajun said. “I saw Cheng Zhiqing buy a melon and couldn’t carry it, so I’m here to help.”

Lin Jiaqi said, “You go to work.”

Lin Jiajun looked at Cheng Yaoyao reluctantly but was quite afraid of his second brother, so he had to leave with the melon.

Lin Jiaqi said to Cheng Yaoyao, “Cheng Zhiqing, do you need help?”

“Thank you, but no thanks.” Cheng Yaoyao didn’t even look at him and spoke in an aloof tone.

Lin Jiaqi hit a snag and realized Cheng Yaoyao’s anger wasn’t only directed at Lin Jiajun. Did he offend her?