Chapter 34 – This Place Is So Remote, Even If Wolves Dragged Someone Away, No One Would Know

After finishing the conversation about the Xia family, Xia Tian remembered she wouldn’t be coming back at noon the next day. Since those two couldn’t cook, she needed to prepare something for them to eat.

She got up and went to the kitchen, fetched a basin, scooped out two big bowls of white flour, and added warm water to knead the dough, leaving it on the stove to rest.

Tomorrow morning, she planned to steam two trays of buns. When it was time for them to eat, they could just reheat them in the pot.

After washing up and lying on the kang at night, Xia Tian closed her eyes and mentally went through the things she needed to do the next day. Only after confirming nothing was left out did she fall into a deep sleep.

She didn’t get up until around five-thirty the next morning. A few days ago, she’d be out the door by this time.

Since she didn’t plan to sell much braised food today anyway, she figured she might as well leave a little later.

First, she lit the small stove in the kitchen and started cooking millet porridge in a clay pot.

Then she went to the backyard, pulled up a bunch of green onions, washed them clean, and set them aside. From her space, she took out a chunk of pork belly to mince for filling.

Just then, Mu Feng and Shen Nian also got up. After washing up, Mu Feng went to fetch water, and Shen Nian heard her starting to chop filling. He came in from the doorway and took the kitchen knife from her hand. “Let me do it.”

Seeing someone help, Xia Tian happily handed him the knife.

With someone helping with the chopping, she poured the dough onto the kneading board, sprinkled on some dry flour, and started kneading.

By the time the dough was almost ready, the filling was done too. Xia Tian seasoned the filling and showed Shen Nian how to wrap one. Seeing that he got the hang of it, she rolled out the wrappers while he wrapped the buns.

Before long, one tray of meat buns was ready. Then she quickly made another batch with minced meat and eggplant filling using the leftover dough. Once all the buns were wrapped, she boiled water and set the steamer on the pot to start steaming them.

While all this was happening, Mu Feng came back with water. Seeing Shen Nian wrapping buns — and doing a decent job at that — his jaw nearly hit the floor!

Was this really his son?

Why did it feel like after the poison was cleared, his son had become totally unreal?

But… he was becoming more and more grounded in reality.

With the buns steaming, Xia Tian quickly made a stack of egg pancakes and prepared four small side dishes.

Before long, the buns were done, and the three of them sat down for breakfast.

After eating, Xia Tian stir-fried two more dishes, started a pot of bone broth, and gave a few instructions to Shen Nian and Mu Feng before picking up her shoulder pole and heading out.

By the time she arrived at the town, it was already close to nine. Many people thought she’d already packed up and left, so they had gone home.

Xia Tian quickly set up her stall. Just as she finished arranging everything, the town patrol came by. She paid the management fee and gave them a bag of braised goods.

She was just about to take a sip of water when another person showed up at her stall.

It was Manager Guo from Yunlai Restaurant in town.

“You’re late today, little boss. I thought you weren’t coming out,” Manager Guo said with a friendly smile.

Xia Tian smiled and began tending to her stall. “Got held up by something. What would you like today, Manager Guo?”

Indeed, Manager Guo had bought braised goods from her several times over the past few days, so she recognized him.

“Actually, I came to talk business today. I want to see if you could supply our restaurant.”

“Oh? Mine’s just a tiny operation. If the restaurant needs a lot, I might not be able to handle it.” Xia Tian sighed. She would love to grow her business, but she simply didn’t have the capacity right now.

“Just a hundred jin a day would be enough,” Manager Guo said with a chuckle.

“If it’s pig head meat only, that might not be doable. There’s only so many pigs coming into town each day,” Xia Tian said after thinking for a bit. “But if you want other braised items, like pork belly, that I can provide.”

“You can braise pork belly too?” Manager Guo was surprised. He’d thought she only sold what was on the stall.

“Of course! Whole chickens, pork belly — all fine. If you want a larger order, I can make it exclusive for your restaurant.”

“What do you mean by exclusive?” Manager Guo asked, intrigued.

“I mean if you order only pork belly and it’s not less than a hundred jin a day, I’ll supply it solely to your restaurant. I won’t sell that item at my own stall.”

“So that dish would only be available at our restaurant? Not even from you?”

Xia Tian nodded. “That’s right.”

“What about the flavor?” Manager Guo still had doubts, worried it might not taste as good as her braised pig head meat.

“It’ll taste the same, I promise. Tell you what — I’ll bring you a sample the day after tomorrow. Try it, and then decide.”

“Alright, it’s a deal,” Manager Guo agreed. If the flavor was good, this exclusive arrangement would be perfect — no competition. After striking the deal, he also bought thirty jin of pig head meat before leaving.

Yesterday, quite a few wealthy families in town attended the Wang family’s birthday banquet, and everyone raved about the braised pig head meat served there. That’s what gave him the idea to bring it into the restaurant.

After Manager Guo left, more customers trickled in, and over half of the eight braised pig intestines she brought sold out.

Seeing it was almost ten o’clock, Xia Tian decided to pack up.

She still needed to buy some things and head to Xiajia Village!

She first went to the town’s only money exchange to convert her hundred-liang silver note into loose silver pieces worth one and two taels each. Then she picked up her pre-ordered meat and tofu, bought thirty more jin of pork belly, and a large chunk of pork fatback — all secretly stored in her space.

At the grain shop, she bought a hundred jin each of rice, flour, cornmeal, brown rice, and coarse flour, fifty jin of millet, and fifty jin of rapeseed oil. She had it all delivered to an empty alley and put everything into her space when no one was looking.

Then she went to the general store and bought two large iron woks, two kitchen knives, a stack of bowls and chopsticks, ten jin of fine salt, twenty jin of coarse salt, and five jars each of soy sauce and vinegar — in both ten-jin and one-jin sizes.

She also bought over twenty large and small clay jars, five large water vats, and had them delivered to the same empty alley for discreet collection.

Only then did she shoulder her pole and head toward Xiajia Village.

When she got near the village, she found a secluded spot and took the goods out of her space – twenty jin each of brown rice and coarse flour, ten jin of white rice, five jin of millet, a five-jin piece of wild boar meat, a big chunk of pork fatback, three large leg bones, one jin of fine salt, and three jin of coarse salt — all packed into bamboo baskets. She also added bowls, chopsticks, kitchen knives, soy sauce, vinegar, and covered the top with two iron woks.

Taking a roundabout path around the mountain base, she arrived at the Xia family’s old house.

Tsk tsk tsk!

This place!

Even if wolves came and dragged away Xia Yang’s whole family, no one would notice!

When she got close to the old house, she saw Xia Yang and three young men repairing the roof in the courtyard. Xia Yue was boiling medicine on a makeshift stone stove. Her mother and the others weren’t in sight.

She called out at the gate, “Big Brother, Sis!”

Xia Yang and Xia Yue looked up at once, surprise and joy in their voices. “Siya?!”

Xia Tian set down her pole and grinned at them.

Xia Yue threw down her fan and rushed over to give her a bear hug.

“Siya…” her voice was already choked with tears.

Xia Tian hugged her back and gently patted her on the back.

After holding on for a while, Xia Yue awkwardly let go and quickly turned away to wipe her tears.

Then she grabbed Xia Tian’s hand and pulled her inside.

Xia Yang came over, picked up her load, and followed them into the yard.

Calling it a “yard” was a stretch — half the surrounding walls had already collapsed. The houses inside were either half-toppled or completely caved in, clearly uninhabitable from the outside.

If they wanted to live here, the entire place would have to be torn down and rebuilt.

“Where’s Mom? And Sister-in-law? What about the two little ones?”

“They’re all out back turning the soil!”

Just as she said that, the two younger kids ran over.

Xia Shiji saw Xia Tian and shouted toward the backyard, “Mom! Sis-in-law! Fourth Sis is back!”

Then he ran over and clung to her waist, “Fourth Sis, I missed you so much!”

Xia Tian replied with a laugh and pulled the other kid, Xia Chen, into her arms, giving both of their faces a good squish.

Soon after, their mother Chen-shi and sister-in-law Sun Maimiao came from the backyard. Xia Tian greeted them, “Mom, Sis-in-law.”

Her sister-in-law smiled and said, “Fourth Sister is back.”

But her mother didn’t say a word — tears were already streaming down her face!

Xia Tian immediately panicked.

What was she supposed to do now?

She didn’t know how to comfort people!