Zhang Xiaoniu carried everything into the house without Qi Zhenzhen having to lift a finger.
The men who were working teased, "Little Niu has finally woken up…"
Zhang Erniu, afraid they would joke too much and upset Qi Zhenzhen, glared at them fiercely. He then followed them into the house, grabbed Zhang Xiaoniu, and scolded, "Don't you see how busy it is here? If you don't want to work, then get back, don't pretend to help Miss Qi carry things to slack off."
Zhang Xiaoniu was displeased, but with so many people around, he couldn't argue with his second brother.
Inside, the Du mother and daughter-in-law had already finished picking the chives. Besides that, they had also wiped down every spot in the kitchen until it was sparkling clean.
Qi Zhenzhen called out to them with a smile, "Granny Du, Aunt Du."
The mother and daughter-in-law were a bit nervous, wringing their hands. "We didn't go into the house, we stayed in the kitchen."
The villagers kept their distance from the mother and daughter-in-law, afraid of bad luck if they got too close. They hadn't entered anyone else's home for several years. Now, being invited by Old Man Zhang to cook, they were worried about offending the host and displeasing them.
Qi Zhenzhen didn't care about such things. What "bringer of bad luck" nonsense.
However, the two of them were overly nervous, and she didn't know how to comfort them. She simply instructed Aunt Du to get to work, "Aunt Du, help me render the lard. We'll mix the crispy bits with chives for chive pancakes at noon."
Upon receiving the instruction, Aunt Du skillfully placed the lard on the cutting board, cut it into inch-sized cubes, and began rendering the oil.
Rendering oil was a technical job. The lard cubes needed to be cut to the right size, and the stove's fire needed to be just right, not too high or too low. If the lard cubes were cut too large, the oil wouldn't render completely. If they were too small, the crispy bits would burn. Poor heat control would also result in the oil and crispy bits burning.
Aunt Du was clearly skilled in all these aspects. The lard cubes were cut as if measured with a ruler.
Soon, the pot was filled with glistening lard, golden crispy bits floating on top, and a fragrant aroma filled the air.
Aunt Du used a sieve to scoop out all the crispy bits and spread them on the bottom of a basin to cool.
Qi Zhenzhen took a bowl, scooped some crispy bits, mixed them with the cane sugar bought that day, and called Qi Yi and Zhang Xiaoniu over.
In Qi Zhenzhen's opinion, Zhang Xiaoniu was also a child. Since there was delicious food now, she didn't want to give it only to Qi Yi.
Zhang Xiaoniu made a face at Zhang Erniu, his meaning clear: Zhenzhen called me over, you can't stop me from going.
Qi Yi had never eaten anything like this before. He carefully picked up a piece with his chopsticks. It was fragrant, crispy, and sweet. It was truly delicious.
Zhang Xiaoniu was also excited. He hadn't eaten sugar-mixed crispy bits in a long time and had almost forgotten the taste. He slowly picked up a piece and put it in his mouth, his eyes squinting as he savored it. Yes, this was the taste, just like when his mother used to feed him. How he missed it.
They finished half a bowl of crispy bits in no time.
Qi Yi had initially thought of getting some for Yun Shi, but Qi Zhenzhen told him it was greasy food, and Yun Shi, being weak, shouldn't eat it.
After eating the crispy bits, Zhang Xiaoniu worked with even more vigor than before. Zhang Erniu watched from the side, feeling a mix of emotions. He felt as if the boy had transformed in just a short while. He usually saw him as a brat, but now he felt the boy seemed to have grown up.
The Du mother and daughter-in-law busied themselves wrapping chive pancakes, while Qi Zhenzhen salted the pork belly she had bought, preparing it for stir-fries in the coming days.
For lunch, they had chive pancakes and big bone soup. The men working ate with smiles on their faces, with two large baskets of chive pancakes.
This was truly delicious food. One bite was full of crispy bits, followed by a sip of bone soup, which dispelled the fatigue of the morning's labor.
The men gathered to eat, praising their employer for her generosity.
Zhang Erniu seized the opportunity to interject, "The employer is generous, so we must work diligently. Let's build the courtyard wall properly to satisfy the employer. Perhaps we'll be hired to build houses in the future too."
Chang Shan nodded, and the men working also agreed not to slack off.
During the rest period, Chang Shan approached Zhang Erniu, "Erniu, are you saying this Miss Qi is planning to build a house?"
Qi Zhenzhen hadn't explicitly said so, but Zhang Erniu felt she definitely would. With such a good courtyard wall built, it would be awkward if the house were still made of adobe.
"Just you wait and see," Zhang Erniu said, feigning profundity.
Building a house earned much more than building a courtyard wall. He needed to remind these men to work hard and build good relationships, so that Miss Qi would look for him for masonry work in the future.
After eating, Qi Zhenzhen squatted by the freshly turned vegetable garden, pondering how to plant the cabbage and radishes.
Granny Du, having finished cleaning the bowls and chopsticks, came out. Seeing Qi Zhenzhen frowning, she knew she was troubled and said, "Is the young lady thinking about planting vegetables? This old woman has tended vegetable gardens her whole life. If the young lady has any questions, just ask me."
Qi Zhenzhen was overjoyed. She thanked Granny Du and squatted beside her, carefully observing how Granny Du planted the vegetables.
The pits couldn't be dug randomly; their depth mattered. The soil mounding also had its specifics, as did watering – not too much, not too little. It was by no means a simple task.
Qi Zhenzhen had good manual dexterity. After Granny Du planted one row, Qi Zhenzhen took over herself.
Although a bit slow, her planting was precise. Granny Du kept nodding, a smile on her face, praising Qi Zhenzhen as being smart.
It was merely copying, Qi Zhenzhen dared not claim to be a master gardener.
After working for about an hour, with the help of the Du mother and daughter-in-law, they finally finished planting the radishes and cabbages.
Having arranged for them to come back to cook the next day, Qi Zhenzhen saw them off.
Qi Zhenzhen stretched her limbs, thinking of returning to the house to rest. Song Mingyue arrived carrying a large basket on her back.
The young girl's body was hunched over. Qi Zhenzhen quickly took the basket from her. It contained pumpkins, winter melons, and sweet potato leaves.
"My grandpa asked me to send some over. Your family doesn't have a vegetable patch, so you probably don't have much to eat right now," Song Mingyue said, wiping the sweat from her forehead. "It's really heavy. I rested several times on the way."
Qi Zhenzhen carried the basket to the kitchen, poured Song Mingyue a bowl of warm water, and invited her to sit and drink.
Song Mingyue was truly exhausted. She drank the large bowl of water without leaving a drop.
"I'll go inside and greet Aunt Qi. My mother said we must be polite," Song Mingyue said with a smile.
Qi Zhenzhen nodded and led her into the house.
Qi Yi was leaning over the kang table, writing on a stone slab, with Yun Shi occasionally guiding him.
Song Mingyue called out clearly. Yun Shi took a moment to respond, "Is that Mingyue?"
"Aunt Qi, it's me. We've met before," Song Mingyue said, sitting boldly on the edge of the kang and looking at Yun Shi.