bookrandom Chapter 24 Going to Town
Chapter 24 Going to Town
"Oh dear, what are you doing? We're neighbors, helping each other out. How could I take your money? Take it back quickly," Aunt Lin hurriedly said, but Song Jiaojiao held her hand tightly, and she couldn't break free at all.
"Auntie, this is what we agreed on before, so please don't refuse anymore. Otherwise, I'll be embarrassed to ask you for help in the future," Song Jiaojiao said quickly, her tone serious.
"Then I'll shamelessly accept it, but don't do this again next time." Seeing that she couldn't argue with Song Jiaojiao, Aunt Lin had no choice but to accept it.
“That’s right. I’ve taken up so much of your work. If you don’t accept it, I won’t have the face to come to you next time,” Song Jiaojiao said.
Seeing that it was getting late, Aunt Lin said that she had to go back. "Jiaojiao, it's getting late, so I'll go back now. Come visit me sometime." With that, Aunt Lin got up.
"Auntie, take some fruit back with you. It was picked in the mountains and won't keep for long," Song Jiaojiao said, carrying Aunt Lin's basket filled with taro, kiwi, grapes, and wood ear mushrooms.
Looking at the things Song Jiaojiao had packed, Aunt Lin recognized only the fruit; she didn't recognize anything else.
"Hey, Jiaojiao, don't pack too much, save it for Daya and Erya," Aunt Lin quickly stopped her.
"Auntie, we have plenty more at home. Let me tell you how to eat them. This black stuff is wood ear fungus. Soak it in water when you get home, and you can stir-fry it, or blanch it and then eat it as a cold dish, or stir-fry it with meat. There's a lot of wood ear fungus on the mountain, and it can be stored for a long time after being dried. Just one thing, if you go to pick it, you have to look carefully. Only those that are gray on one side and black on the other side are edible. If both sides are black, you can't eat them." Song Jiaojiao carefully explained the precautions for wood ear fungus.
"And this is taro. It has a soft and powdery texture. You can steam it, boil it, or stew it with chicken or pork ribs. Just be careful when peeling it, because some people are allergic to the taro's sap, but it will be fine after a while."
"These are all edible? They're all from the mountains, Jiaojiao, how do you know that?" Aunt Lin asked, looking at the contents of the basket. She vaguely remembered that the black fungus was poisonous and had almost killed someone.
"Auntie, don't worry, it's edible. Our family has eaten it several times already." Song Jiaojiao knew Aunt Lin's concerns, after all, she didn't look like someone who could eat a lot.
"Alright, I'll go back and try. If we can eat it, we'll collect some to dry, so we can have some vegetables in the winter." Aunt Lin looked at the sky; some families in the distance were already cooking. "I'm leaving now. Come visit me sometime." Without waiting for Song Jiaojiao's reply, Aunt Lin slung her basket over her shoulder and hurried away.
After seeing Aunt Lin off, Song Jiaojiao started preparing dinner. The three siblings had already changed out of their new clothes and put them away. The sun was about to set, so Mu Xue and Mu Qing took all the things that had been drying in the sun back in.
Looking at the leftover broth from the boiled pork slices at noon, Song Jiaojiao decided to just cook some noodles. Seeing that there wasn't much food left at home, Song Jiaojiao thought she needed to go to town early the next day. She might need to rent an oxcart to bring everything back. Tomorrow wasn't market day, so she figured Uncle Yu should have time.
As night fell, Song Jiaojiao's family finished their meal and went to rest early. The three siblings were too excited to sleep, thinking about their new clothes. Song Jiaojiao looked at her two sisters tossing and turning beside her and said, "We don't have anything to do tomorrow, eldest sister and second sister, let's go to town together."
Upon hearing Song Jiaojiao's words, the two sisters excitedly sat up. "Really? Let's go to town too!"
"Yes, we're all going, including your older brother, so you should go to bed early, otherwise you'll oversleep and won't be able to go," Song Jiaojiao replied with a smile.
The two sisters stopped talking and quickly lay down and closed their eyes. However, this news made it even harder for them to fall asleep, as they already had trouble sleeping.
Song Jiaojiao didn't think too much about it. She figured that Mu Qing and Mu Xue had never left the village since they were born, let alone gone to town. Since they were going to hire an oxcart anyway, they might as well go together.
The next morning, when Song Jiaojiao got up, the three siblings had already been up for a while, their faces full of smiles. They all took out clothes that they usually wore infrequently and with few patches. As for why they didn't wear new clothes, it was because it wasn't cold enough to need to wear padded clothes.
"Oh, you're up so early! Have you fed the chickens and rabbits?" Song Jiaojiao asked, looking at the group of people who were gesturing excitedly.
"I'm going to feed the chickens."
"I'm going to feed the rabbits."
The two sisters, Mu Qing and Mu Xue, were so excited that they completely forgot about their pets. By the time they returned from town, they'd probably all be starving.
After the two sisters finished their work, Song Jiaojiao packed up the white fungus she was going to sell, and then led the three siblings to Uncle Yu's house at the village entrance.
"Uncle Yu, are you up yet?" Song Jiaojiao asked at the gate of Uncle Yu's house.
"Who is it?" Uncle Yu opened the door and saw Song Jiaojiao with her three siblings at the entrance.
"Uncle Yu, we're going to town to buy some things. Are you free today? We might need to hire your oxcart." Song Jiaojiao looked at the nearly fifty-year-old man in front of her, noticing the bowls and chopsticks on the table. She wondered if Uncle Yu had finished eating.
"Oh, it's Jiaojiao! You're free, you're free! Wait a minute, I'm going to harness the ox." Uncle Yu quickly agreed when he heard Song Jiaojiao's words. The harvest season was over, and there wasn't much work in the fields. If Song Jiaojiao needed a car, she could earn some money today.
"Okay, I hope I didn't disturb Uncle Yu's meal?"
"No, no, I just finished eating. Wait a moment, it'll be ready soon," Uncle Yu said as he harnessed the ox.
A little while later, Uncle Yu led the ox out and called into the yard, "Old woman, I'm going to town with Song Jiaojiao. I won't be back for lunch. Remember to close the gate later."
"Okay, just buy something to eat in town for lunch." Aunt Yu's voice came from the courtyard. When Song Jiaojiao saw the oxcart coming out, she told the group to get on the cart quickly.
"Thank you for your trouble, Uncle Yu." Song Jiaojiao smiled and thanked Uncle Yu. "Oh, this is what I do, it's no trouble at all. I'd love for you to come and support my business more often."
Uncle Yu laughed heartily as he spoke, the newly risen sun shining on his face, slightly blinding him.
As the sun rose, the oxcart arrived at the town gate. It was now the hour of Si (9-11 AM). Song Jiaojiao and Uncle Yu confirmed the waiting spot for the cart, and then Song Jiaojiao led the group into the town.
After the busy farming season, the streets were filled with men looking for work. Song Jiaojiao led the group to a wonton stall, thinking they must be hungry since they hadn't eaten breakfast.
"What would you like to eat?" asked an elderly couple selling wontons. The kind-faced grandmother greeted Song Jiaojiao and her companions with a smile. Song Jiaojiao looked around; there were only a few scattered tables. It was a quiet time for diners.
"What kind of things do you have? How much do they cost?" Song Jiaojiao asked the old lady in front of her calmly.