Farm Tough Girl

Chapter 72 - 72 073 Qiao Yuanshans Thoughts_1

?Chapter 72: Chapter 073 Qiao Yuanshan’s Thoughts_1 Chapter 72: Chapter 073 Qiao Yuanshan’s Thoughts_1 The biggest loser this time might very well be the fourth branch, but Qiao Yuanzhen didn’t care. He never liked to quibble over such matters, and besides, he was aware of the private stash of silver his parents had; that money would still end up being his, wouldn’t it? Not to mention, Li Qinghe had over a hundred taels on her.

The matter of the family division had finally come to an end. The couple from the eldest branch hurried to start building their new house. As for everyone else, their lives didn’t change much—they still lived in the same places—but they no longer had to hand over their money to the public fund, which for Madam Liu, was the greatest happiness.

Li Qinghe was also happy inside. After all, her father-in-law had a big bias against Muniang, making it hard for her to interact with Muniang. Now that the family was split, she naturally didn’t have to be as restrained as before, and she went to tell Muniang the good news first thing the next morning.

“I expected this outcome. Your family’s division was bound to happen sooner or later. It’s good that it was settled so swiftly,” Muniang said with a smile.

Li Qinghe exclaimed in surprise, “How did you know? This matter has never been spread to outsiders.”

“My third auntie came to see me a while back because she really wanted to divide the family, but my third uncle was unwilling, and she has always had a strained relationship with him. So I gave her a few hints.”

“So that’s how it is! I was wondering why my third brother, such a dutifully filial person, would advocate for a separation. It turns out you were the one who untangled this knot for my sister-in-law.”

“Back then, I didn’t know that such a division would benefit so many people. Third auntie is a decent person, and I get along well with her. It pained my heart to see her so troubled, so I thought of a way to help. The couple had been at odds for so many years, but actually, it was just that neither side knew how to be considerate.”

Qinghe looked at Muniang with amazement, “You’re only fifteen, just newly married, how do you understand so much about the ways of the world?”

Muniang feigned innocence, “Though young in years, I have a mature heart. This must be what they call a prodigy.”

The two of them burst into laughter.

“Right, I will start building my house in a few days. Now you are a free woman, and you are not allowed to be lazy. You better come and help me early on,” Muniang said teasingly.

Qinghe said with a smile, “Yes, yes, I definitely won’t be lazy.”

The couple from the Qiao Family’s Eldest Son Family were now building their new house. They still lived at home, but even so, they completely disregarded Qiao Dazhi and Madam Zhao. Since they were now practically two separate families, Madam Zhao and Qiao Dazhi were so angry they wished they could just kick them out immediately.

Qiao Yuanshan was still a little anxious inside, “What if, now that we are treating our fourth brother this way, he really makes something of himself in the future and refuses to acknowledge us as his relatives?”

After all, during this division, they had managed to take quite a bit more than their fair share of Qiao Yuanzhen’s portion.

Mrs. Ji scoffed, “Do you think he cares about a little bit of silver? Li Qinghe has over a hundred taels in her possession. Moreover, if he really bears a grudge against us because of this, and he achieves success and fame later on, he will naturally care about his reputation. If it gets out that he became stingy with his own brother and sister-in-law as soon as he gained wealth and status, then he would be finished. Doesn’t he still have to treat us well? Apart from everything else, you are his eldest brother; he should be listening to you!”

Qiao Yuanshan kept praising his wife for her intelligence, and Mrs. Ji was smug again, “Once the new house is built, we’ll find a wife for our eldest son. When the new daughter-in-law comes in, I will become a mother-in-law, and then I won’t have to deal with the household chores anymore.”

After so many years of being a daughter-in-law and finally becoming a mother-in-law, how could Mrs. Ji not feel at ease?

Qiao Yuanshan, however, suddenly changed his expression, “Otherwise, let’s just wait until next year. Our eldest son is only sixteen after all, and we’ve just finished building a new house. I’m afraid we don’t have enough money to spare for this sort of thing.”

Mrs. Ji said, “How can we not have enough? Aside from the fifteen taels given by our parents, don’t we still have ten taels of our own private silver? Taking out five taels for the eldest son’s marriage should be enough; it won’t cost much.”

“Ahem, oh,” Qiao Yuanshan obviously hemmed and hawed, clearly harboring guilty secrets. Yet Mrs. Ji, utterly engrossed in her fantasies of a happy future, paid no attention at all.

As the day to supply Dongxing Building with vegetables was approaching, Muniang started pondering new ideas. There were no marinated delicacies during this time, and Muniang was known for her strong taste, having constantly craved marinated dishes these days. Now that she finally had some free time, she might as well make her own—to enjoy herself and to introduce as a new feature at the restaurant.

To prepare the marinade, Muniang made a special trip to town and brought back many ingredients. Mrs. Fang, originally intending to help her mistress in the kitchen, now didn’t know where to start, standing there blankly: “My lady, what are you doing? Why did you buy so many seasonings?”

Muniang smiled, “I’m making something good; just go about your work, don’t mind me. You wouldn’t know how anyway.”

Mrs. Fang had no choice but to leave, aware that she wouldn’t be of any help and might just add to the chaos otherwise.

Er Liang went to the mountains with Li Cheng and Wang Qiang again today to hunt. Muniang didn’t bother with him; it was nice that he had something of his own to do and didn’t stick to her side all day.

Muniang separated star anise, cinnamon, fennel seeds, licorice, cardamom, dried orange peel, Sichuan peppercorns, sand ginger, black cardamom, tsao-ko, cloves, and other spices into two portions, each packed into loose cloth bags and securely tied with string; ginger was washed, smashed; scallions, along with roots, were washed and knotted.

She first toasted large chunks of rock sugar over the fire, then gently crushed them on a cutting board, and fried them with refined oil in a pot over low heat until they turned dark red. Then she scooped a spoonful of boiling water and poured it over to create caramel.

Adding a few ladles of broth to the pot, she put in the ginger and scallions, seasoned with fine salt, and added the freshly made caramel. Then she placed the bags of spices in, boiled everything, and then simmered on low heat until the whole kitchen was filled with an overpowering aroma—only then was the marinade ready.

The scent was incredibly strong, and it drifted out, irresistibly tempting. Mrs. Fang in the other room couldn’t help but swallow her saliva multiple times but ultimately resisted the urge to ask Muniang for some food.

Er Liang, however, could smell it from afar and hurried back home, rushing into the kitchen without even washing his face.

Muniang, visibly disgusted, chased him out: “You’re covered in mud; no eating until you’re clean!”

Er Liang swallowed hard, feeling wronged. Was his wife really that fierce?

Today was the Wu Family’s banquet, and Muniang and Er Liang dressed up early and meticulously—after all, they were attending a grand household’s feast, and the attendees were either wealthy or noble. Looking too shabby wouldn’t do, and the spring shirt Mrs. Lin had made for Er Liang was also ready. He put on the silver-white robe, and Muniang even personally tied his hair, fine-tuning it carefully. She was truly taken aback by his transformation.

Her silly husband actually possessed such extraordinary elegance!

Er Liang faced Muniang’s amazed gaze, feeling perplexed, “My wife, you’re looking at me as if I were marinated tofu.”

Indeed, the moment he spoke, all the beauty shattered. Did this fool think of anything other than food?