They've all separated, so what does it matter to me if they get poorer and poorer?

Chapter 21 Going to her house for a free meal
After everyone had bought what they needed, they went together to the butcher shop to buy meat.

There are several meat stalls in the county town, both in the East Market and the West Market. They sell goods in the East Market, so they also buy meat here.

The best cut of pork for rendering lard is pork back fat, which is also the most sought-after part, and it was already sold out when they arrived. So they had to buy some with both lean and fat and then remove the fat to render the lard.

Pigs in ancient times were fed healthily and had little fat, so it was really hard to find fatty meat.

Xu Zhichun didn't care much. She didn't know if the harbor warehouse had lard, but there was plenty of vegetable oil. She would buy five catties of soybean oil later and take it back with her. She could mix it with the oil in the warehouse and make it more than ten catties.

Xu Zhichun bought a large pork bone, two pounds of pork belly, and more than three pounds of spare ribs. In the weather of late March, this amount of meat would last for two days. He would buy more when he finished it.

Zeng Xiaoyan bought four catties of pork shoulder and two catties of spare ribs.

Aunt Zhu'er was counting down the days; her husband should be home tomorrow. Besides buying meat, she also bought a large pig's trotter to make soup tomorrow.

As soon as they left the pork stall, Zeng Xiaoyan looked at Xu Zhichun expectantly and said, "Sister-in-law Zhichun, take these two pounds of ribs. After you cook them, my husband and I will come to your house to eat, okay? We don't like to cook ribs at home."

Zeng Xiaoyan was born into a wealthy family, and even though she suffered mistreatment from her stepmother, her food and clothing were still much better than those of farmers. She loved pork ribs.

Farmers wouldn't want to buy ribs, would they? They'd buy pure meat, preferably with more fat than lean.

Zeng Xiaoyan had bought pork ribs before, and Zhao Shi gave her a good scolding and lecture, saying that she was wasting money and didn't know how to manage a household. What was the point of buying this thing that was mostly bones and little meat? It wasn't even enough to fill a tooth gap. She was obviously a spendthrift. Zeng Xiaoyan was so angry that she had a fight with her, and it was very unpleasant.

If she buys ribs again and brings them back, Zhao Shi, with her sharp tongue, will probably start arguing with her again.

Not wanting to spoil her good mood about making money, she simply asked Xu Zhichun to cook it for her.

Sister-in-law Zhichun's cooking is even better.

Xu Zhichun hesitated, and Liang Mingliang quickly smiled and said, "Sister-in-law Zhichun, our family really doesn't like to make this kind of pork ribs, especially my second sister-in-law. She'll nag about wasting money and not knowing how to manage money. Why bother arguing with her? Thank you for your help, Sister-in-law Zhichun."

Xu Zhichun understood and smiled, "Alright, tell your families you'll come to my house for dinner. I'm going to buy soy sauce later, so how about we buy half a pound of vinegar too, and make one braised pork rib and one sweet and sour pork rib?"

Zeng Xiaoyan's eyes lit up, and she nodded repeatedly with delight: "Okay, okay, do you want to buy some brown sugar? I'll buy two more pounds of brown sugar."

Xu Zhichun smiled and said, "I still have some of the ones you gave me last time, no need. Aunt Zhu'er, why don't you come to my house for dinner? I bought a lot of ribs too."

Aunt Zhu'er had eaten braised pork ribs and stewed pork ribs before, but she didn't know what braised pork ribs tasted like or how they got their red color. She'd never even heard of sweet and sour pork ribs. Could sugar really be used to braise meat? That was strange. Judging from Zeng Xiaoyan's reaction, it must be delicious. She was tempted.

"Okay, I'll go too. I'll stew some pig's feet tomorrow and bring you a bowl."

"Okay!"

Passing by a tofu stall, Xu Zhichun simply bought three more pieces of soft tofu. The fried pork, golden brown and topped with chopped garlic sprouts, was also delicious.

After buying the goods, we stopped by the Lotus Restaurant.

Shopkeeper Tang chuckled and said, "The gray tofu and gray bean shreds are selling very well. Whenever you come in the future, please bring ten catties of each. If possible, how about twenty catties of ice jelly tomorrow? If you need more, we'll let you know in advance."

This meant they had regular customers, a stable income, and several hundred coins in hand. All four of them were very happy, and Xu Zhichun quickly agreed. Manager Tang didn't forbid them from selling to other places; as for ingredients, each place had its own way of cooking, and it all depended on the chef's skill.

If Lotus Restaurant wants to monopolize these fresh ingredients, it will have to pay a considerable price. It must buy all of Xu Zhichun's goods. Although their restaurant is doing well, it is impossible for them to sell out so much gray tofu and gray bean shreds in one day.

Everything was settled, and after having a bowl of hot meat soup noodles, Xu Zhichun stopped at the blacksmith's shop on the way back and said he wanted to order a large iron pot. Xu Zhichun gestured to show that it was about seventy centimeters in diameter, twice the size of the pot he was currently using.

Blacksmith shops also made such large pots, which were needed by wealthy families, brewers, and tofu makers.

It can be done, but it's very expensive.

It costs a full tael of silver, and the full amount must be paid in advance.

After all, even if a small pot is pre-ordered but not sold in the end, it can still be sold. But if a large pot like this is pre-ordered but not sold, who knows when it will be sold?
Good heavens, Xu Zhichun really didn't expect it to be so expensive!
Zeng Xiaoyan and the others were also taken aback.

Xu Zhichun only brought five hundred coins with her. Fortunately, she had made a lot of money from today's business. After discussing with them, she counted out five hundred coins to pay them. She would deduct her share when she got back and took the contract for the agreed delivery.

Zeng Xiaoyan and Aunt Zhu'er felt a little bad. What family needs such a big pot for everyday life? They also cooked some konjac tofu.

"How about we buy this big iron pot together as a family of three?"

"Yes, yes, that's what I said too."

How could Xu Zhichun possibly ask them to pool their money to buy a pot?
"No, really no need. I really want to buy a big pot so it'll be easier to boil water, and it'll be much more convenient to cook zongzi for the Dragon Boat Festival, make pork stew for the New Year, and fry meatballs. Really."

Zeng Xiaoyan and Aunt Zhu'er: "."

Who cooks such a huge pot of zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) or fries such a huge pot of meatballs?

Back in the village, Liang Mingliang, as usual, drove the oxcart to Xu Zhichun's house.

Passing by the big locust tree in the village, many girls, having finished lunch but not yet going to work, gathered there chatting and gossiping. Seeing them return, they all turned to look, their eyes scrutinizing the contents of the oxcart.

Xu Zhichun and his group put all the things they bought into buckets and large earthenware jars, covering them completely so that no one could see what was inside.

"Sister-in-law Zhu'er, you're really going to the city to sell taro? Can that stuff really sell? Don't cause trouble or someone will come after you."

"My God, they're so brave!"

"Everyone wants to make money, but you can't go astray. You can't do things that harm others."

"Xiaoyan, Zhichun, have you really made any money? How much did you make?"

Zeng Xiaoyan was angry and wanted to retort, but she held back and looked at Xu Zhichun. Aunt Zhu'er, afraid of saying the wrong thing, also kept quiet and just pretended to smile foolishly.

Xu Zhichun couldn't not give a response, after all, their business was for the long term, and eventually someone would find out, so it wouldn't be good luck to say they hadn't made any money at this point.

(End of this chapter)