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

Chapter 35 Everyone Likes

After eating steamed sweet potatoes and steamed potatoes, everyone quickly started making konjac tofu.

Thinking about how these sweet potatoes and potatoes might be used to make some delicious dishes in the future, I suddenly felt even more motivated.

In the evening, as everyone gradually came to sell their agarwood seeds, they all knew that Xu Zhichun had bought thirty acres of land.

Xu Zhichun was completely bewildered: Everyone else has a phone and WeChat, why did they keep it from her? How did the news spread so quickly?
When the villagers asked, Xu Zhichun couldn't hide it anymore, so he simply told them openly.

"That's amazing! Even though it's dry land, something is better than nothing."

"Who says otherwise? It would be good to collect more beans, peanuts, and taro. If we can't eat them all, we can sell them and make some money. If all else fails, we can feed them to the pigs, and the pigs will grow faster."

"Yes."

"Their family consists of just the uncle and aunt. They're a small family, and with so much land, they can't eat much of the harvest, but they can sell a lot of it."

"The rich get richer and the poor get poorer."

"I think it's a bit of a waste to sell that snack recipe. Wouldn't it be better to keep it and pass it on to future generations?"

"Didn't you hear what Zhichun said? That snack requires a lot of sugar, and it's uncertain when future generations will be able to afford it."

"That's true, it's better to sell them for money, that would be more cost-effective."

“Zhichun, Zhichun, why didn’t you think of my house when you hired people to clear the land? Your Uncle Liang and his son are both very good at farm work, very efficient.”

"And my child's father too, Zhichun, hire us next time."

"We're here too, we're here too."

Everyone started chatting and changed the subject, greeting her one after another.

Xu Zhichun silently wiped away his sweat; he was drenched in sweat.

Why would she need to hire so many people? We can't make promises like that lightly, or we'd be embarrassed if people cornered us and questioned us later.

When it comes to making money, everything else is irrelevant; some people will actually gamble on it.

She had no choice but to resort to the "humming and hawing" technique, humming and hawing to gloss over the situation.

After finishing this busy period, dusk was falling, and it was time to prepare dinner.

After everyone left, Xu Zhichun mysteriously handed Liang Mingxuan the steamed sweet potatoes and potatoes she had hidden in the cupboard: "Mingxuan, come and try them. These are the sweet potatoes and potatoes your sister-in-law got today."

Liang Mingxuan was a little confused about what sweet potatoes and potatoes were, but seeing his sister-in-law's mysterious and expectant look, he figured they must be good stuff.

Although potatoes are more versatile, sweet potatoes are definitely the better choice for steaming.

The soft, fluffy sweet potato melted in his mouth; it was delicate, cool, and sweet, and Liang Mingxuan was instantly amazed.

"Is it yummy?"

"It's delicious. Did you buy it from the city, sister-in-law? Was it expensive?"

The city has everything! It's so sweet, it must be expensive. His sister-in-law is so good to him, she's willing to buy him all sorts of good food.

Liang Mingxuan was deeply moved and vowed to take good care of his sister-in-law when he grew up.

Yes, he must study hard now so that he can be more successful in the future and better take care of his sister-in-law.

Xu Zhichun smiled, briefly explained the origin of the product, and then said, "I plan to plant these two kinds of sweet potatoes and potatoes on all the land we bought that we cleared. Then we'll have an endless supply of sweet potatoes and potatoes. This is also something new, so it's sure to make money. I wonder how it will taste when cooked. Let's try it tonight."

Liang Mingxuan was even more surprised. His sister-in-law was really bold! She actually bought so many sweet potatoes and potatoes at once.

So, this is something that no other village or household has? Only their family has it?
Liang Mingxuan was also looking forward to it. If steaming is so delicious, cooking must be good too. "I'll help you, sister-in-law!" Xu Zhichun said with a smile. She assigned him the task of peeling potatoes and started to prepare the fish herself.

The grass carp she bought today was quite large. She planned to peel off the skin and make a cold fish skin salad to satisfy her craving, fry the fish head until golden brown on both sides to make soup, and chop the fish body into sections for braising.

Add a hot and sour shredded potato dish.

Two stoves were lit at the same time; one was boiling water to prepare for poaching the fish skin, while the other was frying the fish head to prepare for making soup.

The fish body was washed clean of blood and then marinated with Shaoxing wine, salt, soy sauce, shredded ginger, and dried chili pepper pieces.

Tonight, there's not only hot and sour shredded potatoes, but also cold fish skin salad—things I've never made before! The kids are going to be amazed by her cooking skills again tonight!
Three dishes and a soup were served, along with a large bowl of steaming, white rice. The uncle and aunt began to eat.

Xu Zhichun suppressed her joy and pretended to be reserved, first tasting the hot and sour shredded potatoes. Her eyes lit up as she nodded and recommended it to her brother-in-law, saying how delicious it was! Then she could naturally and happily feast.

Liang Mingxuan tasted it, and his expression instantly became lively. No one can resist the sour, spicy, and crunchy flavor of hot and sour shredded potatoes.

"It's really delicious! This potato can be steamed or used in cooking, and it's even better than taro. Sister-in-law has excellent taste."

Xu Zhichun couldn't suppress the smile on his face. "It's no wonder our family is rich."

Liang Mingxuan was amused by her words, "Sister-in-law is right."

My sister-in-law is right.

The next morning, the three women, along with Liang Mingliang, got together to talk about the sweet potatoes and potatoes they had eaten the night before, and they were all excited.

What a good thing!

Zeng Xiaoyan said with a grin, "My parents said they want to plant more potatoes, and asked me to ask Sister-in-law Zhichun if she has any. If so, please save some for our family. Sweet potatoes can be grown from vines, so we don't need so many."

Aunt Zhu'er immediately chimed in, "Me too, me too! Zhichun, don't forget me! Is it really okay to plant sweet potatoes using vines? Won't it affect the yield? Will the merchant cheat us?"

Her thoughtfulness and concern made Zeng Xiaoyan and her husband worry as well. "Right, that merchant... surely he wouldn't?"

Xu Zhichun: "."

I experienced firsthand what it means to have to use countless lies to cover up one lie—a truly bittersweet experience.

You have to rack your brains to cover up the lie you told yourself.

There's nothing we can do; this is just the beginning. There might be many more times like this in the future.

She could only console herself that practice makes perfect, and maybe she would get used to it after a while.

"Probably not. Those two seemed quite sincere. We don't know anything about them. If they wanted to lie, they might as well not say anything at all. Why go through all this trouble?"

The three of them thought about it and realized it was true.

If they don't say anything, it won't affect them, so why make a fuss?

"Well, the more you plant, the safer it is. If there's any extra, I'll give you more."

Zeng Xiaoyan and Aunt Zhu'er were finally relieved.

Xu Zhichun had intended to casually mention that the tender shoots of sweet potato vines were also delicious when stir-fried, but then she changed her mind.

Rural people are very shrewd when it comes to edible vegetables. When they see those tender shoots, they know that their pigs, chickens, and ducks can eat them, so they naturally think that humans can eat them too.

Once you've tried it, the taste is immediately obvious; there's no need for her to go to all that trouble.

The ice jelly was ready, and when it was time to load it onto the truck, the six people Xu Zhichun had hired to clear the land also arrived.

(End of this chapter)