Miao Chu

Chapter 272 Solid
The torrential rain continued all night.

The next day, before dawn, Song Miao and Cheng Erniang got up.

Hearing the loud rain outside, the two washed up, one holding an umbrella and the other a lamp, and carefully held hands to look around the backyard before going out the front gate.

There is a small uphill slope at the end of Suanzao Alley, which makes Songji's place higher up. In addition, the drainage in the backyard is cleaned from time to time, so it was not greatly affected.

But further out of the alley, overnight, many places on the road were flooded, some up to ankle height and others even reaching the calves.

Even with lanterns in hand, the two of them still stumbled and waded through the mud as they walked out.

Cheng Erniang was somewhat relieved and said, "With such heavy rain, it's fortunate that my wife said a few days ago that we didn't need to buy pork and cuttlefish to make dried meat. Otherwise, without the sun, we wouldn't have been able to dry them halfway through, and it would have been a waste of firewood, not to mention they might have gone bad!"

He added, “When I was at home, I learned some weather forecasting from the elders, but I could only forecast for tomorrow. To avoid heavy rain when drying grain or planting, the forecasts were sometimes accurate and sometimes not. How come you can forecast so much earlier and be so accurate?”

Song Miao said, "It's not always accurate. I was taught by my elders at home. I was just playing around at first, but now that I see it's useful, I'm busy slowly recalling what I've heard before and learning it again. I can't compare to the technical officers in the Imperial Observatory."

"In the next year or two, you can pick up those books on arithmetic and read them again. We can learn together. For us business people, even if we only know a little about the weather, it will be very useful!"

The two shared a large umbrella, linked arms, and went outside the alley to check the water level before walking back closely together, chatting as they went.

When Song Miao asked Cheng Erniang how the old man had taught her when she was at home, the latter recited what she could remember, such as how to tell if there was a yellow halo around the moon, which meant there would be heavy rain the next day, and if the moon was bright and there were many stars at night, it meant there would be a clear sky the next day, and so on.

Song Miao laughed and said, "There are similar words in books too—it shows that books are the words of people!"

Upon hearing several more unusual accounts, she added, "This is different from what is written in the Ling Jing. I'll borrow the book from Mr. Chen another day and copy it down so we can compare them together!"

It turns out that the so-called "star observation" is not so profound and mysterious as it seems.

Cheng Erniang immediately began to look forward to the future "Let's learn together", and racked her brains, constantly drawing on her knowledge that was somewhat related to the topic, and her experience of observing the next day's weather by looking at the stars, the moon, and the night sky.

She talked on and on, her voice deep and resonant, strong enough to be drowned out even by the fiercest wind and rain.

Outside, the rain poured down on the umbrella, sliding down the edge to form a curtain of heavy water, and Cheng Erniang's voice echoed in my ears.

It was very dark, and the oil lamp was only a faint glow, which was constantly swaying in the wind. If someone were to walk alone in this dark alley, they would probably feel a little nervous. But the two of them leaned on each other and chatted as they walked home. Even though it was a bad day with heavy rain, making it inconvenient to set up a stall, deliver goods, and do business, Song Miao still felt very at ease.

The rain will eventually stop, the sun will rise, and the sky will clear.

She ran her business step by step in the direction she wanted, and she gained helpers, friends, and more and more people.

She has always been very patient and not in a hurry.

Even walking through this rainy alley, her steps became more firm and steady.

***
Not long after the two returned to the restaurant and had just started steaming the glutinous rice, Wang Sanlang brought back a cart full of fresh ingredients that he and his companions had purchased.

Today is a rare day off for the Imperial Academy. The dog hole at the South Slope Academy has been blocked, and there are patrols all the time, so very few students can climb over the wall to get out. Because they have to climb over the wall, it is not easy to bring food, and they can't buy much. In addition, there is such heavy rain. Furthermore, since the day before yesterday, the Imperial Academy's kitchen has increased the quantity of steamed buns, and several other places have added new customers who want to buy steamed buns and glutinous rice. Song Miao simply did not set up her stall and just rushed to make them.

After everyone had prepared the food ordered by each household and was about to deliver it, Song Miao instructed, "It's raining heavily today, and there are many orders. Drive slowly on the road. Let's call two more cars to help with the delivery. Safety first."

Then he said to Cheng Erniang, "It's most likely that Master Liu's banquet won't be able to take place. When we come back, we don't need to buy anything else; we can just buy some food for ourselves."

Cheng Erniang and Zhang Siniang and their husbands all agreed.

As soon as it was light, a servant from Liu Hanlin's household came to deliver the message, saying that the rain was too heavy and the gathering had been rescheduled. He would come back to ask her if she was available once a new date was set.

Not long after the Liu family left, Du Haoniang arrived.

Seeing that the person was wearing straw sandals and that their clothes were completely soaked, and that they had left their umbrella outside the door without coming in, only shaking out their clothes, Song Miao hurriedly welcomed them in, saying, "With such a heavy rain and wind, why did you come all this way, sister-in-law!"

Du Haoniang smiled and said, "I told you yesterday that since I knew you were going out to host a banquet today, we should take advantage of this free time this morning to go and see that house! I've already asked someone to make arrangements!"

“The rain is too heavy, so the banquet can’t be held today. There’s no need to rush.” Song Miao took a step back and estimated Du Haoniang’s size. “Sister-in-law, you’re all soaked. Be careful not to catch a cold. Change your clothes before you go. Second Madam’s birthday is next month. I just had someone make her a new set of clothes, but I haven’t had time to send them out yet. You two are about the same size.”

Du Haoniang hesitated for a moment before saying, "Never mind, it's raining heavily outside. I came by carriage, but the alley entrance was blocked by sandbags, so the carriage can't get in. We'll have to walk out in a bit, and even if we change our clothes, we'll still be soaked!"

He added, "Besides, if I wear it, you'll have to make another one for that Second Sister Cheng."

Song Miao laughed and said, "What do you mean? My birthday is at the end of next month, so there's no rush. Besides, my sister-in-law just gave me some nice cloth. I'll use that cloth to make new clothes, which will make me even happier!"

He added, "I have a raincoat here. If you don't mind that it's ugly, sister-in-law, you can wear it too. I guarantee you won't get wet in the rain."

He then led the person to the backyard.

Du Haoniang exchanged a few polite words and then stopped refusing. She changed into the new clothes, which fit her quite well, except that the sleeves were a bit long. She could just sew a little bit in later and that would be enough. She then asked how much it cost and offered to pay.

Song Miao joked, "When my sister-in-law gave me such nice fabric, did I ever say I'd pay you? What kind of relationship do our families have?"

Without further ado, Du Haoniang fastened her belt and laughed, "I was being cheeky! I'll slap you!"

After saying goodbye to Dabing and the others, the two of them went out together.

It was bright outside, and she could see even more clearly than in the morning. Walking in the alley, she saw that the sky was like a leaky roof, with strong winds and torrential rain. Even though she was wearing a raincoat and carrying an umbrella, Song Miao still felt the wind carrying moisture and raindrops blowing in from the front. Before long, her unshielded face was wet.

As I walked to the alley entrance, I saw many neighbors gathered there, piling up sandbags. Some families were also setting up boards in front of their doors, while others were piling up sandbags.

Upon seeing Song Miao, one of the people exclaimed, "Oh dear!" and said, "Little Song, with this area blocked, how are you going to manage getting your mule cart in and out?"

Another person said, "There's really no way to deal with this. The rain is so heavy that I'm afraid it will be like the last two months, with no end in sight. If the water accumulates outside, it will not only flood the streets, but it will also cause trouble when we get inside!"

Song Miao had witnessed houses being flooded before. Although she had gone to Huazhou when the floods were at their worst, she had heard Cheng Erniang talk about the losses suffered by the families in the alley after she returned. So she said, "Don't worry about my side. If the sandbag slope is too low, the mule cart can use a plank to make a slope to push it in. Even if there are too many sandbags piled up at the back and the slope is too high, we can still push them out with a cart from the inside."

"Besides, if the rain doesn't stop and continues like this, the water will be too deep on the ground, and we won't be able to do business. We won't even need to worry about cars coming in and out." Seeing that she didn't waste any more words, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, but they couldn't help but complain to each other.

"I've been feeling stifled for over ten days, and these past few days have been like a sauna. I knew the heavens were up to something! But I never expected the rain to come so heavily!"

"Yesterday was so hot and humid. I made some tofu to save for my youngest son when he came back, but it turned sour in less than two hours! I hope it doesn't turn out like the spring floods. If it happens again, the shop will be hard to run, business will be impossible, and we won't be able to make ends meet!"

"And you're telling me! My husband was supposed to go to West Street today to perform the roof-raising ceremony for someone. He had already reached the new gate when, unexpectedly, there was a huge pit on the ground. He couldn't see the water in it, so he tripped and fell hard, breaking his head and arm. Luckily, there was a clinic nearby. I don't know how long he'll need to recover!"

"Oh dear, how could you be so careless! Did Old Tang on the front street also fall during the spring flood season?"

"That's right. He hurt his back and has been recovering for two or three months. He still can't do heavy work properly."

After everyone had talked for a while, someone came up to Song Miao and asked, "Little Song, when will the dried meat I ordered last time arrive?"

Song Miao then said, "Second Madam and the others are delivering it now. They left too early and were afraid of disturbing the nearby guests who were sleeping, so they estimated they would deliver it to their door when they returned in a while."

Uncle Xu hurriedly said, "That's good. I was just afraid I wouldn't have enough time, so I came to ask you one more question."

A curious person nearby asked, "Old Xu, why are you buying dried meat all of a sudden?"

Uncle Xu sighed and said, "Sigh, don't even mention it, it's for my eldest son."

As soon as he said that, people on both sides looked over.

"Didn't we go to Liutahe?"

“I remember that too! When they set off last time, several high-ranking officials were outside the Imperial Street cheering them on—I even saw your son in the ranks!”

"You're back already?"

"When did you get back? Why didn't you say anything?"

"Come back my ass!" Uncle Xu couldn't help but curse again. "Back then, everyone thought it was a good job, and everyone was scrambling to go. The school selected and selected again and again. He did his best to perform and finally got his name on the list. Before he left, he saw so many officials encouraging him. I thought it was a rare opportunity. Who knew that when he got there, it was not like that at all."

"I sent a letter back the other day, saying that they are not getting enough to eat, and they are not even given enough pickled vegetables. The steamed buns are not filled at all, and they are made from old flour that seems to have been mixed with bran. They are also coarsely ground, which not only hurts the throat but also tastes like bran. They work day and night without rest, and the higher-ups are pushing them to do everything. They don't even get enough sleep. They treat people like dirt. If they were animals, they would be able to kick up their heels!"

Seeing his many complaints, someone said, "If it really doesn't work out, could you resign and come back?"

"They said that if I wanted to resign, I would have to go through the approval of a dozen or so officials, then send the letter of resignation back to the capital to be approved by Minister Li of the State Affairs Hall, and then have it reviewed and signed by the teachers and the academy before I could leave. Isn't this making things difficult for people?! Let alone Minister Li, how many officials at the top even know who my eldest son is?"

"The one who came back to report told me that the boy was so thin that his face was sunken, and he looked really pitiful. His mother was worried that something was wrong. Just then, a group of merchants was heading to Chanzhou, so she thought she would send him some food. She couldn't help with anything else, so she could only send him some food, clothing and other necessities and tell him to bear with it."

"We originally wanted to feed the fish and birds, but the caravan said they were afraid of breaking the bottles and jars we had. So we decided to come and buy dried meat from Miss Song instead."

Upon hearing this, the others sighed and could only offer comforting words: "It'll only be a month or so. I heard that the Liuta River will be dredged soon. Once the river is open, your eldest son will be able to come back!"

"You always have to endure some hardship when you do things. But look on the bright side, this is a great achievement!"

"It's alright, just take some dried meat with you. It's meat, after all, and it's easy to carry. If you put it in rice bran, it can be stored for a month or so. All the neighbors know what ingredients Xiao Song uses, how clean it is, and whether it tastes good or not!"

Someone else asked Song Miao, "When you went to Huazhou two months ago, was the food on the river this bad?"

Before Song Miao could answer, an old woman beside her interjected, "Absolutely not! Miss Song is in charge of the meals. With her skills, would she let people eat coarse food?"

"It also depends on whether the government is willing to give money, right? As the old saying goes, even a clever housewife can't cook without rice."

“The food in Huazhou is really good! You don’t know, the other day I met a customer who came to buy pickled vegetables. He said he was visiting relatives in Beijing and had worked on the river in Huazhou before. Just then someone mentioned Liuta River, and he chimed in, saying it was far inferior to Huazhou.”

"In Huazhou, food and lodging are provided. He worked there for a month or so and even saved several hundred coins for travel expenses. They said that as long as you do a good job, someone will give you a ranking every day, and those at the front of the line will even get meat to eat—he ate a big bone once, and sucking the marrow from it was so delicious! They say that the kitchen is managed by a young lady surnamed Song, and everyone praises her!"

After the old woman finished speaking, she turned to Song Miao and asked, "Is that young lady surnamed Song referring to you, little Song?"

Song Miao smiled and said, "Most likely."

The man immediately laughed and said, "I knew it! I told him, but he didn't believe me!"

He then asked, "So that big bone was also made by your kitchen, Xiao Song?"

Song Miao agreed.

The old woman hurriedly said, "Didn't you just have a carpenter take measurements for your restaurant? When will it open? If it does, put that big bone dish on the menu too—he said it was absolutely delicious, and I'm really looking forward to trying it!"

Song Miao replied with a smile, "Just wait, since you brought it up, Mother-in-law, I'll definitely add a menu. I'm so grateful for everyone's help these past few days. On the opening day, I'll treat everyone to big bone soup!"

"I can't just accept your gift for nothing! I should bring a gift when I visit!"

Once the old woman said that, all the neighbors agreed.

Song Miao smiled and thanked her, then said she had something to attend to and quickly took her leave with Du Haoniang.

As they walked, they could hear people under the eaves behind them discussing the water situation in Huazhou.

These days, all sorts of news frequently come back from Chanzhou—they recruited refugees to do manual labor, and within two months, thousands of people had fled. Of course, some of them returned to the capital and cursed the people in charge of Liutahe repeatedly.

Then there were those migrants who traveled north from Huazhou, intending to save some money to return home. These people had worked in Huazhou for two months and gained some benefits. After finishing their work on the river there, they heard on the way that Chanzhou also needed people. They thought it was about the same as Huazhou, so they all responded and headed there with their valuables.

Who knew that after getting to Liutahe, he didn't work there for long before he ran back as fast as he could, almost crying. He kept making a fuss, asking Han Xiucai from Huazhou to take charge of the river management in Liutahe, asking Song Xiaoniangzi to take charge of the meals, and even wanting that Wu Gongshi to inspect the river and asking Cen Tongpan to pay him!
Because they heard mostly negative things and few positive things, the people of the capital were also worried. Even so, everyone hoped that the Liuta River project would be successful, so that the major rivers passing through the capital during the flood season would have a place to release floodwaters, so as to avoid floods and affect their livelihoods.

　Thank you so much, Mori Syaoran, for the two jade pendants you gifted me. Together they make up the entire He Shi Bi jade disc. Thank you so much, you've gone to so much trouble!
　　Thank you to McDull Loves Little Du for the big peach blossom fan, to Mikewei for the sachet, to Yellow Scorpio Palace for the roasted pigeon-scented sachet for Sister Zhu, and to Zao Huahua, Book Friend 20220630151437916, and Book Friend 20220702074407672 for the peace charms they each sent. May everyone be safe and sound!
　　Many thanks to the bookstore girl E for gifting me a typing tool and two small tokens. My cat, Egg, also gifted me a typing tool :)

　　Thank you to the following users from the bookstore: 十緈鍢菋噵灬, 歪歪猫咪, and 时空_ae, for each of them a small token of my appreciation! ^_^
　　Thank you everyone for your monthly tickets, Xiaoxiang tickets, recommendation tickets, all kinds of tickets, and your comments, messages, and chapter notes. They are my biggest motivation for writing. Although I haven't been able to reply to everyone, I have read every single one carefully (#^.^#)
　　(End of this chapter)