1984: Starting from a bankrupt Sichuan restaurant

Chapter 339 Tired, Let's Destroy! (6.2k words combined)

Once the meat grinder is turned on, the marinated meat flows continuously out of the funnel and into the sausage casings that have already been fitted into the funnel opening.

Old Zhang carefully placed the sausage into the large enamel basin below.

Zhou Yan watched from the side. The sausages were bright red and plump, much better than those made by hand, which had to be stuffed little by little.

"Wow! That's so fast! Machines are really useful!"

"You know what, it's quick and good at filling!"

Zhou Qing and Zhou Ze marveled. After making sausages for so many years, this was the first time they had ever been able to stand by and watch with their hands in their pockets.

"Zhou Yan is really capable. He brought back the machine to make sausages and finished it in no time."

"No wonder they're not in a hurry. They only start slaughtering the pigs at nine o'clock. Look at Kun Kun's family, they started slaughtering at six in the morning. The pigs weigh 300 jin (150 kg), and more than half of them haven't been properly stuffed yet."

The villagers also gathered around to see what was so unusual.

Gao Cuihua was already unhappy, and her face darkened even more upon hearing this. She put the half-eaten sausage in her hand into the basin, gritted her teeth, picked up a large piece of pork belly from the side, and said to Wu Guihua, "Guihua, you go and help me. Start cooking and prepare the meal for everyone today's pig-slaughtering feast."

“Okay, Mom.” Wu Guihua nodded quickly.

After watching for a while, Zhou Yan confirmed that the sausages Zhang Laosan had made were fine. He then said to Old Zhou, who was standing next to him, "Old man, I'll leave this to you. Each sausage is 20 centimeters long. Tie it tightly with this string and leave it for me to poke holes in later."

Comrade Lao Zhou nodded in agreement; he was skilled at this job.

"Awei, let's go make a pig-slaughtering feast." Zhou Yan called to Awei and went to cook as well.

Having more people makes things easier; the Zhou family are all good at getting things done.

"Zhou Yan, look at the four-piece silk set that Grandma gave me." Zhou Yan had just entered the room when he saw Xia Yao carrying a pile of folded silk fabrics out of the old lady's room, with a bright smile on her face.

"Really? This is Grandma's most treasured possession." Zhou Yan was a little surprised.

These grandsons of theirs were beaten as children.

In this house, the old lady's old brine and two cabinets are off-limits; otherwise, a beating is inevitable.

When Zhou Jie was a child, he stole an old lady's ceramic spoon to dig in the sand, and the old lady gave his second uncle a good beating.

After his second uncle returned home and closed the door, Zhou Yan could hear Jie Ge crying from outside the courtyard.

She was crying very loudly.

The cabinet where the silks were kept was also locked. When each of her sons or grandsons got married, the old lady would open the cabinet and give the new bride a four-piece bedding set that she liked.

Zhou Yan's family also has a set of bright red silk four-piece bedding, which was given to his parents by his grandmother when they got married.

So, what's wrong with the old lady...?

Zhou Yan looked at the light green four-piece bedding set that Xia Yao was holding, and then glanced at the old lady.

“Yaoyao said that porcelain is fragile, so I gave her a set of silk quilt covers.” The old lady glanced at him and said meaningfully, “When you get married, I will also prepare a set for you.”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yan subconsciously looked at Xia Yao.

Xia Yao lowered her head, staring at the silk in her hand without saying a word, a smile curving her lips.

Meng Anhe held her precious covered bowl, and couldn't help but smile as she looked at the two of them. It's so good to be young.

"I'm going to make pork soup!" Awei stormed off angrily.

We can't stay here any longer; if we stay any longer, we'll choke to death.

We haven't even had the pig-slaughtering feast yet!

So you lured the dog in and killed it?

Have you considered his feelings?

"Are you going to cook?" Xia Yao looked up at him and changed the subject.

“Yes, it’s eleven o’clock. It’s just right to finish making this and have lunch.” Zhou Yan nodded. “You and Sister Meng can have some more tea, and then you can eat lunch.”

"I'll help you start the fire, I'm good at that," Xia Yao said.

"Go ahead, go ahead, I'll have tea with the old lady." Meng Anhe waved her hand with a smile, then turned to the old lady and said, "I'll make you some tea."

The old lady smiled and nodded: "Okay, I'll learn how you cultured people drink tea."

Xia Yao followed Zhou Yan into the kitchen, where Awei had already lit the fire and was squatting there fanning himself with a palm-leaf fan.

"Have you ordered?" Zhou Yan asked.

"Yes, just lit it." Ah Wei looked up and saw Xia Yao standing next to Zhou Yan. He asked with some confusion, "Boss lady, what are you doing in the kitchen?"

"Start a fire," Xia Yao said.

"Then what should I do?" Awei looked up at Zhou Yan.

"You're going to make pork soup? Didn't you say you could?" Zhou Yan looked at him.

"Oh right! I've already cooked the pork bone soup!" Ah Wei immediately stood up and respectfully offered, "Boss lady, please come and help the boss with the fire."

"Ahem, Wei." Zhou Yan coughed.

Ah Wei winked at him and went off to prepare the pig lungs with a smug look on his face.

Xia Yao didn't say anything. She tightened her clothes, sat down on the small stool in front of the stove, looked down at the fire, and the firelight reflected on her slightly flushed face, making her smile.

“That’s just how Awei is, always talking big,” Zhou Yan said, slightly embarrassed.

"Hmm, do you want a big fire or a small fire?" Xia Yao looked up at him, her eyes sparkling.

"Let's start cooking the fire first, I'll start cooking your favorite braised pork ribs," Zhou Yan said with a smile.

"Okay," Xia Yao replied, adding a piece of firewood to the stove.

A meow came from the woodpile.

Xia Yao was startled and withdrew her hand. She turned her head and saw a tabby cat hiding in the firewood pile. She smiled and said, "So Hua Hua is sleeping here."

Zhou Yan laughed upon hearing this: "Then it must be because the weather is cold. We need to find a warm place to hibernate. The kitchen will be warmer than the yard when we light a fire."

"Hua Hua, come here to your sister." Xia Yao called softly to the tabby cat.

“This cat…” Zhou Yan originally wanted to say that the cat was shy around strangers and couldn’t get over when he called it.

Then, after a rustling sound, a fat tabby cat crawled out of the woodpile. It stretched, stared at Xia Yao for a while, and then jumped down, rubbed against her legs, and meowed at her.

"This cat has a pretty good personality." Xia Yao reached out and stroked the cat's fluffy head, then looked up at Zhou Yan with a smile.

"Right?" Zhou Yan didn't know what to say for a moment. This cat really knew how to treat people differently.

Xia Yao played with it for a while, and then Zhou Momo ran in. Seeing the tabby cat, she immediately pounced on it and excitedly shouted, "Hua Hua!"

"Meow meow meow~~~" Hua Hua's meows suddenly became sweet and cheerful. She rubbed her head against Zhou Momo's leg and even rolled over to show her belly.

"Goodness." Zhou Momo squatted down, patted its belly, and asked curiously, "Sister Yao Yao, where did you find the flower?"

"It was sleeping in the woodpile. I just found it," Xia Yao said with a smile.

"Oh, so it was hiding here. No wonder it didn't answer when I called it in the yard." Zhou Momo nodded, got up and ran to Zhou Yan: "Brother, do you have any meat for me? I want to feed Hua Hua."

Zhou Yan glanced at the ribs in his bowl, then pointed to Awei beside him: "Go ask Awei for some pig liver, it's right next to him."

"Ah Wei~" Zhou Momo immediately ran over.

"Here you go, here you go." Ah Wei took a knife, cut a slice of pig liver, and handed it to Zhou Momo.

Zhou Momo came over with a pig liver in her hand, and Hua Hua couldn't help but stand up on her own two feet, staring at the pig liver in Zhou Momo's hand, meowing even more enthusiastically.

"Come on, eat~" Zhou Momo handed the pig liver to it. Hua Hua carefully opened its mouth and bit the other end. After Zhou Momo let go, it lowered its head and started eating, chewing and chewing, enjoying it very much.

Zhou Yan finally understood why the tabby cat was so close to Zhou Momo; Zhou Momo was genuinely happy to find meat for it.

"Huahua, just have one piece, I don't have any left. I want to eat meat later," Zhou Momo said in a childish voice as she squatted down next to it.

"Meow~" The tabby cat didn't forget to respond to her twice while eating.

"Come on, wash your hands." Xia Yao got up and led Zhou Momo to the side to wash her hands. The little one found a few sweet potatoes from the corner of the wall, and the two of them started thinking about how to roast them.

Xia Yao placed the sweet potatoes to the side of the stove, then held Zhou Momo by the fire, telling her stories. The tabby cat, having finished its pig liver, didn't leave but instead lay down beside them, warming itself by the fire, its eyes comfortably closed, and it even started purring.

The ribs were cooked in the pot. First, the cured pork was taken out of the steamer and steamed for an hour until it was completely cooked through.

[A pretty good piece of cured pork]

Looking at the cured meat on the plate, Zhou Yan couldn't help but admire the old lady's cooking skills.

She managed to make cured meat to this level by figuring things out on her own; no wonder her uncle and second uncle had an almost fanatical belief in her skills.

Those who have good relationships with Zhoucun residents will specially ask the old lady to help with seasoning when it's time to make cured pork and sausages. Once the cured pork is ready, they will send a piece to her door as a token of their gratitude.

That's what authority is!
When the old lady handed him the salt jar today, not only were the Zhou family members surprised, but the villagers were also greatly shocked.

"Would you like to eat some freshly steamed cured pork?" Zhou Yan asked, looking at Xia Yao and Zhou Momo.

"miss you!"

The two said in unison.

Zhou Yan took the chopping board that the old lady used to cut cooked meat from the side and used a cleaver for cutting braised meat to slice the cured meat into thin slices.

The pork belly with skin, alternating between lean and fat, is steamed and then cut open. The fat is a translucent amber color, while the lean meat is a bright red like sandalwood, oily and shiny, making it very appetizing.

Xia Yao and Zhou Momo had already arrived at the stove. The little one tried hard to stand on tiptoe to see, but she was too short and could only see the edge of the cutting board. She sniffed with her little nose and was very anxious: "Brother~~ I want to eat cured meat too!"

"Here, have a piece for you to try first." Zhou Yan picked up a piece of cured meat and fed it to Zhou Momo.

The little guy opened his mouth to take it, grabbed it with his little hand, bit it off in one go, and chewed it with great joy.

"Let's eat! The cured meat on the cutting board is the best," Zhou Yan and Xia Yao said.

Xia Yao glanced around and, not seeing any chopsticks, hesitated for a moment before reaching out and picking up a piece of cured meat, which she then put into her mouth.

The freshly cooked cured pork, when you bite into it, has a chewy and elastic outer skin, the fat melts in your mouth and is full of aroma, the lean meat is salty and fresh and has a bit of a chewy texture, with the aroma of ham and a special cypress smoky smell.

smell good!
Having studied at a university in the mountain city for three years, this was certainly not the first time I had eaten cured meat.

But none of the cured pork I've had before has tasted as good as this one. Especially when stir-frying cured pork, the skin always feels dry and tough, making it hard to chew.

She tasted the deliciousness of cured meat for the first time today.

"Master Zhou, why don't you offer me a piece of the freshly cut cured pork on the cutting board?" Awei came over, swallowed hard as he looked at the cured pork on the cutting board, "Grandma's cured pork is really good, it looks delicious."

"Here, have a slice." Zhou Yan picked up a slice and fed it to him, his hands covered in blood from the freshly cut pig liver.

"Mmm! This cured meat smells amazing! It would be delicious stir-fried with potato slices!" Ah Wei exclaimed, then ate another slice before going back to work.

Zhou Yan's menu today is relatively simple: braised pork ribs, salted pork belly and steamed pork with rice flour. She also saved six ounces of pork intestines from yesterday, so she can make pork intestine and blood curd today.

There were many side dishes with the meal, including twice-cooked pork, stir-fried pork liver, Mapo tofu, and cured pork with potato slices.

Finally, Comrade Awei will contribute a grand finale: pork soup.

"Master Kong, do you need my help?" Zhou Yan asked Kong Liwei as he cooked the ribs in the pot and prepared the other dishes.

"No need, the aunties have cleaned the pig lungs and heart very well, let's get started!" Ah Wei cut up the pig lungs and heart and started to stew the soup.

Pork offal soup is a classic way to eat pork. A pot of rich soup is made by boiling pork offal. In winter, eating a hot bowl of this soup will warm you all the way to your stomach.

Pig lungs, pig heart, large intestine, pig blood, and a piece of pig neck meat used to make slippery pork.

In the aluminum pot next to him, a pot of bone broth was simmering. When the pig was just slaughtered, Awei had asked for a few bones and came in to simmer the broth first.

It must have been almost two hours now; the bone broth has turned milky white and smells wonderful.

First, sauté the blanched pork intestines and lungs with lard, scallions, and ginger until fragrant and oily. Then, pour in the milky white bone broth, cover, and simmer over low heat until the pork intestines are tender.

Zhou Yan watched from the side. He had eaten pork offal soup before. It didn't use too many seasonings. It was made with fresh pork offal and its main feature was the fresh and delicious soup. What you enjoyed was the warmth of the hot soup.

Zhou Yan timed it, and when the braised pork ribs and pork soup were halfway done, the machine outside stopped.

"The sausages are all stuffed. The machine stuffing is so easy, it's effortless and the sausages turn out great." Aunt Zhao came in to inform Zhou Yan, her eyes full of satisfaction.

Zhou Yan nodded with a smile: "Okay, Mom, can you organize the setting up of tables and chairs on the threshing floor by the door? I'll start cooking right away. I've been busy all morning, so let everyone sit down, have some tea, and rest before we prepare for the pig-slaughtering feast."

"Okay, I'll go." Aunt Zhao replied, stole a piece of cured meat from the cutting board, and happily went out.

"You...you're done?" Zhou Kunkun straightened up, craned his neck, and stared at Zhou Miao and the others who were cleaning the machines across from him, his eyes widening.

"Over 300 jin of cured meat, all processed in just over an hour? Holy crap! That's incredibly fast! I still have more than half of my 100 jin left to pack." Zhou Qianjin was also dumbfounded. He knew the machine was definitely faster than them, but he really didn't expect it to be this fast!

"I'm so tired—I feel like my hands are so sore from stabbing myself that they no longer belong to me." Zhou Liangliang sighed deeply.

Their cured pork hasn't even started to be cured yet, but Zhou Yan and his family have already put more than 300 jin of cured pork, cured pig's head, and cured pig's trotters into jars.

Just like that, I suddenly lost all the energy I was having for the work.

The three brothers and four younger relatives get up at six in the morning to butcher and slaughter pigs, and they've been doing this ever since, but they're still not as good as someone who works for three hours.

tired.

Destroy it.

"Zhou Yan is so clever! No wonder he makes so much money! He made so many cured meats and sausages in just one day."

"Hey knife maker, can you rent this machine? We're making sausages at home in a couple of days, could you rent it for an hour?"

The villagers watching were amazed, and some of the more resourceful ones even started thinking about using the meat grinder.

Zhang Laosan originally wanted to refuse, as making sausages for a family wasn't much of a job, but so many people kept asking, more than a dozen in total, which made things a bit different.

“Well then, it’s one yuan to make 100 jin of sausages. If you can gather five people to make them on the same day, I’ll come. If you need to buy meat to make cured pork and sausages, I can bring it to you. I guarantee it’s all top-quality pork belly, pork shoulder, and pork shoulder,” Zhang Laosan said to the group.

After discussing it, the villagers decided that five people would order sausages three days later, and another villager ordered forty or fifty kilograms of meat from him.

The pork he brought to Zhou Yan today was indeed of good quality; everyone can tell the difference between good and bad.

The Zhang couple were all smiles. They never expected that delivering meat would unlock a new business. Selling meat and helping to make sausages, they could earn more than ten yuan a day. This money was too good to pass up.

Aunt Zhao directed everyone to carry the bundled sausages into the yard first, and then set up three tables with long benches on the open ground outside the yard. Everyone washed their hands and sat down, and began to prepare for the pig-slaughtering feast.

Across from them, Wu Guihua came out to invite everyone to rest for a while, and she also began to set up tables to prepare for the pig-slaughtering feast.

Meng Anhe and the old lady had been drinking tea and chatting happily all morning. Now, she put down her teacup and went outside to sit down.

In the kitchen, Zhou Momo and Xia Yao were already eating roasted sweet potatoes, while Zhou Yan started cooking.

The first dish to be cooked was braised pork intestines and blood curd. The Zhou family's appetite for food is undeniable, so Zhou Yan cooked half of the pig's blood in one sitting and prepared a large earthenware pot to hold it all so that everyone could enjoy it to their heart's content.

Once the blood curd is cooked and served, cut the heated braised pork intestines into small pieces and place them on top. Then, prepare the chili oil and seasonings, and start serving immediately.

There were no cold dishes today, only hot dishes!
Next came two steamed dishes: savory braised pork belly and sweet braised pork belly. The earthenware bowls were placed over the plates, and the brightly colored savory braised pork belly and steamed pork with rice flour were immediately served.

The aunties, who had been chatting all morning, went into the kitchen and took on the task of serving the dishes.

Twice-cooked pork, cured pork and potato slices, Mapo tofu, stir-fried pork liver, and braised pork ribs were served one after another.

Ah Wei lifted the lid, added salt to taste, and then put the sliced ​​meat and pork liver into the boiling milky white soup. Watching the meat slices and pork liver float to the surface, he quickly took them out of the pot.

"Dinner's ready!" Zhou Yan called out, picked up a large earthenware bowl filled with milky white pork soup, and walked towards the door.

"Let's have a pig-slaughtering feast!" Zhou Momo shouted happily, following Zhou Yan with a bouncy gait.

Xia Yao followed her out, a smile on her lips.

Across the street, Gao Cuihua's family had two tables occupied.

In the middle of the table was a large bowl of pork soup, with two plates of twice-cooked pork on the side, and a stir-fried dish of pork cracklings and cabbage.

In a rural area, the host family serving this much at a pig-slaughtering feast is considered quite generous.

But today, by sheer coincidence, I stumbled upon Zhou Yan's family slaughtering a pig and holding a pig-slaughtering feast.

A pot of milky white pork soup is placed in the middle, and there are nine dishes on the table, including steamed, braised, and stir-fried dishes, and each dish looks delicious and appealing.

Compared to the other two, the dishes on the table suddenly didn't taste as good.

"What's that? Mapo tofu? It looks so appetizing." Zhou Kunkun craned his neck to look.

“That braised pork intestines and blood tofu looks so appetizing. Aunt Zhang’s braised pork intestines taste so good. The last time I had them was more than 20 years ago.” Zhou Qianjin nodded in agreement.

"Snapped!"

Gao Cuihua slammed her chopsticks on the table, looked at Zhou Kunkun with a livid face and said, "Are you going to eat or not? If you're so greedy, just bring a stool over and eat!"

She had been busy all morning, but Zhou Yan had stolen all the limelight from her, leaving her with a nameless anger that she had nowhere to vent.

"Eat, eat, eat." Zhou Kunkun pulled his head back, quickly shoveled a mouthful of rice, and then took a bite of the slightly salty twice-cooked pork. The pork was overcooked and the skin was a bit hard, but it was alright, edible.

Gao Cuihua's words served as a warning to Zhou Qianjin, who dared not speak and simply lowered his head to eat.

The atmosphere at the two tables suddenly became a bit tense, and everyone was afraid to even chew their food too loudly.

In contrast, the Zhou family across the street was all smiles and laughter.

All three tables were full. Even Zhou Yan's sister-in-law, Chen Yueyue, had come down from Jiaozhou today to sit at a table with Song Wanqing, Xia Yao, and Meng Anhe's family.

Chen Yueyue was a teacher in Jiaozhou, and she and Song Wanqing hit it off immediately.

Chen Yueyue did not go with Zhou Hao to join him in the military. She worked as a teacher in Jiaozhou, usually living in the teachers' dormitory, and would go back to her parents' home for a short stay on weekends. She would also go back to Zhoucun once a month to visit her parents-in-law.

Seeing Song Wanqing and Xia Yao today, I was surprised, but mostly happy.

She gets along alright with her eldest and second sisters-in-law, but they don't really have much in common.

But I had a particularly good time chatting with Song Wanqing and Xia Yao. They were both educated young people, so we had a lot in common.

"Don't be shy, everyone. Eat while it's hot. We're all family, so let's not stand on ceremony. Eat and drink well!" Zhou Yan stood up and said loudly.

"Okay!" everyone replied with a smile and started eating.

"So many dishes! Mom, is it Chinese New Year?" Lin Bingwen swallowed hard as he looked at the table full of food.

Aside from Chinese New Year, I've never seen so many dishes on their table before, and they're all meat!

"Eating so well, are you trying to ruin your life?" Lin Jingxing was also shocked.

"The New Year is still a long way off. Today we're having a pig-slaughtering feast," Meng Anhe said with a smile. "Eat up, I've been saying I'm hungry for ages. Help yourself to whatever you want."

"Okay!" the two brothers replied happily, first handing their chopsticks to the twice-cooked pork in front of them, and eating with great relish.

"Wow! This braised pork intestine and blood tofu is so delicious! It's spicy, savory, and flavorful—perfect with rice! The pork intestine smells amazing; the braised pork intestine mixed with the sauce is absolutely amazing!"

"This twice-cooked pork with pickled mustard greens is absolutely amazing! Look how perfectly the 'lamp-shaped' filling is! Wrapped in pickled mustard greens, it's both crisp and tender, the taste is simply unbeatable."

"The cured pork and potato slices are delicious! Zhou Yan's pig-slaughtering feast today was truly outstanding!"

The praise from uncles and aunts was endless.

After a busy morning, everyone was starving, and a delicious pig-slaughtering feast was undoubtedly the best reward and thanks.

Add more rice, a spoonful of braised pork intestines and blood tofu, or a spoonful of Mapo tofu, and in the blink of an eye, half a bowl of rice is gone.

Add a piece of salted braised pork belly or twice-cooked pork, and it's absolutely delicious.

Everyone's face was beaming with a genuine smile.

As they ate, they chatted about their recent lives, interesting things that had happened, and some good things that had occurred recently.

A decent stir-fried potato slices with cured pork.

Zhou Yan's gaze fell on the stir-fried potatoes with cured pork in front of him. The cured pork was crystal clear, and the potatoes were slightly charred from being fried in the fat of the cured pork.

Pick up a piece with your chopsticks and put it in your mouth. The potato wrapped around the cured meat is salty, fragrant, soft and sticky. One bite is addictive!
This smells amazing!

"Brother, I want to eat potato slices too~~" Zhou Momo looked at her longingly. She was so small that her chopsticks couldn't even reach the plate.

"Here you go." Zhou Yan smiled and put a piece of cured meat and potato into her bowl.

"Thank you, bro~" Zhou Momo said, picked up a slice of potato, took a bite, and her eyes immediately crinkled into a smile.

The little guy can't hide his feelings; whether it tastes good or not is written all over his face.

"These potato slices are perfect when they're slightly charred on the surface; that's what makes them so delicious." The old lady who ordered the dish took a bite of the potato and nodded repeatedly.

　Asking for monthly ticket
　　
　
(End of this chapter)