Chapter 21 - 21 21 Family Dinner (2)_1

Words : 1021 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

21: Chapter 21: Family Dinner (2)_1 21: Chapter 21: Family Dinner (2)_1 First, she thoroughly washed the pig skin several times with coarse salt water, until there was no strange smell left. Then, she used a burning piece of firewood to sear it from one end to another. The hair on the skin was gone, but the dark, black roots could still be seen clearly inside the skin. Instead of immediately dealing with those roots, she put the skin in the pot and started boiling it. About half an hour later, she stopped the fire. She fetched the boiled pig skin out of the pot with a strainer, cooled it down with cold water, spread it out on the chopping board, and used an awl to pick out the dark remnants from the hair follicles one by one. Since the skin was boiled to a soft state, it was easy to remove the remnants. Before long, the pieces of skin were cleaned, becoming white chunks that were still giving off a strong aroma of meat. “It smells so delicious. Are you cooking meat, elder sister?” Wen’er and Fei’er followed the aroma and came in only to find Cai Wei using the back of a knife to scrape off the grease from the skin. They asked in surprise, “What are you doing, elder sister?” “I’m making crystal jelly.” “What’s crystal jelly? Can we eat it?” “Of course!” Wen’er sniffed at the air and said, “It smells so good, it must be delicious!” Cai Wei, shaking his little nose, laughed and said, “Don’t only think about eating. If you want to eat, you must pay some price first.” With a pleasing smile, Wen’er rubbed his small face against Cai Wei’s hand and said, “Just tell me what you want me to do, elder sister.” Cai Wei pointed to the greyish, oilish water in the pot, bubbling with white foam, and said, “Fetch the dirty water out of the pot, dump it, and clean the pot.” Wen’er, being obedient, rolled up his sleeves and stood on a stool beside the stove, right away started doing the job without another word. Fei’er asked, “What should I do, elder sister?” Cai Wei handed her a knife and commanded, “Chop these pieces of skin finely. The finer, the better. Be careful not to cut your hand!” With two free little workers, Mu Caiwei was happy to take a break. It wasn’t that she wanted to be lazy. It was just that her body wasn’t in good condition at the moment. After a bit of labor, she would be covered in cold sweat, gasping for air. She didn’t know if it was due to innate deficiency or malnutrition. It looks like she must go to a good medical center in town tomorrow. After all, health is the capital of revolution. This family is still counting on her! In the living room, their mother was measuring clothes for Little Wu’er by candlelight. Wu’er was happily cooperating with his mother’s movements. “Wu’er, let’s go take a trip with your sister.” Cai Wei said. Upon hearing that her daughter was going out at this late hour, Lady Du quickly asked, “Where are you going in such a dark, lightless night?” Cai Wei picked up Wu’er from the kang and started putting on his shoes. While doing so, she explained to her mother, “I’m going to bring Aunt Zhou some meat. I’ll be back soon.” Lady Du, still worried, said, “Why don’t we go tomorrow instead? It’s so late. They might have gone to bed already.” “That’s precisely why I’m going there while they are sleeping. Otherwise, Aunt Zhou would just keep talking and take me nowhere. It’s so annoying.” The thought of Aunt Zhou’s suggestive jokes made Cai Wei roll her eyes. Lady Du lowered her head silently, saying nothing. Actually, in her heart, she quite liked Jiu Jin. That boy was hard-working, sincere, and kindhearted, without any cunning intent or plots. Most importantly, he truly fancied her daughter, Wei’er! Which mother wouldn’t hope to find a son-in-law who would wholeheartedly cherish her daughter? Unfortunately, Wei’er, that girl, had absolutely no feelings for Jiu Jin. Every time Aunt Zhou or the villagers teased her about Jiu Jin, she didn’t argue back, but her calm and composed attitude was enough to prove that Jiu Jin was not in her heart. Otherwise, why wouldn’t she show even a little bit of girlish shyness? Oh well! The emperor isn’t in a hurry, but the eunuch is. Marriage is predestined by fate. Let’s leave it in the hands of Heaven. ... Cai Wei, holding five catties of fatty pork and pulling along Wu’er, went out. The reason she took Wu’er with her was to avoid any rumors that might damage her reputation. It was significant for a girl’s reputation in this era, even more so than their lives. Any slight mishap could cause her reputation to be ruined. Having Wu’er by her side would keep the gossipers from finding a handle against her. Under the moonlight, the brother and sister arrived at the door of Jiu Jin’s house. The house of Jiu Jin was all dark, with no lights on and no sound whatsoever. It looked like they had gone to bed early. Farmers usually went to bed very early at night. First, because it was too cold and sleeping on a hot kang was more comfortable than doing anything else. Second, they wanted to save lamp oil. The money saved from not lighting lamps during the whole winter could add up to a considerable amount. Therefore, as soon as night fell, the village would melt into the night, with hardly any families doing things by the light of oil lamps. Standing at the door, Cai Wei instructed Wu’er to knock. Wu’er cleared his throat solemnly, and with a childish voice, started calling, “Jiu Jin, Jiu Jin.” After the sound of rustling clothes, aunt Zhou’s voice came from the dark room inside, “Who is it?”

Chapter 21 - 21 21 Family Dinner (2)_1

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