Crossing 70: Fish in the Pond Have Good News

Chapter 313 Tofu

Jiang Yu and Xue Li stood in the corner listening to them gossiping about other people, and had a simple understanding of the woman they had just met.

A wife of an official. Although her husband is not a high-ranking official, she is already considered a top figure in this rural area.

How come I haven't seen such a powerful person two years ago? I haven't heard the team mention him?

Jiang Yu was a little confused. If she was not close to her mother's family, then there must be a reason why she suddenly came back to visit, but outsiders didn't know.

Everyone was gossiping about Wang Hongqi, talking about her clothes, her daughter, and the people she was with.

Not long after, Tofu Niang's son came in from outside. The moment he saw Jiang Yu, his eyes lit up, "Jiang Zhiqing, you're here."

Jiang Yu nodded at him, then asked him how long it would take for him to get the tofu.

"You can do it right now. Come with me." The man greeted her cheerfully, and then said to the other aunts, "Aunts, please wait a moment. There will be hot soy milk in a while. Everyone, have a sip too."

"Okay, we'll wait." The aunts were not in a hurry. They were bored at home. They could chat with their old sisters here and sleep on a warm kang. How comfortable.

The man took Jiang Yu and Xue Li to the kitchen.

Jiangyu ordered hard tofu because he wanted to make frozen tofu and tofu balls. He could buy two pieces of tender tofu separately, which can be used for cold dishes or soups.

Tofu Niang's grandmother and grandson took out Jiang Yu's two plates of tofu. The grandmother asked Jiang Yu, "How are you going to take it back? Otherwise, you can take the plate away first, put the tofu back, and then exchange it for it?"

"Is it okay?" Jiang Yu and Xue Li had actually forgotten about this matter. Just now, when they saw the tofu, they remembered that they couldn't take it. The other party's suggestion solved this problem at once.

"What's wrong with that? Take it and change it back to me later." The old woman looked nonchalant and took two pieces of gauze to cover the tofu for them. There were snowflakes floating outside and they had to block them.

"Okay, I'll send it back to you right away." Jiang Yu thanked him quickly, then he and Xue Li each carried a plate of tofu and left.

The aunts inside saw them leave and smacked their lips, "These young educated youth are really rich. They exchange tofu by the board."

"If anyone has Jiang Zhiqing's ability, he would never let his mouth down." It's normal for capable people to have money.

"Who says it's not true? Jiang Zhiqing is really amazing. I have seen many capable men in my life, but this is the first time I have seen such an amazing woman. She is also skillful, strong, and responsible. If she were a man, I would immediately give my daughter to him."

"It's so funny, you should keep your daughter for yourself!"

"If Jiang Zhiqing was a man, then Xue Zhiqing would be a perfect match for her. They are a perfect match, don't you think?"

"If you want to say that, I won't accept it. What's wrong with my daughter? My daughter is so capable, she has a round face and a big butt that can give birth to children. What's wrong with that?"

"Why don't you say that your daughter looks like your husband? Do you think it's appropriate for a man with an overbite to marry someone like Jiang Zhiqing, who looks like him and has such ability?"

Jiang Yu hadn't walked far when he vaguely heard the quarrel inside, and immediately pursed his lips in amusement.

It was just a joke, but those ladies took it seriously. They really have nothing better to do.

After bringing the tofu back to the educated youth site, Wu Aiqing quickly arranged them separately. A small portion of it was put in a wooden basin and placed outside the house to freeze, the portion used to make meatballs was placed in a large basin inside the house, and a few pieces were left to be cut into triangles and fried as a side dish.

Jiang Yu quickly returned one end of the empty wooden board to the owner.

On this day, every household in the construction brigade was busy, smoke was billowing out of every chimney, and the children in the brigade were running around with snacks given by their elders, and their laughter echoed throughout the brigade.

When Jiang Yu returned to the educated youth point after changing the tofu plate, he saw Wang Hongqi, the center of gossip, again.

She walked out wrapped in her coat with a serious expression, and seemed to be in a hurry. The people behind her were still the same ones, except that the little girl who was being held in her arms was missing.

When the two passed each other, Jiang Yu smelled a lingering and elegant fragrance from her.

Jiang Yu slightly turned sideways, clearing the path under his feet to let the group of people pass first.

The fragrance gradually faded away, and Jiang Yu's brows slightly wrinkled. That fragrance seemed a little familiar? Where had I smelled it before?

But was it really the first time that she and Wang Hongqi met, or had they passed each other in the commune before?

Jiang Yu's memory couldn't find any intersection between the two people. He could only say that the source of the fragrance was too strong, so he felt like he had seen it before.

There should be perfume at this time, right? Jiang Yu thought.

She soon forgot about this question. Smelling the aroma of food on the road, her mind was full of tonight's delicious dinner, so she had no time to care about Wang Hongqi.

Quickly returning to the educated youth point, Fu Biao was already making the preliminary preparations for making tofu balls under the command of Wu Aiqing.

Xue Li pierced two pieces of glutinous rice cakes with red bean paste filling with chopsticks, and when he saw Jiang Yu, he hurriedly called her, "Come and eat, it's fresh out of the pot!"

There were also sticky rice dumplings. Since the male educated youth got up early and didn't have time to eat breakfast, Wu Aiqing steamed some rice cakes that she had made two days ago, and a plate of dumplings with cabbage and meat.

Although Xue Li and Jiang Yu had already had breakfast, who could resist this sweet and sticky red bean rice cake? Of course they chose to join them and eat together!

Then a group of people started eating while working.

After a busy day, New Year's Eve arrives.

Because we had just a simple meal at noon, this dinner seemed particularly grand.

There was a table full of dishes, including chicken stewed with mushrooms, sauerkraut pork ribs, braised carp, braised roe deer meat, blood sausage, braised pork with radish, stir-fried bacon with cabbage, tofu and bacon, sweet and sour poached eggs, and steamed buns as the staple food.

Several people sat around the kang in a lively atmosphere, and began to enjoy the fruits of their day's labor.

Chicken stewed with mushrooms is a local specialty. The mushrooms are also picked from the mountains and dried by ourselves. The chicken is tender and the mushrooms are fresh and fragrant.

The sauerkraut in the sauerkraut pork ribs was exchanged by Wu Aiqing with an old man in the team. It is sour and appetizing, and the stewed soft and boneless pork ribs make it extremely delicious.

The carp was sent by Yi Chi. He dug a hole in a mountain stream and caught it. It was a big carp. After frying it slightly, he added water and seasonings and braised it. The skin was slightly wrinkled and the meat inside was tender.

The roe deer meat was brought back by Jiang Yu during his hunting trip. It was air-dried in the alley and stewed for an entire afternoon. The firm meat was stewed until it was soft and had a unique flavor.

Jiang Yu was holding a cup of sauerkraut soup in his hand and chewing a poached egg in his mouth, eating with great relish.