Carefree Farmwife: Training the Husband, Raising the Bun - Chapter 107

Madam Li answered cheerfully while washing potatoes, glancing over at Ying Su who was busy making potato noodles. The little bun and Dazhuang had gone to the academy and would only be back at noon.

When they left, the little bun, having heard that Ying Su was making something delicious, could hardly bring himself to walk away. He kept staring at her eagerly. 

Thanks to the improved family conditions and Ying Su’s skillful cooking, the little bun had grown plumper these days, and a little taller too. He no longer looked like when Ying Su first arrived, so skinny that his ribs could be seen.

Back when Ying Su first saw potatoes at Madam Li’s house, she had already thought about making potato noodles. But she had gotten distracted with matters at the Weixuan shop and forgot about it.

A few days ago, while wandering in Shili Town, she saw someone selling alum, and the idea came back to her. She bought some alum and began preparing to make potato noodles.

Worried that her first attempt might fail, Ying Su only made a small batch. She mixed the starch slurry, added alum and flour, and waited for the dough to ferment. When it was ready, Madam Li kept the fire going under the stove while Ying Su began dripping the dough into boiling water. She used her special large wooden ladle, riddled with holes, scooping the dough and letting it drip into the pot, fishing out the noodles as they cooked.

Madam Li was wide-eyed, watching in shock. After a while, she recovered and said, “Cuihua, how come this looks kind of like noodles to me?”

Here, noodles were called mian huhu (slurry noodles). Potato noodles did look a bit similar. Ying Su nodded, “A little, but they taste different.”

That small basin of dough turned into a whole pot of potato noodles, just in time for lunch. Ying Su made a rich broth with wild mushrooms and pork bones, fried three dishes, and brought out the leftover steamed buns from the morning, reheating them for the table.

As everything was set, the little bun and Dazhuang came rushing home from school. The moment they entered, they smelled the fragrance and dashed to the table like hungry cats.

Ying Su quickly brought over a basin of clean water and called, “Wash your hands before eating.”

The boys hurried over, washed obediently, then ran back to the table full of excitement. Madam Li came out from the kitchen carrying a steaming pot of potato noodles.

The two children sniffed in unison and exclaimed, “It smells so good!”

Madam Li laughed, “Doesn’t it? Your mother really knows how to work wonders. No matter how ordinary the ingredients, in her hands they turn into something else entirely.”

Ying Su just smiled quietly, sitting down with Madam Li. They were about to eat when a knock came from outside, along with a woman’s voice, “Cuihua, Cuihua, little sister, are you at home?”

Madam Li listened carefully and frowned, “This voice… it sounds familiar.”

Ying Su stood up, “You all eat first, I’ll get the door.”

She had recognized the voice, it was Li Zhen, Aunt Wei Ying’s eldest daughter. But Li Zhen had married far away in a village near Xiling Mountain. It was hard for her to come back, so why would she be here now?

Opening the door, she saw it was indeed Li Zhen, looking hurried. When Li Zhen saw Ying Su, her face showed hesitation.

“Big Sister, you’re looking for me?” Ying Su asked, stepping aside to invite her in.

Li Zhen forced a dry smile, about to step in, but then noticed Madam Li and the children in the hall. She quickly turned around and backed out of the doorway. “You’re eating, I won’t come in.”

Ying Su sensed her nervousness and said kindly, “It’s fine. Have you eaten? I just cooked, if not, join us.”

Li Zhen shook her head vigorously. “No, no! I… I already ate.”

Ying Su nodded. “Then, what brings you here?”

“Noth—nothing much…” Li Zhen glanced inside again, looking guilty.

Ying Su found it a bit amusing. “If it’s nothing, why not come sit for a while?”

Li Zhen shook her head again, then finally gritted her teeth, lowered her voice, and blurted out, “You should go back to Xiling Village when you have time. See your mother. Her health is getting worse and worse. I fear she won’t make it through this winter. I know little Brother Shen came to find you, but you refused to acknowledge him. If it weren’t for my husband insisting, I wouldn’t have come either.”

Ying Su’s heart tightened with worry. Was her mother really that sick? She recalled her last meeting with Shen Changyun and how it was clear their family wasn’t doing well, perhaps they couldn’t even afford medicine.

Seeing that Ying Su was listening, Li Zhen sighed in relief and continued, “When I married into Xiling Village, you’d already been gone half a year. In the years after, whenever Dachui and I struggled, it was Second Uncle Shen’s family who secretly helped us.”

“Your elder brother was close to Dachui, and before he left he asked us to look after your family. But you know Old Master Shen’s temper, ever since your disappearance, Second Uncle Shen’s household has only suffered more.”

Li Zhen, flustered, spoke whatever came to mind, her words somewhat jumbled. She added, “The one who tricked you away, Liu An, he became an official in the capital. When your elder brother and Changyun went looking for him, he had your brother thrown into prison, and he crippled Changyun’s leg. In anger, your brother enlisted in the northwest army, swearing to earn military merit and come back to settle accounts with Liu An!”

Li Zhen scratched her cheek, glanced around the courtyard, and, seeing Madam Li hadn’t come out, she went on, “But your brother’s been gone for four years now. Not a word has come back. People in the village say… he might never return. Changyun is hardworking, but your family is too powerful for him alone to bear. Anyway, just think about it, that’s the family that gave you life and raised you. I’ve said what I came to say.”

Ying Su frowned slightly, her heart tangled with a thousand thoughts, sour, regretful, unsure whether these emotions belonged to the body’s original owner or to herself.

Li Zhen, seeing her silence, said quickly, “Don’t tell Auntie that I was here. I’ll be going.”

Without waiting for a reply, she hurried away, afraid Madam Li would recognize her. Li Zhen had already seen clearly enough, just from how Shen Changyun had been thrown out of the shop the last time he came to find Cuihua, it was obvious Madam Li’s household didn’t want her to acknowledge her family.

In fact, Shen Changyun had tried once more to visit Weixuan Shop, but Liu Chuncao and Li Dalang had driven him out, saying he was trying to claim false kinship. Changyun had no way left, he feared his mother would die without seeing her daughter again. Feeling sorry, Wang Dachui had pleaded with Li Zhen to come and persuade Ying Su.

Ying Su stood dazed at the doorway for a while before closing it and returning to the hall.

Madam Li looked up from her rice bowl. “Who was it?”

Picking up her chopsticks, Ying Su replied calmly, “Just an aunty from the village I don’t know.”