Traveling Through Those Years Of Farming (Quick Transmigration) - Chapter 9

Lu Xiuyu has only been in this world for a short time, and after having once struggled in the food industry, she no longer has an overwhelming desire for delicious food, having tasted countless new dishes every day.

She simply watches with a smile as her little darling happily chews on the pig intestines, clearly satisfied. After the girl swallows a piece, she digs out a sausage from the pot.

“Don’t swallow it whole; you probably haven’t even tasted it yet. Try another piece.”

The older girl is practically spouting nonsense with her eyes wide open. Heaven knows how much Lu Baobao treasures that piece of pig intestine—she chews it for a long time, unwilling to swallow it. How could it be what the older girl describes as swallowing it whole?

“Well, it seems I really didn’t taste it.”

Even though Lu Baobao has developed thick skin from her parents, she feels embarrassed at this moment. However, the power of food is too strong. She can only puff out her belly and lean toward her eldest cousin, opening her mouth, waiting for the next bite.

The sausage is softer and stickier compared to the pig intestine but just as flavorful.

“Ahem.”

Lu Miao, who is standing by, coughs as she watches this scene, her expression serious and rigid.

“The sausage is too hot, so I swallowed it whole, and it seems I didn’t taste it clearly,” the old lady says, managing to deliver her not-so-serious words with the most serious expression.

Lu Xiuyu and Lu Baobao can’t help but laugh in their hearts, but they keep their faces as serious as the old lady’s.

“I’ll pick another piece of pig liver for grandma,” Lu Xiuyu offers, selecting a large piece since pig liver and lungs absorb flavors easily.

“Mm.”

Lu Miao nods, completely unaware of what her two granddaughters are thinking about her.

******

“It’s time for dinner.”

At mealtime, all the men who have been working in the fields return, and the women begin to prepare and serve the dishes on the table.

“Is this the pig offal made by the eldest girl? It smells so good!” Xu Jiaoniang takes over the task of serving the dishes, unable to stop drooling at the scent of the sour and spicy pig offal.

While the dishes are being cooked, the kitchen door stays closed, and only the outer windows are open. The smell of cooking drifts outside the wall. The women busy in the front yard at the time naturally catch the fragrance.

Now the pig offal is a little cold, and the aroma isn’t as overpowering as when it was freshly fried, but it still stirs the hunger in everyone’s stomachs.

“The eldest girl’s first time cooking surely can’t compare to mother’s skills,” Jiang Baie says modestly, eagerly anticipating a taste of her daughter’s cooking. “Go and serve the rice.”

The men have worked hard for a long time, and the sour and spicy aroma in the air makes them hungry enough to finish three or four bowls of rice.

“What are you shouting about? It’s not like I starve you on weekdays.”

Lu Miao comes out with a pottery pot full of sweet potato rice. With so much work in the fields lately, even the wise old lady knows she can’t treat the men in the family harshly right now. Therefore, the family eats hearty rice every noon, and the portions are large.

“Serve the rice.”

After rolling her eyes at her sons, Lu Miao hands the bowls to her daughters-in-law and instructs them to serve rice to their men.

“Mother, is this pig offal?” The third son, Lu Jiahou, picks up a piece of pig offal with his chopsticks, his expectations dropping significantly.

It smells so good; he thought it was pork, but it turns out to be a plate of pig offal. Doesn’t anyone know what that tastes like?

“Well, it’s the eldest girl’s first time cooking, and it tastes pretty good.”

The old lady nods, subtly quickening her own serving of rice. She has only tasted two pieces, and her craving hasn’t yet passed.

“The eldest girl has also started to learn to cook. She’s really becoming sensible.”

Lu Jiahou loses interest upon hearing this. What kind of decent food could a little girl make? He fears the taste of this pig offal will be worse than what his mother used to make. It feels like just a show.

So he reaches for the two pots of stir-fried vegetables on the side and eats them with his rice.

“Dad, Mom, the eldest cousin’s cooking is delicious; you should try it!”

The second wife is always enthusiastic when it comes to eating. Jiang Bai’e and Liu Lanhua have just helped their husbands serve rice, and the three from the second wife have already filled their bowls with mostly rice and little sweet potato.

Lu Baobao worries that her parents are as clueless as her third uncle and might leave the delicious pig offal uneaten, so she quickly picks up a large piece for them before helping herself.

The three of them share similar tastes. Seeing their daughter’s actions, they know she must have lingered in the kitchen and tasted the pig offal herself. Without hesitation, they stuff the pieces Lu Baobao picked for them into their mouths.

The three of them shared similar tastes. Seeing their daughter’s actions, they knew she must have cooked in the kitchen and tasted the pig offal. Without hesitation, they stuffed the pieces Lu Baobao picked for them into their mouths.

Lu Jiahou gradually comes to his senses as he watches his second brother and sister-in-law’s reaction. With a look of disbelief, he grabs the plate of sour and spicy pig offal with his chopsticks. The rest of the family follows suit.

The scene that follows is like a fierce battle, with a cacophony of sounds…

Not only do they finish a large pot of rice, but the family still feels unsatisfied. It must be said that the sour and spicy flavor easily stimulates the appetite.

At that moment, only one piece of sausage remains in the pot, and Xu Jiaoniang has already used the remaining broth to mix with her rice. The sour and spicy taste is simply irresistible to her as a pregnant woman.

“Mom, the baby in my belly says it wants another piece of sausage,” Xu Jiaoniang says, turning to the old lady hesitantly.

“Mom, I suddenly feel a bit unwell; maybe it’s because I worked in the fields for so long this morning. If I could just have a piece of sausage, I’d feel better,” Lu Jiafu feigns weakness, looking at the old lady with yearning eyes.

The couples from the first and third rooms silently curse the shameless couple. They want to compete for the last piece of sausage, but they aren’t so thick-skinned after all.

“Hmph, no one can touch this piece; leave it to your father.”

Lu Miao, undeterred, ignores the couple. She gets up, takes the plate, and locks it in the cabinet to prevent the two greedy ones from stealing it.

“I didn’t expect the eldest girl to have such skill.” Lu Jiahou praises his niece from the first branch. “Anyway, pig offal can’t be sold for much money. Mother, why don’t we sell our offal in the future?”

Without Lu Jiahou’s reminder, the old lady has already made this plan. 

Thinking about having such delicious pig offal for every meal in the future, Xu Jiaoniang and Lu Jiafu feel no disappointment. They worry they might be asked to wash dishes and clean up later, so they quickly pull their daughters into the room, claiming that the baby in their bellies is causing a fuss and they aren’t feeling well.

It’s best to take a nap when full. Maybe they can still taste the hot and sour pork offal in their dreams. 

The first and third wives curse the lazy couple inwardly. Seeing that the old lady doesn’t say anything, they can only endure it.

******

“I’m back, wife! I am lucky today. Several families are preparing to kill pigs and sell them. I ordered six pigs. They’re planning banquets this month, so these pigs will be enough. Hahaha, we’ll earn a lot again!”

Old Butcher Lu returns shortly after the family finishes dinner.

“Why are you back so early? We didn’t save any food for you,” Lu Miao says, not expecting him to gather all the pigs so quickly. The rice steamed in the afternoon has already been eaten, leaving nothing for Old Butcher Lu.

“No need; I had noodles outside.”

Old Butcher Lu smiles. In truth, he completed his task long ago, but he doesn’t want to eat at home, so he lingers outside until dinner time and eats two large bowls of plain noodles before coming back.

The old woman at home is good in every way, but she is too shrewd. Their family runs a meat stall, yet the days when they can eat meat are few and far between.

However, Old Butcher Lu also knows that the old lady has made greater contributions. Since Lu Miao took over the family, in addition to sending the children to school, the Lu family gradually acquired 12 acres of high-quality land, part of which is cultivated by the family and part is rented out.

According to Lu Miao, the sons will eventually have to separate when they grow up. When the children can’t care for them, the land will be their livelihood. Saving more money now to buy land ensures their future security.

Old Butcher Lu understands that the old lady is worried about the second son’s family. He himself is biased; after all, the second son has been sick often as a child, causing him and the old lady sleepless nights, fearing he might not survive. This worry persists even now, despite knowing that their son’s weakness is mostly exaggerated.

Thus, the old man accepts the old lady’s decisions. If she wants to save money, so be it. Most of the family’s income is earned by him, and it is up to them to decide how to spend it.

“Hehe.” Lu Miao guesses what Old Butcher Lu is thinking and sneers. “The eldest girl fried the pig offal, and it tastes pretty good. I saved you a piece to try.”

That old man has snuck out for a little treat again—no wonder he misses out on such delicious sour and spicy pig offal. Lu Miao glares at her husband, thinking, does she really treat him so poorly? Forget it; she decides not to give him the jar of sorghum wine she bought from the county the other day.

“Okay, I’ll give it a try.” Lu Laotuo smiles at the old lady and casually tosses the piece of sausage into his mouth. After so many years of butchering pigs, how could he not know what pig offal tastes like? 

He pays it no mind while eating, but as soon as the sausage hits his tongue, his expression changes immediately .Forget the plain noodles! He really wants to slap himself for dragging things out this morning and not coming home sooner. 

“From now on, we won’t sell any pig offal; let the big girl handle it.” He thinks to himself, planning to kill a few more pigs tomorrow to satisfy his cravings.

Lu Baobao follows her parents back to their room. As soon as she lies down, she feels a sharp, burning pain in several places on her body. Just now, her attention is focused entirely on the sour and spicy pork. Now that she feels relaxed, the hidden injuries from carrying a bamboo basket to cut grass for the pigs during the day start to flare up.

Lu Baobao doesn’t want her parents to worry, so she grits her teeth and endures the pain, trying to distract herself with random thoughts.

 Right! What if the big cousin really is a time traveler? Would she suspect Lu Baobao?

She bites her lip, not wanting her current life to take an unexpected turn. Even if this big cousin seems nice, she has no intention of acknowledging her. 

From what she can see, the big cousin doesn’t seem to suspect her at all. That’s right—time travelers in ancient times either invented soap and perfume or created cement and glass. At the very least, they establish a new culinary trend like her big cousin, leading their families to wealth.

And what has she accomplished in the past two years? She has either found ways to slack off or followed her grandparents around, flattering them for a taste of something good—where is the aura of a time traveler in that?

Sigh, it turns out that she is the one who isn’t ambitious, the one who doesn’t deserve to be suspected. Thinking about it makes her a little sad.