Saturday noon is the busiest ti in the i family.
Feng Yiping returns from school, and Rongrong and Ruirui from his eldest uncle's house, and Yangyang and Yunyun from his third uncle's house are all there. The children still want to play with their peers, and Rongrong and Yangyang are both in primary school, while Ruirui and Yunyun are about the sa age. The four children don't often get together, so they all have a good ti.
Rongrong and Yangyang do their howork together. Yangyang is a boy and a bit of a rascal, often grabbing Rongrong's stationery. Rui and Yun, on the other hand, are both holding one of Feng Yiping's legs as they race up the stairs.
i Jianzhong is also in particularly good spirits, busy at the stove, watching the grandchildren, and the wrinkles on his face are all smiling.
The ribs and radishes in the pot have been simring on a low heat for half the morning. i Jianzhong finally adds so salt, tastes it himself, feels unsure, and calls Feng Yiping over to taste the saltiness. Feng Yiping walks over like a crab, dragging a burden behind him, and tastes it with a spatula. 'It's a bit bland, it definitely won't go with rice, but they'll just eat it.'
The soup made with the farm's own pigs is full-bodied and delicious, and it's incomparable to the most expensive pork bought in the supermarket later! The local winter radish is very famous. You can pull it up from the ground, wipe off the mud, peel off the outer skin, and eat it directly. Unlike so radishes that have a spicy taste, this kind of radish is very good, crisp and juicy, and has a light sweetness.
As the old saying goes, 'eat radish in winter and ginger in sumr, and you won't need a doctor's prescription.' So many adults and children eat it like fruit. Twenty years later, Feng Yiping's stewed radish and pork ribs soup, stewed for half a day, is still watery and tasteless, the at is not delicious, nor is the radish, so you can only drink the soup. Now the two are combined, with the freshness of the at and the sweetness of the radish, it's amazing.
At this mont, Feng Yiping felt a sudden release in his legs. It turned out that Rui Rui and Yun Yun had let go of him and ran over to hug their grandfather's legs, staring up at him with such longing that it was as if their throats were about to stretch out and produce little paws.
'Good, the soup is ready, you guys eat first. Rong Rong, get the bowls, Yang Yang, bring the table over.'
The so-called table was for their exclusive use. An old square table, with all four legs sawed off by their eldest uncle, and square stools just big enough for the little ones to sit on.
They served each of them a bowl of rice, and asked Rongrong and Yangyang to serve them. Feng Yiping and their grandfather prepared the fish.
They were all small fish with long fingers, cleaned of all internal organs, marinated in seasoning for an hour, coated in a layer of flour, and fried in oil until golden brown, overflowing with fragrance.
Two plates of fried fish were piled high, and the oil was still there. After dinner, they would fry so turnip dumplings.
They didn't eat, but took a sip of soup and a bite of fried fish, enjoying themselves imnsely. i Jianzhong kept saying, 'Eat slowly, it's hot,' next to them.
This ti, before they finished eating, Auntie San ca in with Dongdong in her arms. 'Dad, no wonder they were so eager to co to your place after school today, it turns out you were cooking a private al for them. Dad, you can't just love your grandchildren and not your son!'
i Jianzhong asked her, 'Have you eaten?'
Feng Yiping stood up with his bowl, "Third Aunt, you sit." and escaped to the backyard.
Third Aunt grabbed a few fish and said to Feng Yiping while chewing, 'Yiping, I was just about to talk to you about sothing.'
Feng Yiping stood there helplessly, just as his auntie ca over from next door with a bowl in her hand. She didn't go inside, but stood in the doorway, eating and talking at the sa ti, 'Oh, boss, what brings you here today? What, did you co because you could sll it?'
This is a typical way of scolding soone without using swear words.
Today, his auntie was unusually quiet, and she thrust the object in her arms into her eldest auntie's hands, 'Dongdong, this is your eldest auntie, don't you miss her?'
She then grabbed Feng Yiping, 'Yiping, I heard that your parents are doing very well in the provincial capital, making hundreds of dollars a day. They pay your grandfather to buy you at and fish every week to cook for you, and they've also collected several thousand dollars' worth of chestnuts. They must have a lot of money. Now the oil mill business is not doing well, and if it weren't for you, Yangyang and Yunyun wouldn't be able to eat at even once a month. And Dongdong, there's no money for formula milk. Your uncle and I have been talking about buying a new oil press, but we just don't have enough money. Please talk to your parents and help us out. A few thousand is not too much, and a few hundred is not too little. Once we get the oil press and start making money, we'll pay you back right away!'
Before i Jianzhong and Feng Yiping could say anything, the eldest aunt spoke up, 'Hey, boss lady, that's not right. Brother and sister have earned this hard-earned money with hard work. They can't afford to eat or drink in the provincial capital, and they work long hours. It's not bad if they can earn a hundred yuan in a few days. You think everyone earns a hundred yuan a day just like you? We've collected thousands of catties of chestnuts, but we still owe most of them. It was only because Dad and Guosheng went to everyone's house to say nice things that the villagers let us owe them. And it was agreed that the money must be repaid by the end of the year.
Besides, when your brother and sister built their house, they borrowed money from everywhere, and you didn't help. Every ti they ca, you didn't even feed them once. Now you have the nerve to ask for a few hundred or a few thousand. You think everyone owes you. You're married here now, so if you don't take the kids back to your parents' house, Guoping won't buy the new oil press and you won't co back.'
Auntie Feng Yiping quietly praised his aunt in his heart. She was still righteous, standing up for what's right when she saw injustice!
Auntie Feng Yiping didn't really mind her, except that she valued money too highly and liked to take advantage of others. But then again, there weren't many people who didn't like to take advantage of others, and Feng Yiping liked to take advantage of others too.
There is one thing he rembers very clearly about his third aunt. In 1996, Feng Yiping was in his second year of secondary school. In addition to tuition and fees, his family had to scrape together money every month for his living expenses. They borrowed from everyone they knew, but the situation was made worse by the fact that i Qiuping had fallen ill after working too hard during the autumn harvest. When she was taken to the hospital, a deposit of 2,000 was required. At that ti, the family could not even co up with 200, let alone 2,000. However, the hospital would not accept her without the deposit. Feng Zhenchang looked for ways to raise the money, and finally managed to scrape together 500 yuan. At that ti, Feng Yiping's third uncle ca over in a hurry with 1,500 yuan, which was considered paynt of the deposit. She stayed in the hospital for a month before she was discharged after recovery.
The following year, in 1997, many people in the village felt that Feng Yiping and the others going to a technical secondary school was useless. The money was just going to waste, and even if they graduated they wouldn't be able to find a job, let alone a good one. Of course they wouldn't be able to pay back the money they borrowed.
So when Feng Yiping went ho for his monthly leave, his second uncle told him that his third aunt had co to the house alone to ask for the 1,500 yuan. His parents kept saying that they really didn't have it and couldn't pay it back at the mont, and in the end, his third aunt fell to her knees in front of them.
Of course, it was mainly because of money. Just as it is now, if Feng Yiping had enough money, his aunts wouldn't argue.
Auntie San was choked by a few words from Auntie Da, and according to her nature, she couldn't just let it go when she ca back to her senses. She wasn't in a hurry to tell Feng Yiping about borrowing money for the ti being, and she had to get her ground back first. Once she opened her mouth, Auntie Da really couldn't handle it alone.
i Jianzhong's face grew darker and darker, and Feng Yiping slipped quietly towards the backyard. As soon as he reached the door, he heard a 'clang' sound, as if a bowl had been dropped on the ground, followed by a 'thud' sound, and then the sound of crying ca. He hurriedly ran towards the back.
It turned out that Yang Yang didn't want to see his mother argue, so he took his bowl and went to the backyard. A while ago, his grandfather and eldest uncle helped to collect chestnuts, and the cart was kept in the backyard with the wheels unloaded. Yang Yang is a naughty boy, so he sat on the axle between the two wheels with his bowl, eating while propping his feet on the ground. The two wheels rolled back and forth. If he wasn't careful, if he put too much force on his feet, the wheels would roll forward suddenly. He didn't keep up, and sat down with his bottom in the air. slid backwards down the bar, and the bowl flew backwards, spilling the rice and soup in the bowl onto his head. It wasn't too hot, but his bottom had hit the ground hard, and the soup had got into his eyes, which hurt.
Feng Yiping helped him up, carefully scraping the rice off his head and face, and wiped his face with his sleeve. Fortunately, the food had cooled quickly in the winter, so he wasn't burned. When he blew air into his eyes, they weren't red, just a little irritated by the salty soup.
Third Auntie rushed over, took Yangyang in her arms, and comforted him, saying, 'It's nothing, just a fall, it's all right.'
i Jianzhong was also angry, 'Keep arguing, keep arguing, you won't be happy until sothing happens!'
Auntie San retorted, "What kind of logic is that? Dad, Yangyang fell at your place, so why are you blaming ?'
Feng Yiping looked at her, his head spinning, and hastily said, "Auntie San, it's best to take Yangyang to the clinic to have a look, just in case he's suffered any burns.'
Auntie San stopped talking, and ignoring Dongdong, who was being carried by her sister, she ran with Yangyang to the health centre.
Well, it looks like there's going to be a lot going on this afternoon. Feng Yiping went to the oil mill to find his uncle first. He couldn't let Auntie San continue causing trouble at his grandparents' house. Then he told his grandfather that he had an appointnt with Wang Changning in the afternoon to do howork together, and he went to Wang Changning's house. Before leaving, he told his grandfather, 'Grandpa, why don't you go outside if you don't want to go downstairs?'
So after Sanjiu Guoping took Yunyun and Dongdong away, Grandpa locked the door and walked straight up the hill with a sickle in his hand. Soon after, Da Jiu's family also locked the door and went out. By the ti Sanjiumai returned with Yangyang on her back, both families had locked their doors, so she couldn't find anyone to take out her anger on.
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