Chapter 173: Chapter 96: Time to Get Busy

The couple began to discuss the details one by one: how much to pay for a day’s labor, whether to provide one meal or two, and the need to rent an ox since they hadn’t managed to buy a suitable one yet.

Juhua listened to them talk as she worked. After cooking a pot of cornmeal mush, she was about to stir-fry some vegetables when she suddenly remembered the moldy tofu dregs. She hurried over to the corner and lifted the old clothes and straw covering the basket. Sure enough, the balls of dregs had grown a fine, grayish-white fuzz. They weren’t quite ready, though; they needed to mold for a few more days. If Juhua hadn’t warmed them previously, they wouldn’t have even gotten this far in the current weather.

Still, she couldn’t resist. She picked out three, rinsed them clean, and sliced them. They felt a little soft; if they were fully molded, they would have been much firmer and more solid.

When Mrs. Yang saw her take out the tofu dregs to cook, she asked anxiously, “Are they ready? Goodness! They’re covered in fuzz! Is this edible?”

Seeing her mother’s concern and not wanting to cause her any more worry, Juhua crumbled up a few pieces of the dregs and said to Zheng Changhe, “Dad, take this and feed it to the chickens. If they’re fine after eating it, then it must be safe, right?”

Mrs. Yang saw Zheng Changhe hesitating and knew he was worried about the chickens, afraid something might happen to them. She said irritably, “What are you waiting for? Are the chickens more precious than people?” Only then did Zheng Changhe head out with a sheepish chuckle.

Juhua watched her father’s retreating back with an amused smile. “I’m sure it’s fine to eat,” she told Mrs. Yang. “I’m just doing this to put your mind at ease, Mom. The moldy soybeans we use for sauce are much more fermented than this.”

Mrs. Yang smiled. “I know, but I’m just worried. It’s better to be safe. I’ll be the first one to try it later.”

This made Juhua laugh. She replied with fond exasperation, “Listen to yourself. If you get sick, wouldn’t that be even more trouble?”

’My parents are the pillars of this family. If one of them collapses, the family wouldn’t be a family anymore. Sigh! I have to spend forever explaining things just to eat some fermented tofu dregs.’

Juhua rendered some fat from a piece of pork, then stir-fried the tofu dregs in the oil. She added salt, a little chili paste, and some water, letting it simmer for a moment before transferring the mixture to a clay pot to stew on the charcoal stove.

She also stir-fried some napa cabbage until it wilted, setting it aside while still semi-cooked. Just before dinner, she would pour it over the tofu dregs, add some chopped green garlic and scallions, and let the fresh aroma fill the air. It had a unique, delicious flavor, different from regular tofu stewed with vegetables.

Zheng Changhe came back inside, laughing. “The chickens ate it and they’re fine! I guess people can eat it too. I’ll be the first to try it.”

Hearing this, Mrs. Yang and Juhua exchanged a look and burst out laughing together.

Their laughter left Zheng Changhe baffled. “What is it?” he asked. “I’m sturdier than you two. Even if it gives me an upset stomach, I can handle it.” It hadn’t even occurred to him that it could be deadly; he was just worried about getting a stomachache.

Juhua laughed. “Dad, nobody’s going to get sick. If the chickens were fine, then people will be too. Remember with the acorns? I didn’t dare make tofu from them until after I saw the pigs eat them first. Once you taste this, I’m afraid you’ll all be fighting for more.”

By dinnertime, the chickens that had eaten the dregs were still perfectly fine, which finally put Mrs. Yang’s mind at ease. When she tasted the tofu dregs stewed with greens, she found it delicious and said with a smile, “This is just as flavorful as the vegetable tofu you made before! These dregs are really something special.”

Qingmu and Zheng Changhe also agreed that it was delicious.

Juhua said, “This is really just food for us poor folk. We’d get tired of it if we had it every day. But since we’ve been eating richer food for the New Year, a dish like this is just perfect right now.”

Mrs. Yang added, “Once the rest of the dregs are ready, give some to Grandma Huang. She specifically said to let her know if you managed to make something delicious with them.”

Juhua replied, “Let’s give her half. If we want more, we can check the tofu shop at the market next time we go. If their dregs look clean, we can buy some to ferment.”

Mrs. Yang shook her head. “I still think the dregs from our own homemade tofu are better. The sellers at the market probably rinse all the flavor out of theirs. I doubt they’d taste as good when fermented.”

Seeing that her mother had hit on the key issue, Juhua nodded with a smile. “I was thinking the same thing. But there’s nothing to be done about it; nobody makes tofu on a regular day just for fun.”

Zheng Changhe slurped down two bowls of cornmeal mush, then caught his breath and said, “Don’t you worry. We’ll plant more soybeans this year. You can make tofu from them, and you can even eat the dregs. Isn’t that much better than just growing corn?”

Qingmu said eagerly, “I want to plant something on the wasteland, too. It’ll be exhausting, but at least we’ll have a harvest. I’ll go around the village tomorrow and see if anyone is willing to help us clear it.”

Zheng Changhe raised his voice. “Of course people will be willing! It’s not the spring planting season yet, so they’re all just sitting idle at home. Who wouldn’t want to earn some extra cash? I’ll even provide a midday meal!”

Mrs. Yang reassured Qingmu, “Don’t worry. You just focus on your studies. Your father and I will arrange everything at home. If you’re still concerned, you can ask your teacher for a few days’ leave to help out when we get really busy during the spring planting.”

Qingmu quickly replied, “I won’t even have to ask for leave. The academy gives us a few days off for that so all the students can go home and help. Our teacher is very reasonable. He says the spring planting is a major event and that as scholars, we can’t be ignorant about agriculture. We’re supposed to care about farming, he says there’s a great deal of knowledge in it. Even if one of us earns a title and becomes an official one day, these matters will fall under his jurisdiction.”

Zheng Changhe and Mrs. Yang only half-understood him, but they grasped the main point: the teacher didn’t look down on farmers and actually considered agriculture to be very important. This made them very happy.

Zheng Changhe laughed. “Your teacher is an impressive man, knowing even about farming.”

Qingmu spoke with great respect. “Our teacher is very broad-minded. He often asks us students about agricultural matters. He tells us about places he’s traveled to, what crops they grow, what the climate is like, and what they produce. Oh, and the village head mentioned that his plan to transplant the acorn trees in the spring was something he discussed with our teacher.”

Hearing this filled Zheng Changhe and Mrs. Yang with a profound sense of respect. A learned man was discussing agriculture as a scholarly subject, which in turn made them feel a sense of pride, as if their work as farmers wasn’t so lowly after all. (To be continued. If you enjoy this story, please consider supporting it with your votes on qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation!)

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep