Her Cultivation Diary

Chapter 33: 33. Making dumplings_1

Uncle Wu Chengtao’s wife was shocked by the result of her own analysis.

“Agricultural planting?”

It sounds so fancy, but isn’t it just farming? How promising can farming be? The economy is not doing well these days. Isn’t having a stable job better than anything else?

She hurriedly put the meat aside and came over to ask, “Big sister, are you serious?”

Wu Lan was washing vegetables. “Yes. Did you see the car at the door? Tantan earned it by selling wild vegetables.”

What a way to put it! It was clearly bought for selling wild vegetables.

Song Tan was blowing bubbles on the side. When the bubbles burst, she was also dumbfounded.

Qiaoqiao saw that she was stunned and quickly reached out to touch her head, “Don’t cry, don’t cry, Qiaoqiao will blow a big one for you.”

Song Tan found it funny, “Sister isn’t crying. Blow one for grandpa first!”

Their grandpa was getting old and his legs were not good. He had been in a wheelchair these recent years and had become increasingly listless. Now, with his granddaughter and grandson by his side, he looked very happy, his wrinkled mouth stretched into a broad smile.

It was Song Tan’s grandma, though, who was still working in the fields from time to time, more capable than many young people.

She looked at a large basin of shepherd’s purse, annoyed by the cold tap water, and pushed Wu Lan aside:

“What are you doing with so much shepherd’s purse from our fields? Why did you bring so much?”

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“Isn’t it said that Tantan can make money by selling it? It’s good to keep it for sale.”

The well water drawn from the tap was piercing cold, but the grandma seemed to feel nothing, obviously accustomed to it.

Wu Lan looked at her graying hair, but was not worried about money anymore, “This year’s wild vegetables are growing particularly well, and we’ve made quite a bit. We won’t miss this little amount. I’ve come today to make dumplings for you.”

“When you and my dad don’t feel like cooking, just boil some dumplings. They’re easy to chew and to digest.”

Although they share a yard, grandma and Uncle live apart, eat separately. They share good dishes when available, but they don’t usually eat together.

Uncle’s wife also joined in, “Big sister, what were you thinking? Look at our Tantan, how well she has grown up! After working in Ning City, finding a local there… what a blessed life she would lead!”

“Staying in the village, what kind of decent match could she find? Aren’t you holding her back?”

She glanced at Song Tan, who was playing with Qiaoqiao to entertain grandpa, and lowered her voice, “With Qiaoqiao like this, you can’t let him hold back your child.”

As someone with a slight preference for sons over daughters, the fact that Uncle’s wife would say this showed her genuine affection for the children.

Wu Lan wasn’t offended, “Sister-in-law, I didn’t agree at first, but when Tantan came back, she was so wan and frail, saying she got that way from working—only then did I relent, letting her recuperate for a year or so.”

“As for farming, she insisted on doing it, and I thought we have plenty of space at home, so I just let her dabble in it.”

But regarding the matter of a partner…

“She is very enthusiastic about farming right now, and the little money she had is long spent. Let her keep at it for now. When she gives up, then we can talk about going back to work.”

Working outside indeed wears people down. Uncle’s wife also has a son and a daughter struggling out there. Sighing at the thought, she put down the shepherd’s purse:

“Making dumplings, right? I’ll go mince the meat—oh my, you’ve taken way too much, these dumplings could fill an entire fridge once we’re done.”

Song Sancheng was feeling a bit greedy—chef Wu Lan, focused on making money, always thought of selling the wild vegetables instead of using them for home cooking, and unless Tantan insisted sternly, they wouldn’t even think about it.

By now, the family’s shepherd’s purse dumplings were long gone, never replenished.

So he said proudly, “Auntie, don’t worry! We say twenty yuan per half kilo for these wild vegetables, and it’s no boast. You’ll know when you eat them, they last a good while.”

Take his family of four, for instance. They need over a hundred dumplings for a meal!

Today brought ten pounds of shepherd’s purse, as well as some other stuff, but it definitely won’t last long.

Uncle Wu Chengtao’s wife didn’t believe it for a second, “We eat shepherd’s purse every year; what new flavor could possibly come out of it?”

Turning her head, she looked at the two large portions of meat and hurriedly called out again, “Qiaoqiao, go tell your uncle to come back and chop the meat!”

…

Before long, Uncle Wu Chengtao rushed back:

“Ah, good thing you called! I’ve already lost two hundred, and they wouldn’t let me leave the table. It was killing me!”

Uncle Wu Chengtao’s wife scolded him, “As soon as you lose at cards you want to run. If they had enough players, do you think anyone would have called you back?”

Uncle Wu Chengtao also felt wronged, “I suggested playing for one yuan a point, but they wouldn’t have it. Otherwise, I definitely wouldn’t have left.”

But who plays landlord for one yuan a point!

Uncle Wu Chengtao’s wife rolled her eyes and shoved a kitchen knife into his hand, “Hurry up, chop it fine. We’re making dumplings tonight.”

After washing his hands, Uncle Wu Chengtao turned his head and asked, “Whose car is that outside? Sancheng, did you get your driver’s license?” He looked eager as well.

Song Sancheng waved his hands repeatedly, “Not yet, not yet, I’m still studying for it. It’s not me; Tantan sold vegetables from home and earned some money, then bought a car, saying it’s more convenient to get out and about.”

Wow!

Song Tan thought to herself, why does everyone want to give her credit? No wonder she’s quite a talker—it’s all inherited.

Uncle Wu Chengtao looked at the car with envy, “A pickup truck is the best. You can load it up; it’s so practical. When Wu Lei wanted to buy a car, I told him to buy a big one, but he wouldn’t listen and still has his heart set on a small sedan, squeezing the whole family in like sardines.”

Uncle Wu Chengtao’s son, Wu Lei, used to work in the city. Recently, he got a girlfriend and followed her to Ning City. The family plans to pool some money together to buy a car for him first, giving them some face when visiting the girl’s family.

Glancing at the meat on the chopping board, he was stunned, “How many dumplings are we going to make with this?”

Wu Lan started laughing:

“I came back this time planning to load up a truck with straw to take back. Naturally, we need to buy more meat to make a gesture.”

Uncle Wu Chengtao glared at her:

“Straw is worthless. If you want to take it, take it. There’s so much of it all of a sudden. How long will it take us to eat all this?”

Song Sancheng still wore that mysteriously amused smile:

“This much for dumplings, if you guys can last till the end of the month, I’ll be impressed! Hurry up, the vegetables are all washed; it’s time to start kneading the dough.”

He was waiting to eat.

And so, the whole family busily got to work with great enthusiasm.

After the dough was ready, even the grandfather in the wheelchair began slowly wrapping dumplings.

The grandmother looked at the shepherd’s purse and took a sniff, nodding to herself, “No wonder you said this vegetable is twenty yuan. It really does smell different from before, so fragrant.”

Once she mentioned it, Uncle Wu Chengtao’s wife seemed to think it smelled a bit too good all of a sudden and generously said, “Mom, you and dad like your food soft. We’ll freeze these dumplings in your fridge. When you want to eat, just boil some. It’s nutritious and easier to digest.”

“We don’t need to, we’ll dig some up ourselves if we want any.”

Turning to Wu Lan, “If you want the straw, just take it directly. That stuff is only good for starting fires. We’re not even planning to grow rice this year. It’s too much trouble and not worth it compared to just buying it.”

Wu Lan didn’t stand on ceremony, “Okay, I’ll have Qiaoqiao and the others load up the truck later. But sister-in-law, just split the dumplings with mom; they really are different from other wild greens.”

She’s tried all the other wild greens in the village; none had this taste.