Chapter 31 p1
Half a month passed quickly. Song Yugui received her three hundred wen wages and went home. There was still some time before the New Year, but she had already started sharpening her knives. They only had two pigs in total, so she couldn’t afford to make a mistake when slaughtering them.
There weren’t that many supplies to spare.
Shen Xizhi had also stayed at the restaurant with her wife for half a month. Although her wife later told her she didn’t have to go and could play at home, she didn’t listen and always clung to her, wanting to be with Yugui-jiejie every day.
As Song Yugui was practicing with the butcher’s knife, she suddenly remembered that in the novel, the female lead seemed to have moved to Songjia Village after the New Year. It was the New Year festival, so everyone didn’t have to work and was in a good mood, expressing a warm welcome to the female lead’s arrival.
Perhaps… it was after this year’s New Year?
Was the plot about to begin?
Song Yugui frowned in thought, chopping the cutting board with the butcher’s knife and then pulling it out.
An old woman slowly approached the gate, her expression very hesitant. After a long while, she pushed open the outer fence, making a slight creaking sound, and called out, “Yugui.”
Hearing the noise, Song Yugui subconsciously looked up and saw an old woman she didn’t recognize. She took two steps out, and the other quickly backed away, staring in terror at the butcher’s knife in her hand.
Turtle was silent.
She put down the butcher’s knife before going over again, her voice gentle. “Can I help you with something?”
She didn’t use a form of address, as she really didn’t know what to call her.
She was also afraid of getting it wrong and arousing suspicion, as she had already made that mistake before.
Seeing that her attitude today was quite polite, even using the respectful “you,” the other silently breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that she had made the right choice in coming to her.
“Yugui, my family wants to slaughter a pig today.”
Song Yugui was stunned.
She observed her expression for a moment, then continued, “The butcher we had arranged for raised the price today. I heard that you’ve been wanting to start butchering again recently. Why don’t you… come and help me out?”
Song Yugui suddenly understood, but she was also a little panicked. Ah, but I haven’t even practiced on my own pig yet. What if I do a bad job?
“This… I haven’t butchered a pig in a long time. I’m afraid my skills are rusty.”
If only I had inherited my family’s business back in the modern world and not been so ashamed of it. Being a ‘Pork Princess’ would have been great! Now I’m completely in the dark.
Hearing her say this, the old woman knew there was a chance and quickly added, “It’s alright, it’s alright if you do a slightly worse job. It’s just that I can probably only give you twenty wen for the money, and I’ll give you some more pork. You know, my family is just a widow and a single mother…”
She pretended to wipe the corner of her eye, as her family was indeed in a difficult situation.
Usually, a butcher charged forty wen for slaughtering a pig. Her family didn’t have much money, just an old woman and a daughter-in-law, so they had hired a cheaper one for only thirty wen. But at the last minute, he had raised the price to forty wen. Her family was not one to be bullied, so they had argued with him and he had left. But the pig had already been washed and held down, just waiting to be slaughtered today.
After much hesitation, she had decided to ask Song Yugui.
She knew that Song Yugui had a bad temper and hadn’t butchered a pig in a long time, so she had lowered the price by ten wen. If she was unwilling, she would raise it back up.
Song Yugui was already very happy to have a pig to practice on, let alone get paid for it. Hearing that the other didn’t mind her rusty skills from not having butchered a pig in a long time, she didn’t hesitate for long before agreeing. “Alright, I’ll be right there. I’ll have to trouble you to lead the way, Auntie.”
“Aiya!”
The old woman’s old, cloudy eyes were filled with surprise.
Shen Xizhi had been listening from inside the house. Knowing that her wife was going to slaughter a pig for someone, she quickly ran out with a bib in her hand, stood in front of her wife, her eyes bright, and said with soft anticipation, “I’ll go with you.”
Song Yugui knew she was clingy and that she didn’t dare to stay at home alone. She had said she was afraid that people like Song Bao would come to the house to bully her.
Song Yugui didn’t think she was wrong. The security in ancient villages was not very good, and it was safer to have her by her side.
“Mmm, then you stand far away. Don’t listen to the sound. It will be very scary.”
She had once brought her classmates home to watch her slaughter a pig when she was a B-king, and had scared a group of girls and boys into screaming and turning pale. Those who didn’t know would have thought she was killing people behind closed doors.
Shen Xizhi obediently replied, “Mmm, then you be careful. Don’t hurt your hand.”
The young woman’s voice was soft and sweet. When she spoke words of concern, her eyes seemed to also hold some worry.
But…
How could I hurt my hand? You’re questioning my professional skills! I might not have the feel for cutting the meat, but I won’t hurt my hand. If a butcher hurts his hand with a butcher’s knife, wouldn’t that be a joke?
Song Yugui stroked her wife’s head and said simply, “I won’t. Let’s go.”
“Mmm, mmm.”
The old woman couldn’t bear to see the intimacy between the two women, but she couldn’t say anything, so she had to quickly turn around and face away from them until they were ready to follow her.
They carried their equipment and followed the old woman to her house. Her house was actually quite close, just four or five hundred meters down the slope.
The three of them chatted for a while on the way. Song Yugui learned that this auntie lived with her daughter-in-law. Her husband had died early, and her son had also died young from a cold, leaving only her daughter-in-law and her, an old woman.
However, when Song Yugui arrived at her house, she didn’t see any daughter-in-law. Her house was well-maintained. She had heard that it had been renovated early on when her family was still around. In the future, when she had money, she would definitely build a better one for Shen Xizhi.
“Aiya, Yugui, thank you for your trouble. The pig is in the backyard.”
“Mmm, okay.”
Song Yugui turned to look at Shen Xizhi. “You wait for me out here.”
There were many people standing in the auntie’s house, most of whom were from Shenjia Village, waiting to buy some fresh pork. There were also some from other villages. Their gazes swept over Song Yugui and Shen Xizhi, most of them filled with surprise and uncertainty.
They had actually managed to get Song Yugui to come. With her temper, they had thought it would be good enough if she didn’t fly into a rage.
Her wife, who rarely associated with others, had also come with her. Looking at her today… she had really blossomed into a beauty.
When Shen Xizhi saw so many people, she subconsciously hid in her wife’s embrace. Song Yugui took her slender, jade-like hand and looked down at her, as if concerned about what was wrong.
At the same time, after hearing those words, Shen Xizhi obediently came out of her embrace, shook her head to indicate that nothing was wrong, and replied, “Oh, you go ahead. I’ll wait for you here.”
“Mmm.”
Song Yugui carried her butchering tools and went in. Some of the men in the room also followed her in to watch. The rest stayed in the room, talking and laughing. Only a few occasionally spoke to Shen Xizhi.
Shen Xizhi didn’t feel neglected. She looked down at the tips of her shoes with her head bowed and didn’t take the initiative to talk to others.
It wasn’t until the daughter-in-law of the house came out.
“You must be Song Yugui’s wife. Ya, it’s rare to see you out. What are you doing standing outside? Come in and sit down.”
Seeing someone talking to her, Shen Xizhi pressed her lips together. “No, thank you. I’ll just wait for her outside.”
“Aiyo, it’s so cold today. How can we let you stand outside? Come in. There’s still room to sit inside.”
Shen Xizhi pressed her lips together. In the end, she couldn’t resist the other’s enthusiasm and nodded slightly, going inside.
She was famous in the surrounding villages. At first, she was famous for her jade-like beauty. Later… she was openly married to a woman by her family, becoming the only lesbian couple in the several villages.
From then on, her fame spread, and she was mostly mentioned with disdain and contempt, as if the union of two women was something to be ashamed of.
She had never felt that there was anything to be ashamed of. As long as the other treated her well, as long as she could survive, what difference did it make if she was a man or a woman?
Shen Xizhi saw the gazes of the group of people fall on her. Her face turned slightly cold, but she didn’t say a word, silently waiting for her wife.
Perhaps because she had been eating well recently, she had also grown a little taller. From a distance, she looked cold and beautiful, her figure tall and slender. Standing there alone, she was enough to attract everyone’s attention.
Back then, Shen Xizhi had also been a well-known village belle in Shenjia Village. Who knew that she would end up like this?
They all thought that a person’s nature was hard to change. Although Song Yugui no longer ignored everything as she used to, she probably wasn’t much better to her wife. Shen Xizhi was probably living a miserable life, and they were all waiting to see her make a fool of herself.
The tragic squeal of a pig being slaughtered soon came from the backyard. Shen Xizhi’s eyes widened slightly, her heart jumping in surprise. But she was also a country girl and was used to the sound of pigs being slaughtered. Besides the initial shock, she was fine later, standing quietly in one place, waiting for her wife to come out.
After an unknown amount of time, the old woman came out of the backyard with a smile and shouted, “The pig is slaughtered! If you want to buy any part, just tell Keyan.”
Keyan was her daughter-in-law. Since her son’s death, she had not remarried, and the two of them had supported the family, always having a close relationship.
Everyone quickly replied.
Song Yugui also came out from inside at this time, with only a little dried blood on her. This pig weighed a full three hundred catties, and she had actually slaughtered it without making too many mistakes. She had just accidentally poked the pig’s kidney, the fascia was not repaired well, and she hadn’t found the right position when dividing the hind legs. The rest was fine, not a big problem. The auntie generously gave her the kidney and the fatty meat. Although this was the worst part of the pig, it could be used to render oil, and it was not cheap to buy outside. She also gave her three catties of pork belly.
Song Yugui didn’t know the market price, but she had wanted to slaughter a pig to practice anyway, so she was happy no matter how much she got.
When she came out, she waved to her wife. “Let’s go, Xizhi. Let’s go home.”
