The Farm Girl and the Executioner (Rebirth) 25p2

Chapter 25: Young Ginger and Rabbit Meat p2

After lunch, the two of them found some sacks and packed the dried fangfeng. They filled two sacks, and after weighing them, it was about what they had guessed. The two hundred catties of fangfeng had dried to about seventy catties.

Jiang Huaizhen was stronger and was in charge of carrying this load.

Lin Shuang packed the remaining jiaogulan and other miscellaneous herbs into her basket, which was also almost full. But these herbs, which were mainly leaves, were very light, and a basket of them was only about a dozen catties.

The two of them took the small path to the main road, hailed an ox-cart, and headed for the city. After entering the city, they paid an extra copper coin, and the cart driver took them directly to the entrance of the Everlasting Peace Apothecary.

The young apprentice named Xiao San saw them get off with their large and small bags and hurried out to greet them.

After they had moved the two large sacks of fangfeng to the entrance, the shopkeeper also put down his work and called for a mat to be spread out in the courtyard, so they could pour out all the medicine for inspection.

The Everlasting Peace Apothecary almost never refused the medicine brought by the common people, but there were some unscrupulous people who tried to pass off inferior goods. If they didn’t inspect it carefully, they would suffer a great loss.

Lin Shuang had managed medicinal herbs for several years in her past life and was very adept at handling these things. Even the fangfeng was tied into small bundles, the fine roots were cleaned, and it was dried just right. It could be used directly without much processing.

The shopkeeper knew at a glance that she was an expert.

On top of that, Old Madam Jiang’s illness was being treated here. He only went through it once before directly instructing the apprentice to weigh it.

The fangfeng was fifty-two catties, at twenty-three copper coins per catty; the jiaogulan was two catties and six taels, at fourteen copper coins per catty, and there were a few other herbs of similar price, for a total of one tael and three hundred and seventy-eight copper coins.

Shopkeeper He rounded it up for them and gave them one tael and three hundred and eighty copper coins.

It was a good harvest. Lin Shuang was very satisfied. After bidding farewell to the shopkeeper, the two of them left.

But she didn’t expect that just as they reached the entrance, Jiang Huaizhen would turn and hand her the silver.

She asked in confusion, “What’s the difference who holds it? You take it.”

But Jiang Huaizhen shook her head. “This is your money.”

“Isn’t it the money we earned together from gathering and selling the herbs? How did it become my money?”

“I just helped out with some of the labor. You were the one who decided how to identify them and where to find them. You can pay me wages, but this is your money.”

Hearing this, Lin Shuang’s face immediately darkened. “Do you have to be so clear-cut with me? I thought I treated you as family, and you would treat me as family too. We should spend the money we earn together.”

Seeing her reaction, Jiang Huaizhen was at a loss. She said in a low voice, “I don’t want to take advantage of you.”

Lin Shuang wished she would take advantage of her, but Jiang Huaizhen’s personality was like this, and she couldn’t blame her. She could only explain patiently, “There are only a dozen or so common herbs. You didn’t recognize them before, but you will in the future. For example, this morning, weren’t there several kinds of herbs that we had come across before, and you were the one who found them? I can only be a guide for the first time. The second and third time, my role won’t be as important. Do you still want to give me all the credit?”

Jiang Huaizhen didn’t speak.

Lin Shuang didn’t push her. She thought for a moment and said, “How about this? From now on, whether we go up the mountain to gather herbs together or do other things, if we earn money together, we’ll divide it into three equal parts. You and I each get one part, and the other part is for the household. All the family’s expenses will come from the household fund, okay?”

Jiang Huaizhen still felt that she was taking advantage and didn’t say anything.

Seeing this, Lin Shuang turned and walked away.

Jiang Huaizhen quickly chased after her and grabbed her sleeve. “Alright, we’ll do as you say for now. If we feel it’s not right in the future, we can change it, okay?”

Seeing her pleading eyes, Lin Shuang finally slowed down and let her hold her arm.

After walking for a while, she said, “Let’s go to the market to buy some household items.”

Jiang Huaizhen grunted in agreement, let go of her hand, took the basket from her back, and carried it herself, following closely behind her as they headed for the market.

They had earned over a tael of silver today, which was a small harvest. Although this person had made her unhappy just now, Lin Shuang felt that they should still celebrate.

Thinking of the perilla she had picked this morning and the rabbits she had caught, she had already planned tonight’s menu.

Since they already had a few fat rabbits, she wouldn’t buy any meat for now. But they were out of white flour, and Jiang Huaizhen loved pasta. This time, since they weren’t carrying anything, she would buy some more to take back. So, she had the owner of the grain shop weigh out twenty catties of white flour and ten catties of coarse flour.

She bought two catties of kidney beans and half a catty of peanuts, then went to the cloth shop to buy some miscellaneous personal items.

Passing by the blacksmith’s shop from last time, Lin Shuang finally couldn’t resist and went in to ask how much it would cost to make a large, flat-bottomed iron pot with a lid.

The blacksmith listened to her description, thought for a moment, and said, “I’ve never made a flat-bottomed pot this big before, and it needs a handle. It’ll be five hundred copper coins.”

Hearing the price, she sighed inwardly, smiled, and said she didn’t have enough money and would come back later.

Jiang Huaizhen stood outside, listening carefully to their conversation. When she came out, she silently followed behind her with the basket.

Lin Shuang was in a bit of a bad mood today, and her body also felt a little unwell. Jiang Huaizhen had originally planned to walk back, but seeing her like this, she still spent two copper coins to take an ox-cart.

When they got home, Lin Shuang saw that her period had indeed come.

Jiang Huaizhen was a woman herself. Seeing her busy for a while, she knew what was happening. She turned and went to light a fire to boil water, so she wouldn’t have to touch cold water.

Lin Shuang was not that delicate. Her illness last time was due to her mental state, and the water in the stream was indeed cold. Thinking of her past life, even when she had her period, she still had to work like an ox.

But now that someone was being considerate of her, she felt cherished and a sense of reliance she had never felt before. She directed Jiang Huaizhen to get a fat rabbit and prepare it.

She planned to make stir-fried rabbit with young ginger.

Before long, Jiang Huaizhen had cleaned the rabbit and chopped it into small, even pieces.

Only then did Lin Shuang take over, marinating it with a little soy sauce and the wine left over from Jiang Gui’s time.

This dish was delicious, but the meat had to be deep-fried first. Thinking that they had earned over a tael of silver today, Lin Shuang gritted her teeth, scooped a large spoonful of lard from the jar, and put it in the pot to melt.

It was a good thing the old woman wasn’t here, or she would have definitely grumbled for a while.

The newly chopped firewood crackled in the stove, and the oil in the pot gradually heated up.

She carefully poured the marinated rabbit meat into the pot. As the oil splattered, the rabbit meat tumbled in the hot oil, sizzling.

After the rabbit meat was fried golden brown, she took it out and set it aside.

She left a little oil in the pot, poured in the sliced young ginger, and stir-fried it with garlic and wild mountain peppers in the hot oil, releasing a pungent and savory aroma that filled the kitchen.

The spiciness of the ginger and the peppers went straight to her nose.

This smell was too overpowering.

Lin Shuang added an appropriate amount of soy sauce and stir-fried it quickly with a spatula.

The rabbit meat quickly tightened in the high heat, and its color became redder and brighter.

Seeing that it was almost done, she crushed the washed perilla and threw it into the pot. A fresh fragrance instantly filled the air, intertwining with the aroma of the young ginger, making one’s mouth water.

Just then, the old woman came in with her cane.

Without a doubt, she must have been drawn by the smell.

Lin Shuang smiled, scooped out the pot of young ginger and rabbit meat, and began to make a cold dish.

The water celery, moss, and fiddlehead ferns she had picked in the morning were washed, blanched in boiling water, and then scooped out. She added soy sauce, drizzled with melted lard, and added a few peanuts. A quick toss with her chopsticks, and a refreshing and delicious cold dish was ready.

Jiang Huaizhen couldn’t get used to the taste of houttuynia cordata, so Lin Shuang made a separate portion without it.

By the time the dishes were on the table, the old woman had already taken her seat.

Lin Shuang called out to Jiang Huaizhen, who was weaving the large mat in the main hall, “Sister Jiang, it’s time to eat.”

Hearing her, Jiang Huaizhen immediately put down her work, stood up, patted the bamboo shavings off her clothes, and walked toward the kitchen.

“Does Grandma want porridge or dry rice?” Lin Shuang asked.

These past few days, she would cook a large pot of porridge in the morning, which would last until the evening. If the old woman wanted to drink porridge for lunch or dinner, she didn’t have to cook it separately, just heat it up.

Old Madam Jiang said, “Just a couple of spoonfuls of dry rice will do. This dish has to be eaten with dry rice.”

By the time the rice was served, Jiang Huaizhen had also washed her hands and sat down at the table.

She picked up her chopsticks, and the tender rabbit meat, mixed with the spiciness of the young ginger and peppers, instantly opened up her taste buds.

The delicious food finally shut the old woman’s mouth. She didn’t say a single unnecessary word throughout the meal.

After a few pieces of rabbit meat, her chopsticks turned to the cold fiddlehead ferns next to her. After a couple of bites, she nodded. “It’s crisp, tender, and refreshing. Not bad.”

Lin Shuang saw that she was eating happily and smiled, pushing the bowl of cold dish with houttuynia cordata in front of her. “Grandma, try this bowl.”

The old woman’s eyes lit up. “Isn’t this houttuynia cordata? You found it.”

With that, she took a large mouthful and, after a few bites, was very satisfied.

Only then did she notice that she had prepared two bowls for one dish and knew that her own granddaughter couldn’t eat it. She said helplessly, “You don’t like such a delicious thing. What a waste of this mountain delicacy.”

As she spoke, she pushed the plate of rabbit meat toward her.

As twilight deepened, the herbs drying in the bamboo sieves turned with the wind, and the aroma of food mixed with laughter and scolding wafted from the kitchen.

Jiang Huaizhen didn’t say anything, just ate the other bowl of cold dish with relish.