pastoral fragrance

Chapter 4
When Mrs. Han walked back carrying the water, she found curling green smoke rising from her yard.When Xindao went out to fetch water, the eldest daughter and the second son hadn't gotten up yet, so why did they pick wild vegetables and go back to the house to cook?While being suspicious, she struggled towards her yard carrying water.

In recent days, the pillars of the family have fallen, and the work outside the house has also fallen on her head, chopping firewood, chopping firewood, carrying water and washing clothes... In this short period of time, she was already too tired to bear it, and often felt backache My back hurts and my eyes don't work as well as they used to.Now she felt very strenuous carrying these two buckets of water, so her natural movements slowed down.She hadn't walked five hundred steps before she was panting and out of breath.

If she couldn't walk, she just put the bucket down and rested for a while before walking.

When she returned to the kitchen, she didn't see Qiuyue and Qiusong, but instead saw Qiuhe and Qiulin circling around the pot.Qiuhe sat on a small stool in front of the stove, adding firewood to the stove from time to time.The youngest daughter stepped on a slightly higher stool, cutting shepherd's purse very seriously.The knife fell not too slowly, making a "quack" sound on the cutting board.Han's eyelids twitched when she saw it, she was afraid that the knife would cut her little daughter's hand, and she was afraid that the stool under her feet would slip and she would fall off the stool.

Han hurriedly put down the heavy burden on her shoulders, and shouted at Qiulin: "Hurry up and get down, carefully, your hand will be cut by a knife!"

Qiulin cut carefully. After losing her mother in her previous life, she also had to learn to do housework.When I was a child, I was short, and I stepped on the bench like this when I was cooking.So even though this body is only six years old, she is also very familiar with it, and now she is stepping on the stool and cutting shepherd's purse, which looks quite impressive.

She was just thinking that she could do something for this family, but the sudden yelling outside the door made her feel flustered, her feet trembled, she was not cut by the kitchen knife, but stepped on the bench and fell down On the mud floor, he fell and was covered in ashes.

Seeing the appearance, Mrs. Han was even more frightened, and hurried over nervously, "Si'er, how are you doing, show me quickly?" Mrs. Han was so frightened that her heart almost jumped out. Children are her darlings, and she will feel like a knife is twisting her heart when she stumbles and stumbles.If Si'er is cut by a knife, how can it happen?

Han's eyes were red, and tears welled up inadvertently.Qiu He, who was burning a fire in front of the stove, heard the movement and stood up quickly.

Qiulin threw away the kitchen knife, got up from the mud, and gave Han a comfortable smile: "Mother, I'm fine." After she finished speaking, she patted the dirt on her clothes with her hands.He hurried over and hugged Han with his small arms and legs without letting go.

Seeing that she was really fine, Mrs. Han was relieved.But when she thought of the thrilling scene just now, she couldn't help worrying. "Si'er, you are only a little older, and you can leave the cooking work to your mother and eldest sister. If you were cut by a knife, or fell off the stool like today, what would you do? You This body is just right, but don't worry about it, don't do it again next time." Han said with red eyes.

She also knew that the youngest daughter and son wanted to share some housework with the family, but cooking was too difficult for them. The youngest daughter was not even as high as the stove.Han blasted two small radish heads out of the stove, poured two buckets of water into the water tank, and lifted the lid of the wooden pot, and a burst of tangy fragrance rushed towards him.Taking a closer look, the red sweet potato was boiled in the big pot. Han Shi turned it over for a while, and the skin of the red sweet potato was peeled clean, and it was almost ripe at this moment, just add another fire.

She went out without eating anything in the morning, smelling the savory aroma, Han felt even hungrier.She quickly covered the pot and went to the stove to add a fire.There is also a pot of ground corn paste on the stove. The paste is not dry, and the amount of water is controlled just right.She remembered that she didn't grind this thing yesterday, so why was it put on the stove today?

Han put the boiled sweet potato into a wooden pot, and after heating the pot, he scooped the corn paste and put it in the pot, and then spread it in the pot with a shovel, spreading it into pancakes, and put the corn paste one by one. After the pancakes were spread out, Han took them out of the pan, scooped some water into the pan, and steamed the egg flower.

Turning around, I saw my little daughter and son standing helplessly at the door of the stove house, but they didn’t speak. I thought they were hungry, so I took two cornbread from the basin and stuffed one in each of the two little babies, “You are all hungry too.” Alright, let's eat something to pad our stomachs first."

Qiuhe Qiulin didn't pick up anyone, "Eldest sister and second brother haven't come back yet, we'll eat as a family when they come back."

Han knew that her children were always sensible and accommodating, but now listening to their immature voices, her heart couldn't help being moved. The two children would not be the first to eat when they had something to eat. They would rather be hungry, but it would be hard for them.

"Where did this corn mush come from?" Han couldn't help asking.

Qiu He said proudly: "My sister and I pushed it, and my younger sister added water." Of course, the idea of ​​grinding the mill was naturally thought of by my younger sister.

When Han Shi heard this, he almost cried again.I didn't expect these two children to be so sensible and well-behaved. She should have done all these jobs.Han's heart is full of relief, these two children know how to share their parents' worries.

"We also fed the chickens, swept the ground, emptied Dad's urinal, and moved the dry firewood from the yard into the house..." Qiu He said as if asking for credit.

Han's heart was moved again, and he hugged the two children.At this moment, she didn't know what to say, she just hugged them and kept crying.

Qiulin raised her little hand to wipe away Han's tears one by one, "Mother, don't cry." Seeing Han crying, she felt sore and wanted to cry.

Han Shi held her daughter's petite hand, smiling like a flower. "No, I'm happy. It's okay." Han felt that after Si'er was beaten this time, she became more sensible and well behaved than before.In the past, she was strong and had a bad temper, and she would quarrel if she said something wrong, but she was very sexual at a young age, but now she seems much quieter, and she knows to share some housework for her. No more naughty.

When Qiuyue Qiusong went into the stove house to put the basket, she saw her mother crying with her younger siblings in her arms. She thought she was being bullied by her uncle's family again, so she hurriedly threw down her little hoe and came over, "Mother, what's wrong with you?"

Mrs. Han wiped her tears, turned around and saw her eldest daughter and son entering the house with their baskets on their backs, stood up quickly, and said with a smile: "You guys are back, it's all right, your younger brother and sister may have done something at home today, sweeping the floor too The chickens are also fed, and today's breakfast is also their share." If he didn't come back in time, they might have already cooked the meal at home, and Han's heart was both happy and sad.

Qiuyue didn't believe it, she wiped her eyes, and found that the third brother and younger sister were the most naughty, she believed that they swept the floor to feed a chicken, but she didn't believe that they lit a fire to cook.Qiuyue pursed her mouth: "I don't believe it."

Qiu He is impatient. Seeing that the elder sister didn't believe it, she stomped her feet and said loudly, "Really, my younger sister and I even pushed the mill. We pushed out these corn paste!" Qiu He pouted, looking aggrieved appearance.

Han caressed Qiuhe's small head, "They pushed it at home. But don't do it next time, the stone mill is heavy, and your arms will hurt when you wake up tomorrow."

It was Han's words that made Qiuyue completely believe that the two demon kings in the family suddenly became so cute, and she really didn't get used to it.Normally, if she wronged the two younger ones, the younger sister would not refute to herself with her feet blushing, but today she didn't at all, she just stood in front of her mother with a warm smile on her face.Did this little girl lose her temper after being injured?

After a busy morning, Qiuyue Qiusong picked Wowohong, shepherd's purse, weed grass, and Houttuynia cordata, and they were in two baskets.They tied up the weeds neatly and put them next to each other.

Looking at these watery wild vegetables, Qiulin suddenly had an idea in his heart, their place is not far from Qingcheng, and where do the people living in the town find these fresh wild vegetables on weekdays? on sale...

"Little sister, why are you in a daze, why don't you go sit and eat in the main room?" When Qiulin came back to her senses, she realized that everyone around her had left, only the eldest sister who was holding the bowls and chopsticks rubbed her arm.

Qiulin hurried to the main room and sat down.

On the small table are freshly baked corn tortillas, boiled sweet potatoes, a plate of chopped sauerkraut and a plate of shepherd's purse.The chopped shepherd's purse was stir-fried on a plate with only a little oil, but fortunately it was fresh, crispy and delicious.

Han scooped up a bowl of red sweet potato soup, wrapped two pieces of corn tortillas in paper, and placed a thick china bowl with sauerkraut and shepherd's purse in it, and asked Qiu Song to carry them into the east wing.Qiulin knew that it was for his father Xu Nanshan.Since father's legs were broken, it was inconvenient to get out of bed, so he seldom went out of the east room, and even sent him to eat.And the bamboo strips that father used to weave bamboo mats and baskets were also cut by mother and second elder brother in the forest, cut into festivals and moved to the east house.Qiu Lin went to visit Xu Nanshan once when he was sick, and he had a kind face, unlike the old man who only drank and gambled in his previous life.Due to the hardships of life, there is a trace of gloom between his brows, his eyes are warm, and his chin beard is well-proportioned.The hands that have been doing manual work for a long time have already grown a thick layer of calluses.Thinking about it now, Qiu Lin still felt sour.

The rest of the people sat around the table, and the big yellow dog squatted aside, with his mouth drooling, quietly looking at the delicious food on the table.

Qiulin put a piece of sweet potato into the bowl, thought about it, and asked, "Mother, our village is not far from the town, can we bring the wild vegetables we picked to sell in the town?" Although she also knew that these wild vegetables were not worth much. A few dollars, but how much is an income, and it can also add to the family.

Han's family is an honest peasant woman, she never thought that the things dug from the forest between the fields could be exchanged for money.Hearing her daughter's mention, she remembered that when she went to the town to go to the market, she had seen some peasant women dig wild vegetables such as shepherd's purse and sell them in the market. As for whether the business is good or not, she didn't know. .Han put down her chopsticks, rubbed her hands together and said, "These wild vegetables are everywhere, and they are worthless. Besides, there may not be anyone who will buy them."

However, Qiulin was full of interest, "There are many people in the town, and there is only so much land. Maybe they like this wild vegetable. Let's try it for a while, and we will know if it sells well or not." After all With a way to make money, how could Qiulin give up so easily?
(End of this chapter)