Chapter 110

Before noon, Xu Ran arrived at the door of Qin Shuwu’s fruit shop on time. People had come today though there were not as many as yesterday.

He could make money from the mushrooms, albeit a small amount of money which Xu Ran knew very well, so he was already very delighted to see someone have come.

After Xu Ran got out of the carriage, he asked the staff to take the mushrooms out. He went into the shop to find Qin Shuwu and asked for a plate as well as a pair of chopsticks, and poured the fried pine mushrooms from the bamboo joint onto the plate.

Before those who came for the mushrooms had a taste of it, Qin Shuwu ate first.

Then he complimented the dishes several times, and just as he was about to reach out his chopsticks again, Xu Ran took the plate away, “Brother Qin, this is for customers to try. If you want to eat, I’ll leave some for you later. Also, I’ll tell you how to make it, hold yourself for a moment.”

He put it in a way that made Qin Shuwu looked like he was voracious, which somewhat annoyed Qin Shuwu, but he didn’t say anything.

Xu Ran brought the plate outside. Those who came to buy the mushrooms had already begun to study the mushrooms. A few people who had eaten mushrooms said that it was edible for a few times and looked quite pleased.

The atmosphere stirred many people’s emotions. At the same time, Xu Ran walked out with the fried pine mushrooms.

He first took a bite, and then let everyone taste it.

Although there were a lot of people, the pine mushrooms had been cut into big pieces; none of them touched the chopsticks when they ate so there was nothing unhygienic about it.

Xu Ran’s cooking skills were good. He added quite a lot of spices in the fried pine mushrooms, including garlic and some chili, so the food was much appreciated by the crowd.

After everyone had a taste, Xu Ran started to introduce the mushrooms. There was no need to mention the pine mushrooms which they had just tasted. As for other mushrooms, Xu Ran had said that they could be cooked the same way as the pine mushrooms. As long as they were fried and well cooked, they could be eaten and he had already processed the mixed mushrooms.

Xu Ran also said that anyone who bought mushrooms would get two cloves of garlic for free. Garlic could be used as seasoning and could also be used to test if mushrooms were poisonous.

The mushrooms were sols at the price that they had agreed on yesterday. As for the mixed mushrooms, it only cost about sixteen wen per kilogram. After all, the mushrooms would give out much water once cooked.

Xu Ran promised that he would not cheat on the weight and that he could teach anyone who didn’t know how to fry mushroom.

Many people who had eaten mushrooms before didn’t hesitate to buy them, while other people who hadn’t eaten had been influenced and also tried to buy some.

Quite a few people remained doubtful, so the mushrooms weren’t sold out and they still had a lot left after noon.

Xu Ran was not in a hurry. He asked the staff to put away the mushrooms and gave Qin Shuwu some for him to take back. Some were sent to Zhuo Yun, after which there weren’t many left and so he gave the remaining to Mr. Chen.

The mushrooms have a total weight of about 50 kilograms which sold more than a dozen taels of silver. Needless to mention how much they earned, they had definitely made a profit.

With the time left, Xu Ran wandered around the town and bought some food forhis family at home.

He thought that it had been a while since Tangtang and Guoguo went to the town, so he planned to take them out for a look when they had the time.

Also, over at He Shui Town, he could also buy some new food, but for the time being, Xu Ran had not thought of anything in particular. After all, there was a distance and all the things he was selling now couldn’t be stored for too long, so it was kind of troublesome.

On the way home, Xu Ran tried his best to think while driving the carriage. Xu Ran came across two familiar people half way.

They were Spouse Chen and Zhang Yue.

Zhang Yue walked very slowly. Spouse Chen supported him by the side, fearing that he would fall.

Judging by Zhang Yue’s look, he should be fine. After all, he could walk, but it took him long enough to recover, taking more than a month!

Since he saw them, Xu Ran had to give them a ride out of courtesy. Xu Ran drove the carriage closer to the two and shouted, “Spouse Chen.”

Spouse Chen heard the sound of hoofbeat, but he was worried about Zhang Yue so he didn’t turn back. Not until he heard Xu Ran call him did he realize it was Xu Ran.

“Spouse Chen, are you on your way home from town? Hop in. I’ll give you a ride.” Xu Ran said as he jumped out of the car.

He didn’t greet Zhang Yue: it was too embarrassing after all. Of course, he didn’t help Zhang Yue into the carriage but instead watching from the side.

After thanking Xu Ran, Spouse Chen helped Zhang Yue get into the carriage.

On the way, Xu Ran asked a few questions about Zhang Yue’s condition, but he only asked Spouse Chen and did not say a word to Zhang Yue.

Zhang Yue also didn’t talk to Xu Ran. He was embarrassed for one thing and couldn’t bring himself to for another. Spouse Chen had told him the incident about Xu Ran taking him to the clinic and helping him pay for the medical fees. Zhang Yue didn’t expect that Xu Ran would help him at the most difficult moment. Then he thought about how he had treated him back then, which made him feel guilty and at a loss.

Xu Ran dropped them off at the door of the village head’s house and went back. Even though Spouse Chen had invited him inside to have some water, he had refused for he didn’t want to get involved with Zhang Yue anymore, which was troublesome.

…

The chicken and ducks which they had been raising at home for a few months had grown up a lot. The biggest one had grown into almost 1.5 kilograms. Xu Ran did not hesitate to kill a chicken for Liu Tong to eat every few days. Liu Tong’s body was actually quite good; the reason he had fainted earlier was because he had exhausted himself. And Liu Tong had been resting for a month now so he had regained his strength.

He told Xu Ran not to kill any chicken but Xu Ran refused to do it. Liu Tong was not sure whether it was because he had grown a temper from the pregnancy or something else, he became angry with Xu Ran which led to a silent atmosphere in the house.

Xu Ran was helpless. He had been coaxing Liu Tong for a long time but failed to make him smile. It was not until Xu Ran stopped killing chickens did Liu Tong start to treat him better.

Liu Tong didn’t want him to kill chickens, but there were more than ten chickens at home. If they kept them all till Liu Tong gave birth, the chickens would be old then.

Looking at the chicken which ate so much and flew around but couldn’t be killed, Xu Ran was a little worried. He had to deal with these many chickens somehow. The smell of chicken shit was bad in a hot weather. Also, the ducks next to the chicken pen should also be dealt with somehow.

However, Xu Ran was worried when he couldn’t think of any solution so he began to wander around.

As he walked, he arrived at his potato field. He saw that most of the seedlings had already blossomed and yielded fruit and thus they should be ripe enough for him to dig out.

The previous small potatoes had been dried in the sun and so the ones in the field now must be saved to eat fresh or taken out for sale.

Xu Ran clapped his hands. He had an idea. ‘I could deliver the chickens to Hai Shui Town to make blanched chicken and duck. Isn’t such cool dish perfect for this weather?’

‘I can also make bean jelly or cold noodles!’ The more Xu Ran thought about it, the happier he became. Inspiration just kept coming at him!

The cold noodles was very simple; one just needed to mix the noodles when cold. As for bean jeally, peas were needed. Xu Ran recalled that Wu Mei and his family have planted peas and they probably had left some from last year. Xu Ran thought that he could write the steps down and wait until someone from the He Shui town came next time to bring it back with him.

Xu Ran immediately ran home in a hurry and looked for the writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, on which the dirt made him choke.

These things were now covered in dust. He had not moved any of them ever since his test. He was simply too busy. No one helped him clean after Liu Tong got pregnant. Even Tangtang and Guoguo had their own sets so they didn’t touched his.

Xu Ran took the wet handkerchief over and wiped off the dirt before he ground the ink. The methods of making bean jelly and blanched chicken were very simple.

When Xu Ran was young, he had seen his mother make bean jelly and his mother didn’t even use pea powder; instead she used a leaf called a turtle leaf. She picked a few leaves, washed them and put them in a jar or pot to cook. Then she smashed the leaves and squeezed out the water inside. It became bean jelly. Next, some water containing soda was added. It was very simple.

The bean jelly made from turtle leaf was green, and the taste was not as good as those made from pea powder, nor was it as smooth, let alone the taste.

The making of bean jelly did not cost much. Xu Ran thought he could make them just like tofu.

Xu Ran did not intend to sell the cold noodles for the time being. It could be sold in winter, not only the cold one, but also the hot fried noodles. He believed they could be poplular.

Then it was the blanched chicken and duck. The method was the same and it depended on whether these people preferred chicken or duck.

He didn’t know when Lin Hua and the others would send people over. So Xu Ran wrote a letter and planned to ask someone to deliver it to post station in the next two days when he went to town.

On June 15th, Xu Ran dug out a potato in the ground. Its size was favorable so Xu Ran thought it was about time to dig them up. Now that there were people in the family, he didn’t have to hire others. He and Gao Quan was responsible of the digging while Shao Yu cut the vines. Since it was close, they kept digging until it grew dark when they could carry them home.

However, Xu Ran did not intend to carry them on his back. He felt that the trolley they made years ago could be used under this circumstances, so he pushed one from Xu An’s house in plain sight. Many people in the village saw it and asked Xu Ran what it was with curiosity. Some bold kids even climbed onto the wheelbarrow and asked Xu Ran to give them a ride.

The wheelbarrow could take on some weight and it didn’t cost much strength and it was much more convenient than to carry on his back. The people who saw Xu Ran come out from Xu An’s house ran to Xu An’s house. The wheelbarrow was not out in the market yet and Xu Ran was merely putting up an advertisement so that they would know about such a thing.

Expectedly, it worked. Xu Ran pushed his wheelbarrow back to his house to move the potatoes.