Chapter 42： Calcined oyster shells

Chapter 42 Calcined Oyster Shells

Qian's back was not serious in the first place, but just to be lazy, she couldn't lie down after two or three days in bed. She continued to arrest people at the entrance of the village, but this time she never saw anyone, so she couldn't help but go to the village. Dong, if I had known this was the case, she wouldn't have gone there even if I beat her to death.

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Qian went out and told people that the Jiangning family was so poor that they dug smelly things from the river to eat, which was disgusting and smelly.

No one believed it at first, but the smell of the oysters was too overwhelming. People passing by her house could smell it. For a while, everyone in the village was talking about anything, but no one was curious about what this family was doing out of the village. went.

Ignoring these remarks for the time being, Jiang Ning was in a good mood after scaring Qian away, and continued working while humming a ditty.

There were so many oysters that she couldn't finish them all at once. Seeing that it was almost noon, she hurriedly called Yang Datou and prepared to teach him his skills. She asked Yang Erdan by the way: "Do you want to come over and learn together?"

Yang Erdan shook his head, "As long as I teach my eldest brother well, I don't want to learn how to cook."

Jiang Ning is not reluctant.

 Time is a little tight, and she cannot teach Yang Datou systematically. She can only teach these dishes first. The ingredients are all ready-made, starting with killing the fish.

Jiang Ning guided, and Yang Datou did it himself. He helped for a long time at the Linjiang Inn. Killing fish was no problem, and Jiang Ning also corrected some of the details that he paid attention to.

This time, we taught steamed fish, deep-fried fish cakes, garlic shrimps, smooth eggs with shrimps, and stir-fried flower armor. The whole yard was so fragrant that even Yang Erdan and Mianmian who were working couldn't help but swallow their saliva and watched it again and again. Yang Datou, who is cooking.

There is actually no technical content in these dishes. It’s just a matter of controlling the details, heat, and seasonings.

Yang Datou made it for the first time, although it was stumbling, but the taste was passable and received unanimous praise from the whole family. Jiang Ning also pointed out the existing problems carefully.

Yang Santie looked at Yang Datou with bright eyes, "Brother, you are so awesome! This is the first time our family has eaten such a sumptuous meal! Can you do it well every day from now on?"

It was really sumptuous, with five plates of hard food, which they had never dared to think of before.

Jiang Ning nodded his head in a funny way, "This time it's thanks to the flower shopkeeper, who gave us the ingredients for free. Otherwise, do you think our family can afford such a sumptuous meal?"

Yang Santie stuck out his tongue and continued to eat. Since he couldn't eat every day, he should cherish the opportunity.

In the evening, Jiang Ning switched to shrimp vermicelli, stir-fried clams with green onions, and fish in water. At the same time, Yang Datou asked Yang Datou to cook the two dishes that he had not prepared at noon. This time she did not remind her the whole time.

The family, who had been tired for a long day, once again had such a delicious meal, and were instantly energized.

Jiang Ning wanted to clean up the oyster shells as soon as possible and continued working around the campfire. The other children also hurriedly cleaned up the oyster shells. Now Jiang Ning no longer had to worry about this work, and the children could arrange it clearly.

According to their speed, if they work hard, they can produce fifty kilograms of melon seeds a day, and they can earn about ten taels a month. Plus the peels sold to Hongantang, a dozen taels are stable. Of course, the melon seeds are only These days, I can only earn short-term income.

Wait until Jiang Ning opened all the oysters before going back to sleep.

The mountain wind blew gusts at night, making the thatched hut rustle. The oyster shells should be dry tomorrow. If Yang Erdan is faster, they can start calcining the day after tomorrow. It will be a good time to go to the mountains tomorrow to get more firewood. Jiang Ning had made up his mind and was about to fall asleep when he suddenly heard Yang Datou's voice. He pricked up his ears and listened carefully. He was actually talking in his sleep, muttering about how much soybean paste and salt he was talking about. He was fascinated by the sound.

Sure enough, when Yang Datou cooked again the next day, he was obviously much more proficient than the first day. He also had good control over the seasonings, and the dishes he made were even better in color and aroma.

Jiang Ning tasted it and nodded affirmatively. According to this level, she could safely let Yang Datou go to Linjiang Inn to work.

At noon on the third day, Jiang Ning arrived at Hegou early. This time Pan Xiuniang brought more oysters than the previous trip, and they were also much larger. In addition to oysters, there were also many harvests from the sea, some of which were raised in sea water. Still alive.

Jiang Ning took a fancy to some snails and bought them together. He also told Pan Xiuniang about some seafood on the seaside and asked Pan Xiuniang to pay attention to them.

The earthen kiln for calcining oyster shells has been built. I don’t have the conditions at home, so I can only keep things simple. Bamboo poles are wrapped in clay to serve as partitions. There are five layers together. A lot of oysters can be placed on each layer, and they can be calcined for about an hour at a time. Burning it for two or three days is almost enough.

The calcined oyster shells are extremely brittle. After a few sieves with a large stone pestle, you can get the fine shell ash, which is quicklime mixed with impurities. The color is very light off-white. This stuff can also be used to fertilize fields and is also used as some soil. One of the folk remedies used by doctors, it has many benefits.

There were no stone urns and pestles at home, so Yang Datou had to ask Yang Han for help. He spent twenty cents to get such a pair. He only agreed to borrow it for five days. If he wanted to use it after five days, he had to continue to pay.

The family hurriedly started to work. The work of calcining actually requires someone to keep an eye on the stove to add firewood. When it is almost ready, someone will come to handle it. Mianmian took the initiative to stop the work of lighting the fire. Yang Datou and Yang Erdan took turns hammering oyster shells. Jiang Ning passed by Sift, you only need to see this kind of work once and you will know it.

Jiang Ning saw that Yang Erdan was getting started, and immediately led Yang Datou to continue cooking. This was the last day, and Yang Datou would set off for Linjiang Inn early tomorrow morning.

Jiang Ning was worried and planned to accompany him there and keep an eye on him for a day. If there were no problems, she would come back by boat. All the work of making oyster shells would fall on a few children.

Yang Datou felt sorry.

Instead, Yang Erdan comforted him: "Brother, just go to work with peace of mind and do your job well. Don't embarrass my mother. I'm at home!"

"Yes, yes, brother, do a good job and take me to Songxi Town in the future! It will also give me a lot of experience." Yang Santie said with a playful smile, a pair of eyes that rolled around, and he had a lot of thoughts. Fortunately, he was not evil-minded. , Jiang Ning didn’t say anything.

Yang Datou nodded heavily, "Don't worry, I will take you to play when I get a firm foothold there!"

After receiving his assurance, a bunch of children were very happy.

After dinner, Liu Ye went to clean up and gave Yang Datou a burden, "I don't know what the situation is in Songxi Town. Let's make your autumn clothes first. My mother-in-law bought some more materials a while ago. I just made an extra summer coat for you. After all, you are going out, so it’s not good to wear it too shabby.”

Yang Datou lowered his head and looked at what he was wearing. There were three conspicuous patches on his clothes. Although they were as close to the same color as the material, he could still tell that the two buttocks of his pants had been patched more than once, and the patches were getting bigger and bigger. The knees were similar, they were all worn out from work, but everyone wore them that way, so he didn't feel any embarrassment.

Seeing that he didn't take it seriously, Liu Ye glared at him angrily, "You can wear it if you are told to do it! Do your job well, mind your own business, and come back to take a look when you have time."

(End of this chapter)