My own family can entertain any way they want, but Xiaocao's maids are said to be from the imperial city, and they usually behave like ladies. Yu Jiang's daughter-in-law has been worried that they are not used to the crude food in the countryside. Now it seems that her worries are unnecessary.
In the rural areas of Northeast China, almost every family kills new year pigs, and the village gathers men, women and children, lively and lively. Since entering the twelfth lunar month, I have not stopped eating pig dishes. There was no such custom in Dongshan Village, and it was taken by the family of the grandma who fled from the Northeast. Now, many families have started to invite butchered vegetables. However, if you want to talk about the most authentic pig-killing dishes, you can count on Grandma's craftsmanship!
Holding her bulging belly, Yu Xiaocao took a walk at the foot of the West Mountain, taking a look at the traps dug before, and whether the traps she set up were fruitful. Zhao Han silently followed behind her, remembering the green days back then.
Every time it is Xiaocao's trap, the chance of trapping the prey is much higher. This girl seems to be favored by the god of luck. Look, at the foot of the mountain where prey is not abundant, there must be six or seven prey in the traps and ten sets.
The four maids shed the shackles of restraint and rules, revealing their innocent side. Every time they found prey in the cover, they would yell and rush forward to get it, very excited. After they wandered around, almost everyone's hands were full. On Zhao Han's shoulders was a stupid roe deer that had become stiff!
The days in the twelfth lunar month seem to pass faster than usual, and in a blink of an eye, it is the end of the new year. The greenhouse vegetables in Zhuangzi have been stopped since the 29th of the new year, and they will not start until the fifth day. Xiao Shitou also braved the wind and snow to return home at the age of twenty-eight, and the Yu family was truly reunited.
For the New Year's Eve dinner, besides the Yu family, there were two more people at the dinner table. One is Zhao Han who was invited by Xiaocao to celebrate the New Year at home, and the other is Zhuang Xiaomo who is lonely. At the dinner table, Zhuang Xiaomo kept courting Xiaolian, and Yu Hai didn't have a good look at any creatures like "son-in-law" who robbed him of his daughter. That guy Yang Junwang has no choice but to take his little lotus away, it's not that easy for a big-tailed wolf surnamed Zhuang.
Xiao Lian, who will be fourteen after the new year, has just begun to fall in love, and seems to have some affection for the tall and handsome Zhuang Xiaomo. For his hospitality, Xiao Lian blushed, and seemed not so repulsive.
As the so-called mother-in-law looks at her son-in-law more and more interesting, Liu's impression of Zhuang Xiaomo who is confident and self-improving despite being an orphan is quite good. Coupled with the fact that Xiao Mo is gentle and polite, kind-hearted, and grateful, if there is no man blocking him, the Liu family will almost treat him like half a son.
During the New Year's Eve vigil, Yu Hang took his younger brother, Xiao Shitou took Zhao Han, and Zhuang Xiaomo, a few boys of all ages, set off fireworks and firecrackers in the yard. In the room, Yu Hai took out the ledger, summarized the income of the family this year with his youngest daughter, and mentioned his thoughts for the coming year.
"The seeds of corn and winter wheat on our farm are selling very well. In addition, our sea transportation is convenient here, and cargo ships traveling north and south want to take some seeds back. However, the number of fields on our farm is limited, and there is no supply at all. Demand." So much white money presented in front of him, but the feeling of not being able to earn it into his hands really made Yu Hai feel uncomfortable!
"Besides, I'm still in charge of the imperial court! The high-yielding seeds naturally need to focus on the prefectures and counties around Tanggu Town. In this way, there will be fewer seeds that can be sold at a high price!"
Yu Hai learned from his eldest sister that due to climate and environmental factors in the Northeast, the food production is extremely low, and the people there have to tighten their belts for more than half a year. In the most difficult time, even the coarse grain porridge that is so rare that people can only drink one bowl a day. If there is a natural disaster, you can only leave your hometown and go out to escape famine.
Corn has a high yield and is highly adaptable to the environment and climate. If it can be widely planted in the Northeast, people's lives will be much easier, at least they can fill their stomachs. Therefore, for the cargo ships coming from the north, he tried his best to sell more corn seeds to them, but it was just a drop in the bucket.
Yu Xiaocao bit her lip and thought for a while, then said with a smile to her father who looked at her expectantly, "Father, what do you think I'm doing? Just so sure that I can figure out a way?"
Yu Hai chuckled, and said with some pride: "Of course, my daughter is so powerful, how can such a small problem hinder us Cao'er?"
"In our hearts, little girl, you are a smart star, a lucky little fairy. Tell me, what do you think?" Xiaolian urged Xiaocao to continue talking while knocking on melon seeds.
"I do have an idea!" Yu Xiaocao could only continue in the eyes of her family members, "I want to build Tanggu into a big farm and the largest seed wholesale base in the country."
Yu Hai nodded, and said: "Actually, this is similar to my idea. But, we don't have that much land! I asked, and the surrounding fields and Zhuangzi are not willing to sell. However, between Tanggu and Fucheng, There are large pieces of wasteland, but it may not take a year or two to turn the wasteland into good farmland... "
Yu Xiaocao frowned lightly, and said: "Our Tang Gu is now the fief of Yang County King. If he is willing to help, the land will definitely not be a problem. As for the wasteland! It's a pity to be deserted... I think we can talk to Zhu Junyang Make a discussion and introduce a series of policies to encourage wasteland reclamation. For example, the reclaimed wasteland will not have to pay any tax within three years, and the tax will be halved within the next five or ten years, etc... Now, land is generally concentrated in the hands of a few people , many people make a living by renting land, and I believe that the common people are very happy to own their own land."
In the youngest daughter's words, she touched Yang Junwang twice in a row, Yu Hai hesitated to speak, and finally couldn't help asking: "Cao'er, you and Yang Junwang... you are getting bigger and bigger, you have to leave a little Be careful, don't be taken advantage of by others. Besides, men are fickle, and the king of Yangjun has a high status, so it's inevitable that he won't give birth to some fancy intestines. So... "
"Father, don't worry! My daughter knows it well! If Zhu Junyang treats me badly, my daughter would rather be single for the rest of her life than marry herself hastily. He's still in the probationary period, so naturally he doesn't dare to do anything to his daughter!" Yu Xiaocao knew her father's worries very well, and couldn't help but comfort her.
The youngest daughter is Zaohui, and she has almost always been responsible for the business of the family these years. Every time a man is undecided, he always asks her for advice, so Liu is quite at ease with his youngest daughter. However, the little girl is only fourteen years old after the new year, and she is rarely around, so she couldn't help but say a few words:
"Cao'er, we don't have to hang ourselves on a tree with a crooked neck in Prince Yang. If he can't pass your test, mother will find you a better one. I think Zhao Han is a good guy..." After finishing speaking, he glanced out of the window.
"Mother," Yu Xiaocao was a little dumbfounded, "I only regard Brother Han as my elder brother, why are you talking nonsense like that? Don't worry, my daughter has her own plans!"
Old Yu was wearing a red Tang suit, sitting cross-legged on the kang, took a piece of soft and glutinous pastry, and said to the elder son and his wife: "Don't worry about it! The king of Yangjun is the king of the county. She is not the little peasant girl she was back then. We, Cao'er, have the ability to earn a princess with us. Have you ever seen the princess who married? There are so many talented people in Beijing, as long as you are not blind, you can see it The merits of our Cao'er. Even if there is no king of Yang, there are kings of Yin and Moon!"
"That's right, that's right!" Yu Xiaocao was afraid that her parents would worry about her at home. Although the old man's words were a bit rough, she still suppressed a smile and agreed, "Father and mother, don't worry, before the age of twenty, my daughter is guaranteed to take care of herself." Get married, and marry well. Is that all right?"
Mrs. Liu nodded her forehead and said with a smile: "You are shameless and dare to say anything. From now on, be careful and be careful not to be laughed at."
"Isn't this at home! It's in front of us that Cao'er will say these things. When the old ladies in the town come to make friends, our Cao'er's momentum and manner are more dignified than the princess in the drama." My youngest daughter, Yu Hai can look wherever she wants!
The family talked about the seed breeding base until after Zishi. The whole family ate dumplings together for supper, and then went to rest.
During the New Year's Eve in Dongshan Village, Yu Xiaocao lived leisurely and at ease. On the first day of junior high school, I followed a group of little sisters, the host family paid New Year greetings, the west family said hello, and received a lot of small snacks with farm characteristics. In the second day of junior high school, I went to my grandmother's house with my parents and received a lot of rich red envelopes.
Now, my grandmother's house is one of the best in the village. All the former thatched houses were demolished and rebuilt as bright white-walled and blue-tiled houses. Small greenhouses were set up in the front and back yards, and vegetables and fruits were grown. Because of the relationship with Yu's family, the villagers followed suit and planted high-yield winter wheat, so the Liu family's status in the village was second only to the village head.
Don't worry about sales. After the Japanese pirates attacked the pig farm and closed it, my aunt went back to Xishan Village, bought a piece of land from the village head, and started working on her own. Now at least hundreds of pigs are slaughtered every year, and the eldest uncle drives the family's mule cart to Fucheng. After Tang Gu's greenhouse vegetables were on the market, the eldest uncle and the second uncle started the business of delivering goods to Fucheng together, and there was still a price difference of dozens of taels of silver each time they came down.
The second uncle bought dozens of acres of fertile land, planted corn in spring and wheat in autumn, and used it to sell the Yu family, earning a considerable amount of income every year. The little uncle also gave up his job as a mason and was invited by the Yu family to help out. His annual wages were several times what he used to be. The little aunt also raises pigs with the big aunt...
In short, the Liu family has become more and more prosperous these years, and even the second aunt, who likes to say a few harsh words, has become better as the days get better and better. She doesn't look so mean and speaks a lot more leniently. The lives of the Liu family's old couple are not to mention smooth.