"No need to discuss, I..." Chen Suozhu's words were met with a glare from Li Zhengguo, and he immediately changed his tune, "I'll go back and discuss it right away."
"We still need to set a date, don't we? The sooner the better. As for the goods and money, you can borrow them from me first."
Chen Suozhu knew that the Li family's belongings had been moved into the mountains and hidden, "Is it convenient? Or, I..."
"It's very convenient. Two bolts of cloth and twenty yuan will suffice. If you have any other ideas, you can make up for them before or after the wedding."
"Understood, I'll go back and discuss it with Grandpa now."
When Tian Jing came out, Chen Suozhu had already left. She looked at Li Zhengguo in surprise, "What if Li Min doesn't agree?"
"She has to agree. This is the best match, and my mother will make her agree."
Li Min, that silly elder sister, was truly sold off by her own elder brother, and not just sold, but practically gifted money.
"Wen Jianshe, should we coordinate our stories?"
"No need, he will cover for us."
"But, so many people saw us making the purchases."
"It's fine. After every action I take, he cleans up the aftermath. Now that those two comrades want to set an example, they won't hold us accountable. Once we're publicized, any further reports will be actively suppressed."
Li Zhengguo was not worried, and Tian Jing stopped fretting. She went to find Li Min for her sanitary pads.
Li Min spread her hands, "Sister-in-law, I haven't steamed the cotton yet."
"Then hurry up and do it."
"Chen Suozhu is here."
"So what if he's here? You're steaming cotton, he wouldn't understand what it's for. Why are you feeling guilty?"
Li Min remained silent. She had felt guilty before, and now, she was even more so.
"Go quickly, he's leaving."
Li Min was pushed to the kitchen by Tian Jing to wash the pot, boil water, and steam the cotton.
Before the cotton was steamed, Chen Suozhu returned. Li Min hid in the kitchen and refused to come out.
Tian Jing carried the steamed cotton back to her west room.
The kang was very warm. She lifted the kang quilt and mat, spread a clean sheet, and tore open the cotton, laying a thin layer to dry.
After tidying up the kang, she returned to the kitchen to call the little woman, who was finally learning what shyness was, to continue tending the fire for the kang in the west room.
The pot was used to boil water for dinner.
Most of the fine grains had been sent to the mountain, so Tian Jing thought of sorghum flour, which needed to be scalded with boiling water.
Li Min's enthusiasm was low upon hearing they would have sorghum flour noodles for dinner.
Tian Jing brought out all the sorghum flour bags, planning to finish them in two meals.
She poured half of the sorghum flour into an enamel basin and steamed it in the pot.
This step stunned Li Min, "What are you doing this for?"
"To prevent lumps when scalding the dough."
After scalding the flour, she grabbed Li Min's hand to knead it, causing Li Min to cry out in pain.
"Hush, knead quickly. It'll be difficult to knead once it cools."
After the dough was kneaded, she had Li Min pinch off small pieces and roll them on the board into thin strips, like noodles, which were then placed on the steamer.
Tian Jing first prepared the topping for the noodles. Besides the garlic sprouts from the bottom of the vat and the vegetables on the wooden frame, there was also dried rabbit meat hidden on the roof.
The whole rabbit was put into the pot to boil with white wine, Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, and salt.
After boiling for about an hour, it was taken out and shredded.
After washing the pot, she asked Li Min to steam the sorghum flour noodles. Tian Jing went to get the garlic sprouts, and with a slight boost from her special ability, she peeled them all and removed the roots. She also picked a handful of baby bok choy.
Once the noodles were steamed, she washed the pot, boiled water to blanch the baby bok choy, and chopped them for the topping.
In a dry wok, she added oil, tempered the Sichuan peppercorns, stir-fried the rabbit shreds a few times, added soy sauce, a little water, and once it boiled, added the garlic sprouts and salt before taking it off the heat.
Li Min, whose hands ached from kneading, ate the most. Who said sorghum noodles weren't tasty? Come out, and she promised not to beat them to death.
Tian Jing looked at Chen Suozhu and subtly kicked Li Min.
Only then did Li Min snap back to reality. She had been betrothed to this man by her elder brother, "Um, Brother Suozhu, I eat a lot. If you dislike it..."
"No, I don't dislike it. Minmin, I, I will work hard and I promise not to let you go hungry."
Chen Suozhu stammered his intentions.
Yesterday, Elder Brother Li had told him that Minmin had no health issues, but that was just a cover story to facilitate breaking off the engagement with the Tian family.
Today, Elder Brother Li told him to get engaged to Minmin to prevent the Tian family from regretting it and seeking a marriage alliance.
He returned home to discuss it with his grandfather. His grandfather, upon hearing that it was all to keep Minmin from being married off, happily agreed to a swift engagement and calculated that the day after tomorrow was a good date.
He returned to the Li family and told Elder Brother Li, who had no objections. The day after tomorrow, Minmin would be his fiancée.
He admitted he lacked ability but promised to follow Elder Brother Li and do as he was told.
Li Min remained silent. She didn't believe it, but with these words, she felt somewhat reassured.
"Then, from now on, you are never allowed to use my appetite as an excuse to argue with me."
"I won't, Minmin. I, I work for Elder Brother Li, I, I depend on Elder Brother Li for my livelihood, I have no right to lecture you." Su Dan Novel Network
Li Zhengguo, however, chuckled, "Suozhu, when did I say I'd take you on?"
Chen Suozhu was stunned, "Elder Brother Li always asks me to work. Isn't he short-handed? He's short-handed now, and he'll be even more so in the future, right? You chose me as your brother-in-law because I can only rely on you, right?"
Li Zhengguo slapped him on the shoulder, "So, I misjudged you? You're the one playing the innocent to catch the tiger."
"No, that's what my grandfather analyzed for me. He told me to follow you closely and not to care even if people call me a kept man later."
"Because Elder Brother Li will have his own children, so how could he make me a kept man? My children will still have the surname Chen, so I wouldn't be a kept man."
Li Min put down her bowl, "What if someone calls you a freeloader?"
"Then, then, it means he's jealous of me. He has no free meals to freeload on."
"Pfft haha." Tian Jing couldn't help but laugh.
This Chen Suozhu was not only not foolish but also very clever. He directly revealed what his grandfather had instructed him.
Furthermore, his answer just now was very witty.
Chen Suozhu became a little nervous under Tian Jing's laughter, "Sister-in-law, are you laughing because you think I'm wrong?"
"No, you're absolutely right. I think you're a person of great wisdom disguised as foolishness, and you're very good. Minmin can be a bit careless, so you should be more understanding of her and guide her more."
"Minmin is fine just as she is. I, I, I like her very much."
Mentioning children, Li Min hadn't felt shy yet. Being confessed to so publicly by this person, her face suddenly flushed, and she ran into the east room.
Chen Suozhu's gaze followed her figure.
Mother Li was increasingly satisfied. The family was simple, he was a good person, and he loved Minmin. He was very good.
After dinner, it was still early. Li Zhengguo and Chen Suozhu continued their work. As dusk fell, Li Zhengguo asked Chen Suozhu to light the horse lantern.
Li Min was assigned by her elder brother to help light the lantern.
It took half an hour to bring out the horse lantern. Seeing the extra lumber in the yard, Chen Suozhu assumed his memory was confused.
Tian Jing tidied up the dried cotton on the kang and took it to Li Min to stuff into the sanitary pads.
Looking at the successfully made sanitary pads, Tian Jing was very happy.
Li Min blushed shyly.
Mother Li nodded with satisfaction, "This is very good, and it can be washed."
Even Tian Jing, who considered herself thick-skinned, felt a bit embarrassed. It could be washed, but where would it be dried?