My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 287 Making a Deal with the Hawker

Although Fenglei Town is relatively remote, it actually attracts more people than Changle Township during market days. People riding horses and boating all gather here, and it becomes a bustling and noisy place during festivals.

With the Mid-Autumn Festival approaching, the market is filled with all kinds of food.

Chen Ling and his group didn't stay in town for long. After having lunch, they took their two nephews to pick out some puppies, buy some snacks from various stalls, and go off to play.

For him, as long as the two little ones are having fun, that's all that matters.

Of course, even though they said they were picking out puppies, they didn't actually buy any. Heiwa had already been paired with a wolf, so why would they need to buy puppies from outside?

It was just a trip to have fun with the kids.

Besides puppies and kittens, the market also had foals, donkey foals, lambs...

They were all babbling and jumping around, just when they were at their most adorable.

These little guys, just strolling around the mule and horse market a couple of times, are enough to bring joy.

The two little ones were overjoyed.

After strolling around the market, Chen Ling parked the car inside Fenglei Town Middle School, and then the family carried their things back to Yaowangzhai.

The main reason for this trip back home is that my father-in-law and mother-in-law haven't been home for a long time, so we're coming back to visit them. Also, with the Mid-Autumn Festival approaching, we're taking this opportunity to bring some mooncakes, pork, and other gifts to visit relatives, friends, and neighbors, and catch up.

After not seeing each other for more than half a year, the two elders were incredibly affectionate towards everyone they met.

When they arrived at the house, they gathered together to talk about their daughter, praise their son-in-law, and chat about their grandson.

The excitement was indescribable.

Actually, Gao Xiulan originally planned to visit her old friends at home after the Mid-Autumn Festival when she went to Yaowang Temple to offer incense.

The two elders were genuinely happy to be able to return early this time, especially since they could come back together. They were incredibly warm and affectionate towards their relatives and friends.

Unfortunately, I can't stay long because I have to get back before dark.

After drinking two bowls of hot tea and catching up on everyday matters, it was time to head down the mountain and return home.

……

When we arrived at the foot of the mountain, we drove to Fenglei Town Middle School.

Surprisingly, Chen Ling ran into two acquaintances who stopped him and started chatting.

These two are none other than...

It was Xiang Yuhua, one of Wang Susu's high school classmates, and her husband, Wei Jun.

The market is crowded, making it difficult to drive out. You have to go around and find a less crowded passageway to get your car out.

The two of them went on and on, asking about Wang Susu's situation and then her family. Goodness, they were so enthusiastic! An outsider might have thought they were some kind of relatives.

"They saw you were driving a car with a Beijing license plate, so they put this sticker on you."

After leaving Fenglei Town and crossing the bridge, Wang Qingwen said, "Even if someone like that isn't Susu's classmate, they'd still make conversation with you."

Gao Xiulan nodded in agreement: "That's right. There aren't many good people in the family planning office in town. Once they have a little power, they do all sorts of despicable things. They're all so snobbish and annoying."

These words were spoken by a man named Wei Jun, who was in charge of family planning work at the Fenglei Town government.

“Hey, there are all kinds of people. It’s not like it’s my car, and I don’t have any special skills. What’s the point of trying to get close to me? I really don’t understand…” Chen Ling shook his head.

Everyone laughed when he said that. Anyone who knows Chen Ling well would agree that he is lazy.

But if you say that Chen Ling has no ability, they would be the first to disagree, even if Chen Ling himself said it.

Wang Qingwen has a deep understanding of this.

At first, he just thought his brother-in-law was now able to make money.

At the same time, you can also make some capable friends from outside.

They've gotten back on the right track.

That's all.

But when he heard that Chen Ling had several pen pals who corresponded with him, all of whom were professors and writers, he was so shocked that he couldn't recover for a long time.

This guy is quite something to be able to have pen pals with professors and writers.

In his opinion, being able to sell two fish to the professor was nothing special; being able to become pen pals with the professor was truly remarkable.

After all, if you don't have something real to offer, people won't reply to your letters.

I can't even strike up a conversation.

So, this brother-in-law is being too modest.

Or perhaps they haven't realized what's so great about themselves yet.

In short, my brother-in-law always thinks he's very ordinary, which is quite strange.

……

"Uncle, look! There are kite hunters ahead!"

While looking at the scenery along the way in the car, Xiao Dongdong suddenly pointed ahead and shouted.

Chen Ling looked ahead and saw that it was indeed a group of kite hunters, leading horses and carrying kite poles. The group was larger than the kite hunters he usually saw, with as many as eight people.

"Hey, why are these kite hunters heading east? Didn't they used to take the mountain roads all the way down south?"

"I don't know, I'll go down and take a look."

Chen Ling stopped the car and got out.

Then he called out twice and went over to stop the group of kite riders.

Generally speaking, ordinary families are not very willing to get close to these kite hunters.

Especially when the hawker group is large and there are many people.

In their view, people like the Hawker were barbaric.

Traveling all over the country, making the world their home, who knows what kind of deadly weapon they might be carrying.

If they set their sights on your valuables, they might just transform from hawkers into highway robbers.

If you target women and children, you become a human trafficker.

Wang Cunye and his companions naturally didn't want Chen Ling to provoke such a person.

But Chen Ling always had his own ideas, and seeing that he walked away without saying a word, they didn't say anything more.

They were worried about alerting the kite hunters and causing them to misunderstand.

I just sat quietly in the car and watched.

Chen Ling spoke to the hawker about nothing special.

Seeing them heading east, I had a sudden thought: I wanted to make a deal with them.

He was still a little envious of things like saffron and cordyceps.

These things are not difficult for kite hunters to obtain.

Of course, it's not just these things.

If we could head towards the county town, it would be a great opportunity to do some special small business with these kite hunters.

These hawkers were already quite surprised to see Chen Ling get out of the car and call out to them, but they were even more surprised when they heard what Chen Ling said.

However, after Chen Ling carefully and repeatedly explained the details of the transaction to them, they couldn't help but be tempted. "Next time, next time we come, we'll head over your way."

The oldest man in the group, with a white beard and a ruddy face, spoke.

"When is the next time?" Chen Ling asked.

"Next spring."

"Okay, I'll be waiting for you next spring."

Chen Ling nodded, smiled at the kite riders, and then returned to his car without saying anything more.

Whether they come next spring or not is up to them.

If none of them work, we can just find other kite hunters.

In short, there are plenty of people who can do this.

……

"How come you're talking to the Hawkman? What's the point of talking to these people?"

When Chen Ling got back into the car, his father-in-law breathed a sigh of relief, but couldn't help but scold him: "These people have guns and knives; they're all ruthless."

"The knives they carried were all Tibetan knives, you know, Tibetan knives, right? They're curved, and if they stab you in the stomach, the tip can go right up to your heart. If you pull them out, they can rip your intestines out, it's horrible."

"Dad, please don't scare people. There's a little kid in the car."

Chen Ling rolled his eyes. "Besides, Tibetan knives aren't curved. You're talking about Mongolian knives, aren't you?"

"Really? Only Mongolian knives are curved?"

"Yes, the three famous treasures of Mongolia are: the morin khuur (horsehead fiddle), cheese, and the Mongolian scimitar."

"...Get lost, you've got a whole set of theories. Was I talking about the knife?"

The father-in-law immediately bristled and glared.

Gao Xiulan glanced at him and said, "You'd better be careful. These people are all ruthless at heart. It's dangerous for you to stop them halfway. What if they see we're driving and rob us? Don't do that again."

"I know mother."

Since his mother-in-law had spoken, Chen Ling naturally agreed.

His mother-in-law rarely spoke ill of him.

We still have to give them face.

As for the deal with the hawkers, since the family was very worried, they naturally didn't mention it to anyone else.

In fact, these days it's not just hawkers who are in danger; highway robbers and bandits are just as dangerous.

When you're out and about, you really should be careful.

Apart from encountering the Hawks, nothing particularly noteworthy happened along the way, and the journey back to Fenglei Town went very smoothly.

A round trip takes a whole day.

When the jeep returned to Chenwangzhuang, it was already dusk, the afterglow was fading, a few sparse stars hung in the clear sky, the bright moon peeked out, a gentle breeze blew by, and the atmosphere was peaceful and serene. There was nothing more comfortable than an autumn evening.

Back at the farm, the family had a rare chance to get together again. The adults sat together happily, chatting and laughing, while the children ran around under the bright moonlight, giggling with joy. It was truly a lively and joyful occasion.

Knowing that his family was hosting guests and that the Mid-Autumn Festival was approaching, several families in the village who were on good terms with him came over to give gifts.

This year, Wang Lixian's and Chen Yuqiang's families had a bumper soybean harvest.

Since the dog days of summer, we've given Chen Ling's family quite a lot of soybeans. We've cooked tender soybeans into edamame, made fermented soybeans and soy sauce soybeans, and often used soybeans to make soups like winter melon soup and bitter melon soup.

Or they might stir-fry a dish of salted beans to serve as an appetizer for Chen Ling and his son-in-law.

This time, each family received another large bag.

When Gao Xiulan saw that the soybeans were quite good, with each one plump, she suggested making a pot of tofu.

Chen Ling loves to eat tofu and all kinds of soy products.

Perfect timing, Wang Qingwen and his family of three also love to eat it.

That goes without saying.

Gao Xiulan soaked the soybeans that very night, planning to make tofu the next day once they had risen.

The next day is the Mid-Autumn Festival on the fifteenth of August. It's a good day to make some tofu and cook other dishes.

……

Silent all night.

August 15th.

Early in the morning, before dawn, the backyard of the farm was filled with the sounds of clanging and banging.

The elderly couple came from the village to the farm to start making tofu.

Hearing the commotion, Chen Ling and his brother-in-law's family also got up and came out to help.

Grind the soybeans, strain them, boil them again, add brine, and press them into blocks.

After a flurry of activity, the plump, white tofu was ready.

Next, take out a large cutting board and use a knife to neatly cut out pieces of tofu.

The aroma of beans rising from the pot mingled with the fragrance of osmanthus blossoms carried on the morning breeze from the mountains.

The whole family picked up their bowls and began to eat the freshly cooked tofu.

The steaming hot tofu is white and firm, and it tastes fragrant and tender with an indescribable deliciousness.

The tofu was still a little hot, and Chen Ling breathed out a puff of hot air: "Mmm, delicious, but I prefer it cold. It tastes different when it's cold, and you don't need any dipping sauce. It's delicious on its own."

Gao Xiulan glanced at him and said, "Don't wait here for the tofu to cool down. While we're having breakfast, go and deliver a couple of pieces of tofu to those families in the village. I'll make tofu pudding out of the leftover tofu dregs, and we can eat it when you get back."

"Row."

Chen Ling nodded, then took out a few pieces of old white cloth from the kitchen, lifted out a bamboo basket, and filled it with tofu.

Wang Susu also found a basket: "I'll go with you."

So the young couple carried two full baskets of tofu and walked into the village, starting from Chen Dazhi's house, circling around the village, and finally arriving at Wang Jusheng's house.

Every time they entered a door, the young couple would say, "Try our homemade tofu."

Wang Susu, in particular, spoke of "our family's tofu" with exceptional eloquence.

The other party was even happier, bringing out rice bowls, pots, or even pots, chatting with the young couple with a joyful expression, and serving them tofu.

"This tofu is really well made. Fugui, you could open a tofu shop!"

"Haha, I can't do that, this was made by my mother-in-law."

"..."

After the whole pot of tofu was distributed, only a small portion was left at home.

But no one felt reluctant to part with it.

Instead, everyone was all smiles. They sat down, served themselves tofu pudding, or poured on some meat sauce, or sprinkled some sugar, and then sat outside the kitchen to enjoy the delicious food.

This year's Mid-Autumn Festival had a festive atmosphere from the morning.

(End of this chapter)