Starting a new chapter in life

"Oh my, there are mountains around here? I've never heard of that. You're living a good life. The wild vegetables must be fresh and tender at this time of year. I'd like to go pick some wild vegetables too, and make a vegetable soup with them." Sister Liu's emotional appeal was off the charts.

“When you have a holiday, come to my house. I’ll take you to the mountains over there. The locals said that there are only some wild vegetables now, but there will be more good things on the mountain in July and August. You can pick mushrooms the day after it rains, and there are all kinds of wild fruits and stuff. Shall we go then?” Jingyan invited Sister Liu.

Sister Liu smiled and agreed, "Okay, I'll pick a day after the rain and come find you early so we can go mushroom picking."

Jingyan took a bottle of Friendship Snow Cream out of her pocket and placed it on her cashier's counter, grinning mischievously: "I made braised pork ribs at the beginning of this month and went to the market. Guess how many ribs I sold?"

Sister Liu readily feigned curiosity: "Forty pounds?"

Jingyan held her head high, "Fifty-five jin, and there are still five jin of big bones that no one has bought, so I'll eat them myself."

Sister Liu burst out laughing, unable to hold back. It was indeed something to be proud of when she talked about it earlier, but how funny it would be if no one bought the last five pounds.

Seeing Sister Liu laughing happily, Jing Yan didn't feel embarrassed at all: "The Section Chief Zhou you introduced is really good. I ordered meat from him in advance, and he really got the slaughterhouse to reserve it for me. If it weren't for Sister Liu, I really wouldn't have been able to do this business."

Sister Liu smiled and put the face cream into the drawer: "Just this once, don't buy these again. I'm just giving you a heads-up, the rest is up to you. It's a pity that the market only comes once a month, so it's not very frequent."

Jing Yan was quite satisfied with this: "I think it's already very good. At least it's the only legally operating place in the area. Earning money once a month is no less than working a regular job, and it's not tiring. If I had to do it every day, I don't think I could handle it."

"That's true. Having a source of income gives you peace of mind." Sister Liu strongly agrees with women having their own things to do.

When the others in the cafeteria saw Jingyan coming, they also wanted to come out, but just then people started to arrive, and everyone got busy. Jingyan pointed to the enamel basin in her arms and smiled at Sister Liu: "I'll take it to the kitchen, and you can try it later. I won't cause any trouble here."

Sister Liu smiled and nodded: "Go ahead, Chef Lin happens to be free right now. I know you came to see us on the side, but seeing Chef Lin is the main thing. Go ahead, go ahead."

As soon as Jing Yan arrived at the kitchen door, she saw Chef Lin leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed, smiling at her. "What brings you here today?"

She held up the enamel basin in her hand: "I made some shepherd's purse dumplings, and I brought them over to give everyone a change of pace."

Chef Lin nodded and stepped aside to let her into the kitchen. Jing Yan casually placed the enamel basin on the counter near the door and sat down next to Chef Lin. "It's been almost a month since you went back. Are you getting bored?"

Jingyan shook her head, glancing furtively left and right, furtively taking things out of her pockets while muttering, "I haven't been idle. At the beginning of the month, I braised sixty catties of bones. Except for five catties of big bones that no one bought, the rest were all sold out. I closed up shop before three o'clock. Business was great!"

During this time, I built a chicken coop in the yard, and also brought back five chicks from the company. I also brought back a bag of wild vegetables. See how colorful my life is?

Chef Lin watched her stealthily pull out a bottle of Moutai and three packs of cigarettes, somewhat speechless: "You haven't been away for long, but you've already picked up quite a few corrupt habits."

Jing Yan pouted: "What corruption? This is my way of showing my appreciation to the chef. If it weren't for the braised meat recipe you taught me, I wouldn't have this income. I made a net profit of fifty yuan from fifty-five jin of ribs. It's just that things are strictly regulated now. If business is allowed in the future, you could definitely make a fortune by opening a private restaurant."

Chef Lin shook his head: "I have neither a wife nor children, what do I need those material things for? Suppress those thoughts in your head. Although the Revolutionary Committee is not as strict as it was a few years ago, you still need to be careful. Don't get yourself into trouble for these material things."

You don't have much of a talent for cooking, otherwise I could teach you how to cook. But considering your talent, I'd rather not cause myself any trouble. I want to live a few more years; I don't want to be driven to my death by anger.

Jingyan...

"However, besides this braised pork recipe which doesn't require any cooking skills, there's also a fried pork recipe that you should be able to make. It doesn't require knife skills or carving, and the heat isn't too critical—a little higher or lower might result in a slightly different color."

I'll write down the recipe and instructions later and give them to your husband. You can try it at home when you have time. However, frying meat involves more steps than braising meat, and the texture will change if it's left to cook for too long, so it's not really suitable for your kind of day-long stall business.

"Anyway, I'll give you the recipe first. As for how to use it later, I won't worry about that." Chef Lin said nonchalantly, but Jing Yan was touched. She was incredibly lucky to have met so many kind people who showed her kindness.

"Thank you, Chef. When you retire, come find me, and my partner and I will take care of you in your old age." Jing Yan expressed her gratitude in a unique way.

"Looking for you to take care of me in my old age? What use would it be for me to take on Xiao Zhou as my apprentice? I really don't need you for taking care of me in my old age. Don't be so touched. You think the braised meat recipe is a good way to make money, but it uses a lot of ingredients and takes a long time. It's not as precious as you think. You just haven't seen enough good things. You think everything is a treasure."

"Alright, I'll take the shepherd's purse dumplings. We'll share them together later. Your husband has been waiting for you in the cafeteria for a while. Hurry up and take your enamel basin home." Chef Lin stood up, took out a basin, poured the dumplings from the enamel basin into it, and handed the basin to her. He spoke with an impatient disdain, but still had a smile on his face.

Jingyan didn't expose his hypocrisy, and obediently carried the enamel mug out, saying, "Then I'll come see you again in a while."

Chef Lin waved his hand: "You don't need to come all the time. It's not easy for you to come in. It's good that you have the intention. Just live your life well, be careful not to get caught, and remember, don't be greedy."

Jing Yan waved goodbye to everyone and left the kitchen. He Zhijun and Battalion Commander Gao sat at a table near the door, watching Battalion Commander Gao eat dumplings. A few of his colleagues from the same office came over to grab one, making it quite lively.

But when Jingyan came over, he saw her immediately. He greeted Battalion Commander Gao, took the enamel basin from Jingyan's arms, and walked out. Several people in his office winked at him, but he ignored them and pretended not to see them. The two of them left the canteen, registered at the gate, and then headed home.

“I don’t think I can come back next weekend. I’ve been quite busy lately. But I might have a weekend off in about two weeks. You can stay home and braise meat, and I’ll go with you to sell it. But don’t make too much and don’t tire yourself out,” He Zhijun told her.

Jing Yan nodded in agreement: "Don't worry, I'll handle it myself. I bought a hundred eggs from the Thirteenth Company. I was thinking of throwing some eggs into the braised meat this time. If it tastes good, we can sell them together. Let's try thirty first. What do you think?"

"Sure, you can handle these things as you see fit, I'll support you."

"Oh right, Chef Lin just said he'll write me a recipe for fried meat later when he has time, and he'll bring it back to you for me. I just wanted to let you know in advance." Jing Yan thought of the fried meat.

He Zhijun nodded: "Okay, I understand. Chef Lin is really good to you. If this recipe were from ancient times, it would be considered a secret recipe, passed down only within a family. He gave it all to you."

“I just told Chef Lin that when he can start his own business in the future, with his cooking skills, opening a private restaurant would definitely make him a lot of money. But he doesn’t have that idea. He said that he has no children or wife, so what’s the use of making so much money? Enough to spend is enough.”

I told him that he would come to me when he retired, and I would take care of him in his old age, since I was practically his apprentice. He said that with Xiao Zhou around, he didn't need me and that I should just live my own life well. Chef Lin is truly generous and a good person." Jing Yan sighed sincerely.

He Zhijun also agreed: "Don't worry, Chef Lin has spent half his life in the army. When he retires, the army will take care of him. After he retires, we should visit him more often so that he won't be lonely in his old age. That's what he needs."

The holiday passed quickly. He Zhijun returned to his unit, leaving Jingyan alone at home again. When the weekend came, Jingyan received a sack of wild vegetables from He Chunni. Looking at the eight or nine sacks packed tightly together on the cart, Jingyan almost didn't react: "Don't tell me these are all wild vegetables." She pointed to the remaining sacks.

He Chunni nodded happily. This time she came with her husband, who was pushing a cart. He looked very honest and simple as he smiled: "I bought the wild vegetables from the villagers for two cents a pound, and I asked them to pick them properly, remove the old leaves and mud."

You know what, everyone really went up the mountain to get some. This is what they picked yesterday, it's so fresh! I'm going to find Sister Gao to see how much we can sell there. If we can't sell it all, no worries, we can sell it again tomorrow. If it really works out, I could sell these vegetables for a month! Just thinking about it makes me happy.

Jing Yan looked at the sack in her hand: "How many kilograms is this? I'll pay you."

He Chunni pressed her hand down: "This wasn't bought with money. I dug it myself. When I sent it out last time, I already said I'd make up for it next time. If you gave me money, what kind of person would I be? Even if you love money to death, this isn't how you love it."

Jingyan didn't bother with any pretense of politeness. "Come into the courtyard and wait a while. There's no need to rush with Sister Gao. We still have time. I'll go and call Chen Xinyue over to see if she wants anything. I'll also ask about that Aunt Qi from last time."

“Okay, then we’ll come in and wait.” He Chunni was quite frank, and her husband listened to her and pushed the cart into the yard.

"You know where my kettle is, so go get yourself some water. I won't bother you," Jingyan said before leaving the house.

He Chunni's husband was a little reserved: "Isn't this inappropriate? Aren't we being too comfortable around them?"

“It’s nothing. If it weren’t for discussing wild vegetables last time, I would have stayed here. Zhang is a warm and generous person, so we can’t be too reserved. Only by treating each other sincerely can we get along well. You stay here and I’ll go get some water. I’ve been thirsty on the way here.” He Chunni said confidently, but she only took out a kettle and a jar from the kitchen and didn’t stay in the house.

Chen Chunni and Aunt Qi arrived quickly. When they saw the burlap sacks in the car, they couldn't hide their joy. Chen Chunni casually opened one of the burlap sacks, rolled up the opening, and revealed the lush green wild vegetables inside. Their fresh and vibrant appearance was delightful.

Aunt Qi, who had a rather impatient temperament, asked, "How much is it?"

He Chunni asked a little nervously, "Five cents a pound... is that alright?"

The last two words were so soft that Aunt Qi didn't hear them clearly before she said, "What do you have? Do you have dandelions? Give me three catties. I want to eat vegetables with dipping sauce. Also, weigh out seven catties of shepherd's purse so we can make dumplings and make a total of ten catties."

Chen Chunni heard the hesitant "Is it okay?" but considering that they would have to dig all over the mountains anyway, and that the vegetables were clean and could be cooked directly after washing them, she didn't think about bargaining and said, "I'll have the same one."

He Chunni was visibly happy and said crisply, "Okay!"

He pulled a scale from under a burlap sack, then opened another burlap sack filled with dandelions: "We didn't dig up as many dandelions as we did shepherd's purse this time, but they're all very clean. You can just wash them and cook them when you get home. We've removed all the old leaves and such."

After finishing with the two families and receiving a dollar, Aunt Qi rolled her eyes and asked, "Little Zhang, look how much more there is on this cart. Some of our neighbors are very discreet and don't like to gossip. They also pay attention to their food. Could I ask them to buy some too? It's rare to find wild vegetables. Don't worry, I assure you, they won't gossip. If they do gossip and attract the attention of the Revolutionary Committee, I will definitely testify for you. There's no speculation or profiteering involved, and it won't cause you any trouble."

Jing Yan wasn't too nervous. She hadn't heard of any arrests recently. Besides, the black market was there, and her family's meager profits couldn't compare. Moreover, these were all seasonal dishes, and she wouldn't be able to make them often. So she nodded and said, "Then Aunt Qi, be careful and don't make too much noise."

Aunt Qi, carrying her vegetable basket, strode away at a speed that Jing Yan felt she might not be able to keep up with. Chen Xinyue covered her mouth and laughed, "Don't worry, Aunt Qi is a household registration police officer. She knows everyone's situation best. She won't bring you any troublemakers. I'll head back now. While it's still early, I need to go to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy some meat. We'll make dumplings tonight."

After saying that, she left happily. He Chunni was very excited: "Sister Zhang, I didn't expect that I could actually sell it for five cents a pound. I originally thought that if we bargained, I could sell it for four cents a pound. I really didn't expect it to go so smoothly."