Travel to the mountains and make a fortune in silence

Mu Nan also dug up half a basket of ginger, which she poured into a burlap sack and carried home with the sugarcane.

As soon as the two reached the back of the courtyard, they bumped into Old Man Mu and Mu Xiao, who were coming down from the other side of the mountain. Each of them was carrying a load of bamboo shoots, and the baskets were full, like several small mountains.

Seeing his older brother carrying a load of sugarcane, Mu Xiao asked curiously, "Brother, what are you doing with this?"

"Let's talk about it when we get home!"

"Oh, okay, why all the secrecy?" Mu Xiao muttered as she followed behind.

When everyone returned to the courtyard, Wang Cuiying was busy in the kitchen, while Zhou was orderly tearing bamboo shoots with two little girls in the yard.

When Zhou saw her son and grandson return, she quickly got up to help unload the load.

Her gaze fell on the items Mu Nan was picking out, and she asked with a puzzled look, "Did Qing ask you to cut these back again?"

"Yes, Grandma, have you ever seen this before?"

"I've never seen this before, what is it?" Zhou Shi had never been to the mountain before. She was a pampered young lady in her maiden home and lived a life of luxury for the first few decades after marrying into the Mu family. Naturally, she was unfamiliar with these things, as if she had seen visitors from outer space.

Mu Nan remained silent, picked up a stalk, peeled off the skin, and then cut the sugarcane into sections.

Wang Qing'er, like Santa Claus handing out candy, gave everyone a piece, and then picked one up herself and ate it with relish.

Seeing that his sister-in-law had eaten, Mu Xiao quickly took a bite and chewed. "Wow, so sweet! I never knew sugarcane was sweet."

Old Man Mu and Mu Qin also took a bite, and Zhou Shi and Mu Yao were also eager to try, but Wang Qing'er stopped them, "Grandma, Yao'er, you can eat later."

She then turned to Mu Nan and said, "Brother Mu Nan, chop the sugarcane into smaller pieces. Grandma and Yao'er's teeth aren't as strong as ours, so they can't bite such hard things."

"Yes, yes, sister-in-law is so thoughtful. It is indeed a bit hard." Mu Xiao said while eating, making crunching sounds from time to time, as if she were playing a concert.

Wang Cuiying, who was cooking in the kitchen, heard a commotion in the yard and hurriedly came out to find out what was going on.

She saw several people in the yard, each holding something she didn't recognize, happily munching on it. "What are you eating? Why are you eating all sorts of things?"

"Mom, this is sugarcane, it's very sweet! You should try some too." Wang Qing'er, like a cheerful little bird, eagerly handed a sugarcane to her mother-in-law.

Wang Cuiying took it and examined it carefully in her hand, muttering, "You can eat this hard thing? Don't break my teeth."

Seeing this, Zhou scolded, "You're so fussy. Everyone else is eating, and I haven't seen anyone's teeth break. I, an old woman, can eat, but you can't, and your teeth break?"

When Wang Cuiying heard Zhou say that, she carefully took a small bite and chewed it vigorously. "Mmm! Sweet, really sweet." A bright smile, like spring flowers, immediately bloomed on her face.

"Mom, doesn't this taste delicious!"

"It's gorgeous!"

Wang Qing'er said excitedly, "There's still a large area of ​​sugarcane in the mountains. After we finish eating, let's all go up the mountain to cut sugarcane."

Wang Cuiying looked worried: "Go and chop them all up. Can we finish eating so many? Don't break your teeth."

Mu Xiao chimed in, "Sister-in-law, this stuff is delicious, but we can't just cut it all up and eat it all. It's so hard, eating too much of it will really cause problems with our teeth."

Mu Nan raised an eyebrow and said, "Who said we cut it down for you to eat?"

Mu Xiao looked puzzled: "Then why cut it back?"

Mu Nan smiled slightly and revealed the answer: "Boiled sugar."

"What? Making sugar?" Everyone's eyes widened, and they asked in unison.

Mu Nan nodded affirmatively, "Yes, it's brown sugar, the kind sold in town."

Mu Xiao looked at Mu Nan in surprise: "Big brother, you can do that?"

Mu Nan pointed at Wang Qing'er and said with a smile, "Your sister-in-law knows how."

Mu Xiao exclaimed in surprise, "Ah! Sister-in-law, you really know how to make sugar?"

“Well, my maternal grandparents’ family grows sugarcane and makes sugar, so naturally I can too.” Wang Qing’er still used that timeless reason, which was as reliable as a rock and no one would doubt it.

Upon hearing that it could be used to make sugar, Wang Cuiying immediately started to think: "This brown sugar can sell for tens of coins per pound! If it can really be made into sugar, wouldn't we be rich?" Thinking of this, she hurriedly urged, "Hurry up and eat. After you finish eating, all you grown men should go to the mountains to cut sugarcane."

The family sat together, enjoying the delicious food while discussing the afternoon's plans.

Old Man Mu said, "This afternoon, the three of us will go cut sugarcane together and pick some mushrooms. We've already sold enough bamboo shoots for tomorrow, so we don't need to pick any more today."

Mu Nan chewed her food, but in her mind she was thinking, "Chopping sugarcane is quick, but the journey is a bit far, and it will take a lot of time to carry it home."

Wang Qing'er ate her meal absentmindedly, her mind preoccupied with how the deal to sell pig offal was going. After all, it was a long-term business. Unable to contain her curiosity, she asked, "Father, what did the restaurant manager say about the pig offal business?"

Mu Xiao slapped his forehead and said in annoyance, "Oh dear, look at my memory, I completely forgot such an important thing! It's settled, twenty coins per catty. The shopkeeper I brought tasted a piece of each kind. Let's send over a set of pig offal tomorrow. If it sells well, we'll increase the quantity."

Wang Qing'er then asked, "Did you buy any water today?"

Wang Cuiying replied with a smile, "I bought it. I've already washed it clean and it's hanging in the well to chill."

Wang Qing'er then said with great interest, "We'll braise the pork offal after dinner. I'm going to pick some more mushrooms this afternoon."

Wang Cuiying quickly replied, "I'll go with you."

Zhou said gently, "I'm at home peeling bamboo shoots with the two little ones. Mulin will come back by himself today."

Old Man Mu nodded in satisfaction and said, "Alright, that's the arrangement! Everyone, hurry up and eat."

After the meal, the father and his two sons set off to cut sugarcane on the mountain, while Wang Qing'er took out the pig stomach she had left over from yesterday and prepared to stew a pot of fragrant pig stomach soup.

Wang Qing'er blanched the pig's stomach in a pot, then added ginger slices and stewed it, asking Zhou to help watch the fire.

Two pieces of wood were placed in the stove. After they burned out, the pig's stomach was almost cooked and could be left alone. When I came back in the evening, I could add fresh bamboo shoots and cook it for a while longer.

After finishing these chores, Wang Qing'er went to the mountains with her mother-in-law to pick mushrooms.