When the pears are green

Chapter 204: Dragon and Snake Transformation

Song Li scraped the bean residue into the prepared ceramic basin and poured it into the feeding port again.

"Sister, here you go!"

Li Yi handed the ladle filled with hot water to Song Li, who took it and poured it in through the loading port.

Jiang Qingzhou pushed the stone mill again, and the bean residue, which was thinner than the first time, flowed into the ceramic basin along the stone groove.

After all the soy milk residue in the stone mill had flowed out, Song Li carried the ceramic basin to the kitchen. Jiang Qingzhou and Li Yi followed closely behind. They watched Song Li carefully hang the four corners of the cloth bag on the wooden frame hanging from the beam in the kitchen.

Song Li first poured the soy milk residue into the wrapping cloth, then shook the wooden frame with both hands, and drops of soy milk slowly fell into the large wooden basin under the wrapping cloth.

Song Li pointed at the yellowish residue left in the wrapping cloth and told Jiang Qingzhou and Li Yi: "The residue left in the cloth is bean dregs. I'll make pancakes for you after I make tofu."

The teenage Li Yi loved to hear topics about food, and he happily went over to look inside the shaking bag.

Jiang Qingzhou watched Song Li's movements carefully. After confirming that it was just a simple shaking of the wooden frame, he asked Song Li to sit aside and rest, and he took over Song Li to continue shaking the wooden frame.

As the last drop of bean foam fell from the bean dregs, Song Li told Jiang Qingzhou to pour the soy milk in the wooden basin into the pot, and Master Li, who was sitting in front of the stove, hurriedly continued to light the fire.

Song Li poured the prepared gypsum powder into a ceramic basin and stirred it evenly for later use.

As the fire in the stove grew bigger, the bean foam began to roll in the pot, and a bean fragrance wafted through the kitchen.

Li Yi looked at the bean foam bubbling in the pot in amazement. She could not connect the watery bean foam with the soft and tender tofu.

"Master, you can turn off the fire now. Qingzhou, put all the bean paste into the ceramic basin." After Song Li finished speaking, he took the prepared gypsum water in his hand and prepared to make some tofu.

After Jiang Qingzhou had served all the bean paste, Song Li poured gypsum water into the bean paste and stirred it continuously.

After stirring five or six times in a row, Song Li smiled and instructed Jiang Qingzhou: "Qingzhou, bring the pottery basin to the wooden table and cover the pot curtain. Let it sit for two hours before moving it to the wooden box."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Qingzhou brought the ceramic basin to the wooden table, and then he and Song Li poured the bean dregs in the bag into another smaller ceramic basin.

Song Li held the pottery basin and explained to the three people in the kitchen: "Tofu needs to be left overnight to be cooked, and it can only be eaten tomorrow morning. Today we can only eat bean curd pancakes. I will put two eggs in it, and it will be delicious."

"Everything Xiaoli cooks is delicious. Let me light the fire for you." Jiang Qingzhou hurriedly sat on the stool in front of the stove, fearing that this seat would be snatched away by Li Yi in the next second.

Master Li dragged Li Yi, who also wanted to stay and help, out, leaving the couple in the slightly small kitchen.

Jiang Qingzhou looked around the crowded kitchen and asked Song Li in a low voice whether they wanted to build a new kitchen in the new house specifically for making tofu.

Song Li shook her head after hearing this, and then told Jiang Qingzhou her thoughts: "Let's wait until next spring. We only have three or four taels of silver on hand now, and we can't spend it all on tofu. We have to keep some for Qingye to pay for next year's tuition and the New Year. Although the chickens and pigs at home can be sold for several taels of silver, and we can earn dozens of coins every day now, we still have to buy piglets and chicks next spring. We should save as much as possible and not spend money beyond our means. Besides, according to Mr. Hu, we may not be able to do the tofu business in town anymore."

Jiang Qingzhou sat on the stool blankly, not knowing how to respond to Song Li's words. If it weren't for the following words, he could still praise Song Li for her long-term thinking, but now he felt that saying one more word would make him look incompetent.

Song Li noticed Jiang Qingzhou's disappointment. She put down the egg in her hand, walked to Jiang Qingzhou and asked softly, "Qingzhou, I saw you reading Zhuangzi recently. Have you read the chapter Shanmu?"

Jiang Qingzhou shook his head and replied: "Not yet."

"Then you can read it tonight. We are snakes now, so we must burrow into the soil and wait for the right time to move, hoping that one day we can transform into dragons and fly thousands of miles. Although we don't know who Liu Shulin that Mr. Hu is talking about, since Mr. Hu specifically reminded us, it means that he is not someone to be trifled with. We don't have to do business in the town. Although most villagers are reluctant to spend five cents to buy a piece of tofu, we don't have to pay copper coins. We can also exchange soybeans and wheat. One pound of soybeans can make three to four pounds of tofu. Even if we exchange one pound of soybeans for two pounds of tofu, we will still make a profit. I don't like you frowning. Can you smile?"

Song Li made a face at Jiang Qingzhou, and Jiang Qingzhou laughed softly.

"It looks better this way. Don't sit here. My arms are sore. Go and help me stir the eggs."

Song Li pulled Jiang Qingzhou to the chopping board. She cracked two eggs into a bowl and motioned for Jiang Qingzhou to stir them.

Jiang Qingzhou took the chopsticks and started stirring quickly. The indignation in his heart slowly dissipated with the fast rotation of the chopsticks. Now he just wanted his family to live together in peace and happiness.

After Jiang Qingzhou finished mixing the eggs, he asked Song Li to light the fire and make pancakes for himself.

Listening to the sizzling sound of lard in the pot, Song Li planned to plant some rapeseed in the mulberry field tomorrow. Next summer, she could use the harvested rapeseed to press oil at the oil mill in town.

Jiang Qingye and Song Xing, who had just returned from school, were attracted by the aroma of bean curd cakes. They gathered at the kitchen door and refused to leave.

Song Xing swallowed his saliva and asked Song Li: "Sister, what is it? It smells so good!"

"Brother, what are you frying?" Jiang Qingye couldn't help but ask Song Xing.

Song Li handed the fried bean curd cakes on the plate to Song Xing and asked them to share them with Li Yi and Master Li.

Song Xing waved his hand and insisted that everyone eat together after it was ready. The two of them ran into the main room and lay on the eight-immortal table to review their homework.

Mung bean soup, bean dregs cakes, steamed corn bread and pickled radish are the Jiang family's dinner tonight. The three children held the golden bean dregs cakes and told Song Li that they were delicious.

After dinner, Song Xing, Li Yi and Jiang Qingye stayed in the kitchen to do housework, while Song Li, Jiang Qingzhou and Master Li went to the main room to weigh dried vegetables. The three of them carefully put ten kilograms of dried vegetables into two backpacks.

Song Li prepared two extra portions of dried vegetables, each weighing one pound each, one for the Li family and one for Yang Yu.

After everyone rested, Song Li and Jiang Qingzhou went to the kitchen together.

Song Li stuck two chopsticks into the solidified tofu, and the chopsticks stood upright without tilting. She happily hugged Jiang Qingzhou's arm and cheered: "We succeeded, now let's move it to the wooden box. This is tofu pudding, do you want to have a bowl?"

"Next time, we just had dinner not long ago." Jiang Qingzhou said, and scooped the tofu into the wooden box covered with a cloth.

Seeing that the tofu was completely done, Song Li folded the excess wrapping cloth into a square, then patted the wrapping cloth wrapped in tofu with warm water a few times, and finally pressed a wooden board on the wrapping cloth and placed a bowl full of water on it.

"Just wait until tomorrow. I'll make fried tofu for you tomorrow morning. I used two pounds of soybeans, so there should be six or seven pounds of tofu. I'll send two pounds to Auntie and two pounds to Constable Chen first, and Lingling and the others will wait until tomorrow. I'll make more tomorrow. I want to go home the day after tomorrow. I heard from Sister Wu a few days ago that... my mother is pregnant, and I want to go see her." Song Li rubbed her hands with a little embarrassment. After all, she and Jiang Qingzhou didn't have any children yet.

Jiang Qingzhou held Song Li's hands and said that he wanted to go together the day after tomorrow.

"Okay, I'll talk to Master Li and Li Yi tomorrow." Song Li agreed readily. She had originally planned to let Jiang Qingzhou and Zhang Ping'an go to Zhanggou Village to sell tofu the day after tomorrow. Since Jiang Qingzhou wanted to go back to the Song family with her, it didn't matter if she delayed it for one day.

After the two returned to the east room, Song Li picked up the "Zhuangzi" on the wooden table, turned to the "Mountain Wood" chapter and handed it to Jiang Qingzhou.

Jiang Qingzhou took it and put it directly on the stool. He hugged Song Li and whispered that he also wanted to have a child.

"Didn't you say we would wait until next year?" Song Li asked with a chuckle.

Jiang Qingzhou buried his head in Song Li's hair and answered softly, "I didn't say I want it now. It's only two or three months away from next year. Do you want it, Xiaoli?"

Song Li nodded under Jiang Qingzhou's expectant eyes, and Jiang Qingzhou happily hugged Song Li and turned around a few times.

"You've been tired all day and we have to go to town tomorrow. Go to bed early." Jiang Qingzhou put Song Li into the bed, then lay down beside her and quickly fell asleep.

Song Li leaned over and poked Jiang Qingzhou's sleeping cheek with her finger, then put their scattered long hair together.