Chapter 57
With so much time gone by, her chicken and duck eggs had nearly piled up into a mountain.
Ever since she had revealed her spatial abilities to him, she had purchased a few more eggs, but those meager sales hardly made a dent.
"I still need to find a way to deal with them."
During this period of tending to her crops and drying fruits, she had been too busy to take care of the chicken and duck eggs.
Taking advantage of this spare moment, she should think of more solutions.
Recalling the instructions for making tea leaf eggs that she had come across before, Luo Ge simply gathered some chicken and duck eggs with Gu Jinchen and brought them back to the small courtyard in her space.
She knew how to make salted duck eggs, which was relatively simple.
After considering it, she washed and air-dried the chicken and duck eggs with him.
Then, they went out and boiled a pot of brine with salt, cassia leaves, star anise, cassia bark, Sichuan peppercorns, and ginger slices.
After boiling for five minutes, they removed the pot from heat, added some pure rice wine, and let it air-dry.
Next, they took out the cleaned and dried duck eggs, rolled them in the rice wine, and directly placed them into sterilized jars.
They poured the air-dried brine into the jars, ensuring the liquid covered the duck eggs, sealed the jars, and let them sit for ten to half a month.
Since she didn't lack any ingredients, she made two large jars of salted duck eggs at once.
As for the chicken eggs, she planned to make tea leaf eggs with them, but she would need to research the process further.
After studying the instructions for a while, she realized it wasn't too difficult, mainly requiring lye water and slaked lime powder.
She had lye water, and there seemed to be some slaked lime powder left over from when they had repaired the small courtyard.
After searching around the courtyard for a while, she finally gathered all the necessary items and also retrieved some chaff from outside.
Seeing that she was about to handle the lime powder, Gu Jinchen quickly took it from her.
"Wife, just tell me what to do, and I'll handle it."
He knew about the dangers of lime powder and didn't want her to touch it, as it could burn her if mixed with water.
"All right."
"Let's first dissolve the lye water and salt in a vat, and then mix the wood ash and slaked lime together."
"After mixing them well, slowly pour them into the vat. Be careful when doing it."
Seeing his actions, Luo Ge didn't forget to remind him.
"No problem, I know what I'm doing."
Once the slaked lime had dissolved, the coating mixture was ready. They then added the chaff and mixed it thoroughly so it could be used to coat the chicken eggs.
They evenly coated each chicken egg with the mixture and placed them individually into the vat, sealing it afterward. In about twenty days or so, the tea leaf eggs would be ready.
After finishing these tasks, Luo Ge took Gu Jinchen out with her.
Since it would take some time for the eggs to be ready, they could work on the dried fruits in the meantime.
In this era, slaked lime wasn't cheap, so making all the eggs into tea leaf eggs might be costly.
Compared to that, she was more inclined to use the chicken eggs for pastries or other dishes.
She planned to stabilize the dried fruit workshop after the house was repaired, and then open a small restaurant, which would allow her to utilize the resources from her space.
There was no harm in doing this trial run now, as she had the materials and time, and it wouldn't be time-consuming.
Moreover, if she succeeded in making tea leaf eggs, her future small restaurant could offer a unique specialty dish.
Seeing his wife lying on the bed, her eyes rolling as she contemplated these matters, Gu Jinchen reached over and pulled her into his embrace.
"Go to sleep now, it's not early anymore. The doctor said you need more rest."
His large palm caressed her still relatively flat belly as he fretted like a father and gently advised her.
Luo Ge tilted her head upwards, but only saw his chin at first, so she shifted up a bit more.
"I know," she said softly and obediently through a yawn once their eyes met.
She then nestled her head into the crook of his neck, snuggled against him, and fell into a deep, comfortable sleep.
Gu Jinchen stared blankly at her cuddly actions before curving his lips into a smile. His large palm gently rubbed her soft head.
He couldn't help but adore her when she was so soft and clingy like this.
It was just... a little bit tantalizing, in a way.
Alas, their little one seemed to have come a bit too soon.
...The next day.
When Luo Ge opened the door early in the morning, she was nearly startled by the old man and young boy standing in front of it.
"Apologies, apologies, I didn't mean to scare the lady of the house."
"Is this the residence of Gu Erlang, who is purchasing fruits? We're from the neighboring Li Family Village and heard the news that you're buying fruits, so we came to see."
The old man who spoke had a very kind face, giving Luo Ge a comfortable impression - certainly not someone with ill intentions.
Seeing that Luo Ge was startled when she opened the door, he promptly apologized. He had a large basket on his back and was leading a skinny young boy by the hand.
Luo Ge looked at the old man and the boy, as well as the basket on his back, and smiled with a nod.
"It's no problem. You've come so early, Mister. You must have been waiting for a while. My husband will be right out to weigh your fruits."
As she spoke, Gu Jinchen had already come out, carrying a table to place items on.
Without saying much, he saw the frail old man and skinny boy, took the basket from the old man's back, and weighed the fruits.
"Seventy catties, two hundred and eighty wen. Here you go."
"If you have more in the future, you can bring them over too. We'll be purchasing fruits during this period," he added casually as he handed them the money.
"Yes, yes, yes! Good."
When receiving the money, Luo Ge clearly saw tears glistening in the old man's eyes, and his hands were trembling.
The young boy turned his head to look at Luo Ge and Gu Jinchen a few times as they left, as if memorizing the location.
After the old man and the boy left, villagers from their village started coming in one after another.
At the same time, there were many people from other villages too... The news must have spread far, as there were significantly more people than the previous day.
No, it should be said that there were not just one or two times more people, but multiples more.
"Switch with me if you get tired, don't overexert yourself."
Seeing that Gu Jinchen was overwhelmed with the workload, she helped out while reminding him.
"It's alright, I can manage."
His little wife made him drink that body-nourishing tonic every day, so he was brimming with energy.
He hadn't felt tired at all these past few days despite being so busy. In fact, he was worried about not having enough to do, so this was perfect timing.
Seeing his response, Luo Ge gave him a helpless look but didn't say anything else.
To their surprise, although there were many people who came today, not a single one tried to cheat them.
All the fruits were of excellent quality, and some were even washed clean before being brought over.
This truly surprised them.
Later, when they asked, they learned that the elders of the Gu Family had spread the word about what had happened the previous day.
They said that if anyone tried to deceive the young couple again, they would no longer purchase fruits.
Most of the villagers knew about the previous day's incident and understood Gu Jinchen's character - he was a man of his word.
Fearing that they might lose this opportunity to earn money, they naturally became more honest.
And seeing how their fellow villagers behaved, those from other villages didn't dare try any tricks either.
"Our aunts and uncles are so kind," Luo Ge said to Gu Jinchen with a smile.
Gu Jinchen nodded in agreement, "It's mutual."
The unity of his Gu Family was due in no small part to the leadership of those elders.
The village chief played a significant role, and the clan leader, as well as the elderly clan matriarch, were all sharp-witted and reasonable people.
...Meanwhile.
"Hmph!"
News of Zhu Auntie causing trouble at the Gu Family the previous day had reached Zhu Uncle, who didn't spare her from a beating.
She hadn't shown her face in the village all day, but now, seeing that the sun was about to set, she gave a disgruntled snort as groups of people continued to leave the Gu Family's direction.
Her bruised face showed her resentment.
"Tsk!" Turning around, she saw Li Zhaodi next door, her face similarly bruised and swollen, and spat at her again.
"Alas, the wretched mother of that good-for-nothing is out stirring up trouble again."
Glancing over, she saw a sour-faced old woman hurrying towards Li Zhaodi, mocking her misfortune.
"Li Zhaodi's mother! Li Zhaodi's mother! You're looking for Li Zhaodi? She's right here!"
Noticing Li Zhaodi about to hurry back into the courtyard upon hearing this, the old woman deliberately blocked her way.
She hadn't forgotten how yesterday Li Zhaodi and that neighbor's wife had ganged up to insult her.
Li Zhaodi turned pale upon hearing these words, glaring at Zhu Auntie with resentment in her eyes!
"You dare look at me like that, you wretched thing!"
Catching this glare, Zhu Auntie frowned in disgust and shoved Li Zhaodi away, repulsed by her insolent gaze.
"Li Zhaodi, why are you running from your mother?"
As Zhu Auntie let go, Li Zhaodi turned to flee back into the courtyard, only to be caught by a large black hand.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter