Farming for Three Meals a Day [Farming Life] 68

Chapter 68

“Biting spring” meant eating spring pancakes and preparing a spring platter. After returning home, Ye Xi soaked the five-colored rice for porridge and went out with a basket to forage for wild vegetables for the spring pancakes.

Despite the approaching Beginning of Spring, the snow from winter was still thick, and the air was cold. Ye Xi searched the thawing ground with a small hoe.

Some wild vegetables had already sprouted under the snow.

As expected, he found some tender green shepherd’s purse peeking through the snow-covered soil. He carefully dug some up, the leaves still wet with melted snow.

He then went to search by the field ridges. Everyone in the village was foraging for wild vegetables for spring pancakes today, the fields filled with women.

They exchanged greetings and showed each other their findings.

Ye Xi found a patch of tender wild scallions by the irrigation ditch, a precious find, perfect for cold dishes or stir-frying with cured meat.

Having found the scallions and seeing more and more people arriving, Ye Xi, thinking that it was just the two of them at home, decided not to compete with the other villagers and went back up the mountain to the forest, to look for wild chives or plantain lilies to stir-fry with eggs.

There were fewer people in the forest, and he managed to find half a basket of wild chives and also some young sow thistle, just enough for the two of them.

When he returned to the courtyard, Lin Jiangshan wasn’t back yet, probably still participating in the Spring Welcoming ceremony.

The fawn and goat, having been cooped up all winter, were happily munching on the new grass sprouting in the courtyard.

Ye Xi went to the kitchen, scooped two ladles of flour, kneaded the dough, and then prepared the oil mixture for making spring pancakes.

He went to the vegetable garden and pulled a few red radishes they hadn’t finished during winter, shredded them, and soaked them in salt water to remove excess moisture, ready to be mixed with wild vegetables and wrapped in the pancakes.

It had been sunny for the past two days, the spring sun warmer than the winter sun. Ye Xi aired the quilts in the courtyard, washed their winter clothes, and opened the doors and windows for ventilation.

By the time he finished, the dough in the kitchen had risen. He divided it into small portions, flattened six pieces, stacked them, brushed each layer with the oil mixture, and rolled them out thinly with a rolling pin, then steamed them in a pot.

After steaming, he could peel off the thin and translucent spring pancake wrappers.

He mixed the shepherd’s purse, wild chives, and shredded radish in a bowl, seasoned them with salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and chili flakes, added some chopped wild scallions, and made a cold dish of wild vegetables and shredded radish to be wrapped in the pancakes.

He stir-fried some sliced cured meat with wild scallions, and then used the remaining scallions and some minced meat to make a few scallion pancakes. He sprinkled wild ground Sichuan peppercorns on the crispy pancakes, the strong peppery aroma blending with the scallions, making his mouth water.

The porridge in the pot had thickened, and Ye Xi stirred it, reduced the heat, and let it simmer, waiting for Lin Jiangshan to return.

Wild chives had a stronger flavor than the chives they grew at home, delicious in dumplings or stir-fried with eggs. Their hens had been laying two or three eggs a day recently. They had been eating mostly cured meat and sausages during winter, so they had saved quite a few eggs.

Ye Xi used four eggs to stir-fry the wild chives, a large bowl of tender and fragrant yellow and green vegetables, perfect with porridge.

When the fire in the stove died down, Lin Jiangshan returned. As he pushed open the courtyard gate, he smelled the aroma of wild vegetables from the kitchen, a welcome change from the radishes, cabbages, potatoes, and pumpkins they had been eating all winter.

Ye Xi wiped his hands and smiled. “You’re back, we’re having wild vegetables today, ‘biting spring’.”

Lin Jiangshan washed his hands, looked at the dishes on the table, and swallowed. “Finally, some fresh food, after eating radishes, cabbages, potatoes, and pumpkins for so long, I’ve been craving these wild vegetables.”

Ye Xi handed him chopsticks and sat down. “Everyone is looking forward to spring, the fields are full of people foraging for wild vegetables. I was lucky to find a patch of wild scallions, perfect for stir-frying with this year’s cured meat, so oily and fragrant.”

Lin Jiangshan took a few bites of the scallion pancake, then some of the stir-fried wild chives with eggs, enjoying the delicious food. Ye Xi wrapped a spring pancake for him.

“The Spring Welcoming ceremony is over, Beginning of Spring is in a few days, it’s time to prepare the vegetable garden and till the land, so we can buy chicks and ducklings.”

Lin Jiangshan nodded. “The village gave us ten wen each for carrying the spring ox today. I also asked the village chief about that plot of land by the mountainside on the west side of the village.”

Ye Xi, chewing on his spring pancake, asked, “What did he say?”

“It’s a little over two acres, fertile land. The village chief said if we want to buy it, he’ll sell it to us as two acres, but the price is higher than other land, eight taels of silver.”

It was a bit expensive, and Ye Xi winced slightly, other land could be bought for six taels, but his husband had his eye on this plot.

“We have enough money, husband, if you think it’s suitable, then let’s buy it. With this land, we’ll have enough food, maybe even surplus to sell.”

Lin Jiangshan said, “It’s better to buy good land than poor land, we have to spend money anyway. After Beginning of Spring, we can till the land, and since it’s fertile, we don’t even need to fertilize it, ready for planting. After harvesting the winter wheat, we can plant another crop there, and by the time we plant in our other field, the crops on that land will have already sprouted.”

His husband was a good planner, their life full of hope, and Ye Xi nodded happily.

“We should go to town and inquire about the price of cows, we need to buy one, not just for transportation, but also for plowing the fields. Your parents can also use it.”

Ye Xi knew they had saved enough money to buy land and a cow. Although he felt sorry for their dwindling savings, buying land and a cow were the most important things for farmers, building their family fortune, the investment would definitely pay off.

“Alright, I’ll listen to you, husband. I can’t believe we can actually afford to buy land and a cow now.”

Buying this land would make their life better than many families in Shanxiu Village, their hard work and saving since getting married had paid off.

Lin Jiangshan drank half a bowl of porridge and smiled. “My husband is virtuous and manages our finances well, thanks to you, raising poultry at home and embroidering handkerchiefs, you’ve helped me a lot.”

Ye Xi held Lin Jiangshan’s hand and said softly, “Don’t praise me, husband, you’ve worked so hard for our family, chopping firewood, hunting in the mountains, fertilizing and tilling the land, even selling charcoal in the freezing cold, we’re both working hard together, to build a better life.”

The next day, Lin Jiangshan went to town to inquire about the price of cows.

Ye Xi took some eggs and went to visit his parents. It was a cold spell in early spring, and Father Ye had caught a cold and was sick.

As he entered, he saw Liu Xiufeng brewing medicine in a clay pot under the eaves, the pungent smell filling the air. Seeing her son, Liu Xiufeng smiled and waved her fan. “Xi-ge’er, why are you here? It’s a busy time at home, have you prepared your vegetable garden?”

As a mother, she naturally had to ask about her son’s life and household matters.

Ye Xi put down the basket of eggs. “We haven’t sown the seeds yet. I heard Father is sick, so I came to see him.”

“The weather is unpredictable these days, sunny and warm at noon, then suddenly cold in the afternoon, the wind biting through your clothes. Your father was working and didn’t dress warmly enough, so he caught a cold. It’s not serious, just a cough, no fever.”

Ye Xi was still worried and went inside to check on his father. Seeing him lying in bed, his voice strong and his complexion rosy, he was relieved.

“Why didn’t your husband come?” Father Ye chatted with Ye Xi for a few words, then, seeing that he came alone, he asked.

Ye Xi tucked the quilt around him and smiled. “Father, are you afraid we had a fight? He just went to town to look at cows, he couldn’t come. I came back myself, it’s only a short walk, very convenient for me.”

Father Ye’s face lit up when he heard they were buying a cow. “Good, your husband is capable. We don’t have many cows in our village, and he’s buying one. You two are living a good life.”

Liu Xiufeng brought in the brewed medicine and smiled. “We’ll be able to ride in your ox cart then. Xi-ge’er has good taste, you found a capable and promising husband.”

Ye Xi then told them about the plot of land they were planning to buy.

Father Ye, a farmer for decades, praised Lin Jiangshan’s good judgment, saying that the land would definitely yield more crops than other land.

Ye Xi chatted with his parents for a while, then, not seeing his brother and sister-in-law, he asked, “Where are Brother and Sister-in-law? Why aren’t they home?”

Liu Xiufeng’s eyes crinkled with a smile. “He took your sister-in-law back to her parents’ home in Xiushui Village. She’s over four months pregnant now, the baby is stable. The snow was too heavy during the New Year, and she couldn’t visit her parents, she must have missed them dearly. Now that the snow has melted and the weather is warmer, I asked Shan-xiaozi to take her back for a visit. Her parents must also miss her very much. I even asked him to buy some good wine and pastries to take with them, so her parents will know she’s doing well here and won’t worry too much.”

Parents-in-law usually didn’t like their daughters-in-law visiting their parents’ home too often, especially the stricter ones, who believed that once a daughter-in-law married into their family, she was their family member and shouldn’t go back to her parents’ home unless necessary, afraid she would take their things back. But Liu Xiufeng was different, she was very kind and understanding.

Ye Xi smiled. “Mother is a good mother-in-law, better than the other aunties in the village.”

Liu Xiufeng sighed. “When I married into your Ye family, your grandparents made things difficult for me, making me get up before dawn to wash clothes, cook, and fetch water, and they wouldn’t even let me visit my parents’ home. I didn’t let your grandmother see your brother until he was five years old. Now that I’m a mother-in-law, I don’t want your sister-in-law to suffer like I did. She’s a good person, kind and simple, that’s how a family should be, harmonious and happy.”

Seeing that it was getting late, Ye Xi reminded his mother to cook the eggs he brought for his father, so he could recover quickly, and not to be stingy.

Liu Xiufeng saw him off at the village entrance, and then Ye Xi returned to his small courtyard halfway up the mountain.