Chapter 226: Shepherd’s Purse Dumplings

Zhou Yimin was quite satisfied upon hearing the success rate, although it still couldn’t compare to the twenty-first century.

“Yimin, when can the next batch of eggs be delivered?” The old village secretary asked, thickening his skin a little.

If it weren’t for matters concerning the village, he wouldn’t have made the request.

Although the village no longer suffered from food shortages, having extra supplies was always a good thing. After having experienced such a severe shortage once, who knew when it might happen again? One always had to prepare for a rainy day.

Zhou Yimin thought for a moment before replying, “In a few days, I’ll bring the eggs over.”

Since the old secretary had spoken up, it would be awkward to refuse. Besides, those village chickens would end up being sold to him anyway. It was a win-win situation.

Once he got Zhou Yimin’s definite answer, the old secretary felt a weight lifted from his shoulders.

Seeing the newly built chicken coops, Zhou Yimin commented, “You finished the coops so quickly, and they’re quite large too.”

That meant they could raise more chickens. After all, chickens couldn’t be raised in high density like bullfrogs, which could be kept in large numbers even in limited space.

Moreover, from what he knew, bullfrogs were often treated with antibiotics and various unknown medicines to prevent disease.

Zhou Xucai and a few others tossed the freshly cut wild grass feed into the new coop. There were quite a lot of chicks, and they basically had to replenish their food every day to ensure the chicks had enough to eat. After all, they were all hoping these chicks would grow quickly and be turned into money or food.

After finishing the chores, it was nearly noon, and everyone headed home for lunch.

People needed food to work—without a full belly, there was no strength for labor.

The villagers of Zhoujiazhuang were quite satisfied with life now. As long as they had enough to eat, that was good enough. Even if the food wasn’t great, compared to before—when they didn’t even have enough to fill their stomachs—it was a huge improvement.

The old secretary invited, “Why don’t you come eat at my place for lunch?”

He knew full well that even the best food at his home couldn’t compare to Zhou Yimin’s usual meals, so he could only call it a makeshift meal.

Zhou Yimin declined, “Next time, Secretary. Grandpa already made dumplings, and I’m also still a bit worried about the chick hatching situation—I’ll check on it again.”

The old secretary didn’t insist further, and the two went back to their respective homes for lunch.

As soon as Zhou Yimin got home, he saw that Third Uncle’s family had already come over. It seemed they were here for the dumplings.

The moment he stepped in, he heard crying. Zhou Yimin quickly stepped forward to check.

Laifu was holding Qianqian and imitating how his mother usually handled babies, occasionally patting her little bottom, but the crying didn’t stop. He adjusted his hold and tried again.

You had to admit, the little guy had some experience with kids—at least more than Zhou Yimin.

Among the three little ones, the one Zhou Yimin was most fond of was Laifu. He was so sensible it hurt.

Zhou Yimin said, “Laifu, let me hold Qianqian. You take a break.”

Laifu obediently handed Qianqian over after hearing that.

Zhou Yimin took Qianqian in his arms and pulled out three pieces of White Rabbit milk candy from his pocket. “Laifu, share these with your younger siblings.”

The longer he held her, the quieter Qianqian became. She even gave a few shy little smiles.

Third Aunt came out carrying a plate of dumplings. When she saw Qianqian smiling at Zhou Yimin, she couldn’t help but feel a little jealous. “Qianqian really is close to her big brother. I’ve held her for so long and she never smiled at me.”

Qianqian had been crying a lot today.

Grandma said the child had encountered something evil and had even asked someone in the village to perform a small ritual.

Well, it was the countryside—and in this era, a little superstition was normal.

Even though feudal superstitions were strictly banned on the surface, eradicating them completely was impossible.

“Xuqiang’s wife, it’s normal for Qianqian to be close to Yimin,” the old man said. “If it weren’t for my eldest grandson bringing her back, she would’ve starved to death.”

In this kind of environment, every household was barely getting by. Who would take in a child with no known background?

Who knew if she would repay the kindness or turn out to be ungrateful? Or worse, what if her real family showed up to claim her after they had raised her—then what?

People’s hearts were the least reliable thing.

Seeing that the old man had spoken, Huang Lan didn’t say another word.

Zhou Yimin asked, “Third Aunt, did you finish the baby formula? I brought back a few more bags. Make sure Laifu and the others get some now and then.”

Even though they looked better now than when they were skin and bones, they were still a far cry from kids of the same age in the later generations.

“Yimin, thank you, but formula is so expensive. It’s enough for Qianqian to have it,” Huang Lan quickly replied, shaking her head.

They all knew just how precious formula was.

If Qianqian hadn’t been lucky enough to meet Yimin, never mind formula—they would’ve been grateful to have even a little rice porridge for her.

The old man was pleased to see that Huang Lan knew her place and added, “Xuqiang’s wife, just do as my grandson says.”

Huang Lan quickly expressed her gratitude. “Then thank you, Yimin.”

In reality, over the past month, Laifu and the others had benefitted from Qianqian’s presence and had their fair share of formula too.

“No problem. When it’s almost gone, just tell me—I’ll bring more next time I come back,” Zhou Yimin said.

Qianqian was his little sister—if he didn’t take good care of her, who would?

Sure, formula was rare and precious for the average family, but to him, as long as you had money, most things could be bought.

Grandma brought out all the dumplings—a huge basin full. There were two fillings: shepherd’s purse and pork, and green bean and pork.

To give her eldest grandson a proper meal, she had used several pounds of pork for these dumplings. If he weren’t home, they’d never be this extravagant.

Laifu and the kids had long been drooling, but they didn’t dare touch a thing without the old man’s go-ahead. Otherwise, they’d get a spanking from their parents.

Huang Lan said, “Yimin, go ahead and eat. Let me take Qianqian.”

“It’s okay, let me hold her,” Zhou Yimin replied.

“Everyone eat now! If the dumplings get cold, they won’t taste good,” the old man finally spoke.

With his permission, everyone dove in without hesitation.

Lai Cai didn’t even care about getting burned and popped dumplings into his mouth one after another. But dumplings fresh out of the pot were too hot to eat that quickly.

As soon as he bit in, the hot juice burst out and scalded him, making him cry out. But he couldn’t bear to spit it out, so he just huffed and puffed until it cooled down enough to swallow—then went right back to eating.

Seeing this, Zhou Yimin was speechless. “Lai Cai, slow down. There’s plenty of dumplings—you won’t run out.”

Huang Lan, unable to bear it, tapped him on the head with her chopsticks. “Can’t you eat a little slower?”

These days, they had meat now and then. It wasn’t like before, when they looked like they were starved to death.

“But the dumplings are so good,” Lai Cai said with a pout.

At home, they mostly ate coarse cornmeal buns. How could they compare to dumpling skins made with fine wheat flour? He could eat them even without any filling.

It was really great whenever Big Brother came home. Every time, they got to eat well—and not just well, but a real feast.

Actually, the house had quite a bit of food now, including meat. Most of it came from Big Brother. But their mother would never let them eat it—she kept it hanging in the kitchen, saying it was for the New Year or special guests.

Like the last time when Grandpa and Grandma came—they finally got one good meal.

(End of Chapter)