novelSusiti Chapter 79: The Wit of Silentness
Chapter 79: The Wit of Silentness
Before the donkey cart had even come to a complete stop, Sizi leaned half her body out from the shaft, her apricot-pink ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) billowing in the wind, the light green ribbons tied to her two little pigtails bouncing back and forth.
From afar, she saw Old Zhang on the other side of the fence, scraping pig bristles with a knife. Her eyes widened in surprise: "Big sister! Big sister! Pigs! Grandpa Zhang is here—"
"Sizi, don't look." Chang Le lifted the carriage curtain, gently lifted her younger sister down from the carriage shaft, and covered her eyes with her fair hand.
Cheng Chumo was standing by the stone table with Yuchi Baolin, moving the last stone slab, when he heard the sound of donkey hooves. He turned around and looked—
Although the donkey cart was simple, the driver, Chen Laosan, was a member of the Qianniu Guard, and he knew very well who was sitting in the carriage.
He immediately put down the stone slab and strode towards the Yuchi brothers.
Before the three Yuchi brothers could react, Yuchi Baohuan was squatting by the fence watching Old Zhang scrape pig bristles, while Yuchi Baolin and Yuchi Baoqi had just straightened up from the stone table.
"Brother Baolin," Cheng Chumo said in a low voice, but his tone was unusually solemn, "the guests who came to the courtyard today are my brother Wang's distinguished guests."
You should treat them as ordinary young masters and ladies, and never perform grand gestures or address them by their titles.
Brother Wang doesn't know their identities yet. If they're exposed today, the peace and quiet of this farm will be in jeopardy.
Upon hearing this, Yu Chi Baolin was taken aback and followed Cheng Chumo's gaze to the donkey cart.
He had seen the Imperial Guard's carriage from afar once when he accompanied his father into the palace.
His Adam's apple bobbed slightly as he turned to look at his two younger brothers, his eyes filled with stern admonition.
Yu Chi Baoqi nodded silently, remaining silent.
Yuchi Baohuan stood up from the fence. Although he was the youngest, he knew what was important and obediently stepped back to his older brother's side. He rolled his eyes and whispered, "I know."
Chang Le observed everything, paused slightly, met Cheng Chumo's gaze for a moment, and nodded gently. Then she turned to look at Si Zi.
At this moment, Sizi twisted her body vigorously, shaking her little head left and right, trying to peek through her sister's fingers, muttering incessantly, "Big sister—Sizi just wants to take a look—"
"No." Chang Le squatted down, cupped her younger sister's face in her hands, and looked intently into her eyes. "Si Zi, do you remember how long you cried last time you watched the fish being killed at home?"
Sizi's face stiffened, but she stubbornly insisted, "Sizi didn't cry! Sizi didn't cry at all."
Chang Le didn't argue with her, but simply raised an eyebrow and watched her quietly. Sure enough, after only a moment, Si Zi lowered her head guiltily, twisting the hem of her skirt with her small hands and remaining silent.
"Yes, my Sisi didn't cry. But your pretty brother's cats and dogs are still without anyone to keep them company today."
Chang Le softened her tone, took a small bell from her sleeve, and gently shook it. "Hua Hua and Hui Hui were just frightened by the pig's squeal. They're your good friends. Go talk to them, okay?"
Sizi's eyes lit up, and he turned to look at the jujube tree—Huahua was perched on a branch, and Huihui was huddled under the windowsill, both cats with their ears perked up.
Chang Le placed the bell in Si Zi's small palm and said softly, "Look, it's looking for you."
Sizi clutched the bell, tilted her head and thought for a moment, then finally nodded and took Chang Le's hand as they walked under the jujube tree.
She took a couple of steps, then turned back and tugged at Chang Le's sleeve: "Then you have to come with me, and you're not allowed to sneak off to look at the pigs!"
Chang Le chuckled and reached out to ruffle her hair: "Okay, I won't go anywhere."
Chengyang and Li Zhi were a few years older than Sizi, so Chang Le didn't need to worry about them.
When Chengyang got off the bus, he glanced at the fence, then silently looked away and walked straight to the chicken coop to watch the yellow-feathered chickens fight over earthworms.
Li Zhi remained quiet, stood at the courtyard gate and looked around, then walked to the stone table, sat down gently, and picked up a cup of cool tea.
Sizi pulled a piece of jerky wrapped in a handkerchief from her sleeve, squatted down in front of Ah Huang and whispered, "Ah Huang, this is for you. Don't tell Hua Hua."
Ah Huang's wet tongue curled up, and the jerky disappeared; its tail wagged so hard its whole rear end wiggled.
Chang Le sat on a stone bench to the side, watching her younger sister and the cats having a great time, and couldn't help but glance sideways towards the kitchen—
The man was coming out of the kitchen with his sleeves rolled up, carrying a freshly scraped pig's trotter in his hand. The sunlight shone on the fine beads of sweat on his forehead.
She quickly looked away, lowered her eyes and retied her sister's loose little pigtails, her ears turning slightly red.
By the well, Old Zhang had already shaved the pig bristles clean.
Opening the abdomen, removing the internal organs, unloading the meat, and deboning—the whole process was performed with fluid ease.
The pig's head was removed entirely, and the neck meat was cut off separately—this was something Wang Zhihuan specifically instructed to grill over charcoal.
The pork belly was picked out separately, and Li Laosan carefully placed it into a wooden basin, muttering, "One layer of fat and one layer of lean, a full five layers."
The pig offal was sorted and placed into different basins, while the pig blood tofu had already solidified into blocks, trembling precariously in the coarse porcelain basin.
After moving the stone table, Yu Chi Baolin watched from the side.
When Old Zhang took out the complete pig skeleton, he couldn't help but step forward and reach out to feel the thickness of the pig's ribs.
His tone was filled with genuine admiration: "Master Wang, this pig's skeleton is a whole size bigger than the ones I raise in my manor. I heard from Chu Mo that it's only been raised for about half a year?"
"Yes, a little over half a year." Wang Zhi was preparing the marinade for grilled pork neck in the kitchen when he heard this and looked up to reply.
Yuchi Baolin shook her head slightly and glanced at her two younger brothers.
Yu Chi Baoqi remained silent, but carefully examined the pig skeleton as if studying the structure of some weapon.
Yuchi Baohuan had already moved closer to the rough porcelain basin containing pig's blood and squatted there for a long time.
She looked up again, inhaling the sweet aroma of caramel in the air, swallowed hard, tugged at Cheng Chuliang's sleeve, and whispered, "Brother Chuliang, what kind of meat is the Master making?"
Cheng Chumo walked over and slapped Cheng Chuliang on the shoulder: "Don't just stand here talking. Chuliang, go to the woodshed and get another bundle of pine firewood."
Cheng Chuliang pursed his lips and obediently left.
Cheng Chumo walked to the kitchen door and peeked inside—Wang Zhihuan was blanching the pork belly and cutting it into cubes, and the cane sugar in the iron pot had melted into an amber color, bubbling with fine bubbles.
He involuntarily swallowed as he smelled the rich aroma of caramelized meat.
"Brother Wang, is there anything else I can help with?"
Wang Zhi glanced up at him, then shoved the spatula into his hand: "You've come at the right time. Help me flip this pot of meat over, and I'll go clean the intestines."
Cheng Chumo held the spatula and stood in front of the stove, carefully turning over the pieces of meat. His expression was more focused than his father's when he was presenting a memorial in the imperial court.
Wang Zhihuan bent down to wash pig intestines by the well, glanced back at his stiff posture, and smiled slightly: "Relax, just mix it well."
Pork intestines taste delicious, but cleaning them is a real hassle.