After the Scholar Rejected Me, I Married the Rogue and Got Rich - Chapter 22

“Sister Lin, what brings you here today?”

Wang explained her purpose with a smile: “Auntie, to be honest, we’re thinking of starting a small business, but we’re short of a griddle for making pancakes. I heard you have an old pan that you don’t need anymore, so I wanted to ask if you could lend it to me? I’ll trade these eggs for it.”

Upon hearing this, Chen the carpenter’s wife readily agreed: “Oh dear, I thought it was something serious! That broken pot is just taking up space in the backyard. You wait here, I’ll get it for you right away!” She quickly brought over the old iron pot with cracked edges, smoothed out the burrs with a stone, and it looked like a simple flat-bottomed griddle.

Mrs. Wang handed over the eggs and thanked him repeatedly.

Carpenter Chen’s wife waved her hand: “This thing is just taking up space anyway, you can take it and use it. Our two families are on good terms, and the two children are so close, why be so polite?”

“One thing at a time. If you don’t accept it, how can I possibly bother you again in the future?” Wang said forcefully, pushing the eggs towards them.

“Oh, you…” Seeing that she couldn’t refuse, Chen’s wife had no choice but to accept it.

Thinking of something, he told Wang to wait a moment, then turned around and went back into the house to take out a finely stitched purse and handed it to Wang: “Sister Lin, this is for Xiaoman’s sister Sangsang. Xiaoman said that the chestnuts Sangsang gave her were delicious. Knowing that she is doing business now, I specially sewed this purse for her to carry money while I was learning embroidery. Please don’t find it unsightly.”

Wang took the purse and saw that it was embroidered with simple intertwined floral patterns. Although not complicated, it was clean and neat, showing that she had put a lot of effort into it.

Her heart warmed, and she praised, “Xiaoman is such a clever and skillful child! This purse is so well embroidered! I will definitely give it to her when her sister Sangsang comes back!”

After the two finished talking, Wang took the big pot and hurried home to prepare.

———

On the other side, Lin Sang arrived in town and went straight to the general store. A smell mixed with the aroma of clay, bamboo, wood, and a faint musty smell wafted towards him.

Her gaze was immediately drawn to the row of shelves against the wall, which were densely packed with all kinds of bowls, plates, and cups of various sizes, making it dazzling to look at.

To the left are some fine porcelain bowls, with pure white bodies, decorated with blue flowers and plants or plump carp. The glaze is smooth, and in the light coming in from the doorway, you can even see a blurry human figure reflected in them. They are stacked neatly and look exquisite.

But Lin Sang knew that it was not something she could afford to covet; the price would certainly be exorbitant, and she would be heartbroken if she accidentally bumped or damaged it.

In the middle and on the right were earthenware bowls and coarse porcelain bowls, mostly in earthy yellow, ochre, or grayish-white colors, and in simple and unadorned styles. Lin Sang’s eyes darted among these bowls, her mind racing with calculations.

The customers at the docks were mostly laborers and vendors. They were looking for affordable and filling food, not to admire the patterns on the porcelain. The bowls had to be durable, cheap, and most importantly, they had to be able to hold a lot!

Her gaze eventually fell on the stack of bowls at the very bottom of the shelf.

The bowl was a dull gray color with almost no luster. Its design was also the simplest, just a large, deep bowl with a straight top and bottom. The bowl walls were thick, making it look sturdy and heavy. However, its mouth was extremely large, almost like a small basin, and its capacity seemed to be equivalent to two or three of the delicate porcelain bowls next to it.

Lin Sang bent down and picked one up, weighing it in her hand. It felt heavy, and although it was rough, the edges were polished to a fairly smooth finish, so it didn’t rip.

She imagined it: a steaming bowl of mutton offal soup, enough to cover the offal but still leave enough broth, served with flatbread—one bowl would warm you from head to toe and leave you completely satisfied.

“Boss, how much are these big bowls?” Lin Sang asked, pointing to the stack of bowls.

The shopkeeper, who was working on his abacus, looked up and smiled, “Young lady, you have a good eye. This bowl is really good, only three coins each. It comes with chopsticks. Don’t let its unattractive appearance fool you; it’s very durable. Farmers and street food stalls all use it.”

Three coins a set! This price is within Lin Sang’s budget.

She immediately made a decision: those fancy, useless things were not as worthwhile as this large, practical bowl that could hold a lot of soup.

“Okay, I’ll take these. Give me twenty sets of bowls and chopsticks, and two long-handled wooden spoons,” Lin Sang said crisply.

“Okay!” the boss replied, quickly starting to count and pack the items.

Lin Sang felt relieved as she watched the large, dusty but remarkably pleasing bowls being wrapped up one by one. Then, she went to the spice shop and bought essentials such as salt and pepper.

As her gaze swept across the shelf, she spotted a fine powder made from ground chili peppers. It was quite expensive, costing ten coins for a small packet. Thinking of the cold wind at the dock in winter, Lin Sang gritted her teeth and bought a packet, thinking that adding some chili to the soup would surely ward off the cold.

Finally, she came to a stall that specialized in selling offal. She carefully observed several stalls. Although the offal itself did not look as neat and tidy as the meat stalls, she still wanted to buy it with peace of mind. When it comes to food, the worst thing is if it is not clean and causes diarrhea.

She eventually chose a clean stall where the owner seemed honest. She strolled over and carefully picked out some offal (which included sheep’s blood, tripe, liver, lungs, etc.), and also specifically asked for a few sheep bones with tendons attached.

“Boss, how much are the lamb bones and offal?”

“Offal is sold by the piece, and if you want the cleaned lamb bones, you can pay two coins.”

“If I come every day from now on, and the quantity is quite large, maybe the price will be more favorable?” Lin Sang asked.

The shopkeeper readily agreed, “Miss, you’re planning to make mutton offal soup, right? Mutton bones are the key to making the soup! Here’s what we’ll do: if you need it every day from now on, I’ll give you the mutton bones for free! If you order a large quantity, we can discuss the price later!”

Seeing that the old man was so agreeable, Lin Sang was satisfied. She paid the money and hurried home with her bags.

———

Back home, Lin Bai was sweating profusely as he chopped the firewood he had cut into small pieces. Wang Shi had already tested the old griddle on the makeshift stove and confirmed that it worked. The large earthenware basin for fermenting dough was also wrapped tightly with a thick quilt. Seeing the things Lin Sang had bought, the sheep bones and offal looked very clean, and Wang Shi nodded repeatedly, feeling that her daughter was very reliable in handling things.

“Mother will clean up these wastes. Sangsang, go to the garden and pick some scallions and cilantro,” Wang instructed.

Lin Sang responded and left.

After returning from the garden, she first put the lamb bones into a clean earthenware pot, filled it with water and ginger slices, and put it on the stove to simmer slowly.

After coming out, Wang poured the mutton offal into a basin, sprinkled it with a lot of salt and flour, and rubbed it vigorously and repeatedly. The sticky dirt was brought out by the flour, and then she rinsed it with clean water again and again until the water was clear.

Next, blanch the cleaned lamb offal, add ginger slices and homemade rice wine. A fishy smell rises with the steam, gradually replaced by the aroma of wine and ginger.

Lin Sang squatted to the side, watching closely, and asked from time to time, “Mother, do we need to scrub the sheep lungs too?” “How long should we blanch them?”

While busy with her work, Wang patiently explained, “You have to wash them all. The foam in the bronchus is the dirtiest. Blanch them until they change color and blood foam floats to the surface. If you blanch them for too long, they’ll become tough and won’t taste good.” She explained these skills to her daughter as she worked, emphasizing that they were essential for daily life and would be useful when she got married.