Little Miss Fortune: I Will Bring Prosperity to My Tang Family!-Chapter 35: Plans to Grow Vegetables in the Winter

Chapter 34

Plans to Grow Vegetables in the Winter

During the Shen hours (15:00-16:59), the Tang family carried their belongings back to their modest home. Xiaolin was more comfortable than anyone, seated on the cart pushed by her father, with a couple of coconuts and a bucket of razor clams by her side.

Upon arriving home, the chubby child stood supervising her mother and grandmother, who were sitting behind the house chopping clams. Meanwhile, her father and grandfather were relishing the clams tossed in spicy sauce.

"Doesn’t it have a strange smell?" Tianchen stood with a smirk, watching the two enjoy their clams endlessly.

"Not at all, it’s delicious. Won’t you try some?" Tianrong offered a plate to his brother, who shook his head and walked away to join his niece.

"Why do we have to chop them up, Xiaolin?"

"To enhance the flavor of the sauce."

"And what do we do next?"

"We cook it over the fire, add some salt, soy sauce, and a bit of sugar. It’ll have a sweet and savory taste. It’s very delicious when used to stir-fry vegetables."

"But no one grows vegetables in winter," Tianchen said, lifting his niece onto his lap and playfully squeezing her chubby belly.

"Hmm," Xiaolin pondered thoughtfully.

Growing vegetables here during winter, with the snow unlike her previous life’s home, might not work as they said.

But what about sprouts!

"Can mung beans, soybeans, and black beans do it? Peas can too, and so can water spinach!"

"Eh? What’s that? What are bean sprouts?" Tianchen looked at his niece, whose eyes had widened in excitement, a gesture she often made when she had a great idea.

"In two days, after we sell the salted eggs, let’s go to the grain store and the seed store, Uncle. I’m going to buy some vegetable seeds."

"How can we grow vegetables in winter?"

"I’ll grow the vegetables in jars. Do they sell jars with wide openings?"

"I’m not sure."

"Let’s pause the jar discussion for now. Your mother and grandmother have finished chopping the clams. Shall we start cooking them?"

"Yes, Mom."

Xiaolin watched as her mother cooked the razor clams for about half an hour. After a long cooking and seasoning, the appearance and taste turned out quite well, though the sauce still had some clam bits, not as smooth as the ones sold in the current era.

"Hmm, it’s slightly sweet and salty, just like you said," Hui Ning turned to her daughter after tasting a bit.

"Let’s store it in the jars then. The weather is getting colder; it should last long. We still have some cabbage left, Mom. Try stir-frying it with just soy sauce and the clam sauce. You can add some sugar too."

"Okay, dear. You can go wash now. You’ve been by the sea all day."

Xiaolin hurried out of the kitchen with quick steps. She asked her uncle to fetch water for her in a small bucket before bathing herself hurriedly, as the water was very cold!

After returning to her room, she snuggled under the blanket until dinner time, only then did she wrapped herself from head to toe with the blanket and slowly walked out of her bedroom.

"What are you doing, Xiaolin?" Tianchen, just coming out of his room, saw the moving blanket towards the hall.

"I’m going to the hall, Uncle," Xiaolin turned to look at her uncle, Tianchen laughed seeing only the round eyes visible through a small gap.

This kid is quite amusing...

"When will you get there walking like that? Come on, hurry up," the young man walked over, picked up the little piggy wrapped in the blanket, and walked towards the hall. Everyone was waiting to have dinner.

"What’s all this, A’Chen? It’s dinner time," Tianrong saw his brother carrying the blanket bundle out and asked.

"It’s your child. You’re always trying to pick on me, tsk," Tianchen turned his face away from his brother and set his niece down.

Xiaolin removed the blanket from her head, wrapping only her body, and looked up at her uncle with a pout, not even glancing at her brother. The chubby girl blinked her eyes.

Uncle’s antics were truly startling.

"And why did the kid wrap herself in a blanket like this?" Tianrong picked up his daughter and sat her down beside him. He was worried she might trip over the blanket’s hem and fall headfirst.

"I’m cold," the little girl with flushed cheeks replied.

"Cold, huh? Come here, let Dad hug you," Tianrong picked up the little piggy to sit on his lap and wrapped his arms around her. Seeing her chubby cheeks, he couldn’t help but kiss her left and right, sometimes even playfully biting those soft cheeks.

"Dad, no! Don’t eat me."

"Can’t I eat you? Huh?"

"I’m not food," she pushed her father’s face away as he pretended to bite her cheeks again.

"May I kiss you again then?"

"No!"

Xiaolin covered her father’s mouth to stop him from speaking. Hui Ning and Zhang Ruo, who brought the food in, laughed at the scene. Zhang Ruo placed the dishes down and nudged her husband who was sprawled beside the dining table.

"What’s for dinner? Why does it smell so good?" Waking up, Hui Song immediately asked about the food.

"Stir-fried cabbage with shellfish sauce, vegetable soup with pickled eggs, and stir-fried wild onions with eggs."

"Great, let’s eat."

Tianrong wanted to feed his daughter during dinner, so he didn’t let her off his lap. Xiaolin thus became a little piggy waiting with an open mouth to be fed, chewing leisurely without having to lift a finger.

"Mmm, the stir-fried cabbage is really good. Very flavorful," Hui Song kept eating the vegetables non-stop. Normally, he would barely touch vegetables if there was a meat dish, but today he ate a lot of vegetables. Tianchen did the same.

"Let’s have stir-fried vegetables again tomorrow morning, Sister-in-law."

"Don’t use my wife."

"Whatever!" Tianchen turned his face away as if his neck was about to snap.

Tianrong chuckled softly at teasing his brother before picking up food to put into the chubby piglet’s mouth as she nudged him gently, followed by a big mouthful of rice filling her round cheeks.

"Tasty?"

"Tasty," the chubby-cheeked girl nodded, her small mouth smacking.

"You should eat too, honey. You’re just feeding your daughter," Hui Ning picked up food and filled her husband’s bowl until it was almost overflowing.

"Thank you."

Late into the night, Xiaolin, who was sleeping soundly, suddenly woke up to the sounds of creaking from the right side, where her parents’ room was. The chubby girl pressed her ear against the wall to eavesdrop and her face turned bright red upon hearing the embarrassing noises of the two.

She quickly pulled the blanket over her head and curled up into a ball, thinking to herself that life was indeed hard without a husband. It was just as well she was only five years old. Sigh, her parents were really passionate.

Tianchen was also unable to sleep due to the noises from Hui Song and Zhang Ruo’s room, which was to his left. He tossed and turned in irritation before finally taking his pillow and blanket to his niece’s room.

"Xiaolin, can I sleep with you?"

The round bundle squirmed before a head popped out from under the blanket. Seeing her young uncle stepping onto the bed, she scooted over to make room for him. The noises from the other room had quieted down, allowing her to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Come on, Uncle," her plump hands patted the mattress invitingly.

Tianchen laid down the pillow, covered himself with the blanket, and pulled the soft form of his niece close. Xiaolin also cuddled up to her uncle because he was warmer than the blanket. Soon, both of them fell asleep.

In the morning, the two looked at each other with wide eyes, wondering why the others, who were usually up by now, were still silent behind their closed doors. It was well past sunrise, and they should have had breakfast already!

"No one is awake," Tianchen shrugged, looking down at his sulking niece.

"Uncle, could you light the fire? I will cook," she instructed.

"I’d better do it, Xiaolin. Just tell me what to do."

"It’s okay. I’m going to make salted pork congee today. It’s simple."

Xiaolin had her uncle chop the salted pork into small cubes, slice green onions and garlic, and finish with mild peppers, since Tianchen protested against her doing the cooking. So, the chubby girl ended up directing him to do it instead.

The salted pork was stir-fried with the prepared chili, garlic, and green onions, seasoned with shellfish sauce and a bit of sugar, and it was done. Next was the omelet: she cracked four duck eggs into a bowl, mixed them well, seasoned them with soy sauce, and then fried them until golden and crispy before cutting them into strips for easy eating.

Lastly was the congee. She just had to rinse the rice, clean it, then boil it until the grains burst, seasoned only with salt.

"Will it taste good with just salt?" Tianchen asked his niece.

"It will be delicious, Uncle. Just mix in the stir-fried pork, and it’s perfect."

"Great, then. Is there anything else you’d like to do today?"

"How about we walk in the woods? Maybe we’ll find something to gather."

"Let’s do that. But first, let’s eat."

Tianchen ladled the congee into two bowls, added the stir-fried pork and sliced omelet, and sat down to eat with his niece. Waiting for their relatives to prepare breakfast might mean they wouldn’t eat until who knows when.

After filling their stomachs, Tianchen excused himself to prepare hay for Xiao Jong. The weather was getting colder, and the chubby cow still preferred to stay in its stall.

The two prepared themselves, grabbed a basket, and hand in hand, headed toward the woods. Xiaolin hadn’t ventured into the forest since she went duck egg gathering with her grandfather.

Lifting her face to gaze at the trees, some bare of leaves and some still clinging on, she wondered if there would be anything left for her to collect.

"Shall we head towards the lotus pond? We haven’t really explored that way," she suggested. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

"Let’s go."

They changed direction towards the lotus pond. Recently, the ducks hardly came out due to the cold weather; they only appeared when the sun was high for a bit of warmth.

Tianchen led his niece past the pond into the deeper parts of the woods, an area he also rarely visited, moving cautiously to avoid any thorns that might be underfoot.

Xiaolin scanned the surroundings, seeing only bare trees and a carpet of fallen leaves. But then, a bright orange caught her eye to the right, prompting her to turn and investigate.

A large orange tree standing in a clearing was so laden with fruit that its branches nearly touched the ground. Not far from it was a big pomegranate tree with its large red fruits. Xiaolin immediately tugged at Tianchen’s arm.

"Uncle, uncle, there are fruits over there!"

"Where? What kind of fruit?" Tianchen followed her chubby pointing finger and saw two brightly colored fruits. He had never seen them before, but seeing his niece’s excitement, he assumed they must be edible and decided to approach for a closer look.

"What are these, Xiaolin?"

"This one is an orange, and that one is a pomegranate," she pointed at the trees in front of them and beside them.

"Are they edible?"

"Yes, Uncle, pick them quickly. I want to see if they’re sweet."

Tianchen, not wanting to disappoint his niece, plucked two large oranges and handed one to her. Watching her eagerly peel the orange, he followed suit.

Xiaolin bit into the bright orange wedge, and the sweet juice burst in her mouth, almost making her feel like she was floating. She quickly took another bite, enjoying it immensely.

"It’s very sweet, Uncle!"

"Let me try." He tasted an orange segment, his eyes widening at the flavor. Sweet and refreshing.

"Let’s collect them, Uncle. They’re almost fully ripe," the chubby figure bounced excitedly.

She planned to share them with Grandpa Huang Chuan and Uncle Zheng Luan. Eh, maybe Uncle Zhou Ming would like some too. She’d think about it later.

Xiaolin sat eating oranges while cheering on her uncle. The large orange tree had nearly a hundred fruits ready for picking. Even after filling their basket, there were still more left.

"Let’s come back for more later, but Uncle, pick four or five pomegranates for my basket, please."

"Sure." Tianchen selected some large, bright red pomegranates for his niece’s basket before they headed out of the woods with their fruit haul.

Back at the Tang household, there was a commotion as they woke to find the little girl and her uncle missing. Tianchen had also disappeared, leaving no clue where they had gone. Tianrong rushed to check the beach but found no trace of them.

"Maybe they went to the Liu’s house?" Hui Ning suggested, knowing that Tianchen had been studying with Liu Hao. Perhaps they wanted a change of scenery and took the niece along.

"I’ll go check."

But before Tianrong could leave, Hui Song noticed two figures approaching and stopped him. Everyone sighed in relief when they saw the two were safe and settled down to wait peacefully on the front porch.

"Why didn’t you tell anyone where you were going? Both the uncle and the niece, we woke up and couldn’t find you," Tianrong stood with hands on hips, questioning them.

"And why did you wake up so late that the sun was high above your heads? We got hungry, you know. After eating, we went out to do something. What’s so strange about that?"

Tianchen retorted, already annoyed from the evening before. He snorted and, ignoring his brother’s annoyed look, led his niece inside. They placed their basket in the hall and sat down to enjoy the fruits together, delighting in the unusual treats.

"What’s this, Xiaolin?" Hui Song hurried over, curious about the strange fruits.

"Oranges and pomegranates, Grandpa. Try them, they’re delicious. Uncle and I will rest for a bit and then go pick some more," she offered an orange to her grandfather, who gladly accepted.

"Then I will help in a bit."

"Xiaolin, have you eaten yet?" Hui Ning walked over and sat down behind her daughter.

"I’ve eaten, Mom. I made some rice porridge and stir-fried salted pork. Mom should have some," the chubby girl turned to tell her mother, her plump cheeks moving as she chewed on an orange.

"Thank you, dear. Did you cook for Mommy too?" Hui Ning stroked her daughter’s head. The little girl nodded vigorously before offering an orange to her mother.

"Mmm! It’s really sweet and delicious. Mom, try this. Honey, you too," Hui Ning handed an orange to her mother and husband, while Tianchen glanced over briefly.

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