ABD - Chapter 7

Shen Xuan first removed the skin and set it aside, then divided the ribs into four portions. Each portion was about three jin (about 3.3 lbs). 

He kept one portion and rubbed salt on the rest, hanging them in a cool, ventilated area in the courtyard to make cured ribs, which would last for several more meals.

He skillfully separated the remaining ribs one by one, cutting them into small, finger-length segments. 

Lacking cooking wine, Shen Xuan first marinated the ribs with salt, wild scallions, and wild ginger. 

The ribs quickly absorbed the flavor after marinating for a while, and Shen Xuan then began to heat the wok.

Seeing this, Xue Fenglin quickly went to help. He brought a pile of firewood from behind the house to the kitchen to fuel the fire. 

When the flame was low, he promptly added another piece of wood. Shen Xuan heated the wok, cut the pork skin he had set aside into small pieces, and threw them into the wok. 

With a sizzling sound, the pork skin instantly curled and shrunk, turning into small crispy lard cracklings, and a fragrant, oily aroma filled the air. 

Shen Xuan moved the spatula, and a small bowl of golden lard quickly collected at the bottom of the wok.

Shen Xuan then scooped out the lard cracklings and set them aside, pouring the remaining lard into a small bowl. 

A bit of oil was left in the wok, so Shen Xuan threw in the marinated ribs. With a splash, oil splattered, and soon both sides of the ribs were lightly browned. 

Shen Xuan then scooped them all out and placed them in a large earthenware pot.

Shen Xuan took out a radish and cut it into small, rolling pieces. Once the radish was cut, he added it to the earthenware pot with the ribs. 

He added some well water to the pot and placed it on the stove to stew. After all this, he began to rinse rice. 

With rib and radish soup today, Shen Xuan didn't want to drink thin rice porridge anymore and decided to steam white rice.

He placed the washed rice into a steamer, lining the bottom with fine linen cloth. Once everything was ready, he went to the wild area behind the house and pulled up a handful of mugwort. 

In the village's wild fields, wild vegetables like mugwort, shepherd's purse, and purslane were everywhere, and villagers often gathered and ate them. 

This time, however, Shen Xuan stir-fried the mugwort with lard cracklings and added two cloves of garlic. The mugwort stir-fried with lard cracklings was exceptionally fragrant, and the aroma alone made one's mouth water.

The scent of lard even attracted Aunt Tian from next door. Seeing Shen Xuan emerge from the kitchen with a plate of wild vegetables and rice, she said with a hint of envy, 

"What kind of wild vegetables smell so good? They're almost as good as meat. I didn't realize Shen Ger was so good at cooking."

Shen Xuan smiled and said, "It's stir-fried with lard cracklings, that's why it's so fragrant." Aunt Tian then said, "Next time, I'll try stir-frying vegetables with lard cracklings too. I never noticed it when you were at the Wang family's, but you're so capable. Your man is truly blessed." 

Aunt Tian said this in front of Xue Fenglin, and Shen Xuan smiled awkwardly, unsure how to explain anything to her.

Xue Fenglin was quite happy to hear others praise Shen Xuan, and he couldn't help but show a hint of a smile on his face. 

He helped Shen Xuan carry the stewed rib and radish soup, still in its earthenware pot, out of the kitchen. 

With one dish and one soup, although not extravagant, it was flavorful. Eating the rice soaked in the rib soup, both Shen Xuan and Xue Fenglin ate an extra bowl of rice. 

Shen Xuan then carried the remaining rib soup back to the kitchen and reheated it over the fire. The weather was still warm, so the leftover soup wouldn't spoil by evening and could be eaten for another meal.

After eating their fill, Shen Xuan cleared the table and counted the remaining money in his sleeve. In the past few days since transmigrating, he had earned a total of 300 wen by gathering snails. After deducting his expenses for the past two days, he had only 152 wen left, roughly half.

"I spent a bit much on meat today; I need to earn some money," Shen Xuan said, putting away the 150 wen. 

"Lin Ye, I'm going to the mountains tomorrow. The road is difficult, and I probably won't be back by noon. There's some rice and flour at home; can you manage to eat something on your own?" 

"Yes, I can," Xue Fenglin nodded, feeling a bit guilty. He didn't know Shen Xuan had only been transmigrated for a few days. 

He only thought Shen Xuan had a difficult life, having less than 300 wen after so many years. And with so little money, he even bought ribs for him to eat today!

***

The next morning, Shen Xuan woke up early and busied himself in the kitchen. He mixed batter and made several griddle cakes with lard. 

He ate one himself and took another for lunch, leaving the rest for Xue Fenglin. Xue Fenglin wouldn't finish all the griddle cakes in the morning and could reheat them for lunch if he got hungry.

After going up the mountain, Shen Xuan first headed towards the bamboo forest. It was still early, and although individual villagers were vaguely visible on the path, the bamboo shoots shouldn't have been entirely dug up yet. He wanted to eat fresh bamboo shoots stewed with ribs.

Upon reaching the bamboo forest, Shen Xuan indeed saw the familiar figures of Brother Zhong and his sister, who seemed to have just arrived. 

Seeing Shen Xuan, Little Sister Zhong greeted him, and Shen Xuan nodded back, squatting down to dig for bamboo shoots. 

In a short while, Shen Xuan had dug about ten bamboo shoots, peeled them, and put them in his basket. He then saw Little Sister Zhong skipping towards him, her basket already half full, suggesting she had also dug quite a bit.

"Shen Xuan, how is your man treating you?" Little Sister Zhong asked. 

Shen Xuan was no longer foolish, so she didn't dare bully him anymore. She was curious after seeing Shen Xuan spend so much money on ribs yesterday.

Because they had to pretend to be a married couple in the village, Shen Xuan could only nod and tell Little Sister Zhong, "He's alright." 

"He must be very good," Little Sister Zhong said upon hearing this. 

"Otherwise, how could he give you so much money? That money you had yesterday, he gave it to you, right?"

Shen Xuan nodded somewhat perfunctorily, not wanting to explain further. Little Sister Zhong then asked, "What exactly does your man do? Where did he get so much money?" 

Shen Xuan actually didn't know what Xue Fenglin did, so he simply remained silent, stood up, and put on his basket, saying, "I'm done digging. I'm leaving now."

Little Sister Zhong hadn't gotten the answer she wanted and stomped her foot in disappointment when Shen Xuan just left. 

At this moment, Brother Zhong, who was not far away, walked over and said, "Look at him, he was covered in blood when he arrived. Maybe he's not in a proper line of work. You should ask less."

***

Meanwhile, Wang Niangniang asked the matchmaker to help arrange a marriage for Wang Xiaolian. 

Since there was a dowry of three mu of land, the process was smoother than before. Before half a day passed, the matchmaker returned to report, 

"They say there's a scholar, Scholar Sun, in the neighboring village about a li away, who looks presentable. He agreed when he heard your family is willing to give a dowry of three mu of land."

"He's actually a scholar?" Wang Niangniang was delighted but then asked with some worry, "Such a scholar shouldn't have trouble finding a wife. Why would he be willing to consider our Ger?" 

The matchmaker then explained, "There's a reason for that, let me tell you." It turned out that Scholar Sun was almost thirty years old and had been studying for the imperial examinations at home, supported by his widowed mother. 

He had only just passed the scholar's examination this year. Moreover, he only had his widowed mother, so he had no money and couldn't afford a bride price. He could only host a wedding banquet in the village.

"He's actually an only son with a widowed mother? And he can't even afford a bride price!" Wang Niangniang frowned upon hearing this. 

"If he can afford to study, why is he still so poor? I need to think about this some more." 

The matchmaker smiled mockingly and said, "If everything was perfect, he would have started a family long ago. Why would it be your turn to choose?" 

Wang Xiaolian, hearing this, became a bit anxious. He hooked Wang Niangniang's arm and said, "At least he's passed the scholar's examination; earning money is only a matter of time, right? Besides, I have land as a dowry; will I really be bullied?"

Wang Niangniang realized that Wang Xiaolian probably had his heart set on that scholar. However, she was still hesitant, fearing that Wang Xiaolian would suffer if he married him. 

Wang Xiaolian, however, persistently coaxed her, even suggesting they secretly go to the neighboring village to take a look at the scholar.

Wang Xiaolian had been picky before, staying at home until he was eighteen without marrying. 

After being laughed at by the villagers for being unable to marry, he was determined to climb the social ladder and marry someone with status and prestige, so he would have face when others talked about him. 

Although Scholar Sun was a bit older, he at least had the title of a scholar, and Wang Xiaolian would be a scholar's wife after marrying him. 

Plus, scholars and above enjoyed many benefits, such as tax exemptions, so Wang Xiaolian felt that if he missed this opportunity, he wouldn't find another and was eager to marry Scholar Sun.

Wang Niangniang, tired of his persistence, had no choice but to agree to go with him to see. When they arrived at the neighboring village, they secretly peeked into the scholar's house from outside and found Scholar Sun reading in the courtyard, dressed in scholar's robes. 

He looked gentle and refined, and very fair-skinned, indeed different from the farmers in the village. Wang Xiaolian's face immediately flushed, and he secretly gave his heart, immensely satisfied. 

Wang Niangniang also felt that the scholar looked quite presentable. So she found the matchmaker to mediate, and the two families set the marriage, planning to hold the banquet and marry off at the end of next month.

Wang Xiaolian, having secured a good marriage, suddenly became boastful in the village. 

He had long been tired of the villagers' ridicule and now wished everyone knew he was going to marry a scholar. He went directly to show off everywhere in the village.

He still held a grudge against Brother Zhong and his sister for what they said that day, so he went to the village market, specifically to Brother Zhong's shoe insert stall, to show off.

"That's why I say, good things come to those who wait," Wang Xiaolian deliberately said sarcastically in front of Brother Zhong. 

"For example, I waited until this age, and now I'm going to marry a scholar, aren't I? Unlike some people who are plain-looking, have no family wealth, and gossip behind people's backs all day, who knows if they'll ever get married?"

Brother Zhong was internally fuming from Wang Xiaolian's words but couldn't retort. Who could blame Wang Xiaolian for having a large dowry, a full three mu of land! As for himself, let alone a dowry, his family was even hoping that he and his sister would marry for a large bride price to help their younger son marry!

Brother Zhong's family only had a male child after their third birth, and his parents always favored his younger brother. 

He and Little Sister Zhong left home at dawn every day to work, busy with digging bamboo shoots and selling shoe inserts, while their younger brother ate and drank well at home, not even needing to go down to the fields. However, when it came to eating, they had to prioritize their younger brother, and they could only eat what he left behind.

Brother Zhong had only sold two pairs of shoe inserts all morning today. After closing his stall and returning home, he was lectured by his mother and father in turn. After lunch, Aunt Zhong came to Brother Zhong's bed and said she had found a family for him.

"It's in this village, close by. They have five mu of land and said they think you're diligent and capable, willing to offer five taels of silver as a bride price for you to marry and be a stepmother," Aunt Zhong said. 

The family Zhong's family had asked the matchmaker to consider for Brother Zhong was a widower, thirty-two years old, with a large beard on his face, and two sons at home.

Brother Zhong's heart sank upon hearing this. He was only sixteen, and this man was twice his age! The eldest son was already twelve, only four years younger than him. 

Seeing that Brother Zhong was very unwilling, Aunt Zhong pulled a long face and said, 

"What do you know? Older men know how to care for people. Besides him, who else would be willing to give you, a Ger, five taels of silver?" 

"Even Shen Xuan knows to find someone who can afford ribs. Why are you so useless? You happen to be a Ger. If you were a daughter, you might marry better. Do you want to wait until you're eighteen and have your family pay for your marriage, like Wang Xiaolian?"

Brother Zhong was extremely sad but helpless. His family had their eyes on that man's bride price and would definitely agree. 

What could he do since he was a Ger? However, he suddenly thought of Shen Xuan, and his heart felt a little comforted. 

The man Shen Xuan married was an ugly monster; compared to him, that old widower at least had an ordinary, presentable face.