The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 106 - 95: Meat Soup

Chapter 106: Chapter 95: Meat Soup

Zhou Wulang had brought a large cauldron, originally intended for boiling water to bathe at home.

The other one for boiling the broth was smaller.

Zhou Wulang started a fire, knowing that the bones would need to stew for quite some time to release their flavor. But it was still early, and there was plenty of time before the meal, so he wasn’t in a hurry.

So as soon as the fire was lit, he let Sixth watch it while he went across to gather some firewood.

Boiling broth consumes a lot of wood, and if they found more than needed, they could keep some for the next day or take it back home—too much was never a concern.

Manbao was curious about everything and ended up following Zhou Wulang into the woods because Keke urged her to. She dug up quite a few unfamiliar plants and tossed them to Keke, not caring whether the system had already recorded them or not.

The water boiled, and the bones tumbled around inside, slowly leaching out their rich oils.

Zhou Wulang sliced the fat with a bit of lean meat into thin pieces and dropped them into the pot. When the fragrance began to waft into the air, he then threw in the radishes he had prepared and covered the pot to continue simmering.

The laborers who had slowly worked their way out on the road, smelling the scent of meat drifting in the air, felt their stomachs grumble and their limbs grow weak, their minds wandering from their work.

The yamen runners cracked their whips and barked, "Back to work! There’s still a long time before we eat. Hurry it up!"

In reality, there wasn’t much time left. Usually, everyone only ate two meals a day, but servitude involved hard labor, so food was provided at three different times each day.

The morning meal relied on dry food everyone brought from home. The midday and the slightly later evening meal were provided by the County Governmental Office, although the portions were small, and most still needed to rely on food brought from home.

Some couldn’t bring that much at once. Every ten days, the County Governmental Office would give a half-day break to let people go home to fetch more food. They didn’t want laborers dying on the road either.

The reduction of local population would equally affect the performance review of a county magistrate.

The laborers mustered their remaining energy for one last burst of effort. Finally, the meal distributors arrived. The yamen runners, eager for their own meals, banged their gongs, calling people to bring their bowls and chopsticks to collect their buns.

They dispersed hurriedly, running even faster than usual.

After collecting their buns, everyone headed back, all making their way towards the stove where Zhou Wulang and his group were cooking. They didn’t say whether they would buy or not, but at least sniffing the aroma would make their cold buns taste better.

Zhou Sanlang actually wanted to leave as well, but he ran a bit slower. By the time it was his turn to get his bun, his co-workers had already run ahead.

Having retrieved his bun, he too started running towards that direction.

The yamen runner, with a stern face, oversaw everyone collecting their buns. Each person was checked off on a roster after receiving one, ensuring that there was no confusion and that the leftovers would be theirs.

The yamen runner who brought the meals also caught the smell of meat in the air and asked, "Where’s this coming from?"

The yamen runner replied, "It’s specially made by the family of a laborer, who’s worried about him suffering hardships."

The yamen runner scoffed, "What, they have too much money to spend? With that money, they might as well pay for a substitute service."

"Five taels of silver! Who else but rich families can afford that kind of money?" The yamen runner reluctantly said, "That’s from a poor family, they just know how to care about others, that’s all."

The inquisitive yamen runner didn’t ask further but cautioned, "Keep a close watch on them. Don’t let anything go wrong. Last year in the neighboring county, it’s said a laborer couldn’t bear it and tried to flee. Hmph, they’re all registered with names and addresses, so can they escape? The monks may run, but can the monastery run as well? Turned out, two county clerks got injured. You better not let your men start rebelling too."

"Don’t worry, it won’t happen. They are all really honest," the runner assured.

After this exchange, the yamen runner watched the meal distributor leave and then took the remaining cold buns for himself and went over with his own bowl.

Though they were yamen runners, their food was no different from the laborers’. The only difference was that, while the laborers had to bring their own dry food to fill their stomachs, the runners didn’t need to, subsisting on the buns provided by the County Governmental Office.

Cold buns and cold water all the same.

Only those assigned to the county town and township had it slightly better, with some colleagues from well-to-do homes bringing meat-filled buns for themselves.

Manbao had been eagerly waiting. As soon as the gong rang, she had Zhou Wulang ladle out the richest broth into a bowl, with several pieces of meat and radish in it.

Then she set it aside, intending to save it for her favorite Third Brother.

No sooner had she placed the bowl on the donkey cart than the laborers who had dashed over arrived. They came quickly, but upon reaching the stove, they peered longingly, not buying anything.

Zhou Wulang, having sold goods in the county town before, thickened his skin and called out to them, "Big brothers, would any of you like to buy a bowl to try?"

One of the laborers called out loudly, "Does it really have meat, or are you just fooling us?"

But he couldn’t help sniffing the rich aroma in the air and swallowing his saliva.

Another laborer pushed forward bluntly, eager to see the meat in the cauldron for himself. His rough movement jostled Zhou Liulang standing by, causing him to stagger and nearly fall to the ground.

Watching this, Manbao suddenly felt afraid for some reason.

In her mind, Keke clanged a warning, "Host, you need to calm them down."

The hungry laborers behind the man, seeing him push someone, were about to reach for the ladle. They too stepped forward restlessly, squeezing closer.

Zhou Wulang’s expression changed slightly. Without bothering to help his brother up, he grabbed the ladle the laborer was holding, preventing him from acting rashly.

Manbao charged over from where she was waiting by the donkey cart like a small calf, bridging the short distance in just a few strides. She stood in front of the laborer, raising her face to him, "Big brother Lu, do you want to buy some meat soup? Two wen a bowl, nice and hot."

Bai Shanbao, who had just learned how to tend the fire and had been squatting at the front of the cauldron, stood by Zhou Wulang’s feet. He raised his cat-like face towards the laborer, showing a row of tiny teeth, "Big brother Lu, this meat soup is cooked by us. It’s really delicious. You’ve definitely never tasted anything so good. When you finish your service and go home, you can even take a bowl back for your son."

Manbao added, "And for your father and mother too."

The two children had precisely inquired about him; they both had good memories, thus they remembered his name and family situation.

Big brother Lu looked down at the two children whose eyes were clear and earnest, their pupils gleaming. A sudden sense of unease welled up in him, and he subconsciously reached into his pocket. Producing two wen, he said, "Well then, I’ll try a bowl."

Indeed, he had come to buy soup. How nice would it be to have something warm in such cold weather, and besides, two wen wasn’t expensive.

Manbao took the money, looked up and smiled sweetly at him, then asked Fifth Brother to serve him the soup.

Zhou Wulang’s palms were sweaty, but now he wore a cheerful smile as he took Big brother Lu’s bowl and stirred the soup before ladling out a serving.

Seeing someone make a purchase, everyone instantly stopped pressing forward, though they were not in a hurry to buy. Instead, they eagerly watched Big brother Lu, waiting to hear his opinion.

While two wen weren’t much, and everyone could afford it, the soup had to be worth the money.

Big brother Lu cautiously sipped the soup, his eyes lighting up as he smiled and said, "It’s really quite good."

Those who knew him squeezed in closer to take a look. Seeing the grease floating on the surface and a piece of meat in the soup, their eyes brightened, and they eagerly pushed forward to get a bowl.