The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 282 - 271: Sheep Milk

Chapter 282: Chapter 271: Sheep Milk

She looked at Dafu and Erelu beside her, her heart aching unbearably.

She was reluctant to part with her youngest son, but what she actually couldn’t bear to leave were Dafu and Erelu.

The youngest son had only just been born, and there couldn’t be much emotional attachment yet; moreover, there was no guarantee that the child would survive. Her greater worry was for Dafu and Erelu.

Now she understood that affection really needed to be cultivated; it wasn’t something that came naturally with blood relations.

Just like all three children were her own, the depth of her feelings for them varied with the amount of time spent together. This might seem cruel, but it was the reality.

Ms.Qian’s relationship with Zhou Yin was like that of Junior Ms.Qian with Manbao.

Even deeper than that of Junior Ms.Qian and Manbao, because Ms.Qian’s mother-in-law died a few years after giving birth to Zhou Yin. Unlike Manbao, Ms.Qian and Junior Ms.Qian had to share their affection for their mother.

Seeing that Ms.Chen was a bit better in spirits, Ms.Qian finally put the baby down and, pressing on the swaddling clothes, said, "Rice water isn’t filling enough, feed him a little more later, and if possible, go and beg for some milk. After warming it up, give it to him to drink. Wait a few more days, and then you can try to feed him some rice porridge."

Ms.Chen and Mother Chen listened very seriously.

Ms.Qian wasn’t the woman who had given birth to the most children, but she was the one whose children had survived the longest, so naturally they listened very carefully.

Manbao immediately said, "We can also use goat’s milk."

Ms.Qian looked down at her, and Manbao also lifted her bright, gleaming eyes to look at her mother, saying, "Mother, goat’s milk is also milk, and it’s very nutritious."

That was true, but she frowned and said, "Goat’s milk has a bit of a strong taste."

"You can boil it with a little bit of tea leaves," Manbao gestured, "then the little nephew can have milk without having to look elsewhere."

Currently, there were no newborns in Qili Village, so if they wanted to beg for milk, they would have to go to another village.

Even if they found another nursing mother, there was no guarantee they could get milk, so it would be best to buy a goat if possible.

However, finding a goat that was just producing milk might not be so easy.

Ms.Chen hesitated briefly before nodding, without doubting Manbao’s words.

One reason was that Manbao was educated, and the other was that Ms.Qian had not spoken against the idea.

When Mother Chen saw that they had finished talking and the child had quieted down, she warmly said, "The sweet wine is ready, everyone go out and have a bowl."

She also invited Manbao and Bai Shanbao, smiling, "You kids, I’ll add an egg and boil it in the sweet wine for you, how about that?"

This was a token of gratitude, and certainly not something every child received.

Bai Shanbao didn’t care much about the egg, and Manbao was a child who had eggs to eat every day. She asked, "Will adding an egg make it more delicious?"

After getting a nod from Mother Chen, she agreed and eagerly followed her to the kitchen.

Zhou Hu was also in the kitchen. There were people from the village helping out, but he still had to drop by the kitchen now and then.

Upon seeing him, Mother Chen took the opportunity to bring up the matter of buying a milking goat. She glanced at Manbao, who was waiting on the side, and whispered, "I think it’s a good idea. Goat’s milk is milk too. What if it really helps raise the baby?"

Zhou Hu, upon hearing this, replied without hesitation, "Then I’ll have someone look for one. If we find a milking goat, we’ll buy it."

A goat was expensive, but Zhou Hu could afford it. At worst, they could sell it later when there was an urgent need for money.

Yet finding a goat that was just starting to produce milk was not easy.

Zhou Hu was somewhat anxious, "Mother, what do we do these next few days if we can’t find a goat?"

Mother Chen sighed, "We’ll just feed him rice water for now. Your Auntie Qian already got a little into him a moment ago."

Zhou Hu breathed a sigh of relief.

Bai Shanbao, listening on the side, tugged at Manbao’s hand. Manbao, who had also heard, was considering whether to buy some powdered milk for them as a stopgap. When Bai Shanbao pulled on her, she turned to look at him.

Bai Shanbao leaned in and whispered in her ear, causing Manbao’s eyes to light up. After finishing the sweet wine boiled with eggs, the two of them ran out hand in hand.

Mother Chen wanted to talk to them, to bond with them, but didn’t get the chance.

Bai Shanbao pulled Manbao to go back to see his family’s sheep, then led it out of the pen, happily saying, "Let’s take it to them."

"We still need tea leaves."

Bai Shanbao handed her the rope, "You wait here, I’ll go get it."

Bai Shanbao ran off, and before long, he came running back, but Ms. Liu and a group of servants were following him.

Ms. Liu glanced at the sheep they were leading and laughed, "A newborn child can’t eat tea."

She said, "You’re so grown up, even you would have trouble sleeping after drinking tea, not to mention a small baby."

Manbao’s eyes widened, "What should we do then?"

"Just boil the sheep’s milk, if it’s hard to drink, you can try adding a couple of drops of vinegar."

"Does vinegar really work?"

Ms. Liu looked at Manbao’s puzzled little face and nodded with a smile.

Of course, vinegar was a bit useful, just not as clear-cut as tea leaves.

The two children, having found a solution, led the sheep out satisfied, ready to cross the river to the other side.

The Bai Family’s servants were used to this and didn’t stop them; they turned around and went to report to the Old Madam.

Only then did they realize the Old Madam was already aware and it was actually she who had agreed.

Village affairs were never a secret; Ms. Liu thought, it was good for children to have a compassionate heart. After all, it was just a sheep, and their family could afford it.

But for the people in the village, a sheep was much too precious.

When the two children showed up in Zhou Hu’s yard leading the sheep, everyone was stunned.

Mother Chen’s eyes shone brightly, almost ready to kneel for the children. She hadn’t paid much attention to Bai Shanbao before, but now she couldn’t help but look at him, and she noticed that his clothes were different from everyone else’s, looking very nice.

Zhou Hu also knew that the sheep must be from the Bai family because the Zhou Family did not have any sheep.

So, he too stared dumbfounded at Bai Shanbao.

Bai Shanbao handed the rope of the sheep to him, and with a wave of his little hand said, "My family’s sheep is currently being milked. You can use it before you manage to buy a sheep."

Mother Chen kept thanking them profusely, urging Zhou Hu to accept it.

Zhou Hu hesitated for a moment before taking it and said, "Young master, rest assured, as soon as I buy a sheep, I’ll send yours back."

Bai Shanbao didn’t really care about this; he was more curious to see the baby and asked, "Is he still hungry now?"

Upon hearing this, Mother Chen immediately led the sheep aside to milk it, ready to try their method, but then she remembered she had no tea leaves.

Manbao then sheepishly said, "Although tea leaves can remove the gamey taste, it seems that babies can’t have it, so maybe try adding some vinegar?"

Mother Chen didn’t hesitate and agreed. In her mind, having sheep’s milk was already a blessing, so she wasn’t too concerned about the taste at that moment.

The sheep produced quite a bit of milk; the Bai family had already milked it once in the morning, but Mother Chen still managed to get plenty.

She used a clay pot to hold it, placing it on the fire to boil, carefully adding a few drops of vinegar, and then covered it to simmer.

Manbao reminded her, "Use a low flame."

Mother Chen smiled at her and asked, "Little mistress, does your family often boil sheep’s milk?"

"No, we’ve never boiled it," Manbao said, and pointed at Bai Shanbao, "His family has, the cheese is really tasty."

"Yeah," Bai Shanbao suddenly felt a bit regretful, "We won’t have cheese to eat in the future."

Mother Chen immediately dared not speak, fearing that the young master of the Bai family would change his mind, after all, he was still young and children are often impulsive.

She didn’t know what cheese was, but understood it was made from milk.

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