readsfreenovel Chapter 150: Having a Full Meal Is the Greatest Blessing
Chapter 150: Having a Full Meal Is the Greatest Blessing
With the completion of the construction of the village wall of Nanjiagou Village, Nanjia Village also became famous in the Daobei area.
After all, among the hundreds of thousands of refugees near Chang'an City, no village or clan has the courage to buy land and build a home near Chang'an City. Most of the refugees want to escape the famine in Qin Province first, and then return to their hometown after the disaster is over.
Therefore, the impression that Nanjiagou, an outlier, gave to most disaster victims was that it had a bad reputation, and very few had a good reputation.
Many refugees laughed at the people of Nanjiagou, saying that they had found rotten land to build a village, and that it was all dirt slopes. They said that they would starve to death if they settled down in Qin Province.
Hou Xiaoge laughed when he found out about it. It really fits Tang Bohu's famous poem: You laugh at others being too crazy, I laugh at others for not seeing through it.
With a stable home, every household in Nanjiagou now has at least half a month's worth of food, which is much better than these refugees huddled in the corners of shacks.
With stable food and housing, the villagers of Nanjiagou have a broader perspective on things.
In winter, especially starting from November, tens of thousands of disaster victims poured into Chang'an every day, far more than when they came in the autumn.
The villagers of Nanjiagou have seen and remembered the dire situation of these disaster victims.
Many of these disaster victims can no longer be considered human. They are so hungry that they are weak all over, skin and bones, with big bellies, and even eat Guanyin soil and white meat.
I ask, are they still human beings? Compared with these disaster victims, they are living in paradise.
Besides, Nanjiagou’s hometown is a poor mountain valley, not the fertile plains in central Henan.
Although this small earthen slope is rotten, it is much better than their ravine that is dozens of meters deep. Moreover, it is close to the big city and safe. There is no need to worry about bandits. There are bandits everywhere in the Central Plains now!
Besides, most of the villagers in Nanjiagou have sold the mountain land in their hometown, so why would they think of going back?
Therefore, the villagers of Nanjiagou have let it go and decided not to think about returning home anymore.
When peace returns, I will go back to burn incense every few years, and live a peaceful and stable life in Qin Province from now on!
……
In fact, after Nanjiagou became famous, the government of Qin Province also wanted to set an example. A government official once mentioned it during a dinner with a host of the Yanhuang League.
After receiving the news, Hou Xiaoge quickly found the Yanhuang Alliance. Because of the relationship with the alliance leader, Information Hall Master Cui Wenying was also willing to help.
Finally, Hou Xiaoge was asked to take three hundred dollars so that he could negotiate with the government.
The benefits of spending the money were immediately apparent. The government immediately stated that in order to commend and encourage the disaster victims from the Central Plains to settle down and live a good life in Qin Province, it was prepared to allocate 400 acres of wasteland, earth slopes, and trenches near Nanjiagou Village to Nanjiagou Village.
Because the land was so bad, the government decided not to collect taxes for three years to allow the people of Nanjiagou to recuperate.
Of course, the Yanhuang Alliance just told Hou Xiaoge this good news yesterday, and it has not been announced yet.
The government will arrange interviews with reporters in the next few days, and then publicize it widely to make a show.
Hou Xiaoge was very satisfied when he got the news. Although he secretly paid 300 dollars, this amount of money was a drop in the bucket for him. It was all worth it if he could help the village and his family.
Moreover, Hou Xiaoge knew history. He knew that the ideas of more than 90% of the victims would be dashed. According to historical development, the Central Plains would finally recover in the autumn of next year, but would fall the year after.
In the future, millions of people will be stranded in Qin Province, and hundreds of thousands of refugees from the Central Plains will be integrated into the vicinity of Chang'an, never to be able to go back.
………!
After Grandpa Hou Yangmin entered the village for the third time, the villagers simply closed the village gate so that the refugees who followed behind and wanted to eat for free would not be able to come in.
After Nanjiagou became famous during this period, relatives, friends and refugees related to Nanjiagou also moved here and lived outside Nanjiagou Village.
There are now hundreds of refugee families with ties to Nanjiagou living outside Nanjiagou Village, and the number is still increasing.
Therefore, you have to close the door quickly when eating the pig-killing meal, otherwise these people will be like hungry wolves, and then one pig may not be enough to eat.
The fat pig was pulled to the village office, and everyone started working together to boil water and press the pig.
"hold head high!"
With a scream from the pig, the fat pig ended its lazy and lying life.
Hou Yangmin asked his two sons to buy vermicelli, cabbage, radish and other ingredients yesterday.
When everyone was holding the pig down and slaughtering it, more than a dozen women were already helping.
And yesterday I specially bought 80 kilograms of cornmeal pancakes. Fortunately, I don’t have to be too fussy about the pancakes for the villagers. I can just make big pancakes and cut them when the time comes.
That's it. Because they have to make hundreds of braised pancakes every day, several women were busy all day yesterday. It was already dark when they finished last night. Wang Maimiao said that she couldn't even straighten her back.
Eating from a big pot is really lively. Hundreds of people from the whole village, young and old, watch from all around. Children run around and play with the pigs, touching the pork from time to time, and are laughed at and scolded by the adults.
The adults, with their hands behind their backs and their arms clasped, pointed at the pork, commenting on which piece was delicious and which piece was fat.
My uncle was directing from the side, and there was a division of labor for each link.
Some people used adobe bricks to build earthen stoves, some people borrowed pots, some people roasted pig's heads, some people turned out intestines, and some people washed the offal.
All the steps were in order and all the materials were cleaned up in less than an hour.
Today’s chef is Hou Xiaoge, after all, I have some skills.
Fortunately, Hou Xiaoge prepared the seasonings in advance, so he didn't have to run back and forth in front of a dozen pots by himself. He just had to ask someone to follow him and cook.
First, boil lard. Pig fat is good. There is a big basin full of lard, about 20 to 30 kilograms.
As the lard slowly boiled, a strong meaty aroma filled the air, and everyone around, whether adults or children, couldn't help but swallow their saliva.
"Oh my god! The smell of this oil is too strong."
"I just felt like there was a worm crawling in my stomach, and it was very uncomfortable."
"It's so delicious. Eat a bite of the frying oil and take the rest with youzilao."
……
In just over ten minutes, half a large ceramic basin of oil was boiled, and at the same time, half a small basin of fried dough sticks was also served.
Hou Xiaoge threw a piece into his mouth. It was greasy and fried till crispy.
He did not sprinkle chili powder, five-spice powder and cumin as a snack, but planned to put them in the pig-killing dish later.
The villagers around saw Hou Xiaoge throwing oily food into his mouth, and they all wished they could turn into Hou Xiaoge's mouth.
Divide the oil into portions, each pot holds more than one pound of oil.
Each pot contains more than ten pounds of meat. As the meat is put into the pot, the aroma of the meat is immediately released with a sizzling sound.
The fragrance became stronger with the addition of bean paste and other condiments, and was already wafting outside the village.
When the meat is almost done, add the vegetables, vermicelli, tofu and other ingredients, and finally add the source of life, then cover the pot and wait for it to be served.
While waiting, Hou Xiaoge's family had already brought out the pancakes, and gave two pure cornmeal pancakes to everyone, regardless of age.
After everyone received their pancakes, they each held their bowls and lined up in front of the iron pots.
"Oh my god! It's painful to be so close to the pot. The smell is unbearable. I really want to open the lid and start eating."
"Gousheng, try to peel one off. If the fragrance is gone, I'll give you a ladle."
"Yes, Gousheng, you can't stand the smell, so stand behind me! I can stand it."
……
Half an hour later, with the sound of dinner being served, the lid of the pot was lifted, and the aroma of meat from the pig-killing dish filled the entire Xinnanjiagou Village.
Everyone who smelled this smell couldn't help swallowing and urging the person in front of them to get their food quickly.
"Hurry, Sister Chunyan, give it to me quickly, I really can't stand it anymore!" Gousheng quickly handed over the bowl.
"Don't be in a hurry. I'll serve you food. You have to serve me a bowl first." The woman serving food rolled her eyes at Gousheng, then took out her own bowl and filled it up first.
Gousheng watched Chunyan fill a bowl with meat and didn't dare to say anything. He knew that if he said one more word, there would be less meat in the bowl.
When it was her turn, Chunyan took the large ceramic bowl weighing more than two kilograms from Gousheng and filled it with the pig-killing dish without any scruples.
Gousheng held the pancake between his elbows, the bowl in one hand and the chopsticks in the other, and started to wolf down the food before he even left the line.
"Gousheng, go and eat over there quickly and don't block the line." The people behind him shouted and cursed.
Gousheng, who usually talks a lot, didn't say anything at this time. He held the bowl and smiled at everyone, then started eating in the corner with big mouthfuls.
The whole pot of soup weighed several dozen kilograms. Each person scooped a large bowl, and there was still half a pot left.
After everyone finished eating, the clan elder asked the person in charge of serving the food to give each person half a bowl of rice, and added half a pot of water to the rest so that Hou Xiaoge could adjust the taste again.
These were discussed in advance to provide assistance to refugees outside the village.
After all, most of the refugees outside the village are relatives and friends of the villagers of Nanjiagou Village, and many of them are daughters, in-laws, etc. of the villagers of Nanjiagou Village.
Everyone has a lot of relationships, and their lives are difficult. It is not realistic to let relatives come into their home, but it is still necessary to help them occasionally. After all, people still have to be considerate when they have enough food.
"Heiwa's cooking skills are impeccable. No wonder he's able to run a braised meat business. The pig-killing dishes he makes are so delicious!"
"Yes, the big pot dish we made from catching wild boars in Huayin last time was nothing compared to this."
"Bullshit, I saw you eat less pig food last time, and your mouth is bigger than anyone else's."
"When I eat butcher's food every day, I will die with a smile on my face."
"Bah! You are like Zhu Bajie marrying a new wife."
"What's the matter?"
"Think beautifully!"
"Ha ha!"
After the meal, the villagers of Nanjiagou, men, women, old and young, squatted in the corner to chat and bask in the sun on this winter afternoon, as if they had entered a happy era.