One thousand stones of grain, plus what's left in the warehouse, is enough to last until the grain is shipped from the south.
When we returned to the military camp, the sun was already setting in the west.
After repaying the rewards to the three groups of soldiers, Han Zhen left 300 shi of grain in the military camp and returned to his house with the remaining grain.
When passing by the market, he found a long queue outside Zhang He's wine shop.
At present, many villagers are harvesting in the summer, there is no shortage of food, and they have made money from work, so they start to scratch their mouths.
Zhang and his wife are very business-minded and only sell low-priced soju and rice wine.
A catty of soju costs only fifty cents. A few villagers can get together to buy a catty, which means they can have a meal.
This is a good thing, as it means that the quality of life of some villagers has improved.
As soon as they entered the house, they saw Yang's father and others setting up a small table in the front yard, eating wine with pickles.
Starting a few days ago, they stopped going to the Second Courtyard for dinner.
Mainly because there were female relatives such as An Niang and Han Zhang, Father Yang and the others felt uncomfortable and inappropriate, so they simply set up a small stove in the front yard to be self-sufficient.
As for Tan Qiang and his group of tenant farmers, they offered to give them some food very early on. They could cook it at home, which would save the owner the trouble and avoid having to travel to the mountainside several times a day.
Now, the only people eating in the second courtyard were Han Zhen and his female relatives.
Seeing Han Zhen, Yang's father took the initiative to invite him: "Erlang is back, can we have a drink together?"
"No, I had a drink in the county seat at noon."
Han Zhen refused with a smile and walked through the hanging flower gate into the second courtyard.
As soon as they entered the yard, they saw several women gathered in front of a water tank. Han Zhang held a kitchen knife and tried to step forward several times, but finally stopped.
Seeing this, Han Zhen asked curiously: "What's going on?"
Seeing him coming back, Fang Sansan immediately chirped and explained: "Alang, Tan Qiang was working in the fields today. He caught a few snakes and sent one over, saying it was to replenish Alang's health."
Han Zhen stepped forward and took a look.
I saw a snake as thick as a baby's arm coiled in the water tank, nearly two meters long, with black and yellow colors all over its body.
He recognized it at a glance. It was a king snake, also known as a cauliflower snake.
It's not poisonous, but this cauliflower snake is quite big. No wonder a few women didn't dare to step forward.
"Fang Sansan, go find an iron nail."
After giving instructions, Han Zhen put his hand into the water tank and pinched the snake's head.
The next moment, due to the stress reaction, the entire snake's body was tightly wrapped around his arm.
As Han Zhen lifted the snake out of the water tank, a pungent smell immediately filled everyone's noses, causing Han Zhang and Jiang Siniang's pretty faces to change color and they quickly retreated.
All snakes have a smell, but cauliflower snakes have a particularly strong smell.
It is said that the cauliflower snake will release a smelly gland when it encounters danger. I don’t know whether it is true or not.
"Alang, I've found the nails...wow, they smell so bad!"
Fang Sansan frowned and quickly covered his mouth and nose.
After taking the nail, Han Zhen pressed the snake's head against the tree trunk in the yard. He held the iron nail in his other hand and exerted force with his thumb.
The iron nail passed through the snake's head and was firmly nailed to the tree.
Gudong!
Fang Sansan swallowed, Xiao Yuan's face was full of horror.
And... can you still drive nails like this?
Taking the kitchen knife from Han Zhang's hand, he cut a slit along the lower edge of the snake's head, grabbed the snake skin and pulled it down.
With a click, a complete snake skin was peeled off.
Throwing away the snake skin, Han Zhen ordered: "Put it away and make soup."
"Leave it to me."
Chef Shen immediately stepped forward and began to clean the snake meat.
Han Zhen came to the well, washed his hands, and asked, "Why are you two back so early?"
Fang Sansan replied: "The shop is really out of business, so Sister An asked us to come back first."
One of them guards the clothing store, and the other guards the jewelry store.
Business is getting worse each time. Siniang's clothing store can occasionally sell some fabrics, but Fang Sansanshou's jewelry store has not yet opened.
"It just so happens that there is not much business at the moment, so you can learn more arithmetic in the store."
"I understand."
Chef Shen's movements were very agile, and the snake meat was processed as the two of them talked.
Cut it into small pieces, then take out a small stove and cook it in the yard.
Han Zhen found it interesting because in his previous life in the countryside, if every household cooked snake meat, they would not cook it in the kitchen, but in the yard.
He once asked his elders, but his own elders couldn't explain clearly. They only said that snake meat should not be burned at home.
I didn’t expect that this custom would already exist now.
Thinking of this, Han Zhen asked with interest: "Why don't you cook it in the kitchen?"
Before Chef Shen could answer, Mrs. Han Zhang said in a soft voice: "Uncle, snake meat cannot be cooked at home."
Han Zhen asked: "Why?"
Han Zhang was stunned for a moment, then shook her head: "I don't know, that's what my mother said at the beginning."
At this time, Chef Shen smiled and said: "When I was a child, I heard that the old people in the village said that cooking it at home would attract centipedes. If centipedes fall into the soup, it will be poisonous and cannot be drunk."
The cauliflower snake smelled very bad when it was alive, but when it was made into soup, it was extremely fragrant.
No other seasonings are needed, just a few slices of ginger and a handful of salt.
When the snake meat was cooked, Han Zhen ordered: "Fang Sansan, pack some and send them to Wei Da and Uncle Yang in the front yard."
With a pot of snake soup, several people sat around the hall and had dinner.
The snake meat was actually not tasty, but the snake soup was extremely delicious. After scooping a few spoonfuls of it with wheat rice, Han Zhen ate three large bowls in a row.
After dinner, it was getting dark.
Han and Zhang lit oil lamps, took out pens, ink, paper and inkstones, and sat in the hall.
After a while, the scribe in charge of teaching came.
Seeing this, Han Zhen got up and returned to the backyard study to continue writing materials.
…
The moon is at the zenith.
Mrs. Han Zhang woke up from her sleep and touched her forehead, which was covered with sweat.
Maybe she saw Killing Snake in the evening. She had just had a nightmare in which she was chased by a big snake as big as a bucket.
No matter how much she ran, she couldn't run fast, and her legs were so weak that she couldn't exert any strength.
Seeing that the big snake was about to catch up, she woke up from her dream.
Breathing heavily, Mrs. Han Zhang picked up the handkerchief beside her pillow and wiped the sweat from her body.
It's late July, but the weather is still so muggy.
After lying down again, Mrs. Han Zhang couldn't fall asleep tossing and turning. As soon as she closed her eyes, the figure of a big snake immediately appeared in her mind.
After a moment, she simply sat up.
Looking out the window, I suddenly thought of something, got up and gently opened the window.
I saw that the study room in the main room was still lit.
Biting her lip gently and hesitating for a moment, Mrs. Han Zhang put on a coat and walked out of the door quietly.
All the way to the study door, she reached out and knocked on the door, calling softly in a soft tone: "Uncle."
"It's sister-in-law, come in."
Hearing the sound, Mrs. Han Zhang opened the door and walked in.
Seeing Han Zhen shirtless, she couldn't help but tilt her head slightly.
"Sister-in-law, please forgive me, the weather is really muggy."
Han Zhen said, picking up the coat on the side and trying to put it on.
"Uncle, if it's too hot, just... don't wear any clothes. It won't be a problem." At the end of Han Zhang's words, his voice became quieter and quieter, as quiet as the sound of mosquitoes.
"good."
Han Zhen put down his clothes and asked, "Why isn't my sister-in-law still asleep?"
"I had just slept, had a nightmare, and was woken up."
Just now when I was alone in the room, I thought of that nightmare and felt panicked.
Now that I saw my uncle, I immediately felt much better.
Hearing this, Han Zhen chuckled and said, "Are you a little frightened by the snake today?"
"How does uncle know?"
Mrs. Han Zhang looked surprised.
"Most women are more afraid of snakes."
After Han Zhen explained something, he said, "Sister-in-law, please don't stand. Please sit down for a while."
With that said, he poured her a cup of tea.
When Mrs. Han and Zhang sat down across from each other, Han Zhen couldn't help but glance at the pair of fruits.
There was nothing I could do, Han Zhang only had one inner garment inside, which couldn't be covered at all, and it was difficult not to notice.
Sensing Han Zhen's sweeping gaze, Han Zhang felt her heart beating wildly and her mouth going dry for a while.
So she quickly picked up the herbal tea and took a sip.
Xu was drinking too much and choked on the tea. He covered his mouth and coughed several times.
For a moment, the fruit shook and seemed to be on the verge of collapse.
Han Zhen quickly looked away. The weather had been dry recently and he was very angry. It would be bad if anything happened.
After stopping her coughing, Han Zhang asked curiously: "What is uncle writing?"
Han Zhen replied casually: "About some explanations in the village."
Hearing the implication of his words, Mrs. Han Zhang panicked and asked hurriedly: "Uncle is going on a far journey?"
"It's not that I'm going far away. I'm going to move to the county town after a while."
After Xiaowang Village stabilizes, he will definitely move to the county seat.
It's not just for enjoyment, but it's easier to control the surrounding villages in the county. The speed of receiving information is also faster. If there is any trouble, you can know it as soon as possible.
Han Zhang was silent for a while.
Now, she was familiar with life with Han Zhen. Now that she heard that he was moving to the county town, she suddenly felt empty in her heart.
After all, she is just a nineteen-year-old girl.
Her husband passed away early, and her family has no relatives. Now only Han Zhen, the brother-in-law, can rely on.
It is inevitable to become dependent on Han Zhen, which is normal.
Seeing his sister-in-law looking lonely, Han Zhen pondered for a moment and tried to ask: "Sister-in-law, would you like to move to the county town with me?"
These words made Han Zhang's original feeling of disappointment disappear without a trace in an instant, replaced by an indescribable joy.
Under Han Zhen's gaze, Mrs. Han Zhang lowered her head and stammered for an excuse that didn't look like an excuse: "I...I was helping my uncle manage the warehouse. Uncle...went to the county seat, so naturally I also Going."
"It's late at night, I went to bed, and my uncle also went to bed early."
After saying that, Mrs. Han Zhang stood up, twisted the small millstone and hurried out of the study.
(End of chapter)
