Chapter 41: Selling Pork
A villager said to Er La Niang, "This wild boar is supposed to go to Su Qing’s house."
"Why take it to that girl Su Qing’s house?" Er La Niang flew into a rage. "My son killed this boar! Even if Su Qing helped watch over it, giving her a few pounds of meat is enough. How much more could she want? For all we know, my son probably saved her life! And as the saying goes, a debt for saving one’s life must be repaid with marriage."
Er La Niang’s voice was shrill, and everyone heard her loud and clear. The surrounding villagers started murmuring among themselves. Earlier, when Zhang Erlai had rushed down the mountain looking for Zhao Youcai to help carry the boar, many had heard that Su Qing was watching over it. However, they didn’t know that Su Qing was the one who had actually killed it. They naturally assumed that between a young man like Zhang Erlai and a young girl like Su Qing, it must have been Zhang Erlai who killed the boar.
Just a moment ago, while they were waiting at the foot of the mountain, they had been saying how lucky Zhang Erlai was to have killed such a big boar. Hearing this had made Er La Niang absolutely ecstatic.
After hearing Er La Niang’s words, Zhao Youcai said sternly, "Er La Niang, what nonsense are you spouting?"
Zhang Erlai’s face turned beet red from his own mother’s words. He quickly said, "Mom, what are you talking about? Su Qing killed the boar, so of course it should go to her house. I’m your son, don’t you know me? Do I have the strength to kill a wild boar? Besides, if I hadn’t run into Su Qing while being chased by it, that boar would have taken my life. If anything, she’s the one who saved me."
’This is so embarrassing.’ On the mountain, he had just promised Su Qing that he wouldn’t let his mother cause any more trouble. In the end, not even a full day had passed before his mother was provoking Su Qing again. He didn’t even dare to look at Su Qing’s expression.
Su Qing, however, was unbothered. She had no intention of blaming Zhang Erlai for this. After all, every debt has its debtor. If Zhao Youcai couldn’t keep Er La Niang in line, she didn’t mind publicly shaming her herself.
As for the surrounding villagers, they were stunned by Zhang Erlai’s words. ’What does that mean? The boar wasn’t killed by Zhang Erlai, but by Su Qing? Heavens, is that for real?’
Meanwhile, the eyes of the Old Su Family members were practically overflowing with jealousy and resentment. ’So, Su Qing killed the boar? Doesn’t that mean most of it will belong to her? That’s so much pork! Even if she sells some, she’ll have plenty left over and make a lot of money, too.’ If it weren’t for the crowd and Zhao Youcai’s presence, they would have rushed up to snatch it.
Hearing her son’s words, Er La Niang was stunned for a moment, then she started shouting, "How is that possible? Besides—"
"Why wouldn’t it be possible?" Zhao Youcai cut her off. "That girl Su Qing is the one who killed this boar. If you don’t like it, you can lump it. Cause any more trouble and I’ll have someone dock your work points."
At the mention of docking work points, Er La Niang immediately deflated. Her son didn’t work and earned no points; the family’s entire livelihood depended on the points she earned. If her points were docked, they would have less money, and the mere thought of it made her heart ache.
Instantly, Er La Niang backed down.
Zhao Youcai then announced loudly, "Listen up, everyone! Su Qing killed this wild boar, so if you want to buy meat, go to her. We’ll use the same old prices: forty-five cents a pound for pork, thirty cents a pound for ribs. No ration tickets needed. As for how much to buy, you can discuss that with Su Qing yourselves."
After he finished, Zhao Youcai turned to a young man and said, "Go get Mr. Jin. Tell him we need him to butcher a pig."
"Aye, you got it!" the young man replied brightly and ran off toward Mr. Jin’s house.
Soon, the wild boar was carried to the gate of Su Qing’s yard. Since her yard wasn’t very big, they decided to just butcher the pig outside.
Many hands make light work. A few of the aunts went to the kitchen to boil water for scalding the bristles off. Someone brought over a long wooden plank to serve as a butchering table, and they placed the boar on it. Since the boar was already dead, there was no need to bleed it; they could go straight to removing the hair and portioning the meat.
Before long, Mr. Jin arrived, carrying his butchering knives.
Mr. Jin was an expert butcher. Even though the wild boar had a tough hide, thick flesh, and coarse bristles, his hands moved with skilled precision. It didn’t take him long to break down the large animal. In the end, after setting aside the head, trotters, and offal, they had a total of two hundred and forty pounds of pork and several dozen pounds of ribs.
Su Qing quickly thanked Mr. Jin. As Zhao Youcai had suggested, she gave him the boar’s head and offal. In addition, she gave him two trotters and eight pounds of pork.
Seeing the extra trotters and pork, more than he usually received, Mr. Jin chuckled. "You’re a good girl."
Just then, someone in the crowd eagerly asked, "Su Qing, how much pork are you planning to sell?"
Su Qing did a quick mental calculation. She planned to keep two of the trotters—one for herself, and one for Fu Yuzhen’s family, along with ten pounds of pork. In addition, after setting aside twenty pounds of pork for Zhang Erlai, five pounds each for the three villagers as a reward, and another five pounds each for the brigade leader and the village party secretary, she would be left with one hundred and seventy-seven pounds of pork and several dozen pounds of ribs.
Su Qing planned to keep fifty pounds of pork and ten to twenty pounds of ribs for herself to eat slowly over time. So, she smiled and said, "I’m planning to sell one hundred and twenty-seven pounds of pork and thirty pounds of ribs."
The villagers were delighted to hear this. Lihua Village had about forty households, so this meant each family could buy three or four pounds of pork and ribs. If some families bought less, others could buy even more.
People were frugal in those days. A few pounds of pork could last a family a long time.
Of course, there were always those who were never satisfied. "Su Qing, you’re just one girl. Can you really eat all that pork and ribs by yourself?"
Su Qing beamed. "If I can’t finish it, I’ll cure it."
The person who asked was instantly silenced. ’That’s right. If she cures the meat, it’ll last even longer.’
"Being slow to buy meat shows a flawed mindset!" Zhao Youcai waved his hand, instructing one person from each family to stay and buy meat while everyone else hurried off to work.
Soon, a long line formed at Su Qing’s gate. Everyone was orderly, and there was no chaos. Mr. Jin’s hand was incredibly steady; if someone asked for a certain number of pounds, his knife would come down and the piece would be almost exactly the right weight.
The atmosphere was harmonious, but someone just had to ruin it.
While Su Qing was inside putting away some of the meat, Old Su showed up at the meat stall with a basin. She pointed at the pork on the wooden plank and said, "Brother Jin, cut me ten pounds of meat and five pounds of ribs."
Mr. Jin couldn’t help but frown slightly. He knew about the Old Su Family’s situation. However, he wasn’t sure if Su Qing would give them pork for free. Although Su Qing had been tormented by the Old Su Family for years, Old Su was still her biological grandmother. Even if they lived separately after the family division, the younger generation was expected to show filial piety to their elders.
Mr. Jin couldn’t decide what to do. In the line behind him, there were naturally people who disapproved of Old Su’s behavior.
Aunt Cuihua spoke up. "Aunt Su, that’s not right. We’re all waiting in line. Why are you cutting?"