Chapter 1020: Xibao’s Birthday 9
Leave it all to him? Impossible.
The next morning, Feng Qingxue started to get busy, kneading dough, washing vegetables, boiling cured meat, and slicing what needed to be sliced.
Meanwhile, Lu Jiang had set off at around four or five o’clock and by noon returned with a chunk of pork belly, half a pig’s head, and some bones. He had traded the rice and flour Feng Qingxue gave him for urban meat tickets and, after much effort, managed to buy two jin of pork belly.
The main reason was to put on a show for the family; otherwise, he wouldn’t have made the trip.
"That’s enough, we will add a little more, and make it all into braised pork," he said.
The staple food was rice and steamed buns, with a varied menu since there were twenty-one elders alone to feed.
In addition to the original twelve elders including Elder Xu and his wife from Shanghai, there were six more, including He Qingyin and Ouyang Mo, who was forcibly renamed, and three old ladies from Huaibei City.
These three ladies were companions to the relocated elders from Huaibei City, either coming from wealth or being learned and literary women.
Thus, Lu Jiang and Feng Qingxue planned to set three tables, which would just be enough for all their family members, wouldn’t it?
The house had enough tables, one made by the Lu family, one Feng Qingxue brought back from her parental home, and one made from the good quality wood that was sent back, together with several chairs.
But there weren’t enough benches and chairs, so Feng Qingxue said to her sister, "Xiaoyun, go and tell uncle to come over for dinner tonight and borrow some chairs and benches from the neighbors on the way, not the small ones; we need enough for twelve people to sit."