The happy little days of the Ye family

Returning to Taohua Village from the county requires passing through Fujia Village. Looking at Fujia Village, Ye's father suddenly remembered that he had not picked up the things ordered by Blacksmith Fang.

Blacksmith Fang didn't look good when he saw that Ye's father came two days late.

"Sorry, something delayed me." Father Ye apologized to Blacksmith Fang with a shy face.

Seeing that Father Ye was sincere, Blacksmith Fang's face improved a little, and he went into the house and took out the finished things.

Father Ye and Mr. Ye took the iron products and looked at them one by one. The craftsmanship was indeed good. No wonder they had such a bad temper. People nearby liked to come here to beat things.

After coming out of Blacksmith Fang's blacksmith shop, Father Ye remembered that he still had Mr. Tang's wooden hairpin and wooden toys that he had yet to pick up.

Father Ye sent Mr. Ye home first, and then went to the Tang family himself. If Mr. Tang scolded him, he would definitely be laughed at by Mr. Ye.

Father Ye came to Mr. Tang's house. The yard was quiet. Father Ye shouted several times before Mrs. Tang came out of the kitchen.

"Are you a boy from the Ye family? Are you here to beat something? Your uncle Tang is doing carpentry in the tool room."

"I ordered some things from Uncle Tang a few days ago, and I came here to pick them up today."

Mrs. Tang was very enthusiastic and pulled Father Ye into the tool room.

Mr. Tang was carving something. When he saw someone coming in, he took a look and said, "The thing is on the table. Check it yourself."

Mr. Tang has already finished what Ye's father decided to do, and he has been working on making a set of 12 zodiac wood carvings for the past two days.

Father Ye picked up a few hairpins. Each hairpin was polished very smooth, and the peach blossoms, plum blossoms, orchids, chrysanthemums and peonies on them were all carved lifelike.

The remaining wooden toys are also well made, and each one is carefully polished.

Father Ye gave the remaining balance to Mr. Tang. Seeing that there were several carved animal dolls on the table, he picked one up casually.

It is a majestic tiger. Uncle Tang is indeed an old carpenter who has been a carpenter in the county for many years. He even carved out the hair. It is such a majestic tiger.

There was also a big and honest big fat pig and an impressive big rooster on the table. Father Ye held several animal dolls and couldn't put them down.

"Uncle Tang, are these 12 zodiac animal statues for sale?"

Uncle Tang said happily: "I just made it for you, but the price is a bit expensive, a set costs 45 yuan."

"Okay, I want it. How long will it take to make it?"

These 12 zodiac statues will definitely not be sold in the town, but it is different in the county. They can be sold directly on the dock.

"Come and get it in two days."

Father Ye reluctantly put down the majestic tiger in his hands, picked up his things and went home.

Father Ye returned home and before he entered the yard, he smelled an overbearing aroma, a bit like the smell of braised pork, but it was a little more fragrant and more overbearing than the usual braised pork.

It smells even better when you walk into the kitchen. The three brothers and sisters Ye Donglin have been waiting around the kitchen for Mother Ye to feed them.

Ye Mu picked up half of the waxed pig head that had been stewed in the pot until it was soft and fell off the bone. The soft and glutinous pig head meat simmered with Ye Mu's movements, which was extremely tempting.

Mother Ye quickly cut several pieces of pig head meat and fed a piece to the mouths of several big and small greedy cats.

The cured pig head meat itself has been marinated with various spices. When braised, it has a richer flavor than the braised pork made at home before. The texture of the cured pig head meat is also quite special, and it is indescribably delicious.

Mother Ye cut a plate in twos and twos and asked Ye Qingqing to send it to Grandma Ye.

This cured pig head meat was the idea given by Grandma Ye. After thinking for two days, Ye's mother couldn't figure out how to make this cured pig head meat, so she had to take the cured pig head back to her parents' house to ask Grandma Ye for help.

Grandma Ye directly asked Mother Ye to braise the big pig head. As long as it is meat, there will be nothing unpalatable when it is braised.

The pig's head was too big, so Mother Ye asked Mr. Ye to help split the pig's head into two halves. This time, half of the pig's head was braised.

Mother Ye quickly cut up another plate of pig head meat and gave it to Mr. Ye and Father Ye to drink with. She had made a lot of money selling bacon in the past two days, so she was happy to have a drink.

Mr. Ye put the pig head meat on the stone table in the yard. Just as he was about to go into the house to get some wine, the village chief came in with a jug of wine.

"Did your dog nose come here because of the smell?"

Mr. Ye snatched the wine from the village chief's hand and smelled it. It was good wine.

The village chief originally planned to invite Mr. Ye to come over for a drink and talk about something casual. After hearing from the villagers that the Ye family was stewing meat and it was very fragrant, he decided to come over to the Ye family with wine in hand.

Mother Ye and a few children brought out the food, and when they saw the village chief, they quickly added a pair of bowls and chopsticks.

The food was all brought out, so we simply ate outside without sharing a table. The three grown men sat drinking and chatting.

The village chief took a sip of wine, put down his glass and said, "I have a distant relative whose family is a beekeeper. I want to learn from him and keep bees in the mountains. If you are interested, I can take you with me."

There is a large mountain behind Taohua Village. There are many wild flowers and various trees on the mountain, which is perfect for beekeeping.

"Beekeeping only requires flowers. There are not many things in the countryside, just flowers and plants. This is simply a business without capital." Mr. Ye became energetic when he heard this.

Father Ye on the side is also very interested. The fruit trees on the mountain have just been planted and have not yet produced fruit so quickly. Although the honeysuckle will bloom next year, there are so many people planting it, and Father Ye feels a little uneasy.

"I asked my distant relatives about this craft. I can teach you this craft, but you have to pay some hard work. After all, it is a craft for people to eat." Village Chief Ye said.

Mr. Ye: "Yes, yes. How can I teach you how to eat for free? How much money does it cost?"

The village chief made a three-character gesture, "Three taels of silver can teach a person."

Mr. Ye and Father Ye were both calculating in their hearts.

The tuition fee is indeed not cheap, but if you learn how to raise bees for two or three years, you can earn it back.

Father Ye: “The drug store in the county sells honey for 38 cents per catty, which is 3 cents more expensive than the one in the town.”

The village chief's youngest son is a shopkeeper in the county. The village chief knows the price of honey in the county. Mr. Ye just heard that the price of honey in the county is so high. He decided on the spot to learn beekeeping with the village chief.

The two old men were in high spirits, discussing how many swarms of bees could be placed in a mountain. Father Ye looked pitifully at Old Ye and then at the village chief, but still no one paid attention to him.

Father Ye could only take the initiative: "Village chief, where is your relative?"

"In a town in the next county, it would take more than three hours to make a donkey cart from here."

(An hour is two hours. In ancient times, there were twelve hours in a day, eight quarters in an hour, and 15 minutes in a quarter.)

"It's so far, it would take most of a day by donkey cart."

Old Mrs. Ye was a little surprised. She had never even been to the county, and she couldn't even imagine such a far away place.

Village Chief: "It's just because we are far away that people are willing to teach you. If we are all in one place, how could they give you the art of beekeeping?"

The teacher is not stupid if his disciples starve to death.