There was a heavy storm overnight, and although the fishing boats were not capsized, each one needed to be repaired. Each other had losses and was missing something.
Replenishing the ship is still on the way, and the current food consumption needs to be solved urgently.
Everyone got together to discuss and decided to send a few boats that were still intact to the city to purchase.
Huo Xi and Yang also gathered together to discuss the items they wanted to buy. There were many things that needed to be purchased. Huo Xi originally wanted to register them on paper, but only then did he realize that he didn't even have a piece of yellow paper.
I was dumbfounded. Also, how could a fisherman’s family have pen, ink, and paper? No one in the family was literate.
Ask Yang Fu and he will recognize his name.
There was no other way, so Huo Xi and Yang had to tell Huo Erhuai and Yang Fu over and over again, hoping that they would remember it. Seeing Yang Fu closing his eyes and reciting silently, Huo Xi couldn't help but touch his forehead.
"Uncle, when the boat is repaired this time, I will teach you how to read."
"Ah? Do you know how to read?" Yang Fu scratched his head. How could he know how to read? If he knew how to read, wouldn't he have to get up early every day to row a boat and go down the net to catch fish? Can he still pass the exam?
Mr. Yang hated the ironclad and beat him: "Your nephew wants to teach you how to read, but you are still not happy! You don't want this great blessing, you don't want it!"
Yang Fu bared his teeth and hid while shouting: "Okay, okay, I can't read."
Huo Erhuai laughed: "It's always good to be able to read some words. It's better than being blind."
"No." Yang nodded and glared at Yang Fu again.
Huo Xi looked at Yang Fuxiao and asked him to memorize it again before watching him and Huo Erhuai row away.
This time when I went to the city, I had to buy a lot of things, and I also had to help everyone go to the shipyard to inquire about ship repairs. There were several ships of various sizes entering the city.
Huo Xi didn't go with her. She wanted to stay and help Yang make breakfast, take care of Huo Nian, and pack things at home.
There were three or four hemp ropes stretched out at home, and they were hung with lots of things. If the storm broke out again, Yang alone would not be able to collect them.
The rice and noodles were soaked by the rain, and they were probably not stored for a long time. Yang thought about it and made it.
Huo Xi put Huo Nian in the fishing basket and put rattles and other toys inside, letting him play by himself while she and Yang cooked.
The firewood had soaked in water and had been left to dry for a long time, but it was still damp and could not be lit. Huo Xi took a big ladle of lard and spread it on the firewood, and it ignited immediately. Many families came to borrow firewood.
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After the fire was lit, Huo Xi scooped up broken rice and other things to wash. There was also a bucket of clean water in the bucket at home, which was not much, so she had to use it sparingly.
The mother and daughter worked together and baked all the gray flour they had stored at home into pancakes. They stacked them in a big pile. They cooked all the broken rice, formed it into rice balls while it was still hot, and scooped out the lard and fried it.
You can also store it for a few more days.
When the oil has soaked in water, put it in the pot and cook it again. The water in the oil can be dried out, and you can still eat it. The pickles have also soaked in water, so fry them again in oil, and the salted fish is spread out to dry.
"Huo Xi, what are you doing? It smells so good."
Overnight, everyone suffered a lot of losses. Even if the oil jar was half filled with water and all the rice and noodles were filled with water, no one was as economical with oil as Yang and was willing to throw out all the rice and noodles at once.
Yang originally wanted to use a dustpan to dry the rice noodles and save them for eating later, but Huo Xi disagreed.
She said that she was still nursing Huo Nian, and if she ate unclean food, it would cause Huo Nian to have diarrhea. Upon hearing this, Yang no longer had any worries and gave Huo Nian all the rice and noodles at home.
"It's not that all the rice and noodles at home are soaked in water, right? I simply boiled them and fried them in oil to keep them longer. Otherwise, if they grow hairy, I won't be able to eat them in my mouth."
Several women ran over to see and saw that Yang and Huo Xi had finished making rice noodles and arranged them clearly. They clucked their tongues and praised them.
Some people were inspired and went back to learn how to do it.
Qian Xiaoxia squatted next to Huo Xi and rubbed a fried rice ball. He chewed it in his mouth and held it in his hands. He ate it in several bites while it was hot. After eating, he gave a thumbs up to Huo Xi and Yang. He started making trouble when he got back.
Ask his mother to do the same.
Mrs. Sun gave him a slap. She was worried that the rice noodles soaked in water would become moldy, so she took them out and cooked them.
Among these fishermen, Qian Sanduo's family is relatively wealthy. There are four members of his family, and even the eleven-year-old Qian Xia can be counted as one laborer. With four laborers, they net more fish and shrimp every day than others.
Some time ago, I heard Qian Sanduo and Huo Erhuai chatting, saying that they planned to buy a new boat for fifteen-year-old Qian Xiaoyu and let the two brothers experience it on their own.
Breakfast was ready, Huo Xi and Yang ate first, while Huo Erhuai and Yang Fu didn't know when they would return.
After eating, Huo Xi walked around the neighborhood to see how each house was doing.
Living on a boat, every family has a complete set of belongings. Only few people have tables and chairs. At this time, everyone made breakfast, and they all held up their trouser legs and stood in a puddle of water holding bowls to eat.
Even if Huo Xi has a folding square table at home, there is no stool. It is just for convenience for her and Yang to knead the dough.
Her small square table would be passed around and borrowed by various families.
Everyone is making breakfast now, but there is a shortage of this and that. Some people have all their rice, noodles, oil, and salt soaked in water, and they don’t have anything to eat. Those who have food in stock will borrow some.
Huo Xi walked around and took a look. While she felt that the fishermen were getting along well with each other, she felt quite uncomfortable at the same time.
Although each family's boat did not capsize, it cost a lot of money to repair the boat, plus buying things for the family, it also cost a lot of money.
Most of the fishermen can't save ten or eight cents a day, and they don't catch fish every day. Sometimes they go out early and come back late, and even pulling up a sky net is common.
Just looking at the clothes hanging on the hemp rope, you can tell that they have been patched more than hers.
I can't help it, I'm poor.
Anyone who had some savings went ashore to live. The fishermen ate river fresh food every day, and there was no shortage of fish and shrimps. However, they had no land or fields. They had to spend money to buy everything except river fresh food. Even drinking water had to go to the ferry or the village along the river.
purchase.
If you get one or two pennies for a load of water, it will cost you a lot in a month.
Huo Xi returned to her home's oilcloth tent and sat cross-legged on the fishing box, thinking about the remaining money at home and the upcoming expenses for her family.
After thinking for a while, he got up again and opened the box to look at the bald butter inside.
I picked up each can and inspected it carefully. When I saw that no water had entered, I let out a sigh of relief. I counted fifteen cans, some of which were one-pound bottles and most of which were half-pound bottles. If I could sell them, I should be able to add four more to my family.
More than ten taels of income.
Feel a little at peace.
Yang carried the sleeping Huo Nian into the tent, and saw Huo Xi holding a box of bald butter in a daze, and a smile appeared on her face.
"Fortunately, our bald butter has not been soaked in water, otherwise all the hard work these days will be in vain."
She looked at Huo Xi with a look of relief. It was all this child's idea. If it weren't for her, the family wouldn't be able to save money. After this storm, the family might have to borrow money to live.