Siheyuan: Rebirth of Liu Ergou

Attention everyone! The Nanluoguxiang Supply and Marketing Cooperative has delivered the last batch of specially priced cabbages for this winter. If you want to stock up on sauerkraut, go buy them. Second Uncle is advertising everywhere, and Liu Yi also rushed to buy some.

Liu Yi trotted to the supply and marketing cooperative and saw a long line at the door, everyone waiting to buy the discounted cabbage. He quickly stood behind the line, secretly glad that he was not too late.

After a while, it was finally Liu Yi's turn. He looked at the pile of cabbages in front of him and was overjoyed. These cabbages looked very fresh and cheap, which was a great bargain.

Liu Yi bought several hundred cabbages and went home happily. He placed the cabbages in the yard and prepared to start accumulating sauerkraut tomorrow. He knew that accumulating sauerkraut was a very troublesome thing, but in order to eat delicious sauerkraut in winter, he felt that everything was worth it.

Liu Yi was so proud that he completely forgot that he didn't know how to store pickled cabbage. Finally, he ran to his second uncle Liu Haizhong's house to ask for help, looking so excited that he seemed to have seen the delicious pickled cabbage in front of him.

Seeing Liu Yi coming, the second aunt happily agreed to help. She smiled and skillfully prepared the ingredients for the pickled cabbage. Liu Yi watched from the side, secretly glad that he had found the right person.

The second aunt skillfully washed and cut the cabbage, then placed it layer by layer in the large vat. She sprinkled some salt on each layer of cabbage and pressed it down with stones. Liu Yi was stunned watching from the side. He didn't expect that there were so many details to be paid attention to when accumulating sauerkraut.

Soon, the vat was filled with cabbage. The second aunt put a big stone on it, covered it with a lid, and placed it in a cool and ventilated place. Liu Yi watched the second aunt's skillful movements and was filled with gratitude.

"Okay, the sauerkraut will be ready in a few days, and you can eat it then." The second aunt said to Liu Yi with a smile.

Liu Yi nodded repeatedly as he looked at the dozen jars of pickled cabbage. He took three pounds of pork belly to thank Second Uncle Liu Haizhong and left Second Uncle's house. He was looking forward to tasting the delicious pickled cabbage in a few days.

Liu Yi was bored and looked at the calendar. It showed the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month in 1953. It was only a week away from the Chinese New Year! Thinking of his wife and children in Hong Kong, he couldn't help feeling sad.

Feeling depressed, Liu Yi walked to the kitchen with heavy steps. He looked at the dozen jars full of pickled cabbage, and suddenly an idea came to his mind: why not make a pig-killing meal to relieve his boredom?

He left immediately and brought a 400-pound fat pig from the space farm. Then, he invited his good friend He Yuzhu to help slaughter the pig, and notified the second uncle, the third uncle and Jia Dongxu, telling them that there would be a feast in the evening.

He Yuzhu's cooking skills were amazing. He slaughtered the pig easily like a chef, and then began to show off his cooking skills. The aroma in the kitchen was like a whirlwind, whirring and attracting everyone to watch like little bees. Liu Yi also specially invited the deaf old lady. Yan Jiekuang carried her on his back like a big baby, and walked over carefully. At the same time, he also enthusiastically invited an old man named Yi Zhonghai to enjoy this feast of food together.

The dinner started, and everyone sat together like a group of happy little birds, happily tasting the pig-killing dishes made by He Yuzhu. The taste was sweeter than honey, and people wanted to eat more! Everyone drank and chatted, and the laughter was like bells, tinkling non-stop, and the atmosphere was lively.

After the meal, Liu Yi began to distribute the meat generously. He was like a big boss, first giving two pieces of super good meat to the deaf old lady, and then to the first uncle, the second uncle, the third uncle and Jia Dongxu. Everyone took the meat and smiled like a flower, so happy.

At this time, Jia Zhang suddenly said that she wanted to send the meat to her parents' home. As a result, the eldest uncle Yi Zhonghai immediately said loudly like a serious teacher: "This meat was obtained by Liu Yi with great effort, you can't just give it away!" When Jia Zhang heard this, she immediately retracted her hand like a deflated ball.

This pig-killing feast not only made Liu Yi in a good mood, but also made everyone spend a fairy-tale-like night. Looking at everyone's satisfied smiles, Liu Yi's heart was like a flower blooming, so beautiful!

At night, the moonlight was like water, and there was silence all around. Liu Yi walked into the kitchen quietly and took out the 60-jin fat meat. His heart was full of contradictions and struggles, but he finally decided to give the meat to Jia Zhangshi.

Liu Yi came to Jia Zhang's door and knocked gently. Jia Zhang opened the door and was stunned when she saw the big fat meat in Liu Yi's hand. Tears flashed in her eyes, her lips trembled, but she couldn't speak.

Liu Yi handed the meat to Jia Zhang and said, "You can give it to your relatives. They also need some help." Jia Zhang took the meat and was so moved that she burst into tears. She held Liu Yi's hand tightly and said, "Thank you, Liu Yi. You are such a good person."

Liu Yi smiled slightly and said, "No need to thank me. What are you talking about? What is the relationship between me and Brother Dongxu? We don't talk about this." After that, he turned around and left Jia Zhang's house.

Jia Zhang looked at Liu Yi's departing back, her heart filled with gratitude and admiration. She knew that Liu Yi was a kind and upright person, and his behavior made her feel the warmth and love of the world.

The next morning, when the sky was just turning pale, Jia Zhang got up quietly. Thinking about her conversation with Liu Yi yesterday, she decided to go to him early this morning and take on the task of pickling cowpeas.

She walked through the morning mist and came to Liu Yi's residence. Liu Yi was yawning lazily, and when he opened the door and saw Jia Zhang, he was stunned.

"Liu Yi, I heard that you like spicy food. Let me take care of the pickling of the cowpeas." Jia Zhang said with a smile, a determined light flashing in her eyes.

When Liu Yi heard this, his eyes lit up immediately. He chuckled and said, "That's great, Aunt Jia, you are the pickling expert in our Nanluoguxiang area. By the way, I like spicy food, can you put more wild pepper?"

"Okay, 300 kilograms of cowpea and 100 kilograms of wild pepper. Is that spicy enough?" Jia Zhang agreed readily.

In the following time, Jia Zhang used all her strength. She carefully selected cowpeas, washed them carefully, and then added wild pepper and other seasonings according to the proportion. Her hands became red and swollen because of being soaked in the seasonings for a long time, but she didn't care. She just smiled and looked at the pickled cowpeas, her heart full of anticipation.

Liu Yi was very touched when he saw this. He knew that Jia Zhang did this just to let him eat the food he liked. He secretly vowed to repay Jia Zhang's kindness.

During the pickling process, Jia Zhang repeatedly reminded Liu Yi: "Pickling the beans takes at least half a month, otherwise they will be poisonous. Don't be impatient, you must wait until the time is up before eating."

Liu Yi, who was proficient in medicine, smiled and reassured Jia Zhang: "Don't worry, Jia Zhang, I know medicine and know this. Just concentrate on pickling it, I'm waiting to eat your beans."

The two smiled at each other, their hearts filled with warmth and anticipation. They knew that this was not just a jar of pickled cowpeas, but also a reflection of their deep friendship and tacit understanding.