The Prime Minister’s Little Wife

Chapter 75: A Thousand Flavors of Beans

As soon as Xu Chunhua entered the kitchen, she saw her cousin looking worried and asked, “Lanhua, what’s wrong? Did Honghua give you trouble again?”

“No, Honghua took the ox cart to town early this morning. I don’t know what she’s been busy with lately—she hasn’t had time to bother me.”

“Then why do you look so worried?”

“Chunhua, don’t you think Brother-in-law, who can kill a wild boar all by himself, must eat a lot? Won’t he eat Xu Zhizhi out of house and home?”

“Hahaha… You!”

“Why are you worrying about that?”

“I’m just afraid that if Brother-in-law eats too much, he’ll make Xu Zhizhi poor!”

“Xu Zhizhi is so capable—who could possibly eat her out of house and home? Besides, Brother-in-law has plenty of money.”

“That’s true! The other day, Brother-in-law sent a whole cart of goods. I heard from Old Scholar’s wife that it was worth more than the big courtyard Xu Zhizhi’s family built!”

Xu Lanhua felt reassured. Tonight, she’d leave enough food for four people!

Nan Ba, hiding in the shadows, listened to the sisters’ conversation and nearly died laughing. His master was taking the blame for them! The big eater! Hahaha…

Ye Yue, overhearing the sisters’ conversation, didn’t understand what they were talking about. It would never occur to him that they were discussing his master!

Xu Chunhua and Xu Lanhua finished kneading the dough and prepared to make meat buns for breakfast. Just then, Second Aunt Xu and Wang Daya arrived. Second Aunt began chopping the meat, while Wang Daya, as usual, tended to the fire.

Meanwhile, Xiao Jingheng had knocked on Xu Zhizhi’s window early in the morning. When she opened it, she saw him standing outside. She quickly changed her clothes and jumped out of the window.

The two of them went to the practice spot from the day before. Xiao Jingheng asked Xu Zhizhi to repeat what she had learned.

Xiao Jingheng was stunned. Who was this person who could use the techniques so effortlessly?

Xu Zhizhi, seeing his dumbfounded expression, felt a great sense of accomplishment.

“Brother Jingheng, how was that? Can I learn the next part? I think I’ve memorized everything from before.”

It wasn’t just memorization—she had mastered it to the point of being able to use it effortlessly…

Xiao Jingheng’s psychological shadow grew infinitely larger…

It had taken him two months to learn it back then, and that was just the basics! To reach the level his little wife was at now, it had taken him half a year!

Xu Zhizhi spent an hour mastering the entire “Lingbo Weibu” technique.

Checking the time, she realized it was time for breakfast. The two of them used their qinggong to descend the mountain quickly, arriving directly at the new house.

Xu Zhizhi went into the kitchen and saw the freshly steamed buns, which looked very appetizing.

Xu Xiaowu had woken up early, washed up, and noticed that his brother-in-law hadn’t arrived yet. It was strange—usually, he was here by this time!

He pushed open his sister’s door and saw that the bed was neatly made. His parents and brother were also gone.

He toddled over to the kitchen door of the new house and saw his sister eating a bun with her hands.

“Sister, why didn’t you call me when you left?”

Xu Zhizhi had left at the crack of dawn—how could she have called him?

“Come here quickly. Have this meat bun—it’s really good!” Xu Zhizhi quickly grabbed a bun from the steamer, placed it in a small bowl, and handed it to her brother.

Xu Xiaowu took the bowl happily and began eating.

Xu Zhizhi then used chopsticks to pick up a few more buns and brought them to Xiao Jingheng.

The workers also stopped to wash their hands and eat the buns, accompanied by plain rice porridge.

Xu Zhizhi, Xiao Jingheng, and Xu Xiaowu ate in a clearing behind the house to avoid making the workers feel uncomfortable.

Xu Lanhua had deliberately steamed an extra tray of buns and quietly asked Xu Zhizhi if she should bring them all over for Brother-in-law.

Xu Zhizhi, remembering how Xiao Jingheng had saved a bowl of sauerkraut fish the other day, recalled many TV dramas she had watched in her past life. She knew that young masters from influential families often had hidden guards.

She glanced at Xiao Jingheng, wondering if those guards would show up to eat during the day, but she was sure they would at night.

“Lanhua, put the extra buns in a clean basket and give them to me,” Xu Zhizhi said.

Xu Zhizhi handed the basket of buns to Xiao Jingheng. “Take these to your bamboo house. You can eat them when you’re hungry.”

Xiao Jingheng felt that his little wife was so thoughtful! Happily, he carried the basket back to the bamboo house, completely unaware that Xu Zhizhi knew about his hidden guards.

After breakfast, Xu Zhizhi, Xiao Jingheng, and Xu Xiaowu went to check the fields to see when the soybeans, sorghum, and wheat would be ready for harvest.

The sorghum and wheat were fine—they could be harvested a day or two later, as long as it didn’t rain. They could take their time.

But soybeans were different. The timing of the harvest was critical. If harvested too early, the beans wouldn’t be fully mature, and their protein and oil content would be low. If harvested too late, many pods would fall off. Therefore, it was essential to harvest soybeans at the right time.

Moreover, Xu Zhizhi thought soybeans were a great way to make money. They could be turned into tofu, which had countless uses. Tofu was essentially made from soybeans.

Vegetables and tofu were staple dishes year-round. They could be used in dishes or soups and were highly nutritious.

Soy milk, soybean cakes, tofu pudding, soybean oil, soy milk, tofu puffs, dried tofu skin, tofu sticks, fermented tofu, frozen tofu, imitation meat, and dried tofu.

Tofu had graced the tables of nobles and commoners alike. It was affordable for everyone, and even wealthy families didn’t disdain it.

No matter how you prepared it, nothing went to waste. A single soybean could be transformed in countless ways. If the mixture was thin, it became soy milk; if thick, it became tofu pudding. Whether old or young, thick or thin, fragrant or stinky—if done well, it was delicious tofu. If done poorly, it became stinky tofu.

Ground into flour, pressed into oil, even the waste could be turned into imitation meat…

Soybeans were truly a path to wealth!

Xu Zhizhi had previously planted sweet potatoes, which also had many uses. She decided to focus on these two crops, processing and selling them throughout the Great Sheng Dynasty.

She would make her hometown a base for planting and processing, then expand to surrounding villages and towns, eventually selling the products to cities…

As they walked, Xiao Jingheng watched his little wife, her face full of smiles, clearly excited about something.

Xiao Jingheng knew she had thought of another way to make money.

He had discovered that his little wife loved money, and second to that, she loved qinggong.

Xiao Jingheng smiled at the thought. The qinggong she loved was taught by him, and the money she loved—he had plenty of that.

If Xu Zhizhi knew what Xiao Jingheng was thinking, she would have spat in his face.

She did love money, but what she loved even more was the feeling of earning it and the joy it brought her.

As they walked, they greeted villagers they passed, who would then turn to admire Xiao Jingheng’s handsome face.

From a distance, they could still hear people saying, “He’s so good-looking.”

When they reached the fields, they saw that the soybean pods were starting to turn yellow at the top. They could start harvesting in a day or two.

Xiao Jingheng, unsure if the beans were ready, asked, “Can we harvest the beans now?”

“Let’s start tomorrow. They’re not all yellow yet.”

Xu Zhizhi’s family had planted two acres of soybeans. The sorghum hadn’t changed color yet. After harvesting and drying the soybeans, the sorghum would be ready too. This way, they could harvest one crop at a time without rushing.

(End of Chapter)