Chapter 103: Making Dumplings, Long-Legged Birds, and Cooling Medicine.

Once the production team leader and the others left, Ming Dai and Zhou Sinian locked the door and entered their space.

First, they went to harvest chives. The two long rows of chives had already been cut twice. They had eaten chive turnovers several times, and the rest was kept fresh in the warehouse.

After harvesting the chives, they carried their chairs outside to bask in the sun.

Zhou Sinian continued knitting a sweater, while Ming Dai trimmed the chives, planning to make chive dumplings for lunch.

Zhou Sinian knitted quickly, and one sleeve was nearly finished. He held it up against Ming Dai to measure it, nodded with satisfaction, and went back to knitting.

Ming Dai imagined him in the role of a mother and burst out laughing.

Zhou Sinian looked at her in confusion, not understanding what had happened.

Ming Dai waved her hand, telling him to continue, and turned her gaze to the meadow.

The two cows were now able to lie down, and they had even successfully produced a pile of manure. Zhou Sinian refused to shovel it, so Ming Dai had done it.

Right now, the two cows were chewing continuously, looking in decent spirits.

For lunch, Ming Dai mixed the filling while Zhou Sinian kneaded the dough and rolled out the wrappers. Working in perfect harmony, they boiled two large pots of dumplings—one batch of chive and egg, and another of sour cabbage and pork.

Zhou Sinian was a carnivore, picking out the sour cabbage and pork ones to eat, using the chive and egg ones only to cleanse his palate.

Ming Dai clutched her stuffed belly and sprawled on the sofa. "Let's wrap all the dumplings this afternoon. New Year is coming up, so if we make them in advance, we won't have to go through the trouble then.

"I'll wrap more pure meat ones for you, pork with scallions. The celery is also ready to eat; celery and pork dumplings are delicious too.

"I want to make chive and egg, and spinach and egg. It's a pity we don't have shepherd's purse seeds; we'll have to wait until next spring to eat those.

"And the eggs—we need to raise chickens. Otherwise, what will we eat when the eggs run out?

"If only we had ducks or geese. Iron-pot stewed goose! Absolutely mouthwatering!"

The moment Zhou Sinian heard about food, his eyes lit up like stars. "Yes, yes!"

Ming Dai smiled and said, "Let's wait until spring. We'll ask Auntie Huang to help us find some chicks, bring a few back, and then check the black market to see if they sell any. We can buy more and raise them in our space."

Zhou Sinian thought for a moment. "In the summer, there are long-legged birds by the river. Are those tasty?"

Ming Dai's hand stopped rubbing her belly. "What long-legged birds?"

Zhou Sinian described them. "The ones with very, very long legs, and red heads. It looks like they're wearing red headscarves."

What long-legged birds? Those were red-crowned cranes! Red-crowned cranes!

"No, no, no, you can't eat those. You absolutely cannot eat them. Those are celestial birds, you know?!"

Zhou Sinian didn't understand. "Why? It looks like it would taste good. I want to try it."

Ming Dai shook her head frantically. "No! You don't! They don't taste good, not at all, seriously. They are birds raised by the gods. If we eat them, the gods will punish us. What if they take away our divine abode? Won't you go hungry then?!"

Hearing this, Zhou Sinian immediately grew anxious. "We can't eat them! Absolutely not! I have to watch over them and make sure no one else eats them either!"

Once she was sure he had abandoned the idea, Ming Dai breathed a sigh of relief.

How could anyone eat a red-crowned crane? In her previous life, they were highly protected animals. Eating them in this life felt like a sin. It was better to just admire them and avoid incurring bad karma!

(Protecting animals is everyone's responsibility!)

In the afternoon, Ming Dai prepared the fillings while Zhou Sinian rolled out the wrappers. Once he got the hang of it, he could actually roll two wrappers at the same time, working as fast as an assembly line.

Fortunately, they had a stand mixer and a meat grinder, otherwise their hands would have been worked to the bone.

As she wrapped, she couldn't help but sigh. Zhou Sinian was a foodie, and so was she. When two foodies got together, just preparing the food was exhausting.

Finally, looking at the rows upon rows of dumplings on the warehouse shelves, Ming Dai sighed. It was truly a painful yet joyful labor!

In the evening, the production team leader and the others returned before dark.

"Little Ming, here is the money from selling the vegetables. Take it!"

Ming Dai took it and counted. Exactly fifty yuan.

Zhou Sinian poked his head over to look, and Ming Dai handed it to him.

Liu Dazhu and Uncle Liu the Third were extremely excited. Just two baskets of mushrooms had brought in fifty yuan! How much did they make from working all year round?

They grew even more eager for the winter vegetable cultivation next year!

Ming Dai asked Zhou Sinian for ten yuan and handed it to the team leader. "Team Leader, we use the village's horse carriage every day. Here is ten yuan to cover the wear and tear on the carriage and horse."

Liu Dazhu waved his hands. "No, no need. We even got a free meal in town. Secretary Wang had us eat lunch before coming back. We even had mushrooms stewed with pork at noon, and it was so delicious!"

Ming Dai smiled and pressed the money into his hand. "It's just this ten yuan. I won't be giving any more in the future."

She gave the money partly out of appreciation for Liu Dazhu and Uncle Liu the Third's hard work, and partly because the village would be growing vegetables next year. They would inevitably find out that Ming Dai had already been sending vegetables to the county town this year. If she didn't give the village a single cent, this arrangement would look like her own private business.

The ten yuan was to shut the mouths of any busybodies in the village, like the educated youths in the front yard.

In any case, they didn't know how much money Ming Dai had made, and Liu Dazhu and the others wouldn't talk. If they were going to, the news would have spread long ago.

When vegetable prices dropped next year, this ten yuan would seem just right, preventing any jealousy from the villagers.

Liu Dazhu also realized this and accepted the money. "Alright, Little Ming. I'll take it. You won't have to ask about this again. I'll make sure the vegetables are delivered on time."

Ming Dai asked, "Have you met with the county leaders during these trips? Did they say if the vegetables tasted good?"

Liu Dazhu gave her a thumbs-up. "They all praised them! They said the chives and yellow chives are incredibly tender, and the mushrooms are delicious, especially stir-fried with meat. People who usually don't eat at the cafeteria are running there for every meal.

"They all praise our Liujiawan for producing such a talented person. Many leaders want to pre-order fresh vegetables from our village for next year.

"The commune is already processing the approval. Next autumn, we can start building the vegetable greenhouses."

Ming Dai's eyes flickered. "During these two trips, who did you get along with best?"

Liu Dazhu patted his tobacco pouch. "Chef Zhou, definitely. He was very warm to me because of the vegetables. And Secretary Cheng—he always smiles when he sees me and takes the initiative to greet us."

Ming Dai nodded thoughtfully. "Uncle, I want to go to the county town with you next time you deliver the vegetables. Do you think that would be convenient?"

Liu Dazhu found it a bit strange. "What do you need to go to town for? The road is getting colder; you'll freeze."

Ming Dai pointed at Zhou Sinian. "Didn't we salvage some bicycle parts before? He assembled a bicycle himself but is still missing a few pieces. We need to go to the county town; I doubt the commune's salvage yard has them."

Liu Dazhu looked at Zhou Sinian, who was counting money, with a look of surprise. "He knows how to do that?"

Ming Dai nodded. "Don't look at his current state; he's actually very smart. Look at how well he knits."

Liu Dazhu looked at the sweater by the heated brick bed and nodded. "Indeed. Even your aunt doesn't know how to knit those things."

He nodded. "Alright then, you go next time. I won't go if you are going. You can just take the vegetables directly to Chef Zhou."

Ming Dai nodded. "Okay. I'll have to trouble Uncle Liu the Third to pick me up then."

Uncle Liu the Third nodded. "No problem at all. Little Ming, I checked the post office, but there was no letter for you."

Ming Dai nodded. "Alright. We'll check again when we pass by the commune."

Uncle Liu the Third agreed.

After seeing them off, the two of them snuggled back onto the brick bed.

Ming Dai held up the sweater to measure it. It fit perfectly and would soon be ready to wear.

Zhou Sinian, meanwhile, leaned over the low table on the bed, counting the money intently. He counted the bills one by one, over and over again, before finally dividing them into two equal piles. He pushed one pile toward Ming Dai and tucked the other into his jacket pocket.

Ming Dai asked curiously, "You know how to count money?"

Zhou Sinian took the sweater back from her hands and resumed knitting. "Of course. I'm very smart!"

Ming Dai raised an eyebrow. "What do you need money for? You don't know how to spend it anyway. Give it to me."

Zhou Sinian declared in all seriousness, "I'm saving it. My money has a purpose. We'll spend yours first."

Ming Dai laughed in exasperation. "So your money has a purpose, but mine doesn't?"

Zhou Sinian stole a sheepish glance at her. "I need to mail something to someone, so I need money."

Ming Dai's eyes lit up. "To whom? The person who sent you the package?"

Zhou Sinian shook his head somewhat wistfully. "No. I only remember that I need to mail something to someone, but I've forgotten who. I just know it shouldn't be sent to *him*. I haven't remembered who it is yet, but I definitely will. That's why I have to save money first."

Ming Dai felt a bit disappointed. "Well, keep it then. Since we grew the vegetables together, it should be split half-and-half anyway. I'll give you your half of the money from last time in a bit."

Zhou Sinian watched her silently for a moment. Suddenly, he sighed softly, stopped knitting, sat up straight, and reached out to pat her head before she could react. "Be good, don't be angry. In the future, I'll give you all the money I make."

Ming Dai stared at him blankly, completely dazed by his actions.

Seeing that she didn't speak, Zhou Sinian pulled a milk candy from his pocket, unwrapped it, and gently but firmly parted her lips and teeth to pop it into her mouth.

Ming Dai still hadn't processed what was happening. Her mouth remained half-open with the candy inside, and a drop of saliva slipped down.

Zhou Sinian hesitated for a moment, then reached out to wipe it away, rubbing it off on Ming Dai's sleeve.

"Really, I'll give you all the money I earn in the future. Don't be mad, okay? Be good, and I'll spoil you."

Ming Dai's face flushed crimson instantly. She swallowed hard, and the candy went down with it, nearly choking her to death.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

She buried her face in the pile of quilts behind her, feeling as if her entire body was on fire!

She wasn't jealous at all!!!

Where did Zhou Sinian learn to say such things?! Who taught him how to coax someone like this!

Zhou Sinian scratched his head, watching Ming Dai, who hadn't emerged from the quilts for a long time.

He remembered that Goudan's mother coaxed Goudan exactly like this. Goudan had clearly been very happy to hear it. Was Ming Dai happy or unhappy?

Because of this misunderstanding, Ming Dai didn't press Zhou Sinian further about who he wanted to mail the package to. They spent the rest of the day in awkward silence until dinnertime, when the atmosphere finally lightened up again.

Ming Dai now had a lingering dread of Zhou Sinian whenever his communication skills improved.

Over the next few days, Ming Dai took Zhou Sinian into the space to prepare all kinds of delicious food and stock up on New Year's goods.

At the same time, Ming Dai began preparing for his acupuncture treatments, hoping he would soon remember who he needed to mail the package to.

Zhou Sinian lay in the bathtub, holding an open umbrella over his upper body and another covering his lower half, keeping himself completely shielded.

The pitch-black water submerged his entire body, leaving only his head exposed. Steam swirled beneath the umbrellas, flushing his cheeks pink.

Ming Dai knocked on the door. Zhou Sinian shielded himself with the umbrellas. "Come in."

Ming Dai kept her eyes straight ahead as she carried a small bucket in and poured the freshly brewed medicinal water into the tub. "How does it feel?"

Zhou Sinian's voice was muffled. "A bit itchy?"

Ming Dai nodded. "That's fine. Itching is normal. Just soak for another fifteen minutes."

Zhou Sinian answered obediently. Curled up in the tub, he peeked out to look at Ming Dai. Sweat rolled down his flushed face, and his bright eyes were clear and dark. He possessed a delicate, fragile beauty that contrasted sharply with his usual tall, upright posture, making one want to tease him.

Tease him? What was she thinking!

Ming Dai quickly banished the bizarre thought from her mind. She told him not to fall asleep, to rinse off thoroughly when he was done, and to come out to drink his medicine. Then she rushed out, completely forgetting to take the empty medicine bucket with her.

Zhou Sinian twirled his wrist, spinning the umbrella so that its edges skimmed the surface of the water, sending ripples outward.

He had been drinking a lot of medicine lately. He wasn't happy about it.

Outside the villa, Ming Dai turned down the temperature setting of the space to cool her burning face.

It was all Zhou Sinian's fault!

If it weren't for his ridiculous stunt earlier, she wouldn't have had such a brain cramp and started overthinking things, making everything so awkward now!

No, she must be suffering from too much internal heat lately, which was why her mind was wandering! She would have to brew herself a couple of doses of cooling herbal tea to drink tonight!

So, that evening, seeing Ming Dai gulp down a bowl of bitter black soup, Zhou Sinian felt much better. He tilted his head back and downed his own medicine in one go.

The bitterness made them both stick out their tongues. Looking at each other's grimacing, comical expressions, they burst out laughing.