Divorce with three kids? I'll build a house and eat meat, driving my in-laws crazy.

Chapter 207 What is the significance of finding the old man?

Li Ruru fiddled with her handkerchief and asked in return, "What's the point of remarrying an old man?"

Why is this old man so talkative today? He's even more gossipy than Pan Dayan, and the questions he asks are outrageous.

Fang Xingzhi explained earnestly, "Find a husband to share your life with. He will treat you well and take care of you. Isn't that good?"

“That’s good,” Li Ruru affirmed, then added, “But I can take care of myself on my own.”

During the time she traveled here, she ate well and dressed well, taking excellent care of herself.

"What will you do when your father can't take care of himself?" Fang Xingzhi pressed.

Without a second thought, Li Ruru said, "Then let the children take care of me."

Anyway, people in Tang have short lifespans, so she won't have to wait until she's seventy or eighty; she'll probably be gone by fifty or sixty.

People in their fifties and sixties are generally still in good physical condition, since retirement in China usually starts after sixty.

In other words, fifty or sixty is the age when one should be adventurous.

Although Fang Xingzhi disagreed, he didn't say anything more.

Li Ruru asked curiously, "Why did you suddenly ask this question?"

Fang Xing turned his head away, looking out the window, and did not answer.

Li Ruru blinked her big eyes and asked, "Master Fang, how is your wife at home?"

Fang Xing was stunned for a moment before turning his head and saying, "We're divorced."

"Oh." Li Ruru appeared calm on the surface, but inwardly she was cursing.

In Da Tang, divorced women are at the bottom of society, always looked down upon and ridiculed.

Li Ruru herself was also divorced, but she was an exception. She was thick-skinned and only cared about her own happiness, never caring what others said behind her back.

But Fang Xingzhi is divorced now, how is his wife supposed to live? Is this old man a scumbag?
Favoring a concubine over one's wife? Keeping a mistress?

Li Ruru's gossip spirit is burning brightly.

"Then why did you divorce? What about your children?"

Seeing that Fang Xingzhi didn't react for a long time, Li Ruru knew he didn't want to talk, so she could only shut up.

Men and women are different. Women like to chat and like to confide in others about their feelings.

Men, however, are always reserved, suppressing all their emotions.

Fang Xingzhi took a deep breath and suddenly spoke up: "If she wants to leave, I will set her free."

That one sentence contained a lot of information. Li Ruru smiled and said, "Then you're a pretty good person."

This statement sounds very high-sounding and its stance is very neutral.

Fang Xingzhi seemed to have been reminded of his painful past, a faint cloud of sorrow hanging over his face, and he fell silent again.

Back in Chenjia Village, the two told Bailu what had happened.

Bai Lu pulled the two of them, jumping and skipping, "Aunt Li, Master Fang, you guys are amazing! That guy deserves a beating."

She knew who the instigator was, and if it were her, she would have thrown the person out too.

Today is the day for recruiting workers for maltose production, and a group of people are gathered around looking at the notice on the wall.

Lu Da was busy registering applicants, while Hai Shi and Pan Dayan explained the key points of making maltose to the men who had already been hired.

Li Ruru taught the methods to them without reservation, and then they taught them to the workers.

Maltose is quite easy to make, but no one can eat all of it if they make it, and there are no channels to sell it.

The best option, of course, is to earn wages in the workshop.

The workshop pays 25 coins a day, which is about the same as the price for carrying heavy loads outside, and you can also get one day off a week.

On the first day of work, one meal was provided; the rest of the time, everyone ate at home.

Nearly 100 people were selected in one morning; a quarter of the population of Chenjia Village is here.

Nearly half of the able-bodied workforce joined the workshop.

The crowd was divided into three groups: one group made sesame candy, another group made beer, and the rest made maltose.

In Li Ruru's words, maltose is the main product, while sesame candy and beer are sold as side products, since these two are relatively expensive and only suitable for wealthy people.

In the afternoon, Lü Da specially bought firecrackers and even invited a lion dance troupe. Amidst the music and fanfare, the malt sugar workshop opened for business. A large crowd gathered in the open space in front of Lü Da's shop; these were villagers from Chenjia Village who had come to sell their sprouted wheat.

Xiao Wu and Chu Xiu went over to help weigh the wheat, keep track of the accounts, and settle the money.

The villagers were all excited. An old man grabbed the village head's hand and said excitedly, "Oh, Dawa, you've done a great thing!"

They're all getting on in years; they've seen all kinds of hardships and difficulties.

There have been years in which heavy rains caused the wheat to sprout, and at those times they had no choice but to either go hungry or eat the sprouted wheat.

Whether it's a bluish-green steamed bun or noodles that can't be stirred, as long as there's something to eat and as long as it doesn't kill you, that's a blessing from heaven.

I wouldn't even dare to think about anything else.

Fortunately, things are different now. The village head not only bought their sprouted wheat at the normal price, but also hired people to work.

With this back and forth, it's like having two sources of income for the family.

Lu Da felt embarrassed by the praise and said, "This is all thanks to Aru. I was just helping out."

Everyone looked at Li Ruru with gratitude as she taught Chaochao, Peipei, and Bailu how to brew beer.

She pulled out a box, opened it, and said mysteriously, "This is an important ingredient for making beer, so don't tell anyone else."

Making maltose and sesame candy doesn't require much skill, but beer is a different story. Not only do you need to control the temperature, but you also need hops.

Li Ruru didn't find any hops in Da Tang, at least not in Chenjia Village.

Chaochao and Peipei nodded vigorously, just like the secret recipe for making konjac tofu, which belonged exclusively to their family.

They certainly wouldn't be so foolish as to tell others when they have nothing better to do.

Bai Lu nodded in agreement. Aunt Li said that she was also family, and the little girl was overjoyed.

Yinyin, who was eating a candied hawthorn on the side, asked, "Mom, what is this?"

Li Ruru whispered, "This is called hops."

Hops are a perennial climbing herbaceous plant; adding a small amount can give beer a refreshing bitterness.

It can also stabilize the beer foam, making it delicate, creamy, and long-lasting.

It can also preserve beer to a certain extent, inhibit the growth of harmful microorganisms in beer, and ensure the quality stability of beer in all stages of production, storage, transportation and sales, thereby extending the shelf life.

Yinyin glanced into the box, not showing much interest. Pointing to the candied hawthorn in her hand, she asked, "Mom, can maltose be used to make candied hawthorn?"

Li Ruru nodded: "Yinyin is really smart."

"Can I use it to make candied hawthorn skewers and sell them?"

"Okay, but remember to have Brother Yishan come with you."

Yinyin happily held up her candied hawthorn and went to find Xiao Yishan.

Li Ruru put away the box and said to the three of them, "There are many things to pay attention to when making beer. Follow me."

The four returned to the cave, and Li Ruru took out the malt powder she had collected a couple of days ago.

Add hot water at around 70 degrees Celsius and put it in the pot. He said, "This step is called saccharification. Saccharification is... similar to fermentation, which makes the beer produce its aroma."

Chaochao and Peipei nodded; they knew that the process of making steamed buns and mantou involved fermentation.

Bai Lu knew the basic principles of winemaking, and all three of them had no problem understanding this step.

About half an hour later, the saccharification was almost complete. Li Ruru added the brownish-yellow hops and simmered it for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. Finally, she poured the unformed beer into a wooden barrel to cool it.

After putting the lid on, Li Ruru said, "Just leave it like this for about seven days."

Chaochao asked, "So this will make delicious beer?"

She had never drunk beer, only fruit beer.

But Chu Xiu, Xiao Yishan, and Xiao Wu, who had tried it, all said it tasted good.

Li Ruru nodded: "If you want to drink it, you can try it later."

As the children grow up, it's okay for them to drink a little beer, as long as they don't overindulge.

Just then, Hai called out from below the cave, "Aru, someone is looking for you."

Li Ruru poked her head out and asked suspiciously, "Who is it? Who's looking for me?"

(End of this chapter)