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

Chapter 26 Is swill a secret recipe?
Chen Jingang put down his basket and took out two large items from it.

Everyone stared in deep thought at the two large konjac tubers that Chen Jingang and Chen Jintong had brought back.

"You want to make that konjac tofu?" Zhao asked.

She felt that konjac tofu was a poisonous substance that couldn't be served in public. She wanted to make money, but she was also worried about harming people and getting into legal trouble.

Chen Jingang said, "Grandma, I saw it at the market. Third Aunt made a lot of money today. If she can do it, so can we."

Wang Shuixia patted her son on the shoulder, "Mom supports you, my son is so smart. Mom will help you with it."

The group tried hard to recall how Li Ruru made konjac, grinding it into a paste and then cooking it in a pot.

They cooked it for a long time, and the pot almost burned out, but the konjac still wouldn't solidify.

Chen Jingang scratched his head. "This shouldn't be happening. What should we do?"

Chen Jintong's eyes lit up. "Let's go and peek at how Third Aunt does it."

Without further ado, the two tiptoed to Li Ruru's doorstep as dusk fell.

Li Ruru had already finished making the konjac. She took out a few books and handed them to the three maids, saying, "Take a look at them for now. I'll send you to the girls' school another day."

In this era, there were two ways for women to receive an education.

One type was called a "boudoir," which was usually an educational institution set up in the inner quarters of wealthy families, specifically for teaching the women in the household.

Another type was called a girls' school, where female teachers typically taught reading, writing, needlework, etiquette, and some knowledge of literature, calligraphy, painting, and other arts. This was more common, and the knowledge learned was very practical.

In Da Tang, women could read and write, but they were not allowed to take the imperial examinations.

There was only one girls' school in the county town, and the monthly tuition was more expensive than that for boys, so ordinary farming families wouldn't waste their money on it.

They believe that a girl's virtue lies in her lack of talent; spending money to learn something only benefits her husband's family in the end.

As a woman of the new era, Li Ruru naturally doesn't think that way. Her daughter may not be beautiful, but she cannot be ignorant and unreasonable.

After they get married, they will also have to manage the household affairs, so it won't hurt for them to learn more.

"Are we all going to school?" Er Ya asked. "Or maybe Big Sister can go instead."

The eldest sister loves reading, but she has no interest in it, and the youngest sister is too young to understand anything.

“If your older sister goes, you should go too. You should learn arithmetic well so you can help Mother manage the accounts in the future,” Li Ruru said.

Er Ya was overjoyed that her mother had such high hopes for her. "Okay, I'll listen to you, Mother."

Sanya blinked her big eyes and asked, "Mom, what about me? Can I manage the accounts?"

Li Ruru nodded her head. "You should eat your way to weight first."

The three sisters burst into laughter. Li Ruru put away the bowls and chopsticks, then took the pot off the ground and put it in the yard to wash.

She poured the swill from washing the pot into a large basin, intending to use it to water the vegetables later.

She plans to transplant some potato seedlings from the space. The potatoes at the Agricultural Technology University have already started to bear fruit, and they will be ready to eat in a few days after transplanting.

This way, I've given my potatoes a clear path forward.

Chen Jingang and Chen Jintong lay prone by the low wall, watching Li Ruru's every move.

Li Ruru perked up her ears and noticed something unusual in the corner.

Without making a sound, she took out several iron mousetraps from her sleeve.

"What is that? It's not a rat, is it?"

She shouted, and Chen Jingang and Chen Jintong quickly jumped off the wall and hid in the bushes.

Li Ruru quietly placed several mousetraps on the wall.

Then she started planting potato seedlings in the yard.

We also transplanted some peppers, eggplants, and tomatoes.

All three ingredients are present in the soup, and they are all very nutritious. As long as the weather isn't too cold, you can enjoy them until autumn.

Li Ruru planted large plants that were about to flower and bear fruit, and also applied some modern fertilizer to them. Just as everything was almost finished, a scream suddenly came from the top of the wall.

"what……"

"Who? Who's there?" Li Ruru shouted deliberately.

Xiao Yishan suddenly opened his eyes, quietly looked around, and after confirming that there was nothing unusual, lay back down on his tattered bed.

His bed was just a hard wooden board.

It was already dark when Chen Jingang and Chen Jintong got home. When they arrived, they found that they were covered in mousetraps.

Zhao asked with concern, "What happened? Did you get into a rat's nest?"

While helping her son remove the clips, Wang Shuixia angrily asked, "Did Li do something to you? She's a vicious snake; she doesn't even spare children."

Chen Jingang was tough and thick-skinned, but he was still caught in the mousetrap and screamed. Chen Jintong was already crying uncontrollably.

Chen Bingxiao was annoyed by the noise. "What are you yelling about? Can a few mousetraps kill anyone? Look at your pathetic behavior."

Chen Jingang retorted, "Grandpa, this clamp really hurts when it pinches someone."

"It hurts so much," Chen Jintong added.

Chen Bingxiao rolled his eyes at them, "Did you even see how that konjac tofu was made?"

Chen Jingang rubbed his bruised arm. "I saw it clearly. Third Aunt poured the swill into the big basin that holds konjac."

Aside from the initial scene, they didn't pay much attention to Li Ruru planting vegetables after that.

"Swill? You're not mistaken, are you?" Zhao was completely bewildered.

Chen Bingxiao thought for a moment, "Could it be that there's something in the swill that can cause the konjac to solidify into a lump?"

Chen Jingang immediately nodded, "That's for sure, otherwise Third Aunt wouldn't collect the swill like it's a treasure."

“That’s right, she had a big basin of swill there,” Chen Jingang chimed in.

“Then…why don’t we try using swill?” Zhao suggested.

The family got right to work, pouring a large bucket of swill into a pot and mixing it with konjac to cook.

On the other side, after planting and watering the vegetables, Li Ruru was preparing to go to bed.

Da Ya had already made the bed, and Li Ruru rubbed her lower back.

She looked at the bed; it was fine for two people, but a bit cramped for the four of them.

She sighed and comforted herself, thinking that she was lucky to have a place to sleep, what more could she ask for?

She lay down on the bed, and the three maids swarmed around her.

Daya reminded her, "Mom, let's go to sleep. We have to get up early tomorrow to sell konjac tofu."

Er Ya raised her little face and said, "We need to buy more bowls. We can't let people eat from broken bowls. It's not a good experience."

Li Ruru said with admiration, "Your considerations are all good."

Encouraged, Daya mustered her courage and said, "Mom, we can also make some sweet things. Several aunties said they wanted to eat something sweet yesterday."

Er Ya continued, "We can also decorate the konjac tofu with some scallions or something, making it look more appetizing."

Li Ruru was surprised that her two daughters had such a good business sense, and immediately sat up straight.

"Great! Tomorrow we'll buy some brown sugar and make a sweet one. We'll decorate the sweet one with red dates, and the sour and spicy one with chopped green onions and crushed peanuts."

Daya nestled against Li Ruru, "Mother, we must hide the money we earn."

Sanya suddenly held up a piece of paper and said, "Mom, look, I found this on the bed."

The note was found by Sanya under the straw mat. When Li Ruru opened it, she immediately felt terrible.

(End of this chapter)