Old Mrs. Song is reborn; get out of here, you scumbag husband and illegitimate child!

At dawn, the roosters in Koizumi Village crowed for the first time.

It was still dark.

Song Xianglan pushed open the door to the upstairs bedroom and carried in a basin of warm water.

The charcoal brazier inside was still burning, radiating warmth.

Bed.

Youbao has woken up.

The little one's fever has subsided, and his once flushed face is now only slightly pink.

He pouted, staring at Song Xianglan with half-open eyes, and stretched out his two short arms.

"Grandma, hug me."

Youbao's voice was soft and sweet, with a slight hoarseness from just waking up.

Song Xianglan placed the basin of water on the table, walked over, and touched his forehead.

The fever has definitely subsided completely.

Just as she was about to bend down and pick him up, a cold snort came from the side.

Fu Bao stood by the bed with her arms crossed, pouting, her little face tense.

"Big brother, do you want another hug?"

Fu Bao stared at You Bao.

Start to criticize:

"Yesterday I told you to play jump rope in the yard, but you wouldn't. You insisted on dragging your brother Erbao to swim in the sea. Grandpa Liu said there are water ghosts in the sea in the dead of winter that specifically catch disobedient children. You're not being good at all."

Youbao shrank back after being scolded.

She covered half her face with the corner of the blanket, leaving only her big eyes pleadingly looking at Fu Bao.

"There's no water ghost, that's a bad guy who steals shrimp," Youbao retorted softly.

"That won't work either."

Fu Bao stomped his foot angrily, "Your face was so red yesterday, Mom and Grandma were terrified. If it happens again, I'll never talk to you again, and I won't call you brother anymore. You're just a bratty little brother."

Youbao quickly reached out to pull at Fubao's clothes.

"Fu Bao, don't be angry. I was wrong, okay? I'll jump rope with you today and hold the rope for you all day."

Fu Bao turned her head away haughtily, turning her back to him.

"Who cares?"

When Youbao realized he couldn't coax Fubao, he rolled his eyes and started to whine and cling to Song Xianglan's sleeve.

"Grandma, my tummy is so flat. I'm hungry."

"What would you like to eat?"

Song Xianglan tucked him back into the quilt and wrapped him up tightly.

That's how it is with children when they have a fever; it comes on quickly and goes away quickly. Once the fever breaks, they become energetic again and know to ask for food and attention.

Pork rib congee.

Youbao licked her lips. "I want pork rib congee with lots of meat, but no carrots."

"OK."

Song Xianglan smiled and pinched his nose. "Grandma will go buy ribs now. You lie there obediently and don't get out of bed and run around."

After settling the two little ones in.

Song Xianglan went out the door with a bamboo basket slung over her shoulder.

The village was bustling with activity in the morning.

The intersection near the food factory, in particular, is a gathering place for villagers to buy groceries every day.

Every day without fail, a butcher from the town would push his bicycle into the village to set up his stall at this exact time. A thick wooden board was strapped to the back of his bicycle, on which half a pork carcass was laid out.

There were wooden baskets on both sides of the seat, and they were also full of pork.

When Song Xianglan walked over, the butcher had just finished weighing a piece of meat for someone else.

He moved swiftly, using the tip of his knife to pick up a piece of lean meat from the corner and put it in, then casually pulled over a piece of dry straw rope to tie the meat tightly.

"I'll cut you an extra piece of lean meat." The butcher handed the meat to the villager in front of him.

The villager paid the bill.

He turned around and saw Song Xianglan.

"Old Song, you're here so early to buy pork?"

Song Xianglan nodded:

"Buy some pork ribs to make porridge for the kids."

Song Xianglan walked to the cutting board and glanced at the meat.

Today we're planning to fry some things at home, so we'll just buy everything at once.

"Boss, I'll take all the ribs on the cutting board," Song Xianglan said, her words startling. "And wrap up this piece of pork shoulder for me. Also, cut seven or eight pounds of pork belly, choosing pieces with a good balance of fat and lean. And pack up the pig's heart, lungs, and two front trotters."

Wang Zhi and his mother squeezed over to buy meat.

Upon hearing this, their eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh my goodness, Lao Song, what are you doing? Every time I see you buying things, I feel like a landlady is throwing money around."

Song Xianglan doesn't usually buy much meat.

She thought she'd buy some and then invite Xiaoyan over to eat.

"There are a lot of people today, so we also need to fry meatballs, braised pork in vinegar, and spare ribs, which are traditionally eaten during the Lunar New Year."

Upon hearing about this large order, the butcher beamed with joy and began chopping ribs.

"I like customers like Mr. Song. He buys things quickly and never haggles over a few cents."

Wang Zhihe's mother laughed:

"I'd like to do it just as easily, but my wallet won't allow it."

"You old fool, your daughter-in-law runs such a big restaurant, how could she not afford a few pounds of meat?" Song Xianglan laughed and scolded. "You're so stingy, saving all that money to take to your grave?"

Wang Zhi and his mother burst into laughter after being teased.

"My family can't compare to yours," Aunt Wang waved her hand. "Only Zhihe and Xiaofang, that couple, can earn some hard-earned money by working from dawn till dusk. My other sons are all useless, so I have to be careful with my money."

"Boss, weigh Old Song first. After she's done, just cut me some pork leg meat and a pork bone to make soup."

"Okay."

The butcher quickly sorted and packed all the meat that Song Xianglan wanted, and weighed it.

Song Xianglan paid the money. "I'll leave the meat with you for now. I'm going to the dock to buy some seafood, and I'll pick it up on my way back."

"No problem, it won't get lost."

Song Xianglan turned and went to the sheltered dock.

The sea breeze at the end of the year stung people's faces, and seafood stalls lined the dock one after another.

She walked up to a familiar stall.

The local small prawns in the basin are very fresh.

Song Xianglan weighed out several pounds of freshly shucked oysters, plump and with a sweet, fishy smell from the sea. She also grabbed a handful of lively little tiger prawns and half a pound of mud shrimp.

We walked up to the crab stall.

She picked out a few three-eyed crabs with firm navels.

I also bought a few yellowfin tuna, blackfin tuna, shimmering silver pomfret, and stinky tuna.

These types of fish have few bones and tender meat, making them perfect for cooking in soy sauce broth.

After buying seafood.

She stopped by a vegetable stall on her way and picked out two bunches of fresh local celery.

On her way home, she made a special detour to a breakfast stall.

I bought steaming hot peanut soup for Shen Huijun and Fu Bao, along with freshly fried, golden and crispy fried dough sticks.

Passing by a pork stall.

Song Xianglan carried the large bag of meat in her hand.

With both hands full, he hurried home.

Upon entering the courtyard.

Song Xianglan placed the breakfast on the stone table and went straight into the kitchen.

Sleeves rolled up.

Start preparing the ingredients.

Pour the ribs into a large bowl and soak them in cold water to remove the blood.

Sprinkle a handful of sweet potato starch on the oysters, gently rub them with your hands to wash away the slime and broken shells, then rinse them three times with clean water and drain.

I cut off a small piece of pork belly and sliced ​​it all into thin slices.

Soak dried shiitake mushrooms until softened, then dice them.

Cut the ginger into thin strips.

Heat the iron pot.

Pour in a little base oil.

Add the pork belly and shredded ginger directly to the pot.

With a sizzling sound, the pork fat was instantly forced out, filling the kitchen with a caramelized aroma.

Song Xianglan quickly stir-fried the food with a spatula.

Render the fat from the pork belly.

Next, add the ribs and stir-fry them.

Continue cooking until the surface of the ribs changes color and the meat tightens.

Add the diced shiitake mushrooms and stir-fry until they release a rich, dry aroma.

Put the thoroughly rinsed rice into the pot.

Stir-fry a few times to coat each grain of rice with glistening oil.

Song Xianglan poured a ring of soy sauce around the edge of the pot.

Finally, pour in most of the freshly boiled water.

Cover the pot with a heavy wooden lid.

Flames licked the bottom of the pot, and soon the pot began to bubble and boil.

Turn the heat down to low and simmer slowly.