MMB Chapter 88 Popsicles in Sugar Water
Chapter 88 Popsicles in Sugar Water
The family drank the porridge chilled with cold water, and all sighed with satisfaction.
Scoop a spoonful of chili and fermented black bean sauce into a bowl. The red and green chili flakes mixed with the dried fermented black beans, along with the white porridge, are then lifted up. Use chopsticks to scoop a mouthful into your mouth.
First, you feel the coolness of the congee, then the spiciness of the chili peppers on your tongue, and a few hard fermented black beans, which are fresh, fragrant and satisfying to chew.
Another slice of cold cucumber salad. The cucumber is fresh and crisp, and the chili powder on top blends with the cucumber's sweetness, creating a unique flavor.
Even sliced crispy pork can't escape the fate of being dipped in chili powder. A little dried chili powder, sprinkled with salt, MSG and Sichuan peppercorn powder, mixed well, makes a dipping sauce.
The Xu family can be described as avid chili eaters, unable to live without spicy food, and even the youngest sister often clamors for chili peppers.
After the meal, Mr. and Mrs. Xu asked about the wine sales that morning.
Xu Chunsheng put down his chopsticks and spoke to them in detail:
"Business wasn't good. At first, no one came to ask about it. It was also because I forgot to bring two teacups. Later, I bought two teacups at the store and let people sample them for free. That's how I sold half a bucket."
Xu's mother also raised the same question as her eldest sister:
"Ours is brewed from pure grains, it tastes much better than those watered-down versions, so why isn't it selling well?"
Mr. Xu, however, understood the situation clearly:
"When it comes to alcohol, people who buy it are all familiar with each other, not strangers."
After saying that, fearing that Xu Chunsheng would be discouraged, he added:
"Our wine is definitely fine. Once we get used to it, people will come to buy it. You don't need to rush to sell a lot of wine. This stuff won't spoil if you put it in a jar. Take it slow."
Xu Chunsheng sensed the underlying concern in his father's words and began to speak:
"Our wine is not bad, and we even set out teacups for people to sample, but business is still not very good. I came back and thought about the reasons."
"Just like Dad said, it's normal for people not to believe us since this is our first time selling alcohol. We'll just have to go a few more times and get to know them. Besides, some of the alcohol stalls in town have been open for a while now, and they all have regular customers."
"Secondly, our pure grain liquor has a higher cost and is more expensive than those diluted inferior liquors. People are also living on a tight budget. Even if they think our liquor tastes good, some people want to save money and choose the cheaper option."
"Thirdly, it was my first time selling alcohol and I had no experience. Those alcohol stalls always have bottles on hand, but I forgot about that. Only those stalls that bring bottles have the tools to fill them."
……
Xu Chunsheng analyzed the possible situations with his family bit by bit, and at the end, he mentioned it briefly:
"Next time I'll make a sign and take it with me. After selling it a few more times and getting some recognition, once I have a stable customer base, I plan to rent a shop in town to sell wine exclusively."
None of them objected to Xu Chunsheng's plan to open a shop in town.
To this day, Xu Chunsheng's family members have expressed their approval of his decision.
Planting Ophiopogon japonicus, repairing pig farms, learning to brew wine—no one ever objected to these major undertakings. In fact, everyone silently supported him and took each matter seriously.
Mr. Xu calmly replied, "That's fine."
Xu's mother nodded with relief: "Go ahead and do it, my son can definitely do it."
The eldest sister also expressed her support, but she raised a question: "If the shop opens, won't we need someone to stay there and watch over it? Won't our family be a little short-handed?"
Xu Chunsheng felt this was also a problem. Normally it would be fine, as he could drive to town and back every day, but during the busy farming season, he would definitely have to rush to harvest the crops in the fields.
Moreover, in two months, the pigs will grow even bigger and eat more at each meal. All of this is work. If we open a shop, we certainly can't do it like we do now, brewing wine with a hundred or so catties of corn at a time. We'll have to increase the frequency and quantity of brewing.
Xu Chunsheng, however, couldn't think of a solution and could only say:
"There's no rush. Let's build our reputation first, and then see how things go. Besides, we don't even have a shop yet. Let's take it one step at a time. I'm not saying we're going to open a shop tomorrow."
After the important business is finished, the family will gather together to chat about everyday things:
"At this time last year, we were still tending to the liriope muscari in the cornfield; it was unbearably hot then!"
"Yes, it's nothing like now, where not only do we have fans, but we also have sweet soup and popsicles to eat."
The older sister took the popsicle in syrup that Xu Chunsheng handed her and sighed with delight.
At first, Xu Chunsheng bought a lot of popsicles in town and brought them back. At that time, the most common popsicles were "white popsicles" and "red bean paste popsicles".
However, because of the hot weather, even though I asked the owner for some ice cream and put it next to me, the ice cream still melted quite a bit by the time I brought it back.
When Xu's mother opened the bag and saw the pitiful state of the popsicles, she refused to let Xu Chunsheng go to town to buy any more.
"The weather is so hot that everything you bought has melted into water. I think it's just syrup jelly. Don't buy it anymore, let's make it ourselves."
So, Xu's mother instructed Xu's father to cut some bamboo, saw it into sections, smooth the edges, brush off the phosphorus ash on the surface of the bamboo, and carefully clean the inner bamboo sheath.
Finally, put it in a pot of boiling water and steam it. That's how you make a simple container.
As for popsicles in syrup, they are also easy to make:
Add water to a clean, oil-free pot, bring it to a boil, then sprinkle in some white sugar. Stir constantly with a spoon until the sugar is completely dissolved. Lift the pot off the heat and set it aside to cool. Then carefully pack the sugar into bamboo tubes, placing a bamboo skewer in each tube, and neatly arrange them in the freezer.
In less than half a day, the syrup will be frozen solid. When you want to eat it, just take it out and let it sit for a minute or two, and you can take it out completely.
Xu Chunsheng slurped up the popsicle in his mouth, feeling the ice shards inside, and took a bite, savoring it.
After slurping up the sweetness, I crunched the remaining ice cubes twice, letting the icy coolness slide down my throat. A cool sensation spread from my heart to my limbs. The sweet and icy taste was a unique kind of joy in this summer.
When it got cooler in the afternoon, Xu Chunsheng took some fried pork he had made at noon and headed straight to his uncle's house.
"Auntie, we fried some crispy pork for lunch and brought some over for you to try."
"Oh, you've come all this way, why did you bring dried meat? Take it back with you, we have meat to eat."
Aunt declined to accept the gifts. Although Xu Chunsheng's family was doing better now, they couldn't keep accepting the things they brought.
Besides, fried pork belly requires not only meat but also eggs and other ingredients, so it's not cheap.
Xu Chunsheng put the things down directly, smiling as he said:
"We fried a lot, and we can't finish it all. Besides, if you don't take it away, how can I ask my uncle to help me with the work?"
"Auntie, don't you think so? We're all family, let's not refuse. I'll go see if Uncle is done with his work."
After saying that, Xu Chunsheng walked to the back.
"Uncle, how long until you finish all this? I need your help."