The Evil Mother-in-law: Torment Children, Work Hard, Be Rich!-Chapter 41: Castrating the Boar

After Housekeeper He left, the Zheng Family fell into a peculiar silence.

"What’s going on? Now that the Zheng Family’s issue is resolved, there’s nothing to fuss over. Everyone should carry on with what they need to do. Why are you all standing around here?" Tong Huaqiong waved her hand dismissively at a bunch of bad bamboo.

Gu Dashu and the others exchanged glances and then collectively looked towards the pigsty.

"No, mom, I don’t understand, why do you want to castrate the pigs for no reason?" Gu Dashu asked in horror.

The idea came from his mother, who had heard that castrated male pigs mature faster. It’s like those eunuchs, he’s never seen a real one, but the ones depicted on stage are as skinny as monkeys.

It makes sense, after all, if your eggs were cut off, could you still have the appetite to eat?

"Shut up about your dad’s balls. You’re acting like I’m being unreasonable with the pigs. I heard that castrated pigs mature faster, why would I think of castrating pigs otherwise?"

Previously, Tong Huaqiong kept a tight lip in front of Housekeeper He, giving the impression that she was dissatisfied with the boars not bulking up, hence the castration.

She just didn’t want to spread the news that castrated pig meat tastes better yet.

She plans to develop the pig farming industry, and to expand her business, she needs to seize the initiative.

In front of her family, she only mentioned that castrated pigs mature faster.

"No one else castrates pigs, mom, this news must be fake, don’t believe it. It’s not easy to raise a pig in our family. If it dies from the castration, it would be such a shame." Gu Dashu said.

Tong Huaqiong understood Gu Dashu’s concern, as a pig is considered a valuable asset for the family in these times, with everyone waiting to sell it at the end of the year for money.

"Mom, I think second brother has a point. It’s not easy for our family to raise a pig, and no one has tried this method before, it might be fake. If you’re worried about slow maturation, let Man’er cut more grass to feed it." Chen Sufen, who usually agreed with Tong Huaqiong, also voiced her opposition.

"Yaozu will also gather grass, together we’ll fatten the pig up," Liu Yue Er added.

Gu Taohua didn’t join the conversation, as pig castration was beyond her understanding.

Still, she found her mother’s idea quite wild.

"You guys know it’s hard to raise a pig here, that’s why I won’t joke about it. You say this news is fake, but what if it’s true?"

"You’re worried the pig might not survive the castration, but I think there’s no need to worry. The eunuch performers can castrate people, who live very healthily afterward. It shows that their skills are excellent, so castrating a pig shouldn’t be harder than castrating a person, right?"

"No need to persuade me, I’m still the one who calls the shots in this house, and I’ve decided that the boar’s balls will be castrated."

Nobody dared to oppose Tong Huaqiong’s final decision.

Otherwise, she would have said, "Fine, you be in charge then," but nobody would dare with Tong Huaqiong around.

Gu Dashu felt a pang in his own when he thought about the pig yet to be castrated.

At this moment, Gu Jingzhe spoke up.

"I support mom’s decision. Every family in our village has pigs, and if you pay attention, you’ll notice that boars do grow slower. Even if they’re slaughtered, the meat is tougher. Not just boars, even old sows’ meat has that rank smell. Let’s try castrating our pig first, not only to observe the growth but also to compare the taste. The castrated pigs might grow faster and taste better."

After he spoke, Gu Jingzhe looked at Tong Huaqiong.

Tong Huaqiong was thrilled by Gu Jingzhe’s insight. She had to admit his perspective as a senior court official was superior to that of Gu Dashu and the others.

He pinpointed the potential advantages of castrating pigs right away.

"If castrated pig meat tastes better, our family could raise more pigs. After all, pigs grow faster than sheep and produce more meat. Mom, do you think I’m right?" Gu Jingzhe asked with a smile.

Tong Huaqiong wanted to say that this kid could see through her plans from the castration intent, truly a prodigy!

"Yes, that’s exactly what I meant." Tong Huaqiong chuckled.

With Gu Jingzhe, there’s no need to hide anything, as they’re all in this together.

"In that case, let’s not tell anyone else. We’ll quietly castrate the pig without calling the eunuch performer home, as the pig’s squealing could draw unnecessary attention. We’ll bind the pig and take it to Pingchuan County where the performer lives to castrate it," Gu Jingzhe suggested.

Tong Huaqiong thought about it and felt Gu Jingzhe’s plan was thorough.

So she nodded in agreement.

"Alright, you two will go tomorrow then," Tong Huaqiong decided briskly.

The task should be done soon, as the pig is only four months old, and it’ll be harder to castrate when it’s older.

She reminded everyone, "Don’t tell anyone about this."

"Don’t worry, mom, we won’t say a word."

Chen Sufen and Liu Yue Er shared the sentiment that castration wasn’t a matter to discuss openly—it’d make people think the Gu Family was full of fools.

Gu Taohua thought she wouldn’t tell anyone either. How could a young lady talk about pig castration without shame?

Gu Dashu was still a bit perplexed.

He has to bind the pig tomorrow for castration, it sounded completely absurd to him.

But since even the most educated Gu Jingzhe believed the pig’s balls should be cut, there was no choice but to do it.

Gu Dashu cast a sympathetic glance at the pigsty; poor pig, by tomorrow you won’t be a real boar anymore.

As if sensing something, the boar gave a shiver and snorted as it rooted around the trough for food.

Having organized the whole pig castration operation, Tong Huaqiong cheerfully walked into the house.

Man Er was still asleep, holding a plum blossom mold in her hand. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Tong Huaqiong lifted the covers, took the mold from her hand, and also removed the molds from under the blanket.

She sighed; today she witnessed Gu Jingzhe’s wisdom, and guessed that he would eventually discover the secret about her space.

She was already wondering how to explain it then.

Gu Jingzhe isn’t as easy to deceive as the others.

But whatever happens, she’ll deal with it when the time comes.

After breakfast, the whole family got busy.

Gu Dashu and Gu Jingzhe tended to the wheat fields, Gu Taohua did laundry, while Tong Huaqiong, along with Chen Sufen and Liu Yue Er, made pastries.

With the experience of yesterday’s cooking and the addition of the molds, today’s baking was a breeze.

They quickly finished making several types of pastries.

Chen Sufen and Liu Yue Er had been curious about the molds, and Tong Huaqiong said she found them while tidying the house, possibly left behind by Gu Baishuang.

So the two daughters-in-law believed her right away without question.

Tong Huaqiong thought it was fortunate that they were merely curious instead of suspicious.

They weren’t even curious about the butter.

Tong Huaqiong opened a stick of butter in front of them; they sniffed it and agreed that this product must have been purchased from the Hu Shang.

Tong Huaqiong simply let them think that way.

In the evening, after Gu Jingzhe returned from the fields, Tong Huaqiong called out to him.

"Write a name down for me to hang at the stall."

Since they planned to sell at the market the next day, they needed a name for the stall.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t want customers who bought her pastries to tell others that they got them from the Crispy Food Garden, which would be free advertising to Crispy Food Garden.