"Old Fourth, you are a meticulous person," the old man chuckled, "I’ve asked around, and they said it’s only a matter of the days passed, no big deal. Even if we’re a few days off, no one will fuss over it."

Lian Manman pondered for a moment before she understood that the two were discussing the mourning period for Empress Shen, which they had only received notice of a few days ago. But considering the time it takes for such a notice to travel from the Capital City to their location, by the middle of next month, the one-month period would have indeed passed.

The old man then chatted with Lian Shouxin for a bit longer, leaving behind twenty Wen Money as a deposit. Lady Zhang packed up some half a pound of bean sprouts and a pound of pickled vegetables for him to take home and try.

The old man hesitated, but eventually accepted the gifts and left cheerfully.

"Our bean sprouts aren’t fully sprouted yet, and we’re already opening for business," Lady Zhang said, obviously delighted. She went to check on the soybeans that had just been soaked at noon, as though the bean sprouts would sprout immediately.

"We still have pickled vegetables, and I reckon people prefer to buy both together for convenience," Lian Shouxin said.

Lian Manman felt there was some sense to his words, but...

"It’s also because our family has a good reputation and a trusted brand," Lian Manman said.

Lady Zhang and Lian Shouxin didn’t echo the sentiment, but their expressions showed a bit of pride nonetheless. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

In the afternoon, Lian Manman went to the Pickled Vegetable Workshop to help out for half a day until it was time to make dinner and return to the house. They had agreed to have dumplings for dinner; the meat filling had already been fried with oil, salt, soy sauce, Sichuan peppercorn powder, minced ginger, and chopped green onions. Lian Manman and Lian Zhizhi then proceeded to chop the cabbage, while Lian Shouxin was making the dough in the inner room.

For delicious dumpling filling, the best ratio of meat to vegetables is one to one, or one to one and a half. However, most rural families skimp on meat, using vegetables predominantly with just enough meat to flavor the filling. Today was Xiao Qi’s birthday, and Lian Manman specially bought more meat to enjoy genuine meat-filled dumplings for once.

Mixing the dumpling filling was Lian Manman’s responsibility. The oil rendered from frying the meat was kept in, with additional soybean oil added. The blanched cabbage filling wasn’t squeezed too dry, so the meat filling was quite juicy. She stirred it consistently in one direction for an even blend and to make the meat stick together well.

Once the dumpling filling was ready, Lian Shouxin’s dough was also prepared. Lady Zhang was still at the workshop and hadn’t returned home. Lian Shouxin rolled the dumpling wrappers, while Lian Manman and Lian Zhizhi wrapped the dumplings. Wu Lang lit the fire with Xiao Qi in the outer room to cook a soup with pork bones and radishes. Lian Shouxin rolled out the wrappers quickly; knowing his past experiences, Lian Manman no longer found it surprising. The three of them were all adept with their hands, and soon they had all the dumplings wrapped, arranged in the steamer, and set them to steam on the stove.

By the time Lady Zhang returned from the workshop, both the dumplings and the soup were ready.

"Mother, wash your hands. We’ll set the table right away and eat," Lian Manman told Lady Zhang.

"I’m blessed today, enjoying a meal without lifting a finger," Lady Zhang laughed. The main role of a housewife is to cook for the family. Having the luxury to eat without being involved, especially when the man of the house has contributed, is quite rare, so Lady Zhang joked about her good fortune.

"Mother, if you think this is a blessing, Manman and I will cook the meals from now on," Lian Zhizhi said.

"My eldest daughter is indeed the kindest to me," Lady Zhang smiled.

"Scoop up a bowl first for your grandpa and grandma," Lady Zhang said as the dumplings were served.

This had become a routine, and Lian Manman had already grabbed a large bowl to pick out a generous serving of dumplings to take to the Upper Room. The table in the Upper Room was set with millet rice, cabbage stewed with tofu, and a pot of boiled potatoes served with a small dish of soy sauce on the side.

Lian Manman still took the dumplings to Old Master Lian’s table.

"I’ve told you there’s no need to send these over," Old Master Lian said with a smile, "You already have enough mouths to feed, and it’s rare for you to have such a meal."

"Dad, Old Fourth’s family is now so wealthy they’re dripping with grease. Haven’t you noticed how plump Manman and Xiao Qi have grown?" The dumplings were still steaming, and Lian Shouyi swallowed his saliva, "Manman, why didn’t you bring more dumplings over? This one bowl isn’t enough for anyone."

Lian Shouyi had none of the dignity expected of an elder, speaking with a knack for turning things upside down that he evidently picked up from Lady Zhou. Annoyed, Lian Manman was about to scold Lian Shouyi, but she quickly swallowed the harsh words she had in mind.