Li Changxing hurriedly said, "Hey! Zhuzi, you can’t say that. I want to get married soon. How can you say I’ll be single my whole life?"

Just then, Mrs. Fang, the village chief’s wife, came in and began shooing the crowd out. "Alright, get out, get out," she said. "You’ve been teasing them long enough. You can’t just linger in the bridal chamber all day."

Sun Tiezhu said in surprise, "Auntie, but we just got here." The others nodded in agreement.

Mrs. Fang shot him a look. "A quick peek is enough, isn’t it? How long were you planning to stay? We’re all from the same village, so don’t take the teasing too far. You’ll all have your own weddings someday."

Just then, Big Mouth Zhao, having finished making toasts outside, returned to the bridal chamber. Seeing so many people, he also began herding them out. "Everybody out. The feast will be over soon, and they’ll need to clear the bowls. Xingzi, if you keep causing trouble, just watch how I’ll deal with you. Meizi, Lanzi, you girls can stay; it’s no problem."

He once again demonstrated what a good man he was, filling Juhua with envy.

The boys had no choice but to leave.

Juhua glanced out the window and saw twilight falling. She quickly pulled Liu Xiaomei aside to leave, regretting that she’d been so caught up in conversation she hadn’t noticed it was already getting dark.

When they got to the courtyard, they ran into Zhang Huai. He had actually been watching the doorway the whole time, and when he saw Juhua emerge, he hurried over. "Juhua, aren’t you staying for the feast?" He looked her up and down, then asked again before she could answer, "Are you cold? If you stay for the feast, I can run home and get a small hand warmer for you."

Juhua quickly replied, "No, it’s okay. I’m going home for dinner. Where’s my brother?"

Zhang Huai said, "Wait here, I’ll go get him." He then turned and went back inside the house.

He saw that it was dark and Juhua wanted to leave. Since it wouldn’t be proper for him to walk her home alone, he went to get Qingmu.

The torch-lit courtyard was filled with flickering shadows. Bursts of laughter and cheerful noise spilled from the house, spreading the festive atmosphere to the surrounding homes.

Liu Xiaomei and Juhua waited under the eaves. A moment later, Qingmu and Zhang Huai hurried out of the house. Qingmu saw his sister and asked with a smile, "Not staying for dinner?"

Juhua smiled. "It’s too crowded and noisy. Besides, Mom’s waiting for me for dinner."

Qingmu said, "Alright, let’s go. I’ll walk you home first. Mei? You’re not eating either?"

Liu Xiaomei shook her head. "No, I’m going home to eat too. Juhua, you guys go on ahead. I’ll get my brother to go with me." She pointed to Liu Ershun, who was talking with someone by the door.

Juhua nodded, then left with Qingmu and Zhang Huai.

The moonless winter night was pitch-black; you could barely see your hand in front of your face. Qingmu took Juhua’s hand to guide her, chatting with Zhang Huai about the feast as they walked.

Outside the courtyard walls, the cold wind hit them, and Juhua felt a chill seep into her bones. She couldn’t help but huddle closer to Qingmu, which annoyed her. ’Why is my constitution so weak?’ The most worrying thing was that she would be fourteen after the Lunar New Year, yet her menstrual period still hadn’t started.

’I hope there isn’t some major underlying problem with my health,’ she sighed to herself. ’I don’t care about the scar on my face anymore, but an internal ailment is something I can’t afford to ignore.’

She overheard Qingmu and Zhang Huai discussing how much money Big Mouth Zhao had spent per table and how much pork he’d used. A sudden idea struck her, and she said to them, "Lunar New Year is coming up, so more families will be butchering their pigs. I think we should buy up all the pork."

Qingmu hesitated. "A lot of families will be butchering pigs. We don’t have enough silver to front that kind of money."

Zhang Huai, however, said in a steady voice, "We don’t have to worry about that. Next time Manager Mao comes to restock, we’ll explain the situation and ask him for a deposit. Otherwise, when he wants more sausages next year, we won’t be able to supply him with any made from Qingnan Village pork."

"Exactly," Juhua said. "That’s the plan. Manager Mao is a businessman, and a shrewd one at that. He won’t pass up the chance to get this high-quality pork. Besides, his deposit won’t be tied up for long. He can ship the sausages to Qinghui to sell right after the New Year."

Zhang Huai had voiced her exact plan. Without a deposit, this business opportunity would be lost. Most people butchered their pigs around the New Year, and if they missed this peak season, getting meat meant a special trip to Xiatang Market.

The three of them walked at a leisurely pace through the silent night, the silence occasionally broken by the CRACKLE of dry twigs underfoot.

Once they were out of the village, Juhua could see a single, flickering light in the distance. It was her home.

She gave Qingmu’s hand a squeeze. "Brother, there are going to be a lot of pigs in this batch. Our family will partner with Huai Zi’s family, Mei’s family, and Third Uncle Zhao’s family to make the sausages. You should have a word with the village chief. Tell him there aren’t enough pigs right now for everyone to get involved. That will also stop people from gossiping and leaking the recipe. Next year, we’ll build a proper workshop so every family can get a share. Then we won’t have to worry."

Qingmu nodded. "You’re right, I have to say that. If we make money, some people in the village are bound to get jealous. Even though we can’t share the recipe right now, we’re already helping by driving up the price of pork. It’s for the good of the whole village. If we told them the recipe, the secret would be out in less than three days."

They arrived home as they were talking.

Only after Juhua was safely inside did Qingmu and Zhang Huai turn to head back to the feast.

********

The time for the annual New Year’s pig slaughtering arrived, and once again, the air was filled with a chorus of rising and falling squeals.

Juhua gathered Liu Xiaomei, Shi Tou’s mother, and Mrs. He. Day after day, they worked nonstop, chopping meat, mixing seasonings, and stuffing sausages.

But as they bought more and more pigs, they ran into a problem: there weren’t nearly enough pig intestines for the casings. Even after buying up all the supply from Xiatang Market, it wasn’t enough. Zheng Changhe, Zhang Dashuan, and Zhao San even went to the surrounding villages to collect more, but they still came up far short.

With no other choice, Juhua decided to cure all the remaining pork. At least cured meat would fetch a higher price than raw pork.

Manager Mao returned for another visit and bought all the sausages from Zhang Huai’s family. He also readily paid a deposit for the sausages currently in production, placing an order to be picked up the following year.

The Zheng Family buying up meat and making sausages created such a stir that it was impossible not to attract attention. *(To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian.com to vote with recommendation and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)*