happy event

Chapter 36 Teaching the Art of Ice Making
The old and the young of the Wang family heaved a long sigh of relief. The old man happily poured a large bowl of grain wine down his stomach, and then went to bed with his youngest son and grandchildren who were too sleepy to keep their eyes open.Even Wang Lu and Du Juan didn't dare to go back to their own room, so they squeezed into the wood under the window of the old lady and took a hasty rest.

The couple were exhausted from running back and forth all day, so they slept very deeply, and when they woke up, it was already bright.The two of them were afraid of delaying their business, so after visiting their mother who was in good health, they hurried back to the small courtyard outside the city.

Today's weather was fine, the sun came out early to report after two days of rest, before the sun was up, the ground was about to smoke, and the flowers, plants and trees on the side of the road also drooped their heads.Seeing this, Dong Rong took Dong Ping and Sha Zhu to prepare seven or eight more boxes of ice cubes, in case any customer would increase the share.Sure enough, when the small stewards of several restaurants came to the door, they clamored for double the ice cubes.

It happened that Wang Lu and Du Juan rushed back and were busy loading and delivering the goods directly to the door.Before the housekeepers were dismissed, Sister-in-law Liu and the others also came to work. It was extremely crowded when all the people got together, and finally they packed up and went out quickly, and the small courtyard was completely clean.

Dong Ping just got a set of the Four Treasures of the Study yesterday, and today he gave the original half-worn set to Xizi, and taught him to write stroke by stroke.Xizi was used to the branches and the sand table, but she was not used to "real swords and guns" for a while, so she was very careful with every stroke for fear of ruining the white paper.Unexpectedly, being so cautious made him grasp the essence of calligraphy practice, and he made rapid progress.Three large characters, one of which was better than the other, made Dong Ping stare, and secretly made up his mind that he must work harder to practice calligraphy in the future, otherwise he would be ashamed to be compared by the book boy.

Seeing the two masters and servants get along so close, Dong Rong was very happy. She sat under the tree with a smile on her face and packed Dong Ping's luggage, thinking about what gifts to prepare for her husband tomorrow morning.Although Dong Ping said that the teachers of the academy are all highly respected, and they value talents more than money.But she thinks it's not surprising that there are so many people, and that my husband is not a fairy, and he also needs to eat, drink, and sleep, so how can he escape from the support of these vulgar things.She didn't expect them to look at Dong Ping differently after accepting the gift, but as long as something happened, she could help and say a few good words.

Just as she was thinking about it, Wang Lu and Du Juan also delivered the goods.Dong Rong poured tea and invited them to sit under the shade of the tree. After the three chatted for a while, Dong Rong said seriously, "Cousin, cousin, I have always wanted to tell you something, but I never had the chance. It's okay, let's have a good talk."

Wang Lu didn't have that delicate mind, and couldn't guess what his cousin-in-law was going to say, so he felt terrified and thought that there was something wrong with their husband and wife's work, so he turned his head to look at the silly Zhu who was standing by the table watching Dong Ping's writing, and whispered Said, "Siblings, what's wrong with your cousin, just tell me..."

Dong Rong hurriedly waved her hands and smiled, "My cousin misunderstood, you and my cousin sister-in-law have helped me a lot these days, it's too late for me to thank you, how dare you complain." Said, "Cousin, cousin, I lied to you before. This ice business is mine, and I don't have any owner. There is no ice cellar in the backyard. I, Dong Ping, and Zhu Zi make these ice cubes by myself every day."

"There is no master's house? Ice...can you still make it now?" Wang Lu was a little dumbfounded, but Du Juan thought about it for a moment, and suddenly realized it.Finally, he said in a low voice, "I mean, why don't you see the owner come over? And the ice cubes seem to be sold as much as you want, and I wonder how big the ice cellar is!"

Dong Rong added tea for them with a smile, and praised casually, "Sister-in-law is more careful, I read an ice-making recipe in an ancient book, but when I was not married, I was under the control of my stepmother, so I didn't think much about it. Later, marrying Zhuzi gave me some freedom, so I dared to try it, and I never thought it would work, and the business is still booming."

Du Juan and Wang Lu looked at each other, both envious of Dong Rong's good luck, and wondered what she meant by telling them such an important secret.

Silly Zhu Xu was tired from standing, so he came over and sat beside Dong Rong.Dong Rong moved the dim sum plate in front of him and told him to eat less than two yuan so that he would not be able to eat lunch, and then said, "To tell you the truth, I bought the Chen's orchard yesterday, and I will be in the village later. I'm going to run here. Brother Ping is going to the academy to study again, and I'm really too busy. So I want to ask my cousin and sister-in-law to take care of the business here in the future. The method of making ice is very easy, and I plan to teach you , but my cousin and sister-in-law must keep it a secret."

Du Juan and Wang Lu nodded together, and promised in unison, "Sister and brother, don't worry, we will keep it safe."

The couple felt that Dong Rong taught them such an important ice-making secret recipe and entrusted the whole business, but they didn't treat them as outsiders at all.It can be said that there is a lot of trust and reliance in every way, the expressions of both of them are very excited, and their chests are thumping.

Dong Rong is not a stingy person, and has been nurtured in modern times for many years, her heart is like a mirror, no matter how deep the friendship is, it needs profit as the glue to become stronger.So, she took out the contract written last night from her bosom and pushed it in front of Wang Lu, and said with a smile, "From now on, you will share [-]% of the monthly profit, and you must also promise not to disclose the ice-making recipe to anyone. If there is nothing Question, my cousin will sign a contract with his fingerprints."

Without even thinking about it, Wang Lu got up and went to Dong Ping to get the inkstone, and then pressed his fingerprints.Du Juan was a little hesitant, but thinking that Dong Rong's behavior and temper in the past would never treat them badly, so he followed suit and pressed his fingerprints.

Dong Rong divided the two contracts into one, and asked Du Juan to put her share back into the house after collecting it.In the end, I talked with Wang Lu and his wife carefully about the trivial matters of the ice selling business and the monthly income.

As a result, Dong Ping and Xi Zi, who were writing on the sidelines, had no peace. They were often frightened by the sound of exclamation and ink splashed before a stroke was mentioned.In the end, the master and servant simply took the Four Treasures of the Study, pulled the pillars and went outside to look at the street scene.

Ever since Wang Lu and Du Juan knew how much money the [-]% bonus in Dong Rong's mouth represented, the couple was completely confused. They didn't know how to eat lunch, and they drifted around as if their heels were not on the ground when they were doing homework all afternoon. .It wasn't until lying on the kang at night that the two of them woke up after looking at the beams of the room for a long time.

Du Juan's tears of joy and excitement kept flowing, she wiped them away one after another, and then simply ignored them.Wang Lu also replayed the embarrassing situation of the family in these years like a revolving lantern in his mind, imagining how to build a new yard in the future, for his son to study, and for his younger brother to marry a wife, grinning for a while, not knowing whether he wanted to laugh or cry.

The couple held hands tightly, and after finally calming down, they discussed not to let down the trust of their cousins.Needless to say, in the future, I must work harder and take care of the business.Even the old parents have to keep it secret. The hundreds of literary wages they get back every month are enough for the family's expenses. As for the large dividends at the end of the year, save it first.They can stay for two or three years, and it is not too late to take out the stone to build a house before they get married.If he told his family early, if the news leaked out, Niu Shi and Mrs. Cao, two money fans, would not know what to do.

Du Juan felt sorry for Dong Rong very much, and sighed, "Sister Rong really has a hard life. She was treated harshly by her stepmother when she was a child, and was embarrassed by her aunt when she married into her uncle's house. These days are not easy."

Although Wang Lu didn't like his aunt's temper, he didn't want to gossip about the old man, so he said, "In the future, Sister Rong and Zhuzi have something to do, we need to help, they are both good-hearted."

Du Juan was amused, and replied, "Sister Rong is a capable person, and she made a lot of money by just looking for a prescription in the book. What can we two people from the manor house do for her?"

Wang Lu stared and said angrily, "If you can't help, I will help, not to mention the fact that she entrusted us with the business today, even if she didn't ask her to wipe the wine last night, my mother's illness would have to be taken care of." Dangerous. This is kindness, we must repay it!"

"Okay, okay, I will repay you!" Seeing that her husband was in a hurry, Du Juan quickly apologized softly and persuaded her.Wang Lu glared at her, and then said, "Go to sleep. You must not be lazy when you get up early tomorrow to learn how to make ice. That's a big deal." After he finished speaking, he turned over and fell asleep. Du Juan pulled an old coat over his body and counted. The sheep forced itself to sleep.

Dong Rong was thinking about sending Dong Ping to the academy, and she didn't sleep well all night. She got up quietly and prepared to make breakfast as soon as it was light outside. She didn't want to see Wang Lu and his wife sitting in the yard as soon as the door opened.She hurried up to the two of them and asked, "Cousin, cousin, but you have to go out, why did you get up so early?"

Wang Lu rubbed his hands, looking dull and reticent, but Du Juan glared at her husband and said with a smile, "It's not your cousin, I'm afraid I won't be able to learn how to make ice, so I urged me to come here in the middle of the night, thinking about it Practice a few times and you will become proficient.”

Dong Rong saw that most of the clothes of the two were wet with dew, it was obvious that they had been waiting for a long time.She was really funny and touched in her heart, so she didn't rush to make breakfast, and led the two of them directly to the backyard.Just sprinkle saltpeter, put a box, and drain the waste water. Such a simple ice-making process, the diligent and capable Wang Lu and his wife quickly learned it.

Wang Lu let go of his worries, and his face was also happy.Relying on the strength of his hands, he played the copper box around, which made Du Juan and Dong Rong laugh.

Soon, both Dong Ping and Sha Zhu got up and rushed over.As the old saying goes, more people make it easier to work, and fewer people make it easier to eat.The work that usually takes more than an hour is done in a moment.Dong Rong looked up at the sun and realized that it was getting late, so she urged Dong Ping to wash up, and then she went back to her room and changed into a new dress.

Silly Zhu took a tea bowl and sat under the shade of a tree to drink water. The corner of his eyes glanced at the door of the wing room from time to time, but he didn't see the door open after waiting.Finally, after what seemed like a year, the two door panels were pushed open with a creak.Dong Rong wore an ivory-colored muslin shirt cut into a double-breasted stand-up collar, paired with a water-green pleated skirt, her long hair loosely tied into a double-snail bun, and a magpie on a plum hairpin was inserted obliquely.On the increasingly fair face, the red lips are not red, the eyebrows are not stained like ink, and the eyes are clear. Although there is no allure, there is a sense of beauty, which is very touching...

(End of this chapter)