Chapter 23: Chapter 23: Braised Rabbit, New Furniture

After washing Beibei and changing her into new clothes, the little girl was like a completely different person, admiring herself endlessly in the mirror. Aside from being a bit thin, both kids were actually quite good-looking, with delicate features.

It was probably their first time wearing new clothes, and their happiness was obvious to the naked eye. Seeing this, Gu Qinghuan felt a pang of sadness.

She fetched some water and brought it into the east room, asking Dabao to help Xu Huai’an wash up.

Meanwhile, Gu Qinghuan started preparing the rabbit meat.

The two wild pheasants were still alive and could be kept for a while, but the rabbit had to be cooked that night.

Originally, she planned to scald the rabbit in boiling water to remove the fur, but then remembered that rabbit fur made for excellent warm clothing—it would be a shame to ruin it.

But skinning the rabbit was truly a challenge for her. In the end, she muttered “Amitabha” under her breath as she clumsily managed to peel off the skin.

The rest was easy. She put rice in the small iron pot to cook, cut the rabbit into pieces and marinated it, then prepared the other ingredients for the stew.

Since the kids couldn’t handle spicy food, after some thought, she decided to make braised rabbit with potatoes and hazel mushrooms—a dish that would be fragrant, satisfying, and filling.

First, she stir-fried the rabbit pieces until they were slightly golden, then set them aside.

She left a bit of oil in the pot, added Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, scallion segments, and ginger slices, then put the rabbit back in, along with soybean paste, cooking wine, sugar, salt, and soy sauce, stir-frying everything together.

She poured in a big bowl of spring water, brought it to a boil, adjusted the seasoning, added the hazel mushrooms, and let it simmer. After a while, she added the potatoes.

She cooked it until the meat was tender and the potatoes soft, and when there was only a little sauce left in the pot, she turned up the heat to reduce it further, and then it was ready to serve.

“Brother, do you smell that?”

“I do. Mom is making rabbit.”

“Brother, you called her ‘Mom’! You said I was a traitor, but now you’ve switched sides too.”

“I feel like calling her that now, is that not allowed?” Dabao turned his head away, acting proud.

“Brother, I feel like I’m dreaming—wearing new clothes and shoes, and Mom is making delicious food. I wish this dream would never end.”

“I wish so too.” May it never end.

...

The two kids leaned against the east room window, whispering to each other, their mouths watering as the smell from the kitchen grew stronger and stronger.

Just as Gu Qinghuan was about to serve the food, she heard a knock at the door.

It was Lin Shengnan, bringing over some firewood.

“Thank you, Comrade Gu,” Lin Shengnan said, handing her the axe.

An irresistible aroma wafted over, and Lin Shengnan swallowed hard. Whatever Gu Qinghuan was cooking, it smelled so good that she could eat two whole black bread buns just from the scent.

Gu Qinghuan didn’t say much, just took the axe and started moving the firewood inside.

Sensing it was time to leave, Lin Shengnan headed home—if she was late, she might not even get any black bread buns for dinner.

The meal was ready: white rice with braised rabbit, potatoes, and hazel mushrooms, all infused with the flavor of the meat—so delicious it was hard to stop eating.

After a couple of days of good meals, the two kids were no longer afraid of not knowing where their next meal would come from. They simply ate whatever Gu Qinghuan gave them.

This time, Gu Qinghuan brought the food to the kang (heated bed) so they could eat together—their first meal as a family. As they ate, she fed Xu Huai’an and encouraged the kids to chat and laugh, hoping he could feel the relaxed, happy atmosphere.

Good food lifts the spirits. After eating their fill, the three of them lay on the kang, feeling utterly content.

“Dabao, take your sister and wash the dishes. I need to go out for a bit. While I’m gone, don’t fetch water from the well—it’s too dangerous. Use the water in the vat.”

“Okay, Mom.”

Letting the kids do what they could was good for them, too.

In the countryside, dinner was eaten early, and it wasn’t fully dark yet when Gu Qinghuan, carrying some money, headed to Carpenter Liu’s house at the east end of the village.

They had just finished dinner and were busy in the yard.

“Uncle, Auntie, I’m short a few pieces of furniture at home, so I came to have a look,” she said.

The Liu family made a living with their carpentry skills, trading labor for goods, and were doing well.

“Oh, it’s Huai’an’s wife! What do you need? Come and see,” Mrs. Liu said cheerfully, happy to have a customer.

Good news never travels far, but bad news spreads like wildfire—there were no secrets in the village. Gu Qinghuan’s marriage to “Crazy Xu” was already well known.

Mrs. Liu led her into a large room.

Inside, finished pieces made by Carpenter Liu were neatly arranged: five-drawer chests, kang tables, kang cabinets, wardrobes, cupboards, and more.

Gu Qinghuan had thought she’d have to wait a while to get furniture, but seeing ready-made pieces was a pleasant surprise.

After some thought, she chose two kang cabinets, two kang tables, a cupboard, a dining table, and a large storage chest for grain.

The kang cabinets could hold clothes, bedding, and odds and ends—one for each room. Kang tables were essential for life on the kang, so both rooms needed one. The cupboard would go in the kitchen for dishes and other items. The dining table was necessary for when guests came or there were too many people for the kang table. The big chest had plenty of space for storing grain.

Carpenter Liu’s craftsmanship wasn’t exactly refined—the furniture was all plain wood, just sanded smooth with not even a coat of varnish. It was serviceable, but nothing fancy; he mostly made furniture for local villagers, nothing that would impress city folk.

But the price was certainly reasonable—just enough to cover his labor. In the end, it all cost twenty yuan.

People with higher standards would go to the county market to order custom furniture for weddings, but Gu Qinghuan wasn’t picky. As long as it worked, she was happy. At least unvarnished furniture was healthy and environmentally friendly.

Seeing how readily Gu Qinghuan paid, Mrs. Liu happily counted the money and called her daughter to pour a cup of brown sugar water for the guest.

Gu Qinghuan quickly waved her off.

“Auntie, no need for water. It’s getting dark, and I need the furniture urgently. Could you help me get it delivered tonight?”

The less fuss the better. Buying so much furniture would be the talk of the village for days, so it was better to move it in after dark and keep a low profile.

“Haha, of course! I’ll have my husband and eldest son deliver it right away—you’ll be able to use it tonight,” Mrs. Liu said, tucking the money into her pocket.

She called out into the yard, “Husband, son, stop what you’re doing and get the cart ready! We need to deliver some furniture to Huai’an’s family.”

Carpenter Liu and his eldest son were men of action, not words. They loaded the furniture onto the cart and hauled it to the foot of the mountain.

By then it was dark, so hardly anyone saw.

It took two trips to get everything over.

Since the solid wood furniture was heavy, they helped move it into place as Gu Qinghuan directed. Once everything was arranged, the house looked much more comfortable.

That twenty yuan was money well spent.

Honestly, the colorful, fancy furniture she’d seen in the county couldn’t compare to the simple beauty of these plain wooden pieces—clean and elegant.

Gu Qinghuan and the two kids wiped down all the new furniture and started organizing their things.

She put the big grain chest in her own room, making it easier to manage and “smuggle” food.

She filled it with the 300 jin of grain given by the Xu family and what she’d brought from the educated youth spot—it was packed to the brim.

Most of it was corn, about 300 jin, with 140 jin of wheat, 100 jin of rice, and 5 jin of soybeans.

She also had over 100 jin of potatoes, which she stored in the cellar to keep them fresh longer.

The cupboard went in the kitchen, with bowls, chopsticks, plates, and condiments on top. In the lower cabinet, she stashed some of the grain she’d “smuggled” from her space, ready to use as needed.

The dining table went in the main room.

The kang cabinets and tables were set up in both bedrooms.

For now, they were empty, since Gu Qinghuan hadn’t had time to buy any winter clothes yet."