Everyone was busy preparing.
Qi Jiao led the women from Baiyun Village to make the second batch of fermented bean curd and mud carp.
In the open - air courtyard, more than a dozen large vats were lined up.
They were filled with fermented beans.
Last time, she sent a hundred items to Zhu's shop for a trial sale, and the result was quite good.
The young and strong men who were about to go out on a journey were willing to take a few jars with them.
Firstly, it didn't spoil easily. Secondly, it was delicious and went well with rice.
The women who were helping watched Qi Jiao operate with ease.
She selected high - quality mud carps, then scaled them, washed them clean, marinated them with scallions, ginger, and cooking wine for a while, and used a high - pressure stone tool to dehydrate them to keep the meat firm and delicious.
Then, she deep - fried the dehydrated mud carps. At this time, the bones and meat of the fish would become loose.
The crispy fish bones that wouldn't hurt one's lips and teeth became a delicacy.
Finally, she spread the fermented beans on the fish, added thick soy sauce and sugar, thickened the sauce with water starch, and steamed it for a quarter of an hour.
After taking it out of the steamer and letting it cool, one could smell the strong aroma of fermented beans and the freshness of the fish.
Then, it was packed into small jars by portion, a drop of white wine was added for sealing, and it was ready to eat when opened.
Although the iron - smelting technology was quite developed in this era, iron was still relatively expensive.
Qi Jiao couldn't find a blacksmith shop that could make tinplate for the time being, so she used small pottery jars for storage and sealing, which could also play the role of keeping it fresh away from light.
At noon, Qi Jiao directly scooped out a large basin for the helping women as an extra dish. For a moment, everyone enjoyed their meal.
Besides this batch of fermented bean curd and mud carp, the finished products that Qi Jiao planned to sell in the shop also included eighteen kinds of snacks, salted duck eggs, dried scallops, oyster sauce, crab roe paste, crab powder pastries, tiger - skin chili sauce, etc.
Tea drinks and sweet soups would be added later.
So Qi Jiao had been extremely busy these days. Finally, at the end of February, all the goods were put on the shelves.
In March, the spring breeze was gentle, and the peach blossoms were in full bloom.
As the wedding day approached day by day, it was obvious that there were more and more people in the Pei family's small courtyard.
The Pei family didn't have many relatives, but they had a large number of friends and neighbors.
Before the official wedding day, the house and the yard were filled with men, women, old and young who were helping. Everyone had a happy look on their faces, and it was extremely lively.
Even Aunt Zheng's family, who lived far away in another province, came for Pei Xia's wedding.
Pei Xia and Tang Guiniang had discussed that they wouldn't accept any wedding gifts from the relatives and friends who came to the wedding.
The Ye family had taken Qi Jiao back three days before the wedding.
It was a custom that the bride couldn't meet the groom before the wedding.
Aunt Ye checked Qi Jiao's dowry one by one, arranged them neatly, and wrapped the carrying poles with red paper.
The three Ye brothers and Jiang Yuniang also added a thick dowry box for Qi Jiao.
At night, Aunt Ye accompanied Qi Jiao to sleep.
She was going to marry Pei Xia the day after tomorrow, but instead, she felt restless. She tossed and turned in bed.
Aunt Ye stroked Qi Jiao's satin - like black hair gently and said softly, "If you don't sleep well these two days, the dark circles under your eyes will make you look less beautiful."
Qi Jiao smiled faintly, "I don't know why. So many things have flashed through my mind like a revolving lantern. I just can't fall asleep."
Aunt Ye said, "You're a reliable child. You always have a plan in mind when dealing with things. There's nothing I need to tell you. But there's one thing I want to ask you."
Qi Jiao turned to face Aunt Ye. Her face looked even more gentle and charming in the candlelight.
Aunt Ye had a smile on her face, "Have you and A Xia had sexual intercourse?"
Qi Jiao blushed when her elder asked such a question suddenly.
But in an instant, she regained her composure.
Human relations were in line with the natural law, and there was nothing to be ashamed of.
"Not yet. A Xia has always been polite to me even though we have feelings for each other."
Qi Jiao answered like this, but in her heart, she wondered if simple intimacy could be counted as sexual intercourse.
Aunt Ye was even more satisfied with Pei Xia, "That's good. I've put a picture book under the clothes box in your dowry. You can read it with A Xia tomorrow."
Qi Jiao was nineteen years old in name after the New Year. Her body and soul were mature enough - she naturally knew what the picture book Aunt Ye mentioned was.
Qi Jiao's face turned red, "Thank you for your concern, Mother."
Aunt Ye's smile deepened, "Good child. I hope you and A Xia will be well and live in harmony."
Qi Jiao unconsciously touched the double - petal hibiscus gold hairpin under the pillow. It was cold, gorgeous, and substantial.
She had confidence in living a good life in the future and also had confidence in Pei Xia.
As long as he didn't let her down, she would treat him with all her heart.
Aunt Ye tucked in the quilt, "Alright, go to sleep early. Get enough rest so that you'll look good. A Xia will surely be happy to see you."
The next day, two new batches of furniture ordered by Pei Xia arrived.
One set was made of rosewood and was to be placed in the Pei family's house in Baiyun Village.
The other set was made of chicken - wing wood and was to be put in the new house in Pomegranate Alley.
Qu Si and the three Ye brothers led the young and strong men in the village. They divided into two groups and grandly carried the furniture tied with red cloth to their destinations.
Ye Pa followed Qu Si to the Pei family's house. Tang Guiniang and Aunt Zheng greeted them. Seeing them sweating all over, looking very tired, they quickly grabbed a handful of lucky money and distributed it to them. Then they poured tea and wine for them, "It's still early. Take a break first."
Qu Si took it with a smile, "Thank you, aunts. I won't say much else, but I must drink the wedding wine."
After saying that, he raised his head and drank it all in one gulp.
After Ye Pa finished drinking, he casually wiped the sweat off his face and then shouted for everyone to carry the furniture into the house together. He said loudly, "Be gentle with your hands and feet! This is my sister's furniture. If you scratch or damage it, don't blame me for getting angry."
Mi Sheng was also among the young and strong men who were helping. Hearing this, he looked up and joked, "Ye San, it's Pei Da and Jiao Niang's happy event. Why are you getting angry? Are you secretly in love with your sister?"
As soon as he said this, everyone burst into laughter.
Unexpectedly, Ye Pa shivered. He quickly looked towards the door. Seeing that Pei Xia wasn't there, he let out a long breath. Then he turned around and scolded, "You're a bad - mouthed Mi Sheng. You look honest but actually have a hidden agenda. Jiao Niang and I are as close as siblings, closer than real siblings. What do you know? Get out of here."
Qu Si laughed so hard that his stomach hurt. He still didn't forget to assign tasks to the others. Some carried the tables, some carried the headboards...
The young men were strong and there were many of them. They quickly carried the new furniture into the house and arranged it properly.
The original furniture wasn't really old.
Tang Guiniang asked them to move it to the west wing for Pei Li and Pei Jin to use.
After a while of busyness, Ye Pa washed his hands and face by the well. When he suddenly looked up, he saw a beautiful young lady in a blue shirt walking out of the main house.
He was so fascinated that he couldn't take his eyes off.
It wasn't until the young lady entered the kitchen that he withdrew his gaze.
Aunt Zheng saw that the furniture taken out was in good condition, and a new and better set had been replaced. She touched it and knew it was a good thing.
She couldn't help but pull Tang Guiniang aside and whispered, "I think A Xia is too good to his new wife. Not only is the betrothal gift extremely high, but this set of furniture must cost a lot of silver!"
Aunt Zheng was Tang Guiniang's younger sister. She had married to another province earlier.
Aunt Zheng's husband had passed away two years ago. She only had one daughter, who was also at the age of getting engaged.
This time, she brought her daughter back to Yinwan. On the one hand, she came to visit her relatives. On the other hand, she wanted to find a good local family for her daughter.
After her husband's death, they were bullied by the clan. The mother and daughter had a hard time outside. Aunt Zheng remembered that she still had an elder sister in Yinwan, so she packed her luggage and came back to seek refuge.
It was just right that she caught up with Pei Xia's wedding.