Chapter 41: Rendering Lard

Xiaoguo urged Zhuang Zhuang to bring the donkey to graze on the side. She then harnessed all her strength to cut the trees. As it was her first time felling trees, it took her a lot of effort since she still wasn’t familiar with the process. Having tried a few more times, Xiaoguo eventually got the hang of it and it became much easier. After a while, she had managed to chop enough of the trees. Worried that there may not be enough wood, Xiaoguo cut down a dozen more branches to keep as spare. She then tied up all the wood with a rope and called Zhuang Zhuang to bring the donkey over. With all the bundles loaded onto the donkey cart, they headed for home.

Xiaoguo thought about building the fence this afternoon. She wouldn’t have time tomorrow. She still had to prepare the ingredients for the potato starch noodles.

Xiaoguo drove the cart home and quickly unloaded everything. Using a shovel, she dug out a trench starting from one corner of the wall, creating a slight arch as she went along. She stopped digging when she reached the latrine. The trench was quite deep. Zhuang Zhuang was following closely behind Xiaoguo and sticking tree branches into the trench. After Xiaoguo was done digging, she began to fill the soil back into the ground. WIth Zhuang Zhuang’s help, the work was quickly done.

The tree branches were just long enough to reach Xiaoguo’s thighs. She could cross over the branches easily. Zhuang Zhuang had to stand on tiptoes to look over the fence. With the fence at this height, the chickens and ducks wouldn’t be able to get out. Zhuang Zhuang placed one basket into a corner, and laid some hay at the bottom. With that, the nest for laying eggs was completed. There was ample space inside—the ducks and chickens could all lay eggs at the same time. Even if the ducks and chickens came in all together at night, there would be enough space for them to sleep.

Zhuang Zhuang took out a spare, large basin and used it as their water basin. Xiaoguo threw a pile of fresh grass into the enclosure and moved the chickens and ducks individually into their new home.

Next, Xiaoguo got ready to make lard. It was about time for dinner.

Xiaoguo quickly cut the lard into smaller pieces. She filled a large pot with water and blanched the lard after the water began to boil. Then, she refilled the pot with fresh water and put in the lard that was blanched earlier. The pot was put on high heat. When the water had completely evaporated, the lard would turn into oil. At this moment, Xiaoguo threw in a few star anise and salt to add some fragrance. She removed a few pieces of wood and let the mixture simmer over a small flame.