piratefiction Chapter 56 Purple Sweet Potato
Chapter 56 Purple Sweet Potato
Not long after the peanut harvest, it was time to harvest purple sweet potatoes, potatoes, and onions.
The main force of the work is still Xi'er and her group.
Especially Xi'er, because of her naturally invincible body and boundless superhuman strength, moved through the sweet potato field as if it were her own backyard. There was only one hoe at home, but she didn't use it, nor was she bothered to wait—she just dug with her hands.
She squatted in front of a purple sweet potato vine that had been cut off on a ridge, her two small hands reaching into the soil, digging left and right with quick, swift movements like two small shovels.
The soil was as soft as tofu in her hands, and in just a few strokes, she dug up all the purple sweet potatoes from the ridge. Large and small sweet potatoes lay on the surface, their purplish-red skins gleaming enticingly in the sunlight, clean and undamaged.
One ridge, two ridges, three ridges...
In less than half an hour, Xi'er dug up five or six ridges of purple sweet potatoes by herself. Each piece was intact, with not even a few roots broken.
In contrast, Cai Xuan, wielding a hoe, appeared somewhat clumsy. He carefully dug through the soil, looked at the purple sweet potato, found the right spot, and with one stroke of the hoe—"crack!"—a fist-sized purple sweet potato was dug open, and purplish-red juice immediately flowed out.
Cai Xuan put the purple sweet potatoes, which had been broken in half, into the basket. They were all edible anyway, but they couldn't be preserved and didn't look very good.
After picking them up, he picked up his hoe again and started digging. With each stroke of the hoe, a purple sweet potato was broken or damaged.
Xi'er couldn't stand it anymore, so she ran over and shooed him aside, saying, "Brother, move aside, let me do it!"
"ah..."
"You dug up less than you broke off!"
Cai Xuan opened his mouth, speechless, and could only silently step aside to join Yun'er, Shu'er, and Xin'er in picking up the purple sweet potatoes that Xi'er had dug up, packing them into baskets, and carrying them back. Compared to digging up purple sweet potatoes, he did this job quite well.
Xi'er took over the position and began digging ridge after ridge with lightning speed.
Her technique was quick and precise; after each ridge was dug up, the purple sweet potato ridges almost retained their complete shape. It was as if an invisible hand was lifting the purple sweet potatoes from below, causing them to sprout one after another from the soil and lie neatly on the ground.
After digging up the purple sweet potatoes, she went on to dig up potatoes and onions.
Cai Xuan and Yun'er were reduced to being his lackeys, picking up things.
There weren't many potatoes and onions, so they were dug up quickly.
After digging, Cai Xuan built a mound in the field and led the children to offer purple sweet potatoes. Xi'er and the others had never experienced anything like this before, and they were all extremely excited. One went to pick up branches, another went to pick up clods of dirt, and yet another went to pick out purple sweet potatoes. Still another went inside to get meat.
When offering purple sweet potatoes as tribute, Cai Xuan also planned to roast meat over a fire.
Soon, flames ignited inside the mound, and roaring flames burst through the cracks in the mound, soaring upwards.
Cai Xuan instructed Xi'er and the others to slice the marbled, long-toothed, fierce pig meat thinly, skewer it on tree branches, and roast it over a fire. Within seconds, the aroma of the meat wafted out, and drops of golden meat oil dripped onto the mound of earth, making a sizzling sound.
Xi'er couldn't wait to start eating, shaking her head and swaying as she ate, she was extremely happy.
Yun'er, Shu'er, and Xin'er were all beaming with joy.
Cai Xuan smiled slightly and picked up the roasted meat to eat.
After they finished eating, the mound of earth was glowing red. Cai Xuan dug a hole in it, threw in purple sweet potatoes, and then taught Xi'er and the others to build a mound of earth, cover it with soil, and prevent the heat from escaping.
How can food taste good if you don't feel involved?
During this time, they carried the purple sweet potatoes, potatoes, and onions they had dug up back home.
Seeing that it was almost time, Cai Xuan began to lead Xi'er and the others to dig sweet potatoes. The little ones were all very careful, afraid of damaging the purple sweet potatoes inside. After removing the soil on top, they slowly dug in, and the first purple sweet potato appeared, releasing a fragrant aroma.
"Eat up." Cai Xuan handed the first purple sweet potato he had dug out to Xi'er, who had done the most work.
"So sweet!"
Xi'er took it, peeled off the outer skin, took a bite, and her eyes immediately lit up.
Cai Xuan, however, was unconvinced. How sweet could freshly dug purple sweet potatoes be? Besides, these weren't even the sweetest varieties.
Yun'er, Shu'er, and Xin'er each got one, and sat around the mound of earth, blowing on it as they ate in small bites. The sweet aroma of the purple sweet potato melted in their mouths, mixed with the smoky fragrance of charcoal and the scent of the soil—it was incredibly delicious.
In an instant, satisfied smiles appeared on their little faces.
Even the four small golden gourds hanging under the wooden frame swayed gently, as if they too were tasting the delicious food.
After eating a pile of roasted meat and purple sweet potatoes, the little ones' bellies swelled up, and they sat on the ground contentedly, basking in the sun and enjoying the mountain breeze, none of them wanting to get up.
After digging up the purple sweet potatoes, all that was left of the grain crops brought from home were the large sweet potatoes and the hairy sweet potatoes.
Both of these are perennial plants. As long as they are watered and fertilized, they can be grown even without being dug up. Let them grow slowly in the ground, and dig them up whenever you want to eat them. The same goes for the Nine Oxen Divine Potato.
That evening, Cai Xuan used the harvested potatoes and onions to cook two main dishes.
The first dish was stewed potatoes with crocodile meat, and the second dish was stir-fried pork with onions.
Two dishes were served, and their aroma instantly filled the entire wooden house. Xi'er was the first to rush to the table, grabbing a large piece of crocodile meat with her chopsticks and stuffing it into her mouth. Her cheeks bulged like a little hamster's, and she mumbled, "Delicious, delicious!"
Yun'er picked up a piece of potato, tasted it, and squinted her eyes.
Shu'er loved onions, picking up bite after bite with her chopsticks, her eyes crinkling with delight. Xin'er, on the other hand, specialized in the meat of the long-toothed, fierce-looking pig, her chopsticks flying as she shoved piece after piece into her mouth.
Cai Xuan sat to the side, watching the four little ones eat with their mouths full of oil.
He wasn't in a hurry to eat. He slowly picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks and ate it slowly with rice cooked with a mixture of sweet potatoes and purple sweet potatoes.
Finally, both dishes were licked clean, down to the bottom of the bowls, cleaner than a dog would have. Xi'er licked her lips, still wanting more, and looked at Cai Xuan expectantly, saying, "Brother, can you make this again tomorrow?"
"Okay," Cai Xuan replied with a smile.
After clearing away the dishes, Cai Xuan and the children sat together under the wooden frame, gazing at the setting sun sinking into the mountains in the distance, and pondering the planting plan for the next season.
He felt that the weather in this world was similar to that at home, so purple sweet potatoes should be able to be grown for two seasons.
Sweet potatoes harvested in the first season are usually starchier and less sweet; those harvested in the second season are sweeter due to lower moisture content and greater temperature differences between day and night. Therefore, he plans to process most of the purple sweet potatoes into starch and store them, keeping only a small portion for himself.
Anyway, the purple sweet potatoes at the foot of the mountain will be ready for harvest soon, so we won't be short of food.
We did it right away.
The next day, Cai Xuan led Xi'er and the others to wash, grind, filter, settle, and dry the harvested purple sweet potatoes. After several days of hard work, they finally produced a vat of snow-white purple sweet potato starch.
After finishing with the purple sweet potatoes, Cai Xuan finally had some free time.
The weather was fine that day, with not a cloud in the sky, so he took Xi'er and the others out for a hike.
The rocky mountain wasn't high, and with the path they'd already cleared, it wasn't too difficult to climb. The group followed the path, passing through the woods and over giant boulders, and soon reached the summit.
Cai Xuan stood on the highest, slightly sloping boulder, gazing into the distance at the vast expanse of heaven and earth.