Seeing her daughter enjoying the food, Mrs. Xia also started eating. Once she began, she couldn’t stop. After finishing a bowl, she praised, “Refreshingly sweet and smooth, and it relieves the heat. Excellent!” Then she asked, “Li Li, how did you learn to make this?”
Xia Li had already prepared an explanation.
With a thick skin, Xia Li said, “I noticed long ago that Lan Deng Long Zi produces a sap. I thought that since jelly can be solidified with limewater, perhaps the sap from Lan Deng Long Zi could also solidify with limewater. I tried it today, and it actually worked. It’s as transparent as ice, so I named it Icy Jelly.” She added, “Icy Jelly is delicious and relieves the heat. Can we sell it for money?”
Mrs. Xia laughed and said, “Such a wonderful treat can certainly be sold for money. The weather is getting hotter now, and ice for relieving the heat is expensive, so only wealthy families can afford it. Moreover, the elderly and children with weak stomachs dare not eat ice. Lan Deng Long Zi has anti-inflammatory and diuretic properties, so the Icy Jelly made from it is much healthier than eating ice directly…”
Xia Li looked at Mrs. Xia with admiration. She had once served as a maid in a wealthy household in the capital and later became a scholarly wife. After returning to her hometown, she had been embroidering for the largest embroidery workshop in the county town, Chun Niang’s Workshop. Compared to rural women, she was indeed more knowledgeable and experienced.
Xia Li said, “Not only is this beneficial to eat, but it’s also low-cost since Lan Deng Long Zi is everywhere. In short, it has many advantages.”
Mrs. Xia nodded, pondered for a moment, and then said, “If we sell this in the town, there won’t be many buyers, and we wouldn’t earn much even after a hard day’s work. If we go to the county town to sell it, not only is the journey long, but there are also many bad people there. My daughter is so pretty—I’m afraid it might attract trouble… If all else fails, we can make it at home and let the Wang boy sell it in the county town. We must keep this from your grandmother. If she finds out we’re doing business with outsiders instead of them, she’ll surely make a scene… Sigh, it’s not that I’m siding with outsiders over family, but if your grandmother and Second Maternal Uncle’s Wife find out we’re earning more money, they’ll be even more eager to push San Bao onto you as a brother.”
Perhaps feeling it was inappropriate to speak ill of her own family, her face turned red.
Xia Li thought more deeply. This family was already coveted by many, including relatives. At present, she hadn’t yet settled in properly, so it wasn’t the right time to make a big show of doing business and let others think they were earning a lot of money again. Moreover, if they encountered bad people who forcefully demanded the recipe, they wouldn’t dare refuse. If too many people knew about the recipe, she and her mother, being few in number and weak in strength, wouldn’t be able to compete with others.
Additionally, in ancient times, there were no disposable paper or plastic bowls. Selling Icy Jelly would require bringing tables and stools, which was troublesome.
She wanted to sell the recipe, earn money without anyone knowing, and then hide it deeply, keeping the wealth concealed.
Although this approach was quite clichéd, time-traveling women all liked it, which proved it was classic and practical.
Xia Li said, “Mother, I don’t plan to sell Icy Jelly myself. It’s not just tiring—over time, the method will inevitably be discovered. I want to go to a teahouse or restaurant to see if I can sell the recipe.”
Mrs. Xia’s eyes lit up, and she smiled, “That’s indeed a good idea—low-key and profitable.” After thinking for a moment, she said, “Yi Xiang Restaurant is the largest restaurant in the county town, with its main branch in the provincial capital. I pass by the restaurant every time I go to the embroidery workshop. The manager and waiters there are friendly, and I’ve never seen them mistreat customers… Let’s go there to sell it.”The two discussed further, with Mrs. Xia planning to go to the county town’s herbal shop tomorrow to buy some Lan Deng Long Zi seeds, along with ingredients like rose syrup, candied winter melon, red beans, and a little honey. Raisins and fruits would have been even better, but they were too expensive—Xia Li didn’t want to spend so much money just to make a sample.
In the afternoon, Xia Erhu came by. Although there was still some icy jelly left, Xia Li didn’t dare offer him any, afraid he might let the secret slip.
The next afternoon, just as Mrs. Xia returned from the county town with her purchases, Old Mrs. Xia showed up.
Starting the next day, the Xia family’s four acres of winter wheat needed harvesting. Both Xia Zhu and Xia Tie had put their businesses on hold, and the whole family would be working together to bring in the wheat—even Old Mrs. Xia was going to the threshing ground to keep an eye on the grain. She had come to recruit labor, hoping to get Mrs. Xia and her daughter to cook and deliver meals for the entire family.
Mrs. Xia agreed readily, saying she would help out herself, but Xia Li couldn’t go—the reason given was her poor health.
Old Mrs. Xia was furious and retorted, “She’s not some delicate young lady from a wealthy family—why is she so fragile? My two girls were doing all sorts of chores before they were even ten. She’s already twelve—what’s wrong with helping out her maternal grandfather’s family a little?”
Seeing Mrs. Xia stand firm, she added, “If she doesn’t want to cook, she can go with Erhu and San Bao to glean wheat ears.”
Mrs. Xia replied, “Our family doesn’t need that little bit of grain.”
Old Mrs. Xia raised her voice, “Your family may not need it, but mine does!”
Mrs. Xia said, “How much wheat can you glean in two days? I’ll pay you—fifty coins, is that enough?” She added, “Although Li Li bears the Xia surname, she is not a Xia family girl. Li Li’s father was a scholar, and my father said that the daughter of the God of Literature should not do rough work.”
Old Mrs. Xia had no choice and, seeing she could get fifty coins for nothing, had to compromise. Still fuming, she yelled at Xia Li, “You lazy girl, aside from Daxiong, no other man will ever want you.”
This remark brought Mrs. Xia to tears. Crying, she muttered about how she had been sold off at ten and, since returning, had given so much silver to her natal family—she had repaid everything she owed them…
Old Mrs. Xia got a headache from listening and stormed off in a huff.
Xia Li hadn’t expected Mrs. Xia to protect her so fiercely, unwilling to let her do even a bit of work. Although she didn’t care for Old Mrs. Xia, she felt the old woman had a point—she was a country girl, and some chores really should be done.
Xia Li hugged Mrs. Xia’s arm and comforted her, “Mother, don’t cry. I’m grown up now; it’s fine for me to do some things.”
Mrs. Xia wiped her tears and said, “If your grandmother manages to make you work even once, she’ll keep making you do it from then on. Bad habits mustn’t be formed—look how pitiful Dani and Erni are…” Perhaps feeling it wasn’t right to speak ill of her own mother, she added, “My Li Li is a scholar’s daughter, and so pretty besides—she shouldn’t be doing those rough jobs.”
The Xia family worked from dawn till dusk and finished harvesting the four acres of wheat in just three days.
A day later, on the nineteenth of April, Mrs. Xia and Xia Li got up before daybreak. They first boiled the red beans that had been soaking for a full day and night, then started making the icy jelly.
Half an hour later, the red beans had cooked until they were soft and grainy. They ladled them into bowls and chilled them in well water.
They didn’t make much icy jelly—just one small basin, one small bowl, and three small cups. The jelly in the basin was of the right tenderness, while that in the bowl and cups was slightly firmer and harder.
With everything ready, the mother and daughter finished their breakfast.
They went back to their room to tidy up. Xia Li dressed to look younger, wearing a light pink slanting collar sleeveless jacket over white inner garments, with only a little scented cream on her face. Mrs. Xia came over and styled her hair into a double bun hairstyle.
The girl in the mirror was as delicate as carved jade, with features like a painting and eyes that sparkled with life.
Mrs. Xia felt both pride and worry, sighing as she said, “My Li Li is so beautiful, yet it troubles me.”
Xia Li turned to hug her waist, resting her cheek against her mother’s chest with a smile. “No matter how lovely I am, I’ll always be your daughter. Don’t worry, Mother—I’ve grown up now and will find ways to protect both you and myself.”