Wealthy Beauty in the 60s
Chapter 255 - 254: Never Eaten Pork but Seen a Pig Run

Chapter 255: Chapter 254: Never Eaten Pork but Seen a Pig Run

Back in the dormitory, Gao Jiaxing immediately joined everyone for a nap after lunch and slept for over half an hour before he opened his eyes again.

Everyone else gradually woke up, envying Gao Jiaxing, with some even asking him if Xia Xiao had any sisters.

Gao Jiaxing said she did, and everyone immediately got excited, all requesting introductions.

"Go on with you, I haven’t been made permanent yet. Where do I have the time to worry about your affairs?" Besides, becoming his brother-in-law was not an easy task. Not to mention his approval, Liu Yuanchao’s consent was another hurdle, and then there were Xia Xiao’s family members, not an easy bunch to win over.

Before training, Gao Jiaxing went to see Xia Xiao, calling out at the entrance, "Xiaoxiao."

"Brother Gao, I’m here," Xia Xiao said, preparing to get up, but Gao Jiaxing said, "I’m fine, you sleep. I’m off to training. I’ll come find you later; you can stroll around the vegetable garden."

Xia Xiao acknowledged him, and Gao Jiaxing left. Xia Xiao couldn’t sleep anymore, so she got up.

She then headed for the vegetable garden. Now that everyone was off to train, there was nobody in the cafeteria or the vegetable garden.

Today they were making dumplings, so they picked a lot of Chinese cabbages. Xia Xiao felt that these vegetables could also be made into dried vegetables and pickled dishes.

Looking at the chili peppers, the green vegetables, and the radishes, a smile spread across her face. It seemed the military really toughened people up; the soldiers grew vigorous and healthy vegetables that were no worse than those in the production teams.

"Sister-in-law, hello," said Shao Bing, the sentry, walking towards Xia Xiao when he saw her.

Since everyone was calling her sister-in-law, Xia Xiao didn’t bother to correct them anymore. She had made up her mind about Gao Jiaxing, so she went along with the address.

"Hello, Mr. Shao," Xia Xiao nodded to Shao Bing.

Shao Bing asked, "Sister-in-law, what do you plan to do?"

"Do you eat chili peppers, Mr. Shao?" Xia Xiao inquired.

"I sure do, I can’t have a meal without some heat. Sister-in-law, you might not know, but these chili pepper seeds were sent from home."

"Sister-in-law is also an ’educated youth,’ right?" said Shao Bing.

Xia Xiao nodded, "Yes, I’m an educated youth who was sent down to the countryside from S City."

"Squad Leader Gao is really lucky. You two are fated to meet from so far away."

Xia Xiao thought Shao Bing was quite the conversationalist, but she didn’t delve into her and Gao Jiaxing’s story, instead changing the subject, "These chilies of yours, want to make them into chili sauce? I remember that you people from Xiangnan are skilled at this."

"I’ve made some following my family’s methods, but it didn’t taste good," Shao Bing shook his head. The chili sauce we eat now is bought locally, and though the locals here do eat spicy food, it’s not spicy enough.

Having said that, Shao Bing looked at Xia Xiao excitedly, "Sister-in-law, do you know how to make chili sauce?"

"I’ve made pickled vegetables, never chili sauce, but I’d like to try."

Hearing this, Shao Bing said, "Sister-in-law’s pickled vegetables are delicious, so there should be no problem with the chili sauce. Let me help you, and I can learn from sister-in-law in the process."

"That’s great, let’s pick some chili peppers." Xia Xiao was very happy to have Shao Bing’s help.

Immediately, Xia Xiao put on gloves and started picking chili peppers with Shao Bing. Today she had noticed that many soldiers liked spicy food. Although few like Gao Jiaxing and Liu Yuanchao didn’t eat spicy, Xia Xiao realized that they would eat a bit of spice, so she wanted to make some chili sauce.

"We’re picking them all?" Xia Xiao watched as Shao Bing ruthlessly plucked all the chili peppers.

"Let’s pick them all, now that sister-in-law is here, we can make all the chili sauce," Shao Bing suggested.

Xia Xiao nodded, thinking that it was a good idea. After picking all the peppers, she washed them and then cut them to make chili sauce.

Shao Bing watched on, assisting Xia Xiao and even preparing jars.

When Gao Jiaxing and the others finished training and he went to Xia Xiao’s dormitory, he found the door locked, so he went looking for her in the cafeteria.

Sure enough, he saw Xia Xiao and Shao Bing working on a number of jars, making chili sauce.

The soldiers who liked spicy food were overjoyed; they usually had chili sauce sent from home or bought locally.

However, the local sauce was mild, and for those who craved more heat, it just wasn’t enough. So now, seeing Xia Xiao and Shao Bing making chili sauce, everyone was very happy.

They made several jars in total, one of which was mildly spicy, also considering people like Liu Yuanchao and Gao Jiaxing, who didn’t eat spicy food but still wanted to try a little.

For dinner, the meal was still the dumplings from lunch; Xia Xiao and the others had made plenty. While making the chili sauce, Xia Xiao had started boiling pork bones to make a soup.

Now everyone could eat the steam-heated dumplings from lunch along with the soup. With Xia Xiao lending a hand, the flavors were bound to be good.

After dinner, everyone picked all the vegetables in the garden, turned some into dried vegetables, and made pickles with the rest.

With everyone’s help, they were extremely efficient. Some of the pickles even had some chili peppers and fermented black beans added by Xia Xiao.

For these fermented black beans, Xia Xiao spent quite a bit of money, and the ten yuan Eldest Aunt Xia gave her was also used to buy them.

When she came here, Xia Xiao very much intended to improve the food situation, especially since one was her significant other and the other her cousin.

Moreover, her cousin was the leading figure here, and her significant other was a key person being groomed. Xia Xiao was very willing to do some good for this place.

At night, Gao Jiaxing heated the water for Xia Xiao in the cafeteria, and then Xia Xiao bathed in the bathhouse while Gao Jiaxing stood guard outside.

They had set up a bathhouse but rarely used it; most of the time, they bathed in the river.

After Xia Xiao came out from her bath, Gao Jiaxing couldn’t take his eyes off her, making her almost think she wasn’t dressed, even though she was fully clothed. She wondered how Gao Jiaxing’s eyes were constructed.

"Let’s go back," said Xia Xiao to Gao Jiaxing.

"Oh, right. Let’s go back," Gao Jiaxing responded slowly, then cleared his throat uncomfortably.

Although Xia Xiao had never dated or had contact with men in her past life, she had seen enough TV, movies, and novels to understand certain things. As the saying goes, even if you haven’t eaten pork, you’ve seen pigs run.

Hence, sensing the abnormality in Gao Jiaxing, Xia Xiao didn’t dare say much, afraid to stimulate him. Moreover, at this moment, Xia Xiao also felt a certain uneasiness and awkwardness.