Little Miss Fortune: I Will Bring Prosperity to My Tang Family!-Chapter 18: If I Skipped Meals, My Belly Would Shrink!

Chapter 17

If I Skipped Meals, My Belly Would Shrink!

After a brief rest, Xiaolin laid down and rolled on the veranda in front of the cottage, where her mother had laid out a blanket for her to nap on. She rolled around comfortably before snuggling her face into the fragrant bedding.

As she settled, her mind wandered back to the tasks she had planned to undertake. Beyond the dried squid, dried shrimp, and dried mussel she was already working on, there were dried seaweed, small dried fish for soup or dried fish curry, and oyster sauce seasoning to consider.

She had thought of dried tilapia before anyone else but hadn’t started on it yet. Then, there was pork meat, pork skin, pork legs, and even pork fat she intended to render for oil to be used during winter.

Oh right! We’ve got pickled vegetables too!

"Goodness, my head is going to burst," the little one complained, her hands pressing her round cheeks until her face wrinkled.

She felt overwhelmed by the numerous tasks she had yet to complete. Originally prone to overthinking and meticulous planning, she would dwell on unfinished tasks, sometimes leading to headaches.

A round figure buried its face into a small pillow, lying face down with its bottom up. Xiao Zhong, exhausted from running and playing, walked over to ask for water and food, but upon seeing its little master lying with its bottom up, it walked over and called out.

Moo~

"Xiao Zhong, transform into a god and conjure what I desire," Xiaolin turned to look at Xiao Zhong with weary eyes.

Xiao Zhong glanced at the human spouting nonsense before swaying his body to nudge Hui Song for food and water.

Xiaolin sighed deeply, reflecting on her parents’ advice to enjoy her childhood. Yet, she couldn’t help but scheme and plan for provisions.

Who sent her to a time without supermarkets anyway?

She feared starvation, knowing how harsh ancient winters could be. Even with wealth, purchasing daily necessities wasn’t as straightforward as in the future. What if they ran out of food?

Even with a hundred chests of money, it would be useless!

"If I had to skip meals, this belly would surely shrink," she mused, comforting her belly.

"I promise you won’t go hungry," she gently patted her belly.

Hui Ning, witnessing this, laughed loudly.

"What are you doing by yourself, hmm? I’m going to prepare lunch. Do you want to come with me?"

"Yes!" The chubby figure rolled off the veranda before being scooped up by her mother, her cheeks resting on her mother’s slender shoulder.

"Let’s use the dried squid for cooking, and also pick some cabbage from grandma’s house," she hugged her mother’s neck, her voice bright.

"What’s for today’s meal?" Hui Ning kissed her daughter warmly.

"Delicious, for sure!" Tianchen looked at his niece with sparkling eyes.

Giggles “I’ll make fried dried squid and a clear soup with dried squid, seaweed, and cabbage."

"Oh, just thinking about it makes me hungry," Tianchen’s belly rumbled loudly at the mention of today’s lunch menu.

RUMBLE!

"Wow, that was loud," Hui Ning teased, causing Tianchen to laugh sheepishly.

The mother-daughter duo carried a basket filled with dried squid and seaweed back to the village, greeted and engaged in long conversations by some villagers. By the time they finished collecting vegetables and returned home, Xiaolin’s round belly was sore from hunger.

"Are we frying the squid like this?" Hui Ning asked her daughter as she got ready to cook.

"Yes, mother. And for the curry, just rinse the squid first. Cut the vegetables, add soy sauce, a little salt, and pepper. That’s it," the little girl waited on the back veranda, utterly drained because she was so hungry.

After some time bustling between the kitchen and the backyard, Hui Ning’s delicious cooking smells wafted through the air, making Xiaolin happily inhale the aroma amid the sounds of her growling stomach.

"It’s ready. Let’s go quickly," Hui Ning called her daughter from the kitchen. 

Xiaolin, like a spirited steed, jumped down from the veranda and dashed into the kitchen.

But she looked more like a chubby piglet...

Hui Ning securely closed the house door, one hand carrying a small pot of curry and a plate of appetizingly fragrant brownish-purple fried squid, while the other hand held a bowl of rice.

"Be careful holding it," Hui Ning instructed her daughter, who volunteered to carry a small basket with rice bowls, spoons, and chopsticks.

The little girl nodded vigorously, hastening her short strides toward the seaside, driven by her long-standing hunger.

My body needs food!

"The smell of food!" Tianchen quickly washed his hands and snatched the basket from his niece’s hands, making her almost lose her balance.

The indispensable workers of the little tycoon all washed up and gathered on the veranda to wait for lunch. The aroma of the curry and the scent of fried squid made Tianchen’s mouth water almost uncontrollably.

"I’ll serve it myself," said Tianchen, swiftly grabbing a bowl to serve rice to everyone. He held his bowl and chopsticks at the ready, waiting for the elders to pick their food first. Once he saw Hui Song and Zhang Rua start eating, he quickly snagged some fried squid for himself.

"Delicious!" Tianchen chewed on the fried squid happily.

"The smell is peculiar but really good," Zhang Rua agreed, nodding.

"The curry is also smooth and warm. It would be perfect for winter," Hui Song commented as she scooped curry into small bowls, sipping non-stop.

Xiaolin also enjoyed the seaweed, closing her eyes in delight. She had always loved miso soup, especially with lots of seaweed and a sprinkle of chili powder. Delicious!

She realized it was time to hurry up with drying the fish!

Munching on the crispy fried squid, her round eyes widened in astonishment at the leftover pieces in her hand.

"Delishhh!"

"Haha, what language is that?" Tian Rong laughed upon hearing his daughter’s unique expression.

The little girl grinned, revealing squid bits stuck between her tiny teeth. Seeing her daughter enjoying the curry and seaweed, Hui Ning served some in a small bowl for her, worried her father might finish it all with his continuous scooping.

"Brother, the curry’s almost gone, please leave some for the kids," Zhang Ruau said, shaking her head sadly at her husband who acted as though he’d never tasted anything so delicious.

"Well, it is delicious. Maybe I’ll help Xiaolin dry the seaweed instead."

"Hehe, that’s great! If we manage to dry some small fish too, Xiaolin will make an even more delicious curry for you to enjoy, with soft tofu in it."

"Oh, soft tofu? That sounds tempting."

Tianchen perked up, hearing this. He swore to stick by his plump, white-legged niece for life just to eat her delicious cooking; he was willing to do anything for that.

"I’ll help Xiaolin too!"

After the meal, the men went to collect more shells since the squid had been taken care of. The two brothers from the Tang family would have liked to catch more but their boat was small and nearly ten years old, so they were hesitant to load it with too much weight, risking not making it back to shore with both people and fish.

"Do we prepare the shells the same way we eat them?" Hui Ning asked her daughter while boiling the shells in a pan.

The mother had already managed to prepare two pots of salt, so the daughter suggested they pause the salt making and boil the shells first. With many workers that day, the little girl wanted to peel and dry as many shells as possible.

"Yes, we peel the flesh, remove the black tufts, soak them in saltwater a bit, then take them out to dry," the little tycoon supervised closely. Once her mother and grandmother got to work, she swayed her plump belly towards the men gathered by the rock formations.

 

Looking at the shells in the bucket, she nodded in satisfaction at their quick work. This way, they’d have to lure them with delicious rewards more often.

"Brother-in-law, Auntie, I thought you had gone somewhere, the whole house was empty," Liu Hao walked up and greeted them.

"Oh, A’Hao, is there something important?" Hui Ning asked as the young man approached, peering curiously into the pan of boiling whelks and squatting to inspect the plump shells the two women were quickly peeling.

"Not really, I was just free and thought of inviting  Brother Rong to go boar hunting. But what are you all doing?"

"I’m peeling shells to dry and store as food for winter. We’ve also got dried squid, and the niece has planned several more things," Hui Ning said with a chuckle, gesturing towards the little one commanding her workforce with authority.

"Oh, little Xiaolin is smarter and more knowledgeable than me, who has studied in the academy," Liu Hao blinked in astonishment. He had spent years learning about poetry, governance, and a little else, not nearly as practical as his niece’s innovative ideas for food sustenance.

"That’s not quite right. People learn different things, Liu Hao," Zhang Rua chimed in.

"Indeed," he nodded, then felt something bump into his back. Turning around, he found it was the brownish-red fur of Xiao Zhong.

"Is that Xiao Zhong? Has he gotten fatter?" He scooped up the portly cow for a hug, patting its head and scratching its chin.

Xiao Zhong tilted its head back, closing its eyes in bliss under the human’s touch, sometimes getting so tickled it would raise its leg as if to scratch itself. Liu Hao laughed loudly at the cow’s antics.

"Oh, you chubby cow. Anyways,what are you guys doing over there?"

"They’re collecting those shells. If you’re free, come help boil and peel them for drying; we’ll have food reserves for winter," Zhang Rua offered, showing him a shell.

Liu Hao moved closer to inspect the light orange flesh squeezed within the shell, looking tasty.

"Do we need to make drying racks too?"

"Yes, exactly."

"Then I’ll go cut some bamboo to make drying racks today. Tomorrow, I’ll bring grandmother along too."

"Sure. Oh, take these to try. They’re great with spicy dip. Just remember to remove the dark hair first," Hui Ning scooped some boiled shells into a basket for him.

Liu Hao thanked her and left happily, having tasted something delicious again today. He hurried home to enjoy the plump shells and to start making the drying racks.

"Don’t pick the small ones, let them grow for future harvest," Xiaolin chided her large uncle upon seeing him tapping shells and repeatedly picking small ones.

"Alright, alright, sorry Xiaolin dear," Tianchen heeded his niece’s advice, focusing on selecting only the large ones.

"And you’re not collecting shells from the white rocks?" Tianrong asked his daughter.

"We’ll collect those later. The sauce preparation is more complex than drying food. Oh, father, don’t forget my pork. I’ll fry it for oil."

"Of course, little lady. Jiangnan has many pig farmers, so we won’t run out of pork. Or would you like me to hunt wild boar instead?"

"Let’s go, I’ll help your father with that."

"If we could, that would be great. We could also make smoked salted pork legs. For the pork oil, we’ll buy pork skin in town."

"And what would you like me to do?"

Tianchen sat down abruptly on the sand, getting his bottom wet, but he didn’t mind as his legs were aching from squatting.

"We haven’t even started drying freshwater fish."

"Right, then uncle will go catch some fish."

The little girl nodded vigorously, then excused herself to explore the beach, possibly finding more seaweed. Her plump figure passed by the village’s dock leisurely, with some villagers glancing over but not engaging, unfamiliar with her.

"Whose child is wandering here?" One villager asked.

"Must be Uncle Hui’s grandchild. Saw them building a hut over there," another replied.

"Indeed. They care for their grandchildren well. Plump and cute, unlike mine. Sigh," the first villager lamented.

"Tang Tianrong is hardworking and thrifty. No wonder he can afford to care for his daughter so well. Let’s get back to work," the second villager suggested.

 

 Little Xiaolin was walking, engrossed in watching the sand, and when she looked up again, she found herself standing in front of a large fish-drying rack. Turning back, she saw the small fish-drying racks of the villagers of Shenlin village far behind her, along with her tiny hut, which was even smaller than a fingernail.

"I’ve walked this far already?" She scratched her head, intending to retrace her steps, but a screeching voice stopped her.

"Whose child is wandering around here! Want to be caught and turned into dried fish or what?" A middle-aged woman, plump in stature, walked up and pointed at the little girl’s fair, plump self in disgust.

Seeing the child’s fair and plump skin only made her more envious, lamenting how others’ children lived well, with fair skin like nobility’s offspring, unlike her own children and grandchildren who were skinny and dark-skinned.

Xiaolin looked at the evil aunt with widened eyes, wondering if just passing by warranted such a scolding. She shook her head, about to turn back, but was abruptly pulled by the arm, causing her to nearly fly off her feet.

"Ouch!!"

"Where do you think you’re going, you little brat!"

What?!

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