Chapter 12: Are Poor People People?
This day passed very peacefully. If there was anything noteworthy, it was only the farce of the exam that morning.
Nie Qiu had actually anticipated being mocked, so she wasn’t too surprised.
After school in the afternoon, Nie Qiu packed her schoolbag and left school. She walked home. The five-li journey took Nie Qiu over twenty minutes. She felt a bit helpless. In an era where people relied on vehicles to travel, she hadn’t walked such a long distance in a long time. However, Nie Qiu saw it as a form of exercise.
Thinking about the exam she took that morning, Nie Qiu couldn’t help but frown. Did Nie Qiu not have to pay for the printing of the exam papers? Thinking about the two exam papers the teacher used, Nie Qiu couldn’t help but sigh. There was no other way; she didn’t have money now, so she had to ask Nie Aifang.
As soon as she returned to the rental room, which was less than thirty square meters, Nie Qiu put down her schoolbag and walked behind Nie Aifang, who was kneading dough for dumplings on a simple table made of wood. She said softly, “Mom, I’m home.”
Nie Aifang turned her head and saw Nie Qiu, smiling, “How was it today? What did you study? What did you eat for lunch at school?”
Nie Qiu was stunned for a moment. She hadn’t expected Nie Aifang to ask these questions. Of course, she hadn’t interacted with her parents before, so she didn’t know what parents would ask when they returned home. Although these questions were trivial, Nie Qiu could still feel the warmth. “School was good. Today we studied physics and chemistry, as well as Chinese and mathematics, and agriculture. For lunch, we had potato soup and stir-fried peppers with meat, and a chicken leg.”
Nie Aifang was also stunned for a moment, then she smiled, “Qiu Qiu, you never used to answer me when I asked you before. It’s so good that you’re like this now. After we finish eating, Mom has to go out to set up the stall. You should stay home and do your homework, and go to sleep after you’re done!”
Nie Qiu nodded, “Okay.” She didn’t plan to follow Nie Aifang to set up the stall like the previous Nie Qiu. A roadside barbecue stall filled with oily smoke? Spare her! Whether in her previous life or this one, she would never go to such a place.
When Nie Aifang finished rolling out the dough skin, Nie Qiu voluntarily sat down and helped Nie Aifang make dumplings.
Nie Aifang looked at Nie Qiu with surprise, “Qiu Qiu, I used to teach you how to make dumplings, but you never learned. How can you make dumplings now?”
Nie Qiu was stunned. Wasn’t the previous Nie Qiu always helping Nie Aifang with chores? How could she not even know how to make dumplings? Nie Qiu realized this and pretended to be mischievous, sticking out her tongue, “I wanted to be lazy! So I pretended I didn’t know. Sorry, Mom.”
Nie Aifang smiled, “Silly child, why are you saying sorry? I’m so happy you can make dumplings! I’m also happy that you were lazy! You used to always follow me to set up the stall, and you got exhausted! It’s fine to be a little lazy.”
Nie Qiu smiled sweetly and started making dumplings, “Mom, do you know how many ways there are to say ‘dumplings’?”
Nie Aifang, while making dumplings, looked at Nie Qiu affectionately, “Qiu Qiu, tell me, how many ways are there? Let me tell you, in my hometown, they call these dumplings ‘chaoshou’, and they are shaped like gold ingots. Besides ‘chaoshou’ and ‘dumplings’, I haven’t heard any other names.”
Nie Qiu smiled and said, “In Beijing, dumplings are usually called ‘wontons’. In the Bashu region, dumplings are called ‘chaoshou’. In Hubei province, some people also call dumplings ‘baomian’ and ‘shuijiao’. In the southern Anhui region, most people call dumplings ‘baofu’. In Jiangxi province, some people call them ‘baomian’, and some call them ‘yuntun’. In the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions, and the Guangdong region, they are similar to Beijingers and call them ‘wontons’, but they say it differently, speaking in their local dialect.”
“I didn’t expect dumplings to have so many names!” Nie Aifang said with emotion, “When I was young in my hometown, I only knew the name ‘chaoshou’. It was only when I came to A City that I learned ‘chaoshou’ was also called dumplings. I never expected the names to be different in every place.”
“I didn’t know when I was little either,” Nie Qiu said with a smile.
“Haha.” Nie Aifang laughed and, with her flour-covered hands, ruffled Nie Qiu’s head, “Silly child, you’re still so young. This is now, not when you were little. What are you talking about, ‘when I was little’?”
Author’s Note: I haven’t abandoned this story. I will finish writing my previous book before updating this one. Those who like it can add it to their collection and read it when it’s more complete.
Recently, I’ve been studying the basic Japanese Gojuon, and I’m losing my voice…
