PCJ – Chapter 359 Killing the Pig

“Call the pig, call the pig! Old Jiu’s family is slaughtering pigs today; shall we go watch?” Zhang Yuanbao shouted for Zhang Jiaohua as soon as he arrived at the horticultural field.

A few days had passed since his return from London, and Zhang Jiaohua had resumed his usual life; that period of being dazzled felt like a dream.

“Slaughtering pigs? Are they holding a feast?” Zhang Jiaohua didn’t find it strange, thinking that Master Butcher Old Jiu’s family was preparing for a good occasion. Meizi’ao was relatively remote, and life was tight. Not many could afford to buy ingredients from the town for a big event. So, when planning something significant, they would raise a pig in advance and slaughter it when the time came, ensuring they had enough meat and vegetables. They would then go to town for the necessary supplies to hold a feast.

“Didn’t Chunsheng mention anything?” Zhang Yuanbao asked, puzzled. He wondered why there was a need to slaughter pigs without any big events. But Chunsheng’s words were spoken directly, so they should be correct.

The mute also ran over, having the same purpose as Zhang Yuanbao. However, he had more detailed information. “I heard from Chunsheng that his dad said they were going to sell the pig’s meat in the village. It’s not a holiday, who would be willing to buy meat? I think Old Jiu wants to make smoked bacon. In this hot weather, it’ll probably spoil before they can smoke it.”

“You know nothing. Lots of people want to eat meat; it’s just that you can only buy it in town. If Old Jiu’s family slaughters a pig, I bet my parents would want a few pounds of it.” Thinking of eating meat made Zhang Yuanbao swallow hard. Thick, fatty meat, the kind that bursts with juice in your mouth; oh, he was drooling.

“Let’s hurry to see; when I came over just now, Old Jiu’s family had already started boiling water and catching the pig,” the mute said.

“I’ll go grab a clay pot.” Zhang Jiaohua ran to the kitchen to find a pot.

Liu Qiaoye pulled Jiaohua back, asking, “Where are you going, kid?”

Zhang Jiaohua had been abroad for several days, and Liu Qiaoye seemed to have lost her soul, keeping a constant watch on him as if afraid someone would snatch him away.

“Old Jiu’s family is slaughtering pigs. I’m going to get some pig’s blood; it’s been ages since I had pig blood soup,” Zhang Jiaohua said, afraid he would arrive too late to get any.

“If others are slaughtering pigs, the blood might be useful. But if they’re unwilling, don’t be unreasonable, understand?” Liu Qiaoye quickly reminded him. Once Jiaohua ran off, she came back to her senses. “But it’s not a holiday; why is Old Jiu slaughtering pigs?”

When Zhang Jiaohua and the others arrived at Old Jiu’s place, he was already inside the pigpen, trying to catch the pig with some helpers. No matter how stupid a pig is, it will be scared when being led to slaughter. Three strong men were tugging at its ears and tail. The pig, weighing over two hundred pounds, resisted fiercely, refusing to go out. Outside, they had set up a bench and arranged a trough (a large wooden basin specifically for cleaning pigs, big enough to soak the whole pig in hot water to loosen the hair, allowing the hair roots to be pulled out without leaving traces in the meat). They had also prepared a clean wooden plate for the blood.

Seeing Zhang Jiaohua coming with a clay pot, Lu Guifeng laughed, “Jiaohua, your news travels fast! You’ve come ready to collect blood even before you heard the pig’s call.”

“If I waited until the pig called, you’d have already filled the pot with blood,” Zhang Jiaohua chuckled.

“It must be Yuanbao and the mute who ran to tip you off, right?” Lu Guifeng figured it out upon seeing Zhang Yuanbao and the mute, both panting heavily.

“Aunt Guifeng, what good thing is your family doing?” Zhang Jiaohua asked.

“Nothing special,” Lu Guifeng teased, creating suspense.

“Then why is your family slaughtering pigs?” Zhang Jiaohua asked, confused.

Lu Guifeng chuckled, “Do I really need to ask? It’s been a while since we slaughtered a pig. Don’t you want to eat pork? Your family isn’t worried about food, but you can’t eat smoked meat every day; surely you’re tired of it by now. Do you prefer fresh meat or smoked meat?”

“Of course, fresh meat tastes better, but fresh meat doesn’t keep; if you don’t eat it all, it spoils. It’s hard to find fresh meat; it’s only once in a while when I go to town. Some of the masters from the factory in the city are sick of smoked meat; they want to eat fresh meat,” Zhang Jiaohua said, wishing to eat fresh meat himself. Once meat is smoked, it can be stored longer, but the freshness and flavor are all lost.

“That’s right; once we collect the pig’s blood, hurry back and call your parents to come cut the meat. This pig we’re slaughtering will be sold entirely. It’s been a while since anyone in the village had meat, right? In the future, we’ll regularly slaughter pigs and sell pork,” Lu Guifeng said, feeling light-hearted. They were finally starting to make progress in their endeavors while their family had been stuck without movement.

Lu Guifeng’s husband was the only butcher in Meizi’ao. But there had been few pigs slaughtered in Meizi’ao, let alone the whole region, throughout the year. Pigs were usually only slaughtered for big events. This craft wasn’t a means of livelihood.

Lu Guifeng and her husband, Zhang Old Jiu, were both healthy. They farmed as much as others and raised as many livestock. However, while others opened factories or cleared mountains to plant tea trees, they had no opportunities. They felt anxious, knowing they weren’t less skilled or less intelligent than others.

A few days ago, after finishing work one night, they sighed about their family situation.

“I’m anxious!” Zhang Old Jiu said as he threw off the quilt, getting out of bed. He groped around for cigarettes on the shelf and lit one.

“What’s there to be anxious about?” Lu Guifeng wiped the sweat from her forehead. “We’re not lacking food or clothing, and the kid is healthy.”

“Compared to Ping and Qiaoye’s family, they’re doing better than us, yet they’ve started a factory and are thriving. Everyone in the village is working for them. Dayun, at forty, still hasn’t married, but now he has such a big tea mountain; in less than three years, he’ll surely become wealthy. Isn’t your younger sister still looking for a husband? Don’t look anymore; just go for Dayun. The age difference is a bit much, but trust me, if she follows him, she’ll definitely have a good life,” Zhang Old Jiu said, taking a deep drag on his cigarette.

Lu Guifeng nearly kicked him out of bed. “Why don’t you marry your sister off to him then?”

“Can she? She hasn’t even left home yet. If she could, I’d definitely marry my youngest sister to Dayun. Just look at him; he’s as strong as an ox; your sister would be worked to the bone!” Zhang Old Jiu chuckled.

Lu Guifeng couldn’t hold back and kicked him out of bed. “You’re so irresponsible!”

Though she didn’t use much strength, Zhang Old Jiu conveniently slid off, rubbing against her leg as he fell.

Zhang Old Jiu laughed for a long time, and so did Lu Guifeng.

Finally, Lu Guifeng said, “Let’s just joke about it; don’t go around spreading rumors at my house. Otherwise, my dad will chase you down to Meizi’ao with a kitchen knife.”

“When you came to my house back in the day, I pressed you on the bed the first night. Didn’t your dad chase me for dozens of miles with a kitchen knife?” Zhang Old Jiu joked.

“Your dad was really something; marrying anyone isn’t an issue, right? Do they have to stay home like old maids?” Zhang Old Jiu quipped.

Lu Guifeng remembered that incident and couldn’t help but laugh. “You were really bad back then; you even broke my belt.”

“Dear wife, let’s talk some serious business,” Zhang Old Jiu finally said seriously.

“What serious business?” Lu Guifeng asked.

“I want to slaughter a pig!” Zhang Old Jiu stated seriously.

“Why would anyone slaughter a pig on a day like this? It’s not a holiday,” Lu Guifeng asked, puzzled.

“I want to slaughter the pig we have at home,” Zhang Old Jiu replied.

“Why kill it? There’s the slaughter tax, the stamp duty, and in town, there’s also a transaction tax—so many costs. You’d end up with less than a catty of meat; you might as well sell it directly,” Lu Guifeng shook her head.

“I mean slaughter it and sell it in the village. Look, they have Ping’s factory, and they could buy half of it. Do you believe it? Now, every household in the village is earning from Ping’s factory; who doesn’t have some spare change? If we slaughter a pig and sell it at the door, there will be buyers. I’ve asked around, and they all want to buy meat,” Zhang Old Jiu said, rolling up his sleeves, revealing his thick arms that looked like two jars.

Lu Guifeng didn’t say anything, thinking. “If it really works, we could have extra income. Then again, we could use this money to buy more goats or pigs; that’s not bad.”

“Right, and if it goes well, I’ll have my family slaughter pigs regularly. I’ll turn this into a business,” Zhang Old Jiu said, feeling ambitious.

“That’s right; it’ll be good for the village too. We can sell fresh meat. Our family doesn’t lack meat, but it can help others. Don’t forget, most households still want to eat fresh meat,” Lu Guifeng said.

“Let’s do it! We’ll kill the pig tomorrow, then we’ll get people to help us with the heavy lifting,” Zhang Old Jiu said excitedly.

In the following days, the atmosphere in their family grew busy and lively.