Chapter 56 Drying Persimmons
“Burning pottery.
"Is it those balls of mud you put by the river?"
Shen Xiaoxiao's face was covered with black lines, what is mud? It's obviously made of clay.
She originally wanted to say something to them, but she thought they didn't understand it yet so she endured it and said silently, "It's not mud. You will know after it is burned."
The people in the tribe looked at each other in confusion. After all, they really didn't understand what Tao she was talking about was, but when they saw that Shen Xiaoxiao had no intention of talking anymore, they also shut their mouths.
She is a goddess, and everything she does should have her own meaning. It is normal for them not to understand the thoughts of the goddess.
Shen Xiaoxiao kept the fire, slowly cut the gourd she picked yesterday in half with a bone knife, took out the seeds inside and put them aside. These seeds will be kept for planting in the next spring, so there is no need to go everywhere. found.
Then she used a bone knife to scrape the inside clean little by little. During this period, she often added firewood to the fire to prevent it from being extinguished. She used a long stick to stir the firewood so that the pottery was evenly heated. Then she cut off the top of another gourd. Cut off a section, pour out the seeds inside, use a branch to reach inside and slowly scrape along the edge a few times, then pour out the contents with the mouth of the bottle facing down, repeat this process several times, until it can no longer be poured out. She wanted to use this gourd to hold water so that she could drink clean water even in the mountains.
Others looked at Shen Xiaoxiao's movements with curiosity, but did not come forward to ask. Their eyes met with each other, full of confusion.
Shen Xiaoxiao didn't know about the lawsuit in their eyes. After adding firewood to the fire, she took the bark to the river, washed it clean, and then peeled it into small pieces. These barks were what she asked Xiao to do yesterday. The inkstone was brought back to dry the persimmons. After all, the ground was dirty. If you put it directly on the ground, it would be covered with mud. And there was no such thin rope, so you had to use this stupid method.
Looking at the place where the sun was shining, Shen Xiaoxiao estimated that it should be around one or two o'clock now, and it should have been burning for three or four hours. After the fire was completely extinguished, she used a long stick to pick out the pottery inside until all the pottery was burned. A smile appeared on her face after she picked them out. It turned out that none of them were burned out. She had been prepared for them to be damaged. The result was better than she expected.
Putting the fired pottery aside to cool, she moved a basket of persimmons to the river to clean them, and then slowly peeled off the skin with a bone knife.
The tribesmen could no longer help but wonder, "Goddess, what are you doing?"
"Make persimmons so they last longer and can be eaten in winter." Shen Xiaoxiao raised her head and looked at the person who came. He was an old man she didn't recognize. He had a dark complexion and a face full of wrinkles. His waist was slightly bent and his eyes were wide. There was inquiry in it, but there was no malice in it, mostly curiosity.
"Ah? Didn't this thing last long?" The old man was slightly shocked. They knew that the astringent fruit was edible, but they didn't expect that it didn't last long. They wanted to pick more and put it back to eat in the winter.
Shen Xiaoxiao nodded, "Ripe persimmons can't be stored for a few days, they will rot." She knew that when they store food, they usually prefer those that can be stored for a long time.
"But after being made into persimmons, they can last through the winter." If they are well preserved, eating them throughout the winter will not be a problem.
The old man was a little stunned and breathed quickly, "Really?" Although the fruits they picked could be stored for a long time, they were basically shriveled up in the end, and some were broken. In order to satisfy their hunger, they could not waste them, as long as they were not rotten. They all have to eat.
If it can last until the winter as the goddess said, can they make more so that they don’t have to eat the waterless fruits in the winter?
"Of course it's true."
After a while, the old man said, "Goddess, do you want to peel off all the skin on these? Let us help you."
"No, just go about your business."
"It's okay, Goddess. We're all done. We'll help you with the rest." The old man said quickly, and others also echoed, saying that they were not busy, and some had even started to help her.
Shen Xiaoxiao had no choice but to say nothing. She knew very well what they were thinking. They just wanted her to teach them. In fact, if they asked directly, she might not refuse. After all, this was really not a technical job. Look. You will know it twice.
With their help, the speed was indeed much faster. In a short while, a basket of persimmons was peeled. She originally planned to finish peeling and the pot would be cooled before use, but it was obviously not possible now. She had no choice but to I had to take out the remaining persimmons, wash them and peel them.
By the time she was done, the pot had cooled down. Of course, she couldn't be so fast without the help of the people in the tribe.
She found two stones and put them together to make a simple stove, then put the pot filled with water on it, "Goddess, what are you doing?"
"Boil water." Shen Xiaoxiao said while lighting the fire, "You need to scald it with boiling water, otherwise the dried persimmons will become moldy." It doesn't take long to scald them, just two or three seconds is enough.
"Goddess, is this the pot you are talking about?" The others were full of curiosity and looked at the pot on the fire. They still couldn't imagine the use of this thing. After all, they used to drink raw water directly, so once Time can't figure it out.
"Yes, for cooking food."
"Is this a cauldron?" someone said excitedly, pointing to the water tank.
"No, that is a water tank, used to hold water." Shen Xiaoxiao introduced them to the use of bowls, spoons and bowls. They were stunned for a long time and could not recover for a long time.
If it is as good as the goddess said, will they be able to eat a lot of delicious food in the future?
Soon, steam came out of the small hole reserved in the lid. Shen Xiaoxiao knew that the water was boiling, so she opened the lid. Someone wanted to reach out to touch it, but she quickly stopped them. "You can't touch it directly, it will burn you. When the water is boiling, don't put your face close to the steam, or you will get burned." She pointed to the rising steam and said, "These rising ones are steam." Sometimes, if you are not careful, you will get burned by steam and a big blister will appear immediately.
The man left and took his hand back. Shen Xiaoxiao didn't say anything else. She poured the water into the bowl, then put the persimmon in it and quickly picked it up and put it aside.
Others were puzzled. They didn't understand why they put it in the water and took it out again. It was just to get it wet, and the other things seemed to have no effect at all.
Shen Xiaoxiao didn't know what they were thinking. She changed several pots of water before she finished scalding them all. The water on the persimmons that were scalded at the beginning also dried up. She tied the persimmon stalks with bark, fearing that the bark would break. She tied three or four pieces of bark and didn't dare to tie too many. She only tied one piece that was too short.
Others were even more confused and didn't understand what she was doing.
But seeing that she was working non-stop, they had to suppress their doubts and tied up the persimmons with her. With more people, there was more power, and soon all the persimmons were tied up.
Shen Xiaoxiao took three tree trunks, and then tied them together in a triangle shape with a rope made of reeds. She tied six such tripods, and then placed a branch on top and hung the persimmons on it.