Chapter 120: Brewing Wine and Preparing Medicinal Spirits

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He turned to Xiao Weiguo and said, “Good boy, this dog…”

“Grandma, his name is Prosperity. He’s very well-behaved. We’ll keep him at home for a while, so don’t worry—he won’t bite anyone.”

“That’s not what I mean. We don’t have enough food to raise him right now. I’m afraid he’ll starve.”

“It’s all right, Grandma. Whenever I have the chance, I’ll bring some food back. Don’t worry about that. Just feed him normally. Once my father and the others move into the city, we’ll keep him there.” Xiao Weiguo tried to reassure his worried grandmother.

Then he crouched down and said to Prosperity, “From now on, this is your home. This is your grandmother. Treat her the way you treat me. Whatever she says goes, just as if I had said it. You’ll live here for a while.”

Prosperity lay on the ground, whining in response to Xiao Weiguo. Then he ran all around the courtyard, occasionally lifting a hind leg to mark his territory, evidently becoming familiar with his new home.

“Grandma, I’ll come by again tomorrow or the day after. Just feed the puppy as usual. Don’t worry too much about the food.”

With that, Xiao Weiguo rode his bicycle out of the courtyard.

“Take it slow on the road, dear.”

Although Grandma had initially been strongly opposed to keeping a dog, that opposition was based on their lack of food. If people could barely eat their fill, how could they afford to feed an animal?

Even so, Grandma immediately found a chipped bowl, cooked some thin corn porridge, and gave it to Prosperity.

Prosperity did not disappoint her. He barked once at Grandma, then obediently began to eat.

Grandma sat in a chair nearby, watching the puppy eat with a kindly smile.

Seeing that the courtyard gate was open, she feared the puppy might run away. She hurried over and shut it firmly.

Xiao Weiguo did not return to the factory. Instead, he went straight home to Nanluoguxiang Alley.

He was intensely curious about the medicinal liquor recipes. The strong liquor and medicinal herbs were already prepared in his personal space, and he could hardly wait to brew some and see how effective they would be.

After securing the doors and windows and making sure no one would come looking for him anytime soon, he slipped into the space.

Following the ancient medicinal liquor recipes he had copied down that day, and taking stock of the herbs available to him, Xiao Weiguo first chose three varieties: ginseng and wolfberry liquor, kidney-tonifying and essence-restoring liquor, and ginseng and reishi liquor.

Their respective purposes were to replenish the body’s vital energy, provide a powerful tonic for men, and calm and regulate the spirit.

The other medicinal liquors could be prepared gradually later.

Xiao Weiguo brought out several large jars he had prepared earlier and began following the recipes.

He conducted a careful group test on the amount of spring water to use. For the same liquor, he added one bowl of water to the first jar, two bowls to the second, and three bowls to the third.

Later, he could observe the final results and determine the best ratio.

That way, he could achieve the greatest effects without wasting the spring water.

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Before long, he had used up all the strong liquor he had obtained earlier on the black market.

Then Xiao Weiguo remembered the brewing recipe he had acquired at the same time.

Since he had nothing else to do, he might as well brew a batch and see how it turned out.

The recipe used the same grains as Five-Grain Liquor: sorghum, rice, glutinous rice, wheat, and corn. However, it also stated that the proportions could be adjusted according to circumstances.

At present, Xiao Weiguo had only rice, wheat, and corn in his space.

For the time being, he would use those three grains to brew a batch.

He brought out the water vats and jars he had stored in the space.

The first step was selecting the ingredients. The grain in his space was naturally of the finest quality.

Next came steaming. With a single thought, Xiao Weiguo crushed a batch of grain, placed it in a large pot, and began cooking it.

He had previously worried about the black smoke produced by burning things in the space, but he discovered that once the smoke drifted to a certain height, it vanished without a trace. It was truly miraculous.

The next step was fermentation. Using a liquid fermentation method, Xiao Weiguo placed the steamed ingredients into several large vats, added some spring water, stirred everything thoroughly, and sealed the lids.

Fermentation took time. There was no way he could complete the subsequent distillation and other steps that day. He would do them when he had time later; there was no need to rush.

During the Three-Year Hardship Period, apart from grain and meat, liquor was among the most expensive commodities.

Some alcoholics would rather go without a meal than go without a drink.

When the time came, he might be able to sell some, but the risks would increase several times over.

The authorities might tacitly tolerate the sale of grain, but selling liquor would likely be dealt with severely.

After all, the grain used to brew a single bottle of liquor could feed a family for several days, while the liquor itself could be finished in just a few sips.

It could, however, be used as a gift.

He would decide what to do based on the circumstances. In any case, liquor could be stored, and the longer it aged, the more valuable it became. There was no need to hurry.

After finishing the tasks that needed to be done in the space, Xiao Weiguo came out.

It was already time for dinner.

Xiao Weiguo thought about what to cook.

He had not eaten braised pork in a long time. In that case, he would make a meal of it.

With a turn of his hand, a piece of exceptionally fine pork belly appeared in his palm, weighing roughly three pounds.

He would also steam a pot of rice. Braised pork with rice would be enough to make any child drool.

All the seasonings and cooking utensils at home were ready.

The only problem was that the coal briquette stove had gone out again, making Xiao Weiguo long for the convenience of gas.

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Everyone in the neighborhood was cooking at that hour, so borrowing a flame clearly would not be convenient.

Xiao Weiguo decided to light the stove himself.

He opened all the vents on the coal stove. At the bottom, he placed a partially burned briquette, then a layer of broken wood shavings, and on top of those, small pieces of dry kindling.

He lit the wood shavings first. Once the kindling caught fire, he placed a fresh briquette on top.

Before long, the new briquette caught fire, and the coal stove was burning properly.

He added another briquette. While he waited for it to catch, Xiao Weiguo began preparing the pork belly on the chopping board nearby.

First, he cut the meat into evenly sized cubes.

Then, seeing that the stove was burning well, he set the pot on it, placed the meat into cold water, gradually skimmed off the foam, and boiled it for three minutes.

Nearby, he prepared the scallions, ginger, garlic, star anise, cinnamon, and bay leaves needed for stir-frying the meat.

Next, he heated the pot, added cool oil, and put in a large handful of rock sugar. Once small bubbles began to form, he added the cubes of meat and stir-fried them until they were coated in a rich caramel color.

Then he added the spices and stir-fried them until fragrant.

After that, he poured in enough boiling water, covered half the stove’s vent, and turned the heat down to medium-low for a slow simmer.

Halfway through the cooking, he added the seasonings.

At that moment, the aroma of braised pork gradually drifted out of Xiao Weiguo’s room and into the noses of everyone in the entire courtyard compound.

The First Elder looked at the plain boiled cabbage on his own table and lost his temper with the First Aunt.

Nearby, Liu Erli was eager to see whether he could find an opportunity to run over to Weiguo’s place and mooch a meal. Given their relationship, it ought to be possible. The aroma was simply irresistible.

In the Zhai family’s home in the rear courtyard—the very household that had stolen Xiao Weiguo’s coal briquettes—Zhai Baowa pestered his mother for meat. When she refused, he began to cry.

His mother, Xu Lamei, cursed Xiao Weiguo under her breath.

“It isn’t a holiday or festival. Why are you making braised pork? You’ll choke yourself to death!”

She turned around and gave Zhai Baowa’s bottom a thorough beating.

Xiao Weiguo had no idea how much domestic strife his meal had caused. At that moment, he was steaming rice in the space as well.

Otherwise, with only one stove, he would have had to wait a long time for the rice after the meat was finished.

Just then, Xiao Weiguo heard someone knocking at the door. He had no idea who it was.

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