373 No Rush
“Where’s the saltpeter?” Xue Sifu asked. “Where did Yifu move to?”
“He moved into the main house. The rice noodles are being dried in the yard. I don’t know where else to put them.”
“Then let’s go and try it out.” Xue Sifu said.
Jiang Yue and Xue Yan were already in the central room.
Seeing that Xue Yifu had left the central room after delivering the two bags of saltpeter, Jiang Yue lowered her voice to a volume that only Xue Yan could hear, “The water level in the small pot must be lower than that in the big pot. Otherwise, the water in the small pot might not freeze.
“Okay.” Xue Yan agreed.
“When the time comes, the ice in the big pot can’t be eaten, so don’t waste the well water. Use river water for the big pot, and only use the well water for food in the small pot.” Jiang Yue’s voice was even lower when she heard the approaching footsteps.
Normally, the villagers would use well water for food, while river water was used for washing vegetables and clothes.
Perhaps it was because the river and the well were not far from each other. As long as the river did not dry up, the well would not dry up. Since the well in the village was built, it had not dried up until now.
It could be said that the soil layer between the river and the well was like a natural filter barrier. The water in the well was not dried up and was especially clean.
Xue Yan thought of that idea too, so he nodded and answered in a low voice, “We should. Don’t worry.”
As soon as Xue Yan answered, Xue Sifu and Liu Guixia walked in, so Jiang Yue shut her mouth and didn’t say anything more.
Moreover, she had already given more or less the instructions needed to make ice.
When Xue Sifu entered the courtyard, he had already closed the door and even locked it.
Xue Yifu, Li Hehua, and Yu Hongyan saw Xue Sifu and Liu Guixia enter the central room. It seemed like they were going to make ice. They were naturally curious and also came to the central room.
They were all standing in front of the two bags of saltpeter.
Liu Guixia and the others had never seen saltpeter before. When they opened the bag and saw the colorless crystals inside, their eyes couldn’t help but widen. “So this is saltpeter.”
“What now?” Liu Guixia was a little anxious.
Xue Sifu laughed, “Mother, there’s no need to be anxious. Didn’t I tell you what Xue Yan said before? Actually, I’m afraid I might have remembered it wrong. Xue Yan said a lot, so we should let him do it.”
Xue Yan actually wanted Jiang Yue to come. After all, Jiang Yue was the most familiar with saltpeter. He only knew so much because Jiang Yue told him.
However, he was the one who suggested that saltpeter could be used to make ice. In addition, Jiang Yue had also warned him earlier on what not to do, so it was obvious that she wanted him to come.
“Okay.”
“Prepare two pots, one big and one small,” Xue Yan said.
Xue Yifu turned around and went to get it. The things were placed in the corner of the central room, and Li Hehua had already washed them clean.
Xue Yan said, “I may need a big wooden spoon or a ladle. Just in case there isn’t enough saltpeter, I can use the ladle to pour more in. You can also pour more saltpeter in the beginning. After all, saltpeter can be reused and can be produced again.”
Li Hehua quickly went to get a big ladle.
“And water…”
Xue Yan had just opened his mouth when Xue Sifu answered, “I know, I’ll go get some water.”
“I’ll go,” Xue Yifu said. He was the older brother that fought to do everything.
“When the time comes, you’ll have to put saltpeter in the big pot. Even if it’s frozen, it can’t be eaten. I think it’s best to use river water in the big pot and well water in the small pot.” After saying that, Xue Yan subconsciously glanced at Jiang Yue who was standing beside him.
Jiang Yue looked back at him calmly.
He let out a dry cough and felt a little guilty.
It wasn’t that he was guilty that she had looked at him, but that she was the one who should have said it instead of him.