Mom’s Steamed Bun Shop

By Yan Lingling

My dad passed away at 48,and my mom had accepted the fact,and her fate,in no more than one year.She dedicated herself to being the sole breadwinner for our family,the seven of us.

At the very beginning,my mom followed other peddlers to sell goods at the local market.Everything was going well,till one day when our house was burgled.She was deeply concerned about the safety of me and my younger brother,so a few days later,my mom decided to give up the peddling and opened a steamed bun restaurant at a nearby intersection so that she could be closer to home.

Making Preparations for the Shop

In order to pool money,my mom brought some family valuables to the front yard and sold them cheaply,and used the money she’d made from peddling at the local market.She paid three months’rent and got the key to a small roadside shop.After that,she had my elder brothers and sisters help renovate the place,giving it a whitewash,and setting up a table with a large chopping board.In one day,the little shabby shop became quite the cozy place.

My mom always had a knack for cooking,but years later she told us that there was another reason she opened the steamed bun shop.As we were at a fast-growing age,she feared that we might suffer from malnutrition.Opening such a shop meant that she had to buy pork all the time,which meant we could have pork rind to eat and bone soup to drink as a nutritional supplement.But of course,most importantly,she could look after me and my younger brother at the same time.

We were all thrilled about Mom’s decision of opening the shop.At that time,my elder sisters and brothers were grown up and thoughtful enough.Seeing that Mom had to work painstakingly from dawn to dusk every day,they tried all they could to help her.

In doing so,my mom’s business started.

The First Batch of Steamed Buns

My mom always got up at 5 o’clock sharp every morning,and after a simple washing and dressing,she’d put on a white apron,a pair of white sleeves,and a white hat,and rush to the restaurant with a basin of steamed bun fillings in her arms.Usually,she’d be fully occupied the whole morning.In the afternoon,when my brothers and sisters finished school,they would come to help her sell the buns if there were any left,and Mom would take the opportunity to buy raw materials in the market for the next day.At closing time,my mom would scrub all the utensils with the hot water in a cauldron before heading back home.She always kept the place clean and tidy,just like she was at home.

父亲四十八岁时去世，妈妈在不到一年的时间里，完全接受了现实，接受了命运，为了她的七个儿女能够有食物糊口，她拼命地努力着，奋斗着。

开始，母亲跟着别人去赶乡街子（赶集），做小买卖，后来家里进了小偷，她开始为我和弟弟的安全担忧。几天后，妈妈决定在离家不远的一个三岔路口开包子店，她想换一个方式来养活一家人。

筹备包子店

为了筹措资金，妈妈将家中一些物品搬到大门口贱卖，凑得几个钱，加上最近几个月她赶乡街子积攒起来的都投资这个小食店。说干就干，她先支付了三个月的租金，拿到路口那间小屋的钥匙；接着，她带领哥哥姐姐们粉刷了铺面，架起了大案板。一天时间，那个不起眼的小地方就收拾得清清爽爽。

做吃的一直是妈妈最拿手的事情。妈妈后来说，决定开一个包子店，还有一个原因，是她考虑到我们都处在成长的年龄，怕我们营养不良。店中卖包子，就要买肉，我们兄妹几个就可以经常有口肉皮、骨头汤喝，可以给我们补充营养。当然，最重要的，是她可以顺带照管我和弟弟，一举两得。

妈妈开店了，我们兄弟姊妹都万分高兴。那时候，大姐、二姐、四姐和五哥、六姐都很懂事了，看着妈妈每天起早贪黑拼着命地干，他们就尽可能地帮妈妈承担一些事情。

就这样，妈妈开始了独立创业的生涯。

第一笼包子

她早上五点准时起床，简单地梳洗完毕后，系上雪白的围腰、戴上雪白的袖套和帽子，手上端着大盆的包子馅，就匆匆前往小店。通常，从早上到中午，她一直在店中忙。下午，哥哥姐姐们放学回来，如果包子还没卖完，他们会帮妈妈卖。妈妈趁此机会，赶紧去市场采购第二天的原材料。每天打烊，妈妈都要用大锅里的热水将所有用具刷洗得干干净净再把店面打扫完毕才回家。她爱干净，在家也一样。

After arriving home,she began to prepare the steamed bun fillings:boiling pork and red beans,and chopping bamboo shoots.None of them was difficult for her,and she could handle the task with great efficiency.The only difficult thing for her was kneading dough.Every night,she had to knead a large batch of dough in the basin and wait for it to ferment for a few hours so that it could be ready for use the next morning.To make the dough,she poured a few dozen kilos of flour into a big basin and constantly kneaded the mixture with both hands,while adding water and yeast from time to time.

I always bent over and watched her mixing dough,so I’ve known since childhood that it is a tough job making such a big mass of dough.

When the dough was ready,my mom would begin to mix the fillings until four big ceramic basins were filled up one by one.Usually,she had to work until midnight to finish the preparatory work,and she would fall asleep in bed immediately.Five o’clock in the early morning,she would be the first one in our family to get up when the alarm clock went off.After a quick washing,she would be busy carrying all kinds of basins,big or small,to her shop.

At 7.00 am,the first batch of steamed buns was ready.My mom’s steamed buns became popular the first day they came out.According to the customers,a mere glimpse of the buns would make their mouths water,and there was a pleasant lingering aroma after eating.The first batch of steamed buns would be sold out in no time.

When my younger brother and I woke up from a good night’s sleep and rushed to the shop,my mom would take out two big,white steamed buns from the bamboo steamer,and put them on two plates for us.

I preferred sweet stuffing,while my brother enjoyed a salty taste.So my mom always gave me a redbean paste bun or a sugar-stuffed bun,and my brother a meat bun.Afterward,we’d stay in the shop,sometimes playing on our own,and sometimes helping out.When someone came to buy our buns,and Mom was in the middle of something else,I’d stand on my tiptoes and lift up the big bamboo steamer lid,tonging out the buns they asked for on a piece of square brown paper that Mom had prepared before giving them to the customer.I’d take the money and give it to Mom,and she always praised me smilingly for being a good helping hand.

All the Family Pulling Together

Before and after school,all of my elder brothers and sisters would help Mom in carrying things,buying food materials,fetching coal,or washing.Every morning before daybreak,they’d get up soon after Mom,and carry the large basin of dough to the restaurant,help her chop wood,and fetch and boil water to steam buns.When time was up,they’d take a steamed bun each and head for school.

Every night,they’d finish their homework quickly and help Mom again.Under the dim lamplight,they mixed bean paste,chopped bamboo shoots,and trimmed vegetables.Sometimes they’d cut themselves or get burnt,but they’d simply bind up the wound with strips of gauze and keep on working,so all of them ended up with scars on their hands.In the cold of winter,they’d even get chapped skin,but none of them complained about it.Everyone seemed to live a life unbefitting of their age:early to rise and late to bed,and surrounded by smoky fire.But our whole family cherished such a life.With Mom being the pillar of the family,our life gradually got on the right track,and we all made it out of the sadness and helplessness of our father’s death.

That was the most unforgettable time for me and my siblings.During those days,we could stay with Mom all the time,share happiness and sorrows with each other,and never worry about going hungry.It seemed that when Mom opened the steamed bun shop,we all grew stronger as a result.

(FromMom and the Seven of Us,People’s Literature Publishing House.Translation:Zhu Yaguang)

回家后，一系列加工包子馅的准备工作就开始了：煮肉、煮红豆、剁竹笋。这些事，对她来说都没什么困难，得心应手。比较难的是和面，每天晚上她必须将一大盆面和好，利用夜间的几个小时醒面，第二天早上正好合用。将十几公斤面粉放在一只大瓦盆里，加水加面肥，用双手不断揉和。

我经常扒着大瓦盆看妈妈揉面，从小就知道，揉面绝不是一件容易的事，更何况揉那么大一盆面。

面和好了，妈妈开始做包子馅，四个大瓷盆，一盆一盆地拌好放着。准备工作常常到凌晨一两点钟才做完。妈妈疲惫不堪，倒上床就睡着了。凌晨五点钟，闹钟一响，漆黑的夜幕中，她总是第一个爬起来，匆匆梳洗完毕，就忙着把大盆小盆的东西往小店搬。

七点整，妈妈的第一笼包子准时出笼。从第一天开始，妈妈做的包子就很受欢迎，人们夸妈妈做的包子，一看就想吃，吃过后弥久留香。所以，第一轮包子很快就会被一抢而光。

我和弟弟睡足了觉，爬起来，跑到店里。妈妈就会从蒸笼里拿出两个热乎乎又白又大的包子放在两盘子中，让我们吃。

我喜欢甜的，弟弟喜欢咸的，我得的总是一个豆沙包或者糖包，而弟弟总得一个肉包子。吃完包子，我们就在店里玩，大部分时间都在包子店里待着。有人来买包子时，碰到妈妈正忙，我会踮起脚，掀开大大的蒸笼盖，把包子夹出来放在妈妈准备好的、方方正正的牛皮纸上递给客人，然后收回钱递给妈妈。妈妈总是笑着夸我能干。

子女齐上阵

哥哥姐姐们上学前和放学后都会帮着妈妈干活，如搬东西、买食材、拉煤炭、洗洗涮涮等。每天早晨天不亮，哥哥姐姐们都会紧随妈妈身后起床，帮妈妈将那一大缸和好的面抬到小店，然后帮着劈柴、生火、挑水、烧水、蒸包子。到了上学时间，大家每人拿个包子往各自学校去。

每天晚上，匆忙做完家庭作业后，他们又帮着妈妈干起来。厨房昏暗的灯光下，拌豆沙、切竹笋、择菜，有时会被切着、烫着，他们常常缠上纱布继续干，哥哥姐姐们每个人的手上都有创伤。寒冬腊月，手冻裂了也不叫苦，每个人都在体验着与年纪不相称的生活，早起晚睡，烟熏火燎，但这样的日子一家人都分外珍惜。靠着妈妈这个主心骨，生活渐渐走上正轨，大家终于从爸爸逝去的悲痛和无助中解脱出来了。

那是我们兄弟姐妹最难忘的宝贵时光，在那段时光中，我们每天都能跟妈妈在一起，苦乐分享，不用愁饿肚子。自从妈妈开了包子店，我们好像一下子强壮了许多。

（摘自《母亲和我们七兄妹》人民文学出版社）