Chapter 42: Teasing

Chapter 42: Teasing

Realizing that these bamboo fungus sprouted in this bamboo grove every time it rained, Li Chunmiao grinned widely and quickly said to Lin Zhaodi, "Let's not let it slip that these bamboo fungus are edible!"

Lin Zhaodi glanced toward Lin Shu and said, "It's not really our decision to make. A Shu told us, but she could have told anyone else."

Hearing this, Li Chunmiao boldly asked outright, "A Shu, who else have you told that these bamboo fungus are edible?"

Lin Shu looked up and replied with a smile, "Aunt Li, I think you and Aunt Lin are both good-natured people, so I only told the two of you. If you want to tell the other villagers, that's fine too. But there are only so many bamboo plants on this back hill, and the bamboo fungus that grows here isn’t abundant—it might not be enough to share with too many people."

Li Chunmiao was overjoyed to hear this and quickly assured her, "Don’t worry, A Shu, neither Aunt Lin nor I will tell anyone! From now on, it’ll just be the few of us coming to the back hill to gather bamboo fungus. I won't forget this, A Shu."

Lin Shu’s eyes flickered slightly, and she said casually, "Please, Aunt Li, you're too kind. It’s nothing, really. I just like straightforward people like you. If you really want to thank me, just have Wang Yingen call me 'Sister A Shu' next time, and make sure he's polite about it."

At these words, Li Chunmiao understood perfectly.

Though A Shu had phrased it delicately, Li Chunmiao knew her own mischievous son well—she knew what he was thinking just by looking at him. That rascal must have offended A Shu at some point. Considering that A Shu and Xiao Pu were always together, he might have even offended both sisters.

The thought made Li Chunmiao’s face flush red, whether from anger or embarrassment.

That little embarrassment Wang Yingen—wait till I get home and skin him alive!

For now, though, she pretended not to know and laughed it off, saying, "Don’t worry, A Shu. The next time you see my Wang Yingen, I guarantee he'll call you 'Sister A Shu.' And as for Xiao Pu—even though she’s the same age as Wang Yingen, she’s two or three months older, so he should call her ‘Sister Xiao Pu’ too."

Lin Xiaopu looked at her sister, blinked her big eyes, and secretly grinned.

Lin Shu laughed but didn’t say much else, simply praising, "Aunt Li, you carry yourself like the lady of a noble house."

Li Chunmiao immediately exclaimed, "Oh, A Shu, don’t tease your aunt! How can a country woman like me compare to those high-society ladies?" Though she said this, the smile on her face was impossible to hide.

There were several bamboo groves on the back hill, but the largest was this one. Li Chunmiao and Lin Zhaodi didn’t gather too many, each digging up seven or eight bamboo fungus, while the rest were collected by Lin Shu and the other two.

Not only was Zhou Ye’s carrying basket filled with bamboo fungus, but even the bamboo basket Lin Xiaopu had brought was full.

"By the way, A Shu, how do you prepare these bamboo fungus?" Lin Zhaodi asked.

Lin Shu replied, "Aunt Lin, bamboo fungus is delicious no matter how you cook it. We can use it in soups, stir-fries, or even cold dishes. Soup is the most common way—parboil it in boiling water, add a little salt, and simmer it in a rich broth made with chicken, duck, pork ribs, beef, or lamb. The resulting bamboo fungus soup is clear, fragrant, and delicious—crisp, tender, and exceptionally rare!"

"If you don’t have broth, you can also simmer it with soft tofu—it’s just as crisp and refreshing. Stir-frying is even simpler: cut the bamboo fungus into sections and stir-fry it with marinated pork slices. Add nothing else, just a little salt for flavor."

As Lin Shu listed one dish after another, the two aunts hadn't even reacted yet, but Lin Xiaopu couldn’t help but swallow hard. Lin Shu changed her tone, "Of course, for us country folk, we don’t have the luxury of wealthy households. A simple stir-fry of bamboo fungus and eggs is more than enough. Chop the bamboo fungus, stir-fry it with eggs, and toss in some wild onion blossoms from the fields—it’s not only tasty but also easy to digest. And since the weather is getting hotter, we can also make a cold bamboo fungus salad. Shred the bamboo fungus and cucumber, then mix with minced garlic, salt, vinegar, and other seasonings. It’s crisp, appetizing, and helps cool the body!"

"Great, great! I’ll make a bamboo fungus and egg stir-fry as soon as I get back!" Li Chunmiao grinned from ear to ear.

Lin Zhaodi added, "I have cucumbers growing in the vegetable patch behind my house. I’ll try that cold bamboo fungus salad."

The whole group was in high spirits. As they prepared to descend the hill, Lin Zhaodi suddenly reminded everyone, "Let’s cover the fungus with some wild grass so they don’t get sun-scorched."

Lin Shu found this remark quite amusing.

Fungus only dislikes sunlight while they’re still growing in the forest. Now that they’d been harvested, what did it matter if they were exposed to the sun? But Aunt Lin’s suggestion was tactful—after all, some straightforward remarks aren’t always pleasant to hear.

Li Chunmiao said excitedly, "No need to remind me! I’ll just break off some cypress branches to cover them. Isn’t that better than using wild grass?"

The village women loved the fragrance of cypress and often brought some back with them when they went to the hills.

Lin Shu couldn’t help but laugh, "Aunt Li’s idea is indeed better. The scent of cypress is calming and good for the heart. It’s best to break off a branch and place it in the house."

Li Chunmiao was intrigued, "It has such uses? I only knew it smelled nice."

Lin Zhaodi chuckled, "A Shu is knowledgeable about many things. We can’t go wrong listening to her."

So the group first grabbed some wild grass to cover the fungus, and when they passed by a cypress tree, they replaced the grass with cypress branches.

"You two aunts go ahead. A large group might attract too much attention."

Li Chunmiao and Lin Zhaodi were both straightforward by nature—one talkative, the other reserved. They readily agreed to Lin Shu’s suggestion.

"Alright, we won’t stand on ceremony with you."

"A Ye, Xiao Pu, we’ll head back first."

Though Li Chunmiao bid farewell to all three, her gaze lingered meaningfully on the tall, silent man’s face before she left.

Zhou Ye remained silent, only frowning slightly.

Aunt Li must have misunderstood something.

Never mind. Once Lin Shu found someone she loved, the villagers would naturally understand that Lin Shu saw him only as family, and he thought of her as a sister, no different from Lin Xiaopu.

But even as he thought this, Zhou Ye couldn’t explain why his chest felt heavy and stifled—not the breathless tightness from a racing heartbeat, but a heavy, cottony feeling lodged in his chest, making him uncomfortable.

Lin Shu didn’t notice Li Chunmiao’s gaze. Only after the two had gone did she let out a long sigh and asked, feeling pathetic, "Xiao Pu, aren’t you two tired? My legs feel sore already! No, no—I need to rest properly before we go on." With that, she plopped down on a large rock she’d had her eye on earlier.

Lin Xiaopu hadn’t felt particularly tired before, but after her sister’s reminder, it dawned on her that she was actually a little tired too. It wasn’t just physical exhaustion—more than anything, her straw sandals were uncomfortable, and her soles hurt from wearing them for so long.

But her sister made no mention of the straw sandals, only complaining about sore legs.

She didn’t believe her sister’s feet didn’t hurt. She had seen them with her own eyes—A Shu’s feet were as tender as a newborn baby’s. How could they withstand such rough straw sandals?

Before Lin Xiaopu could ponder further, Lin Shu patted the spot beside her and called out, "Come here, little sister, sit with me! Zhou Ye, find a place to rest too. Let’s take a short break before heading down, alright?"

"No, you two rest. I brought an axe—I’ll go chop some firewood nearby."

Lin Shu had already noticed the axe tucked at his waist. Hearing this, she said, drawing out the syllable, "Ohh~ so you came up mainly to chop firewood, Zhou Ye, and finding me and Xiao Pu was just a happy accident?"

Zhou Ye: ...