Chapter 134: Cooking Up a Feast

Chapter 134: Cooking Up a Feast

Lin Shu explained, "The ingredients are the same, but the cooking methods are different. For instance, yesterday's Termitomyces soup can be swapped for stir-fried Termitomyces. We likely won't find bamboo fungus on the mountain today, so yesterday's cold-tossed bamboo fungus will be replaced with a cold purslane salad. We'll skip yesterday's fried fish and instead make a sour loach soup..."

After hearing Lin Shu, Lin Zhaodi nodded happily, "A Shu, whatever you say goes. Auntie will follow your lead."

Soon, the courtyard buzzed with activity. Lin Shu and Lin Xiaopu gathered wild greens and caught loaches before joining in.

The construction site diagonally across from the Lin family's yard was close by, and before long, the aroma of cooking food wafted over.

Liu Erzhuang, recalling yesterday's lavish spread, was already salivating.

He tried to hold back but couldn't resist. He glanced at Zhou Ye, who was diligently working nearby, and asked, "Brother Zhou Ye, do you know what delicious food Sister-in-Law is preparing today?"

Zhou Ye paused his work, looked at him, and suddenly said, "I haven't married A Shu yet. Don't call her 'sister-in-law' so casually. She'll be upset with me if she hears it."

Liu Erzhuang scratched his head and chuckled, "Well, she isn't yet, but it's only a matter of time, isn't it? Besides, if Sister-in-Law finds out, she'd only blame me. Why would she be mad at you?"

Zhou Ye replied, "You don't understand A Shu. If she hears others calling her that, she won't be upset with them—she'll be upset with me."

Liu Erzhuang noticed how Zhou Ye's expression softened considerably when he mentioned "Sister-in-Law" and inwardly marveled.

A man with a wife truly was different; his eyes seemed to ripple with springtime joy when he spoke.

Although Liu Erzhuang had rarely interacted with Zhou Ye, being from the same village meant they'd crossed paths a few times. He had never seen Zhou Ye display such an expression before. It completely shattered his preconceived notion of Zhou Ye as a dull, humorless, and stoic man.

However, Liu Erzhuang didn't particularly envy Zhou Ye. Perhaps he was still too young and hadn't yet "opened his mind" to the idea, finding marriage not all that appealing.

Getting a wife meant being managed; it felt restrictive and uncomfortable.

But, if he could marry someone like Sister Lin... perhaps it wouldn't be so bad?

Sister Lin was not only as beautiful as a celestial fairy but also an excellent cook.

If he could have a girl like her preparing delicious meals for him every day, how comfortable and easy would life be?

Brother Zhou Ye must have accumulated eight lifetimes of good fortune to marry such a beautiful and capable wife.

Liu Erzhuang worked for a while longer, then glanced over again and thought, "Here we go again—Brother Zhou Ye is spacing out."

Even though Zhou Ye could multitask and not let his work suffer while spacing out, his eyes would go completely still, as if his soul had left his body. Liu Erzhuang could tell his mind was elsewhere, off in his own world.

Zhou Ye was indeed spacing out.

He was a diligent worker, but he also knew himself well. For tasks that didn't require much mental effort, occasional daydreaming wouldn't affect his work, so he allowed himself to indulge.

Right now, he was thinking about A Shu. Or rather, he had been thinking about her for a long time.

After experiencing last night's intimate and lingering moments, it was impossible for anyone to remain calm.

Even though a whole night had passed, to Zhou Ye, it felt as if it had just happened. Those scenes kept replaying in his mind, bringing him both sweetness and frustration.

Zhou Ye looked up at the sun in the east. Since it was still early, the sunlight wasn't too harsh, yet he felt as if he had been baking under the scorching sun all day, his mouth dry and his throat parched.

Lin Zhaodi had placed a wooden stump on the leveled ground nearby early in the morning, with a pottery jar of tea and several coarse ceramic bowls on it, so anyone who was thirsty could help themselves.

Zhou Ye walked over, poured himself a bowl of cold tea, and gulped it down in a few large mouthfuls. Only then did he feel a little better.

About fifteen minutes later, someone arrived.

Today, it wasn't Lin Xiaopu or Lin Shu who came to call them but Lin Zhaodi.

Lin Zhaodi called out to the group, and Zhao Laosan was the first to stop working, signaling the younger ones to join them for breakfast.

Another full table of dishes today!

Liu Erzhuang glanced at the table and grinned from ear to ear.

It was somewhat similar to yesterday's breakfast but also different. Aunt Lin and the others had managed to whip up some new dishes with the same ingredients.

Liu Erzhuang instinctively looked for yesterday's fried fish pieces but didn't find them. Instead, he noticed a large pottery pot of sour loach soup in the center of the table.

When he learned it was a pot of sour loach soup, Liu Erzhuang felt a twinge of disappointment.

Yesterday, it was fried fish, but today it was loaches.

How could something commonly found in the fields, food for ducks and geese, be served at the table?

It wasn't that he was unaware that loaches were edible. In the village, some people ate loaches, snakes, and insects, but that was during famine years.

When households didn't have enough food, they would resort to such things to fill their stomachs. During plentiful years, no one would touch these.

However, Liu Erzhuang didn't let his disappointment show too obviously. Even though there was less meat, the other dishes were delicious.

Liu Erzhuang was quite satisfied just eating the other dishes.

Wang Zhangshun, however, was different from Liu Erzhuang.

His family was poor. Most of the time, Ping Er ate porridge with pickles or simply tossed a few handfuls of greens into the porridge to make vegetable porridge. Meat was a rare treat.

After yesterday's lavish meal, he had instinctively assumed such feasts couldn't happen every day. To his surprise, today's meal was just as sumptuous!

He was thrilled when he saw it. How could he possibly feel disappointed just because there was no fried fish?

As for the loaches, his family had indeed eaten them often. However, his parents were afraid of being laughed at, so they would catch them secretly and cook them at home. Since oil was expensive and rarely bought, they seldom stir-fried dishes. Instead, they would toss a few grains of salt into boiled vegetable soup. The loaches were prepared the same way. Wang Zhangshun had eaten them so often he had gotten used to their muddy taste.

He scooped a spoonful of loach meat into his bowl, not expecting much, but after tasting the sour loach soup, his eyes lit up.

It was delicious!

Who knew loaches could be made so tasty!

Liu Erzhuang watched as Wang Zhangshun scooped one spoonful after another and was totally surprised.

Wait, could mud-dwelling loaches really taste this good?

It wasn't just Wang Zhangshun. At the table, Uncle Lin, Zhao San, and Brother Zhou Ye were all scooping generous portions into their bowls.

The meal was prepared by Aunt Lin from Zhao San's family and Auntie He from Uncle Lin's family, with Brother Zhou Ye's wife, Sister Lin Shu, assisting. It was possible they were eating so much out of courtesy, but why was Wang Zhangshun also...

Seeing the loach meat in the pottery pot dwindling rapidly, and even the pickled vegetables inside being scooped up, Liu Erzhuang, who had initially planned to skip the loach dish, hurriedly used the ladle to scoop a large portion into his bowl, along with some broth.

He wasn't foolish. If one or two people were eating it, it might be a fluke, but if everyone was enjoying it so much, the flavor must be far better than he had imagined.

After Liu Erzhuang took a bite of the sour loach soup, he was instantly won over and regretted not trying it sooner.

Forget about it being dirty mud-dwellers—this was a delicacy!

The broth not only had pickled vegetables but also a spicy kick. The loaches had no fishy taste at all. With each bite, the sour and spicy flavors awakened the appetite, cutting through the richness and enhancing the freshness!

Without eating any other dishes, Liu Erzhuang could devour two large bowls of rice with just two spoonfuls of sour mud eel stew over his rice!

In the end, the large clay pot of sour mud eel stew was licked clean by the men. The other dishes were also mostly gone.

Lin Zhaodi brought the big leftover bowl of sour mud eel stew from the women’s side directly to Zhou Ye and said with a smile, "We couldn’t finish it—we don't have big appetites. Don’t mind that it’s our leftovers."

As for why she brought it directly to Zhou Ye and not the others, it was because the other men were already full and starting to belch, while Zhou Ye’s stomach was still not satisfied.

Zhou Ye thanked her and, without standing on ceremony, took the bowl and started eating.

When Lin Zhaodi turned back, she immediately locked eyes with Lin Shu, her eyes smiling as if to say: Don’t worry, I won’t let your A Ye go hungry.

Lin Shu: ...

She was indeed a bit worried that A Ye might not get enough to eat. In the past, most of that large clay pot of loach would end up in A Ye’s stomach. But today, with not much more food than usual and several extra mouths at the table—all of them big eaters—A Ye ended up with less than he usually had, even though he had done heavy labor.

But these were just private thoughts; she didn’t think she had let it show. So why did Aunt Lin seem to read her like an open book?

Was she really that obvious?

It wasn’t that she was favoring A Ye, but Aunt Lin didn’t know how much A Ye could eat. A serving for three people wasn’t enough to fill him up.

Oh well, she’d just have to fix some snacks for noon. She wasn't going to fuss over the others—she just couldn’t let A Ye go hungry.

After breakfast, Li Chunmiao came to help with washing and cleaning, just like the day before. She didn’t come empty-handed, bringing two sweet melons with her.

While working, she mentioned to Lin Shu about Wang Yingen eating the wild vegetable dumplings the previous day. "...Hey, I was wondering why that kid, who’s usually the first at the table, was so slow when I called him for dinner yesterday. Turns out he’d already eaten two wild vegetable dumplings at your place! A Shu, you don’t know how much Ping Er usually eats after being out playing all day—he especially eats a lot at dinner. But last night, he only had one bowl of porridge and stopped. I only found out what happened when I asked."

Li Chunmiao said this with a smile.

Wang Yingen said the wild vegetable dumplings were made with lard, eggs, and dried shiitake mushrooms—such a fancy treat, and he ate two of them!

"A Shu, don’t pamper these little rascals too much. They only helped you pick a few handfuls of wild vegetables. Giving them half a dumpling each to try would’ve been enough. There was no need to give each of them a whole one, and you even gave my Yingen two..."

Lin Shu thought to herself: It’s not me who’s spoiling these rascals.

Mischievous kids are often that way because their parents indulge them. Although Aunt Li didn't hesitate to scold or spank when necessary, she mostly let Wang Yingen run wild. But this wasn’t entirely Aunt Li’s fault—most women in the village were the same. There was too much work at home, everyone was busy, and kids could run around—it was impossible to keep an eye on them all the time or keep them confined.

"Aunt Li, they earned it. Yingen and the others helped me a lot—they were a great help. And you’re too kind, Aunt Li, bringing two sweet melons," Lin Shu said.

Hearing this, Li Chunmiao was thrilled.

Her Wang Yingen usually got into trouble outside, leaving her to deal with the aftermath. She never expected that one day he would be rewarded for helping others.

"Aunt Li, I have to go out for a bit. Let’s talk later."

Li Chunmiao’s eyes shifted slightly, knowing that Lin Shu was going to Zhang Qiaohua’s to teach Lin Yushu again. But she didn’t ask any questions, just waved her hand and said, "Go ahead, A Shu, do what you need to do."

Lin Shu left with an empty basket on her back, planning to go to the back mountain after visiting Third Aunt’s house to pick a basketful of Grass Jelly Plant.

After Lin Shu left, Li Chunmiao continued helping with the work as if nothing had happened, not mentioning anything else.

He Guixiang couldn’t help but sigh. Li Chunmiao was really playing it cool.

But she knew that Li Chunmiao would eventually bring up the topic of Wang Yingen’s studies.

After Lin Shu left, Lin Xiaopu also went out to find Wang Yingen and the others.

Before leaving, her older sister had told her to round up Wang Yingen and the others to the river to catch shrimp—as many as they could.

So she took a fish trap with her. The fish trap was a gift from Grandpa Gao. A Ye and her sister had visited Grandpa Gao to see the first bamboo reclining chair he had made, and Grandpa Gao had given them the fish trap as well.

She slung the fish trap on her hip with a rope, making it easy to carry while catching fish and shrimp.

When Wang Yingen and the others heard that Sister A Shu had asked for this, they were ecstatic.

They thought it would be days before Sister A Shu asked for their help again, but here she was, asking for their help today!

Catching fish and shrimp was something they were good at—it was what they loved doing most. If anyone knew where the shrimp and small fish were plentiful in the stream, it was them. Being able to play while getting the job done made them all happy.

"Is Sister A Shu going to make something delicious again?" Wang Yingen asked.

"I don’t know—my sister didn’t say. But don’t worry, you’ll get your share!"

The group of rascals worked in the stream until noon. Since they were playing in the water, the heat wasn't so bad, though the sun was strong and left them a bit sun-scorched.

"That should be enough. Let’s all go back and rest," Lin Xiaopu said. Her fish trap was almost full of shrimp. It hadn’t been easy catching so many, as they had to net them one by one.

Wang Yingen frowned. "That’s it? We worked so long."

Lin Xiaopu snapped, "I told you you’d get your share. Come to my house in an hour. My sister is making a snack, and she’ll give you some."

Wang Yingen and the others cheered. They were going to get more treats!

When Lin Xiaopu returned with a fish trap full of shrimp, Lin Shu had already washed the Grass Jelly Plant and was squeezing out the juice. Not only that, but a fire was burning in the stove, with a steamer going. It was unclear what was inside.

In the courtyard, only her sister and mother were there. Aunt Lin and Aunt Li were nowhere to be seen.

"Sister, you’re back so early? Where are Aunt Lin and Aunt Li?"

Lin Shu replied, "Aunt Li went home after helping clean up the kitchen, and Aunt Lin went to bring tea to Zhao San and the others."

Actually, it was because Lin Shu had subtly hinted that she was going to make a special snack using a secret recipe.

Both Lin Zhaodi and Li Chunmiao were smart enough to understand her meaning, so they didn’t linger in the courtyard and made themselves scarce voluntarily.

Lin Shu had considered whether to be more generous, since it was a snack. But then she thought better of it—that she had to prioritize her own family, especially with a husband who had a hollow leg. If he didn’t have enough to eat, why share with others?

In life, you sometimes have to be a little selfish. She hadn’t kept the recipe for the wild vegetable dumplings a secret because dandelions grew everywhere—there were more than enough for everyone. But the Grass Jelly Plant was different—it only grew in a few spots on the mountain. Once it was gone, it was gone.

"Sister, what’s steaming in the pot?" Lin Xiaopu asked curiously.

He Guixiang smiled and replied, "She steamed a bowl of mung beans. A Shu said she’s trying a different method for today’s snack. The mung beans need to be steamed until they’re good and soft."

Lin Xiaopu’s eyes lit up. Before she could ask, Lin Shu explained with a smile, "Aunt Li brought two sweet melons, and we still have Aunt Lin’s cucumbers. We’ll use them as fruit today to make fruit ice jelly!"

The juice extracted from the Grass Jelly Plant solidified into a texture more like tofu, which is why it was called Guanyin Tofu. It wasn’t quite the same as the jiggly texture of ice jelly, but it made a decent substitute. They didn’t have sweet red beans, but they had mung beans—steamed until they were good and soft, they made a fine substitute!