Chapter 138

Chapter 138: Chow Time

Lin Shu felt like she'd put up with enough already. Although Sweetwater Village was nestled against the mountains and the nights weren't too bad once summer started, that was only when there was a night breeze—the days were unbearable.

She had been napping indoors and had already been woken up twice by the heat. If this dragged on into midsummer, even the night wind would be hot. How was anyone supposed to cope?

She didn’t want to just endure; she wanted to cool off a bit.

Although Wang Yingen and the others found Lin Shu’s request strange, they figured Sister A Shu, being so smart, must have a good reason for it. Moreover, they were delighted that Sister A Shu was giving them a job to do—it made them feel valued in a way they never had before.

More importantly, they could get rewards from Sister A Shu. The feeling of being rewarded after working was truly wonderful.

Wang Yingen quickly thumped his chest earnestly and said, "Sister A Shu, no big deal! You can count on us!"

There were close to a hundred households in Sweetwater Village. If they took a little soil from the base of each house’s walls—not too much, or the grown-ups would scold them—just a small jarful from each, it would add up to a lot.

If some owners didn't let them dig at all, he remembered there were a few abandoned old huts in the village where they could start by shoveling the foundation soil.

If that still wasn’t enough… well, they could dig soil from around the outhouses.

Every household in the village had an outhouse, usually built outside the courtyard—some behind the houses, some a bit farther away. Digging a little soil from the area outside the outhouses shouldn’t bother anyone, but… well, the outhouses were so smelly they'd have to tough it out while digging, especially since Sister A Shu said the closer to the outhouse, the better.

Lin Shu showed Wang Yingen and the others a small bamboo shovel. "Come to my yard tomorrow, and I’ll have Brother A Ye make each of you a shovel like this for digging. I’ll dig a pit outside the yard, and you can put the soil you collect into it. Once the pit is full, your task is complete."

Wang Yingen and Sun Laifu and the others were overjoyed when they saw the small bamboo shovel in Lin Shu’s hand.

As mischievous kids, they had all played with mud before, but they never had proper tools like shovels—they usually just dug with a stick they found. A shovel like this would make digging way easier! Plus, it looked like fun.

"Alright, Sister A Shu, don’t worry—we’ll make sure to finish the task properly!"

Lin Shu waved her hand. "Go on, you can all go play now."

Seeing this, Wang Yingen knew there wouldn’t be any supper for them. But since they had just been given a new task, they weren’t too disappointed.

They were already quite satisfied after having that bowl of fruit ice jelly in the yard at noon.

The boisterous crowd of kids soon left. Lin Xiaopu didn’t go with them—she hadn't done her studying for the day yet, and later A-Shu would tell her a story. She loved listening to A-Shu's stories; she could learn a lot from them.

He Guixiang knew the two needed the table, so she moved the fabric and sewing basket to a low table in the yard and continued working while sitting on a small bamboo stool.

With Lin Zhaodi helping, measuring and cutting the fabric became much easier.

Before long, the steady, unhurried sound of A-Shu teaching could be heard from inside the house. Lin Zhaodi listened, feeling increasingly calm.

This kind of life, free from arguments and schemes, was what she had always wanted. Every time she entered the Zhao household, it was either her sister-in-law smilingly asking her to lend a hand even when the task could be done alone, or it was her second sister-in-law using busyness as an excuse to dump work on her while pretending it was for her own good. Her mother-in-law was even worse—one face in front of outsiders and San Lang, another when San Lang wasn’t around. She saw the two sisters-in-law bullying her openly and secretly but felt it was only natural. Her father-in-law never said anything, but his eyes were full of dissatisfaction and disdain.

They all disliked her for not being able to bear a son for the Zhao family, thinking she was just a freeloader. Those who ate for free should work more.

But was it right for a daughter-in-law who couldn’t bear children to be worked to death in other ways?

Lin Zhaodi wasn’t afraid of hardship. If they had treated her sincerely, she would have taken on the hard work herself without them having to push it onto her. But since they forced it on her, she refused to give them the satisfaction.

He Guixiang noticed how skillfully she handled the fabric and couldn’t help but feel surprised. "Zhao Di, you’ve done quite a bit of needlework, haven’t you?"

Lin Zhaodi smiled. "Since I was eleven, all the needlework at home was done by me. But I only know how to do rough mending—nothing like Sister Qiaohua, who can also embroider. After marrying Zhao San, I also tailored and sewed clothes for him and my in-laws."

In the first three years of marriage, she had been a good daughter-in-law to the Zhao family—respecting her in-laws, deferring to her older brothers and sisters-in-law, and doing much of the heavy and rough work. But as the years passed and she still couldn’t conceive, the Zhao family’s attitude toward her gradually changed. Her heart grew cold, and she no longer cared about being a good daughter-in-law or sister-in-law.

Lin Zhaodi said this calmly, without a trace of self-pity. She knew that He Guixiang had suffered even more than she did in the past.

Few women in this world are free from hardship, especially those born into poor families like them.

He Guixiang didn’t say anything, only silently patted Lin Zhaodi’s shoulder.

For a woman who had a difficult life in her birth family, marrying into a good husband’s family could mean escaping hardship, but marrying into a bad one would be like jumping from the frying pan into the fire.

And judging whether the husband’s family is good or not isn’t just about the man himself—it also depends on the in-laws and the brothers- and sisters-in-law.

“Sister-in-law, I’m doing just fine. You don’t need to comfort me,” Lin Zhaodi said.

The thought of the ice jelly venture filled her with joy, and she couldn’t wait to share this happiness with Zhao San. But she decided to save these words for when they were alone tonight.

When the sound of Lin Shu’s lessons stopped in the main room, Lin Zhaodi figured it was about time and called out, “A Shu, shall I start cooking the congee first?”

In the village, dinner usually consisted of congee with pickles. The congee could be cooked ahead of time.

From inside the room, Lin Shu responded, “Once the congee is cooked and scooped out, I’ll use the iron pan to make flatbreads.”

Truthfully, Lin Shu craved scallion flatbreads more, but those required a lot of oil. Not to mention cooking for a large group now, she hadn’t spared the oil to make them on ordinary days.

Once she received the final payment for the Termitomyces mushroom sauce, she would treat herself and make a few scallion flatbreads!

Lin Zhaodi said, “Flatbreads? Another treat I’ve never tried before.”

In the village, making flatbreads in a pan was rare. Usually, they made hearty wheat cakes—palm-sized cakes pressed against the pan without any oil, flipped a few times until cooked. As for these flatbreads, Lin Zhaodi had never tasted them.

After He Guixiang explained a bit, Lin Zhaodi understood and thought happily, *Using batter to make flatbreads, and one batch makes a large sheet—A Shu is so good at saving flour for me!* Sister-in-law He even said that the batter could be made thinner, so one bowl of batter could yield several flatbreads!

This time, without Lin Shu having to step in, Lin Zhaodi, upon learning that a lot of wild onions were needed, went out herself and picked a basketful of wild onions.

“Sister-in-law, are these wild onions enough?”

He Guixiang replied, “More than enough! We only need a handful. You’ve picked way too many!”

Lin Zhaodi said cheerfully, “I know it’s too much, but the rest can be planted in the garden plot. Ping Er can just pull some whenever he wants to eat, so A Shu won’t have to go out and gather them.”

He Guixiang was torn between laughter and exasperation. “There are plenty of wild onions outside. Why bother planting them in the garden plot? You’re spoiling her—she’ll just get lazier and lazier.”

“A refined girl like A Shu deserves to be spoiled,” Lin Zhaodi said, grabbing a handful of wild onions and carrying the rest to the garden plot behind the house, where she skillfully planted them in the soil.

She had planted wild onions in the Zhao family’s garden plot before—they were very easy to grow, and Ping Er wouldn’t need to tend to them much.

After the congee was cooked, Lin Zhaodi first scooped some out with a large ladle. When she figured it was ready, she wrapped two wet cloths around the handles of the iron pan and lifted the entire pan, congee and all, from the stove.

He Guixiang gasped, “Zhao Di, you’re really strong!”

Though she was also used to doing chores, her strength was far less than Lin Zhaodi’s. There was still half a pot of congee inside, yet Lin Zhaodi had lifted the entire iron pan, congee and all, from the stove. The day before, when He Guixiang had served the congee, she had scooped it all out without lifting the pan, simply rinsing it with water afterward.

Lin Zhaodi had already transferred the half-pot of congee to a clay pot and turned back to say, “I’m just a bit stronger than most women. I still can’t compare to the men.”

It was precisely because of her strength that her parents had often treated her like a man when she was young. Cooking and washing dishes were considered light work—she had even done tasks like cutting and splitting wood.

Back then, her mother-in-law had chosen her as a daughter-in-law largely because she had a reputation in her village for being capable.

After emptying all the congee from the iron pan, Lin Zhaodi carried it directly to the bamboo water conduit to rinse it with water. “Sister-in-law, having this bamboo water conduit makes using water so convenient. A Shu is so clever!”

She took every chance to praise Lin Shu, doing so countless times throughout the day. At first, He Guixiang would demur modestly, but now she just smiled and let Lin Zhaodi have her way.

He Guixiang also knew how to make these pancakes, so she didn’t let Lin Shu help with the evening's pancake-making. After teaching Lin Zhaodi, she had Lin Zhaodi take over.

She mixed flour with water to form a slightly thin batter—but not too thin, or the pancakes would be difficult to shape—He Guixiang and Lin Shu had made them a few times and had gotten good at mixing the batter, ensuring the pancakes turned out soft and delicious.

Too many eggs had been used over the past two days, so no eggs were added to the batter today.

Although adding eggs made the pancakes softer and more elastic, they were still tasty without them, with a texture more soft and chewy. They set quickly and held up better when flipped.

After mixing the batter, a handful of chopped wild onion was sprinkled in. With the fragrance of the wild onions, the pancakes were sure to taste great.

While the two were mixing the batter, Lin Shu took Lin Xiaopu outside for a stroll to get some exercise, and along the way, she picked two handfuls of mugwort.

Lin Shu washed the mugwort, placed it in a stone mortar, and used a pestle to mash it until green juice was extracted.

By then, Lin Zhaodi had already made about twelve or thirteen pancakes following He Guixiang’s instructions, using up exactly one bowl of batter.

The pancakes looked large but were made thin. A grown man might eat three or four, and with Zhou Ye who ate the most, she estimated she’d need to make about forty pancakes to be enough—exactly three bowls of batter.

Making these pancakes used less flour but meant staying by the stove the whole time, leaving Lin Zhaodi drenched in sweat. He Guixiang occasionally took over for her, but Lin Zhaodi was too embarrassed and soon took over again.

When one bowl of batter was used up, He Guixiang prepared another bowl of thin batter, and Lin Shu took the chance to pour the mugwort juice from the mortar into it.

"Last time, I only told Mom and Aunt Lin about the beauty and health benefits of mugwort but forgot to mention the most important part—eating it. Although mugwort is common everywhere, it’s genuinely good stuff. It’s not just added during Qingming Festival for Qingming cakes; it can also be added to other snacks. Mom, see, adding mugwort juice turns the batter green. The pancakes made from it will be green too."

As she spoke, Lin Shu smiled at Lin Zhaodi and said, "For someone like Aunt Lin, you can eat more of it. You don’t have to put it in pancakes—just have Ping Er add it when making porridge. If it’s too troublesome, just toss a few mugwort leaves directly into the pot."

"Alright! Once I move here, I’ll make mugwort porridge every day!" Lin Zhaodi replied with a laugh.

Just as A Shu had said, the pancakes made with mugwort juice turned out green. They not only looked appealing but also had a faint, fresh scent of mugwort.

After using three large bowls of thin batter, thirty-eight pancakes were made in total, stacked into two large piles and served on two big plates. He Guixiang also brought out a small plate of pickled radish.

Unlike sun-dried radish strips, these pickled radishes were made by marinating radish strips in a specially prepared sweet and sour brine sealed in a jar for three to five days. The result was crispy, tasty, and great with meals. However, most households couldn’t afford sugar and used only salt and vinegar, but the pickled radishes still turned out quite flavorful.

This pickled radish dish showed up on almost every family's table.

When Lin Xiaopu called everyone over for dinner, the men immediately perked up at the sight of the two large stacks of pancakes on the table.

After washing their hands and sitting down, they eagerly grabbed a pancake with their chopsticks. Eventually, they even ditched the chopsticks and ate with their hands.

So delicious! Thin, soft, and fragrant, with the aroma of wild onions mingled with a hint of mugwort. They could easily eat seven or eight of these pancakes!

Seeing Zhou Ye place two pickled radish strips on a pancake and roll it up to eat, Liu Erzhuang followed suit. It had to be said, eating it this way gave it a different taste.

Lin Dashan, who was experienced in eating pancakes, suddenly remembered something and called out to Lin Shu’s table, "Daughter, where did you put our Termitomyces sauce?"

When He Guixiang heard this, she really wanted to give Lin Dashan a hard knock on the head.

As Lin Dashan’s wife, she knew all too well that he was showing off again.

But couldn’t he see how many mouths were at the table? How could that small amount of Termitomyces sauce be enough for everyone?! Besides, A Shu had used a lot of oil to make that sauce, and oil cost money. How could he be so willing to share it?!

He Guixiang was not a stingy person, but she couldn’t bring herself to generously share food that had cost so much oil to make. Whose money grew on trees?!

Zhou Ye also glanced subtly at Lin Dashan. The Termitomyces sauce belonged to A Shu.

No matter how Uncle Ping Er used him to curry favor, he had no complaints. But if A Shu was unwilling to share her things, he didn’t want her to feel forced.

Liu Erzhuang, however, had already heard and asked curiously, "Uncle Lin, what is this Termitomyces sauce?"

Lin Dashan chuckled and explained, "It’s made from the Termitomyces mushrooms you had in the Termitomyces soup yesterday. It’s incredibly fragrant—a sauce my A Shu came up with. It’s delicious whether mixed with rice or noodles. Wrapping it in these pancakes is especially tasty!"

Just hearing about it made Liu Erzhuang and Wang Zhangshun salivate.

Any sauce sold in town was expensive, and even wealthier villagers only bought vinegar or soy sauce at most, unwilling to spend money on other sauces. They never expected Sister Lin Shu to be able to make her own sauce.

Lin Shu, however, didn’t indulge Lin Dashan. She replied with a smile, "Dad, what’s left is too little for all of you to share. You wouldn’t want to hog it all, would you? I’ll make more another day so you can eat your fill."

When Zhou Ye heard this, he hid a smile behind his bowl as he took a big sip of porridge.

He had worried too much. A Shu would never let others take advantage of her. If she didn’t want to do something, no one could force her.

Lin Shu happened to glance his way and saw him burying his face in his bowl, drinking porridge eagerly. She couldn’t help but wonder, *How can he be so hungry after eating such a large bowl of fruit ice jelly at noon?*

She guessed A Ye had ignored her advice again and worked too hard.

Seizing the opportunity, she said to Uncle Zhao San, "Uncle Zhao San, I’d like to borrow A Ye for half a day tomorrow. I want him to accompany me to the mountains to gather some mushrooms. I’ve pretty much picked all the ones on the back hill."

Of course, this wasn’t entirely true—Termitomyces grew quickly, and since she hadn’t damaged the roots when picking them, they would regrow in about seven or eight days. But her words weren’t entirely false either. Although the back hill was large, she had already picked all the mushrooms in the nearby areas.

The mushrooms on the back hill couldn’t compare to those in the deep, dense forests three miles away.

She had long wanted to explore those mountains.

And—

Zhou Ye looked up at her when he heard her words. Lin Shu met his gaze, a mischievous smile flashing in her eyes—one only he could understand.

She missed A Ye. She wanted to be alone with him.

The deep forests were perfect—no one would disturb them, and they wouldn’t have to sneak around if they wanted to do anything.