Chapter 24: Braised Dishes

Chapter 24: Braised Dishes

After the Major Snow solar term, Xiaowan Village experienced several snowfalls in succession. During the slack season, without doing heavy labor, most families reduced their meals and stayed home to hibernate through the winter.

Although it was a time of rest, no one was truly idle. Men chopped firewood and repaired houses and furniture, while women tidied up the household and did sewing and mending.

All of this still required some effort, and the usual thin, watery meals were clearly insufficient. Before the evening meal, many people's stomachs were already growling in protest.

Just as they were planning to tough it out until the evening meal, an inescapable, mouthwatering aroma wafted through the air.

On this day, everyone in Xiaowan Village involuntarily swallowed and searched for the source of this smell.

Yang Shu and Yang Mu were a pair of twin brothers. At dawn, they went to the hills behind the village to gather dry firewood.

By noon, they had filled two back carriers, tying them with hemp ropes and carrying them on their backs like small hills. The two burly men were bent over like curled-up shrimp under the weight of the firewood, nearly disappearing from sight.

Having only found a few winter wild fruits to quench their thirst all morning, they were already ravenous and couldn't wait to go home for a meal.

Halfway there, they caught a rich aroma that made their mouths water uncontrollably, their stomachs growling and aching with hunger.

With keen noses, they roughly pinpointed the direction of the smell and indeed saw a chimney emitting white smoke at the foot of a hill not far away.

That area was far from the village center, now home to only one household.

The two exchanged a knowing glance and quickened their pace.

Fu Yun had sharp ears. As soon as there was any movement outside, he would go out like an alert puppy to inspect.

He saw two "small hills" with legs slowly approaching him.

Just as he stood frozen with wide eyes, the "small hills" actually spoke.

"Uncle."

The "small hills" trembled for a moment and crashed to the ground. The twin brothers straightened their shrimp-like backs and greeted him in unison.

Fu Yun stared at them wordlessly for a moment, then turned around, closed the door, and quickly went inside to call someone.

Brother! There are two monsters outside.

Lin Su was pushed out the door by him and saw two honest, dark-skinned youths calling him "Uncle Su." He immediately recognized them.

The original owner's grandparents were outsiders who had long since lost all relatives. They had injured themselves during their escape and had only one son: the original owner's father.

They used their meager savings to build two thatched cottages and bought two odd corner plots of land to survive.

The family was dirt poor, so the original owner's father had to forage in the mountains. Over the years, with his natural talent, he became an excellent hunter and came across generous buyers, gradually improving the family's conditions.

But this all happened after the original owner was born. Before that, his father was so poor that he couldn't find a wife even well past marrying age.

The original owner's mother was not from a nearby village. She lived several mountains away and was accidentally rescued by the original owner's father while he was hunting, which led to their marriage.

The two married, but her family looked down on his father. Due to the distance, they rarely visited. The only exception was her maternal aunt Xu Shi, who also married into the same village and had a good relationship with the original owner's mother.

Xu Shi had four children but raised only one son and one daughter to adulthood. The only ones in the village who called him "Uncle" were the children of Xu Shi's eldest daughter, who married into the Yang family.

"Ah, nephew Yang, come in and sit."

Inside the house, Fu Yun was just bringing out the sliced braised dishes. Lin Su set out four sets of chopsticks and bowls and invited the shy twin brothers standing by the door: "I just made some new dishes today. You two can help me taste them and tell me how they taste."

The two youths exchanged a glance, their dark faces turning red to the roots of their ears.

In those days, dropping by uninvited for a meal was very impolite. They were simply starving, and they had been seduced by the mouthwatering aroma. Only now did they realize it was inappropriate.

But thinking of their mother's cooking and smelling the food on the table, neither could bring themselves to walk away.

Yang Shu was quick-witted. Seeing the abundant dishes on the table, he immediately agreed: "Alright! Uncle Su, we picked some firewood and left it at your doorstep."

Yang Mu's eyes lit up. His older brother was clever—they could trade firewood for a meal.

Two loads of firewood could fetch a dozen or so coppers in town. He wondered if that would be enough for the meal. They could eat less, just taste those fragrant dishes, and then go home for another meal.

Lin Su didn't expose their little tricks and readily accepted.

After all, he had made a large batch of braised dishes, and he genuinely needed more firewood. For a rural stove, burning firewood was cheaper than burning charcoal.

The dishes were set out: two plates of assorted vegetarian items, and five plates of meat—one of pig head meat and ears, one of pig trotters, one of pork hocks, and one of pork stomach and large intestine.

The plates were large, and the square table was completely filled. The Yang brothers stared wide-eyed.

Heavens above, was this the New Year?

Lin Su urged them to eat, and Fu Yun, sitting beside him, quickly started eating with his chopsticks. After the first bite, he moved even faster, his chopsticks nearly blurring with motion.

The Yang brothers waited for Lin Su to start, then timidly took a chopstickful of vegetables. As soon as they put it in their mouths, their eyes widened.

Wood ear can be this delicious?

The normally soft and mushy wood ear was now crunchy and bouncy, making a crisp sound as they chewed. It was spicy, savory, and fragrant, making them eat more rice.

Yang Mu picked up some tofu skin. The thick tofu skin, usually hard to flavor, had absorbed the broth perfectly, full of flavor without being mushy—chewy and satisfying!

They never imagined that vegetarian items could be made so delicious, even more satisfying than meat, and not greasy at all.

Fu Yun, who had been only picking up meat, saw how much they were enjoying the vegetables and picked up a slice of lotus root.

"Crack!"

The lotus root crunched with a crisp sound, spicy with a hint of sweetness. Fu Yun's eyes lit up—he loved this flavor.

He picked up another slice of lotus root, but this time it wasn't crisp; it was soft and sticky, equally delicious.

For a moment, the three youths somehow started competing for the vegetables. Even though there was another plate on the table, they only snatched from the same one.

Maybe fighting over food was a child's nature—the faster they ate, the more delicious it seemed.

Lin Su shook his head and steered clear of them, enjoying the other plate of vegetables on his own. He hadn't made braised dishes for years, but they were still delicious.

Must be talent!

The entire table of food was polished off, leaving them all stuffed. Even the big eater Fu Yun gave up, slumped over the table in a food coma.

The Yang brothers looked at the disarray of empty plates and realized how much they had eaten. Their faces flushed red with embarrassment.

If their mother were here, she would scold them—how could they eat like they were starving at someone's house? It's not like they were starving at home. It was so improper.

They quickly stood up and began clearing the dishes, hoping that by working quickly and diligently, they wouldn't leave an impression of being lazy and greedy on Uncle Su.

Fu Yun sprawled over the table, watching the two men snatch the job from him like a whirlwind, looking bewildered, but he was too full to argue with them—he would let them off for today.

Lin Su leaned back in the armchair like a big shot, not stopping them.

After all, the two men’s thin faces were dark red with embarrassment—if he didn’t let them work, they’d probably turn so red they’d bleed.

He took a little of each leftover braised dish from the kitchen, wrapped them in two oilpaper packets, and told the two brothers to take one home to eat and the other to give to their maternal family.

Both refused to take them, so Lin Su simply stuffed them into their arms, "Take them. Let your uncle taste them too, and pick out the ones suitable for the food stall. Don't delay making money."

They had no choice but to accept. Before leaving, they unloaded the firewood tied to their carrying racks, arranged it neatly in the kitchen, and then departed.