Chapter 24: Dried Shrimp Stewed Tofu

Chapter 24: Dried Shrimp and Braised Tofu

During the few days of the examination, although inns in the county town were in high demand, there were still rooms to be had.

After all, it was only the county-level Tongsheng examination.

But for Gu Rong, who was taking the exam for the first time, it was still quite the lively, impressive spectacle.

Gu Wen had arranged for a friend in town to book a room well in advance. Once they arrived, the mule cart didn't stop—it went straight to the inn.

During the examination period, families of students from the villages and towns under the county all flocked into town.

All this foot traffic kicked off a brief boom in local business.

On the way from the city gate to the inn, besides all kinds of shops, stalls were doing a steady business.

With so many people around, Gu Wen had already hopped off the cart for safety, holding the reins and guiding the mule along on foot.

Gu Rong sat in the cart, craning his neck to look around. "Once the exam's over, I'm gonna take a good look around and buy Mom one of those fancy hair flowers they sell in town."

Gu Chaoning sat beside him, caught a whiff of something delicious, and instinctively followed his nose.

It was a pot of fried potato sticks. Golden potato sticks sizzled in the oil, and when scooped out with a bamboo strainer, they came up shiny and golden. Dumped into a big wooden bowl, they made a satisfying crispy clatter.

The stall owner's hands never stopped moving—he used a little spoon to scoop seasonings from a wooden bucket into the bowl, one after another.

As he sprinkled, he held the bowl with his other hand and shook it like a winnowing basket, tossing everything together so the seasonings coated every strip.

The seasonings hitting the hot, fresh-from-the-oil potato sticks sent out an even stronger, mouthwatering smell.

Gu Chaoning figured Gu Muan and Yin Hongxue would love these. He'd have to bring the whole family here sometime.

Before long, they finally reached Qingyun Inn.

Qingyun Inn took its name from the saying about soaring straight to the top. During exam season, it was packed with students.

Gu Wen had his friend book a full month ahead, and even then, they only managed to snag one room.

A single night set them back a hundred wen.

But there was a silver lining—the place was full of students, so the whole inn had a studious vibe. Aside from a few who liked to show off their scholarly airs, everyone kept pretty quiet.

"Hey, folks—here's your room number tag and key!"

Students were streaming into the inn all day, and even with the extra day laborers they'd taken on, the staff was stretched thin.

The waiter, seeing that Gu Wen knew the drill, just handed him the room tag and key and let them find their own way.

To play it safe, the three of them barely left the inn for the two days before the exam—they even had the waiter bring meals up to their room.

After two days of lying low, early on the third morning, Gu Chaoning and the others packed up their exam supplies, and Gu Wen walked them to the examination grounds to wait for inspection.

The Tongsheng exam was simpler than the Xiucai one—just a single session. Candidates entered at the start of the Mao hour (5–7 AM) and left at the end of the Shen hour (3–5 PM), spending six shichen—twelve hours—inside.

Gu Wen wasn't one for long speeches of encouragement. He just told the two boys to take care of themselves. After watching them clear inspection and head inside, he went off to find a stall for breakfast.

Meanwhile, Gu Chaoning had already split off from Gu Rong once they got inside.

He found his exam cubicle by the number on his tag, gave the area a quick once-over, and settled in comfortably.

Thanks to his past life, Gu Chaoning knew the real exam wouldn't start for a while, so he tucked his hands into his padded jacket, closed his eyes, and dozed to save his strength.

Early spring mornings were still nippy, but luckily his jacket was stuffed with thick cotton, so sitting still was manageable.

He sat like that for a while until the gong sounded three times—dong, dong, dong. The yamen runners handed out the exam papers and scratch paper one by one, and the exam began.

Gu Chaoning opened his eyes, feeling sharp and clear-headed.

He took his things and set them out one by one.

His gaze landed on the slightly yellowed paper on the desk.

A brush wet with ink touched the paper. With slow, unhurried strokes, a persimmon tree took shape on the page.

"It's a persimmon tree!" Gu Muan grabbed the table's edge with both hands, bouncing on his toes, his voice full of excitement.

Autumn persimmons were a golden orange, and one bite was sweet and juicy.

Peel them and dry them into persimmon cakes, and over time they'd shrink and flatten, with a dusting of white sugar frost forming on top.

Gu Muan smacked his lips, suddenly hungry all over again.

But while Gu Muan was bouncing with excitement, Yin Hongxue, lost in his drawing, seemed to hear none of it.

His gaze on the paper was a little unfocused, and the brush hovering above it seemed to move on its own. With another stroke, a figure appeared below, holding up a bamboo pole to knock down persimmons.

The figure was small, and Gu Muan couldn't quite make it out. He stretched up on his toes even more, and his voice grew even more excited.

"It's big brother!" He studied the whole picture more closely. "Big brother's picking persimmons... but why won't he give any to An Geer?"

That squeal snapped Yin Hongxue out of his daze. Hearing what Gu Muan said next, he laughed.

Then, with a light flick of his wrist, he slowly added two more figures to the paper—one tall, one short, both gazing up at the persimmons. Two little kids.

"Big brother's picking persimmons for Xue Age and An Geer!" Now Gu Muan was thrilled. "Miamiamia, persimmons are so yummy."

Chen Youyan came back from buying tofu and overheard Gu Muan. Thinking the boy had snuck another persimmon cake, he hurried over to stop him.

"Gu Muan, didn't I tell you no more persimmon cakes? Last time you got all heaty and had to choke down that bitter medicine, you—"

Chen Youyan trailed off. Seeing Gu Muan with his hands spread wide, pretending to hold a persimmon and chewing on nothing but air, he didn't know whether to laugh or sigh.

Especially with those big, sparkling eyes full of pure, soft delight—Chen Youyan's heart melted right then and there.

"Dad." The two little boys called out in unison.

"Mm." Chen Youyan answered, then his eyes landed on the drawing on Yin Hongxue's desk. "Oh wow, our Xue Geer's drawing is gorgeous! Dad can almost see you two hopping around under that tree grabbing persimmons!"

"Dad!" Yin Hongxue felt a little embarrassed by the praise and called out to Chen Youyan, but the words just wouldn't come. All he could do was smile at him, shy and happy at the same time.

Chen Youyan didn't mind one bit. He hadn't seen many paintings, couldn't compare them, and couldn't come up with fancier compliments. He just thought Yin Hongxue's picture of three kids picking persimmons was full of life, so he kept saying how pretty it was. It was Yin Hongxue's first time drawing, too, and Chen Youyan's praise left him shy but glowing.

He had originally meant to practice writing big characters.

But his mind was on Brother Chaoning's exam, and when he looked up and saw the persimmon tree, he was instantly reminded of Gu Chaoning picking persimmons for him and An'er to eat.

As he got lost in these thoughts, he ended up drawing it.

Chen Youyan praised the painting as he studied it closely.

When his eyes landed on the sixth persimmon, it suddenly clicked.

So that was the persimmon An'er had just eaten.

He found it both cute and funny.

"When autumn comes, we'll be able to eat fresh persimmons again." Chen Youyan stepped forward to get a better look at Yin Hongxue's painting while raising the tofu in his hand, "In a bit, I'll make you all some shrimp and tofu stew."

The dried shrimp sun-dried during the New Year, a few peeled and cut into small pieces, are stewed with tofu, wild mushrooms, dried vegetables, and pre-scrambled eggs. Just before serving, a sprinkle of salt is added, and the broth turns milky white, fragrant and savory.

Mixed with steamed rice, even the whole family—including Yin Hongxue, who had a small appetite—could finish two bowls.

"Ah!" Gu Muan jumped with joy, forgetting all about watching Yin Hongxue paint, "I'll help you, Papa!"

What was there to do? The shrimp, tofu, wild mushrooms, and dried vegetables were all clean, but the fresh vegetables needed washing.

Chen Youyan agreed.

This method wasn't tied to fixed ingredients—you could add whatever extra was at home and skip whatever was missing.

For example, dried vegetables could be swapped for fresh, fresh shrimp for dried, and fresh mushrooms for dried.

Only the shrimp, tofu, and scrambled eggs were truly essential.

Too bad the weather was warm now, so they couldn't make frozen tofu.

Otherwise, when the broth was bubbling at its peak, you'd add the frozen tofu. Its bean aroma would blend into the savory soup, while the soup filled the fine pores of the tofu.

After serving, each person gets a bowl. You gently lift the frozen tofu with chopsticks and blow on it to cool it slightly.

But you still can't eat it yet—you have to quickly dip the tofu, now dripping with cooled broth, back into the soup in the bowl once more.

Finally, you pop it into your mouth, and the full flavor of the broth bursts out as your teeth bite through the frozen tofu.

So delicious and fragrant!

Just recalling this, the three of them were already too tempted to sit still.

Gu Muan grabbed Chen Youyan's clothes, hopping up and down as he said: "Papa, Papa, let's go make it now!"

Yin Hongxue couldn't wait either. Though he didn't show it as openly as Gu Muan, he still looked on eagerly from the doorway, then stepped out to stand before Chen Youyan.

Chen Youyan couldn't help but laugh at the three foodies in the house, himself included.

Before leaving, Chen Youyan turned back to shut the open door, then led the two little boys into the kitchen.

A breeze blew in through the wide-open window, rustling the papers on the desk.

Gu Chaoning quickly pressed it down, then carefully and steadily wrote out the answers he'd already worked out.

Across from him sat a student in blue robes, who had already opened his bundle and started eating.

Gu Chaoning had no appetite for the torn steamed buns and flatbreads, so he continued writing until he finished the entire passage before setting down his brush.