Chapter 54: Many Treasures on the Plains

"You...brother, look at her! She has no manners when standing or sitting, and she has such a bad temper!"

Wen Liyu looked at Cheng Weiyao's fearless attitude, pouted and stomped her feet, then reached out and grabbed Wen Chengyun's sleeve, hoping that he would help her get justice.

The corners of Cheng Weiyao's mouth twitched slightly. As expected, as long as everything was peaceful, her sister-in-law would be restless and come out to find trouble, and even call out "Giegie" in a coquettish voice. If she were in modern times, she would be a complete green tea!

"Ayu, stop messing around and get back to the team."

Wen Chengyun frowned slightly and lightly pulled back the end of his sleeve. The exile team was divided into teams of men and women. Wang Gang and his group had always disliked the Prince Qingping's Mansion. Ah Yu's behavior was undoubtedly asking for trouble.

Wen Liyu was so scared by Wen Chengyun's look that she dared not make any more trouble. She had no choice but to return to the group of female relatives with a pout, but she stayed away from Cheng Weiyao in a huff and followed the Imperial Concubine.

Without Wen Liyu's nagging beside her, Cheng Weiyao felt at peace and began to scavenge for food along the way. The plains were fertile and open, with lush vegetation. Wild edible plants like leek, Chinese toon, and spiny clover grew, their branches and leaves spreading in the wind, a delightful sight.

Before vegetarian dishes were fully developed, wild ingredients were mostly treated as weeds or landscape plants, sipping morning dew and evening rain, and basking in the breeze and warm sunshine.

As a chef, Cheng Weiyao could not bear to see these ingredients fend for themselves, so she quietly reached out and plucked some as she passed by. She even saw clusters of wild black fungus on the tree stump. The double-petaled fungus was embedded in the tree, like pieces of floating clouds, with big, fat and smooth ears.

Wood ear mushrooms have little water content and are easy to dry. They can be dried in one day in good weather. They are also less susceptible to insect pests and are easy to preserve. With the help of QQ Farm, it is no problem to store them for several years. This is definitely the best food choice on your journey of exile!

Thinking of this, Cheng Wei Yao became cautious and put part of the fruit in a basket, while the other part was moved directly into the farm for cultivation.

Wood ear mushrooms can grow on logs, stumps or rotten wood of broad-leaved trees. Cheng Weiyao's QQ Farm had just harvested a batch of fruits, and the remaining fruit trees could be put to good use.

"What are you staring at? The team has already stopped, and you're still staring at where you're going?"

Wen Liyu looked at Cheng Weiyao who was walking forward in a daze, reached out and grabbed her sleeve, feeling a little uneasy inside. Her previous words were a bit harsh, but there was no need to be in a daze all the way until now, right?

Pulled by Wen Liyu, Cheng Weiyao's consciousness logged out of QQ Farm. She blinked and looked around, only to find that the exile team had stopped and the officials were gathering for a meeting.

"What's that in your hand? It's dirty. Don't bring back strange things. What if it's poisonous?"

Wen Liyu's attention was attracted by the black fungus in Cheng Weiyao's hand. When it comes to unknown food, people are used to relying on appearance to judge its dangerousness.

She knew Cheng Weiyao was a brave person, even plucked wild mushrooms from the street to make soup, but luck wasn't always so good, and gamblers often didn't meet with a good end...

"There aren't so many poisonous ones. If I didn't know them, I wouldn't dare to catch them. I'll show you how to make something delicious later."

Cheng Weiyao grinned. Her sister-in-law was quite cute when she wasn't being mean. Although her personality was a little awkward, it was only right for her to care about her. Why did she have to be so sharp-tongued?

When Wen Chengming heard that Cheng Weiyao was going to cook, he immediately stood up and trotted over from the Imperial Concubine's side. He looked at Cheng Weiyao with sparkling eyes and said, "Sister-in-law, what delicious food do you want to cook? I'll help you!"

Wen Liyu was the one who felt a little embarrassed. Her attitude was so bad before, but Cheng Weiyao not only didn't care, but even prepared food for everyone...

She clenched her fist and coughed softly: "Cheng Ming, you are so young, how can you help? Go back to your mother's place, your sister and sister-in-law are enough here..."

Cheng Weiyao paused as she was about to set the pot. Hadn't Wen Liyu just complained about the dirty fungus in her hand? Now she was willing to help out. Women's minds really change in an instant!

"No, as a man of great stature, how can I do such a spineless thing as getting something for nothing just to make a living?"

Wen Chengming had a stern face and a serious expression, looking like a smaller version of an old scholar. Seeing that, Cheng Weiyao smiled and simply reached out to rub his little head.

"Cheng Ming is right. None of you can expect to eat for free. Ah Yu, take Cheng Ming to the stream to wash the vegetables in the basket..."

Cheng Wei Yao assigned tasks to others and started to arrange the firewood, preparing to heat the oil in a pot in a moment.

The stream was located not far from the resting place. The two of them, one big and one small, were quite diligent and soon came back with the washed ingredients.

Wen Liyu watched Cheng Weiyao roll up her sleeves, revealing a small piece of fair skin. She frowned and pursed her lips: "Your sleeves..."

"Special cases, special treatment. It's just a little bit of effort. Don't ordinary people who work in the tea picking field also roll up their sleeves? Labor is the most glorious thing..."

Cheng Weiyao glanced at Wen Liyu's face, immediately guessed the meaning of her words, and explained briefly.

That's what the servants do! Wen Liyu thought to herself, but then she thought, Cheng Weiyao was a concubine of the Duke's Mansion before she got married, and she was even dragged here to marry. Her life was probably not much better than that of a servant...

She suddenly felt uncomfortable, so she decided not to move. She stood in front of the pot like a human stand, using her body to block Cheng Weiyao's arm from everyone's sight.

Cheng Weiyao looked at Wen Liyu standing with her chest crossed and a proud look on her face, and couldn't help laughing. Usually, when oil was burning, this lady would stay away, fearing that the fumes would be bad for her delicate skin...

The oil left in the pot has been heated to 90% hot. After pouring in the green onions, ginger and garlic, the aroma quickly burst out. Add the fungus and toon and stir-fry together. Considering people like the Imperial Concubine and Wen Chengming who need special care, Cheng Weiyao plans to stir-fry them a little softer.

Therefore, after stir-frying for 1 minute, Cheng Weiyao added a tablespoon of water and salt and baked it slightly until the color of the fungus turned from gray to black. A plate of crispy, tender and smooth fried fungus was officially out of the pot!

"It smells so good... Princess Qingping is cooking again. Should we hurry up and learn how to cook?"

"Is that black food from the tree stump? Is it edible? This tree stump is completely rotten..."