Chapter 16 Roasted Chestnuts

Cheng Wanwan touched her head and felt a prickly, round ball prick her hand.

She felt the spiky ball looked familiar, so she pried it open with her fingers and was immediately surprised to find it was a chestnut.

She looked up and saw a chestnut tree overhead, hidden among the old trees. The chestnuts were covered in green shells at this time of year, and from a distance, it was impossible to see that the tree was full of chestnuts.

Just when I was wondering what to eat for dinner, this food was delivered right to my door.

Cheng Wanwan hugged the tree trunk and shook it, causing a large number of chestnuts to fall down.

The commotion caught the attention of Aunt Wang and Aunt Fugui on the outside. Aunt Wang, with her sharp eyes, immediately recognized what it was.

She bent down and picked up three bird eggs from the ground: "Fine, half for each of us, no more fighting over them."

As she spoke, she picked up her basket and, pulling her own loach along, walked towards Cheng Wanwan's direction.

Aunt Fugui wrapped up the bird eggs and quickly followed.

There wasn't just one chestnut tree here; at least three or four were growing together. Three women each shook one tree, and the only sound in the forest was the rustling of the leaves. It was unusual for the group of people to not argue or speak.

Everyone knew that if they were slow, others would rush over and take the few chestnuts they had.

Cheng Wanwan filled an entire basket with picking, and Aunt Wang and Aunt Fugui's baskets were also full. The three of them finally slowed down.

Just then, someone else passed by and quickly joined the chestnut-picking team.

Cheng Wanwan had more than 20 jin of chestnuts in her hands, enough to eat for many days. She didn't want to be greedy and struggled to carry the heavy bamboo basket to meet up with her four sons.

Along the way, she searched carefully in the forest. If she could find a large wild chestnut forest, even if there was no harvest this year, the people of Dahe Village would not go hungry. But to her disappointment, there were only four chestnut trees in this area.

"Mother, these are the wild fruits I found!"

Zhao Sidan presented a handful of green and red fruits as if they were a treasure.

Zhao Dashan and Zhao Ergou also had a good harvest, their baskets filled with wild vegetables and mushrooms. The group then went to find Zhao Sanniu.

He was chopping firewood halfway up the mountain, and a tall stack of dry firewood had already piled up at his feet, tied together with straw rope.

The mother and her five children returned home with a bountiful harvest.

If we go back now, it will still be early, and it's not time to cook dinner yet.

Cheng Wanwan told her sons to quickly peel the chestnuts; she planned to make roasted chestnuts for them as a snack.

These chestnuts are not fully ripe and are quite raw, but they are still edible. After peeling them, wash them clean, cut cross-shaped cuts in them, and steam them in a large pot until cooked.

Pour all the lard rendered in the morning into the pot, heat the oil, add a handful of rock sugar, and cook the rock sugar into syrup.

Wu Huiniang watched from the side, her heart aching. Half a jar of oil, enough to last at least two or three months, and her mother-in-law used it all up in one meal.

Oh well, I haven't touched oily food for the past six months, and I've still managed to get by, haven't I?

After the syrup turns brown, pour a large bowl of chestnuts into the pot and stir-fry them continuously with a spatula. Turn the heat from high to low, and the chestnuts slowly change color.

A breeze blew through, carrying the aroma of chestnuts into the yard. Zhao Dashan, who was busy at work, took a deep breath. "My God, what are they cooking in the kitchen? Why does it smell so good!"

Zhao Sidan dropped what he was doing and rushed into the kitchen, swallowing hard: "Mom, the chestnuts smell so good!"

Cheng Wanwan handed the spatula to Wu Huiniang, and the two took turns frying chestnuts. A large pot of chestnuts was brightly colored, and the flesh at the opening turned yellow, coated with oil and sugar, making it look mouthwatering.

"Here, Si Dan, have one!"

Cheng Wanwan picked up a scalding hot chestnut from the pot and threw it over.

Zhao Sidan jumped up and down from the heat, but he didn't care about the heat. He reached out and peeled off the skin, stuffing the steaming hot chestnut into his mouth. It was very hot, but very fragrant, very sweet, and very soft and glutinous. He never knew chestnuts could taste so good!

A large bowl of roasted chestnuts was placed on the table in the main room to cool.

At this moment, Zhao Erwang stood at the gate of the courtyard and shouted, "Auntie, Grandma asked me to come and deliver chestnuts."

Cheng Wanwan went outside and saw Zhao Erwang holding a large bowl filled with boiled chestnuts, which smelled quite delicious.

Cheng Wanwan took the bowl and said, "Please thank your grandma for me."

Zhao Erwang didn't dare to stay any longer. He had come to visit Er Gou before and was scolded by his aunt. The person he feared most was his aunt. After finishing the task his grandmother had given him, he turned around and ran away as fast as he could.

"This child..."

Cheng Wanwan shook her head; she was still planning to give Erwang some roasted chestnuts to take back.

She walked into the house. A child grabbed a handful of chestnuts and waved, saying, "Go out and play after you finish eating. Come back for dinner in an hour."

With his mouth full of chestnuts, Zhao Sidan mumbled, "Is there any food left today?"

If you can get full just by eating chestnuts, where would you find room for a proper meal?

Cheng Wanwan put away the chestnuts on the table: "These are just for snacking, don't eat too many, or you'll get a stomachache."

Zhao Sidan's pockets were full, and he nodded vigorously with satisfaction.

Since his mother told him to go out and play, he went out and played.

As soon as we reached the big locust tree in the village, we saw a large group of children surrounding the loach next door, and we could hear them swallowing their saliva from afar.

"Hey loach, can you give us one to eat?"

"Brother Loach, can I have a lick of you...?"

Wang Niqiu stood right in the middle, his pockets full of chestnuts, and he ate them one after another with great relish.

The children nearby, whose families didn't have chestnuts, were drooling and staring intently at the chestnuts in Wang Niqiu's pocket.

Many families are eating chestnuts today. The village head's wife also picked a lot on the mountain. Zhao Tiezhu, the village head's eldest grandson, was carrying a bowl, eating as he walked.

The children who were surrounding the loach immediately surrounded the iron pillar.

Zhao Tiezhu was quite generous: "I don't have much left myself, so you can each have half."

Six children surrounded him, and he tossed out three chestnuts. Each child took a bite, their faces full of satisfaction: "Brother Tiezhu, the chestnuts your grandma cooked are so delicious!"

Zhao Tiezhu raised his chin: "This was cooked by my mother. My mother's cooking is the best!"

Wang Niqiu retorted defiantly, "My mother's cooking is the best!"

"Make way, all of you!" Zhao Sidan squeezed in. "My mom's cooking is the best!"

Among these children, there was a rather clever one named Hu Zi. He rolled his eyes and said, "We'll just eat Tie Zhu's. Anyway, Tie Zhu's mother's cooking is definitely the best!"

The five kids next to him chimed in.

Wang Niqiu immediately handed over his chestnuts: "Then you guys hurry up and eat the ones my mom made!"

Zhao Sidan was quick to respond: "And some chestnuts that my mother made, you guys try them!"

A large pile of chestnuts was handed over, and the six children's eyes lit up. They all swallowed them whole in one gulp, but they could still tell whose was the best.

Six pairs of eyes stared intently at Zhao Sidan.

Tiger swallowed hard: "Four Eggs, isn't your mother only good at hitting people? How come she can make such delicious chestnuts?"

"My mom never hits people!" Zhao Sidan raised his chin proudly and said, "My mom is the best mom in the world!"