In the coolest, darkest corner of the kitchen, two wooden basins sat quietly. One basin had been prepared five days ago, and the other two days ago. Both were now covered with thick cloths, on which was placed a saucer, and on top of that, a small stone. This peculiar arrangement resembled some kind of ritual, giving it a mysterious air.

Because Cheng Ruyi had specifically instructed that the sprouts must not be exposed to light, saying that if they were exposed to light they would turn yellow and become malnourished, which would be a waste of food. Although no one knew what "malnutrition" meant, it sounded quite serious, so no matter how curious they were, they dared not lift the lid to peek. Therefore, apart from Xu Cui, no one else had seen what was inside these past few days.

At this moment, Cheng Ruyi brought out the plate of bean sprouts from five days ago. Squatting on the ground, she removed the stones and plates while explaining, "These bean sprouts can usually be eaten after five days, but they will grow even better if they are allowed to sprout for seven days. This time I sprouted one pound of soybeans, which should yield seven to ten pounds of bean sprouts, enough for us to eat for several days. That's why I decided to start harvesting on the fifth day so we can eat them for several days in a row. After we finish that, the second pot can be harvested."

The whole family stood in a circle around the plate of bean sprouts, all eagerly anticipating what these legendary bean sprouts would look like.

Cheng Ruyi and Xu Cui were even more excited, after all, they had been taking great care of the two plates of bean sprouts. Cheng Ruyi had even been secretly sprinkling water mixed with crushed Bigu pills from time to time, because they couldn't let them not grow well!

As the thick cloth was lifted, everyone finally saw the bean sprouts in all their glory: their plump, white bodies were about the length of a finger, looking tender and juicy, with tiny yellow buds on top.

"This is sprouted vegetables. It looks quite fresh; I don't recall ever seeing it before!" Cheng Yan's expression was inscrutable upon seeing the sprouted vegetables, as if he were pondering something. "If it's true that one pound of soybeans can produce ten pounds of sprouted vegetables, it would indeed be a good thing for ordinary people..."

Xu Cui didn't care about the other people, only about the bean sprouts: "Ruyi, how are they? Are the bean sprouts growing well? Are there any... or anything bad about them?"

"Don't worry, Aunt Cui, these bean sprouts are growing very well, thanks to your care these past few days. Tonight for dinner, I'll stir-fry a dish with these bean sprouts so everyone can try it. I guarantee you'll all be satisfied!"

Cheng Ruyi was extremely excited. These past few days, she hadn't dared to eat vegetables freely; if it weren't for the detoxifying function of the Bigu Pill, she probably would have been constipated long ago. Now, she could finally eat vegetables freely!

Xu Cui was overjoyed to hear this, and patted her chest exaggeratedly, saying, "Oh, then I'm relieved! You know, I've been worried about you day and night these past few days, and I almost couldn't even eat!"

"Aunt Cui, didn't you just say yesterday that if you ate too much, you'd do that weird post-meal exercise with Mom?" Yun An, the master of witty remarks, silently activated her skills.

"I mean almost! Almost!"

"A strange sport? What's strange about it?"

Xu Cui and Cheng Ruyi both expressed their dissatisfaction.

The new dish for dinner that day, "stir-fried bean sprouts with chives," once again amazed the whole family. The refreshing bean sprouts and the rich chives complemented each other perfectly. If we had the option, adding eggs, shredded pork, and glass noodles would have made the dish even more delicious!

However, this is simple, delicious, and nutritious. The key point is that the portion is generous, a big plate full, which is definitely enough to fill you up. It is the most unrestrained meal that everyone has had since the lockdown.

Cheng Ruyi happily planned out the various home-style dishes she could make with bean sprouts, counting on her fingers as she said, "Tomorrow I'll make stir-fried bean sprouts with cured pork; we need to eat some meat occasionally to replenish our bodies. The day after tomorrow, I can make bean sprout soup, which is light and refreshing. And the day after that, I'll make stir-fried bean sprouts with eggs, which is also very delicious!"

Everyone was already full, but hearing the names of these dishes makes us feel like we could eat a few more.

Only Cheng Yan's expression had been off ever since she saw the bean sprouts. Cheng Ruyi noticed it too, but felt that she should wait until Cheng Yan had thought things through before she would speak to her.

Sure enough, when Ruyi was resting alone in her room after dinner, Cheng Yan knocked on the door and came in.

"Ruyi, how many soybeans do we have left?" Cheng Yan asked after thinking for a moment.

“Aunt Cui and I bought about fifty-odd catties before, and we usually have about five or six catties left over at home. Dad, what you want to ask is how long this will last us?”

Cheng Ruyi felt that Cheng Yan was probably worried about this, so she did some mental calculations: "Based on the sprouting situation just now, if we calculate on average, one pound of soybeans can sprout about eight pounds of bean sprouts. So, all the soybeans in our house can sprout more than four hundred pounds of bean sprouts. Even if we eat three pounds a day, it's enough for us to eat for five months!"

Actually, this is already a conservative estimate. With the blessing of the Bigu Pill, sprouting ten pounds of bean sprouts from one pound of soybeans is absolutely no problem, and it may even be more. But Ruyi can't tell Cheng Yan this, so she can only keep a low profile.

Besides, it's impossible to eat this every day. Even dragon meat wouldn't taste good if you ate it every day! So, Ruyi thinks it's not impossible to eat this for more than half a year, since there are other vegetables at home anyway.

After hearing this, Cheng Yan did not feel relieved. Instead, he became even more serious, and it was unclear what he was thinking.

"Father, what are you worried about?" Ruyi asked, somewhat puzzled.

Cheng Yan sighed and said, "No, I was just thinking about some past events. None of that matters anymore. By the way, what I wanted to talk to you about is, are you only planning to eat these bean sprouts yourselves? Have you considered selling them? Or trading them with someone else?"

“Even in normal times, there aren’t many fresh vegetables available in winter, let alone in the current situation. I think these bean sprouts will definitely be popular. Perhaps they can be used to exchange for some things that we don’t have or lack at home.”

Cheng Ruyi suddenly realized! That's right! How come she hadn't thought of that? Her family was lacking so many things!

"I think it's a good idea! I was silly before, only thinking about eating at home, hahaha!"

"Don't be too happy yet. Let me ask you first, how did you find out the recipe for these bean sprouts?" Cheng Yan asked, voicing his biggest question.

Ruyi thought to herself, "Here it comes! The lines I've been preparing can finally be used: 'I heard about this from Ayun before. He said he had seen this recipe in a book and thought it was amazing. He even asked me to try it, but I had just given birth to Yunle at the time, so I didn't have time to try it and it was eventually forgotten.'"

The perfect excuse is to shift all the blame onto the deceased. Although it's a bit unkind, Cheng Ruyi believes that her "husband" would not blame her if he knew in the afterlife.

Surprisingly, Cheng Yan didn't dwell on this too much. After listening, he simply nodded and said, "Hmm, that's a decent reason. You can use it to brush someone off if they ask."

Cheng Ruyi...

"Here's what we'll do: give me a few pounds tomorrow, and I'll take them to Old Wei. He always tries to put on a show of wealth, buying more things than others. His yard is piled high with all sorts of random stuff. He doesn't even consider that there are only a few people in his family, and they could use it all up in years! I'll go over there tomorrow and exchange some things with him!"

The "old Wei" that Cheng Yan mentioned was his "tea friend," whose real name was Wei Zhi. He lived next door to Cheng's house. The two were of similar age and had many common topics. They had been neighbors for decades and used to enjoy spending half a day together at the teahouse when they had nothing to do. They would drink tea and listen to the storyteller tell stories. This was one of Cheng Yan's few hobbies.

In recent years, the children of the Wei family have gone out to make a living in the prefectural city and the capital, leaving only the old couple at home. The Wei family and the Cheng family have similar layouts, both being small courtyards. The two old people felt it was a pity to leave the several side rooms empty, and they also thought it would be more lively with more people, so they rented one of the side rooms to a scholar.

Cheng Yan was probably still a little worried about his old friend, which is why he went to visit him under the guise of delivering vegetables.

Ruyi thought for a moment and replied, "That's a good idea. We should prioritize people we know and are reliable. After all, we need to eat it ourselves, and we don't have much to exchange. Let's go for a niche, affordable luxury route."

Cheng Yan was stunned: "What did you say? What light and what line?"

"Ahem, what I meant was that I'd go with Dad tomorrow, since I know better what the family needs." Ruyi quickly changed her mind.

"Alright, that's settled then." Cheng Yan said, getting up to leave. After stepping out of the room, he suddenly turned back and said, "From now on, read less nonsense novels and go to bed early!"

Cheng Ruyi again...

*

The next day, after breakfast, Ruyi went to the kitchen and picked three catties of sprouts, wrapped them in a rag and put them in a basket. Then she went with Cheng Yan to the Wei family next door.

The two elderly people were immediately surprised when they heard that the Cheng family had come to deliver fresh vegetables to them.

“Your family is so big, you can’t even eat that little bit of food for more than a few days, why bother sending it!” Wei Zhi looked at the basket with disdain and refused outright.

Instead of getting angry, Cheng Yan laughed and said, "Hey! You really don't know what's good for you. Let me tell you, our vegetables are special, they're rare, you've never seen them before! If it weren't for the fact that you often treat me to tea, I wouldn't have let you try them!"

"Nonsense! I never invite you for tea so often!" Wei Zhi was startled and quickly turned to his wife, Zhong, to explain, "Really, I never do. Please don't believe his nonsense."

"What do you mean, 'no'? Didn't you say that you..." when you invited me to Qingfeng Teahouse last month?

"Alright! We'll take these vegetables. Hurry up and bring them over. Why are you talking so much nonsense!" Wei Zhi interrupted Cheng Yan with lightning speed, reached for the vegetable basket, and opened the cloth bag, letting out a "Huh?" sound.

The white and tender sprouts instantly caught the attention of Mr. Wei and his wife.

Mrs. Zhong picked up one of the stalks, examined it closely, smelled it, and then exclaimed, "I've never seen a vegetable like this before! It looks so fresh. Oh, Ruyi, what's it called? How do you cook it?"

"Oh? Oh, this is called sprouts. I just started growing them recently. My family ate some yesterday and found it quite novel, so Dad said he wanted to let you try it! It's very easy to make. You can stir-fry it or add chives, eggs, and shredded meat. You can also make soup with it. It's all very light and refreshing."

Ruyi was taken aback by Cheng Yan's eloquent manner and reacted a beat too slowly. She had always thought her father was the honest, kind, and taciturn type, but she never expected him to be a completely different person when talking to his best friend.

Upon hearing this, Madam Zhong took Ruyi's hand and led her towards the kitchen: "Come on, come on! Ruyi, help me out, let's try it now~~"