Chapter 20: Pheasant Soup with Mushrooms

"Yes, the basket is still at the intersection downstairs. I'm going back now. Come visit sometime."

Lin Chuntao got up to see them out, but before she had gone far, she heard Chen scolding the child.

Lin Chunhe pouted and opened her mouth to speak, but Lin Chuntao shushed her, and she swallowed her words.

After everyone had walked away, Chunhe muttered, "Why didn't she just tell us to share half of the mushrooms we picked with her daughter so we could sell them together?"

Lin Chunxing frowned slightly. "Sister, do they know we picked mushrooms to sell?"

"Yeah, when we came back with the buckets, they asked me what I was doing that made a lot of money, and I just said I was picking mushrooms to sell."

"Won't they also pick mushrooms to sell later?" Lin Chunhe asked worriedly.

Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "It's possible, but it's normal. The mountain is so big, anyone can go and pick it up."

"Besides, there are so many people in the county town, but very few people pick mushrooms to sell, so it doesn't have any impact."

As they were talking, the water in the iron pot had already boiled. Pei Ying went inside, took out an earthenware basin, and brought out both chickens, starting to scoop water to scald their feathers.

Once they were almost cooked through, Lin Chuntao said, "Let me do it. Aren't your palms bruised?"

Pei Ying stopped her, saying, "There's no bleeding, I can handle it."

As he spoke, he began to deftly pluck the chicken feathers.

When the younger sisters heard that Pei Ying had a scraped hand, they assumed that Lin Chuntao had fallen with him and hurriedly asked, "Sister, are you hurt?"

Lin Chuntao was both amused and exasperated. "I'm fine. Your brother-in-law just got some skin chafed from pulling a frightened horse." She then recounted what had happened at the market, which made Lin Duo'er's eyes widen in disbelief.

Seeing them like this, Lin Chuntao quickly took the opportunity to remind them.

"If you encounter a similar situation, remember not to stand still, but to stand up and run."

The younger sisters nodded vigorously, "We understand."

Pei Ying worked very quickly, and in no time the feathers of the two pheasants were almost completely plucked. Lin Chuntao got up and took a ladle to scoop water over.

"Should we burn the down with a flame before washing it?"

"These two don't have much down, but their heads and combs need to be singed."

Lin Chuntao found some pine branches and put them into the fire. When it caught fire, the flames were higher. Pei Ying held the chicken leg upside down and hung the chicken head above the flames.

All you could hear was the sizzling sound of the flames, and soon the aroma of the cooking began to fill the air.

Pei Ying picked it up and looked at it; the chicken skin was burnt slightly yellow. He casually handed it to Lin Chuntao: "This one is done."

Lin Chuntao took it and put it in the earthenware basin, then scooped in hot water. Pei Ying then boiled another one before taking it over to wash together.

After cleaning, Pei Ying opened the chicken's chest to remove the internal organs, chopped the chicken into pieces, and handled the task smoothly and efficiently in one go.

Although it was two pheasants, they only weighed about two or three pounds after being killed, including the bones. There wasn't much meat at all, and it felt like it would only be enough for the five of them to have one meal.

Lin Chuntao quickly took a wok, heated the oil, and put the chicken pieces in to stir-fry.

Pei Ying then began using chicken feathers as a sharp tool to cut open the chicken's intestines in a corner of the yard, and repeatedly washed them with wood ash.

By the time he washed it and brought it over, the chicken in the pot had already released a rich aroma.

Waiting for the chicken to turn golden brown, Lin Chuntao added water and salt to the pot, then poured in the offal and cleaned chicken intestines, covered it with a straw lid, and started cooking.

"Sister, can we eat it once it's cooked?"

"Okay," Lin Chuntao responded and asked them, "Shall we have buckwheat rice for lunch?"

Lin Chunxing and the others looked at her blankly. Lin Chuntao suddenly realized that in the original owner's memories, no one seemed to have ever made buckwheat rice. Most of the time, it was buckwheat pancakes and buckwheat buns. She quickly explained, "I just came up with a new way to make it. I made it to see if it tastes good."

"Okay, okay, what should I do, sister?"

Lin Chuntao went to get an earthenware basin, scooped out water and made small, soybean-sized dumplings, then poured them into a steamer.

She called Chunhe and the others to bring firewood, and they lit a fire inside the house. Pei Ying came in and asked her, "Why don't we switch the pots? We can steam the rice outside and cook the chicken inside."

"Okay." After Lin Chuntao agreed, Pei Ying turned around and went out, bringing in the iron pot and then taking the earthenware pot and steamer outside to steam.

Chicken was being cooked on one side, while rice was being steamed on the other.

Lin Chunhe and Duo'er watched the fire inside the house, while Lin Chunxing and Lin Chuntao washed mushrooms in the yard. Pei Ying took a bamboo pole and a ball of hemp rope and started tying a fence in the yard.

Buckwheat dumplings need to be steamed for 45 minutes, then poured out and sprinkled with water again, similar to the process of steaming rice, but taking a little less time.

After steaming for a while, Lin Chuntao took the mushrooms off the steamer, sprinkled them with water, and then steamed them again. Lin Duo'er, who had been squatting inside for a long time, couldn't stand it anymore and ran out to help wash the mushrooms.

It was too crowded for three people to squat around a basin, so Lin Chuntao gave her place to Duo'er and got up to help Pei Ying tie the fence. One person cut the rope and the other tied it, which made them much faster. Before the chicken was even cooked, the fence was already tied. She gently shook it and found that it was much more stable.

Pei Ying installed the bamboo gate that had been made earlier, and a bolt could be inserted from the inside. A simple courtyard wall was almost complete.

After washing the mushrooms, Lin Chunxing took Duo'er back to the house. Lin Chuntao suddenly remembered that green peppers seemed to be ready to eat this season, so she ran back to the house and asked Lin Chunxing, "Do you know whose peppers are ready to be picked?"

"You can eat any kind of tender chili pepper now, sis. Do you want some?"

"Hmm, it would be delicious to cook some green peppers in the chicken soup."

Lin Chunxing pursed her lips, somewhat worried. Other people's families do have these things, but it's easier to accept fruits and vegetables from others than to ask for them herself, as they won't be happy if she asks for them.

"Then I'll go ask around and see which family I can get a few from."

As she was about to leave, Lin Chuntao quickly grabbed her and said with a smile, "It's definitely not good to go. Tell me which family grows a lot of vegetables and peppers, and I'll take my little bamboo basket with me."

The younger sisters' eyes widened at the words, and they exclaimed in unison, "Sis! You're going to steal it!"

Pei Ying, who was standing next to them, couldn't help but burst out laughing. Lin Chuntao was also helpless when she saw them like this. "What would I steal? Who has a lot? Go buy some. They should sell to you if you pay them."

Lin Chunxing breathed a sigh of relief: "That's true. Aunt Guizhi's family grows some tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers every year and takes them to the market to sell together. Her family grows a lot."

“Then let’s go to her house.” Lin Chuntao said, taking out some copper coins and picking up her small bamboo basket, ready to go. Lin Duo’er immediately jumped up and ran to her side: “Sister, I want to go with you.”

"Then let's go." She said, turning back to instruct Chunxing, "Keep an eye on the fire, and call your brother-in-law when you're carrying the pot."

When Lin Chuntao and her friends arrived, Aunt Guizhi's family was having lunch.

"Aunt Guizhi, are you eating?"

Aunt Guizhi asked with a smile, "Have you eaten yet? Sit down and have something to eat."

"Chunxing is cooking at home. I wanted to come and buy some chili peppers from you."

She explained the reason, and Aunt Guizhi smiled and said, "You don't need to buy a few peppers, you can just pick them from my field."

“It’s not just a few. I was thinking that you grow a lot of different kinds of vegetables, so could I order a month’s worth from you directly?”

Aunt Guizhi raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of suspicion flashing in her eyes. "How do you decide?"

Lin Chuntao smiled and said, "I'll come to your field to pick vegetables once every seven days. I'll pick a little of everything and fill this small bamboo basket. You can give me a fixed price."

After she finished speaking, Aunt Guizhi remained silent for a long time before suddenly bursting into laughter.

"Chuntao, you're quite clever. Come on, I'll take you to the fields."

"No rush, Auntie, you eat first."

"I'm full, I'm not eating anymore."

As she spoke, she put down her chopsticks and pulled Lin Chuntao outside.

Aunt Guizhi's vegetable garden is located behind the village. She grows a variety of vegetables, including tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, cabbage, green beans, broad beans, radishes, melons, chives, scallions, and garlic. She has planted two large plots of vegetables, which are very well maintained and have few weeds. They look quite pleasing to the eye.

"Pick whatever vegetables you like."

When Aunt Guizhi spoke up, Lin Chuntao laughed and said, "Auntie, aren't you going to tell me the price beforehand?"

Aunt Guizhi said with a smile, "I'll have to see how much money you can make off my vegetables with just one basket."

Lin Chuntao didn't dawdle. She first picked some chili peppers and put them in the bamboo basket. Then she turned around and picked four eggplants, four tomatoes, three round-headed gourds, three cucumbers, some gourd tips and flowers, and some scallions and garlic sprouts. The small bamboo basket was almost full. Finally, she pulled two cabbages and filled the small bamboo basket.

"Aunt Guizhi, I've picked them all."

"Give me ten coins for this basket of vegetables."

Lin Chuntao was somewhat surprised, "Auntie gave me such a low price?" She had browsed the market before, and vegetables ranged from three to eight coins. The vegetables she picked would have cost at least twenty coins.

Upon hearing this, Aunt Guizhi said, "At the market, cabbage is three coins, eggplant is five coins, cucumber is five coins, chives are four coins, and tomatoes are four coins." Then she suddenly asked Lin Chuntao, "Do you have anything to do after lunch?"

"What are your plans, Aunt?" Lin Chuntao said, "I don't have anything important to do."

"Come help me pack the food."

Upon hearing this, Lin Chuntao smiled and asked, "Should we pack it up and sell it at the market?" Aunt Guizhi nodded, and Lin Chuntao replied, "No problem, I'll come over after I finish eating."

After saying that, she took out some money and handed it to Aunt Guizhi, saying, "Thank you for taking care of us, Aunt. In a few days, I will get some vegetable seeds and plant vegetables in those empty spaces. When the vegetables grow, I will also send some over to you, Aunt."

Aunt Guizhi looked at Lin Chuntao with tender eyes. She felt that Lin Chuntao was very different from before. Before, she would never look up when talking to anyone and would blush easily. She didn't talk much. Now, she was sweet-talking and polite.

But it's good this way; it's likable.

Whether Lin Chuntao will bring her vegetables in the future is not important; just hearing these two sentences right now is comforting.

After the two came out of the vegetable garden, Lin Chuntao thanked Aunt Guizhi and went straight home.

Seeing Lin Chuntao return carrying a basket of vegetables, Lin Chunxing hurriedly asked, "Wow, so many? How much did they cost?"

"Ten coins." Lin Chuntao put down the vegetable basket, picked up some straw and spread it out in the corner of the wall, saying as she did so, "This amount of vegetables is enough for us to eat for at least five or six days."

They didn't quite believe it, but they saw Lin Chuntao take out one fruit after another from the vegetable basket, and finally grab two large handfuls of chili peppers. The straw was instantly covered with vegetables.

Lin Chunxing laughed and said, "Sister, Auntie won't be angry if you pick so many osmanthus branches, will she?"

Lin Chuntao looked up at her and said, "No, she only said it was ten coins after I finished picking them."

"Stop crowding around me, go wash some chili peppers." She grabbed two handfuls of chili peppers and handed them to Lin Chunxing. Lin Chunxing took the peppers and went out the door. Lin Chuntao turned back and asked, "Is the chicken still not cooked?"

"It's almost cooked," Pei Ying said.

Lin Chuntao got up and picked up the steamer, washed the earthenware pot used for steaming rice, poured the chicken into the pot and continued cooking, and scooped some chicken broth to cook the large bowl of chicken blood.

When it was almost cooked, I chopped some garlic sprouts and threw them in, added some salt, and served it. A faint, refreshing fragrance filled the room.

After cooking the chicken blood, she would then ladle out more chicken broth to stew the mushrooms. It's not easy to have a meal with chicken, and if she put the mushrooms in directly to cook, it would change the taste of the chicken broth. So she simply cooked them separately, which would satisfy both needs.

Lin Chunxing washed the green peppers and brought them in. Lin Chuntao then broke them into pieces by hand and threw them into the chicken soup.

"Once the chili peppers are cooked, they'll be filled with broth and taste delicious," Lin Chuntao said, making her younger sisters swallow hard.

While waiting for the chili peppers to cook, Lin Chuntao tasted the saltiness and then tried a piece of meat, which was already cooked. She turned around and called out, "Get the bowls and chopsticks and start eating!"

As soon as she finished speaking, her younger sister hurriedly got to work. Pei Ying brought over the chicken, a bowl of chicken blood, a bowl overflowing with chicken soup and mushrooms, and a large pot of chicken soup with golden oil floating on top. Tender green peppers were rolling in the soup. Lin Chuntao heard the system's voice in her mind: "Today's points are 168, and the remaining points are 480. Host, keep up the good work. Four more check-ins will unlock the exchange area."