Twice-cooked pork

She really wanted to show off her daughter's excellence to everyone, but Wang Yao had already told her not to tell outsiders, lest they all come asking what books she used to read in the library.

Since her daughter said so, she and her relatives and friends who knew her daughter was good at cooking had no choice but to keep the secret.

After carrying the two large jars and a box full of books home, the two were so tired they could barely stand up straight. At that moment, Wang Yao missed the apartment building with an elevator she lived in in her previous life.

But right now, there aren't any buildings with elevators in Zhou County, and even if there were, she couldn't afford them. She's poor, really poor.

Simply complaining about being poor won't help; we still need to take action.

Seeing that her mother had already started washing the jars, Wang Yao stopped lounging around, walked to her desk, and, based on her memories from her previous life, wrote down a secret recipe for pickled cucumbers.

There are strict requirements for what to do in each step and how much of each seasoning to add.

Liu Xiangmei looked at the recipe. She knew a lot about it, but every time she made it before, it was barely done and often broke. So she stopped making it to avoid wasting time and resources.

“Okay, there are some ingredients here that we don’t have at home. I’ll go to the market to buy them and then make it according to your recipe.”

Wang Yao instructed, "Mom, go buy a scale while you're at it. Measure everything before putting it in, so you don't make a mistake."

Okay, I never thought we'd have to use scales to cook these days. Although it seemed strange, Liu Xiangmei unconditionally listened to her daughter's opinion.

After explaining the precautions for pickling cucumbers, Wang Yao returned to her bedroom and began her intensive review.

I sorted the books in the box by category and then found the notes for each subject.

At this moment, Wang Yao really wanted to kowtow to Sun Min; she was just too amazing.

From the first year of junior high to the third year, Sun Min's notes for every subject were neat and tidy, without a trace of sloppiness, which shows how serious she was when she studied.

Sigh, such a diligent child almost missed the opportunity to go to high school. Wang Yao cursed her second aunt and uncle in her heart again, and then focused on taking care of Grandma Sun.

After sorting and organizing them, Wang Yao looked at the dozens of books in front of her, leaned back, and lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, feeling like crying but having no tears.

The road ahead is long and arduous!

For subjects like Chinese, politics, history, and geography, Wang Yao decided to treat them like storybooks, just to get a general impression for now.

Wang Yao decided to focus on studying subjects like mathematics, physics, and chemistry, at least to understand the basics.

What troubled Wang Yao the most was foreign languages, but it was also her greatest fortune.

She had forgotten most of the knowledge points in other subjects, but she still remembered the phonetics and some basic words she had learned in her previous life in English.

After all, I lived in the era of the knowledge explosion in my previous life, and I had many opportunities to come into contact with English, both online and offline.

So before the start of the semester, Wang Yao planned to spend her mornings and evenings memorizing English words and basic grammar, and in the mornings and afternoons she would study science subjects like math and physics. In her other free time, she would look at other subjects.

Although there are only a few days left before school starts, I'll learn as much as I can.

Having made her plan, Wang Yao opened her math book and started working through it, beginning with the first year of junior high. She flipped through the pages one by one, solving each problem as time slowly slipped by.

When Wang Yao noticed that the words in her textbook were becoming increasingly blurry, she looked up and saw that it was almost dark outside.

Wang Yao stood up and stretched her stiff shoulders. She walked to the kitchen and saw her mother pouring the last of the pickled cucumbers into a jar.

Wang Yao picked up a small piece, tasted it, and said, "Hmm, the saltiness is just right, not bad at all."

Liu Xiangmei was pleased, "Isn't it great? I followed your recipe exactly step by step."

"Let it marinate in the jar overnight to let it absorb the flavor. It'll be a perfect dish for tomorrow."

Liu Xiangmei agreed, "Okay, what do you want to eat tonight?"

While the mother and daughter were still discussing what to have for dinner, many others had already started eating, such as Liu Hai, the contractor who was taking his foreman to a restaurant that evening.

Liu Hai took a sip of wine, then picked up a large piece of meat and put it in his mouth, shaking his head. "This dish is terrible, not even as good as my wife's cooking!"

Immediately, someone complimented, "Of course! Who is your wife? She's the most virtuous woman, and her cooking skills are definitely unmatched by most people!"

In fact, this person had never even met the "sister-in-law" he was talking about, yet he had already begun to compliment her on her virtue.

She had intended to flatter Liu Hai, but Liu Hai just snorted and said, "Your sister-in-law has no skills whatsoever. All she does is get her hair permed and play mahjong all day."

Well, his attempt to flatter backfired, and everyone sneered at him.

Then Liu Hai said, "But it's still better than this place. Look at what they've made."

As he spoke, he stirred the cucumber salad in front of him with his chopsticks, his face full of disdain. "I think the best chef in Zhou County is at Jinzhou Restaurant. The other restaurants are all terrible."

Immediately, someone disagreed, "Brother Hai, that's not quite right. I think there are people who cook better than the chefs at the Golden State Hotel, right, Brother Lao?"

Qin Lao looked at the dishes in front of him and found them tasteless. When asked which restaurant the person was referring to, he couldn't remember.

"We just ate lunch, what? You forgot already?"

After being reminded, Qin Lao immediately agreed, "Her food is really good. I've been eating at her place for the past two days, and other restaurants just don't taste as good as what I've had."

As the two were talking, Liu Hai became interested. "What, you two are secretly going out to eat behind everyone's back? Why don't you share good places with everyone?"

Qin Lao shook his head, "It's not a restaurant, just a stall selling boxed lunches at the entrance of the construction site."

Liu Hai didn't seem to care. "What's so great about boxed lunches? I've had my fill of them after traveling all over the country for years!"

As Qin Lao recalled, he said, "Brother Hai, don't underestimate a boxed lunch vendor. His food is definitely no worse than that of a big restaurant. Take the cucumber salad he made the day before yesterday, for example. It was not only crunchy, but also spicy and fragrant. It's nothing like the dish we're eating now."

He then added, "By the way, I remember Hai-ge is from Sichuan Province, right? Then you'll definitely love this boxed lunch; it's very flavorful."

After hearing their comments, Liu Hai became even more dissatisfied with the large table of food in front of him and decided that he would go to the construction site entrance tomorrow to see just how delicious it was.

Rumble~

Thunder rumbled outside, and a heavy rain was imminent.

Liu Xiangmei asked Wang Yao what dishes to prepare for tomorrow's boxed lunch besides pickled cucumbers.

Hearing the thunder outside, Wang Yao said, "Mom, it's definitely going to rain heavily tomorrow. You shouldn't go to Aunt's house tomorrow morning!"

Liu Xiangmei disagreed, saying, "What's the big deal about a little rain? It's not like it's raining knives."

Wang Yao knew that the older generation was never afraid of hardship or fatigue, so simply persuading them wouldn't work. She changed her approach, saying, "Then let's make Mapo Tofu and Twice-Cooked Pork tomorrow. We don't need to go to Auntie's house for these two dishes; we can just buy them at the market."

With Wang Yao making this decision, Liu Xiangmei stopped arguing. After thinking for a moment, she said, "Wait a minute, if it rains, the construction site won't be open. Will we still be selling boxed lunches?"

That's right, Wang Yao suddenly remembered this problem. "Let's still sell them. We'll sell them downstairs instead of going to the construction site. We'll prepare less quantity, just forty portions!"

"I'll go to the convenience store next door and call your aunt in advance so they know. We'll still go pick vegetables in the field tomorrow morning," Liu Xiangmei said, and then rushed downstairs.

Liu Xiangchun's family doesn't have a telephone yet, but the village branch office is only a dozen meters away from their house. If Liu Xiangmei wants to contact Liu Xiangchun by phone, she has to call the village branch office.

When Liu Xiangmei returned, it started raining outside. Summer rain comes in strong and heavy, and it was unknown how long it would last.

While washing the dishes, Wang Yao said, "If we opened a shop, we wouldn't have to worry about the rain!"

Liu Xiangmei laughed, "Opening a shop? You really dare to dream of that. We're still a long way from opening a shop."

Wang Yao felt it wasn't far at all; it was just that her mother thought the cost of opening a shop was too high and was afraid of losing money, so she hesitated to even consider it.

The next day, Liu Xiangmei went directly to the vegetable market on Dingyuan Road to buy ingredients. When she saw Wang Yao getting up early to read, she felt both gratified and heartbroken.

Whose daughter is as sensible as Yao Yao? No one else is. My own daughter is the most sensible and well-behaved!

As requested by Wang Yao, Liu Xiangmei chose a large piece of meat with more fat than lean meat today. After returning home, she put it in water with scallions and ginger and boiled it for half an hour until it was fully cooked.

After completing her morning study assignments in her bedroom, Wang Yao began teaching the kitchen.

Sauté the thinly sliced ​​meat in a pan until the fat is rendered and the meat turns an appealing golden brown. Then add the fermented bean paste and stir-fry until the paste and oil are fully combined. Add the other ingredients in order of their heat resistance.

Finally, add a pinch of vinegar, called "pot-side vinegar," which enhances the aroma and cuts through the greasiness without making it sour. Then it's ready to serve.

Wang Yao took a big bite and stuffed it into her mouth. "Mmm~ So delicious! Ms. Liu Xiangmei, I declare that your cooking skills have improved!"

Liu Xiangmei glared at Wang Yao, annoyed. "She really has no manners!"

But she was still very pleased with her daughter's praise, and even washed the pots with a rhythm.

"Swish~ swish~" Getting ready to make the next dish, Mapo Tofu.

At noon, the mother and daughter appeared on the first floor door right on time.

Landlady Sister Xu was still the first customer. "It was raining today, and I thought you weren't setting up your stall. I was even worried about what to eat for lunch! As soon as I smelled the aroma, I knew I was in for a treat today."

Liu Xiangmei: "How can we not set it up? Even if it's raining, people still need to eat. Today's lunch is all side dishes, Sister Xu, why don't you try it!"

At Sister Xu's loud call, people quickly gathered around.

What's for lunch today?

"Do you have meat and vegetables today?"

Before Liu Xiangmei could answer, someone replied, "Her family eats one meat dish and two vegetable dishes every day."

"Ah~ they have twice-cooked pork today! Boss, I'll have one!"