Chapter 16 Problem Su Zhihan glanced at the situation on both sides and moved aside...

Su Zhihan glanced at the situation on both sides and moved a stool over, sitting side by side with Cao's mother in front of the stove to warm themselves by the fire.

She picked up a piece of pork crackling, took a bite. This pork crackling was left over from when Cao's mother rendered lard that morning. After cooling down, it became crispy and crunchy, with a faint caramelized aroma. It was a rare snack for everyone.

Click, click, crackle, crackle.

As your teeth come into contact with the pork cracklings, the first sensation is crispness, followed by the unique caramelized aroma of pork cracklings, and then the rich, creamy fat spreads in your mouth.

Perhaps in future generations, some people will find this dish greasy and unpleasant, but Su Zhihan, holding it in her hands and taking a small bite, truly finds it to be an exquisite delicacy.

"Han-jie, is the soup ready yet?"

“We can use it now if we want, but we’re not in a hurry. Let it simmer slowly.” Su Zhihan replied with a smile. “I’ve heard them say that the shop starts preparing this dish in the middle of the night. The soup gets more fragrant the longer it simmers, and the chicken and duck offal gets more flavorful the longer it’s braised.”

"So, are we... all set now?"

"When Daya comes back, fry that old tofu into fried tofu... and it'll be almost done." Su Zhihan thought for a moment, "Also, steam a pot of brown rice and that'll be it."

"Then I'll go steam the rice first." Cao's mother urgently needed to do something to keep herself busy, so that her mind wouldn't be filled with thoughts of that pot of soup.

Yinghong also got up to help. The two of them took out the brown rice, first grinding it to remove more impurities, and then washing it thoroughly before putting it on the wood-fired stove to burn.

"Sister Cao."

"Madam Wu, what brings you here?" Cao Mama looked up and saw that the person who had come to speak to her was Madam Wu, who was also a cook.

Compared to the quiet Aunt Zhang, Aunt Wu was the most important person in the kitchen. She loved to gossip and spread rumors, not only spreading rumors but also exaggerating things that didn't happen. For example, last time she said that Granny Wang was good at stealing people's underwear, and the time before that she was watching the commotion at the Cao family's door and even gave Su Zhihan directions.

In addition, Su Zhihan, Yinghong, and even Cao's mother had all been gossiped about by her before.

Cao's mother didn't like her and had a cold expression.

Without any hesitation, Mrs. Wu asked, "Sister Cao, what did you make today?"

Cao's mother glanced at her coldly: "It's just stewed mixed vegetables."

Mrs. Wu secretly rolled her eyes. Cao Ruixiang was clearly lying through her teeth. Her usual stewed vegetables never smelled so good.

Just as she was still unwilling to give up and wanted to ask around some more, Cao's mother turned around and took Yinghong into the house carrying a bucket of rice.

Mrs. Wu glared at her, her displeasure immediately rising. Her eyes darted around, and she followed Mrs. Cao into the main kitchen, loudly asking, "Sister Cao, I was just wondering why your stewed mixed vegetables smelled so good today, and I wanted to ask you a few questions. Why are you walking so fast?"

Wu's mother had a loud voice, which immediately attracted the attention of many people. Including Zhang's mother, many cooks and maids cast curious glances at her.

Their silence doesn't mean they didn't see it; in fact, most people here noticed that it wasn't Mama Cao cooking for the servants today, but Han Jie'er.

The last time Han Jie'er cooked simple meals was on her first day in the main kitchen, when it was Cook Xu who instructed her, not Mama Cao. The next few times, it was only when the Second Miss asked Han Jie'er to make tea cakes that Han Jie'er started cooking.

Unexpectedly, Madam Cao actually let Su Zhihan cook. Although it was just for the servants, it was still the job of the head cook, a right held by the head cooks.

The maids, seeing this, dared not speak. Their eyes darted around, and they did their work absentmindedly, glancing at Cao Mama out of the corner of their eyes.

Noticing the stares of those around her, Cao's mother, though impatient with Wu's mother, finally paused. She knew perfectly well what Wu's mother was asking, but deliberately avoided pointing it out to Su Zhihan: "I'm usually lazy and haven't done it this meticulously. Didn't you see I used the usual ingredients?"

It was precisely because she used the usual ingredients that Wu Mama found it strange. She had just thought that Han Jie'er might have stolen some expensive spices from the main kitchen, but when she looked at the cupboard, it was locked from the outside, with one key on Chef Xu and the other on Zhang Mama. Neither of them would allow Han Jie'er to use them indiscriminately.

"Sister Cao, you're treating me like an outsider."

"..." Cao's mother glanced at Wu's mother with a puzzled look in her eyes, her eyes clearly saying, "You're an outsider."

Wu's mother choked for a moment, and just as she rallied and prepared to continue, Cao's mother's expression suddenly changed. She looked at Wu's mother warily: "You haven't seen the recipe, have you? Go away, go away."

Cao's mother looked wary and quickened her pace, walking away into the distance. This made Wu's mother blush and stomp her foot, saying, "Who would want your prescription!"

Madam Wu had been wondering if Han'er had studied under a master outside and wanted to find out. But Madam Cao's interruption made her forget what she wanted to ask and she became so angry that her face turned red.

Even if you gave her Cao Mama's recipe, she wouldn't want it!

Furious, Wu's mother returned to her stove and happened to see the kitchen maid staring erratically. Her face immediately darkened, and she snapped, "You wretched thing! What are you dawdling about? The things I told you to do, haven't you finished them yet?"

The two maids felt wronged and quickly lowered their heads, speeding up their work, not daring to anger Madam Wu. Although they were nominally part of the main kitchen, they were practically Madam Wu's apprentices, and being beaten and scolded was a common occurrence for them.

Thinking of this, they felt even more uneasy. Taking advantage of Wu Mama's inattention, one of the kitchen maids secretly glanced at Cao Mama and Su Zhihan.

In the eyes of most people in the large kitchen, Su Zhihan was just lucky; she won the favor of the second young lady with the little skill she acquired from her rural background.

If it were anyone else, they would have eagerly rushed forward to offer gifts to the mothers and daughters in the second daughter's room to curry favor, and would have gone to the small kitchen to work early.

At the very least, one should have the status of a cook or maid in the main kitchen, receiving a third- or second-class allowance.

Unfortunately, Su Zhihan was honest and simple-minded, and after several days she didn't make any moves. She was still following the instructions of the cook Xu from the first day, working for Cao Mama, who cooked for the servants, and was still receiving the servants' rations. It was truly speechless.

Several maids privately remarked that once the second young lady's interest waned, Su Zhihan would have no chance to rise to prominence.

If she's lucky, perhaps in five or ten years she can take over Cao Mama's job and become the next head cook for the servants. If she's unlucky, she'll likely be a servant for life.

None of them expected that Madam Cao would be so generous as to have Su Zhihan cook for the servants.

It wasn't that the cooks envied Han Jie'er for being able to cook for the servants; what they envied was that Han Jie'er had the opportunity to learn so quickly, while the rest of them did nothing but chop and prepare vegetables all day long. Even the seasonings sometimes had to be kept away from them, for fear that they would learn them by secret.

It wasn't until the last two years, after Wu's and Zhang's daughters found success, that they began to show signs of relenting. However, even after receiving many gifts from them, they remained stingy with their teaching.

The only thing that gave the cooks a little peace of mind was that... Cao Mama's cooking skills were poor. She had always cooked for the lowly servants and had never learned to prepare the proper dishes for the officials, let alone received any rewards from her masters. Even if she had the chance to work in the kitchen with her, it would be a waste.

Thinking of this, the maids finally felt a little more at ease. They looked away and quickened their pace.

At the same time, Cao Daya pushed open the door and entered. She had a bamboo basket slung over her arm, exaggeratedly wiped the sweat from her forehead, and then placed the basket on the table: "I'm back, I'm back! What day is it today? Why is the market outside so crowded with people? They're practically packed like pancakes!"

"The streets are crowded every day."

“I feel like I’m going out much more often than usual,” Cao Daya said, unconvinced.

"Perhaps it's because the day after tomorrow is the beginning of winter?" Yinghong stepped forward, reached out and lifted the coarse cloth covering the bamboo basket, taking out pieces of tofu one by one: "Every year at this time, doesn't our household also start to stock up on grains, vegetables and fruits... huh?"

Yinghong's voice gradually softened, her eyebrows furrowed, and she looked at the tofu in the bamboo basket with surprise and uncertainty: "This is..."

"What's wrong?" Hearing this, Cao's mother leaned over to look. When she saw what was in the bamboo basket, she instinctively gasped and raised her voice sharply: "You, you little rascal—"

Halfway through her sentence, Cao's mother remembered that there were too many people and eyes in the main kitchen, so she quickly stopped talking. But her face turned red and blue, sweat beaded on her nose, and her eyes were practically spitting fire.

When Su Zhihan saw Cao Daya return, she took out the braised chicken and duck offal and piled it into a basin. Then she washed the pot, wiped it clean, and poured in plenty of oil.

As she walked over to get the tofu, she noticed the silence between the three men. Su Zhihan stepped forward and followed their gaze to the bamboo basket: "What...is wrong?"

She paused for a moment, then casually put the coarse cloth back into the bamboo basket. She then placed the tofu on the cutting board and skillfully cut it into uniform cubes: "Da Ya's tofu is quite good; it looks shiny and bright."

Yes, yes.

"Da Ya, did you buy too little tofu?"

Cao's mother and Yinghong also came to their senses and spoke one after another.

Originally sensing something was amiss and about to come over to check on the situation, Wu's mother immediately stopped in her tracks and withdrew her gaze with little interest. Cao Ruixiang's eldest daughter was truly foolish; even at such a young age, she still bought so few things.

Stupid, lazy, and dumb.

In every way, he can't compare to his own daughter.

Seeing that Mrs. Wu had lost interest and walked to the side, no longer paying attention to them, Mrs. Cao breathed a sigh of relief. With her back to Mrs. Wu, she reached out and pinched her daughter hard.

Cao Daya winced in pain, tears welling in her eyes.

Seeing this, Cao's mother felt no pity, but rather anger. She gritted her teeth and said in a low voice, "Tell me! Where did you buy this? How old are you? How could you fall for such a rip-off and buy such rotten tofu!"

"I don't know either..."

"The shop was crowded, and I couldn't squeeze in. Luckily, there was an old man selling tofu outside, so I went to get some..."

Tears welled up in Cao Daya's eyes, her heart filled with grievances she had nowhere to confide in. She was heartbroken, yet afraid of being seen by the others in the kitchen, so she quickly lowered her head, pulled off the handkerchief tied around her waist to wipe her face, and her voice gradually choked as she spoke: "When I looked at it, it was all... all good tofu."

Who knew it would turn out like this after I brought it back!