Ning Xue was so angry that she almost fainted. This matter could not be kept secret. Ning Tang naturally knew about the conversation between her and Sanwa.
Her first reaction upon learning about this was speechlessness. She then asked Sanwa, "Sanwa, you did this on purpose, didn't you?"
Sanwa blinked and said innocently, "No."
Ning Tang narrowed his eyes. "Do you believe this yourself?"
Sanwa stuck out his tongue. "Okay? I was deliberately provoking her. She always looked down on me and my brothers and sisters and said those unpleasant things." He muttered softly, "Who knew she would be so vulnerable to provocation?"
Ning Tang said, "It's okay. I'll teach her a lesson. But next time someone asks you, don't tell anyone."
Sanwa nodded. He knew the truth. If you don’t expose your wealth, you don’t have to worry about thieves stealing it. You have to worry about thieves eyeing it.
It was only when he was talking to Ning Xue that he told her everything about the treatment at the Navy Swimming Team training base. When facing other people, he was reserved and would not tell them everything.
After all, the treatment given to him by the Navy Swimming Team Training Base was really too generous. He was just a kid, but he could earn so much money. It was inevitable that he would arouse jealousy.
Chen Lie asked, "Sanwa told Ning Xue so many good things about the treatment. Do you think she would be jealous?"
Ning Tang said, "Just be jealous."
Ning Xue only saw Sanwa wearing sixteen sets of clothes a year, expensive swimming trunks that cost more than three hundred yuan, and a monthly salary of twenty-five yuan. She did not see the sweat and tears Sanwa shed during training, nor did she see his skin turned white and wrinkled from soaking in the swimming pool.
All I can say is that Sanwa deserves the good treatment he receives, and Ning Xue deserves to be jealous.
Because of Ning Xue's interruption, Sanwa of course couldn't swim that day. After all, she had fainted. Sanwa was busy pinching her nose, and it took a lot of effort to carry her to the clinic.
So while Ning Xue was still recuperating at home, Sanwa was finally able to go swimming at the beach.
When he went to the beach, he brought two small buckets with him and swam and caught seafood at the same time. After a morning, his swimming training for the day was over and the two small buckets were full.
When Sanwa returned home, Ning Tang saw he was soaking wet and knew he'd been swimming. "How dare you go swimming in this month? It's a good thing we're on Hailang Island, where the sun's still shining in February and the weather's warm. If you were in a mountain village or a northern city, the creek would be frozen solid. If you jumped in, you'd either get a bump on the head or be frozen like a popsicle."
Sanwa chuckled and changed the subject, holding up two small buckets. "Mom, look what I brought back."
Ning Tang looked down and saw that the bucket was filled with small crabs, Lugu shrimps and oysters.
The small crab was a small flower crab with red and white patterns on its claws. It was not very big, about half the size of a palm. You can imagine that there was not much roe inside.
Lugu shrimp is mantis shrimp, also known as rich shrimp. This one is quite fat. Ning Tang thinks it is about as long as her palm, and there should be yellow shrimp paste inside.
The oysters in this month are the most plump, with white meat, round and firm. I believe the taste will not be too bad.
Small crabs and oysters can be found on the beach, but Lugu shrimp are definitely not to be found. Ning Tang asked, "Where do these Lugu shrimp come from?"
Sanwa said, "It was given to me by a fisherman. He saw me swimming and asked me why I went swimming in the sea in such cold weather. I said it was for exercise, and he said it was good, so he gave me half a bucket of Lugu shrimp."
Ning Tang asked, "Have you said thank you to them?"
Sanwa said, "Of course." He shivered, "Mom, can I go take a shower? It's so cold."
I didn’t feel it when I was swimming in the sea, but now that I’ve been on shore for a long time and the cold wind blows, I feel cold.
Ning Tang was happy, "Come on, I'll make you something to eat."
Sanwa swallowed his saliva and asked, "What should I make? Something to eat?"
Swimming is very tiring. He is now tired and exhausted, and his stomach is rumbling with hunger.
Ning Tang thought for a moment, "How about making soy sauce crab and raw pickled crab?"
"What are soy sauce crab and raw pickled crab?" Big Boy came over. He had never heard of these two things.
Ning Tang: "As soon as there's something delicious to eat, you come over right away."
Big Baby chuckled and said, "Oh, I'm just greedy, so, Mom, what are soy sauce crab and raw pickled crab?"
Ning Tang said, "Soy sauce crabs are crabs soaked in light soy sauce, white wine, and rice wine. The flower crabs Sanwa picked were too small and didn't have much roe inside. They wouldn't taste good if steamed. Soy sauce crabs would taste even better. As the name suggests, raw marinated crabs are made by marinating raw seafood with seasonings. I won't go into details, but it will definitely taste good if cooked."
Erniu asked, "So, is this what we're going to eat for lunch?"
"That's not the case." Ning Tang said, "Do I have to pickle both the soy sauce crab and the raw pickled one? It will take until the afternoon to absorb the flavor. If I pickle it now, I can eat it for dinner."
Good? I bought a refrigerator at home, otherwise it would take a few days to marinate.
The refrigerator was bought not long ago. Sanwa sent all his salary and winnings from competitions back home. Ning Tang asked him to keep it for himself, but he refused. Ning Tang then planned to buy a new appliance. The family already had a bicycle, a washing machine, and an electric fan, so Chen Lie suggested buying a refrigerator.
The refrigerator can be used to store leftovers, fruits, and popsicles. It has many uses. Ning Tang and he hit it off immediately. They both agreed, and the refrigerator was bought home very quickly.
Ning Tang said to Sanwa, "Try this pickled food when the time comes. If it's delicious, take some back and share it with your coach and other teammates." Xiang Xiang added, "I'll find you a few aluminum lunch boxes or glass jars to pack it in. You don't have to bring it on the train; it'll be faster if I mail it."
Sanwa nodded heavily and said "Okay".
Ning Tang urged him, "Hurry up and take a shower! Look at the floor! It's all covered in your water stains." He threatened, "Your dad just mopped the floor. Be careful! He'll come back and see you and beat you up."
Sanwa stuck out his tongue and quickly ran to the bathroom. "I'll go take a shower right away."
While the third child was taking a bath, Ning Tang took the eldest child and the second girl to make soy sauce crabs and raw pickles.
While watching the small flower crabs in the basin blowing bubbles, the eldest boy pinched them with his thumb and index finger and washed them vigorously with an old toothbrush.
The little flower crabs were foaming at the mouth, but that didn't stop them from baring their teeth and claws. Big Boy hissed, "Hiss, it's trying to pinch me."
Erniu said, "Hurry up and wash them." Pointing to the half-washed basin of oysters she had already washed, "I'm almost done."
The eldest child peeked in and saw that indeed, his progress was a bit slow. He pouted and rolled up his sleeves, "Just wait, I'll work harder and I'm sure I'll finish before you."
While the two of them were washing the seafood, Ning Tang was making the sauce.
Light soy sauce, rice wine, ginger slices, green onion segments... sugar and salt are mixed into a pot of dark black sauce that is very similar to soy sauce.
Ning Tang soaked the washed flower crabs one by one in the prepared sauce and stuffed them full.
Erniu asked, "Is that all?" She saw that the little flower crab was still alive and kicking.
"Okay, after a while, the crabs will drink the sauce and slowly pass out. Then freeze them in the refrigerator. They will be completely dead by the afternoon and have absorbed the flavors." Ning Tang said.
The method of raw marination is similar. Oysters and Lugu shrimps are completely immersed in a sauce made with minced garlic, rice wine, soy sauce, white vinegar and other seasonings. Put them in the refrigerator and freeze them for an afternoon before eating.
In the evening, when Chen Lie returned home, he saw a table full of raw marinated Lugu shrimp, raw marinated oysters, and soy sauce crabs. The air was filled with the salty and fresh aroma of the sauces. Chen Lie sniffed and reached out involuntarily, "What are you eating? It looks delicious. Eat it."
Ning Tang was holding two bowls of rice and looked over. "Have you washed your hands?"
Chen Lie had just come back from outside, so of course he hadn't washed his hands. He shrugged and said, "I'll go wash them right away." He muttered softly, "It's dirty, but I won't get sick if I eat it."
"Say it again louder." Ning Tang put the bowl on the table.
Chen Lie immediately said in a stern voice, "I said, wash your hands before eating." He looked at Da Wa, "Did you hear me, Da Wa? I'm talking about you."
As Da Wa reached out to poke the little flower crab's claws, he heard Chen Lie throw the pot on his head and was speechless.
Sanwa also poked the crab's back and said, "Mom, why do I feel like this crab is still raw? Is it really edible?"
Erniu took a look and said, "It's not red, so it must be raw."
"It's raw, but it's still edible." Ning Tang said, "This is called raw pickling. This is another way of cooking it, which is to pickle it raw. You can try it and see if it tastes good or not and whether it suits your taste."
Sanwa picked up a Lugu shrimp, tore off its head, and peeled off its shell, revealing the white meat inside. He took a bite. It was soft and sticky, and since it had just been taken out of the refrigerator, it still had a hint of ice cold. He exclaimed in surprise, "It's delicious!"
Compared with the usual salt and pepper Lugu shrimp, the raw marinated Lugu shrimp tastes even better. Although the shrimp meat of the salt and pepper Lugu shrimp is delicious, it does not have the unique sweet and refreshing, soft and chewy taste of the raw marinated ones.
Moreover, Lugu shrimps are roe-rich. The roe of Lugu shrimps after being marinated has a runny texture. Spread the shrimp meat and roe on the rice, stir and mix it. The soft and chewy shrimp meat and roe paired with the fragrance of rice are simply delicious.
Chen Lie came back from washing his hands in the yard and picked up a soy sauce crab. He broke the crab legs and split the crab body in half. He took a bite and the salty and fresh taste instantly lingered in his mouth. His eyes lit up, "This soy sauce crab is good. Wait a minute, I'll go get a bottle of beer to go with it."
He took out a bottle of beer given by Wu Dahui from the refrigerator, bit the bottle cap with his teeth, poured the beer into the cup, and gurgling bubbles came out. He took a bite of soy sauce crab and a sip of beer. These two things were simply a perfect match.
Ning Tang said, "Of course it's OK. This soy sauce crab recipe was given to me by Mrs. Luo, and I added plenty of ingredients. As I said, with plenty of ingredients, even soy sauce crab pads are delicious."
The small flower crabs are not fat enough and do not have much crab roe in them. Soy sauce crab cooking is the best choice. The soy sauce crab method can be used to make the small flower crabs. Even the crab claws and crab legs with little meat can be chewed for a long time, and the more you chew, the more fragrant it becomes, which just makes up for the shortcoming of the small flower crabs being not fat enough.
The eldest child tried the raw marinated oysters, which were so tender and smooth that they slid down his throat as soon as they touched his tongue. He couldn't stop eating them. "Mom, how can this be called raw marinated? It's too good to eat!" he said with a puffed face. "Why didn't you make it earlier? You made us eat boiled and steamed oysters every day."
Ning Tang said, "I would like to make it, but firstly, I didn't have a refrigerator at the time, so it's inconvenient to make raw pickles. Secondly, you are still young and your stomachs are not fully developed. What if you get an upset stomach from eating this raw pickle?"
Shen Lie came over, a crab leg still dangling from the corner of his mouth, “You can make it secretly, and then we can eat it secretly at night and not share it with the three of them.”
Erniu stamped her feet and shouted, "You really are our father."
The eldest child looked dazed. "If Erniu and I go off to college, and Sanniu goes to a training camp, and you two are the only ones at home, you won't secretly eat tons of delicious food behind our backs, right?"
He felt it was very possible!
Ning Tang said matter-of-factly, "Nonsense! Do you think your father and I are the kind of parents who treat themselves harshly when their children are not around? They don't want to eat or wear anything, and only make do with dried radish and fermented bean curd for one meal?"
The eldest boy nodded his head frantically.
Chen Lie was amused. "You're overthinking it. Once you three leave, not only will we prepare delicious meals for every meal, but we'll also go out to eat in Jiang City more often. Since it's just the two of us at home, we can eat whatever we want."
Erniu shook her head, "I don't believe it."
"Then don't believe it." Ning Tang said, "Anyway, we ate the delicious food secretly, and you three didn't know about it."
The eldest child wanted to cry but had no tears. "You, you, have you eaten well? You didn't even take us with you!"
Chen Lie began to imagine the beautiful world he and Ning Tang lived in when Da Wa, Er Niu, and San Wa were gone. "You three should leave quickly. Those who need to go to college should go to college, and those who need to go to the training base should go to the training base."
Da Wa's eyebrows stood up in an inverted eight shape, and he crossed his arms over his chest. "Then I won't go? I'll go to college and stay at home. What will you eat? You have to take all the food with me."
Chen Lie ruthlessly complained, "You want to go, but they don't necessarily want you. With your test scores, if a university wants you, you should be thankful."
The eldest boy was not convinced. He said that he didn't do very badly in the exam. Although he was not the top student in the class, his grades were at least around the average level.
Sanwa asked, "Mom, will this raw pickle really make me sick?"
Ning Tang said, "That's a possibility. If he really gets an upset stomach, at the very least, he'll have diarrhea. At the worst, he might get gastroenteritis and end up in the hospital."
Sanwa paused holding his chopsticks, a little afraid to eat, "No? Mom, are you trying to scare me?"
"Why would I scare you?" Ning Tang said, "Eating this stuff can really upset your stomach. It depends on your constitution. Some people have no problem eating it, while others can't get used to it. So, the three of you, don't eat too much the first time you eat it. See if you can get used to it first. Only then can you eat more." He added, "Sanwa, when you give the raw pickled mustard to the coach and your swimming team members, remember to tell them not to eat too much first. Just try a little first. Once they can handle it and don't get diarrhea, then you can eat more."
Shen Lie nodded, "If you can't eat it, just leave it all for me. I'm sure I can eat it."
Ning Tang glanced at him and asked, "Why, do you have a strong stomach?"
Chen Lie said, "Of course, Hailang Island is already very rich in resources, with many delicious foods. When I went to the Northwest to provide support, I even ate gophers. You said I can eat gophers, let alone a few raw pickled crabs and soy sauce crabs."
This? This was the first time Ning Tang had heard of this. "How did you catch the gopher? And what does a gopher taste like?"
Chen Lie recalled, "That thing wasn't necessarily called a gopher, we just called it that. The Northwest was a desolate place with nothing to eat. The ground was covered with grass roots. When we were hungry, we would go dig holes in the mountains. Sometimes we'd find rabbits, sometimes we'd find gophers. Our squad leader was a master at digging for them."
"After you take the mole out, shave off the fur and clean out the internal organs. Then, string them together with branches or bamboo sticks and roast them over a campfire. You don't need to add salt or anything. As soon as you roast them, the meat will sizzle and become incredibly fragrant. If you're lucky enough to find a honeycomb, you can rub some honey on the meat and it'll taste even better." Chen Lie smacked his lips. "If you want to describe the taste, I think it's a bit like pork belly."
Ning Tang told him that he was hungry, so he spread the raw marinated oysters and Lugu shrimps on the rice, mixed them, and took three big mouthfuls.
Although Ning Tang didn't let the eldest, second and third children eat too much, these three were greedy and couldn't stop eating. They even blamed the raw and pickled food for being too delicious, which was why they couldn't finish their meal.
Fortunately, the three of them could accept the taste and did not have diarrhea after eating it. Ning Tang observed for two days and saw that they really had no reaction, so he started to make raw pickled food.
Raw pickled crabs, raw pickled shrimps, raw pickled cucumbers, raw pickled snails... Before the Lantern Festival, we had been eating raw pickled foods. Chen Lie joked that there were no jars of raw pickled foods at home.
After the Lantern Festival, Sanwa will return to the Navy Swimming Team training base in Shanghai.
Ning Tang packed his luggage. "...I've pickled ten jars of raw crab and shrimp each. As soon as you get on the train, I'll have your dad go to the post office and send it to you. You'll get it in two days after you get off the train."
Sanwa nodded and asked, "Mom, can I not share with the coach and teammates?" He chuckled and said, "It's not enough for me."
Ning Tang had sent him some dried mangoes before. After training, he was hungry so he took out a few pieces and ate them. His coach saw it and asked him what it was. He gave one piece to his coach to try. Unexpectedly, his coach liked it very much and ate a whole bag of dried mangoes by himself. He also asked him with a smug look when his mother would send him more dried mangoes.
It goes without saying that if I bring the pickled vegetables back this time, I will definitely not escape the coach's clutches!
Ning Tang was delighted. "You little greedy cat, I'll pickle five more jars of raw crab and five more jars of raw shrimp for you. You can eat ten of these jars yourself, and give the remaining twenty away. Is that all right?"
Sanwa said, "OK!"
Chen Lie: "Besides the pickled ones, I'll send you some dried mangoes and bananas. Oh, and some seafood too, like dried abalone, dried shrimp, mackerel, squid, etc. Maybe one of your teammates or your coach will like them."
It would be unreasonable for Sanwa not to bring back some local specialties when he goes home for the long vacation.
Besides, he was just a kid there and must have received a lot of care from others. It was only right for him to give them some gifts as a thank you.
Ning Tang instructed, "Wait and divide it into several portions before distributing them. Even if the portion is a little small, don't let anyone complain."
Sanwa nodded, "I understand."
All that needed to be said had been said, and Ning Tang felt empty inside as he watched Sanwa leaving again.
Chen Lie said, "Let's take a picture, then?"
Ning Tang said, "Okay, let's take a family photo. I'll go ask Sister Luo to help us take it."
Mrs. Luo came and directed the family of five, "Come closer so I can take the photo."
With a click of a button, the photo freezes.
Before Sanwa left, the photos were developed and made into two copies.
Ning Tang said, "Put one on the wall, along with the previous family photo, and take the other one with you to the training base."
Sanwa nodded heavily, "I will. I'll frame it." Then he would look at it every day.
Chen Lie patted his shoulder, feeling that he was much stronger than before. "Listen to the coach and work hard. Don't let them down."
Sanwa grinned and said, "I will."
This September, Da Wa and Er Niu entered the first year of high school.
Ning Tang really felt that time passed very quickly. It was like in the blink of an eye, the three little ones became three big ones.
After entering high school, Chen Lie met with Da Wa and Er Niu for the first time to have a serious conversation. "You two are both in your first year of high school. Have you decided which university you want to attend and what majors you want to study?"
Da Wa and Er Niu looked at each other and nodded.
There are newspapers, television, and radio at home, so there are many channels to contact the outside world. Da Wa and Er Niu are not completely ignorant about going to college.
Especially since the resumption of the college entrance examination in 1977, it has been held regularly for ten years. Every year, there are people who are admitted to universities on the island, studying in all kinds of schools and majoring in all kinds of majors. Word of mouth spreads, and even if you are not a candidate or a candidate's parent, you can still tell something about the majors chosen by the university.
The eldest child said first, "I, I want to study accounting. It doesn't matter which university I go to, as long as I study accounting."
He was good at math, but didn't want to study pure math. He thought it was boring to just do exercises and research. He couldn't sit still, so he thought about studying accounting.
Shen Lie nodded, "This? Sure."
There are always plans everywhere. If you read them out, there will definitely be a bowl of rice for the eldest child.
However, this kid's grades are average, so he probably won't be able to study accounting in a very good university.
Chen Lie also thought it through. It would be best if he could go to college. If not, he would let his eldest son work in a factory first, and then go to night school at night. There are accounting majors in night school. Once he gets an accounting certificate, he will have more career options and it is not necessary for him to go to college.
Ning Tang also thought so. It would be best if the eldest child could go to college. After all, when he went to college, the platform would be different, and the people around him would be different. He would be able to come into contact with new things and broaden his horizons.
She hopes that the three of them, including Da Wa, can go out for a walk and have a look.
Now the third child has done it, it’s up to the eldest child and the second daughter.
After discussing Da Wa's matter, Chen Lie asked Erniu, "Erniu, what about you? Have you decided which university to go to and what major to study?"
Erniu nodded and said, "I want to go to Shanghai Conservatory of Music and study vocal performance."
Over the years, she has never given up singing and regards it as a hobby. Her singing has become better and better. In the beginning, she sang with the classmates, and later, she could get a solo performance at every evening party.
If anyone on the island were to ask which girl sang best, they would definitely mention Erniu.
Wu Yingdi, who was once nominated together with Erniu, now keeps silent. Only Erniu persists.
Erniu had decided long ago to go to this school and study this major.
She is good at all subjects, but none of them excels, and she doesn't have any particular favorite subject. However, she has always liked singing.
Sanwa was in Shanghai and always wrote letters back to describe the prosperity of Shanghai.
Erniu wanted to go to Shanghai, so Ning Tang asked Ning Jun to find out if there were any good singing universities in Shanghai. Ning Jun asked around for her and sent back a letter with just two lines of words on it: Shanghai Conservatory of Music, Vocal Performance Department.
Ning Tang said, "This vocal performance major is probably the flagship major of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. The scores required for flagship majors are generally quite high. If you want to stay in this major, you can't let your guard down."
Erniu was very confident, "I'm sure I can do it."
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