Ningxia found Lao Liao's backpack with two fresh pheasants hanging from it. They'd been caught the night before, and with nowhere to put them, Lao Liao had simply tied two parallel sticks to the backpack and hung the chickens there. They were still in good condition, just a day old. Ningxia took them down, gave them a quick clean, and hung them back up. She realized she hadn't set up a table for the vegetables yet.
Just as she was about to walk away, Lin Yi came over with an armful of leaves. Silently, he found a large stone slab near Xiaojie's house and began laying it down layer by layer. Ningxia smiled, feeling warm inside, and went back to her work with full energy.
They had either porridge or congee every day, and Ningxia thought it was too greasy, so she decided to be generous and took out all the ten or so steamed buns in their bags and steamed them in the pot. They had eaten cold steamed buns for two meals, so today she decided to make some trouble and let them have a hot meal.
While the steamed buns were cooking, Ningxia chopped two medium-sized chickens into pieces on a clean stone slab, using two-thirds to stir-fry. They had plenty of fresh green and red chilies in their bags, so she made them some spicy pepper chicken. She could use the rest of the chicken soup with some dried bamboo shoots she had packed.
Ningxia had a plan in mind and started to work on it.
Add water to a hot pot and blanch the chicken. Ningxia also adds a bunch of green onions and cooks them. The chicken can be taken out after the water boils for a while. The blanched chicken is not only easier to stir-fry, but also has a less fishy smell.
Ningxia was just chopping those wilted green and red peppers when a few soldiers came back with water. Ningxia was overjoyed when she heard there was a small river nearby. She thought it would be so convenient to settle down there.
"Ningxia, do you need help?" Old Liao asked after putting down Ningxia's huge thermos.
"No need, Brother Liao, just wait and eat." Ningxia quickly cut the vegetables in her hand without looking up.
Old Liao chuckled and went to look for firewood. He saw that they would not have enough firewood soon.
After the vegetables were chopped and the chicken was almost drained, Ningxia set up the clean pot again, poured a little oil into it, and once the oil was boiling, she immediately poured the chicken pieces in.
Ningxia told Xiaojie to stir the pot, and then she walked to the table and carefully wrapped the hot steamed buns she had just taken out with leaves. Don't let the buns get cold before the dishes are done.
The chicken pieces in Ningxia are cut into small pieces, blanched in water, and cooked in a short time over high heat.
Ningxia added a generous amount of salt, stir-fried the chicken evenly, and then moved it to the side of the wok. She drained the oil from the bottom and poured in the chopped green and red chilies she had previously chopped. These chilies were small and quite spicy, having been cooked before.
The aroma of the chili seeds and the hot oil with the aroma of meat made everyone present swallow their saliva several times. They were already hungry, and the smell of this spicy aroma was simply unbearable.
Several men had also cleaned the beds in the house and were now standing outside watching Ningxia cook, hoping to learn a thing or two to make their future lives easier.
Ningxia was mixed with the chicken after a quick stir-fry of the chili peppers. This allowed the chicken to be infused with the flavor of the chili peppers. When it was almost done, Ningxia took a piece out and handed it to Xiaojie, "Taste it for saltiness."
Xiao Jie didn't care about the heat. The fully cooked chicken fell off the bone without much effort when it went into his mouth. It had the unique tenderness, saltiness, and spiciness of chicken. His appetite was immediately whetted. The aroma was so delicious, "Delicious! Sister!"
Ningxia smiled and prepared to serve. Li Gang, tactfully, stepped forward, lifting the heavy pot over Ningxia. Lao Liao also joined them, and with one of them carrying the pot and the other scooping out the vegetables, they moved the stir-fried chicken with hot peppers to the counter. At Ningxia's instruction, they carefully pressed it down with leaves, fearing it would cool and affect the flavor.
Because they brought a lot of chili peppers, the Ningxia fried chicken was not used up, so Ningxia quickly fried some bacon with the chili peppers. It was oily and very tempting.
“Dinner is ready!”
As Ningxia finished speaking, a group of people wolfed down their food, their chopsticks moving so fast that only their shadows could be seen.
While cooking, the soldiers strongly requested that they cook an egg for Sangsang separately because they saw how thin the child was.
Ningxia thought about it and simply took out five eggs. She used her milk pan to steam an egg custard in a big pot. The soldiers just tasted it symbolically and didn't eat it anymore, consciously leaving it for Sangsang.
Ningxia was helpless. How could Sangsang eat so much? He took a spoon and scooped a spoonful each before placing the remaining portion in front of Sangsang. The soldiers smiled and accepted it helplessly. Don't say it, the feeling of happiness of eating smooth and tender egg custard these days is simply unbelievable.
Sangsang ate half a steamed bun with egg custard and couldn't eat any more. Ningxia felt her stomach and made sure she was full before letting her go.
There was no wind outside at the moment, and the food was all hot and spicy, so the men were sweating profusely. One word to sum it up: awesome!
After dinner, Ningxia was held down and not allowed to move while several men cleaned up the mess. "Ningxia, do you want to take Sangsang to the water to wash?"
The weather was getting hotter and hotter, and the clothes of a group of people were getting wet and dry again. A few soldiers planned to go to the river to take a good soak.
Ningxia naturally agreed. She had wanted to go for a long time and she could hardly stand the smell on her body.
After taking out the soap they had exchanged at the trading point from their luggage, a group of people headed to the river. Ningxia thought it was right next to them, but it took them almost thirty minutes to walk.
"Ningxia, you stay here with Sangsang, and we'll take Lin Yi over there." Li Gang led Ningxia to a sheltered area. After checking the surroundings and seeing if there were any problems, he called out to the rest of the group to go downstream. Once they found a good spot, they shouted towards Ningxia, "Ningxia! We're right here! Just call out if you need anything!"
"Oh! I get it!" Ningxia responded loudly. She placed her change of clothes on a large rock by the river, then led Sangsang slowly toward the water. Although it was called a small river, it was actually quite shallow, about two meters wide, and the deepest part only reached her neck.
Ningxia put Sangsang on a protruding rock in the river, took off Sangsang's clothes, washed them casually in the water, and then gently wiped Sangsang's body. The river water, which had been exposed to the sun for a day, was not very cold. Even so, Ningxia did not dare to wash Sangsang's hair. She washed her body clean, changed her into clean clothes, and let her go ashore.
Ningxia took off her clothes and pants, leaving only an old man's vest on her body, and then she soaked herself in the water painfully. As for underwear, she had already discarded it.
Ningxia sat in the water, looked up at the gray clouds left behind after the sunset faded away in the sky, and sighed contentedly, finally settling down.
"Xia Xia, can I go find my brother?" Sangsang, bored after taking a bath, shouted on the shore.
Ningxia turned around and said, "No! If you're bored, just wash your own clothes!"
"Oh~"
There are only men over there. Although Sangsang is still young, Ningxia still wants to help Sangsang develop his independent awareness of the differences between men and women as much as possible.
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