Chapter 5, The Fifth Inn: Bamboo Rice
It was well past lunchtime, and Yunyin figured Zhang Lin must be getting impatient, so she quickly headed deeper into the woods.
The only sounds in the forest were the chirping of birds. Yunyin followed the trees forward until she reached the big tree. She called out for a long time but received no response.
Yunyin thought something had happened to Zhang Lin and was about to climb the tree to check on him when she heard a cry of "Ouch!" It turned out that Zhang Lin had just woken up and almost fell off the tree, but because he was tied with a rope, he didn't actually fall.
Yunyin put him down speechlessly and said, "Really, you can even fall asleep like this."
“If I hadn’t tied you tight enough, you would have been half dead if you had fallen.”
Zhang Lin rubbed his arm and said with a grin, "I had nothing to do, so I waited and waited for you, but you didn't come. I could only take a nap in the tree."
Yunyin tied the whip back to her waist, handed him a flatbread, and said, "Alright, come with me."
Seeing the still-steaming pancake, Zhang Lin swallowed hard and asked, "Lady Yun, is this really for me?"
Seeing his pitiful look, Yunyin nodded and said, "Eat up, there's more after you finish, and you can have bamboo rice tonight."
“Following me will ensure you have enough to eat, so don’t do this kind of thing again, don’t even think about it.”
Zhang Lin took a big bite of the pancake and nodded repeatedly, saying, "I understand, Lady Yun. I won't do it again. I'll work for you from now on. I'll do whatever you ask me to do, as long as you feed me."
Yunyin said with satisfaction, "Alright, let's go then. First, go and help me build a thatched hut."
Yunyin led Zhang Lin back to the hillside she had chosen earlier, and pointed to the flat area below, saying, "Build a thatched hut here. How long will it take you to finish?"
Zhang Lin didn't ask any further questions, nor did he want to know why Yunyin wanted to build a thatched hut here. After he finished eating, he looked at the area and thought for a moment before saying, "If I'm only building one hut, it will take me ten days to build it by myself, including making the adobe bricks and drying the thatch."
Yunyin handed him a machete and said, "Go and cut down the tree. On your way back, cut down a thick bamboo as well. I'll use it to make bamboo rice later."
Zhang Lin's eyes lit up when he heard about bamboo rice. He took the cleaver and said, "Don't worry, my wife, I will definitely help you build a house that is both beautiful and sturdy."
Yunyin watched him go into the mountains before she started a fire again, boiled water to wash the jars she had bought, and waited for them to dry completely before putting all the mushroom sauce into the earthenware jars.
After placing the earthenware jar, Yunyin washed the glass jar clean with wood ash, let it dry, and then put it into the wooden box she had bought, along with the books. Once everything was neatly arranged and she was sure there wouldn't be any collisions, she locked the box and placed it in the bushes she had previously been in.
These jars were valuable items in ancient times, and she wouldn't want to exchange them for money unless absolutely necessary. Better safe than sorry; even with glass products today, there's no way to replicate this craftsmanship. As someone without even a registered residence, it's best to be cautious.
After everything was tidied up, Zhang Lin still hadn't returned, so Yunyin continued preparing the mushroom sauce. She was going to Luo Man's place tomorrow, so she could bring her a bottle of vegetarian mushroom sauce and a bottle of meat mushroom sauce to try.
As for the chicken oil, she only had one bottle, and it wasn't certain she'd have any more, so she kept it for herself. She definitely couldn't give her the remaining spicy mushroom sauce; she'd heard there weren't any chili peppers available yet, and her chili sauce was practically unique.
Thinking that she hadn't been able to eat spicy food for a long time, Yunyin, who loved spicy food, was a little depressed, so she kept the chili sauce for herself.
A total of thirty bottles of meat sauce and ten bottles of vegetarian sauce were sorted out. Yunyin put aside the ones that Luo Man would taste tomorrow, and packed the rest separately to take with her tomorrow. If Luo Man didn't want them, she would need to find another customer.
Looking at the pots and pans scattered all over the floor, Yunyin felt only satisfaction; these were all the possessions she had earned.
Just then, Zhang Lin returned, dragging trees and bamboo. Yunyin went to help him, and after throwing everything down, she handed him a bowl of water, saying, "Drink this; I just boiled it."
Zhang Lin finished his drink in one gulp, wiped the water stains from the corner of his mouth, and said, "Thank you, Lady Yun."
Yunyin glanced at the bamboo he had chosen, which was quite suitable. She nodded and said, "You rest for a while and then go dig some river mud to make mud bricks. I'll go pick some bamboo shoots. We'll have bamboo shoot, pork, and bamboo tube rice for dinner."
"Alright, my wife, go ahead. I'll stay here and watch over the things."
Yunyin nodded and quickly went into the mountains with her basket.
To be honest, she wasn't worried about him running away with the things. She had been observing him the whole way. Despite Zhang Lin's strong appearance, he was actually very honest and simple, with a little bit of cleverness, but not much.
When she gave him some cakes and didn't limit how many he could eat, he looked at her with an expression that said he would follow her from now on.
He said that he was disliked by his family because he ate a lot when he was at home. Later, when his family died during the famine, he fled with his fellow villagers, but he was still not well-liked because he ate a lot.
Yunyin's lips twitched as she thought about how he ate ten flatbreads in one go. No wonder others disliked him; he really did eat a lot.
Fortunately, she could afford the ten-cent flatbread, and it would be even more cost-effective to cook for herself later.
As Yunyin walked, she pondered what to do next. Soon she arrived at the place where she was picking bamboo shoots. With a couple of quick snaps, she gathered the amount she needed for the day. She also picked some elm seeds to make a soup.
When Yunyin returned to the hillside, Zhang Lin was already making mud bricks. Since there was no rice straw or wheat straw, he used thatch instead.
Yunyin watched for a while without disturbing him as he stomped in the mud, and went to the other side to prepare bamboo for making wooden bucket rice.
Zhang Lin was very meticulous. The branches of the bamboo she cut down had already been removed. All she needed to do was cut the bamboo into small sections and clean them by the river before she could use them.
After preparing the bamboo, she soaked the rice she bought in water, cut the pork belly into small cubes, marinated it with ginger, garlic and salt, and then continued to process the bamboo shoots.
Bamboo shoots need to be blanched before eating to remove their astringent taste. Yunyin gently made a cut with a knife and easily peeled the whole bamboo shoot off with her fingers.
By this time, the meat should be almost marinated. Put the meat in a pot and stir-fry for a while until it changes color. Then add the blanched bamboo shoot pieces and stir-fry together. Finally, add the mushroom sauce and stir-fry until it's almost done.
Nowadays, the ingredients are simple, and she can't make other kinds of rice in wooden buckets. She also doesn't have cured meat, so she can only make a simple one. Fortunately, she is quite skilled, and even with just simple ingredients, it smells delicious.
Yunyin placed the prepared bamboo tube over the fire to heat it, then boiled another pot of water. She took out two eggs that had been set aside, beat them, sprinkled in a little salt, and stirred them well. Once the water in the small pot boiled, she poured the egg mixture into it.
These eggs were bought by Yunyin with her last three coins before leaving town; after buying the eggs, she had no money left. Fortunately, they were worth it. Looking at the bubbling egg drop soup, she poured in the washed elm seeds, waited a moment, added salt, and then took it out of the pot.
While Yunyin was stir-frying meat, Zhang Lin kept glancing over at her. When she started making soup and smelled the aroma, he couldn't concentrate on his work anymore.
Seeing that he kept looking around, Yunyin took out a ceramic bowl and invited him, "Come and drink. The bamboo rice will take a while to cook. Have some soup and rest first."
Zhang Lin quickly washed his hands and feet, sat down opposite Yunyin, took the bowl, and drank it all in one gulp without even saying thank you.
Yunyin watched him swallow it in one gulp and asked worriedly, "It's so hot, are you alright?"
Zhang Lin savored the taste from earlier, but couldn't discern any particular flavor. He only noticed a faint sweetness within the light and subtle notes.
He couldn't describe the taste, but he thought it was delicious. This bowl of soup looked very ordinary; he had even eaten elm seeds before, but he had never found it so delicious.
Zhang Lin shook his head and said, "I'm fine. I'm just used to grabbing food, so I didn't react for a moment. This soup is really delicious. Can I have another bowl?"
Yunyin took his bowl and filled it for him, saying, "Drink as much as you want, as long as you can eat it. Drink slowly, there will be bamboo rice later."
Zhang Lin quickly took it with both hands. This time, he was no longer in such a hurry and began to savor it slowly.
Yunyin didn't look at Zhang Lin again. She picked up a bowl of soup and tasted it. The soup was refreshing. Because no starch was added, it wasn't thick at all. The hot soup went down her throat and soothed all her fatigue from the day.
After finishing a bowl of soup, she was still a little unsatisfied. At this time, the bamboo tube gradually released its aroma as it was roasted over the fire. When the bamboo tube turned golden brown, the bamboo rice was cooked.
Yunyin placed the cooked bamboo rice into the basket, took one out and split it open. A fragrant aroma immediately wafted out, and in no time her nose was filled with the bamboo fragrance. She picked up a piece with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth. The aroma of oil, bamboo and mushroom blended together, making her want to eat more.
Yunyin ate two, then handed the remaining bamboo rice to Zhang Lin, saying, "These are all for you. If that's not enough, I have some flatbread here."
At this moment, Zhang Lin had just finished eating a bamboo tube of rice and nodded repeatedly, saying, "Thank you, Lady Yun. Your cooking is really delicious. Was what you said about all-you-can-eat meals true?"
Seeing him wolfing down his food, Yunyin handed him a bowl of soup and said, "Of course, you can help me with the work without worry. You won't go hungry in the future."
Zhang Lin took a sip of soup and a bite of rice, then smiled and said, "Then I'm relieved."
"Miss Yun, when are you going to register me as a temporary resident? That way I can sign a contract with you."
Yunyin raised an eyebrow. She hadn't even registered her household yet, how could she possibly sign a contract with him? She pointed to the mud over there and said, "It depends on your performance. If you perform well, I'll sign an employment contract with you as soon as possible."
Zhang Lin quickly finished his meal and returned to the mud pile, saying, "Don't worry, Lady Yun, I will definitely work hard."
Yunyin shook her head, washed all the pots and pans clean, put them aside, and took a knife to the other side of the river to cut thatch. Building a thatched hut couldn't rely entirely on Zhang Lin. Although she didn't know how to build a house, she could help cut some thatch.
One of them made the mud bricks, and the other cut thatch. By the time it got dark, Yunyin had cut a lot of thatch, and Zhang Lin had started tamping the soil.
Since he was doing it all by himself, the work wasn't very fast, but Yunyin wasn't in a hurry. They could make do with the thatched hut outside until it was finished. As for Zhang Lin, he was told to stay in the thatched hut by the official road, where he could also find out what was going on.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
