Chapter 51 Beggar's Chicken
In the afternoon, Xie Yun went to the commune. In addition to the beggar chicken that Zhang Ruifeng bought, she took out another one from her space and did not add anything else.
As soon as Yu Ziqin saw her, she smiled brightly and asked her, "What are you doing today?"
Because Xie Yun's delivery was random, she inadvertently brought her the joy of opening a blind box.
Xie Yun put the basket on the ground and asked her, "Do you have any newspapers at home? Or anything else that can be used as a cushion on the ground?"
"have."
Yu Ziqin went back to the house and took out a cloth pad made of scraps of cloth.
Xie Yun took out two black lumps from the basket. She looked at Yu Ziqin and found that the old lady's face did not show surprise, but only joy. "Is this beggar's chicken? Or is it something else made using the same method as beggar's chicken?"
"What is beggar's chicken?"
Xie Yun played the role of a village girl conscientiously.
The old lady smiled and said, "It's just marinating the chicken, wrapping it in lotus leaves, coating it with yellow mud, and then roasting it in the fire. Yours looks very similar."
When she lived in Beijing, she often ate at Chunhualou. One of its signature dishes was beggar's chicken, which she quite enjoyed. Later, after she followed her husband here, she rarely ate it. But her family was well off at the time, and they had plenty to eat. If they couldn't have beggar's chicken, they could always have roasted or grilled chicken, so she didn't feel any regret.
Life has been getting harder these past few years, and eating meat has become a luxury. Looking at this beggar chicken, I feel a mixture of emotions.
Xie Yun clapped his hands. "I didn't know it was called beggar's chicken, but that's exactly what I do. You can't have the smell of meat in your house, and it's not convenient for mine. We live in the countryside, so the more low-key the better."
So, I was thinking about how to prevent the smell from escaping during the cooking process. After much thought, I came up with this idea. However, I don't have lotus leaves at home, so I used cabbage. I just made it at noon and ran to bring it to you. It's still hot. What do you think, old lady, am I being nice?
The old lady gave a thumbs up and said, "That's very thoughtful."
She carried the two black bumps in a cloth pad and walked into the house, calling out to Xie Yun, "Come in quickly."
Xie Yun followed her into the house. The old lady closed the door and looked around for something to knock the black lump open. She couldn't find anything, so she went to the backyard and got half a brick to knock it open.
The fragrance came out all of a sudden.
The old lady peeled off the topsoil, washed her hands, removed the burnt vegetable leaves, tore off a small piece of meat and put it in her mouth to chew. She squinted her eyes and ate with a look of satisfaction.
She gave Xie Yun a thumbs-up and said, "Your cooking skills are no worse than the master chef at Chunhualou in Beijing."
Xie Yun laughed and said, "You're exaggerating! How is that possible? Let's not talk about anything else. Just look at the seasoning. I only have salt, soy sauce, and a little bit of Sichuan peppercorns. I don't have any other seasonings. I can't even compare to the master chef."
The old lady shook her head. "I'm not exaggerating, it's really delicious. Maybe you controlled the heat well."
Xie Yun thought for a moment and continued, "My mother bought two chickens from different people. They weigh about the same, about 4.78 jin (approximately 15.75 catties). She spent 2.2 yuan on one and 2.3 yuan on the other. What I mean is that the quality of chicken raised by different people may be slightly different. If the two chickens don't taste exactly the same, don't blame me. I cook them the same way."
"Okay, okay, okay. Don't worry, it's already this late, how could I still be so picky? Wait, I'll get you the money."
The old lady went into the inner room and came out after a while, handing Xie Yun a big unity banknote. It was agreed that one was five yuan, so two would be ten yuan.
Xie Yun took the money and left, "I won't disturb you from eating. It's better to eat it while it's hot."
The old lady didn't bother to be polite with her. She escorted her out the door, locked it behind her, and trotted back to her room. She called back her brother and sister-in-law who were writing in the backyard and said, "You guys eat first. I'll take the other one to the children."
Yu Qiushi said, "Let's wait for Wenrui to come back and eat together."
"No need to wait, eat it while it's hot. Just leave a chicken drumstick for Wenrui."
After saying that, the man had already left.
Yu Ziqin's son lived next door. At first, the two courtyards were completely independent. Later, after the most sensitive period had passed, they quietly opened a small door in the backyard, which was more than one meter high. Adults had to squat if they wanted to pass through.
In the past, the old lady felt she would never do such a thing. Her dignity and decency were unbearable.
But later she realized that compared with life, all decency and dignity were unnecessary.
She is doing it very efficiently now.
There was a big black vat blocking the small door. The old lady moved the vat away and opened the door.
There was also a large black vat blocking the way on the other side of the wall. The old lady squatted in the doorway and stretched out her hand to push the vat aside.
Her son Li Mingda heard the noise and ran out of the house, calling out cautiously, "Mom?"
"It's me. Move the tank away."
"Why."
Li Mingda quickly took action and moved the black jar aside. The old lady held the black lump and slowly moved it over.
Li Mingda reached out and helped her up, saying, "Mom, if you need anything, just call me and I'll come over."
"I'm just worried that you can't hear me, and if I shout too loudly, others will hear me."
When her daughter-in-law Su Hui and her three children heard her voice, they also ran out of the house.
"mom."
"grandmother."
"Oh. We have meat to eat today."
Yu Ziqin said in a low voice with a smile.
Su Hui asked, "Was it sent by that girl named Xie Yun again?"
"Yeah. Let me tell you, Xiao Xie is talented at cooking. She even figured out how to make beggar's chicken herself. Isn't that amazing? They were sent two. We'll keep one for us and one for you. They're still warm. You and Mingda can eat with the kids. I'm going back first."
Li Mingda said, "Mom, you finally made it here. Stay a while before going back. Come eat with us. The kids miss you too."
They actually saw each other quite often. After all, they were only separated by a wall, so they could see each other every day or two. But they still cherished every encounter. In fact, if his uncle and aunt were not there, they wouldn't have to be so cautious, but with those two old people around, it was always better to be cautious.
The old lady thought for a second and agreed, then went into the house.
She handed the beggar's chicken to Li Mingda and asked him to crack it open and give some to the children. She stayed behind to play with the children with her daughter-in-law.
Yu Ziqin held the three children in her arms and looked at them with a smile.
Her eldest grandson is over five years old, and her youngest granddaughter and nephew are both over two years old, but the children have already gotten used to their current life. Even at home, they speak softly and dare not play or make loud noises.
Recently, thanks to the things Xie Yun sent, the three children's complexions have improved a bit. Yu Ziqin was happy just seeing this.
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