Chapter 66 Going to the ancestral graves, spring rolls filled with braised pork, carrots, scrambled eggs, and fragrant...
Spring rolls can be fried or steamed, but fried ones are greasy, while steamed ones are fresh and sweet, making them more suitable for eating during the Qingming Festival. If there is a light rain outside the window, it would be even more enjoyable to have a cup of tea with them.
In the past, during the Han Dynasty, the main grains were millet and sorghum, which had less gluten. By the Song Dynasty, the methods of making wheat flour and rice flour became the mainstream, and the flour made in this way had more gluten.
The flour used for spring roll wrappers needs to have high gluten content to increase the wrapper's elasticity and prevent it from breaking when filling.
Lu Xuan added a few pieces of dry firewood to the stove, which produced a lot of smoke, and the water in the pot soon started to bubble.
The sound of water gradually rose, and the fire went out.
Lu Qiong took a bowl of flour, poured in boiling water, and stirred it into a flocculent state. She then mixed the remaining flour with salt and water to form a smooth dough. She divided the dough into small portions, brushed them with oil, and let them rest for half an hour.
Once the kitchen quieted down, she heard dripping sounds from under the eaves again. She went out to take a look and saw that the small water vat that had just been moved out was now quite full.
After the dough has rested, flatten it, brush it with a layer of oil paste, and finally roll it out into a thin wrapper. Then put it in a pot to steam. Once cooked, the spring roll wrapper is ready.
Stir-fry the shiitake mushrooms, carrots, cabbage, and eggs in turn, and serve them separately in bowls.
Lu Xuan felt there wasn't enough filling, so she pleaded with Lu Qiong, "Sister, I want to eat more meat! Otherwise I'll get hungry very quickly this afternoon, and I'll faint on the mountain before we even find our parents' graves."
After sizing her up, Lu Qiong nodded seriously: "What if you faint on the road..."
Just as Lu Xuan was about to laugh, thinking her older sister had agreed, she heard her sister burst out laughing, "Then you'd better eat less, otherwise I won't be able to move you!"
Lu Xuan was furious after hearing this, turned her head away and ignored everyone, while glancing at Lu Qiong out of the corner of her eye.
In the end, they cut a small piece of pork, shredded it, and stir-fried it into braised pork. It was tender and juicy, and the sauce made it even more appetizing.
Lu Xuan was satisfied, but she didn't like mushrooms. She would usually grab a spring roll wrapper, fill it with braised meat, carrots, and scrambled eggs, roll it up, dip it in sauce, and stuff it full in one bite, her cheeks bulging.
Lu Qiong brewed tea and added dried pear blossoms made by the teahouse as a garnish. She also poured a cup for Lu Xuan and smiled as she wiped the sauce from the corner of her mouth: "Why are you eating so fast? Nobody's going to take it from you."
Back in Bianjing, she always insisted on competing with Wei Pan, even taking the dishes she didn't like to try, and she would eat quickly. Now that the two have separated, this trait hasn't changed.
Lu Xuan hadn't swallowed the spring roll in her mouth yet, and mumbled, "Mmm...delicious!"
"Have some tea to calm your nerves after you finish eating!" Lu Qiong was afraid she would choke, so he always liked to talk while eating, and he never changed his ways.
The fragrance of pear blossoms and the astringency of tea spread out. Lu Xuan took a sip, smacked her lips, and found that the astringency had faded and the tea had a sweet aftertaste. It was quite delicious, so she reached out and poured herself another cup of tea.
It rained all afternoon. Once the rain subsided, they put on their straw hats and raincoats, and carried their bamboo baskets up the mountain.
The road was difficult to walk on, so the two of them took a wooden stick to support themselves on the ground, leaving small dents.
The original owner's parents' graves were on this small hillside. Following the path uphill, they came to a fork in the road. They turned right into the bushes, and after walking a short distance, they saw a plum tree. The plums on the tree were still a bit green and glistening with dewdrops.
Lu Xuan tiptoed, pulled off a leaf, and picked a plum. But all the water droplets on the tree shook off, and the two of them got wet.
Faced with Lu Qiong's gaze, she chose to take the initiative to admit her mistake, and smiled coquettishly: "Sister... I just couldn't resist picking one because the plums looked so fresh..."
Lu Qiong shook her head, sighed, and turned away. There was really nothing she could do with her. She couldn't argue with someone today; she had important things to do.
The plums were very sour. Lu Xuan took a bite and her teeth chattered from the sourness. She threw the rest on the ground and rolled it into the pile of weeds.
The two tombstones are very close together, indicating that someone must have come beforehand. The surrounding weeds have been cleared away, and unburnt incense and candles, as well as a bowl of wine, remain.
Lu Xuan said softly, "It's possible that Uncle Zhou came by."
"It could be Cheng Niang," Lu Qiong thought to herself.
She lit the incense again, but it was quickly extinguished by the drizzle, leaving only a wisp of smoke. She had no choice but to give up.
They set out pastries and fruit platters, poured more wine, and knelt before the tombstone. Lu Xuan, who was next to them, followed suit.
In the past, Lu Xuan would cry so hard she couldn't breathe as soon as she arrived, but now that she's grown up, she knows how to keep her feelings to herself.
Not far from here, there was a cemetery with no inscriptions on the tombstones, which puzzled Lu Xuan. She asked whose grave it was.
Every year during the Qingming Festival, Lu Qiong would take Lu Xuan to sweep the tomb. Seeing Lu Xuan's confusion, she smiled and said, "This is too remote. Her family might not be able to find her. We're doing a good deed this way."
Lu Xuan stopped asking.
On the way down the mountain, the rain had stopped, but the road was muddy and difficult to walk on. They could easily slip and fall if they weren't careful, so they helped each other along. In the end, their shoes were covered in mud.
On her way home, Lu Qiong had to pass through fields, and from a distance she could hear Zhou Erniang's loud voice: "That man really has ill intentions!"
The woman beside her lowered her voice and said, "I've seen quite a few people from other villages agree to this, so perhaps we should..."
Zhou Erniang, holding a hoe and stretching her neck, said with great force: "Our ancestors have always grown millet, how can we switch to growing cotton? Besides, have you heard of anyone who has succeeded in growing it? What if they can't harvest any grain and can't pay their taxes!"
The woman didn't say anything more, but she still felt that this could work. What future could she have by farming all her life? Cotton could be used to make clothes and could be exchanged for money. It might be better than growing grain.
However, these words can only be kept in one's heart; if spoken aloud, they will invite criticism!
When Lu Qiong approached, Zhou Erniang and the others dispersed, unable to get any useful information out of them.
She was curious: who had the audacity to advise people not to grow grain? Wouldn't they be chased and hacked down by farmers with hoes?
After changing their clothes, they set up a stove in the main room to dispel the dampness. Lu Xuan's hair was also wet, so she let it hang down and used the stove fire to dry it.
Lu Qiong brought out an iron rack from somewhere, placed the green rice dumplings she had made the day before on it, and the charcoal fire slowly started to burn, making the somewhat hard green rice dumplings soft and chewy.
She remembered the green rice dumplings she had eaten in her previous life, all sent by her grandmother. They didn't look particularly appealing, but they tasted authentic and had plenty of filling, including her favorite peanut and sesame crumbs.
After being heated in a steamer, the outer skin will become very hot, and when you bite into it, the sesame seeds will flow out.
"Ouch..."
Lu Xuan was also impatient and reached out to grab a green rice dumpling, but she got burned and was reluctant to let go.
There was another stove next to it, with an earthenware pot burning on it. The porridge inside was bubbling and boiling, and its delicious aroma was spreading everywhere.
...
Zhou Jingzong had gone to pay respects to the ancestors in the morning, and after returning home, he quickly ate lunch and then picked up his hoe and went to the fields.
His land was quite large, and it would take several days to plow it with a hoe, so he borrowed an ox from his neighbor and also gave him some things he had brought from Bianjing.
The ox was an old ox, and could only move forward with heavy steps. Zhou Jingzong gripped the iron plow behind him, and the plowshare turned over the soil, loosening the ground beneath his feet.
Even from a distance, when villagers pointed at him and gossiped, he could guess what they were talking about.
However, everyone lives their own life. Zhou Jingzong unloaded the iron plow from the old ox and led it home.
As soon as they entered the courtyard, the people inside came out when they heard the wooden door open.
Zhou Jingzong squatted down and rubbed his daughter's head: "What is Yao Yao eating?"
Yao Yao stretched out her chubby hand, revealing the candied fruit in her palm, and smiled at him: "Eating dried dates."
After chatting for a few more minutes, his wife shooed him back inside: "It's cold outside, you'll catch a cold..."
Yao Yao made a face at them and ran back into the house, but Zhou Jingzong still saw the figure hiding behind the door.
However, he noticed that his wife had drawn her eyebrows, so he took her hand and said in an even softer voice than before, "You used the face powder you brought back from Bianjing? It looks so beautiful..."
Lin Niang tried to pull her hand away, but he gripped it even tighter. She could only glare at him, her expression a mix of embarrassment and anger: "Yao'er is still watching."
Zhou Jingzong insisted on smiling, changed his position to block the view behind him: "Now you can't see it."
"I really don't want to argue with him," Lin Niang rolled her eyes at him again, her brows furrowing as she recalled what others had told her earlier. "You really want to plant cotton? But I heard that these seeds can only grow in Xizhou, and what that young master said..."
Zhou Jingzong looked down at her worried eyes and smoothed her brow: "Young Master Xie is from Bianjing, would he lie to us? He has been to the Western Regions and also to Jiangnan, he is more knowledgeable than us country folk."
Seeing that Lin Niang was still worried, he joked, "We still have savings and food at home, so we won't go hungry. At worst, I'll just go to Bianjing again."
Lin Niang knew his abilities, but it was still not easy for her to put her mind at ease. Besides, going to Bianjing to collect ice was difficult. She should have stayed at home to keep warm, but instead she went outside to freeze.
When she came back, her face was so frozen that she almost didn't recognize her.
Yao Yao then pushed open the door and smiled at them, "Dad, Mom, the chicken soup in the pot is ready! I want to try the first bowl!"
Zhou Jingzong nodded and smiled, "Alright, the first bowl is yours!"
Lin Niang slapped his hand away and said irritably, "You just keep spoiling her. She's getting more and more disrespectful."
She forgot about her previous worries, while Zhou Jingzong went inside first and busied himself going to the stove to ladle out the chicken soup.
...
They got up early today, traveled for half the day, and went to sweep the tombs in the afternoon. After all that, they were both quite tired.
After finishing her meat porridge, Lu Xuan patted her round belly and sighed, "I no longer find the work at the shop tiring. Compared to today, it's too easy."
The charcoal crackled and popped, and several more skewers of meat were placed on the iron rack, their grease dripping onto the charcoal, causing the small fire dragon to leap up.
The meat chunks were slightly charred, emitting a unique charred aroma. Lu Qiong sprinkled on a pinch of seasoning and a little salt, then brushed on a layer of oil, making the meat aroma even more intense, accompanied by a spicy flavor.
Hearing Lu Xuan's complaints, Lu Qiong deliberately went against her, watching the charcoal fire smoke the meat without looking up: "When we get back to Bianjing, you're not allowed to slack off, and you're not allowed to take Wei Pan with you and run around aimlessly."
This was a real blow to Lu Xuan, so she immediately retracted what she had just said and became a little more shrewd: "It's all exhausting... Look how thin I've become, and my hands are almost too heavy to lift."
Lu Qiong handed her the roasted meat: "Come on, I saw how strong you were when you picked the plums."
Lu Xuan didn't argue back. She took a bite of the meat, which was a perfect balance of lean and fat, and was marinated in salt and pepper. It was so delicious that her tongue felt numb.
After tidying up the house, they rested in the main room to digest their food. Lu Xuan was also exhausted and kept feeling sleepy while sitting in a chair. Perhaps the aroma of meat in the house hadn't dissipated yet, because she kept smacking her lips in her sleep.
When I woke up the next day, the sky was overcast and it was drizzling.
They planned to go back in a couple of days, but decided to visit Uncle Zhou today. After all, he lived in the village and only spoke a few words to people when he was selling fish; otherwise, he mostly stayed at home.
Last time she said she would bring him food, and Lu Qiong remembered it all, so this time she prepared quite a lot.
Qingtuan is a must. People like Uncle Zhou wouldn't bother making it; they'd just find it too troublesome... There are also various pastries made at Lu Ji's, as well as candied dates, apricots, and yellow wine that I bought.
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