Chapter 27 I missed my older brother even when I was in kindergarten. Do you miss your older brother or...?
Lou Lan herded a group of reluctant children to take a bath, much like herding ducks.
"Oh dear, Fourteen, your handkerchief is soaked with sweat! Are you that hot? Or were you playing games at kindergarten today?"
"No, I just played on the slide for a little while after school. I didn't run around. It was just the sun making me sweat."
"Why didn't you say that having something wet sticking to your back would make you catch a cold? Next time you sweat, you should tell an adult so they can change it for you, understand?"
"I understand, Aunt Lou."
"Starry Eyes, come here, let me see if your towel is wet?"
"No, I wasn't in the sun."
"Good boy!"
...
As the sound faded into the distance, An Fusheng found a water pipe, connected it to the kitchen tap, and watered the seedlings.
After watering the plants, the sun had completely set, and it was time to cook dinner.
An Fusheng started cooking the rice and went to the refrigerator to find ingredients.
The refrigerator is completely full today.
In the past, people in the countryside would only go to the market every few days, and everyone was used to buying several days' worth of vegetables at once. Today, An Fusheng couldn't change his habits and bought too many vegetables without realizing it.
Picking the corn and pickled mustard greens from the most convenient spot, An Fusheng had an idea for what to have for dinner. He murmured, "Then tonight we'll have steamed pork ribs with glutinous rice and corn, stir-fried minced meat with Grandma's vegetables, and baked old pumpkin with salted duck egg."
That's right, there's an old pumpkin lying on the ground outside the refrigerator. An Fusheng got it from an old man who ran a street stall.
Behind the pumpkin was a shelf against the wall, on which were placed a dozen or so kitchen utensils.
An Fusheng actually saw them on the first day, but didn't pay much attention. Now, as he looked at them one by one, he found that there were several that he didn't know what they were for. "There should be instructions."
An Fusheng tiptoed to look at the top shelf and sure enough, he saw a pile of pamphlets scattered around. He reached out and took one down. "It really is. I'll try it out and see if it works."
An Fusheng threw the instruction manual back where it was and picked up the pumpkin from the ground.
"Big brother?" An Shisi's little head peeked in from the kitchen doorway.
"You're done showering so quickly?" An Fusheng exclaimed in surprise. "You didn't take a shower by yourself, did you?"
"It was Aunt Lou who washed it for me," An Shisi said with a smile as he walked into the kitchen.
An Fusheng was a little suspicious. "Really? Come here and let me check."
An Shisi skipped and hopped over to An Fusheng.
An Fusheng placed his palm on top of An Shisi's head and rotated An Shisi 360 degrees like turning a bottle cap to check him. "It's alright, it's all clean."
An Shisi was dizzy from being spun around, but he still didn't forget to tug at his clothes to show An Fusheng, "Big brother, do I look good in my dragon outfit?"
It's just a crew neck T-shirt with a yellow caterpillar printed on the front, what's so interesting about it? An Fusheng didn't see it.
But since they specifically asked, An Fusheng knew exactly how to answer, "It looks good!"
An Shisi continued to boast, "Big brother, I also put on some perfume."
"Who applied it to you?"
“It’s Aunt Lou. Smell it. Does it smell good?” An Shisi stretched out his hand to An Fusheng.
An Fusheng, with a completely dishonest attitude, praised, "It smells amazing! No wonder the whole kitchen smelled so good when you came in."
An Shisi was overjoyed, "Hehe!"
An Fusheng: "Alright, let's go out and have some fun. I need to cook."
An Shisi: "Big brother, what are we doing today?"
An Fusheng pointed to the pumpkin on the counter: "This one."
An Shisi: "What is this?"
An Fusheng: "Pumpkin."
An Shisi: "Why is this pumpkin long? The pumpkins in the kindergarten picture book are big and round."
An Fusheng: "The varieties are different."
An Shisi: "Why are they different?"
An Fusheng's mind went on alert instantly. Why was this familiar thing happening again?!
Someone please come and save him!
"Big brother?"
Wen Xinglin appeared at the kitchen doorway like a god descending from the heavens.
Very good!
There's always a way out!
An Fusheng quickly pushed An Shisi towards Wen Xinglin: "Xinglin, hurry up and go outside with Shisi to play on the slide."
An Shisi: "Aunt Lou said that you can't play on the slide after taking a bath."
Wen Xinglin hesitated, "I want to help my older brother cook."
An Fusheng: "Today's dishes are very simple, you don't need to help. You guys go outside and play, you can play anything except the slide, go on."
The two children were inexplicably pushed out of the kitchen by their older brother.
An Fusheng closed the kitchen door and breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Steamed pork ribs with glutinous rice and corn requires soaking the glutinous rice in advance, but An Fusheng had only just decided what to cook for dinner, and the glutinous rice hadn't even been taken out of the rice container yet.
However, this was no big deal. An Fusheng scooped half a bowl of glutinous rice from the rice bucket, poured it into the boiling water in the iron pot, and put the lid on. "Can such a small difficulty stop me from enjoying delicious food? No way."
The vendor had already chopped the ribs for me when I bought them. An Fusheng washed the ribs, mixed them with seasonings, and then cut the corn.
The water in the pot has boiled, and the glutinous rice is cooked.
An Fusheng used a draining spoon to scoop the cooked glutinous rice into the bowl of mixed ribs, and continued to mix it evenly so that the glutinous rice was fully coated with the sauce. Then, he lined the bottom of the steamer with a layer of bamboo leaves, placed the glutinous rice and ribs in the steamer and spread them out evenly. Finally, he put the chopped corn on top and it was done!
"A full basket, just right." An Fusheng put down the last piece of corn, the corn piece forming a circle on the surface of the glutinous rice ribs.
An Fusheng placed the steamer into the pot, covered it, and steamed it over medium heat.
It takes about 30 to 40 minutes to steam. To save time, we can only use another stove to cook other dishes.
The pickled mustard greens had already been soaked in the rice water used to cook glutinous rice. An Fusheng picked up the pumpkin and cut it in half. "Wow, so many seeds! That's great!"
An Fusheng collected the pumpkin seeds, peeled and cut half of the pumpkin he was going to use today into strips, and mixed it with cornstarch.
Once the stir-frying starts, there won't be time to prepare the ingredients, so An Fusheng also chopped the minced meat needed for the other dish.
Ready.
An Fusheng took out the salted egg yolk sauce he had just bought that day from the cupboard.
That's right, the salted egg yolk sauce was also recommended to An Fusheng by the duck vendor.
Although he hadn't decided what to use it for at the time, the salted egg yolk sauce was so beautiful, golden yellow and like quicksand, that he couldn't resist it. He never expected it to come in handy so soon.
The pumpkin needs to be fried in oil first, and then stir-fried with salted egg yolk sauce. It takes a bit of time, but it's just right. Once An Fusheng has finished these two dishes, the steamed dish over there can also be served.
An Fusheng opened the kitchen door, and a bunch of children looked up at him expectantly.
An Fusheng: "..."
"Big brother, is the food ready?" Bai Mangmang asked.
An Fusheng: "Everything is ready."
Bai Mangmang excitedly exclaimed, "I'll help serve the dishes!"
An Fusheng put the children in the kitchen. "Mangmang, take that plate of minced meat stir-fried with Grandma's vegetables. The other dishes are too hot, I'll take them."
"What about us, big brother?" Wen Xinglin asked.
"You guys get the bowls and chopsticks."
"OK."
The food was served in an orderly fashion.
On the dining table, the dishes were steaming hot and fragrant, and the children sat obediently in their seats, waiting for the meal to be served.
"What are we having for dinner tonight? It smells so good, I can smell it from far away." Lou Lan carried Wen Xingrui in one arm and held Wen Xinghe's hand with the other as they walked into the restaurant.
Wen Xingrui was quite heavy, so An Fusheng quickly went over and took him from her.
"Thank you," Lou Lan said.
"Aunt Lou, I'm starving." Wen Xingmou looked at Lou Lan with earnest eyes.
"Eat right away if you're hungry." Lou Lan helped Wen Xinghe sit down.
After An Fusheng put Wen Xingrui in the high chair, Lou Lan said, "Let's eat."
As soon as the words were spoken, it was as if a play button had been pressed, and the restaurant instantly became lively.
"I'll try this one first."
"Ahhh, this pumpkin is so fragrant and soft, it's so delicious!"
"I like to eat pork ribs!"
"I like it too, the rice inside the ribs is delicious."
"Let me try some too."
“Look at me eating a big bite of green vegetables, Aunt Lou.”
"Amazing! Amazing! Fourteenth is the best!"
Remembering something, An Fusheng asked, "Siu eats so much, why didn't he get a little red flower?"
The restaurant fell into a deathly silence in an instant, and even Wen Xingrui looked up curiously.
Everyone turned to look at An Shisi…
An Shisi chewed and swallowed the mouthful of food that was bulging in his mouth before slowly and angrily saying, "The food at kindergarten was not good today. I can't eat as fast as Fang Wangxi. I used to be the first to finish eating every time."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and continued eating.
Lou Lan asked, "Didn't you used to love eating the food at kindergarten? Today's menu is pretty much the same as before."
An Shisi: "Anyway, none of the food is as good as my older brother's. I miss my older brother even when I'm in kindergarten."
Lou Lan chuckled, "Do you miss your older brother or the food he cooks?"
An Shisi scooped up a spoonful of rice and put it in his mouth: "I want to eat my brother's cooking tomorrow too."
An Fusheng asked, "Then you won't get a little red flower?"
An Shisi thought for a long time, then made up his mind: "I'm going to eat all the food at the kindergarten too!"
Lou Lan: "If you ask the teacher to give you less, you can finish it all."
An Shisi pouted and said, "No, I don't eat less than Fang Wangxi."
Lou Lan: "..."
An Fusheng: "How about I make some snacks for you to take to kindergarten? Don't eat them yet. Wait until you've finished all the food at kindergarten and you miss me a lot, then you can eat a little."
Lou Lan quickly stopped her, saying, "Food is not allowed in kindergartens."
An Fusheng asked in confusion, "Why?"
Lou Lan said, "The children in kindergarten are still young and have delicate stomachs. Some children are allergic to various foods. The school is worried that if the children bring food to share with other children, they might accidentally make one of the children sick, which would be a huge responsibility for the school."
"Ah, children are so fragile?" An Fusheng was stunned.
“That’s right,” Lou Lan said.
Bai Mangmang finally swallowed a large piece of pumpkin in her mouth and hurriedly called out, "Big brother, I can bring some and cook it for me. I want to eat it. I'm always super hungry during the long break between classes."
An Fusheng asked Lou Lan, "Is that alright?"
"Do it if you want, kids do get hungry quickly."
Wen Xinglin said slowly, "I'm hungry too."
Lou Lan: "You won't be left out."
At that moment, the two kindergarten children were engrossed in eating corn, unaware of what they had lost.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com