Fu Yucheng squatted down and gently peeled away the thin layer of soil on the mound Fu Yuanshan pointed to. Sure enough, he saw a faint bamboo whip mark. He held his breath and carefully dug along the bamboo whip with a hoe. After a while, half of a winter bamboo shoot wrapped in a brown bamboo sheath was revealed, plump and looking fresh.
"We really found it!" Fu Yucheng's eyes lit up, and he moved even more gently, afraid of damaging the bamboo shoot. "Second brother, your method is so effective. I used to dig around for ages, and either I wouldn't find anything or I'd break the bamboo shoot, and all my efforts would be for nothing."
Fu Yuanshan smiled and squatted down to help him dig out the winter bamboo shoots intact: "Digging winter bamboo shoots requires patience; you can't rush it. Look how intact these bamboo shoots are; they'll definitely taste delicious when stewed with meat."
He put the winter bamboo shoots into the bamboo basket, and then pointed to another bamboo grove not far away, "Look at that bamboo grove, the leaves are growing vigorously, the bamboo shoots underneath must be strong too. Go and try it, follow the method I taught you, and I guarantee you'll be able to dig them up."
Following his brother's directions, Fu Yucheng walked to the bamboo and carefully observed the direction of the bamboo rhizomes. Sure enough, he found a bulging mound of earth at the base of the plant.
He imitated Fu Yuanshan, gently digging in the soil with a hoe. Before long, he dug out an even bigger winter bamboo shoot, which was even more robust than the previous one.
"Second Brother, look! This one is even bigger!" Fu Yucheng shouted excitedly, holding up the winter bamboo shoot, his face full of a sense of accomplishment. "I won't have to worry about digging winter bamboo shoots anymore."
The two spent the morning working in the mountains, filling their bamboo baskets with winter bamboo shoots. They also picked some fresh bamboo leaves and pine needles. Fu Yuanshan said that wrapping winter bamboo shoots in bamboo leaves to stew with meat would remove the fishy smell, and placing pine needles in the bamboo basket would keep the winter bamboo shoots fresh.
On the way back, Fu Yuanshan suddenly took out a cloth bag from his pocket, inside which were two pieces of osmanthus cake bought in the city. He handed one to Fu Yucheng: "Try it quickly. This is an old brand of osmanthus cake in the city. It's sweet but not greasy. You mentioned to me last time that Yinyin likes sweets, so I specially brought it for her."
Fu Yucheng took the osmanthus cake, took a bite, and the fragrance of osmanthus spread in his mouth, the sweetness just right: "Yinyin will definitely like it, Second Brother, you've thought of everything."
He wrapped up the remaining half and put it in his pocket, saying, "I'll give it to Yinyin to try when I get back, so she can have a taste too."
When they got home, the aroma of millet porridge filled the courtyard. Jiang Jianhua was sitting under the eaves peeling oranges for Yun Tangyin, who was leaning back in a rocking chair, holding a half-embroidered baby outfit in her hand. The light pink fabric was embroidered with tiny locust flowers, and the stitches were fine and dense.
"You're back! Did you find any winter bamboo shoots?" Yun Tangyin looked up and saw them, her eyes lighting up. The little one in her belly also moved slightly, as if in response.
Fu Yuanshan placed the bamboo basket on the stone table, lifted the pine needles to reveal a basket full of winter bamboo shoots: "I dug them up, they're all big ones. I'll stew them with meat for you later to nourish your body."
Fu Yucheng then took out the osmanthus cake from his pocket and handed it to Yun Tangyin: "Yinyin, this is an osmanthus cake that your second brother brought for you. It's from an old brand in the city. Try it and see if it's good."
Yun Tangyin took the osmanthus cake, took a bite, and felt the sweet fragrance mixed with the aroma of osmanthus. She squinted her eyes in pleasure and said, "It's so delicious! It's even more fragrant than the ones I buy in town. Thank you, Second Brother!"
Jiang Jianhua leaned over and smelled it, then said with a smile, "This osmanthus cake smells really good. I've seen it in the city before, but I never bought it. I didn't expect Yuanshan to remember that Yinyin loves sweets."
Aunt Zhang brought out a bowl of freshly cooked millet porridge and handed one to each of Fu Yuanshan and Fu Yucheng: "Have some porridge to warm yourselves up. You must be hungry after digging bamboo shoots all morning."
Looking at the winter bamboo shoots in the bamboo basket, she smiled and said, "These winter bamboo shoots are growing really well, even stronger than the ones Acheng dug up last time. I'll stew some meat for lunch, I promise it will be tender and flavorful, so Yinyin can eat more."
Jiang Jianhua put down the oranges, walked to the bamboo basket, picked up a winter bamboo shoot and examined it carefully: "This winter bamboo shoot is so fresh. The winter bamboo shoots I buy in the city are not this tender. When I stew the meat at noon, I will add some shiitake mushrooms. The shiitake mushrooms and winter bamboo shoots go even better with the meat."
Then she remembered something and said to Yun Tangyin, "Yinyin, I'll teach you how to process winter bamboo shoots later to remove the astringent taste, otherwise the stewed meat will taste bitter. You can make it at home by yourself in the future."
Yun Tangyin smiled and nodded: "Okay, I was just looking forward to learning. I used to never be able to handle winter bamboo shoots properly, and the stewed meat always had a bitter taste. Now that you've taught me, I'll be able to make winter bamboo shoot stewed meat for my child."
Around noon, the kitchen became lively. Aunt Zhang was in charge of cutting meat, Jiang Jianhua was teaching Yun Tangyin how to prepare winter bamboo shoots, while Fu Yucheng and Fu Yuanshan were chopping firewood in the yard to start a fire.
Holding a winter bamboo shoot, Jiang Jianhua peeled it as he spoke, "To prepare winter bamboo shoots, you first need to peel off the outer skin, then cut them in half lengthwise, remove the inner sheath, cut them into chunks, blanch them in boiling water, and add a little salt to remove the astringent taste."
Following her instructions, Yun Tangyin carefully peeled the winter bamboo shoots. Although her movements were a little clumsy, she learned very diligently: "I didn't know there were so many intricacies involved. I used to just cut them into pieces and stew them directly, no wonder they tasted bitter."
Jiang Jianhua said with a smile, "Everyone's like this at first. You'll get the hang of it after a few tries. We can cook together from now on. I'll teach you how to cook city dishes, and you can teach me how to cook local snacks. We'll learn from each other."
After Fu Yuanshan and Fu Yucheng finished chopping firewood, they went into the kitchen. Fu Yuanshan took the winter bamboo shoots from Jiang Jianhua and helped cut them into pieces: "You two take a break, I'll take care of the rest. You go inside and sit down, don't tire yourselves out."
Jiang Jianhua laughed and said, "It's okay, I also want to move around. I'm always sitting and doing carpentry in the city, and my body is stiff."
The stewed pork with winter bamboo shoots simmered slowly in the clay pot, the aroma of the pork mingling with the fragrance of winter bamboo shoots and shiitake mushrooms filling the entire yard.
Zhou Desheng's wife arrived carrying freshly steamed sweet potatoes. The skin of the sweet potatoes had cracked open from steaming, revealing the golden flesh inside, which smelled sweet and fragrant: "These are sweet potatoes steamed by my mother. I brought some for you to try. They're soft and perfect for Yinyin."
Yun Tangyin took the sweet potato, took a bite, and exclaimed, "It's so sweet! It tastes even better than the ones I steamed, thank you!"
Zhou Desheng's wife smiled and said, "It's not hard work. It's you who's having a baby who's having a hard time. We're neighbors, so it's only right that we help each other out."
In the afternoon, Fu Yuanshan and Fu Yucheng set up a new bamboo rack in the yard to dry more dried radishes and shepherd's purse. Jiang Jianhua and Yun Tangyin sat under the eaves embroidering baby clothes. Aunt Zhang and Zhou Desheng's wife were tidying up the yard. The children were chasing rabbits in the yard. The whole yard was filled with laughter.
Yun Tangyin leaned back in the rocking chair, looking at everything in front of her. The little one in her belly moved gently, and her heart was filled with happiness.
She knew that with family by her side and neighbors taking care of her, these days would always be warm, like the old locust tree in the courtyard, deeply rooted and evergreen year after year. The happiness full of everyday life would forever remain in this small locust courtyard.
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