Xu Lai put the peeled bamboo shoots into the pot, then added water. There was already a fire in the stove, so she added two bundles of firewood to make the fire burn brighter.
Then she dealt with the tender bamboo. "Xu Yan," Xu Lai called out, "you hold the bamboo for me, I'll cut it."
She peeled off the outer shell; the bamboo was still quite tender. Xu Lai chopped it into sections with a kitchen knife and had Xu Yan take it to the well to wash.
She took out the glutinous rice, soaked it, cut off a small piece of cured meat, diced it, and also chopped some carrots and corn kernels.
"Cook the glutinous rice for a few minutes, then heat oil in a wok, sauté the cured pork until the oil is rendered and fragrant, then add the carrots and corn kernels and stir-fry together, finally add the glutinous rice and stir-fry evenly." Xu Lai didn't forget to film a video while cooking, but she hasn't updated it in the last two days, so her viewership has dropped a bit.
Xu Yan handed over the washed bamboo tube and asked, "Sister, isn't bamboo rice usually made with old bamboo? Why did you use young bamboo?"
Xu Lai explained, "I've never tried young bamboo shoots before, so I'll give it a try this time and see if they taste good."
Xu Lai asked Xu Yan to point the camera at her hand, and then continued, "We add the fried glutinous rice into the cleaned bamboo. I used tender bamboo this time. You can try it too. After filling it, steam it directly in the pot."
Just then, the blanched bamboo shoots in the pot were ready. Xu Lai took a large basin, scooped them out, changed the water, and then went to steam the bamboo rice.
She and Xu Yan carried the bamboo shoots from the basin to the well, filled a bucket with well water, poured it in, washed the bamboo shoots clean, took out two winnowing baskets, tore the bamboo shoots in half, and placed them on the baskets to dry.
Xu Lai also saved two bamboo shoots, planning to stir-fry them with cured pork for lunch.
She also sliced the bamboo shoots and cured pork, and picked some scallion leaves to stir-fry together.
Once the bamboo rice was steamed, Xu Lai brought the dishes and rice to the table and called out, "You can eat now."
At the dinner table, Xu Zhicheng, who had been giving her the cold shoulder for two days, said, "Your mother and I are going to work tomorrow, and the factory will be starting operations soon."
Xu Lai said "Oh" and added, "Don't worry, I'll take care of things at home."
Upon hearing this, Xu's mother sensed something was amiss and asked suspiciously, "Lai Lai, aren't you going to work anymore?"
Xu Lai said calmly, "I haven't told you all this time, but I've resigned."
Xu Zhicheng was a little angry: "You're always like this, making decisions first and asking questions later. Such a good job, you just say you don't want it. Xu Lai, what exactly do you want to do!"
Xu Lai looked at him, smiled, and asked, "Didn't I learn this from you? Acting first and asking questions later?"
Everyone felt uncomfortable during the meal, but Xu Lai didn't care and continued eating as usual.
After lunch, she went back to her room for a nap. Around 3 PM, she got up and knocked on Xu Yan's door: "Want to go pick mulberries?"
Hearing a noise from inside, Xu Yan opened the door and said, "Go, go, go, I'm going to change my clothes."
Xu Lai went downstairs to find her grandmother. Her parents weren't home; they were probably playing cards. No matter what happened, playing cards was never an option.
Grandma was turning over the bamboo shoots that had been drying at noon when Xu Lai walked in and asked, "Grandma, shall I take you to pick mulberries?"
Grandma said, "I'll go with you."
The place to pick mulberries isn't far, it's just in the next village, only a ten-minute walk away.
The owner planted a large mulberry orchard, the trees weren't very tall, and he specialized in mulberry picking.
Xu Lai went over and asked, "Boss, how much does it cost per person to pick mulberries?"
The shop owner was looking at his phone, not even looking up: "Adults 20, children 10."
Xu Lai scanned 60 yuan and the owner handed her a basket, saying, "The first basket is free. If you want to pick more, you'll have to pay extra. You can sample the ones inside for free."
Xu Lai came here this time to pick some to make wine. She told Xu Yan, "Just pick the big ones, I'll pay."
The weather wasn't that hot yet, but as Xu Lai walked through the mulberry grove, a thin layer of sweat still appeared on her forehead.
With the idea that "might as well come if you're not going to miss out," Xu Lai filled her basket and tasted each tree. By the end, she felt she didn't need to eat dinner anymore, as she was already stuffed.
As the sun slowly set, they walked home in the twilight. By sheer coincidence, just as they reached their doorstep, they saw a Bentley pull up in front of their neighbor's house.
Zhao Qingyun got out of the car and saw Xu Lai carrying a small basket. After glancing at each other, they nodded to each other and went home.
Xu Lai took out a plate, picked out some large mulberries, and called Xu Yan to take them over: "Take these to Grandma Jiang's house next door."
Xu Yan said "Oh," and asked, "Why aren't you going?"
Xu Lai patted his head and said, "Just go when I tell you to. Why ask so many questions?"
When Xu Yan knocked on the door next door, Zhao Qingyun was drinking water with her back to the door. Hearing the sound, she smiled and said, "Come in, you've brought me something again..."
He turned around, paused halfway through his sentence, looked at the person in front of him, his smile faded, and asked politely, "You must be Xu Yan from next door. What brings you here?"
Xu Yan placed the mulberries on the table and said, "My sister asked me to bring you some mulberries; we just picked them this afternoon."
Zhao Qingyun's inner thoughts: Why doesn't she do it herself?
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