Liu Mei quickly helped Xu Jiang up, then brushed the sand off her body and wiped her face with a handkerchief dipped in water.
The old woman also brought some clean water and asked Xu Jiang to drink two bowls. After sitting for a while, the dizziness in his chest disappeared.
Xu Jiang sighed, "She really can get drunk on tea. I've finally seen it." Then, seeing the old woman apologizing profusely, she quickly pulled her aside and comforted her, "Grandma, it's not your fault. It was me who didn't listen and wasn't steady, so I fell."
Seeing her acting like a cat, Liu Mei teased her, "This is what happens when you don't listen to the advice of an elder, and you suffer the consequences."
Xu Jiang laughed heartily upon hearing this, and then apologized to the old woman, "I'm so sorry for scaring you."
The old woman was relieved to see that she looked kind and was not hurt.
This is a reasonable and kind person.
Xu Jiang continued, "Grandma, I like your tea. Can you sell me some?"
The old woman nodded and said, "Sell." Aren't they selling tea?
"Then I want this Acacia tea and Wild Chrysanthemum tea. How much can you offer?"
"The wild chrysanthemums on the mountain are in full bloom. You can pick them anytime you want. There are still two pounds in the jar. You can buy them all if you want. However, the acacia tea tree only produces three or four pounds a year, so I can only give you one pound."
"Okay, I'll take the wild chrysanthemum tea, and a pound of acacia tea, mixed with five bowls of tea. How much would you charge?"
The old woman weighed the tea on a scale and said, "These are all from the mountains, not worth much. I'll give you five hundred coins in total."
"A tea tree can only produce three or four kilograms of tea a year. You sell it to me so cheaply that I won't feel at ease even if I buy it." This tea is hard to come by. Although it grows on the mountain, it also needs to be managed and maintained. The two are old, and they don't know how much effort it will take to cross the river and climb the mountain.
"I'll sell it to you. Grandma is happy to do it." The old woman wrapped the tea in paper and handed it to Xu Jiang. "At our age, we don't know if we can open our eyes tomorrow. I just hope you're happy to do it."
Xu Jiang took the tea and then took out a piece of silver from her purse and stuffed it into her pocket. "You ask for my happiness, and I ask for my happiness too. This is not much money. You can accept it for peace of mind and as a token of your filial piety."
Since I don't have Rui Lao at home, I should return the favor since he loves me. Besides, this tea is worth the price.
The old woman couldn't convince her, so she had to accept it. Feeling guilty, she packed up the basket of wild fruits and stuffed it into her hand.
On the beach, the fishing boat docked and Shan Bo shouted from the other end. He was quite casual on this trip.
The old woman asked, "Do you want to buy fish?"
"Well, just now in the pavilion on the mountain, I saw my elder brother catch some fish, so I wanted to buy some and borrow some cooking utensils from someone so that I could cook some river fish to try." Along the way, except for staying at the Wan family, he didn't have many comfortable meals.
"Why bother looking for someone else? Bring it to my boat and I'll cook it for you." After the old woman finished speaking, as if she was afraid she would refuse, she shouted to the fisherman, "Duoshun, you're my guest. Bring the fish over here."
Fisherman Duoshun listened to the call, responded, then found a bucket, picked up the fish and walked over here.
Shan Bo and his guards followed closely behind.
Duoshun handed the bucket onto the boat. Xu Jiang looked into the bucket and saw that in addition to the two grass carps, there were also many small fish.
With Fuzhou within sight, Xu Jiang, thinking she still owed Du Hui a treat of fish sashimi, and the two grass carp arriving at the perfect time, bought them, fish and the bucket. The remaining miscellaneous fish were cooked in a pot on the boat, with the old woman in charge.
The old woman asked the old man to bring the fish to the stern of the boat and cut it open, and then she cleared out several jars filled with oil, salt and seasonings.
The old man brought over the cut fish, placed a big-bellied earthenware pot, added pine needles and ignited the charcoal fire.
"I'll light the fire." Xu Jiang lit the fire, Liu Mei helped, and the old woman scooped a spoonful of oil to lubricate the pot, and added two spoonfuls of cooking oil to fry the fish.
When the cooking oil was put into the pot, Xu Jiang smelled a strange fragrance, which was Litsea cubeba. She immediately swallowed her saliva.
The mixed fish soon covered the bottom of the pot, sizzling. Once the fish were fried until the skin was crispy and the bones were golden brown on both sides, they were stewed in water with ginger, garlic, five-spice powder, elm ginger flowers, and soybean paste. Simmer until the broth was thick and white, and then add some cornelian cherry blossoms, and the mixed fish soup was ready.
The old woman used a spoon to skim off the foam and scooped half a bowl for Xu Jiang to taste. "See if there's anything missing."
Xu Jiang blew on it, tasted it carefully, and praised it highly: "It's delicious." After finishing it, he said: "The taste is just right. Grandma's cooking is great."
The fish soup is not only delicious, but also mixed with the fragrance of Litsea cubeba and the spiciness of Cornus officinalis. When you drink it, it feels like the sun is in your stomach, and your whole body feels warm.
"It's been the same taste for decades." The old woman glanced at the old man, and the old man came over, took the pot and fish to the cabin, and then distributed the bowls and chopsticks.
Shan Bo and two guards carried the fish to the carriage and placed it there. When they returned, they brought good wine and some cakes, and then invited the old couple to join them for a banquet.
The couple did not refuse.
The men were at the stern, while Xu Jiang, Liu Mei and the old woman were in the cabin, tasting a pot of river seafood and discussing the taste of life.
As Xu Jiang listened to the old woman talking about her past with the old man, she couldn't help but feel envious and thought of Lou Yunchun.
It would be a blessing if he and I could live our lives together like my grandma and grandpa, and support each other.
The old woman looked at the old man who was drinking with others at the stern of the boat, and recalled the first time they met when they were young. It seemed as if it was just yesterday when he came down the raft to the ferry and asked her for tea.
“I’m so old.”
Xu Jiang looked up when she heard this, but saw that the old lady looked calm and peaceful, without a trace of regret.
The true taste of life is immersed in the rivers and in the ordinary.
After eating the fish, everyone helped clean up and said goodbye to the couple.
The meeting was short and the separation was long. After Xu Jiang walked a long way, she looked back and saw the two of them standing hand in hand at the bow of the boat, frozen into eternity in the autumn water.
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
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