Chapter 84 (Spicy Mix)

After dinner

Xiao Huaiting and Xiao Huaiwu had just returned from the battle and had been on the march, so after eating and drinking their fill, they went to rest.

Yan Qiushu ate a full stomach, plus a bowl of nutritious chicken soup, and her belt was a little tight around her waist. But given the situation at the time, she could only calm herself down by eating hard.

She walked slowly into the yard.

When there was almost no one around, she stared at Shui Yan with a ferocious look.

Shui Yu begged for mercy and whispered, "I'm sorry, young lady. I thought about how much you did for the Sixth Young Master before, but it was inconvenient to tell you because of your status. Now that you are an engaged couple, I have to tell you. So I'm telling you that you won't do it again in the future."

Under normal circumstances, women would speak out what they did, otherwise it would be easy for men to ignore it.

This was given to her by Nanny Xu. In fact, Shui Yu was one year older than Yan Qiushu. She thought that the girl had no relatives, and they had been together for so long, and the other party had always treated her like a friend. She became bolder and subconsciously thought about her.

But I didn't expect that the girl didn't need it, and I ended up making things worse.

She was a little scared, she lowered her head and slumped her shoulders, not daring to look at anyone.

Yan Qiushu was not actually angry, she was just more panicked at that moment. Seeing her like this, Shui Yu was the first person of her age that she got along so well with since she came here, so she said, "It's okay, I'm not blaming you."

Shui Yu was relieved, but he kept his head down on the way back.

Until the person in front of me suddenly stopped.

She continued walking forward without noticing. After two steps, she found that Yan Qiushu had not moved behind her. She was wondering why, so she looked up and saw that they had already reached the entrance of the yard, and a young man was standing in the yard.

He was dressed in black, standing straight but thin, with his hands behind his back, looking at them with a smile.

Not true.

Shui Xuan silently glanced back, then decisively left the yard and ran out with brisk steps.

Not looking at them.

It’s just the girl!

Shui Yu had left, and there was no one else in the yard. Yan Qiushu came back to her senses, coughed lightly, and called out, "General Xiao."

Xiao Huai Ting nodded slightly: "Before leaving, I said I would bring you a gift. The gift is ready. Why don't you come and take a look?"

Yan Qiushu moved slowly, her eyes still glancing at his face. Is this normal? Does she really think this engagement is just a simple agreement?

She pursed her lips, suppressed the sudden disappointment in her heart, and smiled: "Thank you, General Xiao."

She followed Xiao Waiting.

Turning the corner, I saw several pots of 'red lanterns' placed on the stone table near the kitchen!

After being stunned for a while, Yan Qiushu quickly ran over to take a look. When she saw it, she was so excited that her face turned red. She almost jumped up and down with joy: "General Xiao! This, did you find this?! This is amazing!!"

chili!

It’s not just one variety, but several varieties of peppers!

Red chili peppers, colorful lantern peppers, and long and thin erjing strips, sheep horn peppers, etc.

Each plant grows in a pot, and next to the green leaves are peppers of different colors.

At this time, this kind of pepper was probably more for viewing purposes, and it would definitely be cultivated for viewing. The various varieties that were cultivated were the different types of peppers in later generations.

But since it looks so familiar, it must be spicy.

Seeing her so happy, Xiao Huaiting's bright eyes also curved at this time, and he opened another box on the stone table: "There are also dried peppers here, which I collected from the road."

When Yan Qiushu opened it, she saw that it really was all kinds of peppers dried in the sun, neatly arranged, and there were quite a lot of them.

You can tell at first glance that the person who posted it put a lot of thought into it.

The only thing missing is the lantern pepper.

Maybe the lantern pepper was too fleshy and went bad.

Yan Qiushu thought with amusement, but she couldn't suppress the smile on her lips. Besides the joy of owning chili peppers, she also felt the pleasure that her words were valued.

She looked at the peppers, then at the young man beside her, and her gentle voice seemed to tremble slightly: "Thank you, General Xiao, this dried pepper is so good."

With just one simple sentence, Xiao Waiting felt that all his efforts on this chili were worth it. His heart was filled with joy. He could not say anything more at this moment. He just covered his lips with his fist and said, "You're welcome. As long as you like it."

She naturally likes it.

Yan Qiushu looked at the peppers and couldn't let them go. Suddenly, she found a tooth mark on one of the peppers, so she picked it up and took a look.

Xiao Huai Ting said hurriedly, "This is what Fourth Sister took a bite of out of curiosity. I didn't want to waste it, so I kept it."

Yan Qiushu chuckled. She had said that this pepper was very important and if found, it must be preserved well. Unexpectedly, he would not even let go of the pepper that had been bitten.

Xiao Huai Ting blushed a little because of the laughter, but he was too dark now and it was hard to see that he was blushing, so he just stood there trying to sew up his face.

Yan Qiushu had laughed enough, and the strangeness she had felt towards him after almost half a year of absence faded away. Her tone became much more intimate, and she said, "Thank you, General Xiao. Is this all the peppers you have?"

"No, I brought back a lot. If you want them, I'll send them over." Xiao Huaiting said.

Yan Qiushu nodded: "Okay, but I'll have someone send some of the seeds inside to Manager Yao, and let him find an old farmer to cultivate them? By the way, pepper seeds like water. Soak the seeds in water for three hours, then wrap them in a wet towel and place them in a warm place, but not too hot. You can pick the seeds after they sprout..."

One good thing about chili peppers is that the seeds can be left behind and it is the skin that is eaten.

The whole seed of a potato is what you eat.

So we can’t eat too much now, we have to use them all as seeds.

Yan Qiushu became happier the more she talked. Hey, there will be lots and lots of peppers soon. She can eat as much as she wants. She can also make chili noodles, upgrade the spicy strips, and even make hot pot!

This is the most important thing!

She was so happy that her face seemed to be glowing.

As Xiao Huaiting listened, his eyes unconsciously fell on her face. Occasionally, when she was lost in thought, he came back to his senses and realized that staring at her like this was not a good idea. He lowered his eyes and saw the familiar jade pendant on her waist, and his eyes narrowed.

As she was talking, Yan Qiushu suddenly realized that she was performing a one-man show by herself. She tilted her head and saw that he was staring at her waist.

waist?

Realizing what was inside, she quickly covered the jade pendant with her hands, her cheeks slightly red, and looked at him in a panic.

She felt guilty towards the person involved!

Apart from other things, his mother was probably concerned about her and was afraid that her reputation would be damaged if she got engaged to a random man. In addition, given the many speculations made by the Xiao family before, she simply used her own son as a tool fiancé. Yan Qiushu was very afraid that Xiao Huaiting would be unhappy about this, even though he agreed to it.

"Ahem!" Xiao Huai Ting coughed lightly, retracted his gaze, and said softly: "Miss Shu, I have delivered the gift. The army still has things to do, so I will leave first."

Yan Qiushu nodded quickly.

But when she saw the young man turn around and leave, she suddenly thought and called him back: "General Xiao, about that...engagement..."

Xiao Huaiting stopped walking, without looking back, and whispered: "That's what I agreed to, you don't have to be embarrassed."

Yan Qiushu's face got even hotter. She rubbed her cheeks, which were terribly hot. She said woodenly, "Oh."

After hearing the response, Xiao Waiting pursed his lips and strode away.

Yan Qiushu breathed a sigh of relief. Before her mind could calm down, the man who had just left suddenly came back and said hurriedly, "By the way, I bought some local specialties when I passed by Wucheng this time. My fourth sister told me to bring them back because she was afraid you would miss your hometown. I also met Zhao Shuhong. Do you remember her? She divorced her husband's family because of some things and had nowhere to go, so I brought her back and settled her in a farm in the suburbs. You can go and see her when you have time."

This time after saying this, Xiao Waiting really left.

The young man in black, who had walked away, raised his hand and knocked his head. He didn't know what he was thinking about just now. He almost forgot to mention this.

After everyone left, Yan Qiushu went to the kitchen.

The kitchen door was unusually closed. Nanny Xu was sitting inside with her eyes squinted as if she was dozing off. When the door was pushed open, she opened her eyes and saw that it was Yan Qiushu. She smiled and said, "Sixth Young Master has left?"

"Let's go." Yan Qiushu said, her eyes fell on the shelves to see what she could cook.

Madam Xu looked outside again and muttered, "Why are you walking so fast?"

"Madam Xu, what are you talking about?" Yan Qiushu asked because she didn't hear clearly.

Madam Xu shook her head quickly: "Nothing, what are you planning to do, young lady?"

Yan Qiushu actually didn't know either. When she saw the peppers just now, she wanted to eat a lot of things, but now she didn't know what to do. Her cheeks were still hot and her mind seemed to be still confused. She was barely able to think about Zhao Shuhong.

I have to go and see her tomorrow. Zhao Shuhong is the first person who has shown kindness to her since she came into this world, like a kind-hearted older sister.

I thought she came to Kyoto and he was in Wucheng, and they would never have any intersection in the future. Who knew they would have the chance to meet again.

I just don't know why she came here?

As Yan Qiushu thought about it, she recalled what Xiao Huaiting had just said. It was just a simple sentence, but it calmed her uneasy heart. And she seemed to have seen this man’s red ears just now?

She picked five peppers and tasted the spiciness with the tip of her tongue. Confirming that they were similar to the peppers of later generations, she washed them and took a few dried peppers that had been sun-dried and soaked them in water. She also asked the water bottle to go to the kitchen to get some sesame paste.

Soon there was the sound of "dong dong dong" in the kitchen. Aunt Xu was helping on the side and watched Yan Qiushu chop up the fresh and dried peppers, add minced garlic, sugar, chopped green onions, pepper powder and other seasonings, then pour a layer of hot oil on them, stir evenly and add soy sauce and vinegar.

Nanny Xu felt a more pungent smell than the one from the peppercorns and shiso mixed with chili peppers.

"A-choo!" A sneeze sounded.

Nanny Xu hid outside the kitchen.

Yan Qiushu also wiped her nose with her handkerchief. The smell was a bit overbearing and she could hardly bear it. She ran to the kitchen door to breathe some fresh air and wait until the smell inside had dissipated a lot before going back.

After pouring the sesame paste into the dish, she put the prepared sauce aside and started to prepare the vegetables, meat, and the beef balls that are now a regular feature of the kitchen.

Nanny Xu came over to help wash the vegetables and said with a smile, "Young lady just told me all about it. Now that the sauces are ready, come wash the vegetables."

Yan Qiushu's eyes flickered: "Ah, I forgot."

After all the vegetables are processed, put them directly into hot water and heat them until boiling. Put the vegetables first, then the mustard greens, and make sure everything is cooked. Finally, put them into a large bowl with the sauce prepared in advance, and stir constantly to ensure that every vegetable is coated with the sauce.

The sauce is made with sesame paste, soy sauce and other condiments that are easy to remember in color. The brown-red color is mixed with a little gray, and a lot of sesame seeds are added later. When stirred, the lotus root slices, green vegetables, cucumbers and beef balls are all covered with red oil sauce and white sesame seeds.

The sauce is thick. If you pick up any piece of food, you can see the juice slowly flowing on it. Of course, apart from this, the best-looking thing is the chopped red chili peppers by Yan Qiushu attached to it.

Just looking at it like this is like telling the person who eats it.

This taste will be very spicy!

Yan Qiushu changed her pair of chopsticks and picked up a beef ball to eat.

As expected, as soon as the tip of her tongue touched the chili oil, it retracted subconsciously due to the spiciness. As we all know, spiciness is painful, and her tongue had never tasted such a spicy flavor, and the pain was unbearable!

Five peppers!

The spiciness is indeed a bit high!

Yan Qiushu was so spicy that she almost lost her soul. She stared at the meatball in front of her, and was a little afraid to put it in her mouth.

It’s so spicy. If she eats it, will her anus be healthy?

It's just peppers!

Her favorite!

Yan Qiushu took a deep breath and took a bite. Immediately, her whole mouth was invaded by the spicy taste and she seemed to be unable to feel the fragrance of sesame paste.

Yan Qiushu chewed it twice in a hurry, biting through the tight and chewy beef ball. As she chewed, her tongue gradually became unruly.

It's too spicy!

She added five chilies, which were already spicy enough, and the hot oil made them even spicier, and the pepper powder added some spice. The key point was...

Hey, why is there almost no saltiness? ? ?

The only thing you can taste on your tongue is a hint of saltiness added when the beef balls are made, which is almost undetectable under the overbearing spiciness.

Yan Qiushu stared at the colorful food and frowned.

She clearly remembered to add salt!

"Miss, is it very spicy? Why don't you not eat it?" Aunt Xu asked concernedly. When she smelled the food, she felt it was terribly spicy. How could she eat it?

Yan Qiushu looked strange: "Mammy, did I add salt?"

Madam Xu thought for a moment and asked hesitantly, "Did the young lady not add salt?"

Yan Qiushu: "I didn't even add salt?!"

As a cook, it’s okay to forget to put anything in the food, but she actually forgot to put salt, which is a must in almost every dish???