Chapter 97 (Oil Splashed Noodles (Part 2)...)

Yan Qiushu brought Ning Zhuo and Xiao Huaiya to her own yard.

This yard's kitchen has the most kinds of ingredients. When she left before, she only took a small part of them, so it is quite convenient to use them now.

It is not difficult to make oil-splashed noodles, as the chili powder is already available. The main thing is making the handmade wide noodles, which requires some effort.

But Ning Zhuo Zuiweng's intention was not to do this, so he did not mind. When he heard that they had to wait, he immediately said happily: "That's fine, we won't disturb you, we will wait outside at the stone table, Miss Fifth, what do you think?"

Xiao Huaiya snorted and shook his head: "I want to help Ah Shu cook."

Ning Zhuo said dejectedly, "Then I'll help too, Xiangjun. Is there anything I can do to help you?"

Yan Qiushu looked at the two people and said directly: "Go wash your hands. Each of you can knead a ball of noodles. You are strong, so I can do something else."

"Okay!" Ning Zhuo said happily.

This was another job they were working on together, but Xiao Huaiya was not so happy. However, since Yan Qiushu had given the order, she did not refuse. Originally, the two of them were not familiar with each other, and she was not a warm-hearted person. She usually stayed in her room and did not like to go out. She and Yan Qiushu just treated each other as ordinary relatives.

But Xiao Huaiya saw how she defended herself just now, so he became much closer to her and was unwilling to object to what she said.

The two of them were kneading dough in the kitchen, and Yan Qiushu quickly took the vegetables out and washed them slowly.

Don't bother these two.

I haven’t eaten fried noodles in a long time.

Yan Qiushu muttered, "I'll make it spicier and add some vinegar. It should taste better. I wonder when the sweet potatoes will appear?"

In a short time, Prince Huai and Xiao Waiting brought back potatoes and peppers one after another.

Sweet potatoes, which occupy a large territory in Chinese cuisine, have been nowhere to be found. As a result, sweet potato noodles have not appeared yet, and we won’t be able to eat the chewy and smooth spicy and sour noodles for a while.

What a pity!

Yan Qiushu sighed in her heart, but her hands did not stop. She washed some green vegetables and some tender mung bean sprouts and put them in a basket for later use. Then she went to the kitchen to light a fire.

When she went in, Xiao Huaiya and Ning Zhuo seemed to have reconciled. She didn't know what Ning Zhuo said, but the woman kneading the dough smiled slightly, but quickly restrained herself, lowered her eyes with a seemingly indifferent look, and continued to work.

Ning Zhuo looked very lively and not depressed at all. He continued talking to her with a smile.

Yan Qiushu lit the fire, heated the pot first, and then put in a lot of oil. While waiting for the oil to heat up, she began to prepare the ingredients, salt, sugar, pepper, Sichuan pepper powder, chili powder, cumin powder, etc. She put everything in place and stirred it with a spoon. Finally, she used another large iron spoon to scoop up the hot oil and slowly poured it on top.

"Sizzle——" A series of sounds were heard, and a strange yet familiar spicy aroma wafted out.

Ning Zhuo was talking to Xiao Huaiya in a low voice when his stomach growled. He was really hungry. He simply took the dough from Xiao Huaiya's hand and said, "Let me knead it. You go and take a rest."

Xiao Huaiya pursed his lips, came to Yan Qiushu and asked, "How can I help you?"

Yan Qiushu deftly added soy sauce and other seasonings to the chili oil and said with a smile, "It's nothing. The kitchen is hot. Just go out and wait for a while."

"Okay." Xiao Huaiya nodded and went out.

Yan Qiushu scooped up all the oil and then added a large spoonful of water directly into it. The fire at the bottom of the pot was still very high. After the hot water was added, small bubbles appeared on the pot in a short while.

After a while, the bubbles expanded, floated up one by one, and burst on the water surface.

The water was boiling, and the green vegetables and mung bean sprouts prepared earlier could be put in for boiling. But before that, the dough had already been made, so Yan Qiushu ran to pull the noodles and asked Xiao Huaiya to boil these side dishes here.

"Ah? I don't know how. What if I make a mistake?" Xiao Huaiya felt a little nervous when he saw that he had to cook.

Yan Qiushu said in a hoarse voice: "It's okay, just put it in the water, and you can pick it up after counting to thirty."

"Oh, I got it." Xiao Huaiya felt relieved after hearing that. He threw the bean sprouts in and started counting seriously.

Yan Qiushu listened to the background music and concentrated on making noodles.

Wide noodles are easier to pull than thin noodles. She was very skilled in the movements. A ball of dough with no shape in her hands became noodles one and a half fingers wide in the blink of an eye. After a few times, a large pile of noodles was piled up on the table.

Xiao Huaiya prepared all the side dishes and waited for a while before Yan Qiushu threw the noodles into the pot.

The clear water instantly became turbid and turned a light beige color. When it was stirred, a scent of flour came to her. After eating the sweet ice cream cake and drinking the sweet milk tea, Yan Qiushu couldn't help but take a few more bites of the sweet flour aroma.

The thin wide noodles can be cooked quickly. Yan Qiushu stirs them with chopsticks, makes sure they are cooked, and then starts to knead the noodles.

One bowl per person, no noodle soup.

Even in the hot summer, there is no need for noodle soup.

Yan Qiushu picked up a piece of noodle with her chopsticks and dropped it into the bowl. There were small green vegetables and bean sprouts in the bowl that just covered the water. After the noodle was dropped in, the bowl was just full. Then she added two spoonfuls of chili oil that had been prepared in advance. The chili oil with soy sauce was dark red, and it was poured on the off-white noodles, dyeing them reddish brown, which looked shiny and slippery.

With another pick of the chopsticks, the chili oil slid down the noodles to the bottom, staining the side dishes inside with color. At the same time, the heat made the aroma of the chili oil spread even more.

There were three bowls in total, with a lot of noodles. Yan Qiushu added some vinegar to her own bowl and reminded them, "If you like sour food, you can add a little more. It will taste better this way."

She was stirring when she suddenly heard a child's cry from outside the yard: "Hey? Brother Pingyu, Sister Shu smells so good over here! Is she making something delicious again?"

Xiao Huaiya was holding the noodles, wondering whether to eat them or not. If she did, she would have to take off her veil. She had never taken off her veil in front of outsiders before.

You can't eat it, right? It smells so good.

When she heard the voice, she suddenly laughed and shouted, "Pingyu, Dongdong, come here, your sister Shu has prepared delicious food..."

Before he finished speaking, Dongdong had already brought someone over.

Good guys, not only Ping Yu, but also Xiao Pingsong.

Wan'er should be asleep at this time. She doesn't have time to fool around with them, right?

The three of them quickly ran to the kitchen door and saw three people in the kitchen, each with a bowl of fragrant noodles. They greeted them in unison and immediately stared at them with shining eyes.

It looks delicious!

No, you don’t need to look at it, it tastes good just by smelling it!

Dongdong was the most excited, and asked hesitantly, "Sister Shu! What are you eating? It smells so good."

Hsiao Hwai-ya was very understanding and passed the bowl to them: "Who wants to eat?"

"Me, me!" Dongdong was the first to run over, holding the oil-sprinkled noodles. He skillfully picked up a wide noodle with chopsticks and sucked it all into his mouth with a slurp.

One noodle was just enough for a big mouthful. His cheeks were already round, and now they were puffed out. His little mouth was also greasy, and his big eyes were clear and bright. He happily curved his eyes when he ate the delicious food: "Hmm!"

Fragrant, spicy and delicious!

The first one to eat it was so happy that the other two boys looked on eagerly, but they were not as shameless as Dongdong, so they didn't dare to say anything.

Yan Qiushu smiled and said, "Who among you is jealous? I am jealous."

Shen Pingyu nodded modestly and was about to speak when Xiao Pingsong beside him spoke up: "Aunt Yan, I'll eat!"

He was stunned, pursing his lips in disappointment.

Yan Qiushu held back her laughter and passed the bowl in her hand to Xiao Pingsong. Seeing that Ning Zhuo didn't dare to eat anymore and was hesitant about whether to pass the bowl to him, she said, "Eat it. Aren't you hungry? We still have noodles and dough."

"Okay." Ning Zhuo withdrew his hand and really started eating.

Different from Dongdong who eats one noodle at a time, Ningzhuo is much more careless when eating. He is a thick-skinned man and is not reserved when eating. He takes a bite and stuffs a chopstick of noodles into his mouth. He only slurps it a little and his mouth is full.

He had no choice but to bite off the noodles reluctantly and savor the delicious food in his mouth.

I thought it was delicious!

It was the most delicious noodles he had ever eaten in his life!

Ning Zhuo was very proud. This was the dough he kneaded himself. The dough was very tasty. Although the first bite he tasted was the spicy and numbing sauce, when the dough melted in his mouth, the unique sweetness of the dough was irresistible.

This kind of fragrance is different from the noodles he had eaten before. It is more flavorful and makes him more satisfied. Its presence makes the whole noodle not only spicy and salty, but the two seemingly contradictory flavors blended together make him particularly like it!

Maybe this is the dough he kneaded, so it tastes so good?

Ning Zhuo ate in big mouthfuls, and the vegetables and bean sprouts mixed in were also caught up in this storm of eating. The sweet and tender bean sprouts and vegetables also embellished the overall taste. Even when he finished eating, he still felt a little unsatisfied.

But saying he was hungry was just an excuse, his stomach was still full. He would drink when he was a guest, he drank at the dinner, and later he drank quite a lot with others while waiting for gifts. He had to eat something to pad his drink, and he really couldn't eat any more.

In the end, I could only watch the noodles rolling in the pot again and sigh with regret.

I can’t eat anymore!

Yan Qiushu was eating the freshly made noodles with oil. Seeing that Ning Zhuo was still not satisfied, she asked, "Are you really not going to eat anymore? You still have some."

"I don't want to eat anymore..." Ning Zhuo sighed.

If I had known this, I wouldn’t have eaten so much at night.

Xiao Huaiya laughed, with a hint of teasing in his voice, which made Ning Zhuo blush slightly. She didn't dare to look directly at him. She always felt like her little tricks were seen through.

It's an illusion...right?

Shen Pingyu ate the most quietly. When everyone else was slurping down their noodles, he was still nibbling on the last bit, eating very carefully.

I haven't eaten the food cooked by Sister Shu for a long time. Now I eat it and I really miss it...

Suddenly, there was some commotion in the front yard, and the panicked voices of maids and old women could be heard faintly.

Xiao Huaiya's expression changed slightly: "Ah Shu, you just stay here, I'll go see what's going on over there first."

Yan Qiushu nodded quickly and let her pass.

Ning Zhuo also followed.

After waiting for about a quarter of an hour, a maid came to report the news: "The eldest master was injured. I don't know who put a box of scorpions in the gift. When the eldest master sent someone to count the gifts, the box was not locked properly, and the scorpions ran out and bit the eldest master."

Yan Qiushu was shocked: "Are scorpions very poisonous? How is the young master?"

The maid shook her head and said, "They are not big, they are all scorpions used as medicine. However, it was too chaotic at the time and the young master was thrown out of the wheelchair and suffered a little. Doctor Tao is over there now."

Yan Qiushu's heart skipped a beat.

In fact, among the children of the Xiao family, except Xiao Huaiwu and Xiao Huaiting, who were killing on the battlefield all day long, when they first entered the Xiao family, they gave Yan Qiushu a feeling of discomfort.

It's not that kind of discomfort, but the spirit.

Xiao Huaiqi is alive, but he has lost his legs and his chance to enter the government, and therefore has not had children for many years. He looks no different, but in the plot, the characteristic mentioned as a background figure is his frail health.

It is also because the Xiao family is now on the rise again that he eats and drinks well and has something to do, and things are getting better and better.

But because of the leg disease, I fell to the ground and couldn't stand up when I encountered danger. That feeling of helplessness must be very uncomfortable. I don't know if this incident was an accident or something?

Yan Qiushu frowned, thinking it was more like a human error. Who would send a bunch of scorpions? And what's more, they didn't lock it properly, causing an accident during the inventory?

But there was no evidence, so she couldn't say anything. She asked, "Can I go and see it?"

The maid hesitated for a moment, then said softly, "It's getting late, and the eldest master is very busy. I'm afraid it's a little inconvenient. The young lady asked me to come and tell you that she hopes you don't worry and just rest. Doctor Tao will take care of everything."

Yan Qiushu did not insist upon seeing this. As she was Xiao Huaiqi's future sister-in-law and had not yet married, it was indeed inconvenient. Besides, there were many people at the banquet and it would be bad if something leaked out.

If it's not very toxic, then there's no problem. It just depends on who is behind it.

She nodded: "Okay, then you can go back."

"Yes, I'll take my leave." The maid nodded and turned to leave.

After a brief moment of worry, Xiao Pingsong's three children chose to go back. They were younger and would only cause trouble if they went, so it was better for them to go back first.

Yan Qiushu didn't go to bed immediately.

The Xiao family members were all so nice to her, especially Xiao Huai-qi. Although he didn't interact with her much, he was really nice to her. She felt uneasy and went to bed directly. After thinking for a moment, she ran to the kitchen and got some milk.

It’s late at night, so let’s make some candy.

Fortunately, she had some leftover cream from making the cake, so making some toffee was no problem.

Next day

Yan Qiushu got up early, had breakfast, and went to see Xiao Huaiqi.

The two courtyards were not far apart, and it only took two steps to get there. When she got there, Xie Qingyun was boiling medicine. There was some blueness under her eyes, and her face looked a little haggard. She probably didn't sleep well the night before.

Noticing her arrival, Xie Qingyun smiled and said, "Ah Shu is here. Have you eaten?"

"Have you eaten? How is the young master? I'll come and see him." Yan Qiushu nodded, walked to her side, and glanced at the medicine jar. Unfortunately, it was almost finished and had no use.

Yes, without a wife, my younger brother and sister-in-law will make medicine for my uncle in the future.

Yan Qiushu could only be polite.

Having an additional identity is, to some extent, quite distressing.

Xie Qingyun was also finishing up, holding the handle of the medicine jar wrapped in a thick cloth, and skillfully poured the medicine into the porcelain bowl.

Summer mornings are always exceptionally clear, but once the heat comes out, it becomes uncool. She holds the medicine and says, "Come in with me. He just got up a while ago and is reading a book."

Yan Qiushu nodded: "I made some candy. I just took it out of the ice cellar. It's cold. Eat it after taking the medicine. It's delicious."

"That's great!" Xie Qingyun smiled, although her eyes were still filled with bitterness. Yesterday's happy event turned out like this, and her husband was the one who got hurt. She felt depressed and uncomfortable, but she would not tell others.

The two of them walked in, and indeed, Xiao Huaiqi was reading a book. He didn't even notice them. His facial features were expressionless, and his eyes seemed a little blank.

Xie Qingyun frowned, "If you can't continue reading, then don't read it. I've been holding the book for half an hour and haven't turned a page."

Xiao Huaiqi suddenly came to his senses and said with a smile, "No, I was just thinking about something. Is the medicine ready? Let me do it."

As he said this, he stretched out his hand and welcomed his new medicine very naturally.

Xiao Huaiqi's face was pale, much uglier than the complexion he had worked so hard to restore. There were no visible scars on his face, only a red and swollen spot on his exposed hand.

Yan Qiushu took a closer look and saw not just one place, but two.

There are two places with just one hand, and then on his body...

He sensed Yan Qiushu's gaze, and he seemed to have just realized what was happening. He smiled and said, "Ah Shu is here too, sit down quickly."

It wasn't the first time that she ate dog food, but it was the first time that Yan Qiushu was ignored like this. She was embarrassed: "I made some candies. You can eat two after taking the medicine. They are soft and delicious."

She took the candy that Shui Xian was holding and placed it on the bedside cabinet. The small, creamy yellow candy cubes were piled up into a small hill on the plate. She could smell the milky fragrance as she got closer.

Xiao Huaiqi's smile became more genuine: "Thank you for your hard work, Ah Shu."

Yan Qiushu smiled and sat aside: "It's okay, it's okay."

Xie Qingyun sighed, and seeing that the medicine soup was no longer so hot, she handed it over: "Drink it slowly. Every time you drink medicine, it's like drinking sugar water. I've never seen anyone do the same as you."

She muttered unhappily, "This medicine is so bitter, and scorpions are so poisonous!"

Xiao Huaiqi smiled helplessly, as if he didn't care about this at all. He took the medicine soup, blew on it, and drank it in one gulp. He actually took a piece of candy. When the cold candy went into his mouth, it was full of milk fragrance and a faint sweetness, which quickly suppressed the bitterness of the medicine soup. He smiled and said, "This scorpion is really not poisonous. Look, I am fine now, right?"

"I just feel sorry for you! Alas... I don't know why you wanted to send scorpions here, and you didn't even lock it up..." Xie Qingyun said unhappily, wanting to say something back, but when she saw her husband's expression, she softened.

Xiao Huaiqi smiled and comforted her: "Don't be angry, how about..." He thought for a moment: "Why don't we eat the scorpion? Eat it and let it sting me!"

Xie Qingyun finally smiled sincerely and said angrily, "You are talking nonsense. How can you eat scorpions? They are poisonous!"

Yan Qiushu, who was sitting next to them, was struggling over whether to interrupt their sweet love.

Scorpio can do it!

Fried scorpions, actually... they taste really good!