Chapter 291: Big Heart
"How else can abalone be cooked? Can't it be boiled or steamed like shrimp?"
Yang Qing looked bewildered. Tong Nian was silent for a moment, but couldn't help but said, "You don't even know how to ask. There are many ways to cook abalone."
Tong Nian's hometown is in the coastal area of Fujian Province. She has been dealing with the ocean since she was a child. She knows exactly how to eat seafood and how to make it delicious.
Yi Chichi comes from a later generation with developed consulting industry. She is a theoretical and verbal expert who knows more than Tong Nian.
But since Tong Nian had already started teaching Yang Qing how to make abalone, she chose to keep silent and, like Ji Jian, pretended to listen attentively.
Yang Qing listened more carefully and asked questions from time to time.
After Tong Nian finished explaining how to cook abalone, she asked about how to cook other seafood such as fish, shrimp, crab, shellfish, and conch.
Then, after learning a lot of cooking, she sighed, "No wonder my husband Huang likes to eat in the cafeteria and persuades me to eat in the cafeteria too. After all this time, I never cook right."
"Let him do it himself."
Ji Jian was quick-witted and came up with an idea almost the moment she finished speaking.
"He does, but mostly when he doesn't have time."
If she relied on Lao Huang to cook for her three meals a day, she would starve to death.
It is common for him to be away from home for ten days or half a month, and it is not uncommon for him to be away from home for two or three months.
So, "I'd better be self-reliant."
Then she urged, "Hurry up, let's pick up more abalone. I want to show off my skills tonight."
This is ok.
So the four of them went straight to the shallow water area near the reefs, first picking up abalone and then prying oysters.
The marine resources in this era are truly abundant, and unlike in later generations, many marine creatures are protected species.
Take the giant grouper for example. It is a protected species and if you catch one you must release it immediately.
Take it home to eat or sell it for money? Sure, if no one sees or reports it, it's not a big deal. But if someone finds out and reports it, it's going to be a lot of trouble.
The same goes for snails.
Look, Ji Jian picked up a tiger-striped clam and showed off happily, "Look at this snail I picked up, it's so beautiful."
“It’s beautiful and delicious.”
Tong Nian had picked it up and eaten it before, so he has a say in this matter.
Looking back, Yi Chichi recognized at a glance that this was the tiger-striped clam, which was later listed as a national second-class protected animal along with the giant conch and the crown conch.
However, giant pandas are not even at the national level yet, so it is not easy to say this.
People nowadays have no idea about animal protection laws.
So, she could only pretend not to see it and pry the oysters open with great effort.
Time passed minute by minute, and soon the bucket was almost full.
Yi Chichi looked at the time and saw that it was getting dark, so he suggested, "We should go back."
Ji Jian looked at his harvest and nodded, "It's time to go back. If we don't go back now, it will be dark."
"Let's go."
Tong Nian was a man of action. He picked up the bucket and left when he heard the sound.
Seeing this, Yi Chichi took over the bucket from Ji Jian and said, "I'll help you carry it. Old Yang, you hold on to Old Ji."
"good."
Yang Qing threw his bucket to Tong Nian and helped Ji Jian walk back.
After walking a few steps, she thought of a question, "Why do you call us Old Yang and Old Ji?"
Yi Chichi was stunned for a moment, "Didn't you call me that first? You all call me Old Yi, so is there something wrong with me calling you Old Yang and Old Ji out of courtesy?!"
Originally I was calling her sister-in-law.
As a result, you learn to say old this and old that.
Yang Qing thought about it and found that it was true.
"The older ones call me sister-in-law, and the younger ones also call me sister-in-law. It's hard to tell who is who."
Then, the three of them started arguing about the issue of names.
Yi was slow to respond, and she had no way to respond. After all, she had not yet joined the army and was not familiar with most of the family members in the family quarters.
Calling sister-in-law is simply a polite expression and has no other meaning.
But obviously Yang Qing and the others didn't think so.
I feel this is disrespectful to them.
"I'm tired of them calling me Huang's wife. My last name is Yang. I can't lose my last name just because I married Mr. Huang."
Tong Nian said something fair, "Is it possible that others simply don't know your last name or your name, so they just follow their own men and call you that."
Logically speaking, every military family member who has just arrived at the family quarters can only address their neighbors the same way as their own men do because they don’t know their neighbors.
Because men are usually careless, it is impossible for them to ask their comrades what their wife's name is.
People will only introduce each other if they have a very good and close relationship. Most of the time, they call each other by their surnames, and then add the word "sister-in-law" at the end.
Yang Qing thought about it and felt that it made sense.
But she was still indignant. "I don't know if it's reasonable for Lao Yi to call her Sister Wen by her given name. I've been here for so long and it still feels a bit bad to still call her like that."
"It's no big deal. Next time someone calls you like that, just give them a reminder."
Ji Jian took over the conversation, but Yi Chichi still remained silent.
Seeing this, Tong Nian asked her, "Lao Yi, do you feel uncomfortable?"
"No."
Yi Chichi shook his head, "I can accept whatever you say."
Her first and last name were her own, and it was none of her concern what anyone else called her, as long as she knew who she was.
"You are still very generous."
Yang Qing gave her a thumbs up, and Yi Chichi smiled, "Being generous has its advantages. You won't get upset by insignificant things."
That's true.
"I don't know how busy Lao Zhang is."
Not done yet.
I didn't see anyone on my way home. I asked people along the way. Wen Shi, who came to pick me up, said this. He took over the bucket from Yi Chichi and said calmly, "When I came here, there was still one person who was fixing his bones."
Tong Nian’s husband’s surname is Lu, and his given name is Zhou.
He also took over the bucket from his wife's hand. Seeing Yang Qing's worried face, he comforted her, "Don't worry, Sister Huang. Old Huang has done nothing wrong this time."
If Yi Chichi and the others' words had made her a little uneasy before, Lu Zhou's words now made her feel relieved.
Feel at ease.
Then, she returned to her talkative nature and began to ask Wen Shi and Lu Zhou about the situation of the troops.
However, she asked in vain. When they heard some knowledge that was well-known to the public, they were willing to talk, but they were unwilling to reveal a single word of unfamiliar knowledge.
It’s even more impossible to talk about work.
Just make an excuse.
After they got home, Wen Shi breathed a sigh of relief, hugged Yi Chichi and acted coquettishly, "Wife, you are still the best."
"Um?"
Her hair was loose and a few strands fell down, sticking to her neck which was a bit uncomfortable. She fixed her hair and waited for him to explain.
Wen Shi was also unambiguous, "Don't ask me about my work."
Yi Chichi realized that this was because they were disgusted with Yang Qing for asking them for inside information.
She smiled and said, "I know the confidentiality agreement."
Wen Shi hummed and asked her, "Dinner or noodles?"
"noodle."
It’s convenient and fast, but cooking and preparing ingredients are troublesome.
"Okay."
Then, the couple went to the kitchen, and Wen Shi asked her while she was busy, "How much did you embroider today?"
"Chi Jiaojiao's work is almost finished."
"Have you finished embroidering the tiger and leopard?"
"I'll go check tomorrow to see if the custom-made embroidery frame is finished."
The previous embroidery frame was not the right size, so I couldn’t embroider the tiger and leopard pattern.
The size is too large and it is not convenient to hold in hand.
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