Mother Ding wiped her hands on her apron and said, "Cooked pancakes, and meat dumplings... It's time to lift the pot." "Aunt, leave this to us, you go and rest for a while."
"Okay...okay." Mother Ding agreed reluctantly. She still found it a little unbelievable for a man to cook.
Zhang Shixun rolled up his sleeves, took the steamer off the stove, opened the lid, and a cloud of steam filled the kitchen, and a familiar smell filled his nostrils.
He looked around the kitchen and found no soy sauce, but plenty of vinegar, and the oil was lard.
As for seasoning, there are only onions, ginger and garlic.
The conditions were poor, so we had to make do with what we had.
Zhang Shixun began to get busy, and Ding Dusai and Liang Hongyu helped enthusiastically, stir-frying, roasting, deep-frying, and stir-frying... The three of them worked hard, and by noon, the ten dishes were finally ready.
Ding Dusai picked up a piece of fried lotus root box and took a bite. "Delicious!"
Liang Hongyu didn't even pick up her chopsticks. She picked up a fried meatball and put it in her mouth, praising it endlessly.
Zhang Shixun got a basin of water to wash his hands, and Ding Dusai and Liang Hongyu had already started serving dishes into the main room.
In the main room, Father Ding looked at the delicious dishes and sniffed them constantly.
Han Shizhong sat aside and wanted to laugh. "Brother-in-law, look at the dishes your son-in-law cooks. They're no worse than those in big restaurants, right? You can't find a son-in-law like him even with a lantern, and you don't even let him in... Come on! Don't just stand there like an idiot, have a taste."
"Po Wu Han, you're missing the son-in-law. He's not our son-in-law yet. If you want to marry our Sai Sai, huh? You need my consent as your father." Father Ding picked up his chopsticks, picked up a piece of braised pork, put it in his mouth, squinted his eyes, tasted it, and nodded: "Not bad."
As he spoke, he picked up another piece of braised pork with his chopsticks.
Then, I couldn't stop eating with the chopsticks in my hand.
Han Shizhong looked at the way he ate and curled his lips.
Zhang Shixun walked into the main hall and was pulled to his side by Han Shizhong. "Shixun, while you were busy over there, we've already drunk half a jar of wine. Hurry up and sit down to drink. Today is the first day of the new year, a festive day. Let's drink together."
Father Ding picked up the wine bowl and muttered, "I'm your brother-in-law, so I should be the one saying this."
Han Shizhong turned a deaf ear to it.
Zhang Shixun picked up the wine bowl with a smile.
The three of them got together and did it together.
While eating, Zhang Shixun secretly glanced at Ding Dusai. The three women were eating at a small table in a corner of the main room.
These days, women are not allowed to sit at the table.
Ding Dusai winked at him, his face full of smiles.
"Don't look over there." Father Ding's eyes were very sharp.
Zhang Shixun quickly withdrew his gaze and sat up straight.
Han Shizhong said, "Brother-in-law, you are meddling too much."
"This is my house, it's not your place to nag Han Wu."
"I don't want to be your head, I just see that you are uncomfortable. If you are not convinced, let's drink three bowls in a row." Han Shizhong said, holding up his wine bowl and looking at him provocatively.
Father Ding picked up the wine bowl and said, "Tsk! It's just three bowls of wine, who are you trying to scare?"
"Bang, bang, bang!" The two of them clinked their bowls three times in a row.
Father Ding patted his thin chest and said, "When I started drinking, you hadn't even splashed Han Wu yet. Humph! How dare you challenge me? Do you believe I can make you crawl out of here after drinking?"
"Haha!" Han Shizhong laughed out loud, raised his thumb and said, "Brother-in-law, you've got it! I like people like you the most. Come on! Three more bowls."
Zhang Shixun watched the two men drinking together with a smile, and occasionally glanced at Ding Dusai.
Seeing his face flushed and his tongue tied when he spoke, Mother Ding walked over and said, "Boss, you can't drink much, so don't try to be so brave. Fifth Brother is a fighter. If you compete with him in drinking, even ten bundles of people together can't beat him."
Father Ding pushed Mother Ding aside and waved his hand impatiently, "Don't bother me. Today is the first day of the Lunar New Year. I want to drink to my heart's content."
Mother Ding shook her head and secretly winked at Zhang Shixun.
Zhang Shixun understood and smiled as he picked up a piece of lotus root box for Father Ding. "Uncle, this is my fried lotus root box, also called lotus root stuffed with fillings. Try it, I guarantee you'll like it."
Father Ding didn't say anything. He took a big bite and squinted his eyes to taste it. He chewed slowly at first, then chewed it in big mouthfuls. In a blink of an eye, a piece of lotus root was gone, and he picked up another piece with the chopsticks in his hand.
Seeing how he ate, Han Shizhong quickly picked up a piece and started eating.
“Mmm, delicious!”
"Uncle, did you see this fish? Saisai and I bought it together. It's a real big carp from the Yellow River. This dish has a nice name, called baked carp noodles. It takes a bit of effort to make. First, remove the scales, gills, and internal organs of the carp, wash it clean, and place it on the chopping board. Use a knife to slice the fish into slices on both sides, then marinate it with a little salt, wine, and other seasonings for a cup of tea. After marinating, coat it with eggs and flour, and then fry it in a pan..."
Zhang Shixun carefully explained to him the preparation process of this dish.
Father Ding listened so carefully that he even forgot to drink.
Han Shizhong and Ding's mother and others over there also pricked up their ears to listen.
Zhang Shixun picked up a piece of fish for him and said, "Uncle, try it."
"What are those thin things covering the fish?" Father Ding ate the fish with relish, but his eyes were fixed on the back of the fish.
"Since it's called baked carp noodles, as the name suggests, the stuff on top is of course noodles."
Father Ding swallowed the fish in his mouth, picked up the noodles with his chopsticks and tasted them, "It's not as delicious as the fish."
"Uncle, try this dish again. It's called..."
"Uncle, you can't miss this dish, try it..."
"Uncle, don't regret it if you don't try this dish..."
Zhang Shixun tried his best to flatter his future father-in-law in order to get Father Ding to eat more and drink less. However, although Father Ding liked wine, his alcohol tolerance was average, and he ended up drinking too much.
"You are always like this. You don't care about your life when you drink." Ding's mother complained to him.
Father Ding patted his chest and said, "My dear wife, stop nagging me. I can handle a lot of alcohol... Han Wu, come on! Let's drink three more bowls."
Ding's mother wanted to stop him, but was stopped by Han Shizhong: "Sister, it's New Year's Day. Let him drink if he wants." After saying that, he winked at his sister.
Only then did Ding's mother notice that Zhang Shixun was pouring tea into her husband's bowl with a smirk on her face.
Even so, after drinking a bowl of tea, Mr. Ding became drunk and fell to the ground.
Han Shizhong helped him up and said with a smile, "You've been drinking for so many years, but your alcohol tolerance hasn't improved."
Mother Ding sighed and said, "Yes, he can't move when he sees alcohol. He drinks more... Fifth brother, help me take him to the inner room."
The Ding family has only three rooms, a main room and a room on each side. Ding's father and mother live on the east side. There is no need to guess, Ding Dusai must live on the other side.
Of course, the Ding family cannot be said to be shabby. Being able to own a small courtyard with its own entrance in the capital is already considered very good.
Even a great man like Su Dongpo could not afford to buy a house when he was an official in Beijing, so he lived in government housing, which was similar to the low-rent housing in later generations.
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