Chapter 54. Yam, Carrot, and Pork Rib Soup. ...
After washing up in the evening, Gu Qingqiu settled into her room and turned on the projector to watch a comedy movie that had been a hit in theaters a while ago but had recently been taken off the screens and then uploaded to a video streaming platform.
The wall facing the bed was perfectly intact with no flaws. I vaguely remember that the second floor of the house was renovated a year before my parents passed away, and the walls, which had previously faded, were repainted white.
There's no need to hang a screen right now; the projection directly onto the white wall works great. Gu Qingqiu leaned against the headboard, with two soft pillows under her waist. She could see the movie screen on the opposite wall without even looking up—it couldn't be more comfortable.
This projector was a Children's Day gift that Gu Qingqiu bought for herself.
Well, it was quite a coincidence. She was browsing Xiaohongshu and came across an article titled "100 Good Things to Improve Your Happiness in Life." The first thing she saw when she clicked on it was a projector.
Actually, there is a TV at home, but she rarely watches it by herself in the living room. She prefers to stay in her room with her iPad on.
In terms of air conditioning alone, turning on the air conditioner in the bedroom is more energy-efficient than turning on the air conditioner in the living room.
Gu Qingqiu thought for a moment and decided that having a projector would be good. She could use her own room to project the image, and watching on a big screen would be more comfortable than watching on an iPad.
After a hard month in May, when she saw that the store's monthly revenue and profit had reached a new high at the end of the month, she always wanted to reward herself with something.
But she couldn't find anything she wanted to buy, and the projector recommendation came at just the right time, so Gu Qingqiu spent over a thousand yuan to buy a projector and used it for the first time tonight.
The room lights were off, leaving only the changing light and shadow of the characters projected on the wall. The sound effects from the projector were also quite good. The silly movie was full of laughs, and the laughter of the various characters filled the room, making it quite lively and full of life.
Gu Qingqiu initially watched attentively, as she had high expectations for this relatively popular online movie.
The initial plot was indeed quite good, with frequent laughs. However, after about an hour, a small plot segment ended, leading to a period of stagnation. There were no new plot points to follow, and even some of the jokes seemed to be made for the sake of being funny, which made the story quite boring.
Gu Qingqiu couldn't resist picking up her phone to look. She opened WeChat, scrolled through her Moments for a while, and then went to Xiaohongshu.
This is the official account, which consistently has over 99 likes, favorites, and followers, as well as over 99 comments.
She clicked into the comments section and saw that netizens were reacting enthusiastically today to the fact that Gu's Private Kitchen was releasing a hidden menu and giving away free mochi pudding.
[Sunbathing: I'm not having it! Gu's Private Kitchen actually released a hidden menu! What's the difference between this and the shady contracts in the entertainment industry?! If I had known they were giving away mochi pudding today, I definitely would have gone to the restaurant. Now I can only cry by the river (crying uncontrollably)]
[Numbers rebounded: Waaah, I could have just not gone, but I saw the news in the afternoon and rushed over in the evening. There was a huge traffic jam on the way, and by the time I got to the restaurant, the first fifteen tables had already been filled. I'm heartbroken (red heart)]
[Life is but a sigh: Sigh... I felt heartbroken after reading this at noon, and I couldn't help but come back to read it again tonight and feel heartbroken again. I hate these lucky people who have to come up and post pictures after eating (drooling uncontrollably)]
[Greenery: What's missed today is missed. I just want to ask, will there still be mochi pudding as a free gift tomorrow? We can celebrate Children's Day every day, as long as Gu's Private Kitchen treats me like a child (laughing and crying)]
Gu Qingqiu saw this and replied.
[Gu's Private Kitchen: No more tomorrow, please. The mochi pudding is currently a Children's Day limited edition. We'll definitely let you know in advance if we have any more promotions next time (clasped hands)]
She didn't reply to any other comments, but instead went to the official Weibo account to check the comments. There were more than 300 new replies, making it much more lively than before.
Some netizens said they were so envious they cried, while others said they had eaten at Gu's Private Kitchen so many times, but this time they missed out on their favorite mochi pudding.
Gu Qingqiu selectively replied to some comments, then logged out of Weibo. On a whim, she opened her phone's calendar and started looking at the comments.
Besides Children's Day, June also has the Dragon Boat Festival, which falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month on June 16th. It would be nice to hold a rice dumpling giveaway event then.
Gu Qingqiu's gaze fell on June 22nd, where there was a conspicuous date reminder. The date repeated every year was the anniversary of her parents' death.
That day was a Saturday, and she made a mental note of it, knowing she would have to send out a notice to inform customers in advance.
My mood suddenly dropped a bit, and when I looked up at the silly movie again, I couldn't quite follow the original plot, and some of the jokes that I used to get weren't funny anymore.
Gu Qingqiu simply turned off the movie, shut down the projector, and lay on the bed switching to her usual Xiaohongshu account, browsing various recommended notes.
Once she felt a little better, she sat down at her desk to decide on tomorrow's menu. Gu Qingqiu flipped through the two recipe books on food therapy she had bought, and combined them with some dishes she wanted to make, carefully considering and deciding on four dishes and a soup.
The next day, Gu Qingqiu called to order ingredients after getting up in the morning.
She ordered 20 jin of pork belly, 20 jin of spare ribs, and 20 jin of chicken breast.
After having breakfast, Gu Qingqiu pulled two shopping carts to the market to buy groceries.
When she arrived at the market, she first went to the seafood stall where she usually buys seafood. She saw that the ribbonfish were quite fresh, and the large ones weighed four or five pounds. She simply picked out a few and asked the fishmonger to process them.
After weighing the ribbonfish, the fish stall owner smiled and said, "These six weigh a total of 24.6 jin. They're all regular customers, so I'll give you 24 jin."
Gu Qingqiu smiled and nodded, "Okay, thank you, boss. I'll buy from you again next time. Could you please clean these ribbonfish and cut them into sections, about this size? I'll make braised ribbonfish when I get home."
As she spoke, she stretched out her right hand to indicate the approximate length of the fish piece she wanted.
The fish stall owner nodded: "Okay, I understand."
He stood in front of the cutting board, picked up a long, thick ribbonfish with his left hand, and began to process it with a cleaver in his right.
Gu Qingqiu scanned the code to pay the price quoted by the owner, and then stood in front of the stall waiting for him to process the ribbonfish.
After the more than 24 pounds of ribbonfish were processed and divided into four bags, the boss said, "Mr. Gu, how about this? I'll deliver these fish to the restaurant for you later, so you don't have to carry them back so hard."
"From now on, as long as you buy more than 15 catties of fish from me, I will deliver it to your store."
Gu Qingqiu was naturally pleased to hear this. Her shopping cart was already filled with more than 20 kilograms of ribbonfish, and she couldn't carry much more if she bought other things.
She smiled and nodded, "Okay, thank you very much, boss. I'll go buy the other meat and vegetables first, and I'll come back to you later."
The fish stall owner smiled and agreed, placing the four bags of prepared ribbonfish on the table behind him. Seeing another customer coming to pick out fish, he immediately went over to serve them.
Gu Qingqiu pulled the cart to other stalls and bought potatoes, yams, carrots, tofu, and other common seasonings like scallions, ginger, and garlic before finally heading to her usual vegetable stall.
The vegetable vendor was delighted to see her: "Young lady, what would you like to buy today?"
"Yes, good morning, Grandma." Gu Qingqiu smiled and nodded in greeting.
The vegetables at this stall are all grown by Grandma herself, and they are very fresh with minimal pesticide use. Gu Qingqiu has been buying her vegetables here almost every day since the restaurant started operating.
She looked around and decided to make braised cabbage and tofu today, so she picked out twenty-two large cabbages: "Grandma, could you please pack them up for me and tell me how much they cost?"
"Okay, I'll weigh them right away," Grandma replied happily. She weighed and bagged the cabbages that Gu Qingqiu had pointed out earlier, in twos and threes.
This sale basically bought up all the cabbages she picked from the field this morning; there were only five or six left.
This girl often buys more than twenty vegetables at a time when she comes to our stall; she's a rare big customer.
Grandma had chatted with the girl and knew that she owned a restaurant, which was why she bought so many vegetables at once. She also knew that in addition to the fact that the vegetables were fresh and pesticide-free, the girl also wanted to support her business.
Grandma was very grateful, and even her son, who drove his tricycle to bring over the vegetables every morning, said—
"Mom, you're really lucky. Now that a big customer has come to buy, the vegetables are selling out early every day."
After weighing and bagging all the cabbages, she said apologetically, "I'm sorry, young lady, I was supposed to deliver these to you since you bought so many, but I can't. So from now on, I'll give you a 10% discount when you buy vegetables from me."
Most of the meat and vegetable stalls that Gu Qingqiu regularly buys from at the market offer delivery by phone, so she never expected that this old lady's vegetable stall would offer delivery to her door.
Even if other vegetable stalls could offer home delivery, she would still prefer to buy vegetables from Grandma.
Gu Qingqiu knew that Grandma's offer of a 10% discount was well-intentioned and sincere. She was also a little guilty that she was afraid of losing Grandma as a customer if she couldn't provide the grocery delivery service for a long time.
Saving money is always a good thing, so she readily agreed: "Okay, thank you very much, Grandma. Just give me a 5% discount. I'll come to buy groceries from you often in the future, and I can get a lot of discounts if I buy a lot."
Grandma smiled and nodded, very happy: "Great! Now many people in our village don't farm anymore, so I borrowed that adjacent plot of land and planted a lot of vegetables. I guarantee you'll have something to sell all year round."
"That would be great! I'll come here to buy from you all year round," Gu Qingqiu said with a smile.
Grandma rounded down the weight of the cabbages, calculated the price at the normal rate, and then gave a 10% discount. She was very good at math, multiplying the numbers quickly to arrive at a price.
"Okay, thank you, Grandma."
Gu Qingqiu smiled, her eyes crinkling, and took out her phone to scan the QR code to pay.
She took the five bags of cabbages, stuffed three of them into the shopping cart, and hung the remaining two on the handles of the shopping cart she was pulling with her right hand. She said goodbye to her grandmother and walked back to the fish stall.
There were two customers picking out fish at the fish stall. Gu Qingqiu stood aside and waited. The fish stall owner noticed her and gestured for her to wait as well.
After the two customers bought their fish and left, the fish stall owner quickly greeted the stall next door and asked them to keep an eye on the fish. He then picked up the bags of ribbonfish that were placed behind his stall and followed Gu Qingqiu toward Suli Street.
After returning to the restaurant and seeing off the fish stall owner, Gu Qingqiu first sorted and organized the ingredients she had bought, putting those that should be in the freezer in the freezer and those that should be in the kitchen in the kitchen.
Seeing that it was still early before 9:30, she hurriedly went to a nearby grocery store to pick up a case of well-known brand pure milk. Only after returning to the store did she catch her breath, sit down to rest for a while, and have a glass of water.
Around 9:30, Gu Qingqiu received the pork belly, ribs, and chicken breast. After settling the bill, she went into the kitchen and divided them into two portions, one for lunch and one for dinner. She put one portion in the freezer and started processing the other portion.
The ribs were all cut and delivered by Boss Zhu, and they were the exact size and shape she specified. Gu Qingqiu divided them into three bowls, added water and starch to each bowl to soak them and remove the blood.
Next, peel the yam, cut it into chunks and set it aside. Also, wash, peel, and cut the carrot into chunks, so it will be easier to make soup later.
Next, she washed the chicken breast and placed large pieces next to the cutting board. She picked up a large piece of chicken breast with her left hand and a cleaver with her right hand, cutting the chicken breast into pieces about half a finger's length in size.
Her knife skills were precise and efficient; she processed the chicken breast quickly, and time slipped by unnoticed.
Lin Xia had been troubled by her child's picky eating habits for a long time.
When the child was little, it wasn't apparent; he would drink milk when he was supposed to and drink until he was half asleep. But when he got older and started kindergarten, we realized how picky he was. No matter how the teacher coaxed him, he just wouldn't eat what he didn't like.
Lin Xia and her husband took Niu Niu to many hospitals and had her undergo some tests. Apart from zinc deficiency, there were no other problems.
Zinc deficiency can indeed cause children to be picky eaters. Relying on meat to increase zinc intake is too slow, and since Niu Niu doesn't like to eat meat, the doctor prescribed zinc gluconate oral solution.
After taking the medication for a period of time, a follow-up examination showed that Niu Niu's zinc levels were within the normal range, but her picky eating problem was only slightly alleviated.
I feel nauseous from the smell of mutton, I feel like throwing up when I eat seafood, and I can't eat beef because it tastes weird. In the past, when I went back to my hometown for the Lunar New Year, I was too scared to eat because I saw my grandfather killing chickens and ducks and the blood was too much to bear. I could only manage to eat some pork.
What's funny is that Niu Niu also loves to eat McDonald's and KFC chicken nuggets, popcorn chicken, and chicken wraps, and sometimes she also likes to eat the fried chicken made at home.
Last year, Niu Niu suddenly said, "Mom, I don't really want to eat pork anymore. Peppa Pig is so cute, it feels so cruel to eat it."
Lin Xia was shocked when she heard this. If Niu Niu stopped eating pork, she would completely lose her main source of protein.
She asked in a low voice and learned that her dislike for eating chicken, duck, beef, mutton, fish, and shrimp was not only due to her aversion to the gamey and fishy smells and her grandfather's experience of killing chickens and ducks and causing them to bleed, but also because she had watched many cartoons related to these animals.
Those cartoon characters are so cute, Niu Niu thinks they are real, just like chickens, ducks, cows and sheep can talk but she can't hear them, so she can't bear to eat them.
During that time, Lin Xia and her husband patiently and subtly guided Niu Niu, finally managing to get her to stop eating pork because she felt sorry for Peppa Pig, but they couldn't get her to eat other meats.
This time, in addition to taking Niu Niu to see the pediatric gastroenterologist, pediatric endocrinologist, and pediatric health care specialist, she also took her to see the child psychologist.
She has seen a psychologist several times, had in-depth conversations with Niu Niu and provided guidance, and privately discussed the conclusions with her and her husband.
“Niu Niu’s situation is not a psychological problem. Her childlike innocence makes her stubbornly believe that eating meat means eating the characters from the cartoons she has watched. But it’s not that serious. At least she can still eat pork now and likes to eat crispy fried chicken nuggets, popcorn chicken, and chicken rolls that are not shaped like chickens.”
"Fortunately, Niu Niu hasn't watched any cartoons featuring vegetables as the main characters. She hasn't said anything about vegetables having life, just that we can't hear them talking. I don't eat vegetables."
"Perhaps when Niu Niu grows up a bit more, has a more comprehensive understanding of the world, and her knowledge level and psychological age have improved, she will be more willing to try eating these meats and accept them."
"If you feel nauseous after eating seafood, and there is no allergic reaction, it may be because your sense of taste is more sensitive and you are averse to the taste of seawater and the fishy smell of seafood. The reaction is aggravated by psychological factors."
"But it's not absolute. We can slowly explore the seafood that Niu Niu can accept, and use cooking methods such as heavy oil and salt, deep-frying, and adding more sweet and sour sauce to mask the taste of seafood, and see if Niu Niu can accept it."
Lin Xia and her husband were at their wits' end, but they still tried to improve their cooking methods by combining the advice of doctors from various departments. Fortunately, they achieved some results.
In the past year, in addition to pork, chicken nuggets, popcorn chicken, and chicken wraps from fast food restaurants, Niu Niu has also discovered some seafood products that she can eat.
Fish like pan-fried ribbonfish and pan-fried mackerel don't have a strong fishy smell. After frying and then simmering, Niu Niu can eat a small amount.
Niu Niu loves the pickled cabbage fish and grilled fish served at restaurants. The pickled cabbage or spicy flavor is so strong that you can't taste any fishy smell at all.
As for shrimp meat, Niu Niu can't eat boiled shrimp. She can eat some shrimp like stir-fried with scallions and ginger, garlic shrimp, or typhoon shelter-style stir-fried shrimp, but she can only eat three or four at most. She's prone to vomiting if she eats more than that.
Previously, Lin Xia thought that Niu Niu's aversion to seafood was psychological, so she even cooked porridge with dried scallops and seasoned it with lean meat slices and eggs.
She tasted it herself and could only taste the freshness of the pork and the aroma of the eggs, so she filled a bowl for Niu Niu to eat.
To everyone's surprise, Niu Niu immediately asked upon smelling it, "Mommy, is there seafood in this? It smells like seafood."
Lin Xia shook her head without changing her expression: "No, it's just eggs and lean meat."
"Oh." Niu Niu nodded and scooped up some porridge with a spoon to drink.
At first, Lin Xia drank a few mouthfuls in a row, and she was happy that as long as Niu Niu couldn't smell the seafood, she could eat the porridge made with dried scallops.
The next second, Niu Niu's face changed. Before she could say anything or run to the toilet, she turned her head and vomited, bringing up the few mouthfuls of porridge she had just drunk along with her undigested breakfast.
Lin Xia felt extremely distressed. She comforted Niu Niu, who was vomiting and crying, wiped her mouth clean with tissues, took her to the toilet to rinse her mouth, and then cleaned up the vomit on the floor.
Since then, she has realized that Niu Niu's refusal to eat seafood is not a psychological problem, and she cannot be reckless to test it. Everything should be based on Niu Niu's health.
Recently, Lin Xia was browsing Weibo looking for local restaurants and found a restaurant with many positive reviews called Gu's Private Kitchen, located on Suli Street.
She looked at many photos of dishes shared by netizens, followed the official account of Gu's Private Kitchen, and even read netizens' reviews on Dianping. She had originally planned to take Niu Niu there to eat when she had time.
Niu Niu is more accepting of food from restaurants, especially meat dishes that are more innovative, savory, rich, sweet and sour, and she'll be happy to try them if she's in a good mood.
The soy sauce chicken at Xu Ji Restaurant is so delicious that you can smell its salty aroma, and Niu Niu would happily take a bite to satisfy her craving.
Who knew that a while ago there was some issue about soup and crab not being able to be eaten together? Although the restaurant discovered it in time and saved the day, Lin Xia was still a little worried, so she didn't take Niu Niu to eat there for the time being.
Later, she saw the food inspection report from the Food and Drug Administration published on the official account of Gu's Private Kitchen. Because she was a professional in the field, she was even more aware of the value of this report.
At least the ingredients used in the dishes sampled at Gu's Private Kitchen that day were all super fresh, healthy, and free of drug residues. In terms of nutritional content, they were also unparalleled, providing a lot of nutrients that are beneficial to human health.
If possible, Lin Xia would like to ask Gu's Private Kitchen where they get their ingredients and if they can provide their contact information.
But she also knew that having such high-quality ingredients would be a huge advantage in the catering industry, and she wouldn't easily reveal it.
Let's take Niu Niu to Gu's Private Kitchen for a meal and see how delicious it is. Lin Xia has seen so many tempting pictures of dishes posted by netizens and is also looking forward to seeing how delicious Gu's Private Kitchen is.
Her husband, Song Jingshan, even laughed at her, saying that she could hesitate for so long over something as simple as going to a restaurant for a meal.
Lin Xia thought it was a simple matter and was ready to go eat, but then she had to go on a business trip due to a company assignment, and then she had to work overtime non-stop. By the time she had free time, half a month had passed.
On Children's Day, she and her husband took Niu Niu to the amusement park, ate at McDonald's nearby for lunch, went to the zoo in the afternoon, and had dinner at her parents' house in the evening, not returning home until after 9 p.m.
Lin Xia leaned back on the sofa to rest, picked up her phone and habitually browsed Weibo. She saw a menu post from Gu's Private Kitchen, which she followed, that morning. The dishes looked pretty good today. The comments section was also lively, with people sharing pictures.
She glanced at it and roughly understood. Today, Gu's Private Kitchen had a hidden dish: the first fifteen tables of customers during lunch and dinner would receive a free mochi pudding as a Children's Day gift from Gu's Private Kitchen.
Lin Xia clicked on the picture shared by netizens and took a look. She had to admit that the mochi pudding was strangely childlike. The mochi was cocoa-colored, and the pudding inside was decorated with Hello Kitty. The black smiling eyes, light pink blush, and red bow were all very realistic.
Let alone a child, even an adult like her would be overjoyed to receive such a Children's Day gift while eating.
No wonder the comments section is so lively today. Everyone is complaining that Gu's Private Kitchen is going too far by secretly giving away hidden dishes for free, while also expressing regret that they couldn't try the fun mochi pudding.
"Mommy, this Hello Kitty is so cute, is it edible?"
Niu Niu had already moved closer to her without her noticing, and happened to see the picture on the phone.
Lin Xia smiled and nodded: "Yes, I think it looks very nice too. It's mochi pudding, the kind we ate after we went to the botanical garden last time."
The mochi pudding tasted so good that Niu Niu immediately remembered it after hearing her mother mention it.
She blinked her big eyes and pleaded, "Mommy, let's go eat mochi pudding! It looks so delicious!"
Lin Xia smiled after hearing this: "This is the restaurant that Mom said she would take you to eat at. It's so late tonight, the restaurant has been closed for a long time."
Moreover, the restaurant only offers mochi pudding to the first fifteen tables, so even if you have the money, you can't buy it.
Niu Niu said, "Then let's go eat tomorrow!"
Lin Xia explained, "This restaurant updates its menu every day. There will be other delicious dishes tomorrow, but there won't be any mochi pudding."
She just saw the store's reply to a comment saying that there would be no mochi pudding tomorrow, but they would have more promotions in the future.
Disappointed, Niu Niu pouted and said unwillingly, "Fine, I still want to eat mochi pudding."
"Well, there's no other way. How about we take you somewhere else to eat later?" Lin Xia coaxed, then added, "Your dad and I both have to work tomorrow. After your art class this afternoon, we can go to Gu's Private Kitchen for dinner, okay?"
Although tomorrow is Sunday, she and her husband don't have fixed weekends off due to work, so they have to work on Sunday this time.
For someone Niu Niu's age, taking art classes is purely for cultivating aesthetic sense, maintaining childlike imagination, and passing the time.
Niu Niu tried to negotiate: "Then I want to eat mochi pudding for breakfast tomorrow. Mom, can you order it for me and you can have some too?"
She's only in kindergarten, but she already knows that she can order delicious food on her phone and have it delivered to her home by a boy in a yellow shirt.
In the past, when my mom was in a good mood, she would order takeout, such as pizza, cake, and noodle soup. So she could definitely order mochi pudding too.
Lin Xia thought for a moment and nodded: "Okay, then your breakfast tomorrow morning will be mochi pudding. You'll have to get up early, otherwise there won't be enough time to eat it."
Niu Niu happily agreed: "Okay, I will definitely get up early."
That evening, Lin Xia told her husband about going to Gu's Private Kitchen for dinner the following night.
Song Jingshan nodded in agreement: "Sure, I don't get off work until six o'clock. You can pick up Niu Niu first, and then I'll rush over."
He had previously seen Lin Xia's blog post about Gu's Private Kitchen and had also seen those meat dishes. He wasn't opposed to trying a new, trendy restaurant and hoped to take Niu Niu to eat more delicious food and explore more dishes that she could eat.
That was settled. The next morning, Lin Xia woke up, ordered takeout, brushed her teeth and washed her face, then woke Niu Niu up to wash up. After helping Niu Niu get dressed, she braided her hair into a pretty braid.
When the takeout arrived, Lin Xia divided the mochi pudding that Niu Niu wanted to eat and the bread that Song Jingshan wanted to eat, and then gave him a few instructions while carrying the remaining mochi pudding.
"You two take your time eating. After you finish eating, take Niu Niu to her science class. Remember to bring a carton of milk. I'm off now."
"Niu Niu, be a good girl and listen to your teacher today. Eat your lunch properly, and I'll pick you up after get off work this afternoon so we can have something delicious to eat."
This science enlightenment class aims to cultivate children's curiosity through experiments, plant the seeds of science, and lay a foundation for the future.
Classes are quite long, and most of the teachers there are former early childhood educators who can take good care of the children. They also provide meals for the children.
Unfortunately, due to her and her husband's work, they couldn't have regular weekends off. On Saturdays, they would send her to her mother-in-law's house to be looked after, and on weekends, they would simply enroll her in extracurricular classes, which happened to be of interest to Niu Niu.
My in-laws recently went back to their hometown for a wedding banquet and haven't returned yet, so I can only rely on these extracurricular classes.
Niu Niu's eyes fell on the mochi pudding on the table, and an excited smile appeared on her lips: "Okay, Mom, I'll wait for you."
Lin Xia smiled and agreed, then hurriedly left the house with the bag of mochi pudding, went down to the parking lot to get her car, and headed straight for the company.
What was originally an ordinary day seemed to become long and unbearable because of the anticipation of going to Gu's Private Kitchen for dinner in the evening.
After waiting until a little past four in the afternoon, Lin Xia packed her things in advance. When she saw the time on the computer screen jump to five o'clock, she started to shut down the computer. She then got up and left the office at 05:05.
She went down to the parking lot, drove onto the ground, merged into the main road, and headed straight for the place where Niu Niu learned to draw.
The art class ends at five o'clock. Usually, Lin Xia and Song Jingshan will pick her up whoever is free. Sometimes, they both have to work, so Niu Niu has to wait here a little longer.
Fortunately, some of the children at the extracurricular class were picked up by their parents later, and the teachers were willing to help watch them for a while longer, so Niu Niu felt safe and had company there.
Upon arrival, Lin Xia immediately spotted Niu Niu playing and chatting with several other children in the art studio.
She smiled, greeted and thanked the teacher, and called out "Niu Niu".
Soon, Niu Niu looked over, happily called out "Mommy," said goodbye to her friends, and excitedly ran out with her schoolbag on the chair next to her on her back.
Lin Xia took the child's hand as he rushed towards her and said, "You've been having so much fun, you're all sweaty. Quickly get a small towel to wipe yourself off, or you'll catch a cold as soon as you get in the car."
"Okay." Niu Niu nodded in agreement, stopped walking, took off her small schoolbag, took out a little yellow duck towel, unfolded it, wiped the sweat off her face, folded the towel, and put it back in her schoolbag.
Lin Xia watched with a smile, not saying much even though Niu Niu folded the small towel a little wrinkled. This age is the time to cultivate self-care ability. As long as she can do it, it doesn't matter if it's not perfect.
After she put her backpack back on, Lin Xia took Niu Niu's hand and walked to her parking spot. After Niu Niu sat in the passenger seat and fastened her seatbelt, Lin Xia helped her check everything before walking to the driver's side and getting in the car.
On the way, Niu Niu kept asking her mother where the restaurant was and what good food was available there.
Lin Xia answered them one by one.
“We’re going to Suli Street, an old street in Yunjiang District that you’ve never been to before.”
"Today's menu at the restaurant includes pork belly rolls with potatoes, milk chicken strips, braised ribbonfish, braised cabbage with tofu, and yam and carrot pork rib soup."
Lin Xia had seen today's menu posted on the official account of Gu's Private Kitchen at noon, and thought to herself that it was a coincidence that four out of the five dishes were ones that Niu Niu could eat and liked.
Niu Niu was equally excited when she heard this: "Yay! I want to eat pork belly rolls with potatoes, braised ribbonfish is also good, and braised cabbage with tofu should be delicious, and the soup will be tasty too."
She completely ignored the milk chicken strips dish.
Lin Xia smiled and agreed, thinking that the milk chicken strips looked novel and she had to order them to try, and also to let Niu Niu see if she wanted to eat them.
After getting excited, Niu Niu started talking about what happened in her two extracurricular classes today. She mentioned which friend got a red flower from the teacher and which friend got criticized. She also said that she didn't like the food at lunchtime. She gave stars to the honey-glazed chicken wings, finished all the vegetables, ate a lot of rice, and drank milk.
In the past, there have been instances where the kindergarten lunch was not to her liking, or there were no meat or vegetables that Niu Niu liked, and she would refuse to eat, preferring to go hungry. The kindergarten teachers have given this feedback several times with great frustration.
Lin Xia used to say she didn't understand, but after taking Niu Niu to the hospital, she understood. When she had time, she would prepare some noodles or rice for Niu Niu. If lunch wasn't good, she would eat bread to fill her stomach. If she didn't have time, she would bring a carton of milk.
She was also worried that if she prepared too much, Niu Niu would refuse the kindergarten's food even more because there were her favorite snacks in her schoolbag.
The mother and daughter came up with a plan: if they encountered food they didn't like at kindergarten, they wouldn't eat meat if they really couldn't eat it, but they had to eat vegetables and rice, and then drink a carton of milk to supplement their nutrition. Niu Niu was generally able to abide by this agreement.
Even when Niu Niu comes to her extracurricular class on weekends, she still gives her a bottle of milk, continuing this tradition.
Lin Xia praised her then teased her, "Did you know we were going out for a big meal tonight, which is why you didn't eat lunch?"
Niu Niu shook her head vigorously, waving her hands: "No, no, I just don't want to eat honey-glazed chicken wings, they're not fried chicken wings."
She chuckled as she thought of something, "But hehe, when I was drinking milk, I was thinking about how you said you'd take me out for something delicious tonight, Mom."
Lin Xia couldn't help but laugh when she heard this.
She was focused on driving when Niu Niu started talking about how delicious the mochi pudding she had made that morning was. It was fragrant, sweet, and bouncy, but it wasn't as cute because it didn't have Hello Kitty on it.
About half an hour later, we parked the car near Surrey Street.
Lin Xia asked Niu Niu to put her little schoolbag in the car, then she carried her own bag and led Niu Niu by the hand into Suli Street.
Soon you'll see the peach tree around the corner. The wooden restaurant there looks bright and cozy, with several tables occupied.
"Niu Niu, let's hurry over there and grab a spot first."
After Lin Xia finished speaking, she took Niu Niu's hand and quickly walked in. They occupied an empty table and sat down, just in time to see that the last empty table was taken by a group of customers who followed them in.
Niu Niu sat on the chair, looking at all the people around her, and whispered with a smile, "Mommy, there are so many people."
Lin Xia nodded: "Yes, this restaurant has delicious meat dishes, so it's very popular and lots of people come to eat here. Luckily, we managed to get a table. If we had been even a minute later, we would have had to queue up at the door."
The harder something is to obtain, the more precious it becomes. This applies to children as well. Niu Niu felt that the dining table in front of her was shining, and she looked forward to the dishes she would eat even more.
Lin Xia waved to the waiter and ordered all the dishes on the menu. After the waiter announced what teas were available, she asked Niu Niu, "What would you like to drink?"
Niu Niu's eyes had already been drawn to the conspicuous freezer against the wall inside. She grinned and said, "I want to drink Coke."
Lin Xia was in a good mood and readily agreed, saying, "Okay, then go get yourself a bottle of Coke."
He then said to the shop assistant, "I'd like a pot of barley tea."
Niu Niu had already run off to the freezer to open it and get her Coke.
Sister Zhou smiled and agreed. She went to print out the order form first, then brought out three sets of bowls, chopsticks, and washing utensils, and then went to brew a pot of barley tea: "Please enjoy your meal."
"OK, thanks."
Lin Xia first used boiling hot tea to rinse the cap of the canned cola that Niu Niu had brought over, then opened the lid and gave it to Niu Niu to drink. Next, she rinsed the teacup and poured herself a cup of barley tea.
She tasted the wheat aroma in the tea, which was very refreshing, followed by a slow, sweet aftertaste, and couldn't help but let out a satisfied sigh.
Niu Niu took a sip of cola, feeling the soda bubble wildly in her mouth, and after swallowing it sweetly, she let out a satisfied sigh.
The mother and daughter smiled at each other.
Smelling the aroma wafting around her, Niu Niu's eyes darted around, and she swallowed hard before continuing to drink her cola.
Lin Xia was also looking forward to the meat dishes later.
Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long; the staff quickly brought out the yam, carrot, and pork rib soup.
The large soup bowl contained a milky white and somewhat clear broth, mixed with even whiter yam chunks and orange-red carrot chunks. The meaty pork ribs looked very meaty, cut evenly and neatly, with most of them sinking to the bottom of the soup and a few peeking out from the surface.
Red dates and goji berries floated on the surface as a garnish.
Even from this distance, Lin Xia could already smell the sweet aroma of the soup.
"Give me a bowl, Mom will fill it with soup for you."
Lin Xia took the bowl from Niu Niu, ladled some soup into her bowl, and then added some yam, carrots, and pork ribs to her.
These are all foods that Niu Niu loves to eat. She thought to herself, no wonder the official test report showed such high nutritional value; the pork ribs looked like the cut of meat from a proper spare rack.
Lin Xia placed the bowl of soup in front of Niu Niu, then picked up another bowl and poured herself a bowl of soup and some broth. She picked up her chopsticks and prepared to eat.
Niu Niu hesitated and asked, "Mommy, shouldn't we wait for Daddy to arrive before we eat?"
Lin Xia: "Your dad won't be here that fast. Let's eat and wait for him."
"All right."
After getting the answer, Niu Niu leaned her little mouth over the edge of the bowl and tentatively sipped the soup.
The soup was a little hot when it entered her mouth, but it seemed to be tolerable, so Niu Niu sucked it even harder.
The soup I tasted was delicious, with a hint of sweetness, and I could almost taste the meat in it. It was similar to the soup I usually make at home, but it tasted even better.
Niu Niu drank less soup from the bowl, then picked up the bowl and drank it in big gulps.
After finishing the soup, I used my chopsticks to poke a piece of thick, white yam and ate it. It was soft, powdery, and slightly fragrant, and I could almost taste the sweetness of the soup.
Next, eat the carrots. The diamond-shaped carrot chunks are quite soft to bite into, with a rich, sweet flavor and a slightly crisp texture.
She usually likes to eat carrots, and this time she ate one piece after another, finishing all three pieces of carrot in the bowl.
Niu Niu picked up another piece of pork rib and ate it.
She has a high tolerance for pork; she loves lean meat, pork belly, ribs, and so on.
Biting into the pork ribs, you'll find them tender and juicy with a hint of sweet broth. They fall apart easily with each bite, releasing a rich meaty aroma with a subtle salty flavor, and they don't get stuck in your teeth at all.
Niu Niu ate with increasing enthusiasm, and after finishing the whole piece of pork rib, she said, "Mom, this soup is delicious, the yam and carrots are also delicious, and the pork rib meat is even more delicious."
Lin Xia had just drunk several mouthfuls of soup. The soup was rich and delicious, and you could tell at a glance that it was made with good ingredients that had been simmered to perfection.
The yam is soft and fragrant, the carrot chunks are sweet and crisp, and the pork ribs are tender and flavorful. Everything is so delicious when combined. It truly lives up to the reputation of Gu's Private Kitchen.
Hearing what Niu Niu said, and having seen how much she enjoyed eating, Lin Xia smiled and nodded, "I also think this soup is good, and the ingredients are good too. If it's delicious, eat more."
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