Chapter 4 Fishing?
Seeing that there was no excitement to be had, the crowd dispersed on their own.
Some of the people who were closer to her family joined in and complained a bit. She Hongmei made an appointment with them to go dig for wild vegetables and catch clams another day, and then everyone dispersed.
She Hongmei and She Ning walked home together. On the way, She Hongmei was still very angry and walked very fast and in a hurry. But when she got close to the She family's courtyard, she gradually slowed down.
Even though her mother didn't say anything, She Ning knew that she had realized something and was afraid that the old lady She would be angry.
Despite her small stature and gentle demeanor, Old Mrs. She was someone even the hot-tempered Old Mr. She and She Hongmei dared not offend in the She family. Especially after Old Mr. She passed away, her words carried even more weight in the She family.
Grandma She had repeatedly told him not to get into trouble or quarrels with others.
Now things are really messed up. Not only did She's mother get into a fight, but she also got physical. Although everyone says it's someone else's fault, She Hongmei gets a headache just thinking about having to meet She's mother's teary eyes.
She's my own mother, so I can't ignore her.
The closer they got to the house, the more bent She's mother's back became, clearly like a defeated fighting rooster.
She Ning and Xiao She Ni, who were following behind her, exchanged a glance. Xiao She Ni covered her mouth and secretly smiled. Her two little hairpins trembled with her nods, which was so cute that She Ning couldn't help but gently tug at them.
She Ni tilted her head and looked at her in confusion.
She Ning patted her head, offered no explanation, lifted her leg, passed by her guilty mother, pushed open the courtyard gate, and called out crisply to the house on the right side of the courtyard.
"Grandma, we're back."
"Shh, kid, keep your voice down." She Hongmei, who was fearless in public, was extremely humble at this moment. The 1.72-meter-tall woman bent over, put her hand in front of her mouth, and kept shushing She Ning, who was less than 158 cm tall.
"Grandma, we're back."
She Ni skipped and hopped behind She Ning, and when she passed She Ning's mother, she turned back and made a face at her.
Hmph, a liar is a dog. She Ni still remembered how her mother had tricked her into leaving earlier.
"Where's your mother? Let her in." A soft rustling sound came from the side room, followed by the calm voice of Old Mrs. She.
She Hongmei looked like the sky had fallen.
"I'll come out and deal with you in a bit." Pointing her finger at She Ni, She Hongmei turned around and headed towards the west wing with a look of grim determination.
She Ni hid behind She Ning, tugging at her clothes, laughing heartily, her eyes crinkling, not afraid of She Ning's mother's threats at all.
Ignoring what the mother and daughter were talking about, She Ning went to the kitchen. They had been delayed for so long; it was long overdue for lunch.
They usually eat porridge for lunch and rice for dinner. It's not like it was more than ten years ago, especially after the land was contracted to individuals in 1978. Although they can't have big meals of fish and meat every day, they still have enough staple food for three meals a day.
In the kitchen, She Ning looked at the earthen stove with some helplessness. Although she grew up in the countryside, her family had long used gas stoves back then, and she really had no experience with this kind of handmade earthen stove.
Just when she was at her wit's end.
"Sister, are you going to cook something? I'll watch the fire for you." The thoughtful little tail popped out from behind her just in time, obediently and sensibly pulling pine needles from the side and skillfully striking a match to light the fire.
"Good girl." She Ning gently pinched her little cheek. She Ni tilted her head and rubbed against her palm. She Ni smiled at She Ning with her two missing front teeth as usual. Then, she covered her mouth with her little hands, revealing her curved eyebrows and eyes.
She Ning's heart softened.
She really is an angel sister. Thinking about her ending in the book, She Ning felt a pang of heartache. She must protect her and change her fate.
There weren't many ingredients in the kitchen, so She Ning planned to cook some plain porridge, simmer some sweet potatoes, and stir-fry two side dishes.
"Xiao Ni, get a little angrier."
"Hmm!" She Ni skillfully picked up a few bamboo strips and threw them into the stove hole, and the yellow and red flames immediately ignited.
The water on the stove quickly started to bubble rapidly. She Ning gave her a thumbs up, and She Ni smiled shyly and continued to tend the fire.
Bring the water to a boil over high heat. Then, She Ning adds the washed rice, some oil, and salt to the boiling water and cooks it until it boils again. She instructs Xiao Ni to reduce the heat to medium, then cover the pot with a lid and place a chopstick inside to prevent it from overflowing.
While waiting for the porridge to be ready, She Ning quickly stir-fried some water spinach with fermented bean curd and some bitter melon with fermented black beans on another stove. Later, seeing that the cucumbers and tomatoes in the vegetable garden were growing well, she added some smashed cucumber and tomatoes with white sugar.
Sugar is something children love to eat. When She Ning was making tomatoes with white sugar, She Ni couldn't help but swallow her saliva. Ever since she started losing her baby teeth, her mother has not allowed her to eat much sugar, and she hasn't eaten sugar for a long time.
Staring intently at the tomato mixed with white sugar, her eyes were practically glued to the dish. She Ning chuckled and poked her forehead, then picked up a piece with her chopsticks and gave it to her to eat.
"Sister, you're so kind." With food still in her mouth, She Ni hugged She Ning's waist and acted coquettishly.
"Hey, hey, don't get your drool on me." She Ning poked her forehead with one finger, jokingly pushing her away with a motion so natural it seemed like she'd done it countless times. Suddenly, many similar scenes flashed through her mind.
She Ning paused, and for a moment, she felt that she was She Ning of this era.
Before she could think it through, the door on the right opened, and She Hongmei came out of the old lady's room. She Ning noticed that her expression was not quite right, so she quickly put the dishes and porridge on the table.
"Mom, dinner's ready."
She Hongmei composed herself and went to the kitchen to help get chopsticks and bowls, while She Ning, who had finished serving the food, took another portion of food that had been specially separated to the west wing.
After suffering a stroke, Grandma She had difficulty moving around and had been eating in her room. Since her chewing ability was not strong, She Ning specially cooked her food until it was very soft and easy to digest.
Grandma She doesn't need to be fed; we'll clean her up later. She Ning will come out after dropping her off. At the dinner table, She Hongmei and She Ni are already serving her porridge and waiting for her.
When she sat down at the table, She Hongmei looked at today's dishes with some surprise.
"Ah Ning, your cooking skills are getting better and better. This dish smells so good, it's so green and crisp, and it looks delicious."
"Your tongue was born to eat."
Mrs. She didn't suspect anything was wrong. She Ning used to be a very good cook. She could replicate other people's dishes almost perfectly when they went out to eat. When the old man was still alive, he said that She Ning had a golden tongue.
When She Ning showed off her skills today, her mother assumed that she had learned them from somewhere again.
She's mother didn't mean anything by it, but She Ning's heart skipped a beat. She had a golden tongue too. In her previous life, she became a food blogger, partly because she loved researching dishes, and partly because of her golden tongue.
With such a sensitive palate, she finds food from outside rather unsatisfactory. Since she became able to afford it, she has been cooking for herself and bringing her own lunch to work.
Mother She didn't know what She Ning was thinking. She picked up a piece of water spinach with her chopsticks, then a bite of bitter melon, and then drank several mouthfuls of porridge. She sighed with satisfaction.
"It's really delicious."
The crispness of bitter melon blends perfectly with the rich aroma of fermented black beans, creating a refreshing and appetizing flavor.
The crisp texture of water spinach and the rich aroma of fermented bean curd intertwine to create a refreshing yet intense flavor experience. Paired with soft and delicious rice porridge, these two dishes are simply a delight.
She's mother drank three bowls of white rice porridge with the vegetables, and when she stood up, her belt was a few degrees loose.
“Even pigs aren’t fed like this. I really can’t eat anything now,” She Hongmei said, rubbing her belly.
"Mom, there's still stewed sweet potato! Don't try to take it from me." She Ni, who was engrossed in her bowl and eating with gusto, looked up and swallowed.
Everyone laughed when they saw her greedy little face.
After lunch, everyone rested for a while before getting back to their own tasks.
She Hongmei can't stay idle. As soon as she felt a little better, she picked up her hoe and went out in a hurry. In her words, "The land knows your labor. It will give you back as much as you put in."
Farmers are never idle, not even for 365 days a year.
She Ning couldn't stop her. Seeing that she was in good spirits, she let her go. After closing the courtyard gate, She Ning carried the bamboo basket she had used that morning to the woodshed.
She Ni and Grandma She were sleeping. Just in case, She Ning put down the bamboo basket and turned around to close the door of the woodshed.
The fishing net, resembling a hemp rope, lay quietly at the bottom of the bamboo basket. She Ning reached out and took it out, examining it closely. It was gray, made of many thin ropes twisted into a thick rope.
The fishing net of the Magic Forest, legend has it that this fishing net can catch any fish you want to catch?
"System, this looks like a rope. How can it catch fish?" She Ning asked, puzzled.
"Unable to answer. Please explore freely, host."
"How is net fishing operated? Is it like casting a regular fishing net, where you just throw the net into the water?"
"Unable to answer. Please explore freely, host."
...
...
What kind of help can you offer?
"No, please explore freely, host."
Very well, the essence of humanity is that of a repeating machine, and the cold, mechanical voice is also very mechanical.
It's just free exploration, easy.
Xiahe Village is named so because there is a river nearby that flows into the sea. The river water is salty and cannot be drunk or used for irrigation; it is usually used to flush toilets.
She Ning remembers that her family had a boat. In her memory, in previous years, on market days, Grandpa She would row the boat to take them to the other side, and then cast nets and shrimp traps on the river. When they came to the market, he would go to the other side to ferry them back.
That river has a type of hairy crab, similar to the famous Chinese mitten crab of later generations. Around the Mid-Autumn Festival, it is full of roe and fat, and tastes delicious.
After Master She passed away, the boat was left idle, and they never ate the hairy crab again.
Speaking of that ship, it seems someone else wanted to borrow it before, but it wasn't lent out in the end. Xiao She Ning doesn't have a clear memory of it, so it probably wasn't a very important matter.
She Ning didn't investigate further and carried the bamboo basket towards the river.
The boat wasn't big, about 1.5 meters wide and 3 meters long. She Ning found a long bamboo pole, pushed the boat into the water, and then stood in the middle of the boat, using the pole to propel it to a place with more water plants.
Fearing that the water plants would get tangled in the boat, She Ning stopped the boat a short distance from the spot she had chosen. Then she took the hemp rope out of the bamboo basket and began to study how to operate it.
"A large number of fish have been detected underwater. Do you want to activate the net fishing mode?"
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