Chapter 4 Delicious
Regarding how to cultivate and improve talents, my grandfather had written two words in a flamboyant style in his tattered notebook: Use it more.
But Bai Mengmeng knew this wasn't that simple. If leveling up depended solely on "use," the streets would be teeming with Golden Core and Nascent Soul-level monsters. There must be many mysteries hidden within this, and even in this fading world of modern cultivation, few could truly comprehend them.
Thinking of this, Bai Mengmeng couldn't help but feel relieved - fortunately, my mom's talent for growing vegetables was awakened!
If she were to be asked to refine medicine or weapons, she would have to build a high-risk alchemy furnace at home. If she made an operational error one day, and she and this broken yard were to be sent to the sky with a "bang", it would truly be the annual black humor of the cultivation world!
Still, growing vegetables is better! Safe, practical, and down-to-earth! As for whether talents can be upgraded? Just let it go! The world of cultivation has become so desolate, why bother with it? Isn't it nice to just lie down and grow vegetables?
Looking at the sun, it was still some time before lunch. Bai Mengmeng made a quick decision: Get to work! First, plant the bottle of "Xianjia" vegetable seeds I opened in the magic weapon yesterday!
This green vegetable, commonly known as piao'erbai, is very hardy and can grow freely all year round. From sowing to serving, it can complete a life cycle in just twenty days! It is really good news for novice farmers!
She took a fancy to a small sunny space in the corner, rolled up her sleeves and prepared to start working.
Back in the hospital, she was such a sub-healthy athlete that she couldn't even run 50 meters without gasping for breath. Plowing the land? That was simply a fantasy!
But now, perhaps because of her awakened talent, she felt a surge of power coursing through her limbs! The hoe felt as light as a feather in her hand, her waist and legs no longer ached, and she could plow through a whole furrow in one breath without even breathing hard!
Is this what it means to cultivate immortality?! This feeling is so amazing! Bai Mengmeng is simply falling in love with this state of being as light as a swallow and having endless energy!
She moved with whirlwind speed: in a few strokes, she pulled out all the weeds, swung the hoe to loosen the soil, and the dirt tumbled under the hoe blade, revealing moist, fertile, dark soil. Then, with a few strokes of the rake, she smoothed the land until it was as smooth as if it had been ironed.
Digging holes, planting seeds, covering with soil, patting... all in one go! In less than an hour, a neat little vegetable patch appeared in the corner, the seeds safely planted in the soil. The fluidity of his movements, his skill, was more authentic than that of a seasoned farmer who had tended crops his entire life!
Bai Mengmeng leaned on the hoe, looking at her "masterpiece", and proudly wiped the non-existent sweat from her forehead -
When he looked up, he saw the thin figure of the eldest disciple Liang Cha, who appeared at the gate of the courtyard just in time.
Bai Mengmeng took out her cell phone and looked at it: 11:30.
Tsk, this meal time is even more accurate than a clock in! She muttered to herself, washed her hands and walked into the main room.
Xu Bo was carefully carrying a large, steaming bowl from the kitchen. Seeing them come in, his face lit up with a smile: "Let's get ready to eat! Thanks to the headmaster, we have some delicious food today!"
Hearing this, Bai Mengmeng looked at the table with great interest——
The smile froze on his face instantly!
"Uncle Xu... what is this... this black, smoking thing?!" She pointed at the charcoal-like mass in the bowl, her voice trembling. Could it be the premium pork belly she bought?!
"It's pork belly!" Xu Bo said proudly, as if showing off some rare treasure. "Master, you don't know. When I cooked it, the aroma was so delicious that my mouth was watering!"
Bai Mengmeng looked at the bowl of "braised pork" that exuded a strange burnt smell and a strong bitter taste, and her vision went dark. She took a deep breath and forced down the churning stomach. "Never mind, it's good to have something to eat... I'll just make do with it..."
The four of them had just sat down at the three-and-a-half-legged eight-person table when they heard the sound of footsteps at the stairs. A baby-faced girl with a messy hairdo and sleepy eyes, wrapped in pajamas with a giant Crayon Shin-chan butt printed on them, yawned and staggered down the stairs.
Xu Bo stood up to help her get the dishes and chopsticks while scolding her, "Huaguduo! You're still up after the sun is already shining on your butt! What time did you stay up practicing immortal cultivation (staying up late) last night? You see the new leader, why don't you say hello!"
Bai Mengmeng maintained a polite smile, but her mind was frantically scrolling through her mind:
It's over! No one in this sect is reliable!
Eldest disciple: I can’t rely on you to cultivate yourself into the Child-Fairy of Tianshan.
Second disciple: Thank God it didn’t destroy my house, and it also has explosive properties.
Junior Sister: Judging from his appearance, he is a person who has a reversed day and night life and cannot take care of himself!
Grandpa, Grandpa! When you were alive, you didn't work or farm. How did you manage to support such a large group of idlers and rent out that mountain? Did you just live off the wind?
No! We can't let these guys continue to idle away their time and wait for death! They must be reformed!
There was a raging storm in Bai Mengmeng's head, but she showed no sign of it on her face. She nodded gently at Huaguduo.
When Huaguduo saw the new leader, her sleepiness instantly disappeared and her eyes lit up: "Hello, leader! It's our first meeting. Would you like to test your fortune for today? It's very accurate!" Before she finished speaking, she actually took out a deck of tarot cards with frayed edges from the wide pocket of her Crayon Shin-chan pajamas!
"Stop, stop, stop! Stop it now!" Wang Hao was like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. His fur instantly stood on end, and he waved his hands in fear. "Master! Don't trust her! This girl is a walking bad luck transmitter! A typical crow's mouth! Good things never work, and bad things always come true!"
Huaguduo puffed up her cheeks in anger and was about to retort—
“Bang!”
There was a crisp sound! Liangcha slammed his chopsticks on the table with an expressionless face.
The two cold words seemed to carry a chill: "Eat."
In an instant, the world was quiet. Huaguduo sat down angrily, and everyone could finally enjoy this "sumptuous" lunch in "peace".
Bai Mengmeng endured the discomfort and only dared to pick up a few pieces of the radish and cabbage that looked better. The result—the radish was so hard it hurt her teeth, and the cabbage was soft and mushy. As for the "braised pork"... she only tasted a small piece with a lighter edge, and a strong, bitter, burnt taste instantly engulfed her entire mouth, nearly causing her to experience an out-of-body experience!
This isn't just unpalatable! This is a murder of the ingredients! A torture to the palate!
However, the other four warriors seemed to have taste buds and stomachs of steel! They picked up their chopsticks like the wind, and in the blink of an eye, the bowl of "charcoal pork belly" was...completely empty!
Bai Mengmeng was left alone, unable to swallow the almost untouched food in the bowl, feeling hopeless.
Xu Bo’s cooking skills…are really only one step away from murder and robbery!
Is this group of people's taste system collectively malfunctioning? !
This dish... is even more horrifying than the one she cooked with her toes with her eyes closed!
…
That’s right, Bai Mengmeng is actually a hidden cooking master.
She lost her father at a young age and her mother in college. During her long years of living alone, she grew tired of the monotony of the hospital cafeteria and the greasy, heavy meals from takeout. So, she began to learn how to cook for herself.
Amazingly, she seemed to be born with a natural talent tree for cooking! Simply by following the basics from videos, she could create dishes that were both delicious and flavorful. Her tongue was as sharp as a precision instrument, allowing her to replicate dishes she'd eaten at a restaurant almost flawlessly at home.
In the evening, when Xu Bo tremblingly picked up the last remaining piece of pork belly and prepared to perform his "coke alchemy" again -
"Spare some flesh!" Bai Mengmeng rushed forward and held Xu Bo's hand tightly. Her tone was more sincere than ever, even pleading: "Uncle Xu! This dinner tonight... please! Let me cook it!"
Xu Bo looked at his master's delicate skin and tender flesh, his fingers never touched water, and his face was full of doubt: "Master... can you... really cook?"
"Yes! I can!" Bai Mengmeng's eyes were extremely determined. "Just help me light a fire!"
She glanced around the kitchen. Though gas canisters and a small coal stove were stacked in the corner, it was clear that Uncle Xu preferred the old-fashioned earthen stove, a rustic, heavy, and time-tested one. She was familiar with this stove—she'd used it during team-building trips to farmhouses. The bottom burns wood, while the middle produces ash (which is perfect for composting). Two large iron woks sit atop it, generating a powerful fire and ensuring the aroma of stir-fried dishes.
Bai Mengmeng quickly put on her apron and decided to use local ingredients: stewed potatoes with meat as the main dish, and pickled cabbage with vinegar as the refreshing and filling dish!
Just as he rolled up his sleeves, Wang Hao's yellow-haired head slyly poked into the kitchen. He looked at the remaining pork belly on the chopping board with a look of pain on his face and said hesitantly, "Master...Master, are you cooking? There's... only this little bit of meat left... Please... please... go easy on me... If we waste it... we'll really have to fast..."
Waste? Bai Mengmeng sneered inwardly. That lunch was an epic waste! Without even raising her eyelids, she sneered, "Wang Hao, have you finished pulling the weeds? If not—you won't have any food tonight."
Wang Hao let out a wail and disappeared in an instant.
Bai Mengmeng lit a fire to simmer some rice, then took the pork belly and seared the skin over the dancing flames of the stove, removing any stray hairs. Then, with a few thumps of her knife, she chopped the meat into even pieces, alternating between fat and lean.
"Uncle Xu, lower the heat," she instructed, scooping a spoonful of solidified white lard into the hot iron pan. The fat quickly melted, emitting a rich, meaty aroma. Then, she added a spoonful of sugar, gently stirring with the tip of the spatula. The sugar granules gradually melted, their color changing from light yellow to an alluring amber, and finally to roiling, jujube-red sugar bubbles.
Now is the time!
Bai Mengmeng flicked her wrist, and the meat slammed into the wok! "Sizzle!" The scalding hot oil and the meat collided fiercely, instantly unleashing an overwhelming, meaty aroma that filled the entire kitchen like a physical substance, even spreading powerfully into the backyard!
The aroma of just frying sugar color was enough to make Xu Bo, who was burning the fire behind the stove, sniff hard and his Adam's apple rolled up and down.
The meat chunks were evenly coated in an alluring red sauce. Bai Mengmeng calmly poured a ladle of boiling water into the pot. Scallions, ginger slices, star anise, cinnamon, bay leaves, soy sauce... all sorts of seasonings fell into the pot like a scattering of flowers. She covered the pot with a heavy wooden lid and left the heat on low, letting the broth simmer gently within, bubbling and simmering deliciously.
While waiting, she picked a few plump potatoes from the basket. The moment she picked up the knife to peel them, a strange, indescribable feeling seized her.
She seemed to have entered a mystical realm. The knife in her hand was no longer a tool, but an extension of her body. Each stroke was precise, with just the right amount of pressure. The skin was as thin as a cicada's wing, and the potatoes were cut into pieces as uniform as if measured with a ruler. She could even "feel" that the potatoes, prepared this way, would achieve the perfect balance of texture and flavor during stewing!
The time has come!
Bai Mengmeng lifted the lid of the pot, and the rich aroma of meat mixed with the scent of spices hit her face. She gently slid the potatoes into the pot, turning them with the tip of the spatula, allowing each potato to greedily coat the thick, oily, amber-colored broth.
She covered the pot again. Although she couldn't see what was going on inside the pot, Bai Mengmeng could clearly "feel" that the potatoes were gradually softening in the gentle embrace of the broth, absorbing the flavor and becoming soft and sticky...
That overbearing aroma was simply unreasonable! Like an invisible hook, it penetrated the door panel and went straight into the nose of Wang Hao, who was working hard in the backyard.
"Hiss!" Wang Hao sucked his saliva suddenly, stopped pulling out the weeds with his hands, stretched his neck and sniffed the air hard, his stomach protesting like thunder: "Oh my God... What... What kind of heavenly smell is this! It smells so good!" He had clearly stuffed his stomach with "charcoal" at noon, but now he was starving.
Bai Mengmeng looked thoughtfully at her hand gripping the spatula. The smooth, flowing feeling she'd had when she'd cut potatoes and stir-fried cabbage earlier, as if she'd penetrated the very soul of the ingredients, was now remarkably clear. Could this be... a hidden benefit of her talent for growing vegetables? Ultimate control over herbal ingredients?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
