Upon seeing the chicken lying on the ground, Chen Tongsheng immediately put down his teacup, rolled up his sleeves, and went over to get to work.
Seeing this, Li Xiuju quickly stopped him and snatched the chicken away.
“Young scholar, it’s not easy for you to come all this way today. Just stay here and eat in peace. You don’t need to lift a finger.”
Chen Tongsheng watched as Zhou Chenyu and Baoyu carried the fruit into the house. Everyone had something to do, but he was the only one with empty hands.
He stood there awkwardly, unsure whether to stand or sit. "Godmother, how can I, a grown man, sit here enjoying myself while you and Chen Yu Bao Yu do all the work?"
"It's just cooking a few dishes, why are you so upset? Take a good rest." Li Xiuju smiled, scalded the chicken with boiling water, and began to pluck the feathers.
"Godmother, how can I sit here?" Chen Tongsheng scratched his head, then, seeing two wild rabbits waiting to be processed next to the chicken, he pulled up a low stool and sat down, a comfortable smile finally appearing on his face.
“Godmother, you always tell me to treat this place as my home. What’s wrong with me going back to my own home to do some chores? You’re busy killing chickens and can’t spare a hand, so I’ll take care of these two rabbits.”
Li Xiuju was moved by Chen Tongsheng's words and let him go. He sat to the side, and the mother and son could still talk.
As soon as Chen Tongsheng sat down, he quickly and skillfully skinned the wild rabbit.
Following Li Xiuju's instructions, Zhou Chenyu took a vegetable basket to the garden and picked a basket of green vegetables. When she returned, she saw Baoyu starting a fire at the gate of the courtyard.
Wisps of black smoke drifted through the already dry, yellow leaves overhead. Luckily, the fire wasn't too high, otherwise the trees would have been burned down during the holiday.
She walked over and asked, "Why are you starting a fire?"
"Sister, hot water can't clean the rabbit fur. Brother Tongsheng said the rest has to be roasted over a fire." Baoyu added two more pieces of firewood to the fire, so focused on starting the fire that he didn't even notice the soot smeared on his face.
A few children eating mooncakes in the distance saw him and whispered and chuckled to each other.
Seeing his silly look, Zhou Chenyu grabbed his hand and pointed to the black spot on his face, "Your face looks like a black face, aren't you ashamed? Go inside and wash it off."
"Huh?" Baoyu rubbed his clean hands together vigorously, getting charcoal ash on them, before realizing what the children next to him were laughing about.
"Little brat, how dare you laugh at me!" He stood up aggressively and chased after the group of children like an eagle catching chicks, scaring them into scattering in all directions. Only then did he go into the yard to wash his face, satisfied.
Zhou Chenyu took over Baoyu's job, tending the fire while picking vegetable leaves.
Chen Tongsheng used a bamboo pole to pierce the rabbit, took it out and placed it on the fire. After examining it carefully, he asked curiously, "Chenyu, I heard from your godmother that you and your brother went hunting? You and your brother caught such a fat rabbit in the mountains?"
Baoyu came out and heard this. He eagerly took credit and said with a smug smile, "That's right! All the ones I caught have been bought by others. These two were caught by my sister. They were the ones that others didn't want."
"You brat, you're itching for a beating if I don't teach you a lesson in a few days, aren't you?" Zhou Chenyu picked up a small stone and threw it at him. Baoyu quickly hid behind Chen Tongsheng and stuck out his tongue slightly.
Chen Tongsheng, protecting Baoyu, grinned and chuckled, "Chenyu, you're amazing! You're even better than us men at work."
"What kind of talk is that?" Zhou Chenyu frowned. Chen Tongsheng was a good person, but he had a strong sense of male chauvinism.
If she hadn't known he was a simple-minded and kind person, she might have argued with him.
"I can't be bothered to argue with you stinky men."
Zhou Chenyu scoffed, picked up the cleaned vegetables, and went back to the courtyard.
During the period after Zhou Wenbin fell ill, his family had not properly celebrated the Mid-Autumn Festival for a long time. In addition, guests came to their home, so Li Xiuju had to prepare a total of six dishes for this rare day.
A plate of boiled chicken, a plate of dry-pot rabbit, a plate of braised pork belly with taro, a plate of stir-fried water celery and dried tofu, a plate of tender sweet potato leaves with garlic sauce, and a pot of fresh and sweet chicken soup—each one is indispensable.
They each took on a task and squeezed into the cramped kitchen.
Baoyu squatted in front of the stove to watch the fire, while Chen Tongsheng was in charge of chopping and mincing vegetables. Once the vegetables were chopped, they were handed over to Li Xiuju to stir-fry, while Zhou Chenyu assisted from the side.
Li Xiuju is a regular cook, so making these six dishes is no problem for her. But now that she has three children helping out, the whole family is busy in the kitchen, making the work much easier. She is tired but happy, and the smile on her face never stops.
Chen Tongsheng glanced at the chicken in the pot, turned it over, and asked, "Godmother, how's the chicken?"
Li Xiuju stood in front of the stove, where dry-pot rabbit meat was being stir-fried in a pot.
"Let me see." She rubbed her waist skirt with her hands, and Zhou Chenyu took the spatula she gave him.
Li Xiuju walked over and took a look, nodding in satisfaction. "This chicken looks good; we can take it out and chop it up now."
"I've already chopped the vegetables, and I have some free time. Godmother, let me do it!" Chen Tongsheng smiled and eagerly scooped out the chicken.
Seeing him strike a pose as if he were showing off his skills, Zhou Chenyu teased him, "Brother Chen, your pose is just like a master chef's."
"That's right." Chen Tongsheng laughed a few times, raised the cleaver and brought it down, the sound of chopping vegetables coming from the cutting board.
Li Xiuju watched with a smile for a while, then turned around and lifted the pot lid, releasing a savory aroma of rabbit meat.
"It smells so good." Zhou Chenyu poked her head out. The rabbit meat, cut into small cubes, had been stir-fried until the moisture was gone. The skin was coated with a layer of oil, and underneath the oil was a golden brown with a hint of char. The meat pieces were distinct. Just looking at it, you could imagine the taste of biting into a piece of meat and having the sauce sealed inside overflow in your mouth.
Li Xiuju took a small bite, nodded in satisfaction, and quickly took two large plates to divide the food into two portions. She handed one portion to Zhou Chenyu and said, "Take this to Shuqing's house."
"Okay." Zhou Chenyu carried the sealed pot of dried rabbit meat out of the house. Huangdou chased after her, wiggling its tail, and jumped up and down happily in the grass in front of her.
After lunch, they were busy, and more than an hour passed without them realizing it. The setting sun shone directly on her and Huangdou, casting long shadows on the ground.
When Zhou Chenyu arrived at Zhou Shuqing's door, the plate was still hot. Before she could say anything, she heard Zhou Shuqing shout something loudly, and she hurriedly walked out with the plate in her hand.
The two met face to face. When Zhou Shuqing saw what Zhou Chenyu was holding, he stopped in his tracks and burst into laughter, "Well, you've come at the right time, saving me from having to make another trip."
Zhou Chenyu glanced sideways, raised an eyebrow, and teased, "Brother Shuqing, are you sending this to our house?"
"What do you think?" Zhou Shuqing asked in return.
"I should have come out later." Zhou Chenyu chuckled. Hongmei, seeing that Zhou Shuqing was still there, came out with a spatula and grumbled, "The stuffed tofu is getting cold, and you're still not leaving... Chenyu, what are you doing here?"
Hongmei stopped cursing abruptly when she saw what Zhou Chenyu was holding.
Zhou Shuqing played the victim, "Look, you kept urging me, and now Chen Yu has come on her own, isn't that perfect?"
Zhou Chenyu put down the plates and dishes, putting an end to his arrogance, and smiled at Hongmei, "Sister-in-law Hongmei, look at Brother Shuqing, shouldn't he personally take me home?"
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