77 Extra 2
◎Maple Leaf Mousse (for post-wedding outings)◎
Early autumn is a wonderful season. The sky is high, the clouds are light, and the warm sun blows lovingly over every inch of land.
In the West Mountain Villa, Jiang Qinglan was roasting mutton with great interest.
"Chili powder," she said, her hands full of dozens of wooden skewers, so she had to use her elbow to poke the person next to her, "Hurry up and pass it to me!"
Xie Linchuan was peeling potato chips, his hands were slippery from the starch. Upon hearing this, he quickly wiped his hands with a towel and handed over the chili powder.
I saw her happily sprinkling chili powder on the lamb skewers. Just as she was about to peel more potatoes, another order came: "Cumin powder!"
After cumin powder, there are "salt" and "five-spice powder".
Even worse, there are also people saying: "Why aren't the potatoes ready yet? Why are you so slow?!"
Xie Linchuan snorted and didn't respond.
The reason why he proposed to come to Xishan Villa was that he had some bad intentions.
There were so many people in the Dongping Palace that it was hard to move around. Especially that little brat Tuan Tuan, who kept asking to sleep with his sister, making everyone feel very constrained.
And here, there are just the two of them, and of course they can do whatever they want.
Who would have thought that on the first night, she would hold her belly and say her period had come!
Not only did he fail to achieve his goal, but he also treated me like a grandson, carefully serving me for several days. Now, he, the dignified Prince of Dongping and General Pengsun, has become a mere idiot!
The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. Just as I was about to give up, the female voice came again, only this time, it was gentler:
"Are you starving? Don't worry, it will be ready soon. An Ning brand barbecue is definitely better than the one you eat at Fengle Building."
The girl smiled, and golden light from the sky leaked through the gaps between the maple leaves, dancing on her long eyelashes.
Xie Linchuan was indeed "starving", but it was not the "starving" she meant.
But when he saw her speaking softly and with such concern, he immediately lost all his temper, like a dog whose fur had been smoothed out.
He even chuckled and said as if to take credit, "I'll peel some more cucumbers and dip them in sugar later."
After saying that, he picked up the dagger and did it with great interest.
On the fine wire mesh, the fat lamb and pork belly were sizzling, and the oil dripped onto the silver charcoal below the mesh.
Not long after, a burst of flames appeared with a hissing sound.
The charcoal-grilled pork belly is delicious simply dipped in a little salt. There are no extra seasonings, just the aroma created by the fire and the meat itself.
If you wrap it in lettuce and add chili segments, garlic and chili sauce, it becomes the Korean way of eating.
Only Jiang Qinglan didn't like garlic, so he cut some shredded red ginger to go with it.
If you eat too much meat, you will feel a little greasy. At this time, just drink a sip of black plum drink and you can fight again.
The drink she paired with it was a replica of Haidilao's sour plum soup, sweet with a hint of sourness and the unique flavor of black plums. It's addictive and you never get tired of it.
Finally, there was the dessert, the maple mousse that she had finally successfully completed after several attempts at research.
There are three lines of cream on the small square cake of light yellow, showing the gradient red of maple leaves from light to dark.
This is because of the maple syrup.
In addition, there is a small maple leaf placed on the edge of the cake. It is fried and can be eaten with the cake.
Beautiful scenery, enjoyable activities, barbecued plums, red maple mousse, a peaceful and happy time. Jiang Qinglan ate the barbecue but sighed slightly.
The best description of the imperfection in something is probably Zhang Ailing's three regrets: one is that the crabapple has no fragrance, two is that the shad has too many bones, and three is that "A Dream of Red Mansions" is unfinished.
She also imitated him, saying, "The autumn scenery is boundless and peaceful. But, I have three regrets."
Xie Linchuan became interested, took a bite of the cucumber, and said, "Oh, which three hatreds?"
Jiang Qinglan smiled and said, "I regret that there is no Reply 1988 to watch."
She has watched this TV series many times, and she always turns on an episode to accompany her meal.
Especially the scene where Jungbong Oppa eats, I never get tired of watching it.
How can such a pleasant day, such beautiful scenery, and such delicious barbecue be without "Reply"?
Xie Linchuan frowned: "What the hell, I've never heard of that."
Jiang Qinglan laughed at him: "You don't like reading, how would you know this?"
I patiently explained to him, "This is a story that happened in Goryeo. There's an alley in the capital called Ssangmun-dong, where several families, including Deok-sun, Go-hwan, and Aze, live. Aze is a Go master..."
"Nonsense! It's not like no one has been to Korea before. How could there be a Go master in such a barbaric place?"
Jiang Qinglan was in high spirits and didn't argue with him: "It's written in the book anyway."
"Aze was teaching Deshan how to play Go. Deshan made the first move, placing the piece in the middle of the square. At this moment, a sheep bleated in the voice-over."
"Gu Huan and Deshan were riding in a car to go to school. The car was so bumpy that Deshan fell and grabbed onto Gu Huan's clothes, tearing them all off. Gu Huan was left naked!"
"Hahahahahahahahaha——" Jiang Qinglan was talking happily, not caring about the reactions of the people around him. He stopped eating the meat and laughed so hard that he held his stomach.
Xie Linchuan looked at her, his face full of confusion.
After getting married, he increasingly discovered that although his An Ning usually looked calm and composed, she would often go crazy like this.
He no longer cared whether the story was true or not.
He wiped his hands, pulled the person who was curled up in laughter over, sat her across his lap, lifted her skirt and touched her waist.
Jiang Qinglan wiped away the tears of laughter and slapped his hand: "What are you doing? I told you I'm having my period."
Xie Linchuan raised the corner of his lips: "No, I'm just touching your tail."
"What tail?"
"Of course it's a fox tail. I suspect you're a fox spirit in disguise." He had a wicked smile on his face. "Otherwise, how come you always know so many inexplicable things?"
He paused and continued:
"I remember now. A few years ago, you had an enemy named Pan who also said you were a bit supernatural. Later, he asked me to take him to Qiongzhou. Now that I think about it, he had some truth in what he said."
Jiang Qinglan's eyes were very clear as he stared at him straight in the eye. He said, "Yes, I am a fox spirit in disguise. I'm possessed. Are you afraid?"
Xie Linchuan burst out laughing: "You, vixen?"
He leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Then first learn how to use your eyes to be charming and how to twist your waist."
As he spoke, his hands became restless and he wanted to catch the bird on his chest.
Jiang Qinglan's face flushed red when he heard this. He pushed the man back and took the opportunity to jump off his legs.
"You haven't heard my second hatred yet."
Although the person had left, the scent of gardenias on his clothes still lingered in the air. Xie Linchuan took a deep breath and said, "What hatred?"
Jiang Qinglan said, "There's a cat that can't steal any fish, so it's running around in a panic. It's really ruining the scenery."
Wow, she dares to mention this!
At that moment, Xie Linchuan leaned forward and stretched out his hand, trying to grab the person back.
But she was on guard and slipped away faster than a fish, so he only touched a corner of her short jacket.
"Look," Jiang Qinglan pointed at the barbecue stall, "the meat is almost burnt."
Xie Linchuan didn't allow her to leave again. He pounced on her like a hungry wolf pouncing on its prey. This time he caught her right there, pulled her up, and held her tightly in his arms.
"If it gets burnt, just bake it again."
"Stop it," Jiang Qinglan blocked his restless hands, "I promise, I'll wait... and leave."
"Really?" She was always cautious about such things, and he was a little skeptical.
"Of course it's true, otherwise you would probably go crazy, right?"
Talking about this kind of thing, she still blushed a little, and hurriedly struggled out of his arms and changed the subject, "Now, do you want to hear about my third hatred?"
After receiving the promise, Xie Linchuan became very honest and nodded blankly.
"That's it." Jiang Qinglan pulled off a maple leaf and showed it to Xie Linchuan. "The maple leaves from the other courtyard are still too stingy. The syrup made from them isn't very good, and the mousse doesn't look good either."
When it comes to maple leaves, Jiang Qinglan has two holy places in his mind.
The first is the Aiwan Pavilion at Yuelu Academy in Hunan Province. The pavilion is named after Du Mu's poem "I stop my car and sit to enjoy the maple forest in the evening, the frosted leaves are redder than the flowers in February", which has been praised by literati and poets throughout history.
When I was studying for my master's degree that year, my supervisor took us on a business trip to Changsha and even recited a poem in the Aiwan Pavilion.
The second is Kyoto, Japan.
She once studied in Kyoto, where there are many maple leaves and everything is red in autumn.
From Kiyomizu-dera Temple on the mountaintop, the view is breathtaking, with deep and light crimson blending into a single mass. Ancient Tang and Song dynasty-style buildings nestled among the trees tell the story of thousands of years of history.
As the saying goes: "Except for Mount Wushan, there are no clouds." After seeing the maple leaves in these two places, the West Mountain Courtyard is no longer attractive to the eye.
Jiang Qinglan sighed slightly.
Seeing her expression, Xie Linchuan chuckled, "I thought it was nothing, just a few leaves."
He casually extended his hand, pointing to a dense forest in the distance to the south. "Through that forest, there's a small town called Qinglin. Not far from the town, on the hilltop, there's a vast maple forest. It's incredibly beautiful."
Jiang Qinglan looked in the direction he pointed, and it was clearly an endless expanse of green, without a single speck of red.
She asked doubtfully, "Really?"
Xie Linchuan smiled and said, "Although you have read thousands of books, I have traveled thousands of miles. Don't worry, I won't lie to you."
The two of them laughed and ate up all the grilled lamb skewers, pork belly, potato chips, and cucumbers dipped in sugar. Then, they prepared to go see the red maple leaves.
Early the next morning, Xie Linchuan got a carriage and hired an old man to drive it. He said to Jiang Qinglan, "Your back hurts from riding a horse since your period is coming. It's better to take a carriage."
After spending time with him, Jiang Qinglan also became arrogant: "You didn't eat my barbecued meat in vain yesterday."
Xie Linchuan just had a wicked smile on his face.
Soon, they arrived at Qinglin Town, and Xie Linchuan bought two more hot water kettles, adding to the lotus-lid silver kettle and other containers already in the car. All the containers, big and small, were filled with water.
Jiang Qinglan asked, "Why did you buy so much water? It's only a few miles away, and we'll be back soon."
"Well, not to mention that yesterday's barbecue was a bit salty," Xie Linchuan said seriously, "even if you're not thirsty, you still need to prepare plenty of water. When you're out and about, clean, warm water is the most important thing."
That makes sense.
After all, he was a great general who had fought in wars and had traveled thousands of miles. He was more experienced than her in this area, so she stopped talking.
After a while, Xie Linchuan pricked up his ears to listen to the sounds outside, and suddenly his eyes lit up, as if he had thought of some bad idea.
He grabbed Jiang Qinglan's hand, turning it over and over, squeezing it. Finally, he squeezed in and sat down next to her.
Jiang Qinglan saw his cunning eyes and knew what he was up to. He pushed him aside forcefully and said, "What are you doing? I'm having my period."
Xie Linchuan leaned his head on her shoulder, then pulled her hand up to cover his forehead and asked, "What is this?"
"Your head." Jiang Qinglan answered honestly.
"Yes, it's not a blockhead." Xie Linchuan raised his head and smiled at her, hugging her in his arms. "Your menstrual fluid has dried up. I found out last night. You lied to me..."
He showed a pitiful expression, "You are such a cruel person!"
Jiang Qinglan struggled hard: "That won't work either. It's broad daylight, on the street, I must be crazy to..."
But her tone had softened, and it seemed that she admitted that she was in the wrong for lying.
Xie Linchuan was not paying attention for a moment, so she pushed him sideways. In fact, with her little strength, she couldn't push three people.
He smiled and said, "That's nothing. We just need to keep our voices down. The driver is deaf and can't hear."
After saying that, he came over and hugged her again.
Jiang Qinglan stretched out his hands and placed them on his shoulders, separating their faces. "Why are you like Teddy, tweeting all the time..."
When he said this word, he lowered his voice, fearing that the old man driving the carriage would hear him, and said, "Estrous."
Xie Linchuan, however, became alert, sitting up straight, frowning deeply, and asking a series of questions: "Who is Teddy? What is your relationship with him? When did this happen? How come I don't know?"
It only took him a second to go from being a lustful embryo to being ready for a formidable enemy. Jiang Qinglan saw this and burst out laughing:
"It's a dog, a real dog. Curly-haired, tan, little, and gets horny at everything he sees."
Hearing this, Xie Linchuan smiled again, gently folded her hands down, and let them hold his waist.
He kissed her hair again and whispered in her ear, "I'm not a dog, I'm a wolf, and I'm only in love with you."
These words of love were so soft and tender, and they made Jiang Qinglan feel itchy and numb all over. A sweet feeling surged in his heart like a tide.
Somehow, the noise of the crowd outside the car gradually faded, and instead the rustling sound of the autumn wind sweeping the fallen leaves became clearer.
Xie Linchuan knew the time had come, and with lightning speed, he hugged the charming girl by the waist. Immediately, the two switched positions.
He sat on the cushion and she sat astride his legs.
Jiang Qinglan's head buzzed, and shame ran through him from head to toe, his face redder than the sunset.
Her hands were limp and she had no strength, but she still wanted to resist: "No, there are people outside."
Xie Linchuan smiled, pulled out a golden hairpin from her head, and shot it out.
Immediately, the golden hairpin was firmly nailed to the side of the carriage, and half of the carriage curtain was lifted up.
He whispered in her ear: "Look, there's someone else there."
Jiang Qinglan turned around and looked:
Beyond the half-lifted curtain lies the endless autumn colors.
In the vast expanse of red maple forest, the leaves are like fire, bursting into flames. The sunset glow fills the sky, and through the gaps between the leaves, patches of red shadows are cast, making the red even redder.
Birds of various colors hopped among the treetops, singing melodious songs.
Jiang Qinglan exclaimed in surprise, "Sure enough...it's so beautiful." Then he came to his senses and asked, "How did we get here so quickly?"
She then remembered that the driver was not there, and thought that he might have heard some noise and left, and her face turned even redder with embarrassment.
Xie Linchuan knew what she was thinking: "No, I told him before to leave when he got here."
Hearing this, Jiang Qinglan finally felt relieved. But then he felt something was wrong. If this was the case, then it meant that he hadn't done it on impulse, but had been planning this for a long time.
In the corner, the water in the two hot water kettles tinkled and swayed with the shaking of the carriage, and Xie Linchuan's intentions were obvious.
This madman...
Before I could get angry, I felt a chill under my body, as if a tide was surging and was about to drown me.
Jiang Qinglan dug her nails deep into his shoulders, closed her eyes tightly, and leaned against him.
Xie Linchuan coaxed her: "Ningning, open your eyes."
Jiang Qinglan was always shy about this sort of thing. Even though her cheeks flushed and she felt exhausted, she shook her head resolutely.
Xie Linchuan tried a few times, but Jiang Qinglan still clenched his teeth and remained unmoved.
Xie Linchuan raised the corner of his mouth, smiled evilly, curled his fingers into a ring, put them in his mouth, and made a "wu" sound.
The horse heard the urging and walked forward happily.
We were already in the wilderness, on a gravel-covered dirt road, not as easy to walk on as the bluestone paved roads in the city. For a moment, the carriage was shaking non-stop.
Jiang Qinglan couldn't help but yell, not forgetting to scold him: "Ah...you...you bastard...ah..."
After a while, after shouting and scolding, she finally couldn't bear it anymore. Her long eyelashes moved slightly and she opened her eyes with embarrassment.
Xie Linchuan's clothes were neatly done, and the densely woven gold thread on the collar was so shining that it dazzled people.
This person's face was not red and his breathing was not disordered. He was looking at him with a smile, and there was a bit of evil on his handsome face.
Just looking at it, I thought he was doing something serious.
But Jiang Qinglan herself, with her hair disheveled and her face flushed, was mortified. She wanted to reach out and cover his eyes: "You... don't look."
But he caught her hand in an instant, and together with the other hand, he twisted it behind her back with one hand.
"It's not over yet." He blew hot air into her ear again, gentle as water, "Call my name."
Jiang Qinglan was confused and lost in love, babbling non-stop, and had to distract herself to listen to him, which was very difficult: "It's...it's...embarrassing..."
Xie Linchuan smiled again, pulled down the two pearl buttons on the front of her shirt, letting the collar spread out, revealing a large area of snow-white, and then flicked it towards the horse's buttocks with two quick sounds.
The horse felt pain, neighed loudly, and ran wildly in the red maple forest.
Jiang Qinglan yelled: "Ah - Linchuan -"
Xie Linchuan suddenly stood up, held the person in his arms with one hand, and with the intimate contact, changed positions again and pressed the person under him.
"Be good—" He kissed her lips and swallowed the rest of the words.
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