Chapter 18 I Will Be Good to Amo
Shen Mo had a close relationship with Commander Li's family, so he wouldn't refuse their kindness and said with a smile, "Thank you, sister-in-law."
"I heard from Lao Li that your wife came to join the army and asked me to look after her. It was too late yesterday, so I came to see her today. Where is your wife?"
As Li's sister-in-law spoke, she looked behind Shen Mo and saw Jiang Ning walking out of the main room.
Seeing that Shen Mo was talking to someone, Jiang Ning walked over.
Upon seeing Jiang Ning, Sister Li was taken aback. "Oh my, what a charming girl! She's as beautiful as the ladies in the calendar."
Sister-in-law Li didn't have much education, and she wasn't subtle in praising people; she said whatever came to mind.
Jiang Ning knows she's good-looking, but she still feels a little embarrassed when people compliment her too much.
Seeing her approach, Sister Li spoke up again, taking Jiang Ning's hand familiarly and saying, "I'll call you Xiao Jiang. My family grows a lot of vegetables. If you don't have enough vegetables at home, just come to my house to pick some. Don't be shy."
The other person was too enthusiastic, and Jiang Ning didn't know how to respond.
She turned to look at Shen Mo, who nodded.
Seeing him nod, Jiang Ning knew that Shen Mo had a good relationship with this woman's family, and said with a smile, "Okay, thank you, sister-in-law."
Seeing that Jiang Ning looked like a flower, Sister Li was in a good mood and chatted with Jiang Ning for a few more minutes.
Jiang Ning responded politely, feeling overwhelmed by the other party's enthusiasm, but knowing their intentions were good.
Sister-in-law Li chatted with Jiang Ning, saying, "Before, Xiao Shen was always all alone. Now that you're here, it's much better. During holidays, he has a close friend by his side."
"Okay." Jiang Ning nodded. "I will be good to Amo."
Jiang Ning wasn't just being polite; Shen Mo treated her well, so naturally she would treat Shen Mo well in return.
When Sister-in-law Li left, Shen Mo could still hear Jiang Ning's kind words to him. Even though it was just a casual remark, his heart couldn't help but pound wildly.
She also called him Amo.
“Dried plum vegetables!” Jiang Ning noticed what Shen Mo was holding.
Seeing that she seemed very interested, Shen Mo handed her the things he was holding.
Jiang Ning was wondering what to do with the pork belly that Shen Mo had bought when she saw the dried plum vegetables in his hand.
Nowadays, few people make their own preserved mustard greens. People in this era are mostly simple and honest, and they make many of their own food. These preserved mustard greens are oily and dark black, and have a rich and mellow aroma.
It's perfect for making braised pork belly with preserved mustard greens.
"I'm going to cook." Jiang Ning said, then grabbed her things and rushed into the stove area. Shen Mo smiled and continued wielding his hoe to clear the wasteland.
When Jiang Ning arrived at the kitchen, she first soaked the preserved mustard greens, and then went to process the pork belly. The pig hair and other impurities on the pork belly had already been removed, so she didn't have to put in much effort.
After cleaning the pork, put it in a pot of cold water along with some flattened ginger. Bring the water to a boil and cook for a few minutes, then remove and drain.
While the pork was draining, Jiang Ning went inside to get a few toothpicks and poked many small holes in the pork skin. Then she evenly coated it with soy sauce for color. Poking holes would make the meat more flavorful.
After coating with soy sauce, heat oil in a wok, place the pork skin side down in the wok and fry until golden brown. Once the pork skin starts to bubble with white foam, remove it and soak it in cold water; this is the key to achieving the tiger-skin effect.
After cooling, cut the meat into large, even pieces. In a bowl, mix soy sauce, sugar, pepper, and other seasonings to make a sauce. Then, put the sliced meat into the sauce and stir to coat it.
Stir-fry the preserved mustard greens with the remaining sauce in the pan, and the aroma is already coming out.
Jiang Ning swallowed hard, and seeing that it was almost cooked, she scooped it out, put the preserved mustard greens into the bowl on which the meat was already arranged, and put it into a pot of boiling water to steam.
Soon, the enticing aroma of meat wafted out.
Shen Mo smelled a fragrance when he had only cultivated half of the land on the right. It smelled even better than the food served in state-run restaurants.
Just by smelling this fragrance, you can tell it must taste amazing.
My wife is such a good cook!
Meat is being steamed on one stove, while white rice is being steamed on another.
An hour later, the white rice and meat were cooked.
Jiang Ning washed the pot and then made a vegetable soup.
Everything's ready.
Just as Shen Mo finished clearing out a large plot of land, he heard his wife calling him to eat, "Shen Mo, dinner's ready."
Shen Mo?
Why isn't it Amo anymore?
Shen Mo was a little disappointed, but he quickly clapped his hands, washed his hands at the sink, and then went to the kitchen to help Jiang Ning serve the dishes.
Shen Mo used the piece of pork belly that Jiang Ning took to make three bowls of braised pork.
"Let's give a bowl to Sister Li," Jiang Ning said. She still remembered the preserved mustard greens that Sister Li had given her; without them, she couldn't have made this braised pork.
Shen Mo nodded. "Okay."
Whatever my wife says goes.
Shen Mo carried a bowl of pork belly out the door. Jiang Ning didn't have the habit of eating alone, so she followed Shen Mo to the door and waited for him to come back.
Just then, a loud clattering sound caught Jiang Ning's attention.
She looked in the direction of the sound and saw four or five children. She glanced at them but didn't recognize any of them.
Just as she was about to look away, two children suddenly moved away a little, and Jiang Ning could see clearly the child who was surrounded in the middle.
It's Zhiqi, that kid.
Jiang Ning raised an eyebrow. So he has friends.
Given his aloof personality, I thought he didn't have any friends.
At this moment, one of the burly boys suddenly shoved Huo Zhiqi, saying, "Don't you like to eat? I'll let you eat your fill, hahahahaha."
Once someone took the lead, the other children immediately joined in, shoving and pushing Huo Zhiqi.
Jiang Ning frowned and quickly walked over. "What are you all doing?"
Upon seeing adults approaching, the group of children scattered in all directions.
Jiang Ning walked up to Huo Zhiqi and immediately noticed that Huo Zhiqi was a little dirty, and his hands were also dirty.
He looked down at the ground again.
There was a lunchbox lying on the ground, and all the rice inside had spilled out. That wasn't a big deal, but then two caterpillars suddenly crawled out of the white rice.
Jiang Ning's expression immediately turned sour, as if she had guessed something, and she asked him, "Is this why you don't usually bring your own lunch?"
Huo Zhiqi stared silently at the rice on the ground, feeling it was a pity that such a large bowl of white rice had been wasted.
Jiang Ning knew that this child was used to being quiet and reserved, and they hadn't known each other for very long, so it was normal that the child was unwilling to open up.
But she taught the child for a few days, so it's impossible that she didn't have feelings for him.
Jiang Ning reached out to take his hand and said softly, "Come on, let's go to my sister's house for dinner."
Huo Zhiqi saw Jiang Ning's fair hands, then glanced at his own dirty hands, and quietly moved away just as Jiang Ning was about to take his hand.
Jiang Ning reached out and tapped him on the head, "You brat, you're not recognizing me as your teacher anymore?"
After saying that, she sighed again, "Oh, I'm so sad."
"No!" Hearing her sad words, Huo Zhiqi suddenly became anxious. He wanted to grab Jiang Ning's clothes, but then withdrew his hand and lowered his head, saying, "Sister, I'm a little dirty."
He was often pushed to the ground by Uncle Wang's two sons. Every time he returned to Uncle Wang's house dirty, his aunt would look down on him. Uncle Wang's grandmother would not help him wash his clothes, so he had to wash them himself.
But he couldn't say it.
It's even more inaccurate to say that Wang Xiaotian and Wang Xiaodi caused it to turn out this way.
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