Open the door.
A woman holding a child stood at the door, craning her neck to look into the Li family's house.
After her initial surprise, Li Juan frowned and asked, "Dazhu's wife? Is something the matter?"
This is her neighbor who lives across the street from her. She's the same generation as her, and the child she's holding is her grandson.
However, Li Juan didn't have a good impression of Da Zhu's family. The whole family was cunning and sly; the men were lazy, and the women were greedy and gluttonous. It really proved the saying that "birds of a feather flock together."
"Mother, who is it?" Su Yan asked loudly as she walked to the door of the stove.
"It's nothing, just a neighbor."
Upon hearing this, Su Yan responded with an "oh" and went back to the stove to check the fire.
Dazhu's wife spoke in a familiar tone, carrying her grandson as she walked inside, "Juanzi, what are you cooking? It smells so good. Gou Dan started making a fuss as soon as he smelled it, so I brought this gluttonous boy over to see."
Isn't it delicious? The aroma of that pot of braised food wafted all the way to the village entrance, and people who had just finished eating were already feeling hungry again.
Everyone knew the smell was coming from Li Juan's house, but no one dared to ask, as if they themselves were starving—how embarrassing! Only some shameless people, like the one in front of Li Juan, were different.
Li Juan realized what was happening and quickly stopped Da Zhu's wife, saying with a forced smile, "What does it matter to you what we eat? If your grandson is craving something, go buy it for him. How can you be so greedy for other people's food all the time?"
Just because a tiger doesn't show its power doesn't mean everyone can bully Li Juan.
Da Zhu's wife was shocked and indignant at Li Juan's harsh words. She retorted, "What do you mean by that? Can't I even come to take a look? Do you think your house is so precious that we can't even come in?"
"You're not welcome in my house. Get out now, or I'll beat you out with a broom!"
After shouting loudly, Li Juan grabbed a broom from the side, revealing an air of readiness to fight at any moment.
This action completely infuriated Dazhu's wife!
Pointing at Li Juan's face, he cursed, "You piece of trash! This is Lijiaping, how dare you be so arrogant when you've been rejected by your husband's family? I think you don't want to stay in this village anymore!"
If Li Juan hadn't gone through what happened to Widow Liu, she might still have cared about these harsh words.
But now! She is Niohuru Juan!
"Splash—!"
The broom hit Dazhu's wife directly on the leg!
Li Juan hit and cursed at the same time: "You're so foul-mouthed! You're so greedy! I won't let you eat it! Get out, get far away from me!"
Dazhu's wife cried out in pain, but holding the child, she couldn't fight back against Li Juan and could only keep retreating.
"You heartless bastard! You shameless slut! It's your family's good fortune that my grandson is eyeing your things. Only I would bring my grandson to your door, and you're so ungrateful..."
"Bang!"
After kicking the man out, Li Juan slammed the door shut, spat at the cursing people outside, and declared, "If anyone dares to come and bully my family, I, Li Juan, will fight back with my life on the line!"
After uttering those harsh words, she finally put down the broom and went to take a shower.
Inside the stove.
Su Yan was busy cooking and paid no attention to what was happening outside.
Having a mother who's incredibly capable can save her a lot of trouble, especially since she can't hit her elders.
Of course, if Li Juan is bullied, she will stand in front of her without hesitation.
The braised duck parts have a rich aroma, and the air is filled with a sweet and spicy scent.
Su Yan carried the basin to the yard and called out to the room, "Grandpa, Grandma, Xiao Lei, come out and eat!"
"Here you are."
Su Lei rushed out of the room excitedly, followed by Grandma Li and Grandpa Li carrying Hu Zi.
The two elderly people are quite old and their hearing isn't very good, so they didn't hear the noise at the door.
That's good, it saves them the trouble.
Five minutes later.
The people at the table, young and old, were all gnawing on duck heads, their mouths full of broth. Li Juan, after taking a shower, couldn't wait to start eating as well.
It's sweet on the palate with a subtle hint of alcohol, and the aftertaste is slightly spicy. It's neither too salty nor too bland; all the flavors are perfectly balanced.
Li Juan gave Su Yan a thumbs up, saying, "If this were sold, it would definitely be a huge hit."
Grandma Li and Grandpa Li nodded in unison. The two old folks both thought it smelled delicious. Besides, duck parts are not expensive, the cooking method is fresh, and the taste is good. They figured everyone would be willing to give it a try.
Su Lei couldn't stop eating, his eyes still glued to the bowl, as if afraid it would be gone in the next second.
Su Yan couldn't help but chuckle. Then she picked up the pig intestines and cut them into thumb-width pieces on the cutting board. She split the duck head in half and sliced the duck kidneys into thin slices, placing them in a clean bowl.
She just tasted it, and although not all the ingredients were used, the flavor was indeed quite good. When she went up the mountain to collect herbs, she also picked some five-finger peach to add to the braising liquid, and the flavor would be even more amazing.
"What are you doing?" Li Juan asked, puzzled.
Su Yan cut up six duck heads, six duck gizzards, and a pound and a half of pig intestines, arranged them on a plate, and then drizzled two spoonfuls of broth around the edge.
“Aunt Lin spoke up for our family in front of the villagers and helped us get rid of a lot of trouble. I’m sending these over to the brigade leader’s family so they can have a taste too. It’s just a small token of my appreciation.”
Su Yan is not an ungrateful person.
On the contrary, she is willing to repay anyone who has been kind to her or helped her, given the opportunity.
Grandpa Li nodded. "The team leader's wife is a good person. Ayan, you did the right thing. Take it over now, she's probably still awake."
This is perfect for pairing with drinks; the captain will definitely like it.
This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
