Chapter 103 The Gossip About the Explosive Fried Chicken
"...Peach kernels slept with apricot kernels, and the two kernels lay on the sandalwood bed. At midnight, water chestnut leaves fell, and the daring horsetail jumped over the wall..."[1]
Yao Xiaoyu hummed a song as she brewed the medicine, and before she knew it, it was noon again. As usual, everyone took turns eating. Today's meat dish was fish, and as for the taste—Yao Xiaoyu felt that she might as well have swallowed a mouthful of vinegar, jumped into West Lake, and ate the fish.
"I asked them to kill a chicken, I plan to cook it myself, do you want some?"
Yao Xiaoyu pushed a fish the size of a fingernail, which she had only picked up with serving chopsticks, toward Tao Xiaoxiao and asked in a low voice.
"eat!"
Tao Xiaoxiao swallowed the food in her mouth with all her might and nodded vigorously. She was indeed not picky about food, but there was a difference between filling her stomach and enjoying delicious food!
If Yao Xiaoyu were eating alone, she could manage with a small pot, but Tao Xiaoxiao needed a proper iron pot to cook. So the two of them hurriedly carried the food back and borrowed an iron pot from the village chief's house to cook.
"Do you want to eat these pieces?"
Before searching for the seasonings, Yao Xiaoyu pointed to the chicken head, chicken feet, and chicken butt and asked Tao Xiaoxiao, "Modern people love to eat chicken feet, but a pair isn't worth the effort."
"...I won't eat."
Tao Xiaoxiao wasn't picky, but seeing the child next to her swallowing his saliva, she remained silent for a while before refusing.
"Then blanch these."
Yao Xiaoyu didn't see through Tao Xiaoxiao's ulterior motives. She told Tao Xiaoxiao to skim the foam off the pot while she went into the room to rummage around. First, she brought out a large earthenware jar, then looked at the characters on the porcelain bottle and took out three more.
Today's dry-fried chicken is a home-style dish; just season with salt and sugar and add soy sauce for color, no need for extra spices.
Tao Xiaoxiao was afraid that Yao Xiaoyu would get burned by the oil and water splashes, so she insisted that Yao Xiaoyu not touch the stove, only allowing Yao Xiaoyu to give verbal instructions from the side. As for the issue of someone needing to watch the fire on the wood-fired stove...
"Come and start a fire."
Tao Xiaoxiao waved to the children at the kitchen door. Because it was so natural, no one noticed anything amiss. Yao Xiaoyu confirmed that the cotton gloves she had just found—which somehow ended up in her bag—were being put on by Tao Xiaoxiao. Then, she took on the role of instructor:
After blanching the chicken, rinse it, clean the iron pot, and then scoop out a spoonful of snow-white lard from the largest earthenware pot—yes, Yao Xiaoyu had rendered some lard along with the seasonings, but this wasn't intentional; it was just something she did on a whim.
Before Yao Xiaoyu arrived, she figured the food probably wouldn't be very good. After the messenger left, she bought a lot of fatty meat from the butcher and cooked a big pot of pork cracklings. She and Tao Xiaoxiao ate a lot of it, with salt and sugar, until they felt nauseous at the sight of the pork cracklings and stopped eating.
Thanks to this fat supplementation before the free clinic, the two of them ate far less meat than usual, but they didn't feel any discomfort—they were just really craving food when they cooked for themselves, it was their hearts' pursuit of delicious food, not their bodies' desire for nutrition.
The aroma of melting lard was wonderful, and the little girl tending the fire below silently swallowed her saliva.
As Yao Xiaoyu watched the oil in the pan begin to smoke slightly, she instructed Tao Xiaoxiao to pour all the chicken pieces in and stir-fry them. The pan crackled and popped, and Yao Xiaoyu clearly saw a small drop of liquid, which she couldn't tell was water or oil, splatter onto Tao Xiaoxiao's clothes. She instinctively shivered, but Tao Xiaoxiao didn't even flinch and just kept stirring.
"Cover the pot and wait until the noise is quieter before frying."
This dress is too thin; I should have let Tao Xiaoxiao wear a thicker one.
The cooking noise was so loud that Yao Xiaoyu had to shout for people to hear her. Tao Xiaoxiao shook her head, looking at the cotton gloves on her hands and feeling a warmth in her heart: When she used to cook at home, she would burn a large part of her arm but still had to take care of three meals a day. Now, she didn't even get a drop of oil on her skin. She wasn't so delicate at all.
As the chicken was stir-fried, it gradually turned golden brown. Yao Xiaoyu instructed Tao Xiaoxiao to add salt, sugar, and soy sauce, and then put in the freshly washed chili peppers. Once the chili peppers were softened, the dish was ready to be served.
A chicken is quite a large portion, and with the chili peppers, it filled a whole bowl. Yao Xiaoyu unceremoniously put two chicken legs into her own bowl, and pushed the rest to Tao Xiaoxiao. Tao Xiaoxiao was about to pick up her chopsticks when she remembered something, went into the kitchen and placed a small plate containing chicken heads, chicken feet, and chicken butts in front of the child squatting by the fire.
Do you want it?
The child opened his eyes wide, confirming with some disbelief:
"For me?"
Tao Xiaoxiao nodded, trying to look away from these odds and ends.
"You helped start the fire."
Although the child still didn't quite believe in free lunches, he didn't hesitate at all when he grabbed the plate—whether it was out of kindness or on a whim, once it was cooked and in his stomach, he wouldn't be able to take it back.
"Grandma, look what I brought!"
The child ran back quickly with the meat. The village chief and his wife, seeing the chicken giblets on the table, and hearing that the child had received so much for starting the fire, marveled at their granddaughter's good fortune. They quickly cooked the giblets, served them in bowls, and the village chief happily remarked:
"Other families cook chicken in three ways, and so do we."
Seeing the family looking over curiously, the village chief used his chopsticks to point out the dishes one by one.
"Chicken blood soup, stir-fried chicken giblets, and stewed chicken head, feet, and buttocks—aren't these three ways to eat it?"
The child burst out laughing.
Here, children live in happy families; over there, laughter fills the air.
Tao Xiaoxiao quickly stuffed chili peppers and chicken into her mouth. No one knew how she did it. Even though her cheeks were full, she could still chew and swallow quickly. The rice in her bowl and the vegetables in her plate were decreasing at a visible rate. Seeing this, Yao Xiaoyu, who had already taken her own food, felt a little anxious and shoved half a chicken leg into her mouth.
"Did I not feed you enough before?"
Watching Tao Xiaoxiao eat chicken and chili peppers, then rice, and finally finish the fish for both of them, Yao Xiaoyu couldn't help but ask cautiously.
This appetite is even greater than it was at the Yao family's house.
"I'm full."
Tao Xiaoxiao realized what was happening and gave a straightforward answer.
"It would be a shame not to eat the fish, but I forced myself to eat it, and now I'm stuffed."
Yao Xiaoyu was both annoyed and amused by Tao Xiaoxiao's honest words:
"If you can't eat it, you don't have to. It won't be a waste if you send it to any of the restaurants."
In modern times, because of abundant resources, few people are willing to eat other people's leftovers. However, in this era, there is even a type of vendor in big cities who sells "staring food" and it is extremely popular.
The so-called "staring food" is a group of people sitting around a pot, using chopsticks to put food into it. Each chopstick costs one coin, and whatever you pick up is what you get. You can't take it back or put it away. Lucky customers can pick up meatballs or slices of meat, unlucky ones can only pick up tofu or vegetables, and the most unlucky ones can even pick up bones or fish bones. Yes, the food in this pot is all the swill from restaurants and eateries. [2]
This business isn't for everyone—there are vendors everywhere who want to make money, but there's only so much swill available. You need some skills and abilities to make this money long-term.
Yao Xiaoyu only touched a small piece of fish belly, about the size of a fingernail, while Tao Xiaoxiao, though eating in a hurry and having already finished half the fish, used serving chopsticks just like Yao Xiaoyu. It was impossible for her to show any dislike for the fish.
"That's all good meat, I can't bear to waste it."
Tao Xiaoxiao shook her head without hesitation. The taste may be bad, but the meat was real.
"Okay then, but be sure to tell me if you have any stomach discomfort."
Yao Xiaoyu knew a bit about Tao Xiaoxiao's past and understood the power of childhood trauma, so she didn't intend to pressure her. She just told her to pay more attention to her health. She was reluctant to take care of herself, but getting sick from overeating was another matter entirely.
"good."
Tao Xiaoxiao agreed earnestly; she was determined to protect Yao Xiaoyu for the rest of her life.
...
The afternoon was spent seeing patients as usual. After two days of getting used to each other, everyone's cooperation was much better, and the efficiency was higher than expected. By dusk, all the patients who had been waiting to be seen had been seen. Although the village chief said that there were still some people on their way, Yao Xiaoyu felt that they were few and far between.
"Tomorrow will be the last day of diagnosis, and the day after tomorrow we will go to the next village."
Dr. Maria's words confirmed Yao Xiaoyu's guess. Although everyone sighed at the thought of traveling, no one objected.
Yao Xiaoyu wasn't very tired. Although she went to bed early, she also woke up the earliest. After brushing her teeth, washing her face, and taking a deep breath of the morning air, she opened the door to find the village chief carrying a leg of lamb back home.
Looks like we're in for a treat today.
The thought had just crossed Yao Xiaoyu's mind when she realized that the village chief's cooking skills had declined again. After hesitating for a while, she finally couldn't resist the temptation of fresh ingredients and went up to the village chief to ask if she could change the way she cooked the dishes.
"...Are you really willing to teach us how to cook?"
The village chief didn't shout anything about looking down on the skills of country folk, nor did he cast a questioning glance at him. Instead, he looked excited, as if he had received some kind of treasure.
Isn't it a treasure?
The village chief stared at Yao Xiaoyu with longing eyes, as if he had seen a large silver coin. He was even more certain that Yao Xiaoyu was a rich young lady. Ordinary people would keep their signature dishes to themselves, but this girl had let her go in and start the fire yesterday. Today, she was even willing to teach him how to cook in order to save trouble.
This person is practically a living Bodhisattva.
"...It's not a proper recipe, it's just adding a few more seasonings when making mutton soup."
After the village chief gave her a lecture, Yao Xiaoyu learned about the importance of keeping crafts secret in this era. Although she could barely understand the village chief's excitement, she couldn't change her mindset overnight and didn't intend to take back her words—you get what you pay for, and Tao Xiaoxiao was her bodyguard, not her chef.
In short, both sides reached an agreement on improving the dishes. The village chief brought out the big pot used for weddings, and Yao Xiaoyu contributed two kinds of seasonings.
The village chief's family had dried chili peppers, and they also grew some scallions, ginger, and garlic in the fields, which they could pick as needed. They also had no shortage of salt. All Yao Xiaoyu needed to bring out were Sichuan peppercorns and dried tangerine peel.
"Keep the heat at this level, and it should be ready by noon."
Preparing the lamb leg took quite a bit of work, but fortunately the hardwood fire was strong enough that it shouldn't delay lunchtime.
Knowing she could have a good meal later, Yao Xiaoyu finally left the village chief's house and wandered around on her last day. There wasn't much to do in the village, but fortunately there was no language barrier. Regardless of age or gender, you could chat for half a day with just a couple of candies.
"...The village chief's younger brother is not actually dead. He couldn't afford to get married, so he took a boat to the south to become someone's adopted brother. It is said that his current wife has given birth to a son, so he will have someone to rely on in the future."
"...When Grandpa Chen was fleeing famine, he didn't just pick up a girl, but two identical sisters. They took turns working and eating every day. The younger sister gave birth to a son and married into the blacksmith's family in town. The older sister treated the son as her own and raised him together with her daughter."
"...See that thatched roof? The one with two cat ears sticking out on top. The girl who used to live there was really something. She couldn't take her eyes off any handsome guy she saw. She had to kiss, hug, and sleep with him before she would stop. But she had her principles. She only dated women, not men. So you don't have to worry about being cuckolded."
"...Did you see that woman? Her husband was hired. She used to be beaten by the first man, so she went to another village and found this one to pretend to be the one she was having an affair with. Every time the first man beat her, she would send this young man to beat him. The first man felt ashamed and ran away. The woman couldn't afford to raise the child, so the young man said he would live with her and moved here."
...
Yao Xiaoyu was prepared to watch the drama unfold, but her mind was still filled with exclamations. She didn't leave until it was almost lunchtime, still saying she would continue the story about the mother-in-law stealing her daughter-in-law in the afternoon. But as soon as she arrived at the medical station, her smile froze.
Oh, Voldemort's underwear! Look what she's found! A kappa is trying to take advantage of the blonde!
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A note from the author:
A small detail: Tao Xiaoxiao was so hungry and craving meat that she wanted to chew and swallow even the bones. She was reluctant to give away the scraps of chicken. When she gave them to the children, she kept saying that the whole bowl of meat outside was hers before she let go.
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[1] Taken from the fast-paced storytelling segment "Tongrentang"
[2] Staring food: It is said that the vendors who sell this are divided into several categories. One category purchases sick horses and dead mules, another category collects various odds and ends from meat stalls, and the third category uses swill from restaurants and eateries. The last category is used here.
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