Chapter 29
By the time the second serving of thirteen-spice crayfish arrived, Xia Zhongqin had probably only eaten less than five.
The two people sitting opposite Xia Zhongqin already had a small pile of shrimp shells on the table, and they had also changed two pairs of gloves.
Xia Zhongqin still wore the same pair she had worn at the beginning. Lian Yi Jianyou handed her the gloves again, but she didn't change into them.
The grilled barbecue was brought up soon after, and the small dining table was filled to the brim.
There were still a few garlic crayfish left on the plate. Xia Kaiqun picked up two and put them in the bowl, leaving three on the plate.
At this time, the proprietress brought over another plate of salt and pepper crayfish. Obviously, there was no room for more on the table.
If the remaining plate of mashed garlic on the table is added to the other two plates, the flavors will definitely be mixed.
"There are two left on this plate. Who wants to try them?"
"Come here, girl." As he said that, Xia Kaiqun used the serving chopsticks to pick up the two remaining crayfish on the plate and put them into Xia Zhongqin's bowl.
The proprietress smiled and asked Lian Yijian to help put away the plate of garlic crayfish with only soup left, and then she placed the full plate of pepper and salt crayfish in her hand on the dining table.
Looking at the two crayfish that had just been put into the bowl, Xia Zhongqin replied, "Thank you, Teacher Xia."
"You're welcome, sister. Look at how thin you are. You can be blown away by a gust of wind. Eat more."
Seeing that Xia Zhongqin was only eating crayfish and had no intention of eating the barbecue that had just been served, Xia Kaiqun said, "These beef skewers, lamb skewers, and squid tentacles were specially ordered for you by your General Lian. Try them while they're hot, sister."
It's really hard to refuse such a kind invitation.
Xia Zhongqin replied with the word "OK".
After eating a crayfish in the bowl, Xia Zhongqin took off the gloves on his hands and took a large bunch of lamb from the pile of barbecued food that was brought over.
Lian Yijian and Xia Kaiqun were chatting about other projects. Xia Zhongqin did not interrupt, but just listened quietly.
Some of the projects were confidential to the company, and the two did not treat Xia Zhongqin as an outsider, chatting freely in front of her.
Xia Zhongqin had finished two skewers of lamb and one skewer of beef and was in the middle of eating some squid tentacles when Xia Kaiqun suddenly changed the subject. He looked at Xia Zhongqin and asked, "Girl, are you a native of Suzhou?"
Xia Zhongqin nodded.
"How do you say 'eating' in Suzhou dialect?" Xia Kaiqun continued to ask.
Xia Zhongqin grew up in Suzhou and attended Suzhou University.
No one had ever asked her where she was from or whether she could speak Suzhou dialect. This was the first time Xia Kaiqun asked her that. Xia Zhongqin found it hilarious, but she suppressed her feelings and replied, "Let's eat."
"It sounds so nice, so soft and sticky. Much better than our company commander's Northeastern accent."
Even if Xia Kaiqun didn't say it, outsiders could tell from Lian Yijian's accent that he was from the three northeastern provinces.
The sounds from the Northeast are very distinctive and very easy to distinguish.
When Xia Zhongqin was in college, there was a classmate from Northeast China. Every winter, her parents would mail her frozen pears from Northeast China.
At first, Xia Zhongqin was not used to eating frozen pears, but later she gradually got used to it and found that they were quite delicious.
After eating the frozen pear, Xia Zhongqin felt that ordinary pears were not tasty anymore.
After graduating from university, Xia Zhongqin never ate frozen pears again.
Xia Zhongqin had always had a question about frozen pears. She asked Lian Yijian in front of him, "Boss Lian, do every household make their own frozen pears?"
Lian Yijian, who was eating roasted lamb kidneys, was stunned for a few seconds, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. Obviously, he was surprised by the question asked by Zhong Qin.
Lian Yijian put the lamb kidneys on his plate, and he took a tissue and wiped the corner of his mouth.
"Every household used to make it themselves, but nowadays we basically buy it at the market when we go to market."
"Frozen pears are usually made from late-ripening pear varieties that mature between late September and early October, such as Nanguo pears, Jianba pears, and Huagai pears. After picking, they are packed into cardboard boxes or plastic baskets and stored in a shady shed or well-ventilated room, or they are laid out on the ground on plastic sheeting and stored in piles."
"With the arrival of winter, the temperature drops, and the pears naturally freeze, forming frozen pears. This natural freezing process allows the pears to maintain their unique taste and flavor during the long, cold winter. The temperature in Northeast China can drop to minus ten degrees Celsius or even lower in November, and it doesn't begin to warm up until March or April of the following year. This environment provides the perfect conditions for producing frozen pears."
Lian Yijian also explained in detail the production date and process of the frozen pears.
In the eyes of outsiders, Lian Yijian has always been a representative of a man of few words.
If something can be explained clearly in one sentence, Lian Yijian will never add a word to it.
Xia Zhongqin had always thought that her direct supervisor Lian Yijian was not talkative. His detailed remarks just now somewhat broke the image of him as a man of few words in her eyes.
"As a Jiangxi native, I think the best thing about Northeast China is blood sausage." Xia Kaiqun smacked his lips, turned to look at Lian Yijian, his eyes shining. "Yijian, it's the twelfth lunar month this year, please help me get some more blood sausage from your hometown. Last year, you only got five, which wasn't enough to fill my stomach. This year, you need at least ten."
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