And so, Zhou Lin, still bewildered, became the disciple of a new master, while his former master became his senior brother. The two of them looked at each other, still completely clueless.
Li Mai smiled. Actually, she had considered this outcome, but she didn't expect the old man to be so perceptive and actually do it her way.
The outcome was a happy one; the matter was settled, and Li Mai was about to go out to help Zhao Shi cook when the old man called her back again.
"Hey, little girl, what kind of herbs are you using to make this tea? Can I take a look? I'll pick some when I get back. It's quite good to drink this as tea."
Li Mai smiled and said, "It seems there are still a few leaves left. Let me get them for you."
After going outside, she went back inside. When she came back in, she was holding a medicinal herb in her hand.
However, there are still three leaves on it.
Zhou Quan looked up and asked, "So, is the old man willing to do it?"
Li Mai smiled and nodded, "Yes, I agree. I offered a high price, and he likes mechanical arts, so he'll definitely take the job."
"How much are you offering? If it's too expensive, we might as well not do it." Zhou Quan was worried that if making that thing was too expensive, it would add a lot of burden to his family.
"Don't worry, I'll make money, you don't need to worry about that. Right now, your biggest concern is your physical recovery. You must do the push-ups I taught you every day, and add five more each day than the day before," Li Mai instructed him.
"Okay, is Xiao Lin willing to take him along?" Zhou Quan asked again.
"He was willing, not only willing, but he also directly took Xiaolin as his apprentice. Now Xiaolin is Uncle Lai Niu's junior brother. The expression on Uncle Lai Niu's face just now was absolutely priceless." Li Mai said, unable to help but lean on the door frame and laugh.
Seeing her laughing so happily, Zhou Quan could imagine the scene and couldn't help but laugh along.
He knew what kind of person Uncle Niu was, and he could imagine the look of shock on Uncle Niu's face at the time.
"Alright, I have to go over there. The old man really likes the tea made from these herbal leaves, so I'll give him two leaves!" Li Mai waved to him with a smile and left.
Zhou Quan looked down at his legs, a smile spreading across his face. It seemed that ever since Xiaomai entered the house, the family had become much happier and had a lot more good luck.
And I myself seem to laugh several times a day!
Thinking about it, he touched his face with his hand.
However, Xiaomai did not tell him how much she had promised to pay the old man.
After returning to the main house, Li Mai picked a leaf and gave it to Zhou Lai Niu. "Thank you for this leaf, Uncle Lai Niu. You can take it back and use it to make tea. After you finish brewing, remember to let it dry so you can brew it again. It will be almost tasteless after three brews."
"These two leaves and herbs are for you, sir. There are only two leaves left, you can pick them and make tea. You can also plant this herb in a flowerpot and place it in a shady place to see if it will grow more leaves."
"Okay, okay, thank you, little girl." The old man happily accepted it, thinking that he would plant it when he got back, and then ask his apprentices to go to the mountains to see if they could find a few more plants. He quite liked the taste of the leaves when brewing tea.
Moreover, it's made by brewing a whole pot of tea from a single leaf, and the taste is so sweet and refreshing. It must not be something that's easy to find.
Li Mai smiled and went out to the kitchen to cook with Zhao.
Zhou Tao was also helping in the kitchen.
Zhao was cleaning the small fish, planning to make a pot of fish soup, and then steam some sweet buns and rice.
Li Mai rolled up her sleeves. "Mom, let me make fish soup. I'll make you a pot of nutritious fish soup."
There were more than a dozen of these small fish. After cleaning them, they were just the right amount to make a pot of fish soup.
"Xiao Tao, light up that earthen stove in the yard too. I'll stew fish soup on it." Li Mai saw an earthen stove on the south side next to the west room. That was used to boil water and remove pig hair when slaughtering pigs in winter.
Xiao Tao responded and went to start the fire.
"Mother, I remember there was a big pot in the grain room, right?" Li Mai asked Zhao Shi.
"Yes, it is, but I don't use it often. It has a crack. Mother, go wash it." Zhao went to move the pot to wash it.
That was the one they used before. It cut Xiaotao's hand a few times, so they saved up money and bought a new pot, putting the old one away and rarely using it.
After cleaning and preparing the fish by Zhao several times, Li Mai began to prepare the seasonings for the fish soup.
I have scallions at home, but no ginger. I do have dried ginger slices, so I'll use half a piece. I don't have cooking wine, but I have some wine from a jar at home, so I'll pour some in!
I also put some Sichuan peppercorns and star anise in a bowl for later use.
She was ready, and Xiao Tao and Zhao Shi were also done. Li Mai asked Zhao Shi to heat up a pot of water, and after it boiled, she poured it into a wooden bucket on the side. Only then did she start pouring oil into the hot pan, putting peppercorns and star anise into the oil to fry. At the same time, before the oil got hot, she also put the small fish in one by one to fry.
Using a hot pan with cold oil prevents sticking; this is a key to preventing food from burning when using an iron pan.
After the small fish were fried until golden brown on both sides, the star anise and Sichuan peppercorns were also fried until they turned black, and a faint aroma of Sichuan peppercorns and star anise filled the air.
Li Mai used chopsticks to remove the star anise and Sichuan peppercorns and put them in a bowl, then continued frying the small fish. After all the small fish were fried until golden brown on both sides, Li Mai asked Zhao to help slowly pour the hot water from the wooden bucket into the fish.
Finally, he poured in the bottle of liquor that had been prepared in the bowl.
"Alright, let it simmer for now!" Li Mai checked the fire, put the lid on the pot, and ran to the shady spot under the tree by the south wall to cool off, while also checking on the hopping rabbits.
Old Man Zhou built the rabbit hutch between two trees under the south wall, with the back wall against the south wall.
"Sister-in-law, have some water!" Zhou Tao quickly and cleverly brought her sister-in-law a bowl of water.
Li Mai was thirsty from the sun when she saw how cute her sister-in-law was. She smiled at her and teased her, "Seeing how sensible our Xiao Tao is, your sister-in-law will definitely help your mother choose a good husband's family for you."
"Sister-in-law!" Zhou Tao stamped her foot in embarrassment, turned around and ran away.
My sister-in-law is really something, always making fun of herself.
A fourteen-year-old girl is just beginning to experience romantic feelings. When she's bored, she might fantasize about what kind of man will come to marry her in the future.
But I can't quite picture what it looks like.
But from her sister-in-law's repeated jokes, she seemed to have a vague idea: good-looking women have easy-going in-laws and husbands who will cherish them.
On the day they first met, Zhou Tao and Zhuzhu were in the new house with Li Mai. Li Mai said that Xiao Tao was so beautiful, and the husband she would find in the future would definitely be handsome as well.
That day on the mountain, Li Mai said with a smile that Xiao Tao was so sensible that she would definitely meet a husband who would cherish her.
Today, Li Mai jokingly said that she would find a husband's family that is easy to get along with.
Li Mai herself was unaware that her unintentional jokes were actually setting a standard for Xiao Tao, who was always confused about marriage, to choose a partner.
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