Chapter 47 Chapter 47 Set sail!

*

The two of them were busy all morning, pulling shrimp threads, washing crabs, and rubbing octopus. There were still several buckets of food left to be processed, and it was almost noon.

Not planning on making a separate lunch, Gu Mengran directly moved the cleaned ingredients to the stove. Just looking at the seafood in basins and barrels, he inexplicably had a sense of déjà vu as he was reborn as a chef in the school cafeteria.

Of course, the food in the cafeteria is not that good.

The dazzling array of ingredients made it difficult to know where to start. Gu Mengran puffed up his cheeks and pondered for a while, then decided to start with the largest amount of shrimps.

Clean the wok, add green onions, ginger slices, peppercorns, star anise and other seasonings, and finally add a small amount of water. Bring the water to a boil over high heat, and wait until the aroma of the seasonings comes out of the wok. Then pour the processed shrimps into the wok and cover it with a lid.

The method of blanched shrimp is very simple. After simmering for two minutes, open the lid and you will see that the shrimp has turned red and its belly is bent into a U shape. You can smell the fragrance without getting close.

Gu Mengran really wanted to peel one on the spot, but looking at the ingredients crying out for food behind him, he quickly took the cooked giant prawns out of the pot and rinsed them with cold water.

There were many small shrimps in the pot. In order to speed up the process, Gu Mengran put two pots on the stove and continued his work of blanching shrimps.

While waiting for the water to boil, he was not idle. He minced garlic, cut green onions, squeezed lemon juice, and finally added soy sauce and chili oil to make a soul-stirring dipping sauce for the bland blanched shrimp.

Five pots of blanched shrimps were taken out of the pot, and the shrimps in the extra-large stainless steel basin were almost half gone. Gu Mengran was going to try a different method to cook the remaining shrimps, but he had to clean the stove before that.

After the cooked shrimps were rinsed with cold water and the excess water was drained, Gu Mengran took out the disposable packaging boxes of different sizes that he had purchased online before and started the final packaging work.

It is troublesome to clean up but easy to eat. If you use the round lunch box with the largest capacity, one pot of blanched shrimp can only hold three boxes, and five pots can only hold fifteen boxes.

The key is that this stuff doesn’t take up too much space in the stomach. Four big guys can easily eat two boxes at one meal, and they’ll be finished in just a few meals.

However...Gu Mengran would not give them the opportunity to eat shrimps every day.

After the prawns and dipping sauce were packed and put back in the space, Gu Mengran started to deal with the remaining shrimps.

He prepared the other half pot of shrimps in two ways: a homely version of dry-pot shrimps and a more complicated version of fried shrimps in a typhoon shelter.

It is a bit troublesome, but both methods allow for side dishes. The prawns are stir-fried with potatoes, lotus roots, and rice cakes. Half a basin of prawns was eventually packed into thirty-six boxes.

It was past dinner time, but Grandpa and Zheng Yijie had not returned yet, and Gu Mengran did not call them to eat. He simply took this opportunity to stir-fry the orchid crabs and clams that Liang Zhao had washed and chopped.

There were not many orchid crabs, so Gu Mengran was reluctant to steam them. He chose to cook them in two ways: spicy crab and stir-fried crab with ginger and scallions, which can be eaten by people who eat spicy food or not.

There are also two ways to cook clams: a classic stir-fried dish and a refreshing and appetizing cold dish.

At first, Gu Mengran also thought about making some of the pickled seafood that was very popular on the Internet some time ago, but after a little thought, he realized that they were not from coastal cities and might not be used to eating such novel things.

"Wow, it smells so good! What is Gu Mengran cooking?"

"It's spicy and fragrant, and smells a bit like hot pot."

When Grandpa and Zheng Yijie smelled the food and walked into the kitchen one after another, Gu Mengran had just put away the last box of cold clams. So the kitchen was left in a mess.

Buckets and stainless steel basins filled with raw seafood, pots and pans that hadn’t been put away yet, messy sinks and stoves…

For a moment, Zheng Yijie thought he was hallucinating because he was hungry. He immediately turned his head to look at his grandfather and said in disbelief: "Grandpa Meng, did you smell it just now?"

"I smell it, it's very fragrant." The old man said firmly.

Zheng Yijie spread his hands and said, "Is that right? But where are the vegetables? Why are they all raw?"

After saying this, they both looked at the chef Gu Mengran at the same time.

"Stop playing double game here and go wipe the table." Gu Mengran turned on the faucet to wash his hands, picked up the rag on the chopping board and threw it to Zheng Yijie.

"Okay, okay!" Zheng Yijie walked out of the kitchen at the speed of light, holding a rag.

"Don't do it yet, wash your hands and eat, Liang Zhao."

"Um."

Fried shrimps in the typhoon shelter, blanched prawns, stir-fried crabs with green onions and ginger, spicy crabs...the dishes placed in the space will not get cold. All the fruits of this morning were placed on the table. The rising heat brought out a rich aroma, and the table instantly became lively.

"What a gout feast, it smells so good, oh my god!" Looking at the table full of delicacies, Zheng Yijie's eyes turned green. He was like a hungry wolf, greedily sniffing the fragrance in the air with an intoxicated look on his face.

At this critical moment, seafood dinners are very rare.

The old man was not much better, and was obviously greedy. He picked up a boiled shrimp and put it into his mouth without even peeling the shell.

The big prawn went into his mouth and he spat out a whole prawn shell. The old man smacked his lips and picked up the next one with a hint of satisfaction. "It's delicious and fragrant, and the texture is chewy. The boy has good cooking skills. It's worth watching the teaching video."

Just eat, why are you exposing my past? Gu Mengran glared at his grandfather with dissatisfaction, picked up a piece of fried crab and put it in his bowl, "Eat more rice and talk less."

"Hey kid, hahaha..."

Let's eat! Pour some juice and savor the rare seafood feast. The table soon becomes quiet, leaving only the sound of peeling shrimp shells and the old man smacking his lips.

The blanched shrimps were fresh and delicious, the spicy crabs were spicy and satisfying, the typhoon shelter shrimps were crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and the cold clams were refreshing and appetizing. Gu Mengran ate without any image and couldn't stop at all.

Soon, half of the food on the table was gone. Zheng Yijie took a tissue to wipe his mouth and shook his head as he spoke: "It's delicious, but I always feel like something is missing."

Zheng Yijie took a surprise glance at the kitchen and missed it. He didn't get to taste the big and plump lobster... What a pity.

"Eating from the bowl and looking at the pot," Gu Mengran looked up at him in his busy schedule and said unhappily, "Come and help wash it in the afternoon, and you can eat it in the evening."

"I'm just learning how to drive a boat." Zheng Yijie said with a grin.

Gu Mengran joked: "Study in the morning and cook in the afternoon. A good student should do both."

"No, no, no," Zheng Yijie rejected the offer faster than anyone else, fearing that Gu Mengran would bring it up again, so he quickly started to flatter her, "My cooking skills are a sheer waste of ingredients, unlike you, whose cooking is so delicious, with all the flavors and tastes."

Learning to sail is a good thing, well, it's definitely not because of flattery. Gu Mengran is busy peeling shrimps, so let him go for now.

Zheng Yijie is a good person in every way except that he has a bad mouth.

Gu Mengran had just let him go and swallowed a crab claw. He licked his lips with satisfaction and sighed, "Hey! Orchid crabs taste good, but they are a little small. By the way, why didn't you stock up on king crabs or something?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the whole table fell silent. The old man stopped chewing and looked at him while holding half a shrimp tail. "King crab? That's a nice thought. Why didn't you give us some money at that time?"

"I do want to!" Zheng Yijie said with a light "tsk". "It makes me sad to talk about this. Although I am a doomsday believer, I am not 100% sure that the end of the world is coming. I dare not go all out and spend all my money to stock up on supplies."

"I used to think that the saddest thing in life is to lose money. Who would have thought that now people are still alive and have money, but the money has become a piece of waste paper... It's even sadder."

After understanding what he meant, Gu Mengran paused while picking up food. "How much money do you have left?"

"More than two million." Zheng Yijie frowned, feeling distressed.

"What a pity! How many king crabs are needed?"

"Don't mention it. I wish I had known you earlier."

"I don't count on the king crabs anymore," the old man put down his chopsticks and wiped his mouth, then looked at Gu Mengran and said, "But to be honest, this meal today is indeed lacking something."

Forgot to add salt? Not tasty enough?

Looking at the pile of shrimp shells and clams on the table, Gu Mengran couldn't help but begin to doubt himself.

But the next second, the old man raised his chin and grinned, "Such a sumptuous lunch, how can we just eat vegetables? We have to have something..."

The old man didn't finish his words. He made a cup shape with his right hand and raised his head to take a sip of air.

Gu Mengran understood immediately and peeled a shrimp and put it in his grandfather's bowl. "Don't even think about it. You can't drink alcohol when eating seafood."

"Beer is not okay, but a moderate amount of white wine is fine." Meng Gaoyang was craving for alcohol, and his heart was itching as if he was being scratched by a cat, staring at Gu Mengran eagerly.

Gu Mengran said without raising his head: "That won't work either. You have to sail this afternoon."

"Ready to go?"

The old man was stunned for a moment, and immediately forgot about drinking. He turned his head to look at Zheng Yijie, cleared his throat and said seriously: "I have been talking about theoretical knowledge for the whole morning. It's time to show you how to practice it in the afternoon."

Zheng Yijie nodded immediately, "Okay, Master Meng."

Grandpa is a good teacher and Gu Mengran has no right to interfere, but the Fengyi cannot have any accidents or damages.

So Gu Mengran put down his chopsticks and specifically told grandpa: "Don't let Zheng Yijie take the helm for a week. Wait and see. Even if he takes over the actual operation in the future, you must keep an eye on him at all times, and you can't just sit back and do nothing."

The old man sensed something was wrong and asked hurriedly, "Wait, from what you said, you're leaving the responsibility of sailing to us? Where are you and Liang Zhao?"

"Liang Zhao and I are in charge of the kitchen. Let's make some more cooked food these days and put it in the space in case of emergency." Gu Mengran took a sip of juice, looked up at his grandfather again, and said, "It's okay to take turns. How about you cook, grandpa, and I'll take care of--"

"No need, I'll lead you and drive the boat." Meng Gaoyang waved his hand to refuse.

Considering the ingredients in Mengran’s space, cooking is a big project.

Gu Mengran smiled and picked up the chopsticks again, "It's settled then, let's eat and then we'll set off."

…

After eating and drinking, Gu Mengran put the few leftovers into a box, and then handed the empty takeaway box to Liang Zhao to clean for next use.

Productivity is stagnant, and everything will be used less and less in the future, so they have to save as much as possible. No matter if it is disposable or disposable, if it is not broken, just reuse it.

Having just finished a full meal, Gu Mengran didn't want to smell the fumes for the time being, so he and Liang Zhao cleaned up the kitchen and decided to clean up Feng Yihao and help digest the food at the same time.

Just as he got the mop, the floor suddenly shook violently. Gu Mengran was not surprised. He put down the mop and walked to the large French window in the living room with Liang Zhao to watch the two banks recede and the river water surge.

After many days, the roar of the engine sounded again, the propeller stirred the calm river water, and the Fengyi swayed slightly as it went upstream, sailing steadily on the misty river.