Back home, Chen Lin and his two siblings went to build a chicken coop. The original coop was a bit small; it was fine for two hens, but it wouldn't be enough when the dozen or so chicks grew up.
Cheng Yue exchanged a few words with Chen An before preparing lunch. Knowing she had things to do in the afternoon, she simply took out the chicken and steamed buns from her spatial storage to eat.
To avoid the children overthinking, Cheng Yue also threw the last old hen from the chicken coop into her space, leaving the three little ones with reluctance on their faces.
But then he looked at the group of chicks in front of him and smiled again. Thankfully, there are still chickens to carry on the family line.
Killing an old hen for a meal is nothing. Mother works so hard, and Father needs to replenish his body. The old hen is a glorious sacrifice.
After lunch, Cheng Yue went into the kitchen to prepare some food.
Chen An took out a packet of seeds and asked Chen Lin and his two siblings to plant them in the vegetable garden. These seeds were taken out of Cheng Yue's space.
He mentioned tomatoes, peppers, and okra. He knew about peppers, but the seeds were a bit expensive, and he'd never grown them at home before.
He had never even heard of tomatoes and okra before, so Cheng Yue picked one of each from her space to show him.
The tomatoes were bright red and round, which was very appealing. He knew that they were in the dumpling soup he had a couple of days ago, and that they were sweet and sour and quite delicious.
The okra is unusually long and thin, but I don't know how it tastes; I'll have to wait until it's grown to try it.
The three siblings, Chen Lin and his sister, found the seeds unusual, but since their father had given them to them, they didn't think much of it. They figured they had probably bought them before, so they picked up hoes and started planting vegetables.
Cheng Yue was flipping through her notebook containing recipes in her space. As for why she had the recipes, it was simply because she had a craving for them.
But she was just sitting around in the village, and since she couldn't order takeout for whatever she wanted to eat, she had to cook for herself.
She's practically glued to her phone with posts on Douyin and other social media platforms. She makes sure nothing is too delicious to miss out on; she's memorized countless recipes, and her entire notebook hangs on the cupboard.
She has made most of the recipes in the notebook, and every auntie and uncle in the village praises her cooking skills, saying that the taste is absolutely perfect.
Looking at the recipe, Cheng Yue rummaged through the cabinet and pulled out a bunch of spices: Sichuan peppercorns, Sichuan peppercorn oil, bay leaves, cinnamon, chili peppers, fennel seeds... a very comprehensive selection.
After finding the spices, Cheng Yue soaked the kelp knots and dried bean curd sticks. While she was doing this, Cheng Yue boiled water to prepare to process the two ducks.
The ducks were live, and the owner of the chicken and duck shop could have slaughtered them on the spot, but Cheng Yue didn't allow it, mainly because she didn't want to waste the duck blood.
Duck blood is a good thing; wouldn't it be great to save it and make a glass noodle soup?
Cheng Yue swiftly and decisively killed the two ducks with her knife. After collecting the blood, she scalded, plucked, and dismembered them in one smooth motion.
After blanching all the cut duck parts to remove the fishy smell, wash them clean, and then add spices for braising.
In addition to the usual spices and seasonings, Cheng Yue added a spoonful of sweet bean sauce and a concentrated soup base, took a bottle of beer from the refrigerator and poured it on, and finally threw in a few pieces of rock sugar. The sweet and spicy braising sauce was then complete.
After braising the duck parts, Cheng Yue then prepared the pig's head, as she still felt that the five-spice flavor was more classic.
The pig's head and offal were thrown into a pot in the space to be made into a five-spice flavor, and Cheng Yue began to prepare desserts.
There was no cream in this era, so Cheng Yue thought that making some cream-filled desserts would be a refreshing surprise.
After much deliberation, Cheng Yue decided to make mochi, which is small, exquisite, and most importantly, simple and easy to make.
The space is fully equipped with materials, so making mochi is a piece of cake.
For the first time, Cheng Yue was glad that she was a gluttonous foodie, otherwise, with nothing available in the space, wouldn't she be completely lost?
When Cheng Yue was finishing making the mochi, she realized that there was no fruit left in her space, and no Oreos either, so she had to leave it plain without any filling.
After Cheng Yue finished making the mochi, the aroma of braised dishes wafted out.
Chen Lin had planted several vegetables, and people stood at the kitchen door looking inside as they smelled the aroma.
"Mom, what delicious food did you make again?" Chen Ning blinked her big eyes. This was the first time her mother had made this flavor. It was sweet and spicy, and the smell made her mouth water.
Cheng Yue turned around and saw three heads. As expected of the queen of cheering, she never missed an occasion like this.
"You little gluttons! Mom is making braised food, it's not ready yet, I'll bring it to you tonight."
Cheng Yue picked up the plate of prepared mochi and said to the three children as she walked out, "Come on, let's have some snacks in the yard first."
"Huh? What is this white and plump thing?!" Cheng Yue put the plate on the table, her eyes widening in surprise.
Chen Tong poked it with her finger, "Oh, it's still soft!"
Cheng Yue smiled and said, "Take a bite."
"Mmm, so soft and sweet! This skin can be stretched this long!"
"What's that white stuff inside? It's so delicious! Oh, little sister's even got some on her face!"
"Hahaha, little sister's face has turned into a cat's paw print!"
Chen Ning didn't mind being laughed at by her older brother and sister. She wiped the cream off her face with her fingers and, taking advantage of their inattention, smeared some on their faces as well.
Watching the three children smear cream on each other, Cheng Yue sighed and wondered if humans were born with the gene to smear cream.
Turning around, I saw Chen An eating mochi bite by bite, his eyes gentle as he watched the three children playing, a scene of serene beauty.
In the evening, the braised dishes were all ready. Cheng Yue took out some duck parts, pig heads, and pig offal, and the family ate with great relish.
The sweet and spicy duck products, in particular, received unanimous praise from the whole family.
"Hehe~ Hehe~"
The Chen sisters, Chen Tong and Chen Ning, each held a duck head and gnawed on it, gasping for breath as they ate, their hands fanning their mouths with their mouths.
Cheng Yue took out the two duck heads separately because she couldn't quite imagine an ancient noblewoman gnawing on a duck head; such a crude and unrestrained task was better left to them.
Then look at Chen Lin, who is also tearing into the duck leg in a rather unrestrained manner.
Cheng Yue thought for a moment and realized that the duck thigh also had to be cut into small pieces. It was unimaginable that a noble lady would be gnawing on a thigh!
Cheng Yue and Chen An exchanged a glance and silently ate the braised pig's heart in front of them. They thought it best for them, as parents, to be more refined.
The next morning, Cheng Yue prepared the items for her stall, wrapped all the chopped braised meat and mochi in oil paper, and put them into a bamboo basket.
The family had just set up their stall at the dock when Uncle Chen arrived, looking rather impatient.
Cheng Yue handed him the three small baskets together and said:
"Third Master Chen, I've prepared two kinds of braised food, one sweet and spicy and the other five-spice. I've packed them separately."
And this basket contains some pastries. Please take them; I hope Madam likes them.
Master Chen was deeply moved by Cheng Yue's thoughtfulness and bowed, saying, "If my wife is pleased, I will certainly come to your door to express my gratitude."
After saying that, he looked at the three baskets he was holding and felt that one tael of silver was too little. So he took out a silver ingot and put it on the table. He couldn't let a peasant woman suffer a loss.
After a slight surprise, Cheng Yue smiled and said, "If Madam likes it, this money can be considered as a deposit for future meals."
Master Chen smiled but said nothing. In his heart, he admired Cheng Yue. This was ten taels of silver, yet this peasant woman showed no expression other than indifference.
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