Chapter 16 Although I am naturally quiet and don't laugh much, I am still very sad.
I never imagined that the first winter solstice after leaving my hometown would be spent with Young Master Lan and Li Xiao.
I never imagined that one day I would be able to eat sweet potatoes roasted by Young Master Li himself.
It was quite unexpected...
The room was filled with smoke, including wisps of steam rising from the pot of dumplings and glutinous rice balls, and the slightly sweet aroma of roasted sweet potatoes with a hint of charcoal fire.
The original aroma of incense was overwhelmed by various hot and spicy scents, replaced by a strong smoky aroma.
Strangely, and quite suddenly, I thought of my parents back in my hometown.
...and it was a longing I had never felt before.
Even when I was lying on the deck, regretting losing the loquats and unable to move, or when my food was stolen from my small room and I was dragged to a corner and beaten in the middle of the night, I never missed them as much as I do now, and wondered how they were doing.
Did they light a charcoal fire? Did they serve hot glutinous rice balls? Are they thinking of me, their child far away in a foreign land, just as I am thinking of them?
"Tsk tsk, spacing out again."
Li Xiao, who was sitting diagonally across from me, suddenly spoke up, interrupting my drifting thoughts.
She looked up blankly and met the boy's slightly teasing gaze, wondering if it was because of what happened that afternoon.
Although he still smiled with his usual mischievous grin, his expression seemed much more relaxed, and even the malice in his eyes was almost gone.
Could this be what Young Master Lan meant by "letting go"?
I thought to myself silently, blinking my eyes, which were slightly moist from the steam rising from the bowl.
"Oh my, look at that expression! Are you about to cry again? You're just having a nice meal and you have to put on this act. How unlucky!"
Before he could even utter a word of anger, Li Xiao received a sharp blow to the head.
He cried out in pain, then clutched his head, which was almost buried in the soup bowl, and looked at the young man who had hit him with a resentful gaze, saying with a wronged expression, "Brother Lan, why did you suddenly hit me?"
Young Master Lan casually lowered his head, took a sip of soup, and then slowly said, "I don't like what you just said."
Upon hearing this, Li Xiao's aggrieved expression only increased: "Brother, you can just say what you think. Xiao'er will correct her mistakes once she realizes them. There's no need to resort to violence."
To this, Young Master Lan replied without any hesitation, "One should not speak while eating."
Just now, when Li Xiao was speaking, Young Master Lan had not yet finished swallowing the food in his mouth, so it was naturally inappropriate for him to speak.
But……
"Wasn't that a bit too much force?" Li Xiao muttered softly. "What if I accidentally broke it and ended up looking like some idiot—"
Having learned from past mistakes, Li Xiao did not directly name which fool it was.
However, given the boy's constant glancing glances in my direction while he was speaking, it would be difficult not to guess his intentions unless one pretended to be blind.
Young Master Lan shook his head slightly and said seriously, "No, I'm quite confident about that."
Li Xiao probably thought that this meant that his brother Lan had intentionally controlled his strength before making a move, so he wouldn't hurt himself.
Looking into Lan Yunzhi's eyes, they instantly filled with sparkling emotions.
"Xiao'er only knows Brother Lan—"
"Anyway, even if I'm stupid, this is still the case."
"..."
Honestly, seeing the smile on Li Xiao's face fade away before it even had a chance to bloom, I tried to hold back, but I couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Then, the moment he looked up, he returned to his previous blank expression, ignoring the glares Li Xiao threw at him, and silently popped a bite into the still-warm sweet potato.
I must say, this sweet potato looks really good, with a reddish color and a crispy, fragrant texture. It tastes a bit like roasted chestnuts.
One word: Delicious!
Coupled with Yu Guangzhong and Li Xiao's frustrated expressions, it's especially delicious!
Li Xiao probably realized that with Young Master Lan watching over him, he wouldn't gain any advantage in trying to make fun of me.
So he simply started stirring the glutinous rice balls in the bowl.
He knew I made the glutinous rice balls, so naturally he complained about them.
"Is this really a shape that a human hand could knead? All sorts of sizes, all angular, and you call this tangyuan?"
As he spoke, he picked up a glutinous rice ball from the bowl. It was roughly round in shape, but had two small "ears" on the side.
"Are you trying to imitate Nuwa creating humans, using dough to mold some strange new species? Or is the feng shui treasure land that can nurture someone really extraordinary, even the glutinous rice balls are shaped in an unconventional way?"
I... I admit, I really don't have much to refute on that point.
Because this is my first time making tangyuan (glutinous rice balls).
Even kneading dough was taught to him personally by Young Master Lan.
To be precise, it was only after Young Master Lan had finished making the dumplings and was about to put them in the pot that he noticed I was still sitting in front of the cutting board, my hands covered in glutinous rice flour, deep in thought.
How much water should be added to prevent the glutinous rice flour in the bowl from becoming a thin paste, and how much more glutinous rice flour should be added to salvage the previous mistake?
In the endless cycle of adding water and flour, only to have to add water again, I fell into a deep and inescapable doubt about my own culinary talent.
Until Young Master Lan arrived, he miraculously saved the situation.
Looking at the smooth dough that had finally coalesced into a ball in the basin, I was so excited that I almost burst into tears.
I originally thought that Young Master Lan was already a rare talent, given his good looks, many talents, and gentle temperament.
But I never expected that he would be so skilled at cooking... What happened to the saying that a gentleman keeps away from the kitchen?
My admiration for you is overflowing.
"Alright, everything else is up to you, Pipa." Young Master Lan said with a smile before turning to cook the dumplings.
After receiving Mr. Lan's trust and entrustment, I was truly filled with ambition and enthusiasm, and immediately rolled up my sleeves and got to work.
However... my ambition was quickly shattered into dust in the face of cruel reality.
I discovered that this dough ball, if you take it out and knead it, can become very round, provided that you don't put any filling in it.
Once the filling is wrapped inside, the dough will inevitably crack open unexpectedly during kneading, resulting in the awkward situation where one end is blocked while the filling comes out from the other.
After many attempts, I finally gave up on my plan to make glutinous rice balls in a standard round shape.
Anyway, it will deform if you put it in your mouth.
As long as you make sure it doesn't crack open during cooking and the filling leaks into the soup, then... it should be fine, right?
Clearly, Li Xiao is not among those who think this way.
As a devoted sweet tooth, he disliked the appearance of the glutinous rice balls, but still reluctantly took a bite with a try-it-out mentality, silently chewing and swallowing.
Then he stared at the remaining half of the glutinous rice ball in the spoon and fell into deep thought.
Finally, the boy looked up and asked me seriously, "Tell me honestly, did you forget to wrap the filling?"
Then, she forced a pained smile that made her feel utterly hopeless: "I admit I spoke too soon. It's not that the glutinous rice balls weren't round enough, it's that you... you just cooked a pot of sweet dumpling soup."
This time, I was genuinely surprised.
That shouldn't be the case. I admit that I tried to minimize the amount of filling I used in order to wrap the glutinous rice balls properly, unless...
"Young Master Li, perhaps there wasn't enough filling. Please try it again; it should be in the remaining half if nothing goes wrong," I suggested in a friendly manner.
Li Xiao rarely listened to advice. Although he seemed somewhat unwilling, he still swallowed the rest of the glutinous rice balls in one gulp.
Chewing, frowning, chewing carefully, frowning seriously.
Finally, he looked up at me again. Without him saying a word, I understood the meaning in his eyes.
So he quickly and carefully tried to make amends, saying, "I put too much sugar in this one, so there might not be enough filling. Why don't you try the next one?"
After hesitating for a moment, Li Xiao finally scooped up another glutinous rice ball from the bowl with some doubt and put it in his mouth.
He was chewing on glutinous rice balls, but his eyes were fixed on me. It was as if if he didn't get to eat the filling this time, the next bite would be of my neck.
Fortunately, with each chew, his brow gradually relaxed. His eyes also shifted from my neck to the bowl in front of him.
I secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Although I tried to minimize the amount of filling in order to wrap the glutinous rice balls, the amount of filling I had was still insufficient due to the amount I added while kneading the dough.
Finally, staring at the remaining white dough in my hand, I suddenly had a flash of inspiration and wanted to try making a dough figurine.
—Hmm, it's a white blob, it looks great as a rabbit.
That's what I thought, but the final product... even if I went against my conscience, it's hard to say what it actually was.
—Well, it's still edible after being boiled.
I comforted myself with this thought, and when I was making the glutinous rice balls, I casually threw in that lump of plain white flour along with them.
I meant to scoop them out and eat them myself, but I forgot about them after cooking them.
To everyone's surprise, Li Xiao was so lucky that he got to eat it on the very first bite.
Just as I was wondering what was going on, Young Master Lan placed a small plate of dumplings in front of me.
There weren't many, just five, and they all seemed to be of the same flavor.
Young Master Lan told me to try the flavors first and see which one I preferred.
I stared at those plump and beautiful dumplings, looking at them from left to right, and found them quite amazing.
Young Master Lan truly lives up to his name; even making dumplings is so beautiful.
I started tasting the food with great interest.
Pure pork, cabbage, amaranth, bamboo shoots... each bite is a delightful surprise.
—Is it exaggerated?
Perhaps there is some degree of gratitude, but I am genuinely happy and truly grateful from the bottom of my heart.
Although I have nothing right now, at least I can express myself through words and expressions.
Perhaps my exaggerated behavior disturbed Li Xiao, because he was eating a large glutinous rice ball with a thick skin and thin filling while giving me a disgruntled look.
Until I picked up the last dumpling.
Li Xiao paused in his action of withdrawing his gaze, and even Lan Gongzi's smiling eyes seemed to carry a different kind of expectation.
Is there something wrong with these dumplings?
As I was thinking this, I paused involuntarily while eating.
"Eat up, why aren't you eating?" Seeing that I didn't move for a moment, Li Xiao suddenly squinted her eyes and smiled, urging me, "Didn't you just praise your young master's cooking skills to the skies? Hurry up and eat it while it's hot."
The more he said that, the more suspicious I became, especially when I saw the schadenfreude that he couldn't hide in his eyes.
So, what exactly is he expecting?
I glanced instinctively in the direction of Young Master Lan. Seeing my hesitation, he immediately and considerately said that if I couldn't eat anymore, there was no need to force myself.
He spoke very understandingly, but there was a faint hint of disappointment in his smile.
It seems that Young Master Lan also really wants me to eat the dumplings.
"Actually, I ate it too fast and it was a bit hot, so I thought I'd let it cool down a bit before eating it." I laughed it off and started to lie through my teeth.
Then, gritting his teeth and closing his eyes, under the expectant gaze of two pairs of eyes, he stuffed the dumpling into his mouth and began to chew slowly.
This taste... how should I put it?
It was strange; it was an experience I'd never had before.
If I had to describe it in one word, it would be—fragrant.
It smells absolutely amazing. Even the combined flavor of ginger and scallions can barely rival it.
Cilantro is truly worthy of its name.
I silently praised him in my heart, then calmly opened my eyes. I met Young Master Lan's smiling eyes and asked him what I thought.
"Well, to be honest, it felt pretty strange at first, probably because I'd never tried this combination before," I answered honestly.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Li Xiao's slightly disappointed expression. Perhaps he expected me to spit it out after the first bite, so he could watch me embarrass myself in front of Young Master Lan.
But I didn't. In fact, I sincerely said that after getting used to it, I actually found the cilantro dumplings to be quite good.
Li Xiao looked incredulous and secretly wondered if he had forced himself to tell a lie that contradicted the truth in order to please Young Master Lan.
But then I saw that I had eaten three more cilantro-filled dumplings in a row.
Li Xiao shut up.
It's not because they were proven wrong by my actions that they were convinced.
Instead, while I was eating my fourth cilantro dumpling, I was caught off guard and a coin hidden inside the dumpling chipped off two of my front teeth.
Blood immediately began to gush out uncontrollably.
Before I, who had knocked out two teeth, could even react to what had happened, I heard a thud, and Li Xiao had already fallen to the ground with his eyes closed.
This scene looks...exciting.
Later, while I was covering my mouth to stop the bleeding, I listened to Young Master Lan asking what had happened to Li Xiao, whose face was pale.
Having finally woken up, Li Xiao sat on the stool with her head down, turned to the side, and stubbornly refused to look at me again.
The copper coin was secretly put in by Li Xiao, who took advantage of the moment when Young Master Lan was instructing me on how to knead the dough.
Originally, I wanted to bring good luck to Young Master Lan on the Winter Solstice, so I specifically chose dumplings with cilantro filling.
Although it didn't sound like a compliment, among all the people Li Xiao had known since childhood, only Lan Yunzhi would be interested in these strange-tasting dumplings.
He didn't expect that I was also an exception.
I never expected that, by sheer coincidence, I would end up eating it... and not only did I eat it, I also chipped my teeth. And not only did I chip my teeth, but I chipped both of them.
He was actually quite surprised by this.
After hearing the whole story, I couldn't help but cover my leaky mouth and mumble a question.
Li Xiao didn't hear clearly.
Young Master Lan then relayed the message: "He asked you how you came up with the idea of putting copper coins in dumplings. Are you sure it was a surprise, and not an attempt to harm me?"
Li Xiao was furious about my suspicion that he had designs on Young Master Lan.
"It's a custom, okay? If you don't understand, don't talk nonsense. It's clearly... it's clearly because your teeth are too brittle, otherwise how could they be so easily knocked over..."
When Li Xiao said this, he was clearly not very confident. It was unclear whether he really felt that what he did was not right, or because he had just fainted and was still a little weak after waking up.
My first reaction upon hearing this was to let him try it out, to see if his teeth were harder than the coin he stuffed into the dumpling.
I think I'll pass.
Firstly, Li Xiao isn't that stupid.
Secondly, the teeth I lost won't grow back just because he lost a few teeth.
I am very sad. Although the bleeding has stopped, the presence of my two front teeth is still very noticeable.
Although I'm naturally quiet and don't laugh much, I'm still very sad.
Young Master Lan noticed my mood and patted my head to comfort me, saying, "It's okay, it will grow back even if it falls off."
"Really?" I was somewhat incredulous, yet a glimmer of hope flickered in my heart.
"Of course." Young Master Lan smiled kindly and patiently explained to me that the reason I knocked out my tooth so easily was because I was about to lose it.
"Once the teeth grow back, they will be stronger, and you won't have to worry about them falling out again."
—So that's how it is.
Knowing the truth almost brought me to tears, but this time I was purely happy, feeling a sense of relief as if I had survived a disaster.
Li Xiao over there heard me sobbing and getting so excited that I couldn't contain myself.
He couldn't understand what I was saying either, but seeing that the matter seemed to have passed, it seemed that I couldn't entirely blame him for my lost tooth.
He couldn't help but hum again.
It was as if they were mocking me for being so stupid as to lack even this basic common sense.
I could tell he really wanted to make fun of me to my face, but he just wouldn't turn his face away.
—Is it because of shame?
— Obviously not.
Li Xiao is just afraid of blood.
That's right. The reason Li Xiao suddenly fainted outside last time was because he saw blood, except that this time he saw blood from his own nose...
Li Xiao's unintentional act caused me to knock out my baby tooth that was supposed to fall out prematurely, and he was so shocked by my bleeding that he fainted on the spot.
Even now, he doesn't dare to look me in the eye, which is his own fault.
In this matter, we've barely managed to even things out.
I thought that was the end of today.
Unexpectedly, as time went by, Li Xiao showed no intention of leaving.
"Brother Lan, look at me like this, can you really bear to let me brave the heavy snow to rush back?" Li Xiao said weakly, leaning back in his chair, his pale face showing a hint of obedience and flattery.
She truly evokes pity in me.
As if afraid his words weren't convincing enough, before Lan Yunzhi could refuse, he added in a soft voice, "You know, even if I don't go back, no one in that family will care."
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