EHCR 12

Chapter 12: Letting Her Cook Is Just a Waste of Food

After hearing the full story, Song Yaodong thoughtfully remarked, "It seems Shen Che isn't like the rumors make him out to be."

Hearing this, Song Zhaodi paused and recalled the rumors about Shen Che: he had been despised and chased out by his own clan, had literally pissed his birth mother off to death, and was a vengeful, arrogant, and reckless local tyrant within the village.

That really didn't match up.

While stoking the fire, Song Yaodong said, "As for this meat, just cook a small piece and salt-cure the rest so we can slowly eat it later."

For a family like theirs, being able to fill their stomachs was already a blessing; how could they possibly afford to eat meat every single day?

It was simply too extravagant.

Song Zhaodi followed his instructions, salted the remaining meat, covered it tightly in an earthen basin, and turned to tell Song Yaodong, "Dad, we will definitely be able to live a life where we eat meat every day in the future."

Song Yaodong smiled, assuming his daughter was just trying to comfort him.

Not to mention that their family was already poor, the past two years had been plagued by floods and droughts, leading to poor harvests where they could only survive on wild vegetables.

Now that his leg was broken on top of all that, staging a comeback would be harder than climbing to the heavens.

While they were talking, Song Zhaodi had already washed the mushrooms, tearing the termite mushrooms into strips and slicing the Jian Shou Qing into uniform, even thicknesses. Then she began preparing the side ingredients.

When Song Yaodong looked up and saw her cutting up the Jian Shou Qing, he couldn't help asking, remembering what Pandi had told him earlier:

"Zhaodi, can these poisonous lumps really be eaten? Won't something go wrong?"

"Dad, you can eat them with peace of mind. I guarantee you'll want more after the first bite."

With that, she had already heated the oil, tossed in garlic cloves to fry until fragrant, and then added the Jian Shou Qing to stir-fry while secretly counting in her head.

When she reached six thousand, she added chili peppers and salt for seasoning, continued stir-frying, and softly counted again.

She strictly followed the steps in the recipe, preferring to stir-fry a little longer to ensure the mushrooms were thoroughly cooked rather than rushing even a single second.

Song Yaodong watched his daughter continuously wielding the spatula while muttering under her breath, looking just like a shaman performing a ritual.

Could the secret to eating poisonous lumps possibly be chanting some sort of spell while cooking them?

Filled with doubt and anxiety, he finally waited until Song Zhaodi announced, "Done!"

The aroma was overwhelming. Every single slice of the poisonous lump glistened with oil, and their enticing color made mouths water instantly.

Not just Song Zhaodi, but both Song Yaodong and Song Pandi couldn't help swallowing their saliva.

Song Zhaodi picked up a slice with her fingers, and when she saw the words "Non-toxic" flash across the system text, she finally felt completely at ease.

Just as she was about to pop it into her mouth, Song Yaodong shouted loudly, "Hold on!"

Looking at Song Zhaodi cautiously, he said, "Zhaodi, it's not that Dad doesn't trust you, but it pays to be careful. Why don't we test it on a rat first?"

The old superstitions and fears surrounding poisonous lumps ran deep and couldn't be wiped away with just a couple of words. Therefore, Song Zhaodi let Song Yaodong catch a rat to test the food.

The rats in the Song household were just as pitifully skinny as the people; due to severe malnutrition, they were listless and lethargic. But the moment they caught a whiff of food, they threw caution to the wind and devoured a slice of Jian Shou Qing in just a few bites.

Then came the waiting game.

After waiting about a quarter of an hour, not only did the rat show zero signs of poisoning, but the weak limbs it had previously possessed suddenly regained strength thanks to the nourishment, and its spirit picked up immensely. Catching the lingering fragrance from the pot, it tried to crawl over for more.

Being extremely cautious, Song Yaodong waited another full quarter of an hour. Finally, seeing the rat alive, kicking, and full of vigor, he even fed a slice to a chicken to make sure it remained completely fine afterwards. Only then did he truly relax.

"I'll eat first. If nothing happens to me, you guys can eat too."

He first popped a slice into his mouth, chewed it over, and his eyes lit up.

"Zhaodi, these poisonous lumps are tender, smooth, and delicious."

"Right?" Song Zhaodi ate a slice herself, fed a chopstickful to Pandi who had been staring eagerly for ages, and then asked, "Dad, this is a type of mushroom called Jian Shou Qing. Do you think it would sell well if we took it to the market?"

Song Yaodong nodded immediately and said, "It tastes so good, it would definitely sell well." But halfway through, he paused and added, "It's just that these mushrooms use up way too much cooking oil."

An ordinary family could never afford that.

"That's why we shouldn't sell them at the market," Song Zhaodi said, adding, "While Jian Shou Qing requires a lot of oil, these termite mushrooms are different."

"Termite mushrooms aren't toxic, they don't need a lot of oil or heavy stir-frying, and average families can easily afford them."

Song Yaodong was left feeling a bit dazed, but he caught a term he didn't quite understand.

"What is stir-frying?" Taking the opportunity, he asked what he had wanted to ask since yesterday: "Zhaodi, these past two days, I've noticed your cooking is completely different from before."

It was no longer boiling or steaming. "Is this method of yours what they call 'stir-frying'?"

"Yes, Dad. This is stir-frying, and the water celery the other day was stir-fried too. I learned it from books." Song Zhaodi explained.

A flash of sudden realization hit Song Yaodong, and with a tone of proud satisfaction, he said, "Our Zhaodi went to work, and not only did she learn to read, she even picked up all these skills. She's truly amazing."

Song Pandi chimed in, "Yeah, Little Uncle has studied for so many years, and he doesn't even know as many characters as Big Sister."

That was indeed true. The original body was naturally gifted with a great memory, and even though she only did odd chores at the private school, over the years she had learned quite a few characters.

Even the school tutor had praised her for having exceptional natural talent, lamenting only that she was born a girl; otherwise, she would surely have a bright future ahead of her.

"Whether I have a bright future or not doesn't matter to me right now. The important things are filling our stomachs and curing Dad's leg."

As she spoke, Song Zhaodi washed a large basket of shepherd's purse that Pandi had foraged that morning. She tossed them into the wok with the leftover pork cracklings, rendered the fat out until fragrant, and added minced garlic to release the aroma before throwing in the shepherd's purse.

The tender, fresh greens wrapped themselves in a layer of glistening oil, radiating a vibrant emerald green luster and releasing a rich fragrance that crept straight into everyone's noses.

"It smells so good," Song Dachuan's voice echoed across the courtyard. "Zhaodi, what are we having today?"

When the dishes were served on the table, Song Dachuan stared at the spread of unfamiliar foods with a look mixed with bewilderment and anticipation, finally shifting his gaze to Song Zhaodi.

"Zhaodi, apart from the shepherd's purse, I don't recognize a single thing on this table. Are all of these edible wild vegetables?"

Song Zhaodi nodded, introducing them to him while also explaining to her parents: "This is Jian Shou Qing, a type of wild mushroom; this is cold-dressed purslane; and this is shepherd's purse stir-fried with pork cracklings."

Fresh purslane had a sour and salty taste, making it less pleasant than when dried; Song Zhaodi had dried some a couple of days ago, making today the perfect time to eat it.

Though Song Dachuan didn't fully understand, he knew they were safe to eat, so he stopped hesitating, urged everyone to pick up their chopsticks, and dug in.

Upon tasting the Jian Shou Qing, he praised it repeatedly, and by the end, the bottom of the plate was practically licked clean.

Finally full and satisfied, Song Dachuan looked at Song Zhaodi with a warmth and affection he had never shown before.

He hadn't expected his eldest granddaughter to cook so deliciously, and after eating it, his stomach didn't burn at all—it felt wonderfully comfortable.

"Zhaodi, from now on, you'll be in charge of all the cooking for the family."

Song Zhaodi had no objections, but she intentionally threw out a question: "Then what will Grandma be doing from now on?"

Previously, Sun Xiuhe was mainly responsible for cooking at home while everyone else went out to toil in the fields.

Mentioning Sun Xiuhe made Song Dachuan's face instantly drop, and he grunted impatiently, "She can go do field work! Letting her cook is just a waste of food."

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