Transmigrated as an Unwanted Ugly Girl

Chapter 599: Chapter 312: Nothing for Me to Do

Liu Yunlan started to get up to follow, but Yang quickly stopped her, handing her little Hulu. ”You hold Hulu and talk with Juhua. He and I will go cook. There’s not much else to do in the winter, and cooking isn’t that tiring. It’s just a few of us eating, not like we’re hosting a feast. If we all squeeze into the kitchen, we won’t even be able to turn around.”

Liu Yunlan nodded and took little Hulu in her arms.

Huai Zi hurried to help as well. He carried a bundle of firewood and placed it behind the stove, then drew several buckets of water from the well, setting them aside for later. Following He’s instructions, he went to the back garden to chop some yellow-heart cabbage and pull up some spinach, green onions, and garlic. He was busy for quite some time before he returned to the main hall.

By the time Zheng Changhe and Qingmu arrived with two carp and two grass carp, Zhang Dashuan had also returned from Xiatang Market. Everyone gathered in the main hall, their faces beaming as they gazed at Juhua as if she were a precious treasure. It made Juhua feel like an exhibit on display, and she grew increasingly uncomfortable.

She hopped out of the foot warmer and said to Huai Zi, ”Come on, let’s go prepare the fish. We can make a fish and pickled vegetable hot pot for lunch, and steam another one whole.”

Qingmu quickly interjected, ”Huai Zi and I can do it. You shouldn’t bother going out, it’s freezing outside.”

Juhua laughed. ”I just want to watch. Besides, I can’t just sit around all day. You should stay and chat with Sister Yunlan. You’re our guest today, after all.” The three of them went out together, chatting and laughing.

At the wellside, Qingmu helped draw up two buckets of water. He watched Huai Zi expertly prepare the fish—scraping scales, slitting the belly, pulling out the guts, and removing the gills—with the skill of a veteran. He asked in surprise, ”When did you get as good as Changxing and Sanshun at preparing fish?”

Squatting nearby, Juhua said smugly, ”I taught him, of course. Brother Huai Zi can do anything these days. He can plant seedlings and harvest rice in the fields, and he can work his way around a kitchen, too.”

Qingmu chuckled. ”Oh, stop bragging for him. Who can’t do those things? I can do them too, I’m just not as practiced as he is. But I refuse to believe he can cook a proper meal.”

Listening to the two siblings bicker about him, Huai Zi didn’t interrupt. He just smiled, his hands never ceasing their work. After a moment, he looked up at Juhua, trying to find a way to make her happy. ”How about we try a new way of cooking the fish today?”

”What new way?” Juhua asked.

”We could cook it like you did with that chicken,” Huai Zi said. ”The one you wrapped in lotus leaves and baked in the stove’s embers.”

Qingmu grinned. ”Oh, that was delicious! If we cook the fish like that, I bet it would taste amazing. But we don’t have any lotus leaves right now. What would we wrap it in?”

Huai Zi smiled. ”I’ve already thought about that. We can just wrap it in some vegetable leaves, right? The leaves on that yellow-heart cabbage are really big. We can use several layers, tie it tightly with rice straw, then pack yellow mud on the outside. That will keep the fish clean.”

Juhua’s eyes lit up at the idea. ”That could work!” she said quickly. ”And if we wrap a layer of cloth around the outside of the leaves, it’ll be even more secure.”

Even Qingmu was excited by the plan and went to mix the yellow mud. Meanwhile, Huai Zi broke off several large leaves from the yellow-heart cabbage. Juhua then showed him how to stuff the fish’s belly with seasonings like ginger and chili peppers. She also had him slice into the thick flesh along the back, rub it with salt, and tuck in more ginger slices. Since the grass carp was too large, they chopped it in half and prepared two separate parcels.

Their bustling and constant laughter drew Liu Yunlan outside to see what was happening. Zheng Changhe, holding little Hulu, came over with Zhang Dashuan to watch. ”Look at that,” Zheng Changhe said happily to Zhang Dashuan. ”This fish is going to be delicious. We absolutely have to have a proper drink today.”

Zhang Dashuan’s eyes gleamed as he watched Huai Zi wrap the fish in cabbage leaves and gauze, tie it securely with rice straw, and then Qingmu plaster it with yellow mud. He swallowed hard. ”Of course we have to have a proper drink. Look at how much care the kids are putting into this. It’d be an insult to them not to drink!”

At his words, the two young couples collapsed in laughter.

Huai Zi brought out a brazier and said to Juhua, ”The stove is being used for rice, so we can’t bake this there. We can shovel the hot embers into this brazier and bury it. It will work just the same. Just remember to add more charcoal to it a few times, and it’ll cook faster.”

Juhua nodded, agreeing that it would be less hassle that way.

Once everything was done, the group went back inside. Juhua, holding a hand warmer, settled back into the foot warmer and said to Liu Yunlan with a smile, ”Sister Yunlan, if the fish turns out delicious this way, we should cook it like this from now on. It saves the trouble of cooking it in a pot.”

Liu Yunlan nodded. ”I’m sure it’ll be great. It seems a bit wasteful, though. If you cook it in a pot, you can add pickled vegetables and other things to make the meal go further. This way, all you get is the fish. Still,” she added thoughtfully, ”it probably wouldn’t hurt to wrap some pickled vegetables in there with it. We should try that next time.”

Qingmu took his son from his father’s arms and lifted him high into the air, laughing. ”Hulu, you need to grow up fast! Look at everyone here, always thinking up delicious things to eat. It’s a shame you can only watch and not have any.” Little Hulu ignored his father’s teasing, let out a yawn, and his eyes drooped half-closed as if he were about to fall asleep.