Reborn as the Blissful Wife in the countryside-Chapter 108 Both Host and Guest Enjoy Themselves

The dining area may have been simple, but the dishes were rich and plentiful, including Fried Crispy Pork, Braised Pork, Crystal Sweet and Sour Pork, Sweet and Sour Chicken, Braised Bamboo Rat, Stewed Chicken; all of them were meat dishes, and each portion was generous, served in either two large pottery basins or bowls.

Vegetarian dishes were naturally not absent: Fried Five-Spice Tofu, Scallion Omelets, Sweet and Sour Chinese Cabbage, Fresh Bean Sprouts stir-fried with chicken broth, and specifically for Shang Yuanyuan, Gu Jinli made gravy rice noodles.

When making tofu at home, the tofu skin was peeled off, and Gu Jinli used that tofu skin to make a three-ingredient spring roll, filled with blanched bean sprouts, egg strips, chicken strips, scallion strips, and then brushed with a sauce made of caramel and Hai Xian Sauce, creating a delightful treat to welcome the spring.

The families in the village knew that Scholar Shang’s family was coming today, and everyone who was not selling tofu at the stall came over to accompany them; the Qin family came as well.

However, only Elder Qin and Qin San Lang came; Qin Er Lang still did not show up, continuing his longstanding aversion to them.

In the courtyard over the fire, Qin San Lang was grilling three wild rabbits and four carps on an iron plate.

The rabbits were hunted by him in the mountains the day before yesterday, and the carps were caught in the river of Dafeng Mountain this morning, truly delicacies of the mountains and rivers.

The method of grilling fish was taught by Gu Jinli. Having tried it a few times, Qin San Lang had now mastered it.

He busied himself in front of the fire by himself, sometimes sprinkling seasoning on the rabbit, sometimes brushing sauce on the grilled fish. His actions were unhurried, exhibiting a sense of fluidity and ease.

Scholar Shang, finding this interesting, approached and asked, "Is this... grilling fish?"

He had never seen this method of grilling fish on an iron plate. When he went to literary gatherings in the past, there were Madmen who grilled fish, but they skewered the fish on sticks and directly placed them over the fire, the process looking wild and unrestrained; however, the taste of the grilled fish was less than commendable.

Qin San Lang nodded, "Yes, Xiao Yu said that fish grilled on an iron plate taste good without the smoky flavor, just crispy and fresh."

Scholar Shang took interest and stood by to watch.

While fish and rabbit meat were being grilled in the courtyard, the main hall was already filled with women and children from several families.

Knowing that Mrs. Jiang was the daughter of an official, Third Grandma feared that Mrs. Chen and the others would be too crude and offend Mrs. Jiang, so she arranged two tables in the main hall.

One table seated Old Mrs. Yan and her daughter-in-law as well as Mrs. Chen with children from various families, while the other table had her accompanying Mrs. Cui, Gu Jinli, Gu Jinxiu, Brother Cheng, and Mrs. Jiang and her daughter.

Gu Yumei was originally assigned to the table with Mrs. Chen and the others, but she refused to move, so Third Grandma, not wanting to cause trouble, allowed her to sit down.

Because Mrs. Jiang’s father was the County Magistrate, the guests dined cautiously, hardly daring to speak out of fear of embarrassment.

Yuanyuan, however, was not shy. Remembering what Gu Jinli had said about there being something even tastier than sweet tofu pudding, she looked at the table full of dishes and asked Gu Jinli, "Sister, Sister, are all these more delicious than tofu pudding?"

Her chubby hand pointed at the shimmering plate of gravy rice noodles, asking, "Is this it?" It seemed somewhat similar to sweet tofu pudding; both were glistening.

"Yes, this gravy rice noodles counts too," nodded Gu Jinli and, gesturing at a few dishes with her hand, added, "and also this Crystal Sweet and Sour Pork, Sweet and Sour Chicken, Tofu Skin Spring Rolls; they’re all prepared for Yuanyuan."

"Wow~" Upon hearing that so many dishes were made specially for her, Yuanyuan almost drooled, eagerly saying to Mrs. Jiang, "Mom, Mom, I want to eat, I want to eat."

Mrs. Jiang held her and said, "Don’t move around; Mom will get it for you."

Mrs. Jiang saw that the gravy rice noodles seemed soft and suitable for children to eat, so she picked up two pieces and placed them in Yuanyuan’s bowl, feeding her.

Yuanyuan gulped down a strip of rice noodles, chewed with her little teeth, and after eating, said to Mrs. Jiang, "Chewy and delicious."

Mrs. Jiang laughed and tapped her forehead, "You little glutton."

She then picked two pieces of Crystal Sweet and Sour Pork for her, and upon tasting, Yuanyuan fell in love with it, "Sweet, delicious."

After hearing this, Mrs. Jiang also tried a piece and found it indeed to be sour and sweet, and very delicious. She exclaimed, "Are these dishes all from your old home? They’re really full of appearance, aroma, and flavor, quite appetizing."

On the table, many of the dishes were ones she had never seen before.

Third Grandma chuckled, "These are not from our old home, Xiao Yu came up with them on her own."

Mrs. Jiang was surprised to hear this, but considering the girl’s skill in making tofu and a few fresh dishes, there was nothing strange about it.

She praised Gu Jinli, tasted all the dishes on the table, and found them more and more delicious as she ate.

Seeing Mrs. Jiang enjoying her meal, Third Grandma finally let her own nervous heart settle down.

Outside, the men were also enjoying their meal. Scholar Shang, although a learned man, was able to drink and eat meat with them. He even held the wine jug and a knife to cut the roasted rabbit, exuding somewhat the air of an untrammeled scholar.

But what Scholar Shang enjoyed most were the meat juice rice noodles and the roasted fish.

That iron plate roasted fish had no hint of smoky flavor from plants and trees, only the burnt aroma and the freshness of the fish flesh. Taking a bite, it was crispy and juicy, so delicious that he ate half of it.

Then there was the crystal sweet and sour pork, which was surprisingly sour and sweet, very appetizing. And the chicken broth stir-fried bean sprouts, with the crisp bean sprouts and the deliciousness of the chicken broth, were truly refreshingly tasty.

Especially in February, during the lean period when green and yellow crops don’t overlap, after eating a winter’s worth of cabbage and radish, suddenly tasting bean sprout vegetables was truly more than comfortable.

This meal brought great pleasure to both guests and hosts.

After the meal, it was already the fourth quarter of the afternoon; Scholar Shang and his family of three sat in the Gu Family’s house for half an hour, and as it was almost evening, they bid farewell and left.

Third Grandma and Mrs. Cui prepared a gift in return, handing it to Scholar Shang’s family: "It’s just some homemade tofu, spices, bean sprouts, and the like. It’s not worth much money; take it home to eat."

Scholar Shang and his wife did not decline and accepted the return gifts. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

Gu Jinli handed over an embroidery by Gu Jinxiu, as well as the recipes for rice noodles, soy milk, and bean sprouts, to Ms. Jiang.

Ms. Jiang was astonished to see that she had written down the methods for making these three items. In Great Chu, almost no one would pass on their own skills. She hesitated, wondering if she should accept?

Scholar Shang said, "Take it, it’s the girl’s kind gesture."

Since they were to keep in touch as old acquaintances, they couldn’t be so ceremonious.

Delighted, Ms. Jiang accepted and assured, "Good child, rest assured, Aunt will not pass on these three things to others."

Gu Jinli, however, didn’t mind; they were just some foods without much technical content.

Several families saw off Scholar Shang’s family. Yuanyuan was reluctant to leave, holding on to the gate and saying, "I won’t go, I won’t go, I want to eat more delicious food."

Sister Xiao Yu’s home had too tasty a spread; she wanted to stay, not wanting to go back and eat steamed eggs.

Ms. Jiang gently slapped her hand, pretending to be angry, "With your gluttony, Sister Xiao Yu’s house won’t want you."

Yuanyuan immediately looked up at Gu Jinli with teary eyes, pitifully saying, "Sister Xiao Yu... Yuanyuan usually eats very little."

Gu Jinli almost couldn’t help but laugh out loud, she took out a yellow paper-wrapped fried five-spice tofu and handed it to Yuanyuan, "Here, this is what sister has saved for Yuanyuan. Take it for the road, and after you finish, come over to play at sister’s house again."

Yuanyuan let go of the gate she was clinging to, hugged the packet of fried five-spice tofu, and nodded vigorously, "Okay, after Yuanyuan eats it, I will come back to play at sister’s house."

Ms. Jiang looked on helplessly; how did she give birth to such a food-loving daughter?

After all this commotion, the Shang family finally left.

Scholar Shang did not enquire about the learning of Gu Jin’an, Gu Dexing, and Gu Dewang individually before leaving, nor did he mention taking on disciples.

Gu Dewang breathed a sigh of relief, Gu Dexing was very disappointed, and although Gu Jin’an was also disappointed, he thought since Ah Jiu had accepted their writings and essays, then Scholar Shang would definitely see them, and they just needed to wait patiently for a result.

...

At Village Chief He’s house, He Dacang told Village Chief He, "Father, the family of County Captain Jiang’s son-in-law has left."

Scholar Shang brought two carts of gifts to visit the Gu Family, causing quite a stir, and everyone in Dafeng Village knew, including Village Chief He’s house.

"What did they send over?" asked Village Chief He.

He Dacang replied, "The people who saw the moving said they brought a lot of things: rice, flour, meat, vegetables, iron pots, farm tools, cart wheels, they had it all."

Village Chief He was surprised; they even sent iron pots, farm tools, and cart wheels, which were all bulky items and couldn’t be bought for several tens of taels of silver.

However, given the wealth of the Shang Family and the Jiang Family, sending a few tens of taels worth of gifts was nothing extraordinary. What mattered most would be the future interactions.