The General's Delicious Wife Chapter 015: Unknown rivalry
Early the next day, after breakfast, Xia Yue Chu and Madam Sun inform Madam Sheng that they are going to help out at the Cui family. Their lunch will be covered and likely, they will be able to bring some food back. Not mentioning anything about the matters on their payment.
There are not many chores around the house these days, Madam Sheng takes a walk around the yards, sees that the court has been swept, and sees that the chickens and pigs have been fed. Then does she wave her hand, signaling that they are dismissed and free to go.
When the two exit the front gate, Madam Sheng remembers something suddenly and runs after them. "When they let you take food back, take more steamed buns or meat, don't take those useless rubbish."
Early spring is still very cold. Xia Yue Chu and Madam Sun wrap themselves up tightly with their cotton clothes. Walking to the Cui house against the gust of cold spring wind.
As they are walking through the center of the village, the common court for sunning the grains, they see someone, also tightly wrapped, coming from the small split road in the opposite direction.
When both sides close the distance, Madam Sun then recognises that the person coming face to face with them is from the Zheng family on the other side of the village, their youngest daughter Chun Ni Er.
"Chun Ni Er, you are going to Cui family helping out too?" Madam Sun notes that Zheng Chun Ni also takes a turn heading in the direction of the Cui family, so she greets warmly.
But Zheng Chun Ni totally ignores her, in fact she quickens her pace and soon leaves them at the back.
"This girl, what's wrong with her today." Madam Sun ponders.
Both their families are not particularly close but have always keep a polite attitude. Why the sudden change?
"Who cares so much about her, we better hurry too."
Xia Yue Chu rallies Madam Sun to speed up, in the end, they reach the Cui House following closely behind Zheng Ni Er, it is just a one-step difference.
Zheng Chun Ni rushes in to step through the door first and shoots a triumph look at Xia Yue Chu and Madam Sun.
As if her being one-step earlier would equivalent to being one rank higher in her social status. She is waiting to watch Madam Guo and Madam Shan scold the person who arrives the latest.
Who knows, Madam Guo and Madam Shan both gather up surrounding Xia Yue Chu, begin greeting her with full enthusiasm.
"Yue Chu, you are finally here, yesterday, the family showed me the menu you have written. Aiyo, I like it so much that I couldn't sleep well at night, just wishing for the day to come faster. I want to see how your dishes are going to be made."
Zheng Chun Ni looks at Xia Yue Chu surprisingly. They are from the same village, though there is not much interactions, but still she knows her a little.
Over these few years where Xia Yue Chu marries into the Xue family, the impression she gives to everybody is always one that is hunching her back, drooping her head, and a cowering stance.
It is only today that Zheng Chun Ni can see clearly what Xia Yue Chu looks like. Although her cheeks are sunken and the colour on her face is also unhealthily pale, but her eyes sparkles lively and she looks delicate.
But this woman is actually the main chef for today's newlywed's returning feast?
What kind of joke is this!
Is the Cui family crazy?
Zheng Chun Ni really cannot comprehend.
You have to know, for a family who marries out their daughter, unless that daughter is not regarded with esteem at home, if not, the newlywed's returning banquet is to be treated much more seriously than the wedding banquet.
Considering that when the wedding banquet is hosted, the groom's family who are here to fetch the bride would have been long gone, the guest remaining are relatives and the neighbours. As long as there are plenty of fish and meat being served, nothing will go wrong.
However, the newlywed's returning banquet is different. This is the first time the bride's family host the new son-in-law, it definitely needs to be planned more grandly than the wedding luncheon and more attention to details is required.
If the event is not prepared well, leaving the son-in-law the impression that the bride's family does not regard him highly. Then, in the future, no matter if it is the relationship between the couples or when they are visiting relatives, it will be exceptionally awkward.
When the Cui family arranges the wedding banquet, they deliberately invite a MasterChef from the city to come here as a head chef. Why is it that the newlywed's returning banquet is decided so negligibly.
It does not matter what Zheng Chun Ni is thinking, Madam Shan is already pulling Xia Yue Chu quickly towards the kitchen, Madam Sun and two other kitchen assistance madams follow behind them closely.
Madam Guo's eyes turn to Zheng Chun Ni. "Still not following quickly, what are you waiting for!"
Majority of the preparations which can be done in advance is already completed. The duty of washing vegetables and cutting ingredients are assigned to professionals today. Xia Yue Chu delegates the ingredients to be washed and starts preparing the most tedious dish – little chicken and mushroom stew.
A common saying goes like this, Son-in-law enters the door, little chicken with a broken neck.
Little chicken and mushroom stew is a necessary dish in the Northeast cuisine specifically served to the son-in-law.
Two young roosters medium sized, it is slaughtered and defeathered yesterday. The dried honey fugus are also cleaned and hydrated early on. The sweet potato noodles with the width of a finger are soaked in warm water.
Xia Yue Chu washes the young roosters and chops it all up into similar size, then blanches and rinses them.
Soybean oil is poured into the wok. When the oil is hot, she throws in garlic, ginger, cinnamon, and so on, frying them in the wok. The flavour of the spices is being triggered by the hot oil and in an instant the fragrance explodes making the surrounding people salivate.
"Ni Er's mother, press down the fire a little."
While Xia Yue Chu is saying that, the basin of chicken meat in her hand is flipped over the wok and the wok spatula keeps stirring.
Every single piece of chicken has been rolled in that oil. It is stir-fried into a yellowing shine.
The flavour of the spices is slowly cooked into the chicken, in this moment, she adds in some soy sauce. The colour of the chicken changes into a pretty reddish brown, glistening in the coating of oil.
Xia Yue Chu takes the soaked honey fugus, drains off the water and adds into the wok. Stirring it all together in the oil with the chicken, then she pours in hot water and pours in some of the water that is used to soak the mushroom. Until the liquid is barely submerging the chicken and mushroom, she covers the wok with a lid and let it stews.
"Ni Er's mother, you stay here and watch the fire, just maintain it at this level, slowly reducing the soup."
Xia Yue Chu sees that the other two madams are done washing the vegetables, so she calls them over to the chopping board counter.
"The next job you have to do is cutting the meat." Xia Yue Chu picks up the chopper as she says.
Facing half of an entire pig that is bigger than herself, one swipe down and she makes a clean cut. Separating them piece by piece into skin, meat, bone and fat.
She combines a proportion of lean meat and fat for the lion's heads meatball, instructing one of the assistants. "You follow this size that I have cut, cut all these meat into small cubes, but don't mince them, only in the size of the cubes. Also, only cut this meat that I asked you to, don't make your own decision to add or subtract."
These are people whom she is meeting for the first time, they have no experience in working together with Xia Yue Chu. So, in order to ensure that there are no errors, Xia Yue Chu rather takes on an overthinking attitude and instructs more concisely, than to risk any possibility of making mistakes.
Zheng Chun Ni is listening from the side, snorts with disgruntlement at the way Xia Yue Chu commands when she gives the instructions.
Xia Yue Chu has long noticed Zheng Chun Ni's temperament. But considering that this is her first business deal, she does not want to create problems haphazardly.
She has tasked Zheng Chun Ni to pick the vegetables clean and to wash the vegetables. As such, there should not be any unexpected issues, so she decides to ignore her.
Seeing that everyone is at their own post, Xia Yue Chu goes to the vat and fish out a few silver carp. She speedily cuts open the stomachs, scraps off the scales, and removes the gills.
Washing clean the prepared fish, the knife under her hand flies, within a few cuts, she fillets both sides of the fish perfectly. Now, there is two pieces of thick flesh and the lonely head of the fish remaining attached to the clean fish bone and fish tail.
Madam Shan watches her with her full attention and cannot stop herself from making sounds out of amazement.
"Yue Chu ah, not mentioning others, you probably need at least ten years of training to reach your level of knife skills."
"Where is it that amazing. I'm only used to it because my family is poor when I was young, so we couldn't buy meat and would often go fishing in the river to eat."
"Tsk!" Zheng Chun Ni does not bother to be discreet this time, the entire kitchen can hear her despise.
"What is this?" Madam Shan grimaces at Zheng Chun Ni. "Are you done with your work?"
Zheng Chun Ni has helped out as the kitchen assistant during the wedding banquet. She is quite hardworking and proactive with the chores, leaving a good impression on Madam Shan. So her current tone is still considerably pleasant.
Zheng Chun Ni holds a certain reverence towards Madam Shan, hearing her asking so, she does not say anything anymore. Continues working on her own.
Nevertheless, with the grudge still in her heart, her actions unavoidably become lacking in the conscious of strength. The basin in her hands is grasped and hit in loud clinks and clangs, the water being used to wash the vegetables are also splashed all over.
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Translator Notes:
Translated by Yellow. Aug 2022.