Chapter 27 – Can’t eat too much meat
Yan Xiaosi looked at the coarse salt in the clay pot and let out a sigh.
Coarse salt was the cheapest and contained some sand and dirt. Even families with a little bit of money wouldn’t buy it. But her family couldn’t even afford the cheapest coarse salt, so they often cooked without adding salt.
The pot on the stove boiled and simmered with the aroma of dog meat wafting out.
When Yan Shuqin smelled the meat, she quickly dropped the tongs she was using to tend the fire and closed the kitchen door.
“Sister, are you worried that the smell of the meat will reach the Liu family and Yan family?” Yan Xiaosi was relaxed and not worried at all.
Their home was at the end of the village, a distance from the Liu and Yan families. It wasn’t easy for either family to smell the aroma of dog meat.
Yan Shuqin looked at her sister, who was sitting relaxed with her legs crossed on a chair. “You’re so bold. You killed the Liu family’s dog with just one hit of the hoe.”
Yan Xiaosi laughed and replied, “Sister, if I didn’t kill the Liu family’s dog, how could we have eaten meat so quickly?”
After stewing for a while, Ms. Zhong opened the pot and used bamboo chopsticks to poke the baizhu that had just been added. She found that it was soft and tender. She then asked Yan Shuqin to extinguish the fire in the stove.
Ms. Zhong opened the lid of the pot, and the aroma of dog meat filled the small kitchen.
Yan Xiaosi’s mouth watered, and she got up and walked to Zhong Shi’s side, her eyes wide open, staring at the meat in the pot. “Mother, can I taste it first?”
Her body was really lacking in meat, and when she saw meat, it was like seeing a bright gold ingot.
Ms. Zhong picked up a piece of dog meat with chopsticks, blew on it, and handed it to her, warning her, “It just came out of the pot. Be careful not to burn your mouth.”
Yan Xiaosi took it and nibbled on it while panting. The taste wasn’t that great, but she was so hungry for meat that she found the slightly smelly and less salty meat quite delicious.
She had eaten half of the meat in her hand when she suddenly noticed that Yan Shuqin, Yan Shuxue, and Yan Shuyun were all staring at her and drooling.
“Mother, give a piece to eldest sister, second sister, and third sister. There’s so much meat in the pot, we can eat until we’re full.”
Ms. Zhong scooped up a bowl full of dog meat and handed it to Yan Xiaosi. “Take this bowl of dog meat to your room and give it to Mr. Long to eat.”
Yan Xiaosi finished the meat in her hand, picked up the bowl, and took out three pieces of meat from the bowl to give to Yan Shuqin, Yan Shuxue, and Yan Shuyun.
“Elder sister, second sister, and third sister, you must be hungry. Hurry up and eat.”
Ms. Zhong reminded her, “You should take the bowl to Mr. Long’s room.”
Yan Xiaosi took another piece of meat from the bowl and gnawed on it, mumbling incoherently to Ms. Zhong, “Mother, Mr. Long is still injured. It’s not suitable for him to eat too much meat. You should give him more baizhu. Baizhu is a medicinal herb and good for his injuries.”
Long Hao sat cross-legged in the room, in meditation. When he heard Yan Xiaosi’s words, his mouth twitched.
Ms. Zhong thought what Yan Xiaosi said made sense, so she used a spatula to scoop up some baizhu and put them in a bowl.
“Quickly take this bowl of baizhu to Mr. Zhong. He’s injured and still helped us deal with the food preparation.”
Yan Xiaosi took the bowl of dog meat to the room.
After finishing his meditation, Long Hao had some sweat on his forehead as he opened his eyes and looked at Yan Xiaosi.
Yan Xiaosi understood that Long Hao had heard her conversation with Ms. Zhong just now.
