◎ Second Male Lead ◎
Ye Qiuling reached out and pushed her away. Ye Qing was caught off guard and fell to the ground.
With a smug expression, Ye Qiuling looked at her and sneered, “You want to hit me? Maybe in your next life.”
Without waiting for her reaction, she turned around and pulled Ye Feng away.
Ye Qing’s face turned red with anger as she cursed at their retreating backs, “Ye Qiuling, just you wait. I won’t let you off!”
Walking along the small path between the rice fields, they listened to the wind rustling through the crops. In the fields, the aunties chatted and laughed together, their cheerful voices blending with the peaceful countryside scenery like a living oil painting that no one wished to disturb.
The bad mood Ye Qiuling had felt after encountering Ye Qing gradually faded away in the gentle breeze.
Nearby, Shen Wanru was helping Second Aunt break apart dried corn. When she saw the two children returning with another basket of grass, she set the corn aside and asked with some doubt, “Qiuling, can this grass really be eaten too?”
Ye Qiuling understood that they had never eaten such plants before. Even she herself had not known about it in the past. It was only after seeing pictures of various dishes in the Gourmet Recipe System that she realized mugwort could be made into delicious food.
Smiling brightly, she replied, “Yes, Mother. Today I’ll make mugwort cakes for you.”
They went to the well. Ye Feng pumped the water, and clear well water slowly flowed out. Ye Qiuling carefully washed the mugwort in a basin.
After washing it three times, the water finally became clear.
She blanched the mugwort in boiling water for one minute to remove its bitterness, then scooped it out and rinsed it in cold water. After squeezing out the moisture, she chopped it finely.
Next, she poured out some flour, added the chopped mugwort, salt, sugar, and yeast.
In the system shop, she converted her accumulated “taste value” into forty points and used them to exchange for crushed peanuts, sesame seeds, and a packet of yeast.
She gradually poured in warm water and began kneading the mixture until it formed a smooth, soft dough that did not stick to her hands. The dough was then left to rest for fifteen minutes, which made it easier to shape.
She prepared four bowls for the fillings. After peeling the boiled eggs, she removed the egg whites and kept only the yolks. The yolks were crushed and mixed with crushed peanuts and sesame seeds. A small spoonful of cooking oil was added to prevent the filling from becoming too dry and to improve its texture.
Three bowls contained different combinations of egg yolk, peanuts, and sesame seeds.
The dough was divided into small pieces. Each piece was rolled into a ball, pressed into a small hollow with her thumb, filled with the mixture, then sealed and shaped back into a round ball.
Watching her work, Ye Feng’s eyes sparkled.
“Big sister, the mugwort cakes you made look so pretty. Can I make one too?”
Looking at his eager expression, Ye Qiuling smiled. “Of course you can. But these are called qingtuan. Go wash your hands first.”
“Okay!” Ye Feng happily ran to the well to wash his hands.
Meanwhile, Shen Wanru joined them and tried wrapping one herself. She learned quickly, and the one she made looked quite beautiful.
Seeing this, Ye Qiuling praised her. “Mother, the qingtuan you made looks so nice. It’s round and adorable, even better than mine. As expected of a master chef.”
She raised her thumb in admiration.
Shen Wanru burst into laughter. “I wouldn’t dare call myself a master chef, but our family certainly has a little chef.”
Ye Feng returned after washing his hands. Hearing their laughter, he could not help smiling too.
He tried wrapping one himself. It ended up crooked but still acceptable.
When it was placed in the basin, it was immediately obvious which one he had made.
Teasing him, Ye Qiuling said, “Xiao Feng, you’ll have to eat the one you made yourself.”
Seeing his oddly shaped qingtuan, Ye Feng immediately pouted. “No, I want to eat the ones you and Mother made.”
Both Ye Qiuling and Shen Wanru burst into laughter at his expression.
Amid the cheerful laughter, they finished making the qingtuan. There were twenty peanut and sesame qingtuan, twenty sesame qingtuan, six salted egg yolk qingtuan, and four filled with a mixture of peanuts, sesame, and egg yolk.
Ye Feng ran to the stove to start the fire. Ye Qiuling placed the qingtuan into the large pot to steam for about ten minutes.
In her mind she called out, “66, start a ten minute countdown.”
The chubby little hamster 66, who was busy cracking sunflower seeds, replied cheerfully, “Okay, host. The countdown has started!”
Time slowly passed. Soon a fresh and fragrant aroma filled the air.
Ye Feng took a deep breath and sighed blissfully. “Big sister, the qingtuan smells so good. I want to eat it.”
Ye Qiuling rubbed his little head and laughed. “Not yet. We still have to wait five more minutes.”
Ye Feng was not discouraged. Swallowing his saliva, he began silently counting the seconds.
During this time, Ye Qiuling went to find a container so the qingtuan could be packed and kept warm until they reached the town market.
Unfortunately, the family was too poor to have one. She would have to borrow a box from the neighbor, Second Aunt.
Soon, 66 reminded her, “Host, ten minutes are up.”
Ye Qiuling acknowledged him and lifted the lid of the pot. Steam rushed out along with the fresh fragrance.
Inside the pot, the qingtuan were bright green and looked incredibly tempting.
Ye Feng jumped excitedly. “Big sister, can we eat them now? Can we?”
“Yes, but they’re still very hot,” Ye Qiuling said. “Be careful not to burn your mouth.”
She took a pair of chopsticks from the cupboard, picked up one qingtuan, placed it into a bowl, and handed it to him.
Ye Feng accepted it sweetly. “Thank you, big sister.”
Though eager to eat it, he remembered her warning and patiently blew on it before taking a bite.
The hot qingtuan rolled around in his mouth, and his eyes instantly lit up.
The filling was peanuts, sesame seeds, and salted egg yolk. The savory richness of the yolk blended perfectly with the nutty flavors, creating a soft yet textured bite where sweet and salty flavors intertwined.
It was impossible to stop eating.
After finishing it, Ye Feng raised his thumb while chewing and said indistinctly, “Big sister, it’s so delicious!”
Shen Wanru also picked one up. The one she chose contained crushed peanuts. The crisp peanuts combined with the unique fragrance of mugwort created a sweet but not greasy flavor.
“Mm, delicious,” she praised.
Watching their satisfied expressions filled Ye Qiuling with a strong sense of accomplishment.
She picked up a sesame filled one herself. The sesame filling was rich and aromatic, sweet and flavorful.
Then she took two qingtuan filled with sesame and peanuts and went next door to borrow a box from Second Aunt.
Standing at the door, she called out, “Second Aunt, do you have a box? I’d like to borrow one.”
Hearing her call, Second Aunt came out with a smile. “Of course I do.”
Soon she returned with a very large wooden chest.
Seeing it, Ye Qiuling was stunned. The box was so big that it could hold far more qingtuan than she had made.
With an awkward laugh she said politely, “Second Aunt, this one might be a little too big. Do you have a smaller one?”
Second Aunt looked at the chest and agreed. “You’re right, it is a bit big.”
She went back inside and brought out a medium sized box.
“How about this one?” she asked, shaking it lightly.
“That’s perfect,” Ye Qiuling replied.
Second Aunt handed it over. Ye Qiuling accepted it and secretly slipped the two qingtuan she had brought into her hand.
Second Aunt tried to refuse, but Ye Qiuling quickly placed them on the stool outside the house and ran away without looking back.
Second Aunt watched her leave with a gentle smile. Then she looked at the green pastries on the stool.
She unwrapped one and sniffed it. A refreshing fragrance drifted into her nose.
Curiously, she took a bite.
The soft texture and the crisp peanuts burst with flavor in her mouth. Her eyes lit up in surprise as she muttered, “Wanru actually made something quite delicious.”
Back home, Ye Qiuling lined the borrowed box with cloth and carefully placed the wrapped qingtuan inside.
At that moment, Ye Dazhi returned from the vegetable field.
Ye Feng held a qingtuan up to his mouth and said eagerly, “Father, this is really good. Big sister made it. It’s called qingtuan. Try it.”
Ye Dazhi took a bite. It was completely different from steamed buns. The texture was soft, sticky, and fragrant.
“Mm, very delicious,” he praised sincerely.
After thinking for a moment, Ye Qiuling said, “Two copper coins for a peanut sesame qingtuan, three copper coins for the salted egg yolk one, and four copper coins for the peanut sesame salted egg one. What do you think, Father and Mother?”
In their view, one copper coin could already buy many things, and the qingtuan were quite small.
Shen Wanru hesitated. “Isn’t that a bit too expensive?”
Ye Dazhi also agreed. “Qiuling, it’s very tasty, but even one copper coin seems expensive.”
Ye Qiuling reassured them. “It’s fine. Rare things are valuable. Just trust me. I’ll give you a surprise later.”
The couple exchanged doubtful looks but said nothing further.
Soon the whole family climbed onto the donkey cart and headed toward town. Originally Ye Qiuling wanted to go alone, but her parents and Xiao Feng insisted on accompanying her, worried that it would be dangerous for a young girl to travel alone because bandits sometimes appeared in the area.
As the cart bumped along the uneven road, Ye Qiuling kept looking at the scenery to distract herself from the nausea.
She silently rolled her eyes. She really could not get used to riding a donkey cart.
Back in the modern world she could only ride a small electric scooter. She could not handle other vehicles, and now she could not even tolerate a donkey cart in ancient times.
Looks like I’ll have to walk in the future, she thought gloomily.
Her attention was suddenly caught by green branches covered with clusters of pink blossoms.
Peach blossoms.
She wondered what kind of food could be made from them.
Peach blossom pastries.
Unfortunately, the tree did not belong to her.
She was still sighing regretfully about the peach blossoms when they arrived in town. Seeing that Ye Qiuling was still sitting on the cart, Shen Wanru pulled her down.
Ye Qiuling found a good spot with plenty of foot traffic, set the box on the ground, and placed three wrapped qingtuan on top as samples.
A person with handsome almond shaped eyes and a tall nose bridge approached. Wearing a green robe and possessing an androgynous beauty, the person asked, “Miss, what is this?”
A slender pale finger pointed at the qingtuan.
“It’s green. Can it really be eaten?”
Ye Qiuling introduced it with a smile. “It’s called qingtuan. It’s made from mugwort and flour. If you don’t believe me, you can try it.”
She broke one open and handed half to the person while eating the other half herself to show it was safe.
Qin Jiu saw that she had eaten it and cautiously took a small bite himself.