To this day, Uncle Lin still couldn’t figure out how Lin Yuhe had turned the sugar white.
“Yuhe, you’re saying it’s because you made the sugar white that our sugar is different from others’.”
Uncle Lin still remembered when he had bought the sugar, Lin Yuhe had said there were impurities in it.
“That’s right, Uncle. We won’t boil sugar today. Tomorrow, I’ll make something different. Today, we have something delicious to eat, so just wait and enjoy.”
Weren’t there people imitating her sugar? She would let them keep imitating, but they would never surpass her.
Everyone was tired today, so they should have a good meal and focus on getting rich tomorrow.
“How much have you two picked? Is it enough to eat?”
Lin Yuhe had found a sewing needle for each of her two younger brothers. Worried that others might see, they had been picking snail meat in the kitchen the whole time.
“Sis, sis, you’re amazing! Look, we’ve picked half a basin of snail meat. Why were we so foolish before? We only knew that ducks eating snails could lay more eggs, but we never thought people could eat them too!”
Looking at the snail meat Changan brought to her and hearing her little brother’s heartfelt words, she couldn’t help but feel a bit emotional. At such a young age, he already had to worry about filling his stomach.
She reached out and patted Changan’s head. “From now on, just follow your sister, and I’ll make sure you have a full meal every time.”
“Sis, it’s just that eating this is a bit troublesome and time-consuming. Picking it is too slow,” said the older brother, Changping, stretching out his slightly wrinkled fingers from soaking in water.
“Actually, if you want to do it faster, you can smash them with a stone and then rinse them. But you have to rinse them thoroughly. If you don’t, there might be hard shells left inside, and if you accidentally eat them, they could cut your mouth and make it bleed.”
Food for their own family had to be clean.
“You two little rascals, you have meat to eat and still complain about it being troublesome. If you bother your sister with this again, I’ll give you a good beating!”
Grandma Lin, busy nearby, scolded her two grandsons.
Only then did Uncle Lin realize what his two nephews had been hiding in the kitchen to do. He also reached out and grabbed a handful of snail meat, feeling hungry. To save copper coins, he had run around all day without taking a cart or eating anything in town.
He turned to look at Lin Yuhe again. It seemed that since this niece was fished out of the river after jumping in, she had become different.
Their family picked snails every year to feed the ducks, so why did they only realize this year that people could eat them too? A growl from his stomach temporarily pushed down his doubts.
“Mom, what are you washing?” Uncle Lin asked, puzzled by the lotus roots Grandma Lin was washing.
Grandma Lin turned her head and looked around the yard. “Yuhe says this is called lotus root. It’s the root of the thing we pick flowers from to sell.”
“Isn’t that the ornamental lotus? Every summer, many people from the town and county come to admire the lotus flowers. Our ancestors always thought they were just ornamental flowers, and no one ever said they could be eaten.”
Uncle Lin grew even more puzzled and couldn’t help but voice his thoughts.
“What does it matter? As long as it fills our stomachs, who cares if it’s for looking at or admiring? You better keep your mouth shut and don’t go around blabbing,” Grandma Lin shot her second son a glance.
She hadn’t considered that Uncle Lin wasn’t foolish either. If something was edible, he would definitely keep it for their own family first.
Lin Yuhe didn’t interrupt the conversation between her mother and uncle. She also knew that her family had noticed the changes in her these past two days, but no one had asked her about it.
From the flour jar in the kitchen, Lin Yuhe retrieved the white flour sent by her maternal grandparents, mixed in some cornmeal, and kneaded a large lump of dough, covering it to let it rest before making pancakes.
Taking advantage of the free time, she chopped a handful of spring onions that Mother Lin had pulled, which would later be added to the pancakes.
"Sis, we’ve finished picking and washing all the snail meat. What else should we do?" The two younger brothers in the kitchen had seen Lin Yuhe knead a large lump of dough.
They knew the white flour at home was sent by their maternal grandparents for their sister to eat, and they hadn’t even thought of touching it.
"Changping, go scrub the pot. Changan, go bring the lotus roots Grandma washed," Lin Yuhe said. In her view, there was no such thing as men not entering the kitchen—her brothers had to scrub pots and wash dishes too.
The whole family stared at the basin of lotus roots soaking in clear water, sliced into white, tender pieces, all wearing expressions of disbelief. This was the thing covered in black mud? How could the sliced pieces even carry a faint, refreshing fragrance?
Lin Yuhe had no time to worry about her family’s thoughts. She was busy rolling out pancakes with a rolling pin.
If anyone felt sorry for their daughter, it was Mother Lin. Seeing Lin Yuhe struggling with the small rolling pin, she quickly took over. "Yuhe, take a rest. Let me roll the pancakes."
As someone who often cooked, Mother Lin had already figured out how Lin Yuhe was making the scallion pancakes. Once she took over, she rolled them out quickly and skillfully.
"Changping, tend the fire. I’ll fry the pancakes," Lin Yuhe said, noticing it was getting late and there were still dishes to stir-fry. They had to hurry.
Similarly too short to reach the stove, Lin Yuhe stood on a stool and leaned over the stove to fry the pancakes. "Changping, don’t make the fire too big."
"Mother, roll the pancakes a bit thinner."
"Got it," the helpers replied in unison.
They watched as she dripped a few drops of oil into the pan, swirled a pancake around a few times, flipped it, and it was done—just instructing Changping to adjust the fire, now bigger, now smaller.
Lin Yuhe worked quickly. Seeing a stack of pancakes in the small basket, she wiped the sweat from her forehead and covered the basket.
She poured a little more oil into the pan, added the seasonings her brother had bought from Doctor Qian, and tossed in the sliced lotus roots.
With a sizzle, the kitchen filled with a rich, mouthwatering aroma that instantly whetted the appetite.
Uncle Lin and Father Lin stood blocking the kitchen door, afraid the delicious smell would drift out and arouse suspicion from others.
Grandma Lin stood in the courtyard, worried someone might come peeking over their fenced courtyard again. At that moment, she thought that once they had money, the first thing to do would be to build a proper wall around the yard.
A neighbor not far from the Lin family sniffed the air. "Why do I smell food? Who’s cooking something delicious?"
"Only the village chief’s family is a bit better off in the village. Who else would have good food? You’re imagining things. Just eat your pancake!" The neighbor’s wife scolded her husband and took another sip of wild vegetable porridge.
The weather was hot, and most families in the village ate in their yards. Usually, the Lin family did too, but today they were eating indoors for the first time, not minding the sweat.
Everyone sat around the table, not touching their chopsticks, their eyes fixed on the two dishes on the table.
Lin Yuhe first took a thin pancake, filled it generously with snail meat, and handed it with both hands to Grandpa Lin. "Grandpa, try my cooking."
"Good, good," Grandpa Lin said repeatedly, accepting the neatly rolled pancake.
She then rolled another one for Grandma Lin.
"He girl, you eat for yourself! They all have their own hands, no need for you to serve them," Grandma Lin said, looking at the few waiting to be fed.
As soon as the words fell, no longer waiting for Lin Yuhe to roll it for them, they took matters into their own hands—each grabbing a rolled pancake to eat.
Usually, there was no rule about not talking while eating, but for some reason today, everyone was focused solely on eating, with no one speaking, only the sounds of chewing and smacking lips could be heard.
It wasn’t until they finished one pancake and picked up the second that someone finally spoke.
"Sis, this snail meat is really fragrant, and it’s spicy and numbing—even better than pork," little brother Changan said, slurping from the spiciness.
Anyone who didn’t know would think he ate meat every day!
"Yeah, sis, and this lotus root, with its crispy texture—I wouldn’t trade it for meat. I’ll go dig for more tomorrow."
Not a single bite was left from the meal, and even the plates were wiped clean by Uncle Lin.