It was the height of summer, and even the faint light of dawn carried a scorching heat. Wisps of smoke rose from the chimneys of the hutong households, and the sounds of human activity swelled with the growing daylight. The hutong, which had lain silent and coiled in darkness all night, gradually came to life.
Most of the neighbors in the hutong were on familiar terms. Courtyard gates were left open year-round, and people would drop by for a visit and a chat in their spare time. Today, I might help you build your house; tomorrow, you might help me build my pigsty. It was a lively scene of mutual help and support.
Only the family living at the end of the hutong was different. They had moved in not long ago, and their main gate was always shut tight, yet every day was filled with chaos and commotion.
Today was no exception.
“Second Brother, times are hard for everyone. It’s not that we won’t lend you money, but we truly don’t have any to spare. What little we had has been given to the Old Mrs. for household expenses. She secretly subsidizes Third Brother quite a bit. Why don’t you go ask Third Sister-in-law?”
“First Sister-in-law, if you don’t want to lend it, just say so. Don’t try to push the blame onto me. What do you mean, she subsidizes us? Second Brother, you know the situation in our third branch. Don’t you know what your third brother is like? Any money he gets his hands on, he gambles away. How could we have any to spare?”
“What do you mean, Third Sister-in-law, that I don’t want to lend it?”
“If you’re not unwilling, then lend it to Second Brother!”
“You!”
“Enough, enough. First Sister-in-law, Third Sister-in-law, please don’t argue. It was my fault for being inconsiderate today. I’ll go back and think of another way.”
Listening to the noisy argument outside, Wen Ranran felt a throbbing pain in her head.
She glanced at the damp floor of the room and sighed. It had rained last night, and the dilapidated roof couldn’t keep it out. While it poured outside, it drizzled inside, leaving the room unpleasantly damp and clammy.
Wen Ranran looked again at the broken window, through which she could vaguely see the greens and reds of the world outside. She couldn’t help but press a hand to her forehead and let out a long sigh, feeling that her fate was truly bitter. She had worked hard for nearly twenty years, and just as she won the national cooking competition and reached the first peak of her life, she had transmigrated!
Other people who transmigrated became daughters of high-ranking, noble families, with no worries about food or clothing.
She, too, had become the daughter of a noble family, but it was the version where the family had fallen from grace. And she was the least favored one in the family at that…
The original owner of this body came from the Wen family of Lingyang Earl Manor and was the only daughter of the second branch.
Because the old matriarch was still alive, the family had not yet been divided, and the three branches lived together. The first branch of the Wen family had inherited the title, the second branch had obtained a sinecure through ancestral favor, and the third branch was a profligate wastrel.
The Wen family could have enjoyed their glory and wealth in peace, but unexpectedly, the former emperor passed away and a new one ascended the throne. The first thing this new emperor did after his enthronement was to audit the accounts. The audit revealed that the national treasury was leaking like a sieve, and the main culprits were the titled nobles and officials who borrowed money from the court on a whim and never repaid it.
Among them was the Wen family of Lingyang Earl Manor. They borrowed a considerable amount every year, but over the decades, they hadn’t paid back a single coin.
Initially, they were to be forced to repay the money, have their home confiscated, and be exiled. But the new emperor, mindful of the Wen family’s ancestral merits, only stripped them of their title and ordered them to repay the money. If they couldn’t, their crimes would be dealt with then.
The Son of Heaven’s wrath could mean a million corpses. The entire Wen family, young and old, was terrified. They emptied their coffers to repay the money, managing to escape with their lives and limbs intact.
With what little silver they had left, the Wen family moved out of the magnificent Lingyang Earl Manor and bought this dilapidated little courtyard in Qiaojing Hutong, their status plummeting overnight.
Now, they could barely even afford rice and flour.
Presumably, the original owner couldn’t bear such a drastic change in fortune and had fallen ill and died.
Thinking of this, Wen Ranran sighed again. What kind of chef has to worry about their next meal? Oh, that would be me!
The door creaked open, and a tall but gaunt middle-aged man walked in. A frail-looking woman went to greet him. Their eyes met, and both saw the embarrassment and helplessness in the other’s gaze.
“Forget it. Let’s get Ranran to eat something first,” the woman sighed softly. “No one has sought you out to copy books or write letters recently. If it really comes to it, I’ll just sell that pair of jade bracelets for a low price.”
“Qiong Niang! That’s the last of your dowry!” the man exclaimed in shock, his brows knitting together tightly. His voice couldn’t help but rise a few notches.
“Shh… Quieter. Be careful Ranran doesn’t hear,” the woman said, tugging nervously at his sleeve.
Knowing the guilt in his heart, the woman reached out and patted his shoulder comfortingly. “We can always buy it back in the future. Let’s go coax Ranran to eat. I don’t know if she’ll even be willing to drink this rice water…”
She spoke the last sentence very softly, but Wen Ranran heard it crystal clear, even the heart-wrenching sorrow in her tone.
These two were the original owner’s father and mother, Wen Yiliang and Shen Shi.
During the time Wen Ranran had been here, she had been meticulously cared for by the two of them, who attended to her every need without even taking off their belts to rest. Her body had actually recovered long ago, but Shen Shi insisted she continue to rest quietly to prevent any lingering health issues.
Having grown up in an orphanage, this was the first time in her life she had ever experienced the feeling of being loved by parents.
“Ranran?”
Hearing her name, Wen Ranran snapped back to reality. She saw Shen Shi sitting by the bed, holding a bowl of rice water so thin you could see the bottom. Shen Shi scooped up a spoonful to feed her, coaxing in a soft, gentle voice, “Ranran, eat something. You need to eat to get better.”
She stared at the “rice water,” her brow furrowed in distress. It was even more watery than dishwater. Since she had transmigrated, she had been eating plain congee for days, and today, there weren’t even any rice grains left. Although she was so hungry her stomach was touching her back, she still couldn’t bring herself to eat it.
She wanted to eat barbecue, hot pot, king crab!
Beside them, Wen Yiliang saw his daughter’s pitiful state and his face filled with worry. He looked at the bowl of rice water and sighed heavily. “Ranran has been accustomed to fine clothes and rich food since she was a child. How can she endure such hardship… It’s all because I, her father, am useless!”
“Don’t say such things,” Shen Shi comforted him softly. “This family still depends on you, my husband, to support it.”
Wen Ranran looked up at the two people by her bed. The tall man now had his head bowed in dejection, his hands nervously twisting the edge of his sleeve. The woman was so thin her lips were pale, a truly heart-wrenching sight.
Her eyes grew warm. She sat up, took the bowl of rice water, and tilted her head back, drinking it all in one go.
“Ranran…” Shen Shi murmured her name, both moved and heartbroken. Her daughter had been pampered since childhood. Although her food and clothing couldn’t compare to those of truly wealthy noble families, everything was still fine and exquisite. A while ago, she had refused to eat because she found the coarse tea and simple food distasteful, but recently she had become so sensible that she was even willing to drink this clear, watery rice water.
Seeing Shen Shi lost in thought and her eyes growing redder, Wen Ranran knew she was feeling sorry for her daughter again. At this, she gently squeezed Shen Shi’s hand and curved her eyes into a smile. “Mother, you should keep the bracelets. I’m already fully recovered.”
As she spoke, she threw back the covers and prepared to get out of bed. That rice water was not filling at all. She had to find a way to get some food, or she would starve to death just after recovering from her illness!
Seeing her get up, Shen Shi quickly reached out to stop her. “Why are you sitting up? Lie down quickly. Ranran, you’re weak from your recent illness and still need to rest for a few more days. You don’t need to worry about household matters.”
Wen Yiliang also hurriedly said, “Don’t worry, Ranran. Father can earn money by copying books for others. Although we can’t go back to how things were, Father will definitely work hard to make sure you have enough food and clothing.”
Wen Ranran looked at the two of them, and her nose suddenly tingled.
She sighed inwardly, her gaze sweeping over the dilapidated room and broken window once more, before letting out an even heavier sigh.
This won’t do. She had to find some business to start as soon as possible. Otherwise, relying solely on the meager income Wen Yiliang earned from copying books, the family would either starve to death or freeze to death when winter came.
Just as Wen Ranran was pondering what kind of business to start, a loud, sharp voice suddenly sounded from outside the door. “Second Sister-in-law, it’s your turn to cook lunch today.”
“Alright! I’m coming!”
Shen Shi responded and quickly stood up. “Ranran, you lie down for a bit. I’ll go make lunch.”
Hearing that it was time to make lunch, Wen Ranran’s eyes lit up with excitement. She temporarily set aside the matter of starting a business. After all, the first priority was to fill her stomach!
“Mother, let me go with you!”
Hearing this, Shen Shi refused adamantly. “How would you know how to do any of this? The kitchen is a mess, all smoke and fire. Be careful you don’t get hurt.”
Wen Ranran shook Shen Shi’s hand, pleading in a soft voice, “Please let me go? Moving around a bit will help me recover faster, okay?”
In her previous life, she had spent every day with her master, constantly acting cute and playful with him. Although they were master and apprentice, they were as close as grandfather and granddaughter.
Wen Ranran was a natural at this kind of wheedling and coaxing.
Shen Shi couldn’t stop laughing at her daughter’s antics, and her heart softened, so she had no choice but to agree.
Wen Ranran followed Shen Shi out of the room. This was the first time she had seen the small courtyard since she transmigrated.
The courtyard gate faced due south. The main house, made of green bricks, sat on the north side, its eaves and tiles cracked and broken. Next to it stood a mud-brick house with a dilapidated roof and windows. The first branch, the third branch, and Old Mrs. Wen were crammed into the slightly more spacious main house, while the second branch lived in the mud-brick house next to it. Each had their own miseries.
On the west side of the courtyard was a thatched shed that looked like a livestock pen, now piled with farm tools, carts, and other miscellaneous items. Along the eastern wall was a vegetable patch where a few vegetables grew sparsely. They were all wilted from lack of watering and care. They were probably planted by the original owner of the house; the Wen family wouldn’t know the first thing about such matters.
Wen Ranran was a little pleased to see this. With farm tools and a vegetable patch, she could grow a lot of fresh vegetables just by buying some seeds.
She walked over with a smile and was pleasantly surprised to find a patch of chives growing by the courtyard wall.
“Ranran, the kitchen is over there.” Seeing her daughter squatting in front of the vegetable patch, looking at it with great interest and a joyful expression, Shen Shi thought she was just a child fascinated by a new curiosity. She called out softly, pointing to a small shed propped up by a few planks next to the mud-brick house.
Wen Ranran looked where she pointed and felt her vision go dark. She scanned her surroundings again and let out a long sigh. Truly… four bare walls.
But she had no time for despair now. She collected her thoughts and immediately got up to cut some chives.
Shen Shi was stunned by her deft movements. “Ranran, be careful not to hurt your hand.”
Wen Ranran, holding a large bunch of chives, walked up to Shen Shi with a beaming smile, her dark pupils sparkling. “Mother, let’s eat this for lunch!”
“This…” Shen Shi, who came from an official’s family, naturally didn’t recognize any vegetables.
“These are chives,” Wen Ranran said with a smile. “Whether you use them as filling for dumplings or Chinese Chive Boxes, or stir-fry them with eggs, they’re delicious.”
Shen Shi was already shocked to see her delicate daughter cutting vegetables. Now, hearing her speak so knowledgeably about these chives, she was even more astonished. “Ranran, you…”
But before she could finish her question, Wen Ranran had already pulled her into the kitchen.
Wen Ranran entered the kitchen and looked around. The seasonings were all there, just not much left. The flour and rice jars were also nearly empty, and of course, there was no meat or eggs.
Besides the pots, pans, bowls, and ladles, the only edible things in the entire kitchen were a few squashes and five or six chili peppers on the floor.
She was cupping her chin, pondering her predicament, when she suddenly spotted a sack in a corner on the floor. Through the loosely tied opening, she could vaguely see some yellow powder.
Wen Ranran walked over for a look, and her eyes immediately lit up. Cornmeal! I can make Vegetable Corn Cakes!
She reached in and took a pinch to examine it. Although this cornmeal wasn’t as fine as the modern kind, it was still of good quality.
Just as Wen Ranran grabbed a clean basin to scoop some out, she heard Shen Shi exclaim, “Ranran, your third uncle brought that to feed the chickens!”
“Feed the chickens?” Wen Ranran was taken aback, her mind full of question marks. People are starving like this, and they’re using grain to feed chickens?
“Yes!” Shen Shi nodded. “People can’t eat such coarse grain.”
“Why can’t they?” Wen Ranran scooped out more than half a basin of cornmeal. “The common folk who can’t afford wheat flour steam this to eat as their staple food.”
“Ranran… how do you know these things?”
Wen Ranran turned around and looked at Shen Shi’s puzzled face, slowly saying, “Mother, during my illness, I was in a daze. In that haze, it was as if I went to many places and saw many things…”
She was struggling to spin her tale when she was suddenly pulled into a tight embrace by Shen Shi.
A warm, fresh scent of soap pods filled her nose. Wen Ranran froze for a moment, then felt the woman’s body trembling slightly. A warm drop of liquid suddenly fell on the side of her neck.
“My poor Ranran, you’ve suffered so much,” Shen Shi murmured, her heart fiercely clenched in pain. Her Ranran had been so sick that her soul had left her body… She had almost lost her Ranran.
“Aren’t I perfectly fine now?” Wen Ranran said comfortingly, though she sighed inwardly.
Hearing this, Shen Shi quickly wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and said repeatedly, “Right, right, you’re all better now, all better!”
After this exchange, Shen Shi no longer tried to stop her. She let her do whatever she wanted, only helping quietly from the side.
Wen Ranran washed the few squashes and peppers, then sliced them into fine shreds with practiced ease. After blanching them, she chopped them up a bit more, seasoned them with oil and salt, and set them aside.
Next, she washed and chopped the cleaned chives, put them in a basin, and first poured in some oil to mix them evenly. This way, when she added salt later, the chives wouldn’t release water.
Chives themselves have an extremely savory flavor, so there was no need for complex seasonings; just a little salt was enough to bring out the taste.
With that thought, Wen Ranran sprinkled some cornmeal into the chive filling to help it hold its shape better.
She set aside the two prepared fillings. The squash and pepper filling, with its mix of green and white, was particularly pretty. The vibrant green chives, coated in a glistening layer of oil, also looked very appealing.
Shen Shi’s eyes lit up as she smelled the fresh, savory aroma. “It smells so good already!”
“It’ll be even more fragrant when they’re made into Vegetable Corn Cakes!” Wen Ranran said with a smile. She took a handful of filling, squeezed it into a tight ball, and then rolled it in the cornmeal a few times. Once the surface was evenly coated with the bright yellow cornmeal, she picked it up, packed it tightly, and rolled it in the cornmeal again.
After repeating this three to five times, a plump, round Vegetable Corn Cake was formed.
“Oh! It’s so pretty!”
Shen Shi praised her sincerely from the side. Hearing this, Wen Ranran’s eyes curved into crescents.
She worked quickly, and in the blink of an eye, she had made all the Vegetable Corn Cakes and placed them in the steamer.
Smoke curled up from the stove, and the air filled with the scent of burning firewood.
Steam billowed around the steamer, and the rich aroma of cornmeal mixed with the savory scent of chives wafted out, making one’s stomach rumble with hunger.
When Wen Ranran estimated they were about done, she lifted the steamer lid. The plump, solid Vegetable Corn Cakes were smooth and shiny, steaming hot.
While they were still hot, she quickly transferred the cakes to a plate and made a soup with the remaining squash.
The Vegetable Corn Cakes were a vibrant yellow, and the creamy white squash soup was dotted with bright green scallions. The aroma was enough to make one’s mouth water. Wen Ranran and Shen Shi carried the food to the main house.
When Wen Yiliang saw his wife and daughter enter, he hurried forward to take the soup bowl from Wen Ranran’s hands. A fresh, slightly sweet aroma wafted to his nose, and he couldn’t help but look down at it. What kind of soup is this? It smells so fresh!
The dozen or so people sitting or standing in the room all stopped talking as they caught the scent, their stomachs rumbling uncontrollably. But when they saw the bowl of coarse, plain yellow balls, they all wrinkled their noses in disgust.
Old Mrs. Wen’s face immediately turned cold, and she rolled her eyes. “How can such a crude thing be served at the table?”
Wen Ranran heard this and felt a little speechless. They’re living hand-to-mouth, yet she’s still putting on airs…
Sun Shi from the third branch hurried forward to pat the old lady’s back and calm her down. “Mother, don’t be angry. Ranran is weak, and Second Sister-in-law is just looking after her daughter. If she’s been inconsiderate, please don’t blame her. Just be more tolerant.”
Wen Ranran couldn’t help but frown at these words. The original owner’s third aunt was a real expert at fanning the flames. Instead of calming down, Old Mrs. Wen became even angrier. “Tolerant? How many more days does this old bag of bones have to live? I think she just wishes I’d die sooner, bringing this filthy, low-class thing in front of me to anger me!”
Hearing this, Shen Shi was filled with fear and anxiety, repeatedly admitting her fault. “I wouldn’t dare, Mother-in-law.”
Seeing this, Wen Yiliang quickly stepped in front of Shen Shi and bowed. “Mother, please calm your anger. Qiong Niang has always been filial.”
“You ungrateful thing who forgets his mother after getting a wife!” Old Mrs. Wen pounded him twice with her fists, cursing him while panting heavily. “You ingrate!”
Liang Shi from the first branch had been sitting and watching the show, but seeing the old lady truly enraged, she quickly got up to mediate. If she really got sick from anger, they would have to spend money on her treatment.
Wen Ranran watched quietly, feeling quite helpless. This family is really something. The old don’t act their age, and the young don’t act their age…
“Yo! What’s cooking today that smells so good?”
As chaos reigned in the room, a lazy voice suddenly drifted in from outside. Wen Ranran turned her head to see a handsome young man in a long robe. He had the air of an immortal, so beautiful that even the vibrant summer flowers couldn’t outshine him.
“Third Son, you’re back?” Seeing it was her youngest son, Old Mrs. Wen’s expression changed instantly. She was no longer angry or scolding, and her eyes crinkled into a smile.
Wen Junliang entered the room, craned his neck to look at the table, and frowned in disgust. “What is this stuff? It looks so dry. And the soup, it’s so thin and watery it looks like pig slop. It doesn’t look like something people would eat. I’m not eating it!”
As he spoke, he vaguely felt that the yellow balls looked familiar. He let out a curious “huh?” and leaned in for a closer look. When he saw clearly, he suddenly recoiled, pinching his nose. “Isn’t this the cornmeal I brought to feed the chickens!”
Everyone in the room stared in shock. Sun Shi was the first to cry out, “Second Sister-in-law, I know things are hard for you, and I was just speaking up for you. But to serve people chicken feed, have you lost your mind?”
Liang Shi also chimed in with a reprimand. “No wonder it looked so crude. Second Sister-in-law, if you didn’t want to cook, you could have just said so. We wouldn’t have made things difficult for you.”
Old Mrs. Wen, who had just managed to catch her breath, threw down her cane and raged again. “You want me to eat this? You might as well just ask me to die!”
“Exactly!” Wen Junliang averted his eyes in disgust and declared loudly, “I’d rather starve to death than eat this!”