12:Tasting
No sooner had they stepped inside than the young Li Dashu cried out, “Mother! What is this? It smells so good!”
Hearing this, Ding Huiniang quickly untied the cloth. She had caught a whiff of the aroma the moment she took the pastries, but at the time she’d thought there was some urgent matter and hadn’t had a chance to ask. Now, lifting the cloth to take another sniff—wow! This tiny pastry was so fragrant it almost made her nose tingle!
She picked up a pastry, broke it in two, and handed one half to the girl and the lad. She then broke off another piece for Li Xingwang, and the family of four began to sample them in the room.
“It’s so fragrant! So sweet! Even better than the pastries in the county town!” Li Dashu, his mouth full of pastry, was utterly won over by the flavour and couldn’t help but exclaim.
“These pastries are delicious, but good heavens! How much sugar must have gone into them? How can they be this sweet?” Ding Huiniang was utterly astonished, her mouth full of sweetness.
Li Xingwang and his wife finished the pastry in a couple of bites, smacking their lips. “I never knew Qinghe could make things like this before,” he sighed again. “Now that Daliang has gone, it would be a good thing if she could support the family with skills like these!”
Ding Huiniang sighed at his words, then burst out angrily, “That Tao Erlang is a real scoundrel! The two girls have barely eaten a few mouthfuls of his food, and yet he can’t stand it at all!”
“It’s not just a matter of a few mouthfuls,” Li Xingwang shook his head. “Now that we’ve split the household, you mustn’t mention these things in front of Sister Tao from now on.”
Ding Huiniang rolled her eyes at him. “Do you think I’m an idiot?” With that, she turned and headed for the kitchen. “Yezi! Is the rice cooked yet? Come and keep an eye on it.”
……
As for the second branch of the Tao family, Qian Zhenniang was over the moon today. Having finally split from the first branch, surely they ought to celebrate properly? She had made a point of rising early to go to the county town and buy a pound of pork, and had also instructed Tao Erlang to return home early.
Tao Erlang was over the moon too; all day long his mind was elsewhere, thinking only of getting home at the appointed hour.
Finally, as the afternoon drew to a close, Qian Zhenniang glanced at the sky and, judging that Tao Erlang must be nearly home, took the meat that had been stewing in the clay pot for ages out, sliced it up, and prepared to stir-fry it. But just as she was about to light the fire, she couldn’t find the oil jar or the salt jar anywhere.
Qian Zhenniang began to wonder: even though she hadn’t done much cooking in the past, where else could the oil and salt jars be kept if not in the kitchen? She searched high and low but found nothing, and soon she was sweating profusely with anxiety. After searching for a long time to no avail, she finally realised that the jars must have been taken by Mother Zhao! Qian Zhenniang was so furious that she threw the object in her hand violently onto the floor.
Tao Erlang had only just entered the small courtyard when he heard a loud ‘bang!’ He rushed to the kitchen door and, seeing Qian Zhenniang’s furious expression, asked anxiously, “What’s happened?”
Qian Zhenniang was too furious to speak at first; it took her a long while to gather her thoughts before she said, “It’s all that Zhao woman’s fault! I used to think she was an honest soul, but who would have thought she was so cunning!” She grabbed Tao Erlang by the arm and began to rail at him, “Yesterday you were the one rushing off to help move things, yet that family went and sneaked off with all the oil and salt jars! They’re even more crafty than a thief! ”
Tao Erlang felt thoroughly exasperated upon hearing this. The household had been divided; why were such troubles still arising? He shook off Qian Zhenniang’s hand. “Weren’t you standing in the courtyard the whole time? Why didn’t you keep an eye on them whilst they were taking things?”
Qian Zhenniang was left speechless, which only made her angrier. “You’re quick to blame me. If I’d seen them, do you think I wouldn’t have stopped them?” She glared at Tao Erlang. “You’ve been going back and forth to that thatched hut so many times—how come you didn’t see anything?”
Tao Erlang was absolutely livid. He’d rushed home as fast as he could, only to find he couldn’t even get a bite to eat. He was thoroughly exasperated. “Just stir-fry that pork with the pickled vegetables! We eat those pickles every day—as if we’re short of salt!”
Hearing him speak like this, Qian Zhenniang seethed with anger, yet she had no better solution. She had no choice but to swallow her pride and stir-fry the pork with the pickled vegetables.