19
Getting yam sap on your hands can be a bit itchy. Of course, some people are immune and have no reaction. Unfortunately, He Tian wasn’t one of those people, but she could endure it.
This little itch was nothing compared to the delicious wild yam tofu.
Scrape, scrape, scrape…
The sun was high, the wind was gentle – neither too hot nor too cold, pleasantly comfortable. The sound of wild yam being ground into paste on the stone echoed rhythmically in the small yard.
Because He Tian was absorbed in grinding the yam and didn’t speak, and Liu Erniang, still feeling unwell, didn’t want to disturb her busy daughter, the yard was exceptionally quiet, filled only with the scraping sound of He Tian’s work.
Apart from that, there were only the soft grunts of the wild boar cubs. Even Dahuang sat quietly by He Tian’s feet, not causing trouble, not bullying the neighbors, just lazily swishing his long tail in the sun.
Grinding wild yam wasn’t difficult, just a bit time-consuming. Fortunately, He Tian worked quickly and didn’t tire easily. She finished grinding before long.
She washed her hands, gathered a large handful of relatively clean dry grass from the woodpile in the kitchen, and lit it right there in the yard.
Lighting a fire while preparing food was normal; Liu Erniang didn’t find it strange. But then she saw her daughter, after igniting the grass, do nothing but wait quietly for it to burn out.
Once the grass had burned completely, He Tian took a bowl and carefully collected the top layer of ash into it.
Liu Erniang: “?”
Rong Yan, finally freed from the despair of being nuzzled by the boar cubs, also noticed.
He didn’t understand either.
He Tian paid no attention to their curious looks. Happily clutching the bowl, she went inside, added water to the pot, and lit the fire. When the water boiled, she ladled some out and poured it into the large bowl containing the plant ash.
After this step, she ignored the ash water, leaving it to settle on the stove. She came out of the kitchen, took the stone she had used for grinding out of the basin, washed it clean, and set it aside. Then she went to the river twice to fetch water, filling the household water vat.
When she finished, the settled ash water had separated into layers. Carefully, she took the clear supernatant liquid and poured it into the ground yam paste, stirring vigorously to combine.
Rong Yan hadn’t seen what she did inside the kitchen, but seeing the slightly greyish-black water she added to the yam paste, he had some guesses. Although he wasn’t sure what she was making, he knew the water definitely came from the plant ash just now.
Adding ash to food? He had only ever seen shamans burn talismans and mix the ashes into “holy water” – and that was mostly a scam.
The yam paste was sticky and required some effort to stir. He Tian grabbed a spoon and stirred vigorously. Once it was well mixed, she carried the basin into the kitchen and ladled the mixed paste into the pot.
She brought it to a boil over high heat, then reduced it to a simmer, stirring the paste in the pot quickly with the spoon – wild yam has a high starch content; if you don’t stir, it burns easily.
She cooked it until the paste changed from milky white to a slightly darker, burnt yellow , and became a thick, sticky consistency. Then it was done.
She extinguished the fire, ladled the cooked paste into a clean basin, smoothed the top, and set it aside to cool and set.
Setting took some time, so He Tian didn’t idle. She picked up her backpack and headed out. “I’m going to town to buy a pot.”
And also buy two new quilts.
The town wasn’t far. Thinking about the wild yam tofu at home, He Tian didn’t wander around. She first went to the blacksmith’s to buy a small pot suitable for the earthen stove, then went to the cotton fluffer’s to buy two quilts.
She spent one tael and three qian of her two taels of silver.
After some thought, she also bought a piece of fatty and lean plum blossom meat, type of pork cut, then hurried home.
Back home, she first checked on the settling wild yam tofu in the house. It would still be a while before it was ready to eat, so she could prepare other ingredients first.
She sliced the pork belly – it would be delicious stir-fried with the wild yam tofu and wild scallions.
There was also a wild pheasant at home. She would kill it and stew it with the wild yam tofu, adding some shelled chestnuts that would surely be even tastier.
Bamboo shoots were peeled, washed, and sliced – would be refreshing and tender when stir-fried with the wild yam tofu.
Yes, she planned to make three dishes for lunch today.
For the staple food, she would steam some plain rice.
He Tian had a big appetite, so she used the large pot for the staple food. She started steaming the rice first.
When the rice was halfway done, the wild yam tofu had finally set. She pressed it with her hand, and it immediately sprang back – it looked very firm and chewy.
She added cool water to the basin, submerging the wild yam tofu, and cut it into palm-sized pieces with a knife, making it easy to take out later.
The wild yam tofu was already cooked from boiling, so it was ready to eat. It was suitable for cold dishes, and of course, also suitable for stir-fries and stews. She first cut a slice to taste it.
It was light, with a faint, unique fragrance of yam. Eaten plain without any seasoning, it wasn’t particularly delicious, but it wasn’t bad either.
She ate several slices in a row before starting to cook.
She cut the wild yam tofu into slightly thicker slices and set them aside on a plate.
First, stew the chicken.
Kitchen space was limited, so He Tian stewed it in the yard using the earthen stove.
The earthen stove, left to dry for two days, was completely dry. This was its first use, and He Tian wasn’t sure if it would work well. After lighting the fire and waiting a while, seeing that the stove didn’t crack or collapse, she felt reassured. She placed the newly bought pot on it, added oil, and when the oil was hot, added the white parts of scallions to sauté until fragrant, then added the chicken pieces and stir-fried.
Sizzle…
As soon as the chicken pieces hit the pot, the aroma of meat quickly spread throughout the yard. Even Rong Yan, accustomed to delicacies from land and sea, couldn’t help but glance her way several times.
He Tian was happily stir-frying the chicken. When it was nearly done, she added water and chestnuts and started stewing.
Unexpectedly, although the earthen stove was simple, it worked very well.
Rong Yan’s gaze fell on the earthen stove she was using. After looking at it for a while, his eyes shifted to Dahuang, who was chasing the rabbits in the yard – it really was made in his likeness, exactly the same.
When the chicken was almost done stewing, He Tian added the sliced wild yam tofu to the pot.
Apart from salt, she added nothing else. She stirred evenly, let it stew for a while longer, and the wild yam tofu stewed with wild pheasant was ready.
Next, she put the pork belly in the pot. After stir-frying it until the fat rendered, she added a little salt, stirred evenly, then added the wild yam tofu. She added a small amount of water along the edge of the pot, stirred a few more times, and it was done.
Then came bamboo shoots stir-fried with wild yam tofu. This dish was her own creation; she just wanted to try it out.
First, she stir-fried the bamboo shoots. When they were nearly done, she added the sliced wild yam tofu. It was even simpler than the pork belly stir-fry with wild yam tofu.
After the three hot dishes were done, He Tian also made a cold dish of wild yam tofu with wild scallions. She added a little vinegar, then poured hot oil over it. The scallions sizzled and released their fragrance, instantly elevating the dish’s deliciousness.
While mixing the cold dish, He Tian felt a twinge of regret. There were no chili peppers. If she had fried some chili oil and poured it over, that would have been a true delicacy of the world.
In her predecessor’s memories, there was no such thing as chili peppers in food. They probably hadn’t been introduced from foreign lands yet. Without chili, the world’s deliciousness was at least halved. She should inquire about it when she had time; otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to enjoy spicy rabbit ding or spicy rabbit head.
The rice had been steamed long ago. He Tian filled two bowls of rice. “Mother, time to eat.”
Since gaining something to look forward to, Liu Erniang’s mood had improved considerably. Hearing this, she chuckled happily. “What’s the happy occasion today, making so many dishes?”
In the past, the family only made this many dishes for the New Year.
“I suddenly felt like tasting a few things,” He Tian said. “It wasn’t too much trouble anyway, so I just made them all.”
Liu Erniang took the chopsticks and, as she picked up her rice bowl, glanced at the young man lying quietly on the ground in the sun.
He Tian didn’t even look, just reassured her. “We’ll eat first. I’ll feed him after we’re done.”
He had eaten quite a bit in the morning; he probably wouldn’t collapse from hunger by now. But her own appetite had been whetted, and there was absolutely no way she could feed him first and then eat herself.
This remark was meant for Rong Yan’s ears.
Rong Yan naturally understood. He was already extremely grateful that they were willing to save him and take him in. There was no reason to ask for more.
It was just that he couldn’t speak right now and couldn’t express his thoughts.
The wild yam tofu was firm and chewy, yet also smooth and springy – a very unique and incredibly delicious texture.
She first ate a piece of wild yam tofu that had absorbed all the deliciousness of the chicken broth. Chew, chew, chew. Then she picked up a piece of the cold dish. Chew, chew, chew.
Then she tasted the ones stir-fried with meat and bamboo shoots.
She had to say, besides being delicious, she discovered another advantage of wild yam tofu – it was versatile. It could be cooked with anything and still taste great.
Even the plain cold dish had its own unique flavor.
He Tian ate with great enjoyment.
If it weren’t for remembering that there was still someone lying in the sun waiting to be fed, she could have finished all the dishes and the rice in the pot.
“Time to eat,” He Tian said, moving a small stool in front of him and placing the food she had set aside on it. “Can you feed yourself now?”
Rong Yan, who had assumed they had saved leftovers for him, looked at the food clearly set aside beforehand and a look of surprise crossed his face.
Seeing him just staring at her again without reacting, she said, “If you can feed yourself, then do it. When I feed you, I don’t know what you like or dislike.”
Rong Yan blinked twice. He couldn’t.
If he could muster even a shred of strength right now, even if it meant moving at a snail’s pace, he would rather feed himself.
So, He Tian held the bowl and fed him, one chopstickful of rice, one of vegetables at a time.
When it came to the wild yam tofu, Rong Yan did hesitate. He always felt this dish was a bit strange, and the way she made it was strange.
But once he actually ate it, he found the taste was truly not bad.
The texture was also very good.
“Should I soak your rice in chicken broth?” He Tian asked again.
She had just soaked two big bowls of rice in the chicken broth and eaten them; it was super delicious.
Rong Yan blinked once. Yes.
He Tian used the chicken broth to soak some rice for him and fed him.
Rice was filling. Although she had only set aside one bowl for him, he couldn’t finish it in the end.
When she poured the leftover rice into the wild boar cubs’ feeding trough as a treat, He Tian’s heart ached – next time she would give him half a bowl first. If it wasn’t enough, she could add more slowly. Giving a whole bowl at once and having leftovers was too wasteful.
Dahuang’s food supply was mostly used up, and she didn’t have much silver left. He Tian planned to go into the mountains again in the afternoon.
It didn’t matter what; she would get something first and sell it for money.
She didn’t know if it was because she had been eating and sleeping well these past few days, but He Tian clearly felt that her perception had strengthened by more than just a little since she first arrived.
Her hearing and sense of smell were also enhanced. Now, when she closed her eyes, she could roughly sense the situation within a hundred square kilometers.
So, she easily located a wolf pack.
Eager to get home, she didn’t delay and headed straight for the wolf pack’s location.
So many wolves!
He Tian, crouched on a tree observing the wolf pack situation in the valley, had eyes that shone with remarkable brightness.
One wolf was one tael of silver. Down there was two taels, three taels, four taels… a full forty-five taels of silver.
But she quickly dismissed the thought.
She couldn’t bring back that many wolves at once; it would be too conspicuous.
And with her current stamina, she couldn’t kill that many wolves in one go either.
So… ten of them.
After selecting the ten taels of silver she wanted, she drew the cleaver from her waist and leaped directly from the tree, charging straight into the wolf den like a fierce tiger.
The unprepared wolf pack instantly fell into chaos.
By the time the wolf king reorganized the pack to counterattack, He Tian had already climbed to a high place with her ten taels of silver.
The wolf king was enraged and roared continuously at He Tian.
He Tian wouldn’t have minded adding another tael of silver, but as she put down her prey and grasped the cleaver to continue, the wolf king, sensing the danger and knowing it couldn’t win, decisively turned and led the pack away.
He Tian, one hand reaching for the leftover crust from lunch to replenish her energy, the other holding the cleaver: “…”
They all ran away. Oh well.
She sheathed the knife and quickly finished the wrapped crust in a few bites, then went to strip bark to make ropes to tie up her prey.
Ten was also a bit conspicuous, so she cut some firewood and hid six of them inside the woodpile, leaving only four hanging on the outside.
To ensure she could catch prey this time, she had gone deeper into the mountains, and getting out took quite a while. The depths of the mountains were indeed very different from the foothills. Everywhere you looked, there were ancient trees blocking out the sky, layer upon layer, not a single ray of sunlight penetrating through. When the mountain wind blew, it was chilly.
He Tian looked around, estimated the time, and quickened her pace – it wasn’t that she was afraid of spending the night in the mountains, but Liu Erniang would worry.
As she was swiftly moving, a very faint cry suddenly reached her ears.
He Tian’s ears twitched, and then she heard another cry.
She stopped and listened quietly for a while longer.
It wasn’t a hallucination; it really was the meow of a cat!
Following the sound, He Tian spotted a kitten that looked to be just about one month old, clinging to a tree branch, trembling uncontrollably.
Looking at its shaky little paws, it seemed to have climbed up by itself and couldn’t get down.
He Tian put down the firewood and prey she was carrying, quickly climbed the tree in a few moves, and rescued the kitten.
“Meow~~~”
The kitten’s meow was soft and sweet, piercing straight to the heart. He Tian felt she had been struck instantly.
No wonder Yao Yao kept over a dozen cats; little kittens were just too adorable! She stroked the kitten’s head, her heart melting. This was simply the cutest creature in the world!
He Tian looked at it left and right. Although the pattern was a bit unusual, she could tell it was a top-tier fighter among cats – a Lihua cat, a common Chinese domestic cat breed.
Its fur was half-fluffed up, very fluffy, a completely different texture from Dahuang.
Its paw pads were soft, its ears pointed, and it even had those ear tufts, literally “clever hairs”.
She grabbed its paw pads and shook them gently, then placed it in her bosom, picked up her load, and headed home.
Seeing that she had hunted wolves again, the villagers were already used to it. Their reactions ranged from praise to serious requests for advice.
It wasn’t that she was stingy, but she really couldn’t teach them. She couldn’t very well tell them it was because she was different from them, could she?
The people asking for advice weren’t angry either. Everyone made a living by hunting; competition was inherent. It was only natural for someone not to want to share their unique skills. Asking in the first place was a bit out of line.
Except for Liu Erniang and Rong Yan, no one knew that He Tian had hunted ten wolves at once.
Having been through several similar events, Liu Erniang had grown accustomed to her daughter’s hunting. Rong Yan, however, was extremely shocked.
He looked at the thin, weak girl whom he could have lifted with one hand when he was healthy and unharmed, then looked at the six wolves she pulled out from the woodpile, and his eyes widened uncontrollably.
Four wolves had already surprised him greatly, but now there were ten in front of him.
Rong Yan’s gaze finally settled back on her.
The setting sun cast golden rays on her face, clearly illuminating the sweat and focused expression there.
Who exactly was she?
Rong Yan suddenly realized that many of his judgments about her were wrong.
But one judgment was correct: she was dangerous.
Rong Yan’s whole body tensed up.
“Meow~”
A soft, milky meow suddenly sounded in the yard. Rong Yan, thinking it was a cat raised by someone else in the village that had wandered over, watched as a tiny cat head poked out from between the folds of He Tian’s collar.
Rong Yan: “?”
He Tian, busy sorting the prey and firewood before dark, suddenly remembered the little thing. Smiling, she lifted it out of her bosom. “Little kitten, you’re awake?”
Only then did Rong Yan get a clear look at the kitten. His eyes widened instantly, and he looked at He Tian with a mixture of disbelief and scrutiny…
Little kitten?
She had just called it a little kitten?
This was clearly – a lynx, a fierce beast!
**