“Sister-in-law, you’re home! I was just looking for you.”
A cheerful female voice rang out.
Jinxiu turned around to see a slightly plump woman entering the courtyard. She was dressed simply, her hair tied up in a neat bun, and carried a small bamboo basket in her arms.
The Xie brothers, who were chopping firewood, greeted her.
“Sister-in-law Qiuxia.”
Jinxiu remembered who she was. She was the wife of the eldest cousin from the second branch of the family, Zhang Qiuxia. She was also Zhang Yuying’s niece from her maiden family, and everyone called her Little Madam Zhang.
Smiling, Jinxiu asked,
“Is there something you needed, Sister-in-law?”
Zhang Qiuxia approached with her usual bright smile.
“Thanks to you, our family had plenty of meat yesterday, and today we received even more. Father told me to bring you some eggs.”
Looking at the little bamboo basket that had been pressed into her hands, Jinxiu hesitated before turning to Xie Jinnan with a questioning look.
Xie Jinnan nodded.
“Second Uncle is very thoughtful.”
Zhang Qiuxia smiled before speaking a little shyly.
“I’ve heard that your cooking is exceptionally good, Sister-in-law. I was hoping you could teach me a few recipes.”
So that was the reason.
Jinxiu waved her hand modestly.
“You’re flattering me. My family simply enjoys what I cook. It’s nothing extraordinary. They’re all very simple dishes, so there’s nothing worthy of being called instruction.”
Covering her mouth with a laugh, Zhang Qiuxia replied,
“That’s not what everyone in the village says. Every time I pass your house and smell the food, my mouth starts watering.”
Jinxiu laughed.
“Look at me, I’ve had you standing outside this whole time. Please come in and have some water. We can chat inside.”
“Gladly.”
Zhang Qiuxia answered cheerfully before following Jinxiu into the house.
Xie Eryong folded his arms across his chest and stared toward the sky. One moment he looked upward, the next toward the west, his expression unusually solemn.
Beside him, Xie Jinnan raised his axe high.
“What are you looking at?”
Rubbing his chin, Xie Eryong replied,
“I’m wondering if the sun rose in the west today. Second Uncle actually had Sister-in-law Qiuxia bring us eggs? And Second Aunt agreed to it?”
Back when Eldest Brother was studying, Zhang Yuying had complained the most, constantly saying that Grandmother favored the eldest branch. Later, after the family split into separate households, misfortune struck the eldest branch one after another. Zhang Yuying had stayed as far away as possible, afraid they would ask the second branch for help.
The axe came crashing down.
The log, as thick as a man’s thigh, split cleanly in two.
Xie Jinnan looked thoughtful, but simply said,
“It’s not our place as juniors to gossip about our elders.”
Was there some hidden motive…
Or did they genuinely want to mend the relationship between the two households?
If it was the latter…
That would be welcome indeed.
The evening sky glowed with beautiful rosy clouds.
In the kitchen, the pot of pork bone and radish soup bubbled vigorously over the fire.
Jinxiu pulled a large log from one stove opening and fed it into the other, leaving only glowing embers beneath the soup to let it simmer gently.
Granny Tian sat on a small stool trimming Chinese chives. Beside her lay several spring bamboo shoots, gifts she’d received while visiting the neighbors earlier.
“Your Second Uncle really had Qiuxia bring eggs? What else did your cousin-in-law say?”
“Nothing much. She just asked about the family and wanted me to teach her how to cook.”
As she spoke, Jinxiu took the bamboo basket of eggs from the cupboard and handed it to Granny Tian.
Granny Tian counted them carefully.
Ten eggs in total.
Whether it was because of the eggs or something else entirely, deep smiles spread across every wrinkle on her weathered face.
“We have sixty eggs altogether now. Let’s keep these for eating.”
Normally, every egg would be saved and taken to town to sell for money. Aside from these ten, Granny Tian locked all the others away.
Jinxiu nodded.
“Grandma, let’s make scrambled eggs with Chinese chives.”
Setting the basket beside the stove, Granny Tian agreed.
“All right. You decide. We’ll cook five tonight and save the rest for tomorrow.”
Ever since they earned silver from selling white fungus, Granny Tian had become much more generous with food.
Dinner that night featured not only eggs and fresh pork but also the slab of cured bacon the village head had given them.
Jinxiu decided to make blanched pork belly.
The recipe was simple, requiring very few seasonings, yet the meat would turn out tender, smooth, and refreshing.
She first scraped the skin clean before washing the pork thoroughly.
After blanching it briefly in boiling water and rinsing it, she returned it to a fresh pot of water, added salt, and simmered it for about fifteen minutes.
In another pot, spring bamboo shoots were boiling.
Granny Tian removed them and soaked them in a wooden basin before stir-frying them later with the cured bacon.
Meanwhile, Jinxiu went to the backyard and asked Old Master Xie to sharpen a long bamboo skewer for her.
Once the pork was cooked, she would use it to poke tiny holes evenly throughout the meat.
While the pork was still hot, she quickly scrambled four eggs with Chinese chives.
She also steamed a separate egg custard for little Xiaoyu using the last remaining egg.
Next came the stir-fried spring bamboo shoots with cured bacon.
She first stir-fried the bamboo shoots until the excess moisture evaporated.
The cured bacon, after soaking in the water used to cook the pork belly to remove some of its saltiness, was cleaned, sliced, and stir-fried in a spoonful of pork lard together with the bamboo shoots.
Jinxiu picked up a piece of bamboo shoot with her chopsticks and tasted it.
The smoky saltiness of the cured meat blended perfectly with the sweetness of the bamboo shoots.
Just a tiny pinch more salt…
Perfect.
Once that dish was finished, the pork belly had cooled enough to handle.
She washed the knife and cutting board with boiling water before slicing the pork belly into thin pieces and arranging them neatly on a plate.
Then came the soul of the dish—the dipping sauce.
She crushed several cloves of garlic and mixed them with soy sauce and rice vinegar.
Finally, she ladled a large basin full of fragrant pork bone and radish soup.
The rich aroma of pork bones mixed with the sweetness of the radish, filling the kitchen.
“Husband, could you carry the soup outside?”
Once everything was set on the table, Xie Eryong went inside to call Xie Changsheng for dinner.
Smelling the delicious food, Old Master Xie willingly returned from the backyard.
Seeing the feast before him, his eyes widened.
“This is even better than New Year’s dinner!”
On the table were:
Real white rice.
Not a single grain of coarse rice had been mixed in, and it wasn’t even cooked into porridge—it was fluffy, dry rice.
Jinxiu served everyone a bowl of soup.
When it was Xiaoyu’s turn, she smiled.
“Little one, drink lots of soup. It’ll help you grow taller.”
Xiaoyu immediately held his chopsticks upright and declared proudly,
“I’m going to drink two big bowls! No—three!”
Granny Tian laughed.
“Such big eyes and such a tiny stomach! Your sister-in-law made so many delicious dishes and even steamed an egg custard just for you. How much can that little belly of yours possibly hold?”
Xiaoyu cheered happily at the sight of the steamed egg.
“Sister-in-law is the best! I like Sister-in-law the most! She’s amazing!”
His innocent praise made Jinxiu burst into laughter.
“Come on, everyone, start eating,” said Old Master Xie eagerly. “Jinxiu, stop working and sit down already.”
He had nearly started drooling at the sight of all the food.
Granny Tian smiled and scolded him affectionately.
“You’re so impatient, you old man. Eat, eat! Tonight there’s plenty of white rice for everyone.”
Jinxiu had barely sat down when a large bowl of soup was pushed in front of her.
It was filled to the brim and even contained a huge marrow bone.
Looking up, she met Xie Jinnan’s smiling eyes.
Mimicking her earlier words, he said,
“Drink plenty of soup. It’ll help you grow taller.”
What’s that supposed to mean?
Is he saying I’m short?
Jinxiu puffed out her cheeks in protest.
Then she deflated with a sigh.
She was only about 1.55 meters (5 feet 1 inch) tall.
He wasn’t exactly wrong.
Just wait…
I’ll definitely grow taller!
Determined, she picked up her soup bowl.
Xie Jinnan nearly laughed out loud.
He gently rubbed her somewhat undernourished hair and said softly,
“Careful. It’s still hot.”