In the afternoon, Tang Jin bought everything she needed: fabric for the women of the art troupe to make clothes, fabric for sportswear, and running shoes.
She also bought some silk, planning to make a qipao for Guo Suna. After all, the woman had given her a jade bracelet worth several thousand yuan.
She also bought some wool-blend fabric to make Lu Wensheng a suit.
Tang Jin had always believed in repaying kindness. If someone treated her well by three parts, she would return seven parts.
Finally, she bought some nylon rope, wove it into a net bag herself, and tied it to a bamboo pole, preparing to go fishing early the next morning.
She didn’t even bother with dinner and immediately started working. Those five pieces of clothing were urgently needed, and she also had to finish her own sportswear to wear tomorrow.
If she had to cook tomorrow, half the morning would be gone.
Tang Jin worked until midnight before going to sleep. The next morning, she got up again at six.
She put on the sportswear she had made the night before, slipped into sandals, grabbed the net bag and a bucket, and set off.
She wouldn’t be running this morning.
Today’s mission was purely to catch fish.
When she arrived at the riverbank, Tang Jin went to the spot where she had caught the soft-shell turtle yesterday, hoping to see whether that big fish was still there.
After looking for quite a while, she didn’t see the fish, so she walked further upstream.
Unexpectedly, she made a new discovery.
Near some water plants ahead, a crayfish was crawling along the riverbank. Wait, not just one—a whole group.
“Oh my gosh! I’ve struck it rich!”
These were her absolute favorite. Tang Jin felt even happier than if she had won the lottery.
Excited, she hurried over, stepping on rocks and bending down to pick up crayfish. In no time, she had filled half a bucket. Even then, there were still many left.
Forget it. She’d come back tomorrow.
She couldn’t make just one dish today anyway—she still needed to catch fish.
She walked a little farther. She didn’t see fish, but she did find a few crabs.
Tang Jin scooped them up with the net and tossed them into the bucket.
The two species in the bucket immediately started fighting. Both had big pincers, and neither would give way.
She continued forward, and sure enough, persistence paid off.
She finally spotted the big fish—and there were two of them.
With one swing of the net, Tang Jin scooped them both up like twins.
Tang Jin felt that was enough and headed back. The bucket couldn’t hold the fish anyway, or those two clawed creatures would probably pinch them to death.
So she simply carried the two fish in the net without taking them out.
At the gate of the military family compound, two soldiers were on duty—Xiao Li and Xiao Zhang.
When they saw Tang Jin carrying two fish back, they couldn’t help secretly laughing. Yesterday she caught a turtle, today two fish. The battalion commander’s wife was practically becoming a fisherman.
They only dared to laugh silently. They didn’t dare laugh out loud, afraid Tang Jin would scold them. In the past, they had been scolded by this woman more than once.
As soon as she entered the compound, she ran into Xiang Dong again.
He was riding a classic twenty-eight-inch bicycle. Seeing Tang Jin carrying two fish and a bucket, he stopped with one foot on the ground.
He sighed.
“Sister-in-law, why did you go into the river again? Didn’t we say it’s dangerous there?”
“What are those red worms in the bucket?”
When he stepped closer and saw the bucket, he was dumbfounded.
Eating turtle was one thing, but now she was even eating these mysterious worms?
What if she got sick from eating them? Mu Heng wasn’t even home.
Sigh… this was really giving him a headache.
In a panic, he hurriedly took ten yuan out of his pocket and handed it to Tang Jin.
“Sister-in-law, take this ten yuan and buy some food first. Brother Heng should be back in a few days. If it’s not enough, I’ll give you more.”
Seeing the nervous look on Xiang Dong’s face, Tang Jin finally couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing.
“These aren’t worms. They’re crayfish. With ice-cold beer, they’re an absolute delicacy.”
Just thinking about it made her mouth water.
“Heh, the name you gave them sounds pretty nice.”
Xiang Dong didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He felt that ever since this woman lost her memory, her mind had become a little abnormal.
These past few days she hadn’t been causing trouble anymore, but she loved running to the river and bringing back strange things.
“Brother Xiang Dong, I won’t talk anymore. I have to hurry back and clean the crayfish.”
After saying that, Tang Jin quickly walked toward the residential building.
Xiang Dong was left behind, still holding the ten yuan and sighing repeatedly.
This time, Tang Jin didn’t go home. She went straight to Commander Lu’s house.
Seeing the bucket full of red “worms,” Guo Suna was also stunned.
“Xiao Jin, can these really be eaten?”
She knew Tang Jin’s cooking skills well, but she had never seen or eaten this before.
“Godmother, crayfish are delicious. Just wait and see.”
With that, she began cleaning them. They were quite troublesome to prepare and had to be scrubbed for a long time.
That whole morning, Tang Jin stayed busy.
Guo Suna helped her—peeling garlic, washing vegetables, and assisting wherever she could.
Tang Jin made two versions of the crayfish: one spicy and numbing, and one with garlic. Fortunately, her godmother’s house had a full set of seasonings.
Of the two fish, one was braised in soy sauce, and the other made sweet-and-sour.
The crabs were simply steamed.
Since there was meat and vegetables in the refrigerator, Tang Jin also made braised pork, mapo tofu, spicy diced chicken, and stir-fried cabbage with vinegar.
When Lu Wensheng returned home with several guests, the dishes had just been set on the table.
Seeing the table filled with food, everyone praised Tang Jin for being capable.
Six or seven people gathered around the dining table and sat down.
“Old Lu, what are these red worms?” Political Commissar Li asked curiously. He had never eaten such a dish in his life.
“Xiao Jin, what is this?” Commander Lu also asked. It was his first time seeing it.
“Godfather, these are crayfish. I caught them in the river. They’re really delicious,” Tang Jin said proudly.
“Crayfish… come to think of it, they do look similar. I once ate lobster at a restaurant in Beijing. These must be lobster’s little brothers.”
After Lu Wensheng explained, everyone suddenly looked enlightened.
Tang Jin tried hard not to laugh.
“Yes, yes. They’re very delicious. I’ll peel one for you to try, Godfather.”
She was afraid they wouldn’t know how to eat them, so she decided to demonstrate first.
Everyone watched as she twisted off the crayfish’s head, held the tail and shook it slightly. The meat slid right out. She dipped it in the sauce on the plate and handed it to Lu Wensheng.
Lu Wensheng took it and popped it into his mouth.
The spicy, numbing fragrance instantly stimulated his taste buds. The meat was springy and chewy. He closed his eyes and savored the flavor.
This was unbelievably delicious.
Seeing how much he enjoyed it, the others also started peeling them. Tang Jin quickly peeled one for her godmother as well—she couldn’t show favoritism.
Soon everyone was completely conquered by the flavor of the crayfish.
A crayfish paired with a cup of good liquor.
Before long, both plates of crayfish were completely finished. All the other dishes were also wiped clean.
Even the crabs were reduced to empty shells.
After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, they began praising each other.
“Old Lu, your daughter is amazing. My daughter burns even the simplest stir-fry. It’s impossible to eat.”
Political Commissar Li looked a little envious.
“That’s right. With her cooking skills, even the chefs at state-owned restaurants can’t compare,” Vice Division Commander Liu added.
“Exactly, exactly. This cooking is just too good,” Regiment Commander Zhou echoed.
Only then did Tang Jin notice that her godfather hadn’t invited Regiment Commander Zhang.
Heh… he was really giving her face.
Her heart felt warm.
“Hahaha! Didn’t I tell you? My daughter isn’t just beautiful—her cooking is outstanding too. I wasn’t lying, was I?”
Lu Wensheng felt quite proud.
This goddaughter really made him look good.
After a meal full of praise from everyone, Tang Jin felt absolutely delighted.