With the steamed buns to accompany them, Yun Qing and Ye Zheng devoured half the basin of crayfish before finally slowing down.
They glanced at each other and silently agreed not to mention how they'd just eaten like starving wolves, preserving a little dignity for both of them.
Only then did Yun Qing have time to praise him. “I never imagined you had such cooking skills. You've made these almost inedible crayfish taste better than food from the restaurants in town. Did you learn to cook like this back at home?”
How could he have? Ye Zheng shook his head. “You know what my family was like. My brother and sister-in-law aren't easy people to live with. They'd never have let me waste so much oil, salt, and seasoning. I happened to come across a book about cooking that described a few methods, and I memorized them.”
Yun Qing remembered that Ye Zheng was a scholar who had genuinely passed the child-scholar examination. If he said he'd read it in a book, that must be true.
“Ah Zheng, you're naturally clever,” Yun Qing praised him.
“I'm not that clever. I was just lucky.” Being praised by the person he loved made Ye Zheng unusually bashful. “I'd never had the chance to try it before. Really, it's only because Qing indulged me and let me fool around that I got to try. You're the reason I discovered I had this skill!”
Yun Qing's lips curved upward. He was delighted.
Taking advantage of the good mood, Ye Zheng suggested, “Now that we're full, let's bring lunch to Mom and Dad!”
Since Ye Zheng wanted to do something thoughtful for his parents, Yun Qing naturally wouldn't stop him. He was pleased the young man thought of them.
Ye Zheng added, “Mom and Dad have been working all morning, so their hands and bodies must be muddy. It won't be convenient for them to peel the crayfish shells. Qing, we're their children. Let's peel the shells for them.”
Yun Qing didn't think the shells were particularly difficult to peel, and his parents weren't delicate. But it was such a small thing that he was perfectly happy to do it.
Together they removed the crayfish heads and set them in a bowl, then peeled the tail meat and soaked it in the flavorful sauce.
After a flurry of work, they set out carrying two bowls of rustic mixed-grain rice topped with a thick layer of crayfish meat and sauce, like a countryside version of rice with toppings.
Out in the fields, Father Yun and Mother Yun had been working hard all morning. When the sun rose to its highest point, their stomachs began rumbling. At last, the industrious pair put down their buckets and hoes and sat in the shade to rest.
Madam Luo washed her hands, took a coarse bun from the basket of provisions they'd brought that morning, broke off a piece, and shared it with Father Yun.
In the neighboring field, Old Li was also eating lunch, and waves of rich cooking oil fragrance drifted toward them.
The elder brother of Old Li's second daughter-in-law worked at a restaurant in town. Thanks to this connection, the Li family sometimes received leftover dishes. These weren't scraps that customers had eaten, of course. Sometimes the restaurant cooked too much or experimented with new dishes that couldn't be sold to patrons, and the workers were allowed to take a little home to share with their families.
Today Old Li had brought food from the restaurant: sliced meat stir-fried with pickled radish and an enormous chicken wing.
The radish had been cooked until it was soft and yellowed, but Old Li didn't mind. There was meat in it, after all! Restaurant dishes were generous with oil and ingredients. How could ordinary farmhouse cooking compare?
As he ate, Old Li looked toward the Yun parents. Seeing them struggling with dry provisions, he compared their meal with his own and immediately felt wonderfully superior.
“Say, Brother Yun.”
Old Li smacked his lips and began speaking in a faintly condescending tone. “The busy farming season lasts more than a day or two. You can't keep your strength up by eating dry rations every day. And isn't it hard on your wife as well?”
Father Yun didn't think much of it. Dry provisions were still food, and he ate them with enjoyment. “Having enough dry rations is already a good life. During a famine, there are times when people have nothing left but roots and tree bark to gnaw.”
It was true. When villagers were busy, who had time to cook? Everyone ate dry provisions. Old Li's second son had done the same before marrying. Now the old man had enjoyed a couple of meals of leftovers thanks to his daughter-in-law and was acting too grand to eat dry food. May that restaurant have leftovers for him every single day!
Old Li was about to say something else when a bright voice rang out nearby. “Dad! Mom! We've brought you lunch!”
Old Li turned toward the sound. The voice was clear and lively, and the owner came practically fluttering over like a little bird. Who could it be but the Ye boy, from whom you usually couldn't coax a word?
Behind him followed the ger from the hunter Yun's family—Yun Qing—carrying the food basket steadily in his hands.
Old Li had been visiting a neighboring village and only heard when he returned that the Yuns had found a live-in son-in-law. At first he'd scoffed. The Yun family's ger didn't look like a ger at all, yet someone was willing to marry into the household? Whoever it was must surely be some lazy good-for-nothing. A man who abandoned his dignity to marry into another family couldn't be much of a man.
Later he'd heard it was the boy who passed the child-scholar examination at nine, and everything made sense. Ah, so it was that tight-lipped, sickly, dough-white boy.
As far as Old Li was concerned, what good was being a child scholar? Ye Zheng couldn't even manage a full sentence when he met someone, let himself be pushed around, and was much less impressive than Old Li's own sons. They might be illiterate, but at least they'd married wives and given him grandsons.
Still, that soft Ye boy was a perfect match for the Yun family's masculine ger. Old Li had even laughed heartily about it at the time. Yet now, looking at Ye Zheng, why did he seem like a different person altogether?
The Yun parents were also looking over. Seeing their ger and son-in-law approach, they hurried forward to meet them. “Why did you bring food? Your dad and I brought provisions. We have enough to fill our stomachs.”
Taking advantage of his youth, Ye Zheng looked up with his enormous dark-grape eyes. “Mom, Qing and I were bored at home and missed you both. Qing said you were eating dry rations in the fields, so we took it upon ourselves to bring you lunch. You won't blame us for coming without asking, will you?”
“Of course not! How could I blame you? You must be tired after walking all that way. Come sit by Mom. I'll brush off a big stone for you.”
She took his soft little hand and really did brush a large stone perfectly clean so he could sit and rest his legs.
Ye Zheng smiled sweetly. “Thank you, Mom. Don't worry about me. Hurry and eat with Dad. If you go hungry, Qing and I will be terribly worried.”
“Yes, yes. Mom will go right now.”
Madam Luo beamed under his sweet coaxing and started toward Yun Qing.
But after only a few steps, she froze and exchanged a helpless glance with Father Yun. She didn't like to speak ill of her own child, but Qing's cooking was a headache. She and her husband had already fled with their provisions to avoid eating a meal he'd prepared, only to have his food brought right to them!
Yet their children had carried it all this way with kind intentions. As parents, they couldn't refuse and hurt their feelings.
By now Yun Qing had reached Father Yun's side. Father Yun beckoned to his wife, silently indicating that they would face this hardship together. Madam Luo had no choice but to grit her teeth and join him.
Yun Qing noticed the looks his parents exchanged and pretended not to. He simply pulled away the gauze covering the food basket, and a wonderfully unusual savory aroma immediately floated out, making everyone's mouth water.
Even Old Li sniffed the air. “What's that smell? Why is it so fragrant? Brother Yun, what delicious things have your child and son-in-law brought you?”
It really smelled wonderful. Old Li inhaled deeply again, and suddenly the leftovers in his mouth seemed much less appetizing.
Both bowls of rice were covered with tender, fragrant crayfish tail meat. The mixed grains had soaked up the rich sauce, and the steaming food gave off an irresistible aroma of freshly cooked river seafood.
The Yun parents had no time to respond to Old Li. Their throats moved as they swallowed repeatedly, saliva gathering helplessly in their mouths.
Yun Qing handed them the food. “Dad, Mom, hurry and eat. Ah Zheng made this especially for you to try. We can talk tonight when you're home.”
Madam Luo had already reached the limits of her self-control. It smelled too delicious! Without another word, she took a bowl and began eating. Father Yun did the same.
Nobody answered Old Li's questions, leaving him feeling rather foolish.
But he shamelessly edged closer anyway. “What are you eating, Brother Yun? Let me have a look.”
Father Yun was too busy eating to answer.
Old Li turned toward Madam Luo. As a woman, she felt too embarrassed to brush him off. Fortunately, Father Yun pulled her a little behind him and handed Old Li a piece.
Old Li wasn't the least ashamed to accept it. He opened his mouth and ate, only to become instantly captivated by the flavor. How could anything taste this good? It was far better than the dishes his daughter-in-law brought home!
“Brother Yun, what on earth is this?”
From his seat on the stone, Ye Zheng answered, “Uncle Li, it's shrimp.”
“Shrimp? Shrimp can taste like this? Young Ye, don't tease me.”
It wasn't as though Old Li had never eaten shrimp. You could just go into the water and catch some whenever you wanted. But he'd never tasted shrimp this fragrant.
“I'm not teasing you. It really is shrimp.”
“It really is shrimp…”
Old Li's eyes darted around. Suddenly, he hurried toward Ye Zheng with an ingratiating smile. “Young Ye, tell your uncle how you cooked it.”
He had a lovely little plan. His second daughter-in-law had told him that the restaurants in town were always collecting new recipes. A fresh, original recipe could fetch quite a bit of money!
If he could learn how to make this shrimp and bring the recipe to the restaurant, he wouldn't even ask for money. He'd merely request that his third son be taken on as a kitchen apprentice. Would the proprietor really refuse?
His second daughter-in-law bossed everyone around at home just because her brother worked as a waiter in that restaurant. If Old Li's own son became a kitchen apprentice, wouldn't he outrank a mere waiter? Then Old Li could finally hold his head high and wouldn't have to put up with his daughter-in-law's attitude!
The thought made him even more eager.
