novelraw Chapter 267 Just Treat It as a Gift
Chapter 267 Just Treat It as a Gift
Chapter 267 Just Treat It as a Gift
After tea, it got dark outside, so Uncle San went to the kitchen to prepare the meal.
Gu Tang didn't let him go, but told him to sit inside. She then called Gu Ping'an, and the two siblings went to the kitchen together.
The Gu family consists of four people, plus Ah Gou and the six servants, which means they need to cook for eleven people.
Gu Tang thought for a moment and decided to make pancakes, stir-fry a few dishes, and cook a pot of rice porridge. That would be enough to fill her stomach; she didn't need to be too particular.
"Will this work? Isn't it a bit too casual?" Gu Ping'an hesitated. "Gu Sanlang is a young master from a wealthy family. Will he be able to eat pancakes rolled with vegetables?"
"Why can't you get used to the food? I'll make pancakes with wheat flour and stir-fry some meat and vegetables. This meal isn't bad at all."
Gu Tang ignored him and took out flour from the vat on her own.
Seeing this, Gu Ping'an didn't say anything more. He walked over to the vat, turned the contents over, and found a large piece of meat.
"This is pork, and you don't eat pork."
"Don't worry about me for now, I'll make the pancakes, you go cook the vegetables, let Dad and the others eat first, I'll talk to them later."
Gu Tang wasn't very hungry yet. She had eaten two large bowls of noodles that her third uncle had made earlier, so it wouldn't hurt to eat later.
"Okay, then let's make it for Dad and the others first."
Gu Pingan placed the meat on the cutting board and began to cut it with a knife.
It wasn't as cold in the kitchen as outside, so the meat had been sitting there all along. Although it felt firm to the touch, it was still manageable to cut; it wasn't too difficult.
By the time Gu Pingan finished chopping the meat, Gu Tang had already kneaded the dough.
She lit the stove, placed a small iron pot on it, and used the pot to make pancakes.
The two pots over the stove, the large one for cooking rice porridge and the small one for stir-frying vegetables, can save a lot of time by cooking all three pots at the same time.
After putting the chopped meat into a bowl, Gu Pingan washed some radishes, cabbage, and pickled vegetables. After washing them clean, he chopped them all and put them in the bowl for later use.
After finishing all that, he lit the stove, added water and rice, and cooked a big pot of porridge.
After the porridge was cooked, he glanced at Gu Tang and saw that she had already made two tall stacks of pancakes. He then lit the small stove and started cooking.
Tonight's meal will focus on large portions; it doesn't need to be fancy, as long as the taste is acceptable.
Stir-fry cabbage with sliced meat until half a bowl is ready. Stir-fry radish with sliced meat until half a bowl is ready as well. Finally, stir-fry pickled vegetables with lard until about half a bowl is ready.
The pickled vegetables were too salty, so Gu Pingan didn't dare to cook too much.
Pickled vegetables taste best when stir-fried fresh; they lose their flavor if cooked twice. A small half-basin of lard should be enough to stir-fry the pickled vegetables.
Gu Tang's pancakes were almost finished. There was a big bowl full of dough, and the pancakes were piled high in two baskets!
"Isn't that enough? Gu Sanlang alone is going to eat a whole basket of cakes." Gu Ping'an didn't forget that Agou was a big eater.
"There's still a big pot of porridge left, that should be enough."
Gu Tang estimated that it was about right. If it wasn't enough, she had some pastries in her room and would give Ah Gou an extra meal later.
After bringing the vegetables, pancakes, and rice porridge to the main room, Gu Tang quickly returned to the kitchen to check what was left in the jar and then simply prepared some food.
In the main room, Ah Gou frowned as soon as he saw the dishes on the table: "My cousin doesn't like pork, why didn't you cook any other dishes?"
He asked Gu Ping'an this question, his eyes filled with displeasure.
Upon hearing this, the third uncle paused. It had only been a few days? He had already remembered Tang's preferences. This person was truly meticulous.
“My second sister said that you should eat first, and she will cook something else herself.”
“I’ll cook.” Ah Gou stood up. “I have a few signature dishes that I’m sure will suit her taste.”
Gu Ping'an looked at him strangely. Why was this person being so attentive to his second sister?
Third Uncle also felt something was amiss; this was far too intimate…
The foot under the table secretly kicked the adopted son, signaling him to speak.
Gu Lianshan was really hungry and was stuffing a pancake into his mouth. He didn't think much about what Agou had just said.
"Don't go. If my daughter didn't want to cook for herself, she would have asked someone to do it already. The fact that she hasn't called for anyone means she wants to cook for herself. You just sit down and eat. I'll go to the kitchen and take a look to see what's going on."
After swallowing the last bite of the pancake, Gu Lianshan waved to Ah Gou and got up to go to the kitchen.
Ah Gou was worried and wanted to go with them, but Third Uncle grabbed his arm and pulled him to sit down and eat.
"It's cold, the food will get cold quickly, we can't delay, let's eat quickly!"
The Third Uncle placed the rolled-up pancake in Ah Gou's bowl and smiled, urging him to eat quickly.
Ah Gou dared not refuse, fearing he would give himself away, so he could only sit down and eat.
Third Uncle breathed a sigh of relief, then turned to the servants and told them not to be shy and to eat as much as they wanted.
These servants were actually all beggars who had previously gone hungry, but since moving into the charity hall, they have been able to eat their fill.
The charity provides relief to a large number of people, so for the sake of long-term sustainability, they dare not spend too much on food each day, and their two meals a day consist of simple, plain meals.
As for meat dishes, the charity only cooks meat once every five days.
Therefore, for these little beggars, today's meal was the most sumptuous they had ever seen!
White flour pancakes plus two bowls of meat and vegetables—this is something they never dared to dream of!
At this moment, they didn't need their third uncle to call them anything. They weren't shy at all and ate heartily, as if they were eating some kind of delicacy.
Seeing how happily they were eating, the smile on Uncle San's face never faded.
They are all still children, at the age when they are growing, and being able to eat is a blessing.
Gu Lianshan had already arrived at the kitchen. He looked at the food stewing on the stove and smelled the aroma filling the air, his mouth watering.
"My dear girl! What are you stewing? It smells so good!"
Gu Tang paused for a moment, then said, "I bought this at the winter market. They said it was homemade chicken. It smelled really good at the time, but after I bought it, I completely forgot about eating it."
I was looking for something when I happened to see the jar containing this vegetable, so I carried it to the kitchen, poured it into a pot to heat it up, and saw if it was still edible.
"Then let Dad try it for you!" Gu Lianshan believed him and was so tempted by the aroma that he wanted to try it.
Gu Tang handed him a spoon and told him to scoop some out and taste it.
“I can’t eat this much by myself, so I’ll give you half. Take it to the main room so everyone can have a taste.”
"Done!" Gu Lianshan couldn't wait to scoop out a spoonful, blew on it a few times, and put it in his mouth without fear of burning himself.
Tender chicken, mixed with some unknown vegetables, swirls around in your mouth, releasing a rich and delicious flavor that's so enticing you might swallow your tongue.
Gu Lianshan gave a thumbs up: "It tastes great!"
Gu Tang took a plate, scooped out a whole plateful with a spoon, and asked her father to take it to the main room to eat.
"Did you leave any pancakes or porridge?" Gu Lianshan asked, taking the plate and looking around.
"I left it in, it's keeping warm in the pot. Don't worry, I wouldn't let myself go hungry, would I?" Gu Tang got up and lifted the lid of the pot on the stove, gesturing for her father to see that there was a bowl of porridge and two flatbreads in the pot.
That's enough for her to eat.
Gu Lianshan nodded, saying it was fine to keep it, and then hurriedly carried the plate back to the main room.
Inside the main room, everyone looked at Gu Lianshan carrying in a plate of food, somewhat puzzled.
What? Did the food not suit his taste, so you cooked another dish and brought it over to eat?
"What is this...?" Third Uncle looked at the plate in front of him. Was this cooked separately? The portion was too small.
Gu Lianshan immediately realized that the old man had misunderstood, and quickly explained, "This was bought by the girl at the winter market, but she forgot to eat it after putting it in a jar. Come, come, you should all try it, it tastes excellent!"
He used a clean spoon to scoop two large spoonfuls for each of his third uncle, Gu Ping'an, and Agou, and the plate was almost empty in an instant.
Uncle San and Gu Ping'an were drawn in by the aroma and quickly picked up some with their chopsticks and put them in their mouths, their eyes immediately lighting up!
"It smells delicious! It really tastes amazing!"
"Which food stall did you buy it from? It's so delicious!"
Gu Lianshan shook his head: "I don't know either, your second sister didn't say."
Seeing that Ah Gou hadn't eaten the dish, he urged, "Try it, I guarantee you'll like it!"
Ah Gou smiled and nodded, then picked up a large portion of food with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth.
Of course he'll like it; he made this dish.
"How is it? Is it delicious?" Gu Lianshan asked him with a smile, pouring the remaining dishes from the plate onto the pancake, then rolling it up and taking a big bite.
"Delicious!" There are still some eggplants in the charity's cellar; I'll make some more and send them to her when I have time.
……
After dinner, it was already pitch black outside. Ah Gou ordered the servants to wash the dishes and chopsticks, and then asked his third uncle if they could make room for the children to stay overnight, and let them leave early the next morning.
The Gu family has one of the most houses in the village, so they can easily spare one room.
But can all six of them fit in one room?
“I live in the east room of the main hall, and your uncle lives in the west room. Tang Yatou and Ping An live in the west wing. There are two rooms left in the east wing. One is for you, and the other can be given to the children. But with so many people, can one room accommodate them all?”
"How about this," Gu Lianshan interjected, "Father, I'll stay with you tonight, Sanlang can stay in my room, and the two rooms in the east wing can be used by the children."
"That's a good idea. Then the two of us will share a room tonight." Uncle San had no objections and told Gu Lianshan to go and get the bedding.
"No!" Ah Gou stopped them. "One room can fit them all, how can they take up another room?"
"What's with all this talk about taking up space? It's just clearing out a room, no big deal! It's settled then!"
Gu Lianshan shoved Agou's hand away, went to the west room to gather his own bedding, and moved it to the old man's east room.
Then he found some old bedding in the house, moved it to the east wing, and let them make their own beds.
There are two rooms, just enough for three people to share.
Gu Tang ignored all of that and went back to her room to sleep early.
She got up too early today, so she'll definitely sleep in a little longer tomorrow to make up for it.
The snow outside was falling heavier and heavier. After washing up, everyone went back to their rooms to sleep.
In the middle of the night, Gu Lianshan got up, dressed, and went out to use a specially made bamboo rake to remove the snow from the roof.
Although the roof of his house was covered with tiles, he was still worried that the snow was too thick and heavy and would damage the roof.
Just like in previous years, we cleared the snow off the roof every few hours.
Hearing the commotion, Ah Gou got up and came out to help.
The uncle and nephew worked quickly, and in about half an hour, they had cleaned all the rooftops.
After cleaning the roof, the two went back to their respective rooms to continue sleeping.
Although he got up once in the middle of the night, Ah Gou still got up on time at dawn the next day and never stayed in bed.
After coming out of the house, he first glanced at the roof and saw that the snow was thick enough that it didn't need to be cleared for the time being. Then he went to the east wing, woke up the little beggars, and said he would take them back.
Hearing the commotion, Gu Lianshan and his third uncle also got up and asked Ah Gou why they had to leave so early.
"Have a meal before you leave. It gets light late in winter, and it's still dark. It's too early."
"It's already 5:45 AM, and dawn is approaching. I still have some things to take care of back in the city, so I can't delay and will skip the meal."
The snow is still falling, but the snowfall has lessened considerably; it's just very cold.
Ah Gou let the little beggars warm themselves around the stove for a while, then arranged for them to ride in an oxcart and sent them back to the city.
Apart from the Gu family's oxcart, the four oxcarts and one horse-drawn carriage yesterday were all bought by Ah Gou.
But when they left, Ah Gou only allowed the little beggars to take one oxcart with them, leaving the other three oxcarts at the Gu family's house.
As for the carriage, Ah Gou wanted to use it himself, saying he wanted to go back to the city with the servants to settle his family before returning.
Third Uncle and Gu Lianshan had no objections, but they refused to take in the three cows tied up in the yard.
"Take that ox with you; it cost several dozen taels of silver! We can't accept it!"
“Why can’t we accept it? Now that we’ve become relatives, as the younger generation, it’s only right that we present a gift to mark the occasion. Consider those three cows my gift for the occasion. It will make me look good when we host the elders of the clan. Don’t you think so?”
"This..." Third Uncle hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at Gu Lianshan, wanting to see what he thought.
"If you want to give a gift, just cut a few pounds of meat and buy a jar of wine! I can't accept these three cows! They are too valuable."
Gu Lianshan didn't want to accept the gift, but since the younger generation had given a gift, the elders were obligated to reciprocate.
These three cows are all females, and they are of excellent quality. You can't buy them for less than fifty taels of silver.
If we accept this gift, how will our family reciprocate?
Ah Gou ignored him and said, "I've already brought this ox here, so there's no reason for me to take it back. You can keep it. I don't want any return gift from you. I just ask that you let me stay at your house for a few more days. I'm all alone, and it's rare for me to find such a kindred spirit. You can't send me away."
"If you don't mind living in my humble country home, you can stay here indefinitely without me saying a word of objection, and I certainly won't kick you out..."
"That's settled then. I'll be going now that the snow is getting lighter."
After saying this, Ah Gou drove the carriage away without looking back.
He dared not linger, fearing that Gu Lianshan would lead out the three cows and let him take them away.
As soon as the carriage left, the little beggars behind quickly whipped the oxen and followed after it.
"This child! I haven't even finished speaking, why did he leave so quickly?" Gu Lianshan could only stare blankly at the carriage that had already gone far away.