Riding the wind of rebirth

It was quite late when we got home, and everyone was already resting. Only Grandma and Yang He were still roasting small fish and shrimp in a small pot.

Governing a large country is like cooking a small fish; the best way is to process the small fish and shrimp immediately while they are fresh, and fry or grill them over low heat to remove the moisture, which helps with preservation.

Actually, you can put it directly in the refrigerator and then take it out to air dry when the sun is strong. However, that's a raw method, and the flavor is a bit different from the cooked method we're using now.

My grandmother used to marinate the dried small fish with salt and seasonings. The dried small fish and shrimp made this way can be eaten directly or processed further, such as cooking them with winter melon and chives, which are some of her signature dishes.

"Little Miao's Pork Knuckle is back? Your godparents are busy right now, they didn't even say goodbye earlier and kept them from resting." Grandma said as she turned the little fish and shrimp over.

The kitchen was filled with the fresh aroma of river delicacies.

“Well… I’ll cook the fish for them.” Zhou Zhi smiled and squatted down to take over her grandmother’s work: “My godmother hasn’t had dinner yet, and my godfather said he was too lazy to take the fish to a restaurant tomorrow, so he asked me to cook it for them and have a drink with them.”

Mai Xiaomiao put down the two glass bottles in her hand: "Godfather also said that the red tofu and fermented soybeans are all gone, and he told us to bring the bottles back."

"Yes, we'll serve them the food first and then send it over." Grandma smiled. "By the way, what are the shoe sizes of those two guests? It's their first time visiting, so we should at least give them two pairs of insoles as a token of our appreciation."

Zhou Zhi immediately laughed. This was her grandmother's old tradition. Whenever someone came to visit, she would bring them handmade insoles, sachets, or similar items. She still maintained this habit to this day. She said, "Then I'll ask about it tomorrow morning. Your handicrafts are really good."

“Yes, Lianhe Township is also known as the hometown of embroidery. They all make their own clothes and skirts.” Mai Xiaomiao dragged a stool over to watch her grandmother cook small fish and shrimp: “They have seen my and Zhouzi’s insoles and they admire you very much.”

“I’ve seen Lianhe Township on the news too. You should just let Xiaomiao go to that kind of place by herself. Why are you making allowances for her?” Grandma said, genuinely feeling that Mai Xiaomiao was a really good girl. In the old lady’s heart, a girl who could accompany Zhou Zhi to suffer in the countryside was definitely a rare find.

Mai Xiaomiao laughed and said, "As long as I have elbow around, the countryside is a lot of fun."

She meant exactly what she said, because Zhou Zhi always manages to make seemingly mundane, simple, boring, and dull lives come alive with all sorts of fun and variety.

But Grandma heard it differently and laughed, "I'm just afraid your parents will have something to say, that you were such a delicate little girl, but you've been led astray by Elbow."

"No way," Mai Xiaomiao laughed. "My parents really like Zhouzi. They have no objections at all. Even if Zhouzi is ten times worse, he's still better at taking care of me than they are."

“That’s right.” Zhou Zhi immediately straightened his back: “At least as long as I can eat, I won’t be shortchanged by Xiao Miao. The cooking skills of those two elders… are probably on par with my godfather and godmother.”

"Speaking of food, why are there so many worms in those dried fish you sent home?" Grandma asked. "Your mother said she was going to throw them away, but when I looked, they were all water worms, not baby worms. After picking out the water worms, the rest were quite delicious."

"Oh my, those water bugs are the real gems!" Zhou Zhi stamped his foot. "It would be a waste to throw them away."

"Edible?" Grandma was taken aback: "Water crickets and giant water bugs are edible?"

After saying that, he looked at Mai Xiaomiao and asked, "Xiaomiao, you've eaten it too?"

"Well, actually, once you get used to their strange appearance, they taste quite good," Mai Xiaomiao said. "But Zhouzi said that the water leeks here are much bigger than those in Lianhe Township. I wonder if it's because they're older or younger."

Grandma shuddered: "This girl, she's really been led astray by Elbow!"

The next day, Mom and Grandma started moving things into Yang's car, including the Manzhou specialties Mom bought the day before, "Fei'er Fen" (baby formula) for Xiao Shunzi; two bottles of Laojiao Tequ (a type of liquor) for Old Yang; tea that Zhouzhi got from Meishan and Yazhou; and American ginseng that Mom felt she didn't need yet, given to her by someone... They packed a lot of random things.

Feng Xueshan was both amused and exasperated: "Auntie, you don't need to bring us anything. You can keep it and use it slowly. We also have tea."

“You don’t need anything now, so this is just a small token of my appreciation.” Mom put two more sets of Dad’s uniforms into the car and said to Yang He, “These two have never been worn. The wool coat is for your dad, and this leather jacket is for your brother.”

Seeing this scene made Zhou Zhi feel quite warm, and it reminded him of the time when his third aunt stuffed her Tokyo Electric Power Company uniform into her bag.

"Thank you, thank you." Yang He never refused his mother's kindness: "Now that the environment in the countryside is better, Auntie and Uncle also go to the countryside to play."

"Yes, this year your brother leased three old lychee trees. We'll come when it's time to pick the fruit," Mom said with a smile.

"Please give my regards to your parents, and to Xue Shan as well. Please give my regards to your parents as well."

"Alright, we're off then." Xue Shan took Xiao Shunzi from her grandmother's arms, and then said to Zhou Zhi and Mai Xiaomiao, "Xiaomiao, Zhouzi, we'll be waiting for you back home!"

“Okay!” Zhou Zhi said with a smile, “We’ll come over after we’ve met with Uncle Yu and Sister Xiao Liu.”

……

With the booming real estate industry, Zhu Dazhang's decoration market is now thriving.

Besides running a decoration market, Zhu Dazhang has gradually expanded from the initial wholesale of lighting fixtures, kitchen and bathroom furniture, and floor tiles into a decoration design and landscape planning company, and has even begun to venture into real estate development.

Although everyone was saying that Zhu Dazhang was the richest man in Manzhou, Zhou Zhi knew very well that the real richest man was someone else.

The richest man was sitting opposite him and Mai Xiaomiao, wearing a white shirt and a pale yellow belted knee-length skirt. He was wearing high-heeled sandals and his legs were crossed. He was elegantly serving tea to everyone with his hands painted with red nail polish.

"Sixth Sister is getting more and more beautiful," Zhou Zhi said sincerely, looking at the radiant beauty in front of him.

Xiao Liu rolled her eyes at him: "Aren't you afraid Xiao Miao will beat you up?"

“Zhouzi is telling the truth.” Mai Xiaomiao’s eyes also lit up with envy and admiration for the kind of temperament she could never achieve: “Sister Liu is so beautiful, even more beautiful than big stars.”

“We’re family. If you hear Elbow praising other girls like that, you’d better tell me.” Sister Liu put on a fierce look: “If you can’t bring yourself to do it, I will.”

"Don't you dare corrupt the little seedlings," Elbow said, both amused and exasperated. "This tea was a gift from me to the old man; the production is already low. How did it end up in your hands?" (End of Chapter)