Song Tan's Notes

Chapter 1663. Sesame Leaves Rearranged

After rinsing the sesame leaves and putting them in the pot, Uncle Qi could tell at a glance that the young employees he had hired didn't know how to pick leaves at all, no matter how confidently they spoke.

No, that won't work!
It's a good thing this isn't for sale, otherwise it would be incredibly embarrassing.

Chef Jiang was still asking him, "Should we blanch it or steam it?"

Seventh Uncle glanced at the sesame leaves in the basin, then helplessly reached for the large steamer basket and told the employees to take it out and rinse it again.
"Let's steam it."

Master Jiang chuckled, "I noticed they pinched the fruit neither too old nor too young. If you blanch it, the texture won't be as good."

Don't underestimate this simple step; the results can be worlds apart.

If you blanch sesame leaves, the resulting texture will be refreshing, and you won't lose too much of the fiber, making them chewy.

However, if you steam it, the texture will be softer, more glutinous, and more fragrant, but the slightly fuzzy astringent taste on the leaves will not be completely removed.

The only thing we've received right now is to steam it and save it for making noodles.

Seventh Uncle looked outside and said, "You tidy up first, I'll go to the fields and tell them."

The old man walked slowly up the mountain with his hands behind his back. Despite his age, he was full of energy.

He could lift that big pot and toss it around with incredible skill; the young people he brought over couldn't match him at all.

When they arrived at the vast sesame field, the lush green sesame vines, almost as tall as a person, were dotted with only a few white tubular sesame flowers. The employees were standing there, their hands moving quickly as they pinched the sesame seeds, and even Qiaoqiao was full of enthusiasm.

The problem is, that's not how you pick sesame leaves.

Seventh Uncle looked at the poles that had already been picked and felt a pang of heartache:

"Qiaoqiao, don't pick these sesame leaves yet, pick them next month."

Qiaoqiao looked a little confused: "Huh? Why?"

Didn't we say we should pick the leaves now while we're free, because we might not be able to manage next month?

Seventh Uncle pointed to the sesame stalks in front:
"These flowers haven't bloomed much yet, I'm worried that if you pick too many, it will affect the yield."

"Next month, we'll have someone top this sesame patch, and then you can pick the leaves."

Actually, for their family, picking a small amount first wouldn't affect the yield at all, but the employees were picking in different ways, and Seventh Uncle couldn't bear to do it.

Although Qiaoqiao didn't quite understand, he was always obedient. He popped out of the ground, his forehead sweating under his hat, and showed Seventh Uncle a handful of sesame leaves:
"Was it wrong of us to pick them?"

It can't be said to be wrong.

You can eat it however you like; the texture may differ, but it's not unpalatable.

Seventh Uncle grabbed a handful of leaves from inside to examine them:
"Don't pick the stems off the tender ones at the top, but you can pick the mature ones at the bottom with the stems on, as they have a different flavor."

"Also, you can't pick them too high up, because sesame seeds will grow on those."

Qiao Qiao nodded, a little disappointed:

"That's because I didn't teach well enough; I didn't teach in such detail."

Seventh Uncle looked at his pitiful appearance and couldn't bear to say anything more.
That's not important anyway!

And you can't blame Qiaoqiao. This isn't a major sesame-producing area. In the past, only some elderly people planted a few plots of land at home. They didn't even bother to prune the tops, let alone cultivate it carefully.

Everyone relied on a lax management approach.

So he quickly tried to comfort her:

"You can pick them however you like. I just wanted to let you know that picking them like this now won't have much of an impact."

Last year, Old Song's family planted less sesame, so they didn't put in the effort and relied entirely on the weather.

This year, they've all adopted systematic planting methods. Yanran and the others are checking each plot of land every day. If they don't cultivate it carefully, wouldn't they be wasting it?

That's why this year we're going to prune the tops of the sesame plants a little when they stop flowering. This will help the sesame seeds ripen better and produce more and fuller sesame pods.

Pruning the top before harvesting results in fewer tender leaves, but the leaves produced will have a more uniform texture and will not affect the yield.

It's such a waste to keep picking the young and the old like this.

Qiaoqiao listened attentively and was now very obedient to the advice. She quickly waved to the field again:

"Brothers and sisters, let's stop picking now, we've picked enough."

The self-taught sister poked her head out first: "My bag isn't even full yet."

Qiaoqiao explained earnestly, "Seventh Uncle said that if we pick them in another month or two, the taste will be more uniform. I will teach you properly next time."

Got it.

The top-ranked guy wiped the sweat from his forehead sheepishly: "It's just that we didn't pick them properly! That won't do, that would be such a waste of the ingredients. Good things need to be picked at the right time and place."

He nimbly emerged from the sesame field, the thick sesame leaves in his bag neatly trimmed.

Seventh Uncle could tell at a glance that the person was using their fingernails. He reached out and grabbed a sesame stalk, pinching the connection between the leaf and the stem with his fingers, and gently lifted it:
"Look, this is how the leaves are picked."

"When doing farm work, you don't need to be too meticulous. If you're too meticulous, you'll be anxious and indecisive, which will not only make you inefficient, but also make it easy to do a bad job."

“In the fields, crops thrive on sunshine and rain; they’re not that fragile.”

"Let's go," he called to the others.

“A bunch of young men and women, if they have nothing to do, go back and help clean up the sesame leaves, that will take some time.”

Everyone obediently followed.

As Seventh Uncle led the group halfway, he pointed ahead and said, "Qiaoqiao, tell your sister to leave a patch of land in that amaranth field untouched. When it grows old, I'll give you some stinky amaranth stalks to eat."

Qiao Qiao immediately frowned.

"I don't like it. None of us like it."

Seventh Uncle was immediately delighted:
"What kind of cooking skills do you have? I'm sure what I make will be delicious. Stinky amaranth and fermented tofu, I guarantee you won't be able to stop eating them."

"Besides, you can peel the amaranth stalks that aren't too old, pickle them, and make pickled vegetables. They're crunchy and delicious!"

Although Seventh Uncle's cakes didn't smell very appetizing and had an odd smell, everyone was a foodie.

I've tried all sorts of strange combinations here, like watermelon sauce, so what's so special about stinky amaranth stalks?

Everyone just swallowed hard.
"Will we eat this stinky amaranth stalk?"

If they can get a free meal of sesame leaves today, they might as well be bold and ask; it won't hurt them.

Seventh Uncle laughed: "Asking me is useless. Go and apply for benefits from your boss yourself."

Everyone laughed and acted coquettishly: "The boss asked, and you asked too... You're the elder!"

Seventh Uncle walked through the crowd with his hands behind his back, a smirk playing on his lips:
The young people aren't very good at their jobs, but they're all quite sweet-talking.

Yun Duo followed behind, holding her phone, and looked at the comments section filled with people's envy and jealousy, and felt the pain of being forgotten once again...

Don't say it!

The thought that she could eat such delicious food that her fans couldn't made her feel quite happy.

However, I still want to say, "Qiaoqiao, since you're not going to pick the sesame leaves anymore, why don't you go live and say goodbye to the kids?"

Qiaoqiao then realized, "I'm sorry, kids, I forgot to pick it."

The comments section was so humble: "It's okay, this isn't the first time we've been forgotten..."

I'll forgive you if you give me a handful of sesame leaves.

What does stinky amaranth stalk taste like? I'd like to try it too!

Is it too late for me to grow amaranth now? When making stinky amaranth stems, could you please let me know the ingredients in advance? I'd like to try making it too.

[Sesame leaves! I found them at the market here, haha!]

After harvesting the sesame seeds, could you make some sesame salt to sell?

Everyone chimed in with their opinions, and Yun Duo offered a couple of suggestions to Qiao Qiao from the comments section. He immediately nodded and said, "I'll tell the kids when I make the stinky amaranth stalks."

“It’s just…” he wrinkled his nose, “I really don’t like eating this.”

As for sesame leaves...

"Seventh Uncle said we didn't pick them well. Do you still want them? If so, let Sister Cloud draw some for you as a prize."

Yanping and his sister often comfort their fans and apologize to them, saying that he forgot about them again today, which is really bad.

...

Meanwhile, Lu Chuan finished his work for the day and went downstairs to say to Lu Jing, "Mom, lock up the two family suites and two double rooms from July 7.5th to July 7.15th."

Ok?
Lu Jing was taken aback: "So many people? Staying for 10 days? Who wants to come?"

Lu Chuan smiled and said, "Qin Yun and He Kuang are planning to bring their children and elderly relatives along."

Lu Jing immediately perked up: "Oh! It must be so boring for you to be here without any friends. It's good that they're coming; this place is great for nurturing people."

She touched her increasingly round face and sighed resentfully, "I just can't lose weight anymore."

She used to be such a slender and beautiful woman! Now, she has to wear clothes two sizes too big.

Lu Chuan, however, did not think so.

Lu Jing is quite tall. She used to be thin, but now she's a bit fuller, yet she doesn't look bloated. Instead, she looks quite plump and well-off.

Putting everything else aside, he pushed the mirror on the table forward:
"Look at your complexion, is it better to be plump or thin?"

When Lu Jing looked in the mirror, her skin was fair and rosy. Because she had gained some weight, the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes had naturally widened, making her look extremely happy!
She touched her neck again: "I'll order another cheongsam later, and you buy me a big pearl necklace—and earrings, big pearl ones too."

Lu Chuan laughed: Living in the countryside, she still makes sure to look her best every day. Her mother has this wonderful mindset that many young people don't have these days.

"Okay! I'll buy it! I'll buy you an Australian flat white!"

Lu Jing was immediately satisfied and instructed, "Once you find a suitable one, pick out a smaller one. I'll pay for this one; I'll buy it for Tan Tan."

Lu Chuan sighed helplessly, "Stop fussing over it. I might as well buy a set for her mother too... The seed bead necklace I bought before is missing because she was playing with stringing beads and I don't know where it is. Let's choose a new one."

Lu Jing nodded: "She's a young girl, so bring her more to choose from. What if that jade looks old-fashioned?"

He added with a sigh, "Son, remember to save your money and don't speculate on stocks, buy funds, or do any other investments! Otherwise, life won't be this enjoyable."

Lu Chuan chuckled – he was indeed not guaranteed to make money with every investment, but the losses were still within his acceptable range, and the investment amount was not large.

"Do not worry."

When he sat in the market for a day or two, he had already seen many people become rich by taking a gamble, and then lose everything by taking a gamble.

He will never have that mentality of risking everything he has.

There, all income is accumulated day by day.
That's the most reliable one.

Take Song Tan's family for example. Despite their impressive savings, none of them, young or old, have any interest in stocks or funds. They are truly devoted to their own little world.

Currently, the only largest private expense—

He thought for a moment: It should be Song Sancheng's 20 yuan car.

Then I couldn't help but chuckle: How reassuring!

Meanwhile, Qin Yun and He Kuang were still frantically sending messages in the group:

[Chuan'er, you've already infiltrated the family, can you take charge this year and catch that big white goose to avenge me?]

[Chuan'er, I'm bringing your niece over. Can you sharpen your knife and slaughter a pig?]

Lu Chuan: [Anything can happen in dreams]

[The brothers supported your startup plan, and this is how you treat them? I'm not booking the room then, I'm booking our boss's cousin's.]

My cousin's family eats at the cafeteria, while my family eats special ingredients—don't you like it? Then I'll talk to Tan Tan…

There was a pause in the group chat.

The next moment, several emojis of people kowtowing appeared. Clearly, someone had lost not only money but also dignity in this confrontation.

Lu Chuan thought for a moment, then found Song Tan on the mountain: "Does Seventh Uncle know any local specialty chefs? I'd like to hire one for half a month to cook for the guests at the guesthouse."

"Salary is negotiable."

It wouldn't be appropriate for their family of six or seven to all eat at Song Tan's house.

Song Tan pondered for a moment: "It's only for half a month, so it'll probably be hard to find someone. Let me ask Boss Chang. He has a lot of chefs. I'll see if it's convenient to transfer one over, along with an assistant. We'll still pay the salary. I'll also send Boss Chang some gifts later."

That’s okay too.

Lu Chuan nodded, and then Song Tan asked, "Are these all your friends? You should take this opportunity to invite more people to come and have fun!"

With guesthouses and chefs, they strive to provide the best food and drinks, making this a perfect time to go.

Lu Chuan chuckled: "I rarely go out, and they're the only ones I can call good friends."

He paused, then pondered, "We might need to add another family."

He took out his phone and sent another message to his editor, Yunfeng:
"I run a guesthouse. If you bring your family for a vacation, I can provide you with three meals a day and a late-night snack."

Yunfeng: ? ? ! !

He immediately sent a message questioning, "Do you think this is reasonable?"

"A top-tier author like you! You only provide three meals a day when you send your editor on vacation?!"

Lu Chuan calmly said, "There are also occasional late-night snacks and afternoon tea."

Yunfeng:......

It's true what they say, the richer people are, the stingier they are! Why don't you give them tea instead?

That being said, this year he watched as Lu Chuan's girlfriend's things sold like hotcakes, but he couldn't get any and could only wait for Lu Chuan to deliver them.

Such a golden opportunity, and at the invitation of Old Song's family—

"Wait here, I'll apply for my annual leave in advance right now!"

Lu Chuan said without hesitation: "Qingyun and Kuangqie Kuangqie will bring their families to stay for a week starting July 7.5th."

Yunfeng:......

Very well! They're all authors under his command; now none of them can escape!
……

Hey hey, so early today! So much stuff again!