A Young Woman's Heart

Mo Xueyao, who was washing her face, even had the urge to take a cold shower right there.

"Why did you go to Grandma Jin's again and get another snack? She has to pay for those too."

"They're all almost expired!" Mo Xueyao retorted. "Since they're going to be thrown away anyway, we might as well eat them!"

"How do you know they won't sell? What if they sell out in the next few days? Next time, you're only allowed to bring snacks that expire today or that have expired a day or two ago."

"Mom, how could you be so cruel? You want me to have diarrhea?"

"What's wrong with these snacks being a day or two past their expiration date? They're fine even if they're a month past their expiration date, okay?"

"Wanyan, I can't stand this fruit shop anymore." Mo Xueyao packed the snacks into a bag. "Let's go home, I really can't stand Mom!"

Li Wanyan lowered her head, pursed her lips, and chuckled to herself.

……

Chapter 103 Today's Dinner at Mo Xueyao's House

"Splash—" In the bathroom, Mo Xueyao hummed an unknown tune as she lathered her body with soap.

Taking a cold shower on a hot day is the most refreshing thing.

Especially in the evening, the water temperature has dropped considerably. Once you let go of the initial 'scalding hot' tap water, the rest is relatively cool, clear water.

But if I had to say, it would still be mild.

"Knock, knock." There was a knock on the door.

Li Wanyan, who was watching TV in the living room, stood up and pushed open the wooden door.

Standing outside the iron gate was Yu Shu, holding a thick black plastic bag—the kind used for fish.

"Hello," Li Wanyan greeted him very formally.

"Uh, no, it's not Xiaoyao..." Yu Shu looked somewhat disappointed.

"Is there something you need?" Li Wanyan took a few steps forward, passed through the area in the middle where shoes and miscellaneous items were placed, and opened the iron gate outside.

"Ah... no, you don't need to go in... um, this was given to me by the old man downstairs. Since no one's home, I'll leave it with you for now... and give it to you tonight..."

"OK, thanks."

"And... yesterday... a red-haired older sister asked me to tell you that she wants to go to West Lake with you on Saturday."

"Oh, I see." Li Wanyan nodded, her probing gaze still fixed on her.

"N-nothing..."

"Would you like to come in?"

"No need... I still have homework to do..." Yu Shu waved her hand, slowly retreated behind her bedroom door, and carefully closed the door.

Before closing the door, he seemed to steal a few glances at Li Wanyan.

Li Wanyan didn't return to her room until the other party had completely closed the door.

The thick black plastic bag contained some red radishes, no bigger than a small egg, covered in dirt, looking like they had been picked directly from the ground and hadn't been washed yet.

There are probably thirty or forty of them here. Although they are small, they are quite heavy when put together.

"Whoosh—" Mo Xueyao hurriedly pulled open the dilapidated wooden door of the bathroom, shaking the water off her hair as she looked at Li Wanyan and asked in confusion, "Wanyan, who is it?"

"Yu Shu".

"Is there a problem?"

Nora wants us to go to West Lake together on Saturday.

"Oh--"

"This bag was given to us by the old man downstairs," Li Wanyan said, shaking the black bag she was carrying.

"What is it?"

"I don't know what to call a small red radish in Mandarin."

"Red...little radishes?" Mo Xueyao curiously leaned closer. "Ah, I know, I know, these are cherry radishes!"

"Very apt."

"I've eaten it before. It can be eaten raw. It's a little spicy, but the taste is pretty good."

“I’ve made it before, but I don’t know what it’s called.” Li Wanyan pursed her lips, seemingly feeling looked down upon. “Let’s eat it tonight.”

"Okay." Mo Xueyao quickly walked to her room, threw a bath towel on the bed, then put on her nightgown and turned to call out, "Need any help?"

"Okay, let's go together."

"This is the second time I've seen such a small radish. Although I've seen other red radishes before, none of them are this small."

“Few people grow these in the countryside, but they’re perfect for growing in city homes because they don’t take up much space.” Li Wanyan dumped the cherry radishes into the sink, instantly soiling the clean water.

"Ugh, so much mud." Mo Xueyao showed a disgusted expression.

Having grown up in the city, she would only play with what looked like clean sand when she was a child, and would never play with sticky mud, because she always felt that the color and texture of it were disgusting, like human excrement.

"Wash it clean first," Li Wanyan said, making some space for them. There were two sinks in the kitchen, one large and one small, and two faucets, so they could be used at the same time.

Do you want some leaves?

"need."

"Take it off and wash it clean?"

"Ah."

"Radishes are really a good thing...you can eat every part of them," Mo Xueyao muttered, and started eating with Li Wanyan.

The first thing to do, of course, is to pick the leaves.

Next comes washing the radish itself. With patience, all the dirt can be washed away, and the red skin will even have a slight sheen, making it look exceptionally beautiful.

The washed-off mud was poured into the trash can, and the pool was also washed again.

"Pick out the smaller ones."

"why?"

"The smaller ones are used for pickling."

"Huh—? Shouldn't the larger ones be used for pickling?"

"It tastes better when marinated whole."

"is it?"

"Ah."

So the two of them began to sort out the smaller cherry radishes, washed them, and set them aside to drain.

Pickling radishes is not that simple; you can definitely do that after you finish eating. What you need to do now is the dish you're going to eat.

Mo Xueyao didn't need to help with the rest of the work; she just needed to watch from the sidelines.

Li Wanyan cut off both ends of the larger cherry radishes, and then smashed them like garlic, breaking each radish into pieces, and the aroma began to fill the air.

In the local dialect, this kind of radish is called 'flowering'.

Translated into standard Mandarin, it should be called 'blooming'.

Next, she sprinkled a thin layer of salt on the radish, sealed it with plastic wrap, and put it in the refrigerator.

"Huh? Aren't you eating today?"

"Make this after the other dishes are ready." Li Wanyan tied her apron around her neck and instructed skillfully, "Yaoyao, crack two eggs."

"Oh, you want scrambled eggs with scallions?"

"Ah."

This is still a dialect term; it actually means scallion omelet.

Mo Xueyao was busy beating eggs, and Li Wanyan was naturally not idle either. She cut a piece of cured meat from the refrigerator, then sliced ​​it thinly, preparing to stir-fry it with garlic.

Although our family's living conditions have improved a lot since we opened the fruit shop, my mother still likes to buy cured meat and keep it in the refrigerator at home. She probably thinks it's because such meat is easy to preserve for a long time. After all, we don't cook at home much these days, and if we forget about the meat after buying it, it might spoil.

Unlike fruit shops, where you can buy and eat fresh fruit every day, this place offers a different experience.

Dinner consisted of stir-fried cured meat with garlic and a fried egg with scallions.

"Yaoyao, take the cherry radishes out of the refrigerator."

"Oh~!" Mo Xueyao immediately turned around and went into the living room. There were two large bowls in the refrigerator. One contained the extra radishes, and the other contained the ones that had just been pounded and salted.

After taking the bowl, Li Wanyan poured out the salt water, rinsed the radish again, and then put it into another clean large bowl, adding sesame oil, soy sauce, vinegar, and Sichuan peppercorn oil.

After mixing them together, the last dish was complete.

Cherry radish salad is the perfect appetizer for summer.

After it was served, the first thing Mo Xueyao tasted was this.

"Ah, delicious!" Cold dishes are probably one of the best ways to bring out the original flavor and freshness of food. The sweet and sour radish made her tongue salivate even more, and she had quite an appetite on this hot summer evening.

"It's just a little spicy... really spicy."

"It's this kind of spiciness that makes it delicious." Li Wanyan also picked up a piece. "The marinated ones are not as good as this."

"Then why pickle it?"

"Easy to store."

"Oh right!" Mo Xueyao chuckled. Spending so much time with Li Wanyan, she almost stopped thinking about things herself and just asked her directly. She felt that if she continued like this, her ability to think independently would definitely decline.

It's true that you have to think things through yourself before you can deal with anything!

"Would you like to pickle the radishes later, Wanyan?"

"Take care of it first."

"Okay, then I'll wash the dishes."

If people can do housework voluntarily, the family will be more harmonious. If one person always has to do the housework, arguments are inevitable.