Border Cook

Chapter 2 Clear Soup Noodles

"Yeah." Lu Qiyan retracted his feet and went to the water tank to fetch water. "It's spring, if you think the water is cold, you can go and boil some hot water."

"Thank you, Brother Lu." Xia Mingyue fetched water and boiled it.

After washing up, Xia Mingyue asked tentatively, "What would you like to eat for breakfast, Brother Lu?"

In the past two days, Mrs. Lu has been cleaning up the courtyard and the almost abandoned kitchen. It is now equipped with all kinds of pots, pans, and utensils, as well as the necessary oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, grains, rice, and noodles. She even put in a dozen eggs and a bundle of green onions.

It has all the conditions for cooking.

"It's all fine." Lu Qiyan didn't care too much.

He is not picky about food as long as he can eat his fill.

After Xia Mingyue walked around the kitchen, she decided to make noodles.

But it’s not hand-rolled noodles, it’s ramen.

Add water, a small amount of salt and an egg to the flour, cut it into long and thin strips, apply a little oil on it and let it rest for a sufficient amount of time, then you can start making ramen.

This kind of home-style ramen requires a lot of skill. It needs to be stretched slowly and carefully, relying entirely on the strength of the wrist to make each strand evenly thick, long and smooth.

When the noodles reach the desired thickness, put them into a pot of boiling water and beat in two eggs.

The water boiled again, and the noodles rolled in the water, shining like silver threads. The already shaped eggs gradually floated from the bottom of the pot into the water.

Add a spoonful of boiling noodle soup to the chopped green onion, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil, then put the cooked noodles and poached eggs into a bowl, and the hot clear soup ramen is served on the table.

The soy sauce was bright in color, the green onions were emerald green, the noodles were white and tender, and the aroma of the poached eggs mixed with the heat kept drilling into Lu Qiyan's nostrils, making him very salivate.

"Thank you." Lu Qiyan took the chopsticks handed to him by Xia Mingyue, and after Xia Mingyue also picked up the bowl, he picked up the noodles in the bowl and put them into his mouth.

The noodles are smooth and chewy, the soup is light and delicious, and the poached egg is slightly runny...

Everything is just right.

Lu Qiyan felt that this was probably, oh no, it was the most delicious clear soup noodles he had ever eaten.

"You are a good cook." Lu Qiyan praised.

"It's okay, just barely presentable." Xia Mingyue answered modestly.

Lu Qiyan stopped talking and just focused on eating noodles and drinking soup.

He finished a big bowl of clear soup noodles, not even a drop of soup was left. Lu Qiyan felt that he was full, but still felt a little unsatisfied.

Xia Mingyue cleaned up the dishes and washed them, then boiled a pot of water to make tea for Lu Qiyan.

Taking advantage of the hot water, Xia Mingyue cleaned the stove again.

It is her habit to clean up everything after cooking.

After all this was done, Lu Qiyan came to Xia Mingyue and handed her two small strings of copper coins. "I have to go out for a while now. You take the money and buy some meat and vegetables. I want to invite Brother Zhao and Sister Lu's family to have dinner at home at noon."

Zhao Youcai and Lu have been busy for him for a long time, and he should express his gratitude.

"Okay." Xia Mingyue wiped her hands and took the silver. "Brother Lu, is there anything you want to eat? Is there anything you cannot eat?"

"Just do as you see fit." Lu Qiyan thought for a moment, "Brother Zhao's family doesn't seem to have any dietary restrictions. Well, just prepare more meat."

Everyone's life was not well-off, and meat was not often eaten.

"I've made a note of it. I'll prepare more meat." Xia Mingyue nodded, "But I'm not very familiar with this place. I think I'll need to trouble Sister Lu to accompany me." "Sister Lu is a warm and enthusiastic person. You can just go find her."

As he spoke, Lu Qiyan had already strode out of the courtyard.

Why are you rushing out? What are you going to do?

Xia Mingyue was suspicious, but didn't think too much about it. She just took the silver and went to the next yard to look for Lu.

After learning about Xia Mingyue's purpose, Mrs. Lu naturally agreed and said with a smile, "Sister-in-law, if you have any questions in the future, just tell me directly and don't be polite to your sister-in-law."

"Yes." Xia Mingyue smiled and took Lu's arm and went out together.

Mr. Lu was a talkative person and he described the surrounding conditions fluently along the way.

The alley they were in was called Xinghua Lane, named after the apricot blossoms that grew in every house in the alley. It was a relatively long and wide alley in the vicinity, and the West Street at the end was one of the main roads in the entire Jinqiu County.

There are many shops on West Street, selling everything you need. On weekdays, there are also stalls selling snacks, groceries and fresh vegetables from nearby farmers, so you can choose whatever you want.

The butcher shop that Xia Mingyue wanted to go to was not far from the entrance of the alley, just a few steps away.

The butcher's surname was Hong, and his voice was as loud as a bell. When he saw Mrs. Lu from a distance, he greeted her warmly, "Mrs. Lu, you are here to buy meat again. It must be that your captain Zhao has made military achievements again and received a lot of rewards. You should eat some meat!"

"I have made military achievements and received rewards, so I should enjoy some meat for a few days." Mrs. Lu replied with a smile, "But today it is not me who wants to buy some meat, it is Madam Xia who wants to buy some fresh meat."

Only then did Butcher Hong realize that there was a pretty young lady following behind Lu.

But after seeing Xia Mingyue, his eyes suddenly lit up, "Where did this pretty girl come from? But she is a relative of Madam Lu's family. How old is she? Have you said she is related?"

He has a younger brother at home, and he hasn't told anyone about him yet.

"This is Qi Yan's new wife. You should keep her in check and don't scare her." Mrs. Lu rolled her eyes at the talkative butcher Hong.

"It turns out to be the new leader of the Lu Brigade." Butcher Hong chuckled.

People who do business have very sharp ears and eyes. Hong the butcher naturally knew about Lu Qiyan and the relationship between him and Zhao Youcai.

"The meat in my shop is the freshest, the most generous, and the most reasonably priced on the entire West Street. Madam Xia, you can come and shop more often in the future."

As Butcher Hong spoke, he had already swung up his big meat-cutting knife. "Madam Xia, what do you want today? They are all freshly slaughtered this morning, and they will definitely taste delicious."

Xia Mingyue scanned the butcher block and selected a piece of pork rump meat. "Let's take this one. Cut from here."

"Okay!" Butcher Hong cut the meat and put it on the scale. "Three catties and six ounces is still a bit high. Miss Xia, since you're here for the first time, I'll charge you three and a half catties and give you one hundred and forty coins."

Wars broke out everywhere and prices soared everywhere. Even in a peaceful place like Jinqiu County, prices were relatively stable, but much more expensive than in the peaceful times of earlier years. A pound of butt meat cost forty cents.

"Thank you." Xia Mingyue said politely, paid the money, and took the buttock meat tied with straw rope handed to her by Hong the butcher, "I'll take my leave first."

"Come again next time." Butcher Hong shouted to see the guest off.

After buying the pork, Xia Mingyue and Lu bought two cabbages, a piece of tofu, some dried black fungus, and some dried chili peppers from farmers who were selling vegetables at stalls. They also bought some freshly baked salt and pepper biscuits from the biscuit stall.

"Is my sister-in-law preparing to stew a big pot of food?" Mrs. Lu guessed, raising her brows slightly.

If you just want to stew a big pot dish, the radish balls are the essence, and pork belly is the best meat. It will be more fragrant if you add some lard.

But pork belly is more expensive.

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(End of this chapter)