TGDW – Chapter 46 The First Viewing of Seafood

The General's Delicious Wife Chapter 046: The First Viewing of Seafood

"Eldest Madam, thank you for your understanding, but since the Second Madam is still worried, why not we take a small portion from the supply, I can cook some dishes for both madams for tasting."

Madam Liu did not expect that Xia Yue Chu would really accept such a challenge, so after rolling her eyes for a moment, she directed themselves out with a few words.

"Let's go, the seafood is placed near in the kitchen, I'll take you to open your eyes first. (Meaning: expanding one's world view, eye-opener)"

There were four large wooden barrels placed against the wall outside the kitchen. Xia Yue Chu took a closer look and broke into a smile.

"What are you laughing at!" Madam Liu did not believe that a peasant woman from such a small place would know seafood at all, only assuming that she was stubbornly pretending, so she scorned, "Today if you can correctly identify these seafoods and point out their characteristics, I will believe you, and you don't even need to cook the test dishes anymore."

Madam Wang also glanced into the bucket. Even she could not recognize what was in the bucket, and she glanced at Xia Yue Chu a little uneasily.

"These four kinds of seafood are prawns, pipi shrimp, yellow clams and blue swimmer crabs respectively." Xia Yue Chu said confidently, "The ways to prepare prawns include dry-cooked prawns, oil braised prawns, prawns in tomato sauce, et cetera."

"In the second bucket is pipi shrimp, and there are also places calling it mantis shrimp. In this season, it is the time when the female shrimp will be breeding. The female shrimp is holding a fuchsia shade shrimp roe in her body, which runs from its head to tail. It is usually eaten after steaming or blanching by people who live near the sea. It can also be cooked with salt and pepper, stir fried with onions or be cooked spicy flavored."

Although Madam Wang did not know, but seeing how Xia Yue Chu said with so much conviction, and seeing how stiff Madam Liu's expression was, she knew she got the answers right. After that, she breathed a sigh of relief in her heart, and her expression relaxed, revealing a gentle smile.

Madam Liu refused to give in and said, "I'll consider you right about these two, and there are two more!"

"The third bucket contains yellow clams. This is the season when the meat of the clams are fleshy and delicious. Yellow clams can be blanched, spicy stir fry, or mix it as a warm salad. But by the coastline, the most common and the delicious way to eat it, is to roast the yellow clams on the charcoal after setting it aside till it spits out the sediment for a few days. Bake on the fire until its mouth opens naturally, and it cannot be flipped over during the whole process, if not it would be a waste of the clam juice within, which is the most flavorful part. There are also people by the sea who will break the live clams and eat the tender meat directly."

"The fourth one is even simpler. It is the blue swimmer crab from the sea. This should be the blue swimmer crab from the first catch in spring. This is considered medium sized." As she said this, she grabbed one from the bucket skillfully, inspected its abdomen and continued, "The swimmer crab has two harvest seasons in a year. Crab roe for spring and crab innards for autumn. This is the perfect time to feast on the female crab roe, if its fresh and good quality crabs, it will definitely be full of roe after opening its shell. Even the two sharp tips of the shell will be full of it. About the manner of cooking crabs, steaming it with a little wine and pairing it with a ginger and vinegar dipping sauce will be the best way to highlight its freshness. It can also be stir fried or stewed into a soup, and it can also be marinated in a salted braised brined... ..."

Xia Yue Chu's smooth flow of commentary made Madam Liu speechless. She really did not expect this village bumpkin who was dressed in patched up clothing to be so knowledgeable concerning the seafood, it was hard to take back what she said just now, she could only conclude dryly: "Since you understand everything, then I won't say much else, it will all be depending on your cooking skills on the day of the birthday banquet."

"Then for the day of the birthday banquet, you can remove two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes and replace them with these four kinds of seafood." Madam Wang's spine was straightened now, so her gaze looking at Xia Yue Chu became all the more satisfied, "I know your craft, just do it boldly with confidence!""

Coming out from the Cui's house, she ran into Hunter Zhang who had come to deliver the mountain produce.

Xia Yue Chu looked at the fat pheasant which he was holding in his hand, and couldn't help but request, "Uncle Zhang, if you hit another pheasant again in the next few days, can you keep it for me."

"What are you buying pheasant for?" Hunter Zhang was also shocked when he heard this. There are only two or three families in the village who are willing to afford wild game, other than the Cui family. And the Xue family was definitely not in that list.

"The doctor said that Da Zhuang need more nourishment for his health. I was thinking that a pheasant would be perfect. If I hadn't bumped into you today, I would have to gone looking for you later too!"

"Da Zhuang's wife, a pheasant costs forty or fifty copper coins. Can your mother-in-law afford to spend this money?" Hunter Zhang was a straightforward person, and he would voice out whatever he was thinking.

"Uncle Zhang, don't worry. The last time my parents came, they left me some money, it was set aside for the purpose of Da Zhuang's health."

Hunter Zhang was moved with sentimental emotions when he heard those words. "Da Zhuang, this kid, although he hurt his legs and feet, he has a good fate to have encountered a wife like you who knows how to treat others well."

Xia Yue Chu did not expect that when Hunter Zhang went home for lunch, he would casually tell his wife about this incident.

After sharing, he became sentimental again, and commented that Xia Yue Chu was truly a daughter raised and taught by a private tutor. Although Xia Old Man had not accomplished a scholar title in his life, but his character and his knowledge deserved a big thumbs up.

Madam Zhang was not a bad person, but her biggest problem was that she did not have a filter in her speech. She liked to gossip about everyone from everywhere about everything.

How could she have sat still upon hearing this, so she went to the neighbor's house with a basket of needle and thread and began chatting idly to past time.

Before noon on the next day, the rumors had spread within the Seng Head Village. That Madam Sheng had a death grip on the money which she refused to let go, even the expense necessary for Xue Zhuang's health was covered by his wife's family.

Madam Sheng was at home waiting on Da Ping during her confinement period and she did not have the time to go outside. She didn't know about it at all until the Old Madam Xiao, who had a good relationship with her, came over for a little chat. Then she found out and her hands trembled in anger.

She did not spare any effort in sending Old Madam Xiao off, rushing to the east wing straight away, pointing to Xia Yue Chu's nose and cursed. "You deserve to be stabbed by a thousand knives, what did I do to have been so indebted to you. After Da Zhuang comes back, isn't the money for the doctor's consultation and medication from the family? Even if you are not grateful for it, you shouldn't had gone to the village spewing nonsense and giving other people a reason to stab me in the back!"

"Mother, what are you talking about?" Xia Yue Chu had no idea why she was being scolded. "What did I say when I went to the village?"

Old Madam Xiao who followed behind her and entered into the house. "Aiyo, Da Zhuang's wife, you better don't deny it, I've heard it all. You told other people that the expense for Da Zhuang's health is paid for by your own mother."

Xia Yue Chu frowned and said, "Auntie Xiao, it's not good to talk nonsense with just red lips and white teeth (Meaning: empty mouths, empty talk). First, tell us who is it that told you this? I'll go confront them with you."

Where would Old Madam Xiao find the right person to confront, what's more, the things that she told Madam Sheng was her own version after adding more fuel for misinterpretation. She immediately scrunched her mouth and mumbled. "Anyway, that's what the people in the village are saying, it couldn't possibly be that every one of them had wronged you."

Madam Sheng was going to scold again hearing that, but she was stopped by Xue Qin's words.

"Mother, Sister-in-law is not such a person. Those people in the village love talking behind other people's back and it's not like you don't know it, why do you want to sow discord in the family just because of something other people had said."

Madam Sheng did not expect that her daugther would speak for Xia Yue Chu, and she was so shocked that her eyes were about to pop out.

Old Madam Xiao's face did not look good either, and she said with displeasure, "Xiao Qin, what do you mean by that?"

Xue Qin replied, "Auntie, don't think too deeply into it. I meant those who are idle every day with nothing else to do except for spreading lies!"

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Translator Notes:

Translated by YellowBean.