Xiaoguo was in no hurry to wash the receptacles. In any case, she didn’t have to prepare and make the potato starch noodles anymore. She had plenty of time on her hands. After dinner last night, she taught Zhuang Zhuang some new words. She had promised that she would come back to check on him today. Xiaoguo sat beside Zhuang Zhuang and recited while he wrote down the words silently. Worried that Zhuang Zhuang would forget the words he had learnt previously, Xiaoguo would bring up those words while teaching Zhuang Zhuang the new words.
Zhuang Zhuang didn’t disappoint Xiaoguo. He still managed to get everything right. Xiaoguo rewarded him with a kiss. Zhuang Zhuang was delighted. She promised to give him a reward the next time. Feeling amused, Xiaoguo gave him a pat and asked him to put away his books. She then proceeded to the kitchen to cook. There was already white smoke billowing from the chimneys of the neighboring houses.
Xiaoguo went to the kitchen. There was not much food left in the vegetable basket, and the vegetables in the plot had just sprouted. It seemed that she would have to buy some when she goes to the market tomorrow. While she was busy planning in her head, her hands did not stop moving. In the basket, there were still some potatoes, tomatoes and a bundle of chives. Xiaoguo decided to make some tomato braised noodles.
She scooped out half a bowl of flour and placed it in a basin. This was just the right amount for Xiaoguo and Zhuang Zhuang. She added water and began mixing the dough. After kneading the dough, it was set aside to rest. The tomatoes were then rinsed and cut. As she needed pork belly, Xiaoguo traveled to the other space and carved out a piece of meat from the fridge. When she returned, she cut the meat into cubes. At this moment, Zhuang Zhuang had finished feeding the animals and came into the kitchen. He sat on a stool and started to light the stove.
Zhuang Zhuang heated the pot and added lard. He added some chopped spring onions and ginger to the pot and stir-fried them until they were fragrant. Then, he poured in spices and vinegar to stir-fry with the tomatoes. When the tomatoes had released their juices, a pinch of salt was added and the dish was plated. Zhuang Zhuang brought into the house. Xiaoguo then rinsed the pot and added water. While waiting for the water to boil, she began to cut the noodles. The rested dough was kneaded again before it was rolled into thin flat pieces. They were then stacked into layers and evenly cut into strips that were about three centimeters wide. Xiaoguo had cut out the noodles according to their eating preferences, because they both liked noodles that were wider.
When the water was boiling, the noodles were thrown into the pot. Within a short while, the noodles were cooked. Xiaoguo brought the noodles back into the house. Zhuang Zhuang followed behind with bowls and chopsticks in his hands. They washed their hands and started eating.
After dinner, Zhuang Zhuang washed the dishes. Xiaoguo wiped the table clean and returned to the kitchen. She took the dishwashing liquid that Zhuang Zhuang had put down and went to the well. Now that she has some time, she would wash up the receptacles that were used for her noodle stall.
After he was done with the dishes, Zhuang Zhuang came out to help Xiaoguo with the washing. After squeezing out the last drop of detergent, Zhuang Zhuang said to Xiaoguo, “Mother, there’s no more of this.” Although he didn’t know what it was, he found it very useful. It could remove all the oil stains on the dishes and chopsticks, and it also smelled good. He really enjoyed using it.
Xiaoguo took the bottle and opened it. It had been used to the last drop. “It’s fine. I’ll make some soap this afternoon. It’s actually the same thing. Look at how many soap pods I’ve picked.” Xiaoguo pointed it out to Zhuang Zhuang. He looked at it and realized that those were called soap pods. He nodded obediently.
Xiaoguo brought the clean basins back to the kitchen. After putting them away one by one, she glanced at the kitchen cabinet and saw that there were some leftover cracklings. She had almost forgotten about it. Xiaoguo brought it out and looked at the cabbage in the basket. “Why don’t we make some pork lard cabbage buns for dinner?”
After receiving Zhuang Zhuang’s nod of approval, Xiaoguo got down to work! The sun would set soon. Xiaoguo prepared the dough and placed it under the sun. The weather was warm, so the dough should proof rather quickly. She turned around and went to the place where the potato starch was drying. She brought the starch cubes to the millstone and prepared to grind them into powder.
Zhuang Zhuang wanted to help, and of course, Xiaoguo could not refuse. She knew that he enjoyed helping her in the kitchen. And based on her previous experience, Zhuang Zhuang really liked the feel of starch on his hands. Hence, Xiaoguo was not going to stop him.