Lady Wu had originally been listlessly lying on the table, but when she suddenly saw Zhou Yunyun and the others carrying several dishes in their hands, her brows imdiately furrowed, and she breathed weakly, "Why so many... I really don’t want to eat..."
"Lady, do not worry, these dishes are not for you to eat, but for you to look at," Hua Xiaomai said gently to her, "Just sit in your chair and look. If you find the scent of any dish too strong and it makes you uncomfortable, just tell , and I will remove it imdiately."
Lady Wu weakly nodded her head, and Hua Xiaomai then took a tiny white porcelain dish, the size of a leaf, from Zhou Yunyun’s hand and gently placed it on the table.
The dish contained her homade assorted pickles. She had taken so effort in arranging the plate with kohlrabi, lon cubes, and lotus slices, adorned with a few sweet cicely seeds and screw pine, and then stuffed several thumb-sized, plump radish carvings on top, making the brownish-green pickles appear sowhat delicate.
Next, there was a small bowl containing fine noodles dyed green with spinach juice, simply dressed with garlic sauce and fairy paste, sparkling and transparent, charmingly green.
The third dish consisted of red dates cut open and stuffed with glutinous rice, then simred with rock sugar. The red dates were cooked plump and round, their surfaces coated with a layer of clear syrup, shiny and translucent like flat beads, glistening under the light.
These three dishes, placed together, were strikingly red and fiercely green, and very delicate, directly capturing one’s eyesight fiercely and strongly. In just a mont, they locked one’s gaze firmly, making it impossible to look away even for an instant.
Hua Xiaomai continuously observed Lady Wu’s reaction throughout.
When the pickles and spinach juice noodles were brought to the table, she seed to want to flinch, perhaps because these dishes contained no trace of oil and appeared appetizing, which made her forcibly suppress her urge to avoid them. However, as soon as the glutinous rice-stuffed red dates were presented, a gleam appeared in her eyes and her lips moved slightly, as if she wanted to say sothing, but ultimately, she did not utter a word.
To Hua Xiaomai, such a reaction was already a good sign; she slightly relaxed and took two shallow, wide bowls from Zhou Yunyun and placed them on the table.
In one of these bowls was Crab at Tofu, where the crab at and roe taken from hairy crabs were lightly sautéed to form a beautiful golden yellow, matched with tender tofu and sprinkled with a bunch of green onion blossoms, enhancing the bright and yellow hues, looking irresistibly charming.
As for the other bowl, it contained a straightforward Chopped Pepper Fish Head.
The fish head was split into two halves, sared with Shao Wine, and the surface was piled with minced green onion, ginger, garlic, and a thick layer of chopped chili, then stead. After being topped with boiling hot oil when served at the very center, the chili appeared dazzlingly red and oily. Just one glance was enough to feel the intense spiciness that filled the mouth.
These two dishes were hot, and their flavors were much bolder, especially the Chopped Pepper Fish Head, which, upon being drenched in boiling oil, filled the entire room with its scent. Hua Xiaomai was concerned that Lady Wu might not be able to tolerate it, and felt sowhat anxious in her heart as she hurriedly turned to look at her.
Unexpectedly, the woman was still staring intently at the dishes on the table. Sitting did not give her a clear view, so she simply stood up to look down upon the dishes from a higher perspective. Finally, she opened her mouth and muttered, "It looks so beautiful, so very beautiful... Aside from the fish head which I do not recognize, the rest are just ordinary dishes. Yet, when put together, how can they be so..."
Zhou Yunyun, who stood by the door, also gasped in amazent.
All these dishes were ones she had seen Hua Xiaomai prepare one by one. When they were first cooked, she did think they were quite pretty, but not to the point of being utterly astonished. But now, these colorfully vibrant dishes, arrayed together—reds, yellows, greens, whites, interweaving yet distinct from each other... This was not just a table of dishes, if you put it into a painting, it would not be considered excessive!
Hua Xiaomai caught every move Lady Wu made, and the corners of her lips curled upward unconsciously. Suddenly, she saw her cover her mouth and nose and step back, which startled her, and she hurriedly asked, "What’s wrong, does the sll make you feel uncomfortable? Please don’t force yourself, I..."
Lady Wu waved her hand and coughed softly twice, "It’s nothing serious, just that the sll of the fish head is a bit overpowering—I see that red thing, it looks sowhat like a chili, but can it really be eaten?"
Hua Xiaomai breathed a sigh of relief and nodded with a smile, "Of course it can be eaten. The spicy and savory flavor is very strong, perfect for adding to dishes."
"Really?" Lady Wu raised an eyebrow, seemingly very surprised, "A few years ago, I saw this thing at a friend’s ho in Qingping County; they had it planted in a pot for decoration. Today is the first ti I’ve learned that it can actually be eaten!"
She did not show any disgust towards the array of dishes; instead, she was even keenly discussing the topic of food. Not to ntion how shocked Wu Wenhong was, Hua Xiaomai too was quite surprised and could not help but get excited, quickly calming her heartbeat and said as casually as possible, "Lady, there’s actually one more dish."
"Another?" Lady Wu imdiately raised an eyebrow, her tone carrying a mix of surprise and tension, but not a hint of fatigue or boredom, "What is it?"
Hua Xiaomai pursed her lips and smiled, then took a small, delicate white porcelain bowl from Zhou Yunyun’s hands and held it directly in front of her.
Lady Wu looked down, and her eyes imdiately widened as large as bells, her voice even trembling a little, "This... this is also a dish? My God, it’s really... really beautiful!"
In the bowl was a whole piece of slippery Soft Cake, sowhat similar to the frozen cake of sumr, only that it was made from white sugar and well water slowly simred in a pot to produce a light yellow syrup. On the surface floated several tender sweet cicely flowers, and at the bottom hung dozens of red berries, a re glance was as radiant as the morning sun, clouds floating in the rosy sky, breathtakingly beautiful. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welco to Qidian (qidian) to cast your recomndation ticket and monthly ticket. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian to read.)
Reviews
All reviews (0)