It had been overcast all day, but the sun came out at dusk.
Zheng Zhilan had specially used a clay pot to cook braised rice. She cooked the rice until it was half-done and drained the water, then stir-fried some diced cured pork, added potatoes and the shiitake mushrooms Qinghe liked. Even before she added the rice to braise, the aroma was already wafting out.
The method was actually somewhat like cooking clay pot rice.
The cold dishes had been prepared in advance. Zheng Zhilan had marinated, boiled, and mixed them all herself, and they included things like sausages and cured meat.
She had purposely made a spicy and sour chicken to cater to Brother Nan's taste.
There wasn't much need to cook many hot dishes, as most of the raw materials had already been prepped by her, and it didn't take much time to stir-fry them. However, the fish, symbolizing prosperity and surplus, was a bit more troublesome – Zheng Zhilan decided to make a Sichuan boiled fish.
Brother Nan watched in amazement, finding it hard to imagine that someone with poor eyesight could possess such excellent culinary skills.
While they were busy, Zhou Li still huddled in front of the stove, holding a bowl of rice soup, sipping it slowly while focusing intently on his art of stacking firewood.
The rice soup was fragrant and rich, warming one's entire body with each sip.
Every now and then, Zheng Zhilan would extend the spatula to him and Brother Nan, letting them taste the dishes for saltiness, a sort of perk they received.
"TSSS!"
Hot oil was poured into the basin of fish, sending up a wisp of green smoke. The fragrance of Sichuan pepper and chili was unleashed, and the oil continued to boil violently in the basin.
Before they realized it, dinner was surprisingly ready.
Zhou Li still felt unsated.
As Brother Nan carried the dishes outside, she said to him, "The sweet potatoes were put in too early. They're almost done; they'll burn if they stay in there any longer... We should have waited until the fire died down before putting them in to roast."
Zhou Li didn't say a word, just used the fire tongs to carefully extract the sweet potatoes buried on both sides, placing them aside.
Brother Nan went out and came back in. She flipped the sweet potatoes, carefully pressing them. Getting scalded, she huffed, "Perfect, just right! We can have these as a snack after dinner."
"Perhaps this is what genius looks like."
"You're ridiculous..." Brother Nan said, her head aching. She then added, "Don't put them on the floor. Put them in front of the stove opening; they'll stay warm longer there."
"Oh."
"Let's go out to eat!"
"Oh..."
Only then did Zhou Li stand up and walk outside.
It had been very warm in front of the stove. Now, stepping outside into the cold breeze, the brisk chill was especially invigorating.
Winter nights fell early. It was already pitch black outside without them noticing, and the cold wind howled through the abandoned village. Zheng Zhilan closed the front door and turned on an incandescent lamp. The light was dim at first. As the warmth of the house rose, a group of dogs huddled together on the floor.
Huai Xu and Brother Nan each sat on one side. Qinghe sat close to Zheng Zhilan, leaving a spot for Zhou Li. Thankfully, they hadn't each taken a separate side, or Zhou Li would have had to sit next to Huai Xu. That old monster made large movements when eating and took up a lot of space.
Brother Nan held up the red wine Zhou Li had brought, examining it against the light, mumbling softly, "What's all this writing...? Where's that thingamajig? How do we open this without it?"
She gestured with her hand, mimicking a corkscrew.
"I'll do it!" Huai Xu rolled up his sleeves, eager to show everyone his trick of shattering a glass bottle with his bare hand.
"Let me do it," Zheng Zhilan took the red wine.
She examined the cork closely. Then, a thin Golden Thread extended from her hand, easily piercing the cork. With a forceful tug, she pulled the cork out.
Brother Nan was stupefied.
Zhou Li glanced at Huai Xu.
Miffed, Huai Xu grabbed his chopsticks and started eating.
Zheng Zhilan didn't have paper cups but had many thick bowls. They were a bit similar to the kind heroes drank from in period dramas, though these bowls were somewhat finer. They weren't particular about it.
Brother Nan poured wine for everyone, the amount based on how much they could drink. Then she turned to the Dog Gang and asked, "Boss, want a drink?"
Only Mantou tilted its head, looking at her as if contemplating.
"Heh heh!"
Brother Nan withdrew her gaze and picked up her chopsticks. She teased the dogs with a bone for a good while before finally giving it to them.
For a moment, Zhou Li thought there was a good reason she was always getting bitten by dogs.
Only the wicked invite loathing from dogs.
「Half an hour later.」
Brother Nan was still enjoying a piece of crusty rice, her cheeks slightly aching from chewing, but she refused to stop. "It's so delicious! Oh right, I need to take a picture to send to the family group, or my mom will wonder where I've run off to."
Zhou Li kept his head down and didn't make a sound.
Brother Nan put down her chopsticks. While taking the picture, she intentionally included Zheng Zhilan in the frame to show that she was at a female classmate's house.
"CLICK!"
"You have reception?" Zhou Li asked.
"Yeah, 3G. You don't?" Brother Nan asked, puzzled.
"I have reception, but no internet access," Zhou Li said.
"My internet connection has been really bad these past few days, much worse than before," Zheng Zhilan said quietly.
"Which carrier are you guys using?"
"Telecom."
"..." Zhou Li glanced slightly above Brother Nan's head. He suspected the poor connection might not have anything to do with the carrier.
"??"
Brother Nan caught his glance and immediately sucked in a breath, annoyed, then swiftly switched her chopsticks from her right hand to her left—
"SLAP!"
"Even the God of Thunder doesn't strike people when they're eating," Zhou Li protested.
"I am the Buddha," she declared.
"...I thought at most you'd claim to be the Goddess of Lightning." Zhou Li had underestimated Brother Nan's wild imagination.
"Hehe! Surprised, aren't you?"
"..." Zhou Li hesitated. "Later, I want to send Aunt Jiang a message to let her know I'm safe. I'll do what you did and include Huai Xu in the photo."
"Call me Big Bro, and Big Bro will set up a hotspot for you."
"No need, I just need to get closer to you."
"SLAP!"
Is that her only move?
Zheng Zhilan took small bites of her food, quietly watching them banter. Only after they finished, she suggested, "Shall we make dumplings after we finish eating?"
Everyone except Qinghe agreed to this.
The incandescent light had become very bright.
After washing the dishes, they gathered around the stove to share the sweet potatoes.
The sweet potatoes had cooled a bit by then, but the centers were still piping hot. When broken open, they released a rich, sweet aroma and looked as if they were oozing melted sugar. Both Brother Nan and Zheng Zhilan said Zhou Li had cooked them perfectly, not burnt at all.
Only Huai Xu remarked that if they kept praising Zhou Li, he'd soon be soaring to the heavens.
Zhou Li ate only half his sweet potato, tossing the rest to Big Yellow. He then clapped the dirt from his hands, stood up, and went to wash them.
When he returned, the others had just finished theirs.
Brother Nan was alright, with only her hands dirtied.
Zheng Zhilan's eyesight was already poor. In the dim evening light, especially when the incandescent lamp cast shadows, even someone with normal vision would have found it hard to see clearly. Zhou Li, however, distinctly noticed two streaks of soot on her fair face, one on each side.
Her hands were also dirty, so she instinctively spread her fingers, holding them up in front of her to avoid touching her clothes.
She looked like a little soot-faced kitten.
Zhou Li, hiding a smile, asked, "When you roast sweet potatoes alone at home, do you also get your face smudged like this?"
"Ah!"
Zheng Zhilan let out a soft gasp and hastily tried to wipe her face with her wrist, smudging it even more.
Seeing this, Brother Nan grabbed her wrist and led her to the washbasin.
"I'll help you wash up. Let's start with your hands."
The light cast their dark, indistinct silhouettes on the wall. Cobwebs, like fluffy tufts, were visible in the cracks—natural traces left by the passage of time. It reminded Zhou Li of his grandfather's house from his childhood.
By the time he came back to his senses, Brother Nan had already cleaned Zheng Zhilan's face and even patted the dust from her clothes.