Chapter 234: Wild Delicacies
Chapter 234: Chapter 234: Wild Delicacies
Today’s spread was basically all seasonal ’wild’ delicacies, with hardly any meat or fish in sight.
But that didn’t detract from its deliciousness.
Nan Zhi’s culinary skills were already enough to turn the mundane into the magical.
Not to mention the ingredients themselves were already top-tier.
It was as if they had gathered the spiritual essence of the entire mountain range; a light, fresh fragrance wafted into the air.
Fu Chao had been annoyed at Lu Shixu just a moment ago. He was seated directly across from Lu Shixu, with Nan Zhi and Nan Yi sitting between them.
Thus, Fu Chao would occasionally glare up at Lu Shixu.
Then, whenever Nan Zhi seemed to notice and look over, he would quickly avert his gaze. He was certainly keeping busy.
Of course, he soon didn’t have the spare energy for that.
Even though he had mentally prepared himself for Nan Zhi’s cooking, when he lowered his head and took a bite of the pagoda tree flower noodles, his eyes still widened in shock!
"S-So, so good!"
The hand-pulled noodles were both chewy and soft. A pagoda tree flower topping might sound strange, but in his mouth, it was nothing but a refreshing, pleasant fragrance, with a crispy-on-the-outside, tender-on-the-inside texture from being flash-fried in hot oil.
With a gentle bite, the sweet floral nectar seemed to gush out on its own, flowing over his tongue and making his very soul feel refreshed and carefree.
Fu Chao couldn’t hold back. Forgetting Lu Shixu completely, he buried his head and devoured several mouthfuls of noodles, only looking up with satisfaction after stuffing his cheeks full.
He still didn’t look at Lu Shixu, his gaze instead falling on the other dishes.
He first saw the toon and tofu salad. It was a cold dish, meant to be an appetizer.
Fu Chao carefully scooped up a spoonful with the serving spoon and brought it to his mouth—
The aroma of the toon had been fully released, mingling with the refreshing, soft silken tofu. With a gentle press of the tongue, it was as if the dish didn’t need to be chewed at all, simply melting into a liquid and sliding down his throat.
His tongue and taste buds felt like they were hosting a grand celestial banquet. Gauze-clad fairies danced before his eyes, and the spiritual energy was about to burst through the top of his skull!
Fu Chao was already intoxicated by the food. He even felt he could finish this entire cold dish by himself!
However, his reason forced him to move his chopsticks to another dish.
Having just eaten something cold, he now opted for a steaming hot pagoda tree flower bun.
The outer skin was soft, fragrant, and tender with a slight chewiness. The filling possessed the ethereal essence of the wild mountains, and the bit of minced meat and egg, far from muddying that spiritual energy, actually added a touch of the mortal world. It was as if it had fallen from the clouds into the mortal realm, becoming deliciously down-to-earth!
Fu Chao never thought he’d one day use the phrase "down-to-earth" to describe a dish!
But that was precisely how he felt at this very moment!
After finishing one pagoda tree flower bun in small bites, Fu Chao thought that the following dishes could no longer surprise him.
But then, a wild onion and egg pancake, with its intensely rich aroma, was like Pangu creating the heavens and the earth. It chiseled open his forehead and forcibly poured that fragrance inside—utterly domineering and extreme!
As everyone knows, scallions have their own unique fragrance, and naturally grown wild onions are the cream of the crop. Its scent was so overpowering that it wiped Fu Chao’s mind blank, making him nearly forget the stunning series of pagoda tree flower dishes he’d just had.
It was almost too much for Fu Chao to bear. He hesitated to reach for the wild onion pancake again, but alas, his chopsticks seemed to have a mind of their own, stealthily advancing toward it. Another piece entered his mouth... Mmm, satisfaction. Pure, utter satisfaction.
At this point, Fu Chao ate some stir-fried wild greens. It was like a vibrant, colorful banquet drawing to a close. The perfectly balanced bitterness allowed his soaring soul to land gently back on solid ground.
Savoring the aftertaste of the feast on his tongue, it was as if he were enveloped by all the splendid fragrances of spring, a feeling of contentment that lingered long after.
Fu Chao was never stingy with his praise. He decisively gave Nan Zhi a thumbs-up:
"You really are the best chef in the world!"
Nan Zhi loved hearing such praise. For once, she didn’t offer a humble reply, instead letting out a soft hum, her eyes filled with amusement.
She was just short of nodding in direct agreement.
But Fu Chao had always been eloquent, and a single line of praise was nowhere near enough.
He picked up his chopsticks again, and with every dish he ate, he would launch into a new tirade of extravagant praise, making them sound like nothing on earth could compare.
Anyone who didn’t know better would think he was describing some divine nectar that could make one ascend to the heavens in broad daylight.
...Of course, the deliciousness of this table of wild greens wasn’t too far off from divine nectar anyway.
While Fu Chao was doling out praise, Nan Yi and Qing Xi weren’t to be outdone; they had to praise her too.
By now, they had honed their flattery skills quite well—
Nan Yi’s words were few but concise, his sincerity killing all competition;
Qing Xi’s phrasing was jumbled, but he won everyone over with his cuteness.
The two little cubs each had their own unique style.
But in Nan Zhi’s eyes, the fact that they were eating happily was many times more important than any flattery.
Even if they didn’t say a word, Nan Zhi would still feel satisfied.
The only quiet one at the table was Lu Shixu.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to praise her, but that he didn’t know how.
His vocabulary was by no means lacking, but faced with the current situation, it seemed to have automatically shut down, rendered completely useless.
The few scattered words he managed to think of were instantly outshone by Nan Yi, Qing Xi, and Fu Chao.
This made him slow the movement of his chopsticks even more, his eyes lowered as he pondered something in secret.
Nan Zhi didn’t pay it much mind.
She slowly sipped the noodle broth, feeling utterly content.
The fragrance of the wild greens and flowers made all her pores open up. She felt as if she were lying in a honey pot, her very soul feeling the pleasure of being nourished.
’This really is good.’
...
After the meal ended, Nan Zhi told Nan Yi and Qing Xi to go out and play for a while before coming back.
The two little ones had eaten until their bellies were round. Nan Zhi was afraid they were too full, so she sent them out to walk it off.
Nan Yi didn’t really want to go.
But Qing Xi was too enthusiastic and pestered him for a long time.
Only then did Nan Yi reluctantly agree. He cast several longing glances at Nan Zhi before unhurriedly following Qing Xi out the door.
Nan Zhi called out to their retreating figures:
"Don’t run, walk slowly, or you’ll get a stomachache."
Nan Yi and Qing Xi, who were just about to break into a run, immediately slowed their pace.
Nan Zhi wasn’t too worried about them feigning compliance.
Qing Xi might forget her instructions in his excitement, but Nan Yi wouldn’t.
This was the absolute confidence Nan Zhi had in her dear Yiyi.
Once the children were gone, Nan Zhi prepared to get up and clear the table.
Fu Chao beat her to it:
"How could I let you do it? You go sit and rest, I’ll take care of all the cleaning!"
Nan Zhi didn’t refuse:
"Alright, you..."
She suddenly fell silent.
Then she watched as Lu Shixu, without saying a word, simply began to clear the plates and chopsticks.
Nan Zhi’s expression turned strange and astonished.
She knew about Lu Shixu’s mysophobia, and she knew his proud and aloof personality meant he disliked doing this kind of housework.
Back when they were dating and living together, Nan Zhi would occasionally enjoy whipping up something to eat and would order him to clean up.
Lu Shixu never refused, but he would just turn around and hire a part-time cleaning lady.