Daily Life in the Countryside After Being Reborn
Chapter 82 - 65: Scent of Cooking Rice (Second Night Watch)

Chapter 82: Chapter 65: Scent of Cooking Rice (Second Night Watch)

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"What’s wrong with you, I’m talking to you, eating all the time but not growing an inch," Xiao Xian was nowhere to be seen, so Yezi had to vent on her beloved bird.

After more than half a year, this "turkey’s" appetite had shifted from initially feeding on rice to insects, and recently it even became picky, only eating live centipedes and small snakes. Yezi suspected that in another year, she’d have to figure out what strange things to feed "Little Pig".

The most annoying part was that this damn bird never bothered to search for its own food; every time it got hungry, it would just keep calling out in Yezi’s embrace. Knowing this, she would have never named it "Little Pig" – it indeed lived up to its name, unbearably lazy.

Fortunately, "Little Pig" was raised in the Southwest Mountain Area, where insects, snakes, and rodents were abundant, otherwise, Yezi alone would have had a hard time finding enough food to feed it.

Master Shan Yin had additionally constructed a small kitchen to give the children somewhere to cook at midday.

In the temple’s kitchen, Xiao Xian was leaning on the stove. She wasn’t tall enough, and indeed she had her reasons for grumbling at Yezi – she hadn’t grown for quite a while now. Although it’s normal for a seven-year-old girl to be of a certain height, just watching Yezi shoot up day by day made her feel imbalanced.

She snapped a few twigs off and stuffed them into the stove, trying to light the fire several times. Smoke billowed out, but no sparks appeared.

She didn’t bring lunch today and was so hungry she felt faint. As soon as the fire started, she hurriedly washed the rice and put it into the pot. On second thought, the "sugarcane seedling" in her space also hadn’t grown for a while.

"Could it be possible that the sugarcane seedling is hitting the same growth plateau as I am," Xiao Xian wondered. It could very well be; since swallowing that tin car, she had put several iron tools into her space, but the effect was nowhere as significant as before. The "sugarcane seedling" seemed to have developed an eating disorder.

The washed rice and water were poured into the pot together. In rural areas, there were no conveniences such as pressure cookers or rice cookers, and Xiao Xian still relied on her memory of Sister-in-law Lian’s cooking to make rice. She was unsure if the water was enough and hesitated whether to add more.

"You didn’t pour enough water, and you also shouldn’t use damp twigs to start a fire – it will make your eyes smoke and your tears will come out," Master Shan Yin was distributing midday meals to the temple’s children, and with nobody overseeing Little Taozhi, she was handed over to Yezi.

Compared to Xiao Xian’s half-baked cooking skills, Yezi was much more proficient. Miao families don’t have the same tradition of valuing men over women like Han Clan – whenever there was an opportunity, Yezi’s mother didn’t hesitate to tie Yezi to the stove to teach her cooking.

Xiao Xian’s face flushed upon hearing this, and she took over Little Taozhi, "Easy for you to say, why don’t you give it a try."

Yezi chuckled twice, not shying away. She used a match to light the dry twigs and shoved them into the stove, and the flame flared up instantly. After washing her hands, she added a few bowls of water into the pot, waiting until the water level was a finger’s depth over before covering with a lid.

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"Zhu Xiaoxian, now this is what you call making a meal. You Han Clan girls are just lazy, not even up for this bit of work," Yezi has been alive for only twelve years and met two Han women (not counting the Great Wizard, as Yezi doesn’t know that Red Locust Great Wizard is a Han woman) – one, Zhu Xiaoxian, fiery-tempered like a hot chili pepper, and the other, "Taozi," just a tiny tot, who would wet her pants and burst into tears whenever upset. Both are tough nuts to crack. But Yezi, having what one might call a ’masochistic’ streak (a term he picked up from his Uncle Yibar), always liked hanging around with the two girls.

"Stop nagging, I’m already frustrated," Xiao Xian knew she was facing a challenge, but there was no one around to guide her. Frowning, she rocked little Taozhi in her arms. The baby girl blinked and began to smile. She really hit the jackpot, going from an old granny before liberation to a suckling baby, what a win.

Xiao Xian jolted with realization — indeed, speaking of old grannies, there was the readily consultable Great Wizard of Dongnan Miao Village. Only, she wasn’t sure whether the wizard would still bear a grudge for the destruction of her prized Dragon Suppressing Bell and refusal of her discipleship offer.

From the big pot, a fragrance of cooked rice soon wafted out. Impatient as ever, Yezi hurried to uncover the pot. As soon as he lifted the lid, steam from the rice billowed out, stinging his eyes to the point of tears.

The once scorned grey rice, once cooked, had completely transformed.

All the water in the pot had evaporated, and Yezi had nailed the cooking time perfectly. Each grain of rice was distinct, plump, and glossy, outshining pearls, their sweet fragrance so tantalizing it made people’s cheeks itch. Outside, some children who had not had their meal yet gathered around. They all brought their own food, which, after a morning’s waiting, had gone cold and hard, nowhere near as good as the freshly steamed rice. The kids crowded around the cookstove, chattering away and creating quite a scene.

"Told you, didn’t I? Don’t underestimate it because it looks plain, it tastes really good. Give me a bowl, and leave the rest for Master Shan Yin and Taozhi," Xiao Xian wasn’t the least bit shy about bossing Yezi around.

Yezi was used to eating their homegrown rice, which though yet to be tasted, simply looked far superior to any grown in the Miao Village paddies. Yezi couldn’t believe Zhu Xiaoxian could grow rice like this, nor could he believe Ge Village could produce such rice.

After a full meal, Xiao Xian started to inquire about the recent situation of the Red Locust Great Wizard. Upon hearing the questions, Yezi said that after the Great Wizard recovered and left her bed, she often ventured into the forests and mountains. Mama said that she was retraining her ability with gu.

Upon hearing that Xiao Xian intended to seek out the Great Wizard, Yezi was somewhat skeptical. Not long ago, Xiao Xian was avoiding the Great Wizard, and now suddenly, she took the initiative to seek her out. However, Yezi wouldn’t voice these thoughts. If she wanted to go, then go; in fact, it meant they could leave school together, something which secretly delighted him.

After school, Yezi led Xiao Xian to the Great Wizard’s home, but as expected, they didn’t find her. Yezi confidently asserted that the Great Wizard must be in the Black Mountain forest. Thinking that her grandfather had gone down the mountain with the village chief this morning, and with no one at home, Xiao Xian simply decided to follow Yezi deep into Black Mountain.

The mountain was teeming with mosquitoes and insects; getting stung would be troublesome. Before setting off, the kids went to Yezi’s house first. Yezi found Xiao Xian a set of his old thick clothes, tightened the cuffs and pant legs with cloth, and sprinkled a mixture of foul-smelling chili water and garlic water over them to ward off bugs.

"Little Pig" had recently upped his food intake, so Yezi’s trip up the mountain to find someone turned into an opportunity to gather some food as well. He found a few hollowed-out bamboo tubes in the livestock shed, slung them over his shoulder, claiming they would be handy for catching bugs, snakes, mice, and ants to feed "Little Pig." Once everything was ready, Yezi, with a freshly sharpened cleaver tucked at his waist, led Xiao Xian toward the rear of the mountain.

(To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)