Chapter 63 : Ginseng Fish Soup

After returning to the team, Su Mo went to the Lu family’s house first. She didn’t see anyone outside, so she went into the yard and called a few times before hearing a voice from Lu Boming’s room.

“Xiaomo, there’s no one else at home except me. What’s the matter?”

“I just went to the commune, and Xiaolan asked me to bring something back to you,” Su Mo replied.

“That kid is thoughtful. Please help me bring it in,” Lu Boming said, followed by a few coughs.

“Okay.” Su Mo responded, then took out the net bag that Lu Xiaolan used to carry things from the sack, placing five or six white pears in it, covering them up.

The weather was dry, and Lu Boming had a cough again, so eating some white pears was just the right way to help his throat.

Su Mo carried her things and entered Lu Boming’s room.

The room was very clean, not at all like the usual dirty and messy rooms of old people. Lu Boming was sitting on the kang, fully dressed.

“Grandpa, Xiaolan asked me to bring you two bags of milk powder and two cans of yellow peaches. I bought these pears. They look fresh and will help moisten your throat.”

As Su Mo spoke, she placed the items on the desk beside the kang. Seeing that Lu Boming was still coughing, she quickly handed him the enamel jug filled with water from the table.

After Lu Boming drank some water to soothe his cough, it eased up a little.

“Thank you for being so thoughtful. You are all good kids. I’m old now. Don’t waste money like this in the future,” he said, sensing that his time was limited.

“Grandpa, don’t say that,” Su Mo replied, feeling a little sad. She could tell that the old man’s vitality was weaker than before.

Unfortunately, her special ability couldn’t cure him, and she felt powerless.

But seeing such a respected elder nearing the end of his life made her feel frustrated.

Suddenly, Su Mo thought of the wild ginseng that was at least several decades old, and wondered if it might help him.

She decided that after returning, she would transfer more of her supernatural powers to the wild ginseng to infuse it with more vitality. Then she would consult a doctor. If there were no issues, she would give it to Lu Boming to eat.

Lu Boming smiled calmly. “Birth, aging, sickness, and death are natural for all humans. There’s no need to be sad.”

“Your mother told me that you are a good person. You manage the house well, grow vegetables successfully, and harvest many mountain products. Xiaomo, Changzheng is lucky to have married you.”

Su Mo quickly responded, “It is my blessing to marry Changzheng.” It’s customary to return praise when someone compliments you.

“You two should live a good life. Changzheng is an ambitious and emotional man. If he sets his eyes on someone, he will be absolutely sincere. I can see that he is sincere toward you.”

Su Mo smiled shyly and replied, “Yes! We will be fine.”

Although they had only been together for a few days, Lu Changzheng had been very good to her.

She is the kind of person who treats others well if they treat her well. If Lu Changzheng is good to her, she will be good to him, and she’s willing to help him take care of the three elderly people at home.

Lu Boming nodded. Among his three grandsons, he liked the third one the most. And among their wives, he also liked the third one’s family the best.

“Go and do your work. You don’t need to stay with an old man like me.” Lu Boming waved his hand and started coughing again.

“How about I help you lie down? It will feel better,” Su Mo suggested.

Lu Boming waved his hand, “No, I’ll sit for a while. It’s uncomfortable to lie down all day. Go and do your work. Don’t worry about me.”

Su Mo added some hot water to Lu Boming’s enamel pot before leaving.

After returning home, Su Mo put the things she bought from the supply and marketing cooperative into the space, then packed the dried walnuts and chestnuts into sacks. One sack of chestnuts, two sacks of walnuts, one sack of pine nuts, and half a sack of hazel mushrooms and wild vegetables.

Once packed into sacks, the items looked more noticeable. It seemed like a good harvest. When the ones hanging to dry were ready, they could be packed into a sack as well. Once the shelves arrived, she would put everything away.

After finishing all this, Su Mo went to the vegetable garden and transferred some supernatural powers to the vegetables in each plot, helping them grow lush but not too exaggerated.

Next, she transferred supernatural powers to three wild ginsengs, paying special attention to the oldest one, and didn’t stop until her powers were used up.

After that, Su Mo took out the newly bought coarse cloth from the space and began to cut it according to the size Su Tingqian had measured in the morning. She also took out the remaining floral cotton cloth and cut the lining.

After cutting, she used a sewing machine to sew the surface of the coarse cloth and the floral lining together.

By the time she finished, it was already late, so Su Mo put away the clothes and decided to cook first before spreading the cotton in the evening.

Just as Su Mo was preparing to cook, a voice came from outside the yard, “Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, are you home?”

Su Mo went out and saw a young woman with a bulging belly and a fish in her hand, standing outside the courtyard gate.

Seeing Su Mo come out, the young woman smiled and said, “Sister-in-law, I am Long Xiumei, the wife of Lu Guoping. He went to the river to catch a few fish today and asked me to bring one for you to try.” As she spoke, she lifted the fish tied with a straw rope in her hand.

“Oh, this is so embarrassing.” Su Mo quickly opened the gate and let Long Xiumei in.

Since it was given to her with good intentions, Su Mo naturally didn’t want to be rude by refusing.

Long Xiumei handed the fish to Su Mo and said with a smile, “Brother Changzheng usually takes good care of Guoping, and we don’t have much, but this fish was just caught and is very fresh. Sister-in-law, please cook it tonight.”

“Okay.” Su Mo took the fish and smiled, “Thank you both, I’ll have meat to eat tonight. Come, sit in the house for a while.”

“No, sister-in-law, I have to go back to cook,” Long Xiumei replied, waving her hand and about to leave.

Seeing that Long Xiumei was pregnant, Su Mo thought she probably hadn’t gone to harvest yet, so she said, “Xiumei, wait for a moment.”

Su Mo quickly ran back into the house, took out a straw basket, filled it with chestnuts and walnuts, and brought it out to Long Xiumei.

“I don’t have much to offer, but I went up the mountain and picked some mountain products these days. You can take them home to try.”

Long Xiumei waved her hands repeatedly, “Sister-in-law, you can’t do that. You should keep it for yourself.” She took a few steps back, but Su Mo quickly supported her.

“Be careful with your belly. It looks pretty big. How many months along are you?”

“Seven months,” Long Xiumei replied, her face glowing with maternal pride.

Su Mo stuffed the straw basket into Long Xiumei’s hands, “It’s okay. I can eat your fish, so why can’t you eat my mountain products? Or do you dislike them?”

Long Xiumei smiled, picked up the straw basket, and said, “Why would I dislike them? These chestnuts and walnuts are good things.”

These two items are in short supply, and everyone is after them. Not many can be found each year.

“I’m glad you don’t mind. You can take them home and enjoy them,” Su Mo said with a smile.

Long Xiumei was happy. After saying goodbye to Su Mo, she left cheerfully carrying the straw basket.

Before coming here, Long Xiumei had worried that Su Mo, coming from a big city with a good family background, might look down on them, the country folk. But she was surprised to find Su Mo so easygoing. Guoping was right, Changzheng had chosen well.

After Long Xiumei left, Su Mo sighed. She had given away all three straw baskets she had at home. It seemed she would need to find someone to weave more, or perhaps learn how to do it herself in the future.

These straw baskets were made from wheat straw and were sturdy and durable.

Su Mo picked up the fish that Long Xiumei had given her, estimating it to be about two kilograms. She quickly carried it to the well, killed it with a knife, chopped it into pieces, and cleaned it.

She planned to stew the fish with some scallions, ginger, and soy sauce, and make fish soup with the fish head and tail.

Su Mo first lit the small stove, took out the pot she used in the end times, added oil, and fried the fish head and tail until both sides were golden brown. Then, she added ginger and a few drops of cooking wine to stir-fry for fragrance before adding cold water. She brought it to a boil over high heat, then lowered the heat to simmer.

Thinking of Lu Boming’s health, Su Mo went back into the room, considering whether to add some ginseng roots to the soup.

Since she wasn’t sure how much to use, Su Mo didn’t dare to use the older ginseng. Instead, she dug up a younger one and took two small whiskers off. After washing them, she threw them into the fish soup to cook together.

She then started another big pot to stew the fish.

Once the fish soup turned milky white, Su Mo added some coriander to remove the fishy smell. After it boiled, she served a bowl for herself and put the rest into a clay pot, ready to send to Lu Boming later.

When the braised fish was ready, Su Mo filled a pot with it, carried a backpack, turned on the flashlight, and went to the Lu family.

When Su Mo arrived, the three old people were preparing to have dinner. Su Mo saw that there was only a plate of stir-fried vegetables and a bowl of corn porridge on the table, so she quickly put down the backpack.

“Guoping’s wife sent me a fish in the evening. I made some fish soup and stewed fish and brought some for you to try.”

“You can eat the fish yourself. They gave all the fish to you. What do you have to eat?” Li Yue’e’s affection for Su Mo was growing more every day.

“I still have some. The fish are not small. I can’t finish them all by myself.” Su Mo smiled as she took out the earthenware jars and basins from the backpack and placed them on the table.

“Drink more of this fish soup. It’s good for your health,” Su Mo instructed, before picking up the basket and leaving again.

Lu Boming’s cough was due to physical weakness, not a cold, so eating fish wouldn’t be a problem.

Seeing Su Mo leaving in a hurry, Lu Boming said to the others, “Xiao Mo is a good person. Changzheng isn’t home, so you two should be nicer to her.”

The two nodded quickly.

Su Mo’s cooking skills were undeniable, and the three of them ate everything. Lu Qing’an drank four bowls of the fish soup, and even Lu Boming, who usually had little appetite, drank two bowls.

That night, when he went to bed, Lu Boming felt lighter and slept more soundly than before.

Lu Qing’an, on the other hand, felt restless and couldn’t sleep. Looking at his wife, he reached out her hand.

But Li Yue’e slapped it away. “What do you want to do? You’re old and still so frivolous.”

Lu Qing’an said awkwardly, “I don’t know why, but I just feel particularly anxious.”

Li Yue’e: …

Wild ginseng is a great thing for replenishing vital energy. Even though it was just the roots, its potency was still strong.

As for the fish soup, it was fine for Lu Boming to drink since he was weak, and it was safe for Su Mo and Li Yue’e as women to drink too.

But for Lu Qing’an, although he was in his early fifties and still healthy, drinking so much of it made him feel a little irritated.