Chapter 21: Wild Yam

“Ow!”

“You little rascal, what’s your problem—bringing a snake to scare me, and then acting like you’re the victim!”

Aunt Zhang clutched her forehead, her slightly plump body heaving as she panted heavily, still frightened and shaken.

“What do you mean snake? This is obviously an eel. No wonder they say people with long hair are clueless,” Meng Shiqiao said.

“You—!”

“What, me? You’re the one who didn’t recognize it. How is that my fault? Just look—what else could this be if not an eel?”

As he spoke, he held up the eel and dangled it in front of Aunt Zhang.

“Don’t come any closer!”

Terrified, Aunt Zhang backed away repeatedly—even knowing it was just an eel didn’t make her any less scared.

“Can I go now?” Meng Shiqiao asked, a little smug.

“Go, go!” Aunt Zhang waved him off quickly, getting goosebumps just looking at the thing.

This kid’s got some tricks, Meng Ling thought, watching him with admiration. He might become a real lady-killer someday—already so capable at his age.

“Jie, is this thing really tasty?” Meng Shiqiao asked doubtfully.

He’d had eel before, and it tasted super fishy—exactly as Aunt Zhang described. One bite was enough to swear off it.

Meng Ling replied confidently, “Don’t worry, my cooking will make it delicious.”

Shiqiao pulled a face. “You said the same thing last year. The smell alone made me want to throw the whole pot out.”

“Uh… did I?” She paused and tried to recall. Yes, it was true—last year, when food was scarce, she brought home some loaches they dug up from the fields. Once cooked, the stench was unbearable.

She added, “But last year’s me can’t compare to today’s me. Haven’t you noticed you always eat the most of the dishes I make now? If you don’t believe me, just don’t eat tonight.”

“Eat! I’ll eat! My sister’s cooking is the best in the world!” Shiqiao quickly flattered her, afraid he’d get left out.

As they chatted, they arrived at the kitchen.

“Boil some hot water—just hot enough for your hands to touch,” Meng Ling instructed after putting down her things.

She began prepping the eel right away.

Slap! Slap! Slap!

In no time, the eel was cleaned.

“Jie, the water’s ready,” Shiqiao said, bringing over a pot of hot water.

“Put a pound of loaches in a basin and pour the hot water in. Once they turn white, take them out and scrub the slime off with wood ash. Rinse thoroughly, then cut from the back with scissors and remove the guts.”

She explained everything so her little brother could learn to do it himself.

Once all ingredients were ready, Meng Ling began cooking. She heated some pork fat in the wok, added the eel and stir-fried it with ginger slices. Soon the aroma of cooked eel filled the air.

She then tossed in some radish chunks, stir-fried them briefly, and transferred everything to a clay pot to stew.

The bigger the eel, the tougher the meat, so stewing makes it tender.

Meng Ling rarely used much oil when cooking, but today she used up several days’ worth. The pork fat was nearly gone.

“When will I finally achieve lard freedom?” she sighed. Life was tough here. Back in modern times, lard was never a concern. She wasn’t asking for riches—just a life with enough food and clothing using her modern knowledge didn’t seem too much.

“Jie! Isn’t it done yet?” her brother called out, snapping her out of her thoughts.

She checked and saw the eel was almost ready.

She’d planned to dry-fry the loaches as a second dish, but one look at the oil tin and she knew there wasn’t enough. She gave up on that idea.

Instead, she lightly pan-fried the loaches to use less oil.

She added a dash of cooking wine around the edges of the pan, slowly fried one side to golden brown, then flipped them until crispy.

She tossed in ginger slices, a few drops of soy sauce, and some wild green onion flowers, stir-frying it all before plating.

“Jie, that smells amazing!” Shiqiao said, sniffing the air as he fed the fire.

“That aroma should really be shared with Aunt Zhang,” Ling said with a smile.

“Not a chance—she’d probably snatch the whole bowl,” Shiqiao laughed.

Right at that moment, Aunt Zhang stepped into the yard, drawn by the delicious smell.

“Ling, what are you cooking? It smells so good I’m practically drooling,” she said warmly.

“Loaches! Dug them up from the fields today!” Ling answered.

“Here, Auntie, have a whiff!” Shiqiao lifted the bowl and waved it under her nose.

“You’re kidding me—loaches smell this good?” Aunt Zhang leaned in to get a better look but couldn’t quite see in the dim light.

“Try one!” Shiqiao picked one out and offered it to her.

Aunt Zhang sniffed it, then popped the whole thing in her mouth.

They could all hear the crispy crunch as she chewed through the whole thing, bones and all.

“Mmm! Delicious!” Aunt Zhang’s eyebrows shot up and her eyes widened in delight.

“Told you!” Shiqiao grinned proudly.

“It’s too small—I didn’t get the full taste,” Aunt Zhang said, swallowing. Her eyes were fixed on the bowl in his hands.

“Let me try another one!”

She reached out to grab one.

“Hey now, Auntie, didn’t you say loaches taste bad?” Shiqiao quickly pulled the bowl into his arms and blocked her hand.

“Oh, stop being stingy, kid. When did I ever say that?” she protested.

Just then, their mother came in from work and overheard the commotion.

“Erwa, let your Aunt Zhang have some,” she said gently.

In the end, Aunt Zhang went home with a small bowl and even borrowed some salt.

The kitchen rang with laughter.

—-

In the morning, the golden sunlight cast a warm glow, adding life to the bleak winter.

“Erwa, stay home and watch your sister. I’m heading to the mountain to gather firewood,” Lings instructed, then slung on her basket and set off.

She avoided the bamboo grove—black bears hadn’t hibernated yet.

She headed east instead, where the broadleaf trees made firewood easier to find, though it was a bit farther.

Most families were done with their farming. Adults were turning over soil, kids were gathering firewood and feeding pigs—everyone did what they could.

On her way up the mountain, Ling saw quite a few people—mostly kids around her age, both boys and girls, and the occasional elderly person also helping out.

The trees on the mountain were bare, and the ground was blanketed in leaves that crunched loudly underfoot.

She hadn’t gone far when she spotted Zhang Xiaoyu from next door. He was piling up a small bundle of sticks, looking like he’d just arrived.

“You’re here for firewood too?” she greeted him.

“Mm,” he nodded, not saying much, and kept chopping.

Ling moved on, cutting dry branches and tossing them into her basket. Rotten ones she discarded—they didn’t burn well.

Flap! Flap!

A few wild pheasants suddenly flew out of the bushes, startling her.

“Good grief!”

She patted her chest, still frightened. “One day I’m catching you all and stewing you up!”

Then she picked up a rock and threw it into the brush—no more movement. They’d all fled.

“Huh? What’s that?”

She spotted something interesting and rushed over quickly.

Upon closer look—yes! Wild yams! The vines were all over the place. There had to be a ton underground.

Ling hadn’t expected to score a haul like this on a firewood run. She was thrilled.

Luckily, this was unclaimed land—otherwise it might’ve caused problems.

She observed the patch for a while, then decided to come back in the afternoon—it’d take days to dig this much.

Thankfully it was on a slope, making it easier to dig.

Wild yams grow deep and are hard to extract. On tough spots, you’d be lucky to get one or two full roots in an entire afternoon.

In the afternoon, she brought her younger siblings with her and cleared away the vines.

“Jie, are you sure this is edible? I’ve never seen anyone eat this stuff,” Shiqiao said.

“I remember another spot with a bunch of this stuff too,” he added.

“Really? Where?” Ling asked quickly.

He pointed east. “In that hollow over there. We were raiding bird nests when I saw those vines.”

“Good. We’ll dig these up today and those tomorrow.”

Ling guessed it was just too uncommon in the area—people didn’t recognize it or know it was edible.

“This stuff’s not only tasty but super nutritious. You can stir-fry or stew it—it’s all good.”