HCB Chapter 48 Breaking the Ice
Chapter 48 Breaking the Ice
While waiting, Lezhi found various fruits and prepared some dipping sauces, which could be used to dip the meat later.
"By the way, Leyou, if I want to mash food or something, are there any convenient tools?"
As Lezhi worked on his tasks, his thoughts began to wander. He thought about his previous idea to make starch and started planning what tools he would need.
Having been in Jormungand for so long, and based on Lezhi's observations, the people here, due to their powerful talents and different lifestyles, use very few tools in their daily lives.
It's also possible that Lezhi didn't realize it herself, which is why she chose to ask Leyou.
Hearing Lezhi's question, Leyou looked up and thought for a moment, "Crush it up, does smashing it with a stone count?"
"Hiss, that counts too, but what about besides this?" Lezhi gasped, then continued to press for an answer, somewhat pessimistically.
"Hmm, I think that's all. There's not much that needs to be crushed, so everyone just finds stones to use temporarily."
Seeing that Leyou had thought for a long time but still shook his head, Lezhi completely gave up her hopes. It seemed that hoping to find a stone mill here was wishful thinking, and a mixer was even more impossible.
You only realize how little you know when you need it. Lezhi lightly tapped his head. As a programmer, he could only give a general idea of the principles of stone mills and mixers, but he had no clue how to actually do them.
The idea of using tools was extinguished, and Lezhi was momentarily frustrated, but he quickly rallied. After all, life isn't about taking risks; if he didn't want to settle, he was bound to face all sorts of problems. He might as well just do it; it wouldn't be a waste of his second chance at life.
As Lezhi and Leyou chatted casually, the meat in the pot began to cook and emit a fragrant aroma. The pan-fried pork was the first to come out of the pot, and Leyou cut it into bite-sized pieces and plated it. Lezhi, estimating the time, put the purple melon into the steamer to steam, and then started frying garlic in a separate pan.
Add the finely chopped stinky fruit to a pan of oil heated to a suitable temperature, and fry over low heat until golden brown. This method produces crispy garlic that is perfect for enhancing flavor and is also easy to store.
Put the garlic oil into a large jar, and Lezhi started cooking the vegetables. One pot was given to Leyoutuan for meatball soup, and another pot was used to stir-fry the amaranth.
While Leyou's meatballs were floating in the broth, Lezhi started drizzling oil over the steamed eggplant. Finally, vegetables were added to the soup, salt was added, and garlic oil was used to finish the dish, making it complete.
Considering Le Zhong's appetite, Le Zhi prepared two to three times the amount of food she usually ate. It would be inappropriate to bring so much food to the studio.
"I'll go and call Le Zhong over," Le You volunteered to go to the front hall to fetch him.
Seeing this, Lezhi quickly cleaned up the dining table located outside the kitchen and then set the prepared food on the table one by one. When Lezhong followed Leyou into the kitchen, what appeared before them was a table almost completely covered with large and small plates of food.
Le Zhong paused slightly, glancing almost imperceptibly at Le Zhi, a look of surprise flashing in his eyes. "So lavish!"
"Hmm, we have some new seasonings today. Try them and see if you like them. I've already divided up the portions for dinner."
Before Lezhi could introduce what the dishes were, Lezhong had already eagerly taken his seat, picked up his chopsticks, and immediately grabbed a piece of the pan-fried pork cut into chunks.
"Hmm, isn't this barbecue?" Amazed by the texture of the meat in his mouth, Le Zhong asked the question even while eating.
"No, this is boiled in water, you wouldn't believe it, would you?" Leyou, the chef in charge of making the pan-fried meat, answered with a satisfied smile.
They came to cook for Le Zhong, who tacitly agreed to cook for the two of them. Seeing how happily Le Zhong was eating, Le You felt a great sense of accomplishment and sat down as well.
"Boiled? Really? Can boiled pork taste like this?" After finishing the pan-fried pork, Le Zhong set his sights on the braised pork, which had the brightest color. Later, Le Zhi even added some cooked insect eggs to the stew, making it look even more substantial.
Le Zhong picked up a piece of braised pork that had been stewed until incredibly tender and put it in his mouth. He was so captivated by the almost melt-in-your-mouth texture that he squinted his eyes. He could swallow it after just a couple of chews. With the addition of the strange-flavored fruit, all the flavors blended together with the meat, creating a wonderfully rich aroma that was simply irresistible.
There's also steamed pork slices with rock fruit. Lezhi intended this dish to be a main course, so the portion was quite large. The rock fruit, which originally had little flavor, was soaked in the meat juices and absorbed the taste of the meat, but it wasn't as greasy as meat, making it a dish you could eat in big bites.
Each dish was different, and for the rest of the time, almost no one had time to talk; the only sounds were the clinking of utensils and chewing and swallowing.
Judging from Le Zhong's behavior, he was extremely satisfied with this meal. Noticing this, Le Zhi smiled as he fed the fur ball while also feeding himself.
As a cub, Lezhi was the first to get off the table among them. Later on, Lezhi was just feeding Maoqiu. His stomach was already so full that he couldn't eat another bite. Leyou and Lezhong, who could obviously eat more food than him, were still fighting.
Before long, Leyou was the first to succumb. This was the biggest meal he had ever eaten, but it still couldn't compare to China's. Adults are just too physically robust, even when they are sick, they are far superior to a young man like him in his late teens.
While sipping her soup, Leyou watched as Lezhong devoured all the food on the table, including the two vegetarian dishes that Lezhi had specially added.
By the time Le Zhong put down his chopsticks, he had been full for quite a while and had also fed Mao Qiu until he was chubby. Le Zhi looked at the clean plate on the table, speechless, and raised his eyebrows.
What an idiot!
Suddenly I'm worried about the workload I'll be carrying over the next ten days or so!
Lezhi stood up with her lips pursed and began to clear the dishes. Leyou, who had been resting for a while, quickly got up to help.
"You two little brats, stop busying yourselves. Just leave the dishes there, I'll clean them up in a bit." After smacking his lips and savoring the delicious meal he had just eaten, Le Zhong sprawled lazily in his chair like a big cat that had just finished eating. If he had a tail, it would probably be wagging it contentedly to show his happy mood.
"It's okay, we're fine anyway, and it's good for us to digest."
This was Lezhi's answer. Having eaten together before, coupled with Lezhong's previous behavior, Lezhi's psychological defenses against strangers were successfully lowered. He was a shy and slow-to-warm-up person, but once he was accepted as a friend, Lezhi would relax and show his true self.
The worldly-wise Le Zhong naturally noticed the change in Le Zhi's attitude. A relaxed smile flashed across his completely relaxed brows. Le Zhong did not insist and let Le Zhi and Le You do as they pleased.
It's normal for the cubs to be wary of him at first, especially since he used to have a strong aura of menace that often made him unpopular with the younger members of the clan. After he fell ill and retired, he began a reclusive life, which further reduced his opportunities to interact with these cubs.
Seeing how quickly Lezhi had become familiar with him, and how smoothly they spoke and acted without any hesitation, Lezhong felt incredibly comforted. Watching the two little ones busily working by the pool, Lezhong silently made a decision: he would give them a surprise after half a month.