Chapter 23: Little Hot Pot
Early morning.
The sky was clear and bright.
Today, the merchant Marco would come to Bean Village, and Chu Jiu could pick up the large iron pot he had ordered.
But Chu Jiu didn’t set off immediately.
He was having a headache about how to assign work to the spirit beasts.
When Roar Roar Rabbit heard that Chu Jiu had brought back bamboo and they could develop “woodlands,” its rabbit tail started spinning excitedly: “Okay, okay, I want to plant bamboo, I can definitely grow a big bamboo forest!”
And Glug-Glug, after seeing the Pioneer’s hut without stairs, looked quite distressed, constantly muttering, “Too ugly, too ugly… Let me fix it…”
Chu Jiu, the black-hearted capitalist, should have been very pleased to see the spirit beasts so eager to work.
However, developing a woodland required 800 Pioneer points, and repairing the second floor of the Pioneer’s hut required 1000 Pioneer points.
He sighed and looked at the “Area Development Status” on the system panel.
[Open Area: Forgotten Forest
Map Openness of Each Area: Forgotten Forest—83%
Overall Area Development Ratio: 2.1%
Available Pioneer Points: 430 points
Existing Facilities: Pioneer’s Hut X1, Field X1, Old-fashioned Waterwheel X1]
The remaining Pioneer points were not enough to develop a woodland or repair the second floor.
Chu Jiu pondered for a moment and decided to let Roar Roar Rabbit continue farming and let Glug-Glug build a fence around the Pioneer’s hut first.
Cultivating the existing field didn’t require Pioneer points, and building a fence only required 50 Pioneer points, which he could afford.
Chu Jiu, the strapped-for-cash capitalist, decided to go find the old village chief.
*
“Little Jiu, is this… wine?”
The old village chief and Aman stared at the bowl of dark brown liquid on the table, their faces full of doubt.
Judging from the color, it was indeed very similar to those sour wines, but this smell…
The old village chief sniffed: a faint salty and fresh scent.
This was not the smell of wine.
Chu Jiu said, “This is also made from beans, it’s a kind of seasoning.”
“It’s called ‘soy sauce.'”
The old village chief and Aman were still completely confused: soy… sauce? A seasoning? Made from beans?
Beans could be used to make seasoning?
Chu Jiu asked Aman to bring over a piece of fresh tofu.
Nowadays, every household in the village soaked beans the night before the merchants arrived, and then ground soybean milk and made tofu early in the morning. The village chief’s house was no exception.
Chu Jiu cut the tofu into small cubes, 3 centimeters square, and poured a little soy sauce on them.
The snow-white tofu quickly turned dark brown.
Chu Jiu then took out the pre-cooked “cotton sheep meat slices” and sprinkled two drops of soy sauce on the deep pink mutton.
He pushed the seasoned tofu and meat slices under the old village chief’s and Aman’s noses: “It’s indeed a seasoning, try it.”
The old village chief scooped up some tofu with a spoon.
Ah, this taste…
The originally light and tender tofu was doubly delicious and refreshing after adding this seasoning!
This “soy sauce” had none of the fishy smell of fish sauce, and it wasn’t bitter or astringent at all!
The mouth was filled with pure salty freshness, wrapped in the light fragrance of tofu.
This was really, really delicious!
The old village chief clicked his tongue in amazement, his eyes full of admiration.
Aman grabbed the chopsticks and awkwardly picked up a piece of mutton, putting it into his mouth.
He chewed hard and swallowed the mutton in a few seconds.
He kept shouting how delicious it was, while picking up another piece of mutton and handing it to the old village chief: “Grandpa, you eat too, this meat is so flavorful!”
In just a few minutes, the old man and the child had eaten all the tofu and mutton on the table. Aman even wanted to dip the cornmeal buns in soy sauce, but was stopped by the old village chief.
“Little Jiu, this soy sauce, are you planning to…?” The old village chief rubbed his hands excitedly, afraid that he was thinking too much or wrongly.
Chu Jiu knew that the old village chief was a down-to-earth and kind-hearted person, so he didn’t beat around the bush and said directly:
“I want to give you the recipe for this seasoning.”
“In this weather, tofu can be transported to Emerald Town on the same day, and it won’t spoil even after a few hours.”
“But when the weather gets warmer, fresh tofu won’t last, so we have to make something else with beans.”
When it gets hot, they could consider selling stinky tofu…
But stinky tofu was a delicacy to some and poison to others, and many people in the village might not be able to stand the smell.
“It will probably take four or five months to brew soy sauce, which can then replace tofu as a ‘special product’ for merchants.”
“This way, we don’t have to worry about ‘not having anything to sell in the summer.'”
The old village chief’s lips trembled, and he asked again, incredulously, “Little Jiu, are you really… really willing to share this recipe?”
Chu Jiu wasn’t planning to keep such a valuable seasoning recipe for himself to make money?
Chu Jiu nodded: “Of course!”
You make soy sauce and sell it to merchants—then I’ll have a stable income of Pioneer points.
The old village chief was so happy that his voice changed, and he thanked Chu Jiu repeatedly, while also expressing great shame that as the village chief, he had always asked Chu Jiu for help, but hadn’t been able to give anything back…
Chu Jiu hurriedly waved his hand, telling the old man not to think too much, while secretly thinking: You’ve given back enough!
As Chu Jiu expected, when he took out the brewing method for soy sauce, the recipe became a [Mass Production Recipe], and he received a full 600 Pioneer points due to the significant increase in villagers’ favorability.
*
After leaving the village chief’s house, Chu Jiu went straight to the small square.
When Marco saw him, his face immediately lit up with a smile:
“Tofu… cough cough, tofu is selling… very well… cough cough!”
“The gentlemen in the city… cough cough… are all obsessed with this dessert… cough cough…”
This cheerful middle-aged man’s voice was hoarser than last time, and he started coughing after saying a few words.
Chu Jiu couldn’t help but worry, asking Marco if he was sick and had a fever.
Marco waved his hand: “It’s an old problem. When autumn comes, cough cough… my throat gets itchy…”
He coughed softly, picked up a bottle of wine from the side, took a sip, and said that drinking some wine would make his throat feel better, but there was nothing else he could do.
Hearing Marco’s words, some vague thoughts flashed through Chu Jiu’s mind, but he couldn’t quite figure them out.
Marco had already found the large iron pot Chu Jiu had ordered: “Cough cough… I brought you this pot.”
Chu Jiu took the pot, feeling his arm sink: this pot was really heavy! Much heavier than any non-stick or stainless steel pot from his previous life!
Marco asked, puzzled, “Cough cough… why… cough cough… did you specially order such a pot? Aren’t the frying pan and soup pot enough?”
Chu Jiu smiled and replied, “Well, not enough.”
To make stir-fried pork, to fry chili sauce, he still needed this kind of Chinese wok!
*
In his previous life, Chu Jiu had never eaten prickly ash, so he didn’t know how to use its fruit to fry chili sauce, and could only try to make it by guessing.
He first rendered some lard with [fat pork], then mashed the prickly ash fruit into a deep red paste.
Then, he heated the lard in the wok, threw in the pre-chopped ginger and screaming mushroom granules, and quickly stir-fried them with a wooden spatula.
In less than half a minute, the pungent smell of ginger and the unique aroma of mushrooms were stimulated by the high heat, attracting the three little ones playing nearby, who sniffed the aroma in the kitchen.
While warning them not to get close to the hot pot, Chu Jiu poured the prickly ash paste into the iron pot.
In an instant, a choking spiciness arose, startling the three little ones who rolled and jumped out of the kitchen.
Even Chu Jiu, who loved spicy food, couldn’t help but sneeze several times, and even shed tears.
He, with tears still in his eyes, continued to stir-fry tirelessly, adding soy sauce and salt, and a large spoonful of honey for a touch of sweetness.
The final product was a pot of fragrant, dark red seasoning sauce.
Chu Jiu wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand, dipped a tiny bit of the sauce with his chopsticks, and put it in his mouth—
Mmm…!
Very good!
After a slight tingling and burning sensation, there was a lingering, slightly sweet and savory aftertaste, making him want to take another bite while opening his mouth to exhale!
Although it couldn’t compare to the “Old Lady Brand Chili Sauce” that conquered all of China, and the spiciness was a bit milder, it was perfectly acceptable as a substitute!
Chu Jiu put down his chopsticks with satisfaction: Great! Let’s make a little hot pot tonight!
*
Evening.
Today, one human and three small animals were dining outdoors.
Glug-Glug had just finished building a fence around the Pioneer’s hut, and now they had a proper little courtyard.
Chu Jiu built two stoves with stones in the courtyard, each with a ceramic pot on top.
One ceramic pot contained clear pork bone soup, with scallions, ginger slices, and screaming mushroom slices floating in it.
This was for Roar Roar Rabbit and Little Can.
The other ceramic pot contained a red oil broth made with pork bone soup and the newly stir-fried chili sauce, red and oily.
In fact, authentic hot pot broth would include broad bean paste, dried chilies, Sichuan peppercorns…
It would also need an oil dish made with minced garlic and sesame oil to be truly flavorful.
But Chu Jiu couldn’t be so particular at this moment.
He excitedly poured the sliced mutton and fish into the clear soup pot, cooked them, and served them to Roar Roar Rabbit and Little Can, poured a large glass of grape juice for Glug-Glug, and sat cross-legged in front of the red pot, rubbing his hands excitedly. He then carefully picked up a slice of mutton and put it into the boiling red soup.
He silently counted in his mind: 1, 2, 3…
60! Out of the pot!
The tender and delicate cotton sheep meat had no trace of muttony smell, and was now soaked in the red oil broth. The meat juice carried the soup, the umami mixed with the spiciness, and the two flavors blended together, leaving a lingering fragrance on the lips and teeth.
Chu Jiu was so satisfied that he didn’t know how to describe it. He could only cook another chopstick of meat, and then add some thinly sliced potato fruits.
Soon, his cheeks turned pink, and his lips became crimson.
The three little ones had never seen Chu Jiu eat so enthusiastically before, and they couldn’t help but stop their paws and tentacles, staring at Chu Jiu curiously.
Roar Roar Rabbit’s little nose twitched, and its long ears pointed directly at Chu Jiu’s red oil pot: “Roar roar roar, is this really so delicious? Can we try some?”
Then try some.
Chu Jiu generously put two slices of meat into Roar Roar Rabbit’s and Little Can’s plates.
Half a second later, Roar Roar Rabbit shouted, “Roar roar roar roar, my mouth hurts so much, roar roar roar,” and picked up the water bucket to drink non-stop.
Little Can was very calm, standing silently in place, as if nothing had happened—
But upon closer inspection, it could be seen that all its fur was standing on end!
Chu Jiu was startled and quickly picked up Little Can, forcing a glass of water down its throat.
Little Can then shuddered and weakly meowed, “…It’s, it’s nothing, it doesn’t hurt at all.”
Glug-Glug, who had been quiet all along, “poofed” and laughed, laughing so hard that the grape juice turned into bubbles.
Chu Jiu couldn’t help but laugh too, but still went along with Little Can’s words, “Yeah, it doesn’t hurt, you’re so brave.”
*
Arsa Star.
Lu Qingyan leaned back in his chair, his slender fingers crossed on his lap, his fingertips tapping rhythmically.
In the projection in front of him was the young man, his eyes and eyebrows full of joy.
Even his cheeks and lips were more vibrant than usual.
The young man propped his chin with one hand, reminiscing—how fragrant and spicy the hot pot was tonight.
As he spoke, he seemed to think of something very interesting, and said with a smile, “The little friends also liked the hot pot very much, each one ate more happily than the other.”
The young man’s voice was as clear and soft as ever.
Lu Qingyan’s fingertips unconsciously rubbed together, and the corners of his lips curled up slightly.
Was this so-called “hot pot” really that delicious?
Marshal Lu, who had always been unmoved by external things, felt a hint of curiosity.
However, as soon as this thought flashed through his mind, Lu Qingyan’s brow twitched—
On the projection in front of him, below the area where the young man was “live streaming,” a very clear sentence slowly appeared:
[Visitor 001: Is it really that delicious?]
