Chapter 75: Making Smoked Plums
Changchuan County had been sunny for several days in a row. The glaring sun shone white-hot, bleaching the soil pale and making the ground burn underfoot.
Ying Kongtu and Wen Zhongshan went out early in the morning to patrol the mountain. After returning and eating breakfast, they rested at home.
The courtyard gate was open, and the mountain wind poured in, scattering the heat.
Ying Kongtu sat under the eaves, currently on the phone with Old Doctor Zhai.
“…For this new batch of isatis root, I feel the medicinal effect is stronger than the previous batch. We sent it for testing, and the test report shows that all the active components inside are much higher than before.”
“I just received it. Wait, let me take a look.”
“Sorry to trouble you.”
“What trouble is this? Let me see. This batch of isatis root has a very strong medicinal fragrance. The moment I opened the package, I smelled that rich medicinal scent. Its appearance is also very good. Your isatis root must be growing thicker and larger now, right?”
“The latest batch has grown a bit larger.”
Ying Kongtu chatted slowly with the old doctor.
The medicinal effect of the isatis root had strengthened, so the prescription also needed to be adjusted a little. Otherwise, it would lose its balance.
He was asking Old Doctor Zhai to help revise it.
“Tap—”
While Ying Kongtu was on the phone, a round object hit the wall, bounced back, and rolled into his foot, spinning around beside him.
He lowered his head in confusion and glanced at it.
It was a plum.
The plum was golden yellow, with a touch of red at the top.
There were also a few sharp little tooth marks on it, probably made by Tiaozhu and the others.
Earlier that morning, Ying Kongtu had seen Tiaozhu and the others playing with a round object, like they were playing football. They kept reaching for it with their paws and excitedly running back and forth in the courtyard.
He had not paid much attention.
Unexpectedly, it was a plum they had brought back.
Before Ying Kongtu could get a clear look, Dart ran over excitedly and even slipped, bumping its backside into Ying Kongtu’s foot.
It did not care at all. With a swipe of its paw, it rolled the green plum away and, with a few quick steps, ran off with Tiaozhu and the others.
Tiaozhu, however, lifted its head and glanced at Ying Kongtu. It gently stepped on his shoe with its paw as a token of comfort, then ran off to play again.
Tiaozhu, Dart, and Shuangzhong looked about the same size. When they ran wildly together, they seemed evenly matched.
Jingwei was much larger, but whenever it played, it always opened its mouth in a grin, making it look like it was laughing foolishly, so it looked oddly harmonious too.
Only Xian Niao did not really play with them. It lay in the corridor, sleeping.
Because Xian Niao always carried a steady aura, it did not look lonely. Instead, there was a sense of peace about it. Ying Kongtu was sure it was not uncomfortable, so he did not interfere.
After finishing his conversation with Old Doctor Zhai, Ying Kongtu hung up the phone, walked over to Xian Niao, rubbed its head, and then went to look at the other plums Tiaozhu and the others had brought back and piled in the corner of the courtyard.
“What are you looking at?” Wen Zhongshan walked over from behind.
“The plums are ripe.” Ying Kongtu stretched out two fingers, pinched the plum that Tiaozhu and the others had bitten, and held it up before his eyes. “They’re not soft yet, but they can already be picked.”
The green plums on their mountain could actually have been picked half a month ago.
Recently, Ying Kongtu’s divine power had been growing deeper by the day. He hoped the green plums could receive nourishment from his divine power and improve in quality, so he had left them hanging on the branches.
Now, the plums were golden, with a rosy flush at the top. If they did not pick them now, the flesh would probably ripen and soften.
Then the quality of the plums would instead decline.
Wen Zhongshan also saw the plum. “Shall we go up the mountain and take a look?”
“That’s exactly what I was thinking.” Ying Kongtu pulled Wen Zhongshan along to get their hats. “Let’s go.”
Before going out, Ying Kongtu said to the little ones at home, “We’re going out for a bit. You all play at home.”
Tiaozhu and the others, already excited from playing, did not react. Only Xian Niao lifted its head and gave them a soft cry. “Awoo.”
The green plums on their mountain mainly came from the green plum groves left behind by people from the past and from wild green plum trees.
Last winter, they had pruned the branches, buried fertilizer, and carefully tended them. Now, most of the green plums were growing well.
When they reached the green plum grove, from a distance, they could see the greenish-yellow plums beneath the dark green leaves.
Walking under a plum tree, Ying Kongtu lifted his head and identified them for a while, then reached out and picked one. “Some of the plums have already softened.”
The plum in his hand had softened. The flesh was like ripe peach flesh. With a light tear of the skin, it separated.
Once the skin was torn open, a fresh plum fragrance rushed out, making one’s mouth water.
Ying Kongtu peeled off the skin, turned, and passed it to Wen Zhongshan’s lips.
Wen Zhongshan was unguarded and opened his mouth to take it. The next moment, the plum was so sour that his expression twisted slightly.
The plum clearly smelled full of fruity fragrance and was fully ripe. Even its skin was an enticing reddish yellow. Yet when eaten, it was extremely sour.
He looked at Ying Kongtu.
Ying Kongtu, whose prank had succeeded, had a smile at the corners of his mouth.
“Sour, right?” Ying Kongtu turned toward him, put an arm around his shoulder, kissed him, and took the plum from his mouth, rolling it into his own mouth with his tongue.
The next moment, Ying Kongtu himself shuddered from the sourness.
Wen Zhongshan felt his body tremble and could not help smiling. “You tasted it.”
“Hiss. It really is sour. My teeth feel soft.” Ying Kongtu finally managed to finish eating the green plum and said.
“Can the plums still be eaten?”
“Pick them and pickle them a bit. It won’t be a problem.”
The plums on the trees varied in ripeness. Most of them were still firm.
They picked some green plums that had not softened and brought them back, soaking and washing them in preparation for cooking.
The golden plums fell into the wooden basin. Soaked in clear well water, they looked even more adorable.
Ying Kongtu brought over a stone mortar and pestle, smashed open the washed green plums, and picked out the pits inside.
He made two versions with the prepared plums: one pickled with honey, and the other pickled with minced garlic, granulated sugar, salt powder, and chili oil.
Wen Zhongshan looked at the plums in the basin in shock again. “Plums can be pickled like this too?”
“They can. Eaten as a side dish, the taste is actually not bad.”
Wen Zhongshan stared at the spicy pickled plums for a long while and said, “I finally understand what people online mean by heresy.”
Ying Kongtu burst out laughing.
At lunch, Ying Kongtu placed the pickled plum side dish on a snow-white plate.
The golden plum flesh, dark red chili oil, and dotted minced garlic gave the dish a pretty decent appearance.
It also smelled quite good. The fragrance of the plums was very fresh.
Ying Kongtu strongly recommended Wen Zhongshan try it. “The taste is very special. Maybe once you try it, you’ll open the door to a whole new world.”
Wen Zhongshan stared at it for a long time, then tried a small piece doubtfully. To his surprise, the taste was actually quite good.
After being pickled with sugar and salt, the plum flesh became even crisper. The sourness had decreased quite a bit, while the fruit fragrance remained.
Mixed with chili oil, it was sour, spicy, crisp, refreshing, fresh, and pleasant. As long as it was eaten as a side dish and not in large amounts, it really was quite tasty.
Ying Kongtu smiled. “How is it? I didn’t trick you, right? This dish is actually a seasonal delicacy too.”
Wen Zhongshan could not help saying, “Too miraculous.”
After lunch, Ying Kongtu took out the plums pickled in honey and brewed them with warm water.
Once brewed, the green plum tea carried plum fragrance, honey fragrance, and fruit fragrance all intertwined together. With ice added, it was even colder and more refreshing, making Ying Kongtu unable to stop drinking it.
Ying Kongtu sat there digesting. “Tomorrow, we’ll pick the plums. More and more of them are ripening. We can’t delay any longer.”
“Are we going to smoke this batch of plums according to the original plan?”
“The ones that haven’t fully ripened will be smoked. The fully ripe ones will probably have to be dried into plum slices. They can’t be smoked.”
“Do we need to hire people?”
“Let’s see first. Plums are very easy to pick.”
The two slowly discussed picking the plums. Once they talked themselves sleepy, they went for a nap.
Early the next morning, before the sun had come out, Ying Kongtu and Wen Zhongshan brought the whole family along to pick plums.
This year’s plums had grown well, large and round. With a reach of their hands, they quickly picked an entire tree clean.
The process of picking plums was also the first round of sorting.
The fully ripened, soft plums were placed to one side, and the still-firm plums were placed to another.
Overall, there were far more plums that had not yet softened, accounting for over ninety percent. The soft plums made up less than ten percent.
For them, this ratio was completely acceptable.
As they picked plums, Tiaozhu and the others carried the bags over and also picked up plums that had fallen under the trees to play with.
After ripening, quite a few plums had fallen to the ground.
Ying Kongtu did not allow the little animals to touch the plums on the trees, but he did not care about the ones on the ground.
These fallen plums had become delicacies for some small animals. Quite a few mountain mice, birds, and even wild boars came to eat them. All sorts of footprints could be seen in the plum grove.
“Chirp chirp.”
Hearing a faint cry, Ying Kongtu turned his head and saw that the macaques active in the forest had come down and were watching them from afar.
Because they had been dealt with by Tiaozhu and the others, this group of macaques was a little timid and did not dare come over.
Ying Kongtu glanced at them.
Perhaps they took encouragement from Ying Kongtu’s gaze, because they came a little closer.
When the monkeys were not causing trouble, Tiaozhu and the others had no interest in dealing with the monkey troop.
The monkeys keenly sensed the change in Tiaozhu and the others’ attitude. They became a little bolder and came a little closer.
After testing several times, the monkeys arrived in the plum grove. They tentatively copied Ying Kongtu and Wen Zhongshan’s movements, plucking plums from the branches and gently placing them into the bags.
Ying Kongtu glanced at them. “Thank you.”
The monkeys sensed Ying Kongtu’s softened attitude and became even happier. “Chirp chirp.”
This group of monkeys was very clever. Soon, under the monkey king’s leadership, they began picking plums.
They picked quickly and well. Their movements were very gentle, and they did not damage the plums at all.
After Ying Kongtu taught them a few times, they even learned to put the softened plums to one side and not mix them with the still-firm plums.
More and more monkeys joined the plum grove, and their plum-picking speed grew faster and faster.
Ying Kongtu had originally planned to spend two or three days picking all the plums and then process them in batches.
With the monkeys’ help, they finished picking them in one day.
Ying Kongtu and Wen Zhongshan gave the monkeys dried meat as payment.
In addition, Ying Kongtu specially assigned a few peach and plum trees to them, allowing them to pick the fruit from those trees.
This year, Ying Kongtu had carefully tended the fruit trees in the mountains, leaving only some for the little animals.
There were fewer fruit trees left out, so the monkeys still had to compete with other small animals and did not get to eat that much fruit.
Now that Ying Kongtu had specially assigned them several fruit trees, their food suddenly became plentiful, and they grew excited.
“Chirp chirp! Whoop whoop!”
The monkeys’ strange calls came from deep in the forest.
A smile appeared on Ying Kongtu’s face.
Wen Zhongshan said, “They’ve become part of the forest too.”
“The forest environment has improved quite a bit. There are more and more wild animals now.”
With the monkeys’ help, they picked a great many plums in one day.
Just the two of them alone could not possibly process that many plums.
Ying Kongtu hired familiar workers to come over and help wash and sort the plums.
After the plums were washed, they put them into large ceramic vats, added salt to pickle them and remove astringency, also allowing the plums to shed part of their moisture and soften the flesh.
Once treated this way, the plums could be placed on smoking racks and smoked.
Ying Kongtu did not have a smokehouse at home. They only smoked plums once a year, so there was no need to build a smokehouse specially.
They found a smokehouse in the township below, rented it, and transported the plums there to smoke.
As for the smoking materials, they still used hardwood and pine needles from Ying Kongtu’s mountain.
There were plenty of dead branches and fallen leaves on his mountain. A little collection was enough.
The quality of the hardwood and pine needles on the mountain was also good. Used to smoke plums, the flavor would be more fragrant.
Relatively few people smoked plums locally. Other households that grew plums basically used sun-drying.
After the plums were harvested, they were first pickled, then dried in the sun.
Every household had a drying space on the roof, so drying them was not troublesome.
It was comparatively rare for anyone to put so much care into smoking plums like they did.
Quite a few villagers came over to watch.
“I really haven’t seen this smoking method before.”
“Don’t say that. It actually smells pretty fragrant.”
“Smoking should make them dry more easily, right? They should dry in two or three days?”
When Ying Kongtu heard everyone talking, he smiled and lifted his head to say, “No. After smoking, they still need to be sun-dried or dried again.”
“Then why are you smoking the plums? Isn’t that a waste of so much manpower and materials?”
“You can’t say that either,” Ying Kongtu said. “After being smoked, the plums won’t be as cold in nature and can be used in medicine. Even if not used in medicine, after smoking, they’ll be warmer and more nourishing. They’ll also make better sour plum soup.”
Someone asked the key question. “Will the price be higher after smoking?”
Ying Kongtu smiled. “Of course.”
Smoking plums did not mean simply smoking them. They also needed to be turned so they could be evenly heated and smoked.
Ying Kongtu and Wen Zhongshan took turns turning them and watched the fire by the smokehouse.
Under their smoking, the plums slowly shrank, becoming black, glossy, and moist.
The plum fragrance also changed from green and fresh to mellow and rich.
They smoked them for nearly a week before finishing all of this year’s plums.
The finished smoked plums were large, thick-fleshed, glossy, and pleasing. Just looking at them, one could tell they were extraordinary.
“All right. We just need to send them to the drying machine to dry.” Ying Kongtu stretched lazily. “I’m exhausted.”
Fortunately, they had several commercial dryers. Otherwise, after smoking the plums, they would still have to guard them as they dried under the sun. It would be exhausting.
Wen Zhongshan asked, “Can the smoked plums be eaten now?”
“Yes. We can make sour plum soup.” Ying Kongtu grabbed a handful. “We’ll make it later.”
As he spoke, Ying Kongtu turned to look at Wen Zhongshan and said with a smile, “I’ll add extra honey for you. I guarantee it won’t be sour.”
For newly smoked plums, after drying, it was actually better to let them sit for a while. Their moisture would distribute more evenly, and their quality would improve.
But Ying Kongtu could no longer wait.
For hundreds of years, he had not tasted green plums smoked by his own family, much less sour plum soup made from green plums nourished by divine power.
That night, he boiled a pot, carefully following the recipe and adding licorice, dried tangerine peel, rock sugar, and other ingredients. After cooking, he added honey and refrigerated it.
This batch of smoked plums truly did not disappoint him.
The sour plum soup made from new smoked plums was bright red, rich, and mellow. It was completely different from sour plum soup sold on the market.
Ying Kongtu poured two cups and pushed one of them to Wen Zhongshan.
The two sat side by side and lifted their cups together to taste it.
Because sugar and honey had been added, the sour plum soup was sweet and sour, cold and refreshing. As soon as it entered the mouth, its rich fragrance spread out. The sourness was very mellow and layered, and the fragrance was also mellow and layered.
Even Wen Zhongshan, who did not like sour flavors, could not help being amazed.
“It’s delicious,” Wen Zhongshan said.
Ying Kongtu narrowed his eyes. “This is the taste I remember. Back then, there were no refrigerators, so I usually placed it in the well to chill.”
“Was it this cold, sour, and sweet too?”
“About the same. Especially when drinking it on summer nights. After drinking it, you could feel all the summer heat retreat. After dinner, slowly drinking a cup of sour plum soup, feeling the wind, looking at the stars and fireflies—the summers passed year after year like that.”
As Ying Kongtu spoke, he turned to look at Wen Zhongshan. “Now that I’m drinking it with you, it feels even more comfortable.”
“I’ve never experienced days like that. It does sound very comfortable.”
“We’ll live them slowly from now on.”
Not only did they like the sour plum soup; Tiaozhu and the others also liked it. They were drinking it one sip at a time.
Even Shuangzhong tilted its head back and pecked at the sour plum soup little by little.
They lay there drinking slowly, looking utterly content.
After this year’s plums were harvested, Ying Kongtu sent some to his friends as usual.
They had become friends with Old Doctor Zhai, so they also sent a portion to the old doctor.
There were many plums on the market now, but not many traditionally smoked plums.
After the old doctor received them and thanked Ying Kongtu, he cooked a pot of sour plum soup at noon that same day.
When his wife returned home, she smelled the sweet-and-sour fragrance filling the house and poked her head in to ask, “Old man, what are we eating for lunch today?”
“Noodles and sour plum soup. How about that?”
“All right. It’s been a long time since I had sour plum soup. I’ll cut some cucumber shreds.”
After washing her hands, his wife went over to slice cucumber shreds. “Why did you suddenly think of making sour plum soup?”
“Kongtu sent me some good smoked plums. I was thinking you like sweet things, so I made some.”
“Don’t add too much sugar either. Our blood sugar will get high.”
“It’s fine. I added licorice to cook with it. I’ll add less sugar later.”
Soon, the old couple sat at the table, eating noodles and drinking sour plum soup.
“This sour plum soup really is delicious. I haven’t had such fresh and natural sour plum soup in years,” the old lady praised. “The sour plum soup outside is all sickly sweet. It doesn’t even taste like plums.”
“It tastes like the sour plum soup we drank when we were young,” the old doctor said.
“Can Haokai’s wife drink this sour plum soup? Should we send her some later?”
Zhai Haokai was the old doctor’s grand-nephew. His wife was pregnant and had been unable to eat anything recently.
The old doctor also remembered this. “A little won’t hurt. I’ll have Haokai come pick some up later.”
“This sour plum soup is really good.” As the old lady drank, she could not help saying again, “How much did he send you? Later, I’ll send some to my maiden family too.”
“Not much. Just one jar.”
“Can we buy some?”
“If I go ask, he’ll probably just give it to me and won’t take my money.” The old doctor slowly took a sip of sour plum soup. “Later, I’ll check his online shop. His shop should have it for sale.”
After lunch, the old couple put on their reading glasses and opened their phones to check Ying Kongtu’s online shop.
Sure enough, his shop had sour plum soup ingredient packs already matched and prepared. One pack was twelve yuan, with discounts for two or more.
“There really is.” The old doctor said happily, “I’ll buy some.”
The old lady leaned over to look. “Send me the link. Later, I’ll forward it to the family group. Since we’ve received something good from him, we should help promote it too.”
Author’s Note:
Dart has always been rather cowardly in front of Tiaozhu.
Actually, it is even more cowardly in front of Xian Niao.
After Xian Niao found out that Dart had gone to scare wild boars, it majestically carried Dart to the corner and made it stand there as punishment.
Dart was unconvinced. After Xian Niao went out to patrol the mountain, it secretly gnawed away more than half the food in Xian Niao’s bowl.
It was so stuffed that it burped all morning.
