Fu Xin Ci whispered to her grandfather, "Grandpa, while I can't say potatoes can be stewed with everything, they're quite good when stewed with preserved meat."
As the soft, sweet voice drifted over, Qi He, who was eavesdropping, felt his mouth water uncontrollably.
Fu Xin Ci: No less, she too missed the taste of braised pork stewed with potatoes.
*Hmm, can't think about it anymore.* Otherwise, she'd end up like Qi He. Thinking about it might even be worse.
Meng Qing Ping hadn't tried preserved meat stewed with potatoes, but the expression on his granddaughter's face as she described how delicious it was stirred a hint of anticipation in him. He beckoned his son over, indicating he had something to say.
Fu Yu was also worried about Wu Laoda. A piece of preserved meat wouldn't be enough for so many people; it wouldn't even be enough to get stuck between their teeth.
Seeing his father beckoning him, he quickly walked over, "Father."
"Yu'er, take these potatoes to Wu Laoda. Stewing them with preserved meat makes for an excellent dish," Meng Qing Ping said. Though he hadn't tried the dish himself, he trusted his granddaughter.
"Will this thing taste good stewed with preserved meat?" Fu Yu asked. It was his first time hearing that this round, plump object could be eaten.
It wasn't that he was being overly cautious. Under his father's personal tutelage, he had developed aspirations. He seemed to have heard of potatoes somewhere before but had never seen one.
Seeing one unexpectedly today, he was still a bit uncertain.
Fu Xin Ci saw her dear father staring at the potatoes, appraising them. She repeated what she had just told her grandfather, "Dad, potatoes stewed with preserved meat taste very good."
Fearing her dear father might not have understood, she added, "It's best to cut the potatoes into chunks. Stew them with preserved meat, and they'll be ready about fifteen minutes after boiling."
"Oh," Fu Yu replied. It wasn't the first time he had heard his daughter talk about cooking, but this time it felt novel.
Given his daughter's young age, hearing her speak so knowledgeably about cooking only deepened his longing for her mother.
His daughter was raised by her mother, but he could only bury this longing deep within his heart, not daring to let his father discover even a hint of it, fearing it would make his father even more sorrowful.
He then shifted the conversation to his daughter's cooking skills, saying, "I never expected our Xin'er's culinary skills to improve so much."
"I..." Fu Xin Ci almost blurted out, "I know so much more!" But the words turned into a shy blush on her little face, and she lowered her head in feigned modesty.
Fu Yu didn't doubt his daughter. Xin'er was his and Xiao Yun's first child, and her birth had brought immense joy to their family.
Grandfather, grandmother, father, and mother all poured their boundless love onto Xin'er.
Her grandfather, despite his old age, always insisted on personally cooking for Xin'er.
Every time he saw Xin'er eating with relish, his eyes would crinkle with a smile.
Even after Yu'er was born, it didn't diminish the care all the elders in the family showed Xin'er.
As Fu Yu thought about his daughter's growth, a mixture of emotions welled up in his heart. If it weren't for their family being implicated by the Meng family, his daughter would undoubtedly be a proper young lady of an official's family.
Alas, such are the times and fate.
Wu Laoda was already panicking, "What to do! What to do!"
Agitated like an ant on a hot pan, Wu Laoda's eyes fell on Fu Yu. Brother Fu was a scholar; he must have more solutions than a rough fellow like himself.
Oh my, he was quite clever. It was bound to be right to seek Brother Fu's help for this matter.
Fu Yu, with his back to Wu Laoda, was talking to his father and daughter. Unexpectedly, Wu Laoda slyly sidled up to him.
"Brother Fu, you're a scholar and more knowledgeable than I. Please help me think of something to make a dish with that preserved meat, something that will make it seem like there's more."
Wu Laoda felt he was asking for the impossible, but at this critical juncture, he could only pin all his hopes on Brother Fu.
Seeing Wu Laoda's obsequious expression, before the Meng Qing Ping family could speak, Qi He chimed in. "Uncle Wu, these potatoes were dug up by Sister Fu in the rain a while ago."
Qi He first clarified that these were dug up by Sister Fu, a young girl, braving the heavy rain, to let Wu Laoda know how precious they were. Then, he recounted, word for word, the benefits of potatoes that Sister Fu had mentioned.
Wu Laoda vaguely registered the other details, but one sentence stuck in his mind: "Stewing this with preserved meat makes for an extremely delicious dish."
"Heavens, is this thing really that good?" Wu Laoda asked, unable to suppress his disbelief. He had traveled far and wide for years, visited many places, yet this was the first time he had seen something called a potato. How could he not be curious?
And indeed, its large size made it look rather cheerful. Wu Laoda picked one up and weighed it in his hand, thinking, "This thing is heavy enough to be used as a brick. If it hit someone on the head, they'd need to go to the doctor."
Qi He was unaware that the uncle before him was comparing such a delicious food to a brick. If he had known, he would have immediately said a word he had learned from Grandpa Meng a few days ago: "a waste of good things."
Wu Laoda wasn't ignorant; he simply didn't recognize potatoes. Moreover, a young boy had spoken up before Brother Fu. He felt a bit uncertain.
He didn't care about the preserved meat; he cared about what would happen if this meal turned out to be a disaster.
Seeing that Brother Fu wasn't stopping the boy, he knew that this thing called a potato was reliable. He then slyly sidled up to Fu Yu and whispered, "Brother Fu, could you trouble your wife to stew this preserved meat and potatoes together?"
After speaking, Wu Laoda added sheepishly, "This potato is a novelty. I'm afraid my clumsy brothers might spoil it. Also, when it's cooked, please set aside a bowl for Uncle and the children to have as an extra dish."
Wu Laoda also knew that they shared a camaraderie as fellow travelers with Fu Yu. But having used the food found by the young girl, he felt somewhat reluctant and wanted to serve a bowl to the children when the preserved meat and potatoes were stewed.
"Alright," Fu Yu said. Seeing the pale and thin appearance of his father and the two children, he didn't refuse. He could go without, but his father and the two children needed something with some oil and substance, not to mention the child who had spoken up for them earlier.
Fu Yu had a very good impression of Qi He. He was still a child himself, yet he had wholeheartedly helped their elderly father and two children along the way. This kindness he could never forget.