The wicked sister-in-law is in charge; meals include fish and shrimp.

Chapter 12 Braised Chicken and Sweet and Sour Fish

Xie He's eyes widened after just one glance. She quickly put her T-shirt down, looked around to make sure no one was nearby, and then patted her chest in relief.

Seeing her like this, Wen Luozhi found it amusing and quickly said, "Don't worry, Mother, we took a shortcut back and no one saw us."

Xie He nodded approvingly and happily took the things from her hands. When she saw that there was a small bag of potatoes, her expression suddenly changed. Wen Luozhi then pulled her aside and told her about finding potatoes on the mountain and eating them. Wen Zixun inevitably got scolded again.

When Xie He got home, he closed the courtyard gate tightly. When he took out the thing wrapped in his undershirt, everyone in the room was so shocked that they held their breath.

"Little sister... this is ours?" Li Chunxing looked at the things on the ground in disbelief, and her question was somewhat nonsensical.

Xie He rolled her eyes at her. "If it's not ours, whose is it? You better keep your mouths shut!"

Yang Guilan covered her mouth and nodded vigorously. There was still a big fish in the basin, and now there were chickens and rabbits too. Their family had encountered a god!

Xie He put everything on the ground into the cage, then turned around and saw Da Ya and Er Ya squatting by the fish basin. She scolded, "What are you all looking at! These are all meant to be taken to town to exchange for silver to save up for your aunt's dowry! All you think about is eating!"

Even so, she couldn't help but swallow hard.

The rest of the family is starving, but my youngest daughter still needs money! I can't let my little girl suffer!

Da Ya and Er Ya shrank back behind Li Chunxing, but the two little girls couldn't help but lick their lips.

Everyone looked dejected, and even the youngest, Xiaohu, huddled in Yang Guilan's arms, his face full of sadness.

Wen Luozhi quickly stepped in to smooth things over, "Mom, that fish isn't fresh anyway, and it won't fetch a good price in town tomorrow." She took Xie He's arm and continued, "Everyone has worked hard, so let's slaughter another chicken." She then pointed to the pheasant that had been hit on the head.

Xie He looked in the direction she was pointing, and saw that the pheasant had its head drooping and looked listless.

When collecting wild game, freshness is key. After thinking it over, she nodded to her youngest daughter.

"You all better remember this: this meat was given to you by your sister! You know what to do, right?"

Leaving aside the smaller ones, Xie He's eyes darted around the larger ones.

"Don't worry, Mother. I'll give all my good things to my sister from now on!" Wen Zixun was the first to express his opinion.

Xie He nodded in satisfaction, then turned his gaze to Li Chunxing and Yang Guilan.

"Your sister-in-law is the treasure of the family. When Xiaohu grows up, he must be filial to his aunt!" Yang Guilan looked at Wen Luozhi with flattery, and Wen Luozhi awkwardly touched her nose.

Li Chunxing pushed Da Ya and Er Ya forward, saying, "From now on, Da Ya and Er Ya will also..."

Xie He was finally satisfied. Her daughter should be pampered by everyone, otherwise she wouldn't stand for it.

Wen Luozhi smiled at her, revealing her small white teeth, and said, "Everyone has worked hard during the day, I'll cook dinner."

Upon hearing her words, Li Chunxing was quite frightened. She was the one who usually cooked at home. Not to mention whether her sister-in-law knew how to cook, it was never her turn to do it.

"Little sister, let your elder sister-in-law cook this meal!" She quickly picked up the chicken from the ground and instructed Daya and Erya, "You two help Mother get the fish out."

With meat to eat, Yang Guilan became more enthusiastic. She pulled aside Da Ya and Er Ya, scooped up the fish, and ran off, saying, "Sister-in-law, let me help you!"

Wen Luozhi: ...

Since she doesn't kill livestock anyway, she'll go to another battlefield.

She got up and walked towards the kitchen, but Xie He stopped her. "Honey, where are you going?! You're not really going to cook, are you?" she asked.

Wen Luozhi nodded affirmatively.

Xie He tried to pull her over to sit down, but Wen Luozhi held her hand and said, "Mother, everyone used to cook."

"I've been confused for so long and no one has complained or treated me so well, so please let them cook this meal!"

She really wants to eat braised chicken and sweet and sour fish! Her mouth is practically watering at the thought of food.

There are potatoes on the table today, so she can eat her fill!

"Anyway, Mom's here. She'll be right there guiding me, so the taste is bound to be good," Wen Luozhi said, clinging to her arm and acting coquettishly.

Xie He was touched by her and let go of her hand to go to the kitchen, thinking that no matter how bad her daughter's cooking was today, she would still say it was delicious.

I can't hurt my daughter's feelings since it's her first time cooking.

Da Ya and Er Ya exchanged a glance and followed behind the two. There would be meat to eat tonight, and they were going to help start the fire!

Wen Zixun scratched his head. Everyone was busy, so he couldn't just sit around waiting to eat, could he? He picked up the buckets and went out to fetch water.

Once in the kitchen, Wen Luozhi quickly peeled a bowl of potatoes and then cut them into chunks.

Li Chunxing and her two sisters-in-law came in carrying the washed items. She quickly chopped the pheasant into evenly sized pieces and then scored the whole fish and marinated it.

The three women—mother-in-law, daughter-in-law, and mother-in-law—were all quite surprised by her actions.

Xie He: Her daughter is amazing! Her first time cooking, and she did a really good job, even better than a professional chef in a restaurant!

Li Chunxing: This sister-in-law is quite the hidden talent...

Yang Guilan: I never imagined you were so capable when you're usually so lazy and good-for-nothing!

After preparing the ingredients, Wen Luozhi encountered another problem: she didn't have the seasonings she needed for cooking...

She thought for a moment, then looked up at Xie He and said, "Mom, please watch my things. I found some spices in the mountains, I'll go get them." With that, she rushed out of the kitchen.

Once in her room, she spent 10 points to redeem the items she needed.

Back in the kitchen, she cleaned everything up and started cooking.

She had previously obtained a small half-jar of oil from Lin Huaizhi and his mother's house. She scooped out a large spoonful and put it into the pot, which made Xie He feel quite distressed.

Li Chunxing opened her mouth to speak, but Xie He raised an eyebrow and startled her, causing her to swallow her words back.

Yang Guilan happily chopped firewood, saying that more oil makes the food taste better! And it would help her husband recover faster.

Da Ya and Er Ya were completely captivated by the aroma. Even after Wen Luozhi covered the pot with the lid, the fragrance continued to waft out.

Fortunately, she had two pots. She poured all the oil into the other pot, and when the oil started to smoke, she kept pouring the battered fish over it with the hot oil.

The aroma burst forth, filling the entire kitchen with the scents of oil and meat.

Making sweet and sour fish is quick; she finished the last step in no time.

Looking at the fish in front of them, none of them could believe their eyes. They usually just boiled the fish in water and ate it; they never went through such a complicated process as this.

Wen Luozhi then casually chopped up the remaining scallions, ginger, and chili peppers and used the extra cooked oil to make a pickled cabbage stalk dish, which would be a good choice to eat with rice in the summer.

Judging that it was about time, she lifted the lid of the pot and saw it bubbling inside.

The aromas wafted out of the pot, and the group stared at it, reluctant to blink.

Wen Zixun had been staying in the kitchen ever since he brought back two buckets of water, and now he was naturally in the smelling group.

Wen Luozhi used a spatula to cut the potato chunks, and only after confirming that the potatoes were soft and tender did she add the chopped green and red peppers and stir-fry them.

She found a large bowl, ladled out the braised chicken, and finally sprinkled some finely chopped scallions on top, and it was done.

"Sixth Brother, serve the food!" She clapped her hands.

"Hey!" Wen Zixun responded excitedly, carrying the dishes and running towards the canteen. Daya followed closely behind him, carrying a stack of bowls and Erya holding a pair of chopsticks.

Wen Ziming and his father, who had just arrived at the distant place, put down their hoes and ran to the canteen.

They could smell it from far away, and thought it was someone else's house!

As a result, the closer they got to their homes, the stronger the aroma became, almost bewitching them.

"Hey you two! Go wash up before you come in, don't stink my daughter's nose!"

Xie He slapped the father and son both once each, sending them flying out.