Her Cultivation Diary-Chapter 141 - : 141. Chef’s Tongue_1

Chapter 141: 141. Chef’s Tongue_1

Song Sancheng only found an excuse out of desperation, but there’s no denying how much he’d changed this year!

He used to be skinny and short, with somewhat dark skin and a mix of gray hair among the black on his head, making him look no different from the other villagers.

But now?

They hadn’t seen much of him recently due to how busy his family was, and looking at him now, everyone could tell he seemed plumper than before, with his wrinkles appearing stretched out!

The gray hair was still there, but the rest of his hair was shiny black, and he walked with a straight back, showing none of the stooping common in the elderly—oh, how energetic he looked!

As for his complexion, it was intangible but everyone could feel his health… seriously, what good food had he been indulging in since spring to be replenished like this?

With this thought in mind, everyone grew full of confidence and anticipation for his claim that “Wu Lan’s cooking skills had greatly improved.”

One of the aunties helping with tree planting mused:

“If you ask me, we should definitely eat more at lunchtime—do you still remember what Tantan looked like when she came back? She rode past my house on a motorcycle, oh my, I saw her, with a white gauze taped to one side of her head, looking so pale.”

“Now look at the girl, rosy and radiant—”

The aunty tried to find a good word to describe her, but all she could think of was how Song Tan carried the big basket with swift strides, eventually she could only summarize it with one statement—

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“…she’s quite robust now!”

Everyone agreed with this.

The efficiency with which Song Tan worked, her presence made everyone else seem lazy by comparison.

It was clear—

“The meals at Song Sancheng’s house must be nourishing! Even Qiaoqiao looks sharper, ah, too bad for the young man—ahem.”

The conversation couldn’t continue; it was awkward. But everyone began looking forward to Lao Song’s family’s lunch.

This made Song Sancheng a bit embarrassed.

He had just casually mentioned it… his wife’s cooking skills hadn’t changed in decades, it was all thanks to this year’s good harvest! But all the good produce had been sold for money already, how was he supposed to feed everyone?

Meanwhile, down the mountain.

Song Tan’s Little Pika pulled up at the doorstep, and Qiaoqiao, who had dried the tear marks on his face, got out of the truck first, then looked up at Song Tan full of expectation.

Song Tan: …

In fact, she had planned to ask Qiaoqiao to help with some chores.

But…

Oh no, now she was starting to feel a twinge of guilt and pain for spoiling the child!

Because she ultimately gave in to the pitiful look in his eyes:

“Come on, come on, to your sister’s room, I’ll set up the computer for you—only one episode at noon.”

One episode it is!

Qiaoqiao cheered and dashed into the house.

But Song Tan didn’t follow him immediately; she waited until Seventh Uncle and Seventh Grandma got out of the car before she said, “Mom, I’ve invited Seventh Uncle to be our chef. His house still needs a couple days of tidying, so he’ll have to stay at our place today…”

With everyone coming back with her, Wu Lan had no doubts about what was going on.

Right now, dropping the half-prepared vegetables in her hands, she became as enthusiastic as a sunflower, seemingly wanting to orbit around Seventh Uncle and his wife:

“Ah, Uncle’s here! Hurry, hurry, hurry, are you tired? I’ve been tidying up the room, just aired the blankets a few days ago, I’ll make the bed for you…”

She was so enthusiastic that Seventh Uncle, who had been quite certain of his feelings, felt even more relaxed. Seventh Grandma followed him into the house shortly after, but he took the liberty to stroll around the yard, looking at the three local dogs playing with a bone in the corner, and he couldn’t help but smile:

“These little fellows look quite spirited.”

If the dogs were raised this well and looked spirited, their diet must certainly not be scrimped on.

He turned his head and saw those bamboo shoots that Wu Lan half-peeled and then left behind; he couldn’t resist picking them up and examining them, even peeling off a couple of layers with his hands and stuffing them in his mouth to try.

After chewing twice, he silently broke off a small piece of bamboo shoot.

Then, he became serious and started examining the various vegetables scattered around the yard.

Just then, the two aunties who were helping with the chores also came in, stopped in shock when they saw Seventh Uncle, and then it dawned on them—

“Oh my, isn’t this our former chef, Song Sancheng?”

Back in the day, with a ladle in hand, Sancheng commanded respect in the village; whoever could invite him to cook was truly sending a message of sincerity! He was indeed a well-known figure.

The two of them got excited instantly. What, was Song Sancheng cooking for today’s noon feast? That would be a treat indeed!

Seventh Uncle nodded in greeting and then went over to inspect the cluster of locust flowers they had placed in the winnowing basket a bit closer. The green and white buds were tender and fragrant, carrying the breath of the wild with them.

Without tasting, Seventh Uncle knew that these locust flowers were the same as what Song Tan’s aunt had sent to his house. Turning his head, he saw another aunty holding a basin of freshly washed lettuce, which instantly made his brows furrow as if tied in a knot.

The lettuce was green enough, and it was crisp and tender, but he could tell just by sniffing that it was no different from the vegetables you’d find in a common market.

Had it been back when he was still a chef, there would be nothing to complain about with this lettuce.

But now, after comparing it to the bamboo shoots and locust flowers, it seemed as though one side was palace-grade Buddha Jumps Over the Wall and the other side was beggar’s spoiled rice—

The disparity was just too great, wasn’t it?

He then looked down again to inspect the various vegetables that had been neatly arranged on the ground—

Spinach, bok choy, garlic shoots, scallions, coriander, leeks, carrots, garlic scapes, lettuce…

“Why is there Milk Vetch here?”

Wasn’t this stuff just for feeding pigs and cows? Only in the early days of his career, when times were tough, did people eat this.

What now, not only do city folks love wild vegetables, have the villagers started to reminisce about the past hardships?

Song Tan happened to be unloading things from the cart and casually said, “The Milk Vetch grew deliciously this year, but we had to plow it all under to plant other crops. There’s just some left along the edges of the fields. My mom specifically went to pick it this morning.”

Vegetables are too expensive now!

Seventh Uncle didn’t respond but just pinched a little off of each vegetable to taste, and then pointed to all the vegetables one by one:

“The carrots and garlic scapes are bought, right? They have the taste of greenhouse vegetables.”

“The rest don’t come from the same field, either. Also, whose vegetables are the Milk Vetch and leeks?”

The two helping aunties exchanged surprised looks:

“Chef Song, no wonder your cooking tastes so good, no one can beat this palate of yours—after all these years, how come it’s still so sharp?”

“You’ve hit the nail on the head, the Milk Vetch and leeks are from Wu Lan’s home plot, the rest are just vegetables cobbled together from our village’s gardens.”

Wu Lan, who was carrying bedding out of the house, lit up at these words when she looked at Seventh Uncle—her eyes practically glowing!

What’s this called? This is genuine skill!

If her son could learn half of what his master knew, he would be able to support himself through cooking!