But thirty to fifty thousand is still an unimaginable astronomical figure for her. She casually mentioned it, thinking that Shen Ting was definitely messing with her, so she didnât take it seriously at all. She never imagined he would really agree!
"If I give you the money, can you stop degrading yourself like you just did?" Shen Ting met Wa Yitingâs shocked gaze and quietly asked. Although he still didnât know what the problem was, he really didnât want her to become like this; she shouldnât be like this.
"Crazy!" Wa Yiting stared at him for a while, then said this and pushed her small cart away.
Shen Ting didnât chase after her. He felt dizzy, staggered to the bedside, and lay down, closing his eyes for quite a while before opening them again.
He thought about the series of events that had just happened when he saw Wa Yiting, still finding it hard to accept.
He held his forehead with his hand, even more confused about his own heart. Clearly yesterday he was eagerly looking forward to meeting her, trembling with excitementâwhy was today so different? Forget feeling moved, he even felt resistance!
Itâs like someone who really wanted to eat something theyâve never tried before, dreaming about it day and night for many years. But when they finally got to taste it, they found it not only unappetizing but even slightly nauseating!
Shen Ting didnât understand why it turned out this way. His gaze seemed a bit bewildered as he stared at the mottled ceiling, falling into unprecedented self-doubt...
Meanwhile, far away in Beidu, Jiaojiao was helping the Ruanlin Family stoke the fire in the kitchen, eagerly watching her pan-fry the mugwort cake.
Mugwort cake is what they call it in Xiahe Villageâitâs also known as Qing tuan. Different places have different names and various cooking methods.
In Jiaojiaoâs hometown, the method involves first picking fresh mugwort, rinsing it, then blanching it in boiling water to remove the bitterness; after cooling it in cold water, chopping it finelyâthe finer the betterâthen mixing it with glutinous rice flour and water, adding sugar or salt according to personal taste, kneading into dough, and flattening before frying or steaming.
Jiaojiao prefers the fried version, fried until both sides are golden brown.
Its texture is soft and sticky, with a crispy exterior and the unique aroma of mugwort leaves. She has eaten it since she was young and never gets tired of it.
This season thereâs no mugwort, even if there is itâs too old. But since Jiaojiao enjoys eating it, the Ruanlin Family picked a lot in spring, blanched them in boiling water, squeezed out the moisture, kneaded into dough, and stored them in the freezer, taking them out to defrost when needed, and mixing with glutinous rice flour and water to shape into dough.
Today Jiaojiao wanted to eat it, so the Ruanlin Family took it out early in the morning to defrost, and by noon it was ready.
Jiaojiao watched as the mugwort cake turned golden and crispy, her eyes glued to it, prompting the Ruanlin Family to chuckle, "So grown up and still such a foodie, a real little glutton."
Despite her words, her hands deftly lifted one from the pan and placed it on a nearby plate, advising Jiaojiao before she reached for it: "Itâs hot, wait a while, go get some chopsticks."
"Got it." Jiaojiao nodded eagerly and hurriedly went to fetch chopsticks.
Rourou and Xiaoxue had already been drawn by the aroma, one person and two wolves, all eagerly eyeing the sole mugwort cake on the plate.
The Ruanlin Family was amused, and quickly lifted two more golden ones from the pan and placed them nearby.