Chapter 573: Exclamations
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Everyone ran over quickly. Wei Cheng knew the villagers would be excited. Still, he did not expect them to run so fast.
All six families arrived. The men, women, and children looked excited.
Lin Zheng was familiar with everyone after being there for a few days. When everyone arrived, he said, “You’re all here.”
“Young Master Lin, will we be making dumplings with Madam?”
“Yeah, is Madam busy, Young Master Lin? Should we go and help?”
Everyone was familiar with Su Binglan since she had called them a few times to cook. The villagers looked impatient at that moment.
Lin Zheng waved. “Aunt Lin, you don’t have to call me Young Master Lin. Just call me by my name.”
He felt embarrassed whenever others addressed him so formally. Still, everyone knew he was Su Binglan’s disciple and dared not call him by his name so casually.
Lin Zheng felt helpless.
Su Binglan came out from the kitchen when she heard the commotion outside. She said, “You don’t have to be so polite. Just call Lin Zheng by his name. He’ll feel embarrassed if you call him Young Master Lin.”
Everyone instinctively obeyed Su Binglan. Moreover, Luo Jin’an had told them his wife’s words were like his and that they should listen to her.
“Yes, Madam.”
“Shall we make dumplings together, Madam?” Although everyone had received the news, they still wanted to confirm it to avoid offending her.
There was plenty of meat, and Blue Two prepared to portion the boar. Since he was a Shadow Guard, he was excellent at using knives and swords. Therefore, he lifted his knife to skin the wild boar.
Everyone saw Blue Two’s actions and revealed surprised expressions. The villagers were not Shadow Guards but Luo Jin’an’s subordinates. Although they knew martial arts, they were less capable than Blue Two.
They looked at his and Blue Three’s demeanors and guessed they were the Shadow Guards Su Binglan had brought.
‘Isn’t Madam from the countryside? There are Shadow Guards there?’ The villagers were doubtful.
However, after becoming familiar with each other and learning about Su Binglan’s abilities, everyone understood she was powerful and magical. Hence, they thought it was logical that she had Shadow Guards.
The wild boar was massive, twice the size of an ordinary one. Moreover, the villagers suspected its meat would taste very fresh. They also noticed many hawthorns in the courtyard.
Lin Zheng had put plenty of hawthorns into a basket and was about to wash them. After all, they had harvested too many and needed to prep them to make dumplings.
Since individually washing them would take too long, he chose to wash them in a basket to make it quicker. Although he washed them in a basket, he was meticulous and washed everything well.
Blue Three also helped.
Su Binglan noticed everyone’s enthusiasm and smiled. “Okay, everyone, come over. Let’s make dumplings together. I’ll teach you to make them, and then you can all make your own next time.” Everyone felt touched when they heard that.
“Madam, you’re too kind to us.”
“We don’t know how to thank you.”
“You’ve already taught us to make many other delicious foods, Madam.”
“We don’t even know what dumplings look like, but you’re willing to teach us,
Madam.”
“We made multi-grain pancakes according to your method last night, Madam.
We used less flour, but it still tasted good. You’re very resourceful.”
Everyone, including three half-grown children, talked as they happily approached the kitchen. The trio was obedient, although curious. They did not make a scene and wanted to help.
Just like that, the women learned to make dumplings at the stove while the men helped prepare the wild boar, wash hawthorns, and peel them. Everyone was busy.
Su Binglan poured the dough and water into a basin, and Aunt Song took the initiative to knead the dough. Everyone would do the same when they cooked at home next time.
Su Binglan did not need to teach them how to knead the dough and first taught them to make dumplings. She looked around the courtyard and noticed the men were still cutting the meat, so she prepared the wild vegetable and egg fillings first.
She taught everyone to prepare the fillings and season them. Everyone attentively listened whenever she spoke.
“We never knew this was how to make dumplings.”
“So, if we can’t bear to put eggs in them, can we just use wild vegetables? 1 wonder if that’s okay.”
Some had questions as they listened. The villagers would typically be reluctant to use eggs on regular days. They also had to hide their identities and not get discovered. They could not do many things and live quiet lives.
However, Luo Jin’an had already sent people to buy food. The villagers were only willing to use eggs if they had more.
“Of course. You can all use your imagination. You can use many ingredients to make dumpling fillings.” Su Binglan busied herself while talking to everyone.
They first made wild vegetable and egg dumplings. After the men finished preparing the boar and hawthorns, the villagers made the dumplings with cabbage, wild vegetables, boar meat, hawthorns, and other fillings.
So many people were around that there was not enough space for everyone. Therefore, Aunt Liu and a few others went home to bring over more tables for everyone to work together.
Both men and women worked to make a feastful dinner while learning. After a while, Su Binglan noticed some green wild vegetable juice in the basin. She raised her eyebrows and mixed some of the dough with the green vegetable juice to make them change color.
Then she used the green dough to wrap the hawthorn fillings so everyone could differentiate between the various dumplings. Since that was the case, the villagers could avoid eating the dumplings they did not enjoy as much as the others.
Everyone looked at the different colored dumplings and thought they looked excellent.
“The color makes them look more appetizing.”
“They’re beautiful.”
Then the villagers noticed Luo Jin’an also helping Su Binglan. They were amazed.
‘They look like gods. How can our noble master sit and make dumplings like that?’
Even though their master was rolling dumpling dough, everyone still felt his elegant aura. His every move was like a work of art, pleasing the eyes. Of course, no one dared to keep staring at Luo Jin’an since that would be disrespectful.
While everyone was shocked, they also felt their master seemed mortal now. It made them feel like he was living like an average person. They knew he had sacrificed too much in the past.
Their hearts ached, knowing the terrible things he had experienced. Fortunately, Luo Jin’an had an extraordinary person like Su Binglan by his side to bring him happiness.
Nonetheless, there was strength in numbers, and everyone soon finished making many dumplings with various fillings.
“Master,” Lin Zheng said, “Should we start the fire now?”
Su Binglan nodded. “Yes, go and start it. We can put in the dumplings when the water starts to boil..