Chapter 6: Stir-fried Bamboo Shoots with Lard
The family hadn’t eaten meat for a long time. When Tangtang and Su Juesheng pulled the wild chicken from the basket, the entire Su family was ecstatic.
Although they raised a few chickens of their own, those were kept for laying eggs. Eating chicken was a near impossibility.
Old Madam Zhu estimated the wild pheasant weighed over three pounds. She had one of the wives boil some water, then she slit the bird’s throat, drained the blood, plucked the feathers, and chopped it into small pieces. She first coated the wok with a tiny sliver of lard. Once it was hot, she tossed in the chicken pieces and stir-fried them until the moisture had cooked off and the air was filled with a savory aroma. With a loud sizzle, she added water, and finally, the pine mushrooms and sweet potatoes. Soon, the entire courtyard was fragrant with the smell of chicken stew.
The children abandoned their games and crowded into the kitchen, waiting eagerly for the meal to be served.
Usually, Su Huimin would finish grading homework at school before coming home. He smelled the chicken before he even walked through the gate. He paused, asking his wife, who was cleaning the chicken feathers by the well, “Are we having chicken today?”
Yu Juanfang swept the feathers into a dustpan. Hearing her husband’s voice, she straightened up. “Juesheng and Tangtang caught a wild pheasant today while they were digging for vegetables in the mountains. Mother butchered it, and it’s stewing on the stove now.”
“Dad, Tangtang caught that chicken all by herself! She’s amazing!”
“Oh?”
Hearing Su Juesheng’s praise, Tangtang couldn’t help but puff out her chest, a brilliant smile on her face. Su Huimin was surprised for a moment before patting her head. “Tangtang is truly amazing.”
After about forty minutes of stewing, Old Madam Zhu poked the sweet potatoes and chicken with a chopstick. They were tender and soft, and the aroma was intoxicating. The cornmeal buns on the steamer were also cooked through, so she called everyone to eat.
In Tangtang’s small bowl, besides sweet potatoes and mushrooms, were four or five pieces of chicken—all good cuts from the leg and wing. The rich, meaty scent made her mouth water.
She picked up a piece of chicken. The meat was fresh, tender, and firm. It was so delicious you’d want to swallow your own tongue along with it. The pine mushrooms were wonderful too, full of savory flavor, and the sweet potatoes had been stewed until they were meltingly soft, having soaked up all the chicken broth. It was beyond delicious.
…
Su Huimin taught math to the third, fourth, and fifth graders at Yuhuai Village Primary School. The school was a building with white walls and gray tiles, containing seven or eight spacious classrooms for grades one through five. After finishing fifth grade, students who passed the entrance exam and wished to continue their education would go on to the junior high school at the commune.
Early the next morning, while mist still hung in the air, Su Yandi shifted her hefty body and pulled a handful of pickled radishes from a crock. She then plucked a few garlic shoots from the vegetable patch, chopped everything up, and fried a large wok of rice, dutifully serving her husband, Wang Shijin, and their three sons.
Only after they had all left—some for work, some for school—did she clear the table and prepare to take the wooden basin out to do the laundry.
“Third Brother Su?” Su Yandi saw the visitor and immediately became guarded. After a second look to confirm that Tangtang wasn’t with him, she relaxed slightly but still couldn’t stop herself from cursing, “What do you want from me?”
Old Madam Zhu had given birth to four sons and two daughters. In those days, life was hard for everyone, and families were too preoccupied with their own survival to maintain close ties. Furthermore, Su Yandi’s past ungrateful behavior had deeply hurt her mother, so they had barely been in contact for years.
Su Huimin put down his bicycle’s kickstand and took out a drafted agreement, a pen, and an ink pad. “I’ve discussed it with Juanfang. From now on, Sanya will be our responsibility. I’ve drawn up an adoption agreement. If you sign it and put your thumbprint on it, the girl will have nothing more to do with you.”
“Fine! Let’s sign it! That way you can’t just send her back to me when you get tired of her! That girl has been freeloading off me for years. I’m finally rid of that burden!” Su Yandi spat twice, dropped her basin, and signed the paper. “There. From now on, you go your way and I’ll go mine. We’ll stay out of each other’s lives!”
Su Huimin handed one copy of the agreement to Su Yandi. As he turned to leave, her shrill voice screeched again. “Hmph, Third Brother Su, don’t think you’ve gotten some great bargain. That wretched girl Sanya has been clumsy her whole life. Useless at everything except eating. That little brat is an expert at being lazy. She’ll probably bring you nothing but bad luck. You’ll be crying then!”
“And I’m telling you right now, if she dares to ruin my reputation out there, I’ll tear her mouth to shreds!” Su Yandi yelled, hands on her hips, the fat on her face jiggling with her rage.
Anyone who saw this would think she was a mortal enemy, not a mother. Su Huimin was a scholar and wasn’t accustomed to trading insults. His knuckles turned white from gripping the handlebars. Swallowing his anger, he got on his bicycle and quickly left.
…
The nights in March and April were still quite cold. After the children were asleep, Yu Juanfang brought in a basin of hot water and began to wash her face.
The Su family had only five earthen rooms. The eldest brother’s family of four lived in the east room. The second brother’s family of six squeezed into the west room. The fourth brother’s family of four took the north room. Su Huimin, Yu Juanfang, and their four children lived in the south room, while Old Madam Zhu lived alone in the central hall.
The corner of their room was piled with miscellaneous items. All six of them slept on one large kang. Juesheng was already ten, and as the old saying goes, “males and females should not sit together after the age of seven,” but there was nowhere else for him to sleep. Yu Juanfang had Tangtang sleep by herself at the foot of the kang, but this wasn’t a long-term solution. In another couple of years, the children would be too old to be sleeping so close together.
It wasn’t that they didn’t have land. Before their father-in-law passed away, he had allocated a homestead plot to each of the brothers—all auspicious sites chosen by a geomancer. But right now, they barely had enough to eat. How could they possibly afford to build a new house?
Su Huimin handed his wife the adoption agreement signed by Su Yandi. “I had Second Sister sign this today. It’s all written down in black and white. From now on, Tangtang is our daughter.”
“She couldn’t wait to get rid of her own daughter, and you just had to rush over and pick her up!” Yu Juanfang rolled her eyes. Despite her words, she took the document and glanced over it, snorting. “It’s good to have it in writing. I’m not expecting the girl to care for us in our old age, but I don’t want all our efforts to be for nothing.”
Su Huimin couldn’t help but smile. The anger from Su Yandi’s insults finally dissipated. He knew his wife was just being contrary; in her heart, she had long since accepted Tangtang.
…
Raindrops fell from the eaves, forming small puddles in front of the door. The family’s breakfast was made by the wives in rotation, and today it was Yu Juanfang’s turn. She got up, threw on a shirt, and went to the kitchen.
When she arrived, she saw that Tangtang was already sitting by the stove, tending the fire. Yu Juanfang pressed her lips together. The girl was more sensible and well-behaved than any of her own children. Whenever it was her turn to cook, Tangtang would be up early to help, something her own sons never did.
Yu Juanfang scooped half a ladle of corn grits from the rice crock, rinsed them, and saw that the water on the stove was already boiling. She poured the grits in, stirring quickly to prevent sticking, which would make the porridge thicker and smoother.
While the porridge simmered, she took the bamboo shoots that had been soaking overnight to remove their bitterness and squeezed them dry. Tangtang and the boys had picked them the day before. Yu Juanfang had peeled and cleaned them, boiled them in the large wok, and then left them to soak in the cool well water overnight.
In a separate wok, she dug out a small piece of lard from an earthenware jar. After coating the pan, she threw in a handful of minced garlic. Then, she added the bamboo shoots and stir-fried them until dry, adding salt and soy sauce. After a few tosses, the fragrant and delicious stir-fried bamboo shoots with lard were ready.
At seven in the morning, the Su family began to eat breakfast.
Tangtang took a sip of porridge first. The corn grits made a thick, fragrant porridge with a rich corn flavor. A warm bowl instantly soothed her empty stomach. The stir-fried bamboo shoots were also delicious, crisp and tender. The large plate of shoots was devoured in an instant, with people even picking out the last bits of garlic from the bottom of the plate.
…
After breakfast, Tangtang went to play jumping elastics with Wani and the other girls. Back in Waguan Village, her life had been nothing but work, eat, and sleep. She had no friends. But here, not only were her three brothers good to her, but she also had female cousins to play with.
“Tangtang, come out!” Su Juesheng called from the courtyard.
“Coming!”
Hearing her name, she let the other girls continue their game and followed Su Juesheng out to the fields. Su Juesheng was darting about, looking like he was catching insects.
Her second brother, Su Juexiao, was sitting by a small fire, roasting something. He saw her and waved her over to sit on the ridge.
Of Su Huimin and Yu Juanfang’s three sons, Su Juesheng was the active one, Su Juexiao was slightly more composed in comparison, and Su Juesheng was the mischievous troublemaker.
“Try this, it’s really good!” Su Juesheng sniffed the air excitedly and handed her a skewer of roasted grasshoppers.
Tangtang realized then what they were roasting. Three to five grasshoppers were skewered on a bamboo stick. Even though they were charred black, she could still clearly see their frightening shape. Her hand paused. It wasn’t that she’d never caught grasshoppers before, but she had always taken them back to feed the chickens.
“Go on, try it!” Under the expectant gazes of the three brothers, Tangtang steeled herself and took a bite. After a moment of chewing, her eyes lit up in surprise. The taste was unexpectedly good.
The grasshoppers were roasted until they were fragrant and crispy, with a natural, rich flavor from their own oils. They had also been sprinkled with salt and chili powder. After eating the first one, Tangtang couldn’t resist eating another.
“It’s delicious!”
“See? I told you roasted grasshoppers were good!” Su Juesheng said excitedly. The siblings then divided up the remaining skewers and feasted with delight.