Volume 1 In the Countryside Chapter 4: Food can relieve people’s worries
The result of her rumbling stomach was panic, dizziness and weakness in her legs. However, when she heard that Zhang Shou had invited her, Zhu Ying no longer cared about her hunger and nodded without hesitation, "Okay!"
Not to mention that she would sweat profusely if she continued to hold on, she couldn't go back just to find out the truth about the engagement! Well, it was definitely not for the sake of spending some time alone with this elegant and handsome young man who looked like a banished immortal...
She agreed in a firm voice, however, when Zhu Ying followed Zhang Shou along countless ridges and finally stopped at a rice field that had obviously been harvested, she was already tired and hungry, and almost collapsed.
After taking a look at this rich young lady who must have lived a life of luxury, Zhang Shou brought over a pile of dry straw and found a clean place to spread a thick layer of it.
Zhu Ying stared at him intently as he did what the servants were supposed to do, but she thought his every move was so beautiful... so beautiful that she even forgot she was hungry. No wonder people say that beauty is a feast for the eyes ...
After laying the thatch, Zhang Shou turned around and saw the beautiful lady staring at him intently, as if trying to see a flower on his face. He couldn't help but laugh and cry: "We are from the countryside, don't despise us, come and sit down!"
The next moment, he saw the young lady, wearing gorgeous clothes that would not be disrespectful even in the palace, walked up to him without hesitation and sat down on the thick thatch, then she actually took a deep breath with great comfort.
Although he didn't know whether she was too hungry and tired to care, or whether she simply trusted him because of his face, Zhang Shou felt that this young lady was not an ordinary spoiled daughter.
Seeing Zhu Ying's pale face, Zhang Shou withdrew his gaze, took out a paper bag from a tree hole nearby, and then smiled at her.
"There is still a piece of mung bean cake and a piece of crystal cake left here. They were both made by Aunt Liu early in the morning. I can't stay idle at home, so I often go out. I have to bring a few snacks with me. I put them here if I can't finish them. There are a few smart children who often steal snacks here. If I were a little later, they might have taken them away."
Under normal circumstances, Miss Zhu would be picky about even the delicacies specially prepared by the kitchenette, let alone the leftovers. But this time, she did not hesitate at all. She opened the oil paper package and gobbled up the remaining crystal cake and mung bean cake.
When she finally regained some strength, she secretly said "bad thing".
Why is it that she would always behave like a flawless and elegant rich lady whenever she wanted to?
Before Zhu Ying could think of any remedy, Zhang Shou turned and walked towards another tree, and in no time he took out a flint and a steel. Then he took out endless things like magic, as if he was taking out a treasure chest.
An iron pot, a clay pot of spring water, a small bag of salt and pepper, ginger and onion, a special wooden rack, a bag of bamboo sticks... Zhang Shoudong searched around and put together a complete set of equipment for a picnic. He also collected a pile of dead branches and dry firewood and quickly started a fire. When he took out a bamboo basket from a large pond next to the wheat field, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"We actually caught a few yellow eels. What luck."
Zhu Ying felt that her brain was a little bit confused. How could a young man who looked like a fallen immortal from heaven actually do such mundane things?
The next moment, she realized that the smell of fireworks was nothing... there was also murderous aura!
Zhang Shou squatted beside a tree stump and skillfully took out a yellow eel from the basket. He flipped his right hand and took out a sharp nail. He smashed it skillfully, then removed the head, tail, and internal organs.
After killing four eels in the basket in the same way, he scooped water from the pond with an iron pot to wash them, and finally washed them again with spring water. He added water to the iron pot and blanched the eels to remove the blood, then smeared them with salt and ginger juice to remove the fishy smell, put them on bamboo skewers, and grilled them on a wooden rack.
Zhu Ying watched Zhang Shou's skillful movements like a wooden man, until she saw Zhang Shou wash his hands by the pond, and then took out a package from somewhere and walked towards her. Only then could she not help but shrink back.
Just now, when she saw him calmly slaughter the slippery eel that looked like a snake, she was indeed a little scared.
Zhang Shou didn't care about the attitude of the daughter of the Duke's Mansion. He casually opened the package in his hand and saw that it was actually steamed bread slices. He sighed, skewered some of them with bamboo sticks, and put them on the fire to roast. Then he smiled without even raising his head.
"This is where a few farmers catch eels to eat, and I often come here. They even hid a bag of steamed bread slices here. This way, we don't have to worry about eating spring water. We can just send some rice to their homes later."
Miss Zhu could not help but stare at Zhang Shou's profile as he concentrated on baking something, not even noticing the passage of time.
When the eel and steamed buns were finally baked, Zhang Shou picked up a string of bamboo sticks and turned around to hand them over. He thought that the young lady would hesitate before eating, but he didn't expect that after Zhu Ying took it from her hand, she took a bite , and then she could only breathe in the cold air, but she didn't spit out the food in her mouth.
Then, those cherry lips that seemed to be burned even more red uttered two words: "Delicious!"
She was originally hungry, and thought that in order to please Zhang Shou, she would praise the food even if it was pig food. Now that she found that it tasted really good, Zhu Ying naturally did not hesitate and finished it all in no time.
Seeing her eating happily and sweetly, Zhang Shou couldn't help but feel in a good mood as well.
When it comes to eating, my companion is a big eater, much better than a dieter who is timid and wants to lose weight! Of course, he doesn't want to work hard just to serve others, so he also devours the grilled food quickly.
When Zhu Ying finally threw down a few bamboo sticks, she breathed a sigh of relief and reached out to Zhang Shou, grabbing his wrist. Seeing him look up in surprise and looking at him with a puzzled look, she finally came to her senses.
He actually heard her stomach growling with hunger, and he also saw her greedy look as if she was still hungry and wanted more!
Having just fed the young lady, and now seeing her withdraw her hand unnaturally but still coughing loudly, Zhang Shou pretended nothing had happened. While packing up his things, he asked without raising his head, "It has been so many years. If it is true that your father, Duke Zhao, has been raising us mother and son, I can't just pretend I don't know. Can you tell me what is going on?"
When she was in the capital, her second brother forced her to get married, and then her grandmother took out the so-called marriage certificate and scolded the man. Then, Zhu Gongquan brought her here on the orders of her grandmother, but was clearly instigated by her second brother. He openly and secretly criticized the marriage as inexplicable and hoped that she would cancel it.
From the very beginning, Zhu Ying was angry because she felt like a puppet being manipulated by others.
Now, facing Zhang Shou's clear eyes like a clear spring, coupled with the laziness that naturally arose after she had a full stomach, and the sense of trust that face gave people, she actually blurted out the truth.
"My second brother wanted me to marry that stupid son of Minister Lu from the Ministry of War! Grandmother was so angry that she took out the marriage certificate and said, 'I have already made an engagement with you who grew up in the countryside. Before this, I had never heard anyone talk about you and your son.'"
