Chapter Fourteen: Seafood Hotpot

Nanny Zhang’s face was filled with disbelief, yet she watched as Xiumei, who had gotten off the carriage to make a purchase, handed over two taels of silver shards to the elderly seafood vendor.

Without waiting for the accompanying guards to assist, Xiumei herself hefted the entire basket of seafood onto the carriage.

Nanny Zhang stood in a daze for a moment, guessing in her heart that this money must have come from the gifts that the old master from the capital had sent to Wei Ruo a few days before.

She couldn’t help but mutter to herself: even if she’d received some private money from the old master, she shouldn’t be spending it so carelessly. Truly, she had no sense of managing a household.

When they returned to Pine-Listening Court, Xiumei carried the whole basket of seafood inside.

“Meimei, why don’t we…” Wei Ruo’s eyes shone as she gazed at the basket brimming with seafood.

“Miss, are you craving hot pot again?” Xiumei saw right through Wei Ruo’s thoughts in an instant.

“Mhm, Meimei, you really do know me!” She hadn’t even spoken, and Meimei had already guessed everything!

“Miss, your thoughts are usually a mystery to me, except when it comes to this—just one look from you and I know exactly what you’re thinking.”

“Yes, let’s pick out some for the seafood hot pot. The rest, once prepared, we’ll sun-dry into preserved goods.”

Spicy broth and fresh seafood—just imagining the bubbling pot made Wei Ruo’s mouth water.

“But Miss, aren’t you forgetting? We don’t have a kitchen or a pot right now. We can’t make hot pot.”

“Doesn’t Bamboo-Greeting Court next door have a small kitchen? Perhaps we can borrow it,” Wei Ruo suggested.

“Oh, that’s right! There’s a little kitchen next door!” Xiumei replied, then suddenly realized something. “Miss, don’t tell me this is why you went out of your way to bring soy sauce to Second Young Master and get on his good side?”

“What? Is it? Nonsense, am I that sort of person?”

Xiumei nodded.

“That’s not important. What matters is, we have a place to cook hot pot now. Meimei, get everything ready and let’s head over to cook.”

“I’ll go check in your storeroom to see how much of the spice blend you made is left.”

Xiumei turned and went into the side room Wei Ruo used as a storeroom.

When she returned, she carried a bundle wrapped in white cloth.

In this era, there was not yet chili, and many spices were unavailable. Wei Ruo’s palate, long accustomed to bold flavors, sometimes longed for that tingling taste. So she had collected every spice she could find.

Sichuan pepper, evodia, vine pepper, cassia, mustard—all these spices she had experimented with, mixing and matching in search of the perfect blend for her tastes.

Once satisfied with the recipe, Wei Ruo would portion the mixture into cloth sachets, ready to be used as needed.

“There’s only this last spice packet left. After we use it, Miss, you’ll have to find a way to gather more if you want to eat this again,” Xiumei said, returning not only with the spice bundle but also with some less encouraging news.

The spices weren’t easy to come by; Wei Ruo had spent considerable effort collecting them before.

Wei Ruo nodded thoughtfully. “When things settle down, I’ll not only gather more spices, but also restock some medicinal herbs.”

She then had Xiumei stay behind to prepare the ingredients, while she herself went to knock on the gate of Bamboo-Greeting Court.

The gate opened, and the young servant, Xiaobei, looked at her in surprise. “Eldest Miss, is there something you need?”

“I’d like to borrow your small kitchen. In return, I’ll treat you all to seafood hot pot! My Meimei’s cooking is excellent—you won’t regret it!”

“This… I can’t make that decision. I need to ask the young master.”

“Then go ask him.”

“All right, please wait here a moment. I’ll go ask.”

Xiaobei turned and headed inside.

Wei Ruo leaned forward to peer in. As before, Wei Jinyi sat reading in the octagonal pavilion. He seemed to favor reading in his courtyard.

She couldn’t hear what Xiaobei reported, but she saw Wei Jinyi’s expression darken as he listened. Soon after, he looked up toward the gate and his gaze met Wei Ruo’s.

She grinned broadly, waving in greeting.

But her smile seemed only to darken Wei Jinyi’s mood further.

What was wrong? Was her smile not friendly or warm enough? She thought she smiled quite well—Meimei always said so!

Whatever Wei Jinyi said to Xiaobei, the servant returned looking troubled. “Eldest Miss, Young Master says if you want something to eat, have it made in the main kitchen. Our little kitchen is too small and has nothing special. It really isn’t suitable.”

“I’ve brought all the ingredients and spices myself—nothing of yours will be needed. I just need a place to cook, that's all. The main kitchen isn’t convenient; I’ll need to cook for quite a while.”

Xiaobei looked even more distressed. “But, Eldest Miss…”

“Please, please?”

“But the Young Master…” Xiaobei glanced toward Wei Jinyi, caught between orders and the impossibility of refusing the Eldest Miss.

“I’ll go speak to your Young Master myself!”

Seeing the source of the problem, Wei Ruo bypassed Xiaobei and made her way straight to the pavilion.

“Second Brother!”

At the sound of those words, Wei Jinyi’s brow furrowed instantly.

“Second Brother, let me borrow your kitchen. We’re making seafood hot pot—you should try it too! I promise it will taste wonderful!”

Wei Jinyi looked at Wei Ruo; her eyes sparkled with anticipation.

After a moment, he relented. “Do as you wish.”

“Thank you!” Wei Ruo replied cheerfully, then dashed back to Pine-Listening Court.

Xiaobei returned to Wei Jinyi’s side, muttering, “Young Master, the Eldest Miss really is nothing like the others in the household…”

Everyone else in the residence avoided the Young Master as if he were a plague, but not the Eldest Miss. Last time she brought soy sauce, and now she wants to cook hot pot in their little kitchen—how strange.

“Let her be. With her temperament, you can’t reason with her,” Wei Jinyi said flatly.

He disliked wasting words. Besides, Wei Ruo was new to the Wei household, unfamiliar with many things, and did things her own way. There was no explaining anything to her, at least not for now.

Before long, Wei Jinyi saw Wei Ruo and her maidservant enter his courtyard, arms laden with bags and trays, heading for the small kitchen.

Inside, Xiumei took charge of the wok, while Wei Ruo tended the fire.

When the pot was hot, they rendered pork fat until it turned milky white, then tossed in Wei Ruo’s spice sachet.

The pungent, aromatic spices exploded in the hot oil, their fragrance instantly filling the small kitchen and drifting out into the courtyard.

“Young Master, what is that smell? It’s so enticing!” Xiaobei sniffed repeatedly, certain he’d never encountered such a scent before.

“Grind the ink,” Wei Jinyi replied impassively.

Xiaobei snapped out of his reverie and resumed grinding ink.

Wei Ruo darted out from the kitchen and approached Wei Jinyi.

“Second Brother, the wild bamboo shoots in your courtyard look splendid. Why not let me pick a few to slice into the hot pot?”