Chapter 652 Change 7
He Yuzhu has been performing exceptionally well in the factory recently. With his superb craftsmanship and serious and responsible attitude, he played a key role in an important production task. The factory leaders saw this and were very happy, so they gave him a generous bonus.
When He Yuzhu heard the news, he felt so happy, as if he had eaten honey, and he was so happy. He thought that the three uncles in the yard were always very caring to him, and they always thought of him when they had something delicious. Now that he got the bonus, he had to thank them in any way. He decided without hesitation to invite the three uncles in the yard to his home for a good meal, so that everyone could have fun together.
Early in the morning, when it was still light, He Yuzhu got up early, washed up, hummed a cheerful tune, and walked to the vegetable market with brisk steps. Each step seemed to be filled with wind and a sense of briskness, as if he was not going to buy vegetables, but to an extremely wonderful date.
As soon as he entered the market, he was immediately struck by the bustling scene, with all kinds of shouting and bargaining sounds intertwined, but He Yuzhu was familiar with the market, and he went straight to the stalls he was familiar with. When he arrived at the meat stall, he was shocked to see the pieces of pork hanging on the stall, with different fat and lean parts and different colors.
He Yuzhu first stood there, squinting his eyes, carefully examining the pork, his eyes were very focused, just like an expert identifying a treasure, looking at the texture of this piece, then the color of that piece. After choosing and selecting, his eyes finally fell on a piece of fat and lean pork belly, which had clear texture and looked fresh.
He Yuzhu walked forward, patted the piece of meat with his hand, and said loudly to the stall owner with a satisfied smile on his face: "Boss, this is it. You have to weigh it accurately for me. I'm going to make my specialty here, and the amount of meat can't be wrong." The stall owner was also a straightforward person. He responded with a smile: "Don't worry, Zhuzi, we have always been down-to-earth in doing business, and I will definitely weigh it accurately for you." After weighing the meat and handing it to He Yuzhu, He Yuzhu did not forget to joke with the stall owner, which made the stall owner laugh, and the customers around him also laughed.
After picking the meat, He Yuzhu went to pick vegetables. When he walked to the vegetable stall, the green vegetables looked so fresh, as if they were still covered with morning dew, so tender that people couldn't help but want to take a bite. He Yuzhu stretched out his hand and rummaged through the pile of vegetables, carefully selecting those with intact leaves and plump roots. After a while, he picked a few of the freshest ones and put them into the bag.
Going further, you can see the tomatoes, each one is bright red, plump and round, neatly arranged on the stall, like a ruby, especially rare. He Yuzhu thought to himself that it would be nice to make scrambled eggs with tomatoes, sour and sweet, everyone would definitely like it, so he carefully selected a few tomatoes from the pile, weighed them in his hand, and felt that the weight was about right, so he stopped with satisfaction. After buying all the vegetables he needed, He Yuzhu was already carrying large and small bags of ingredients in his hands, which were heavy, but he was smiling and walked home contentedly. Along the way, he would look down at these "treasures" he bought from time to time, thinking about how to turn them into delicious dishes later.
As soon as he got home, He Yuzhu was not idle. He first tied an apron neatly, tidied himself up, and then started to work in the kitchen. He first put the carefully selected piece of pork belly on the chopping board, which was wiped clean and had a slight sheen. He Yuzhu stood still, picked up the kitchen knife steadily with his right hand, and cut the pork belly into even-sized cubes with his hands and knives. His movements were so skillful that he neatly cut the pork belly into cubes of uniform size. Each piece was cut neatly and squarely, which made people feel comfortable. This was to prepare his specialty, braised pork. He did not slack off on the cut pieces of meat. He carefully washed them in clean water to wash away any impurities such as blood that might remain on them, then drained the water and put them aside for use.
After the preparations were done, He Yuzhu started to cook. He walked to the stove, poured some oil into the pot, and then stood there quietly, staring at the oil in the pot, waiting for the oil temperature to be right. After a while, the oil began to ripple slightly and steam began to come out. He Yuzhu knew that the oil was hot. He took the chopped green onions, ginger and garlic and threw them into the pot. With a "sizzle", the fragrance suddenly came out as if it was cast by magic, and instantly filled the whole kitchen. The smell made people swallow their saliva. Then, He Yuzhu carefully put the drained meat into the pot, and then quickly picked up the spatula and started to stir-fry. The stir-frying action was also very good. The meat kept rolling in the pot and gradually began to change color, from the original pink to slightly yellow, and it looked like cooked meat. He Yuzhu did not stop, and added cooking wine, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, rock sugar and other seasonings in turn. After adding each seasoning, he would pause and stir-fry evenly to let the meat fully absorb the flavor of the seasoning. His serious look seemed like he was carving a work of art. After all the seasonings were added, he added an appropriate amount of water to the pot to cover the meat, then gently covered the pot, turned the heat to low, and let the meat slowly stew in the pot. From time to time, the pot could be heard with a "gurgling" sound, as if it was playing a piece of food music, which made people full of expectations for this dish just by listening to it.
While the braised pork was being stewed, He Yuzhu was not idle and started to prepare other dishes. He poured all the green vegetables he bought into the sink, carefully picked them up, removed the leaves that were a little yellow or damaged, and then rinsed them repeatedly with clean water several times until the green vegetables were washed clean, and then put them aside to drain. Then, he picked up a few eggs and tapped them gently on the edge of the bowl. With a light "click" sound, the egg white and yolk flowed into the bowl along the cracks of the eggshell, without spilling a drop. Then, he picked up the chopsticks and stirred them quickly. The chopsticks stirred quickly in the bowl, making a "da da da" sound, which was very rhythmic, as if they were beating drums. After a while, the egg white and yolk blended perfectly together, turning into a bowl of golden egg liquid.
After preparing the egg liquid, He Yuzhu came to the stove again, lit the fire and poured the oil. Seeing that the oil was hot, he tilted the bowl slightly and slowly poured the egg liquid into the pot. In an instant, the egg liquid expanded rapidly as if it was blown up, and became bulging. The golden color looked particularly tempting, and the fragrance also drifted out. He Yuzhu quickly stir-fried the eggs with a spatula for a few times, frying the eggs loosely and evenly. After frying, he put them aside for later use. Then, he heated the pot again, poured a little oil into it, and when the oil was hot, he put the drained green vegetables into the pot all at once and stir-fried them quickly. As the spatula was turned, the green vegetables rustled in the pot. After a few strokes, He Yuzhu added an appropriate amount of salt to the pot for seasoning, and continued to stir-fry evenly. After a while, the green vegetables were fried, green and tender, and it was appetizing to look at.
Speaking of scrambled eggs with tomatoes, He Yuzhu did it very well. He first washed the red tomatoes he bought under the tap. The tomatoes looked even brighter when washed by water, just like they were freshly picked from the orchard. After washing, He Yuzhu began to peel the tomatoes. He used a knife to gently make a cross on the top of the tomatoes, then put the tomatoes into the boiling water for a while. When he took them out, the skin of the tomatoes fell off with a slight tear, revealing the tender red flesh inside, which made people feel particularly appetizing.
After peeling the skin, He Yuzhu put the tomatoes on the chopping board and carefully cut them into small pieces. The pieces were uniform in size and each piece was full of juice, as if the juice would flow out with a little force. After cutting the tomatoes, he turned on the stove and poured a proper amount of oil into the pot. When the oil was hot, he gently poured the cut tomato pieces into the pot. With a "sizzle" sound, the tomato pieces began to roll in the pot. Under the action of the hot oil, the tomato juice was slowly fried out, and the rich tomato aroma instantly spread in the kitchen, and the whole kitchen was filled with this sweet and sour taste.
Seeing that the tomatoes had enough juice in the pan, He Yuzhu poured the golden and attractive eggs that he had fried before into the pan. As soon as the eggs entered the pan, they mixed with the tomatoes, yellow and red, and the color combination was particularly beautiful. He Yuzhu picked up the spatula and began to stir-fry slowly, allowing the eggs and tomatoes to fully blend together. Each egg was coated with the sweet and sour tomato juice. The stir-frying action was very skillful, as if it had been practiced countless times. After stir-frying for a while, He Yuzhu added some white sugar to the pan to enhance the flavor. As soon as the white sugar entered the pan, it instantly melted in the soup, making the taste of this dish more sweet and delicious. After a while, this delicious tomato scrambled eggs can be served on a plate, red and yellow, and the bright color makes people salivate, and the air is also full of its tempting aroma.
After a long time of hard work, He Yuzhu's several specialties were ready one after another. The table was full of dishes, which were really fragrant. Various aromas intertwined and went straight into people's noses, as if calling everyone to come and taste them. At this time, the three uncles in the yard were also invited to He Yuzhu's house. When everyone met, they first greeted each other warmly, with friendly smiles on their faces. The uncle looked at the table full of dishes and joked to He Yuzhu with a smile: "Oh, Zhuzi, you are really a big deal. Look at this table of dishes, it's tempting to look at it. We are lucky today." He Yuzhu also responded with a smile: "Uncle, don't tease me, I just want you to taste my cooking skills. Thanks to you for taking care of me on weekdays." The other two uncles also laughed and walked into the house while laughing.
After taking their seats, He Yuzhu stood up, picked up the wine bottle, and first filled the glasses of the three uncles with wine. The wine swayed in the glasses, exuding a mellow aroma. After pouring the wine, He Yuzhu smiled and said to the three uncles: "Uncles, I got a little bonus today, and I'm so happy. I thought of inviting you to taste my cooking skills. We haven't gathered together for a long time to have a good chat. Today we have to have a good chat." After hearing this, the smile on the face of the first uncle deepened, and he smiled and responded: "Zhuzi, you are really thoughtful. Your cooking skills are all in our courtyard. Every time I smell the fragrance of your cooking, my heart itches, and I look forward to tasting it again." Hearing this, He Yuzhu felt happy and said quickly: "Uncle, if you like it, I will cook it for you often in the future."
After three rounds of wine and five kinds of dishes, everyone was enjoying the meal, and the topic gradually became more. The second uncle picked up the wine glass, took a sip of wine gently to moisten his throat, then looked at He Yuzhu, with a concerned and slightly playful smile on his face, and asked with a smile: "Zhuzi, you are not a child anymore, tell me, when are you going to consider your lifelong event? Look at Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang in the hospital, they all have partners, and now they go out in pairs all day long, how enviable, you have to hurry up, can't fall behind." Hearing this, He Yuzhu felt a little embarrassed, he scratched his head, his face flushed slightly, and said a little shyly: "Uncle, this matter can't be rushed, the fate hasn't arrived yet, I'm also waiting to meet the right person, this kind of thing can't be forced, it depends on fate." The third uncle who was listening at the side also said, "Zhu Zi, you have to pay more attention. You have good conditions. You are a good cook and a warm-hearted person. People in our courtyard are looking forward to you getting married soon. You have to take the initiative and go out more often. Maybe you will meet the right person one day." He Yuzhu smiled and agreed, "Uncle, I know. I will keep an eye on it. Thank you for thinking about me." After that, he picked up the wine glass and toasted the three uncles. Everyone continued to eat and chat. The atmosphere in the room became more lively and harmonious.
As they chatted, they talked about He Yushui again. The first uncle asked with concern: "How is Yushui doing recently? Is her study going well?" He Yuzhu put down his chopsticks and replied: "Yushui is a very hardworking girl. She studies very seriously. I often remind her not to be distracted and study hard." The second uncle nodded and said: "That's good. It's good for girls to read more books. If they have a promising future, you, as her brother, can worry less." He Yuzhu said with a look of satisfaction: "Yes, I just hope that she can go smoothly and have a good future."
Speaking of career, the third uncle asked He Yuzhu curiously: "Zhuzi, you got a bonus for your outstanding performance this time. What are your plans for the future? Will you continue to work hard in the factory, or do you have other ideas?" He Yuzhu thought about it and said seriously: "I think our factory is good, and I like my current job very much. In the future, I will work hard in the factory, try to learn more skills, and make more achievements." After hearing this, the uncles all nodded and praised him, saying that it was a good thing that he was motivated.
The meal was lively, with everyone talking and laughing. After eating and drinking, the three uncles sat for a while before getting up to say goodbye. He Yuzhu sent them to the door one by one, and reminded them to come and visit often when they were free. Looking at the uncles' backs as they left, He Yuzhu was full of emotion, thinking that the life in this courtyard was full of flavor and human touch.