William realized belatedly, “You’re not buying anything for yourself? The bag is for Michael? That’s too expensive… Look, the canvas one right next to it is fine. Sigh, he’s just a kid; your aunt even said she’d sew one for him out of fabric!”
Although William complained about the expense, deep down, he felt pleased.
It wasn’t the money Scarlett spent; it was her thoughtfulness. She was considerate of her little cousin, showing care and affection for him. Family bonds mattered, and when relatives looked out for one another, life naturally improved.
Glancing back at the plain, dull-colored fabric on the counter, William resisted the urge to buy something for himself. He figured he could come back alone to shop another time.
When the two returned to Wellwater Village, Amanda and Elizabeth had yet to return. Unable to sit still, William headed to the fields to lend a hand. Meanwhile, Michael was overjoyed with his new backpack, clutching it tightly and repeatedly asking, “Scarlett, is this really for me? Really?”
Scarlett decided to start cooking.
Truthfully, she was still a bit full from the fish at lunch, but this was a good opportunity to burn some calories while being productive.
She struggled to manage the heat of the large rural stove. Though she had experienced poverty in her past life and had been cooking since she was a teenager, her experience was with coal stoves and later gas stoves. She had no practice using the traditional earthen stoves of the countryside. Fortunately, she had Michael to help her. Despite being only six years old, her little cousin often helped Amanda with stoking the fire and tending the stove.
With Michael’s assistance, Scarlett steamed the rice in a smaller iron pot. She placed turnips beneath the rice basket to cook simultaneously and used the other large pot to prepare dishes.
Amanda had sent home half a pig’s liver, but Scarlett dared not touch it, as preparing required skill. Thankfully, the house had other options, such as crucian carp and loaches.
Cleaning loaches was a technical task. Their slippery bodies were coated with mucus, making them difficult to handle. They had to be rinsed in hot saltwater before being processed. Scarlett fumbled with them clumsily, and Michael laughed heartily at the sight of loaches slipping around on the ground, showing no mercy to his cousin’s dignity.
After much effort, Scarlett finally cleaned the loaches. She stir-fried them with dried chili and tofu, covering the pot to let the flavors seep in before moving on to prepare the Crucian carp.
Crucian carp was simpler to handle. Scarlett plucked some scallions from the backyard and some fresh herbs to make a fragrant herbal crucian carp dish.
By the time the people working in the fields returned, only the pig’s liver remained uncooked.
“Scarlett made all the food?” someone exclaimed in surprise.
—
Meanwhile, at the Greenfield County guesthouse, Kay and Leo were discussing Scarlett Whitaker.
