sinovels Chapter 39: A Meal of Crayfish
Chapter 39: A Meal of Crayfish
Fortunately, Lao Huang didn't forget the important matter; he asked, "Where's the acceptance letter?"
Huang Xiaochuan quickly put down his bowl and chopsticks, wiped his hands, and took the registered letter from the table and handed it to Lao Huang and Zeng Lijuan.
Old Huang gestured, "You should take it apart!"
Huang Xiaochuan deftly tore open the envelope and poured out the admission notice. It was very simple, just two pieces of paper. One was the admission notice, informing him of which major he had been admitted to and asking him to come to the school to register and enroll on a certain date.
The other sheet of paper contained notices, which outlined the procedures for transferring household registration, the daily necessities to bring, how to get to school from Shanghai, and whether there were volunteers at the train station to meet you, among other trivial matters.
In Lao Huang and Zeng Lijuan's eyes, this admission notice was much more important than the lunch they had at noon.
Huang Xiaochuan handed the admission notice to his parents. After looking it over, his father passed it to Zeng Lijuan and said to Huang Xiaochuan, "You have to register on August 25th or 26th. That's quite a tight schedule!"
Huang Xiaochuan said nonchalantly, "It's next Saturday, there are still more than ten days. There's enough time to transfer the household registration and buy things. Just buy a few things."
Zeng Lijuan happily wiped her eyes and said, "You make it sound so easy. If you don't buy the right household items, you'll suffer when you use them."
Huang Xiaochuan quickly urged, "You've seen the acceptance letters, and I've prepared the food. Let's eat!"
Old Huang then called out to Zeng Lijuan, "Let's eat! I never expected to get to eat my son's cooking. Let me try it and see how it tastes."
You can only know if the food is good or not by tasting it yourself. After taking a bite of a crayfish, the taste and texture completely won over Lao Huang and Zeng Lijuan. They never expected that their son's cooking would be so delicious.
Old Huang disregarded the rule of not speaking while eating and stared at Huang Xiaochuan, asking, "When did you learn to cook?"
Huang Xiaochuan had already prepared his answer in his mind: "What's so difficult about this? I can learn it by watching my mom and aunt. If I hadn't been held back by my studies, I might even be a master chef!"
Fortunately, Lao Huang wasn't the type to criticize the cook after the meal, and he didn't mind Huang Xiaochuan's smug attitude, since it was a good thing that his son was filial.
The same scene unfolded at Yu Wei's home on the third floor. Yu Min, who had already been showing off more than a dozen lobsters, asked Yu Wei in shock, "You mean these lobsters were made by Huang Xiaochuan? Please, if you're going to make up a lie, at least make it believable!"
Old Yu and his wife didn't believe it either; they had never heard of such a thing! They had watched the child grow up from a baby, and they knew exactly what he could and couldn't do.
Seeing that his family didn't believe him, Yu Wei said angrily, "Why would I make up such a lie? Am I crazy? It really was Huang Xiaochuan who made it. He was busy in the kitchen for half a day. I went to buy the lobster with him, and I even peeled the garlic. If you don't believe me, wait until Sunday. I'll go buy some lobster and have Huang Xiaochuan come to my house to cook it. You can see for yourselves then."
Old Yu and his wife, along with Yu Min, were all a bit confused. It seemed that Yu Wei wasn't lying. Everyone had eaten lobster before, but this garlic flavor was something they had never tasted before. Even if they wanted to buy it, there was nowhere to buy it; they had never seen it for sale before.
The only explanation they could think of was that Huang Xiaochuan had just learned how to cook in Suzhou. Otherwise, how could he have cooked before and then come back from Suzhou?
Zheng Aiying asked in confusion, "How did he cook this lobster? The flavor has penetrated into the shell. The garlic aroma and the sweetness are perfectly combined."
Yu Wei revealed, "He poured two bottles of beer into the pot while cooking the lobster. At first, I thought it was for him to drink, so I came back to get two bottles of ice-cold beer. I didn't expect him to pour them into the pot."
Old Yu and his wife, along with Yu Min, were stunned again. Grilled lobster with beer? This was the first time they had ever heard of such a thing! Could it be a secret recipe? Otherwise, how could the lobster taste so good?
Old Yu waved his hand and made the arrangements: "On Sunday, Yu Wei, go buy more lobsters and have Xiao Chuan cook them. We'll also invite Uncle Huang and Aunt Zeng to my house for dinner. I must say, these lobsters are really delicious, perfect with drinks. And the best part is, lobsters are cheap."
Old Yu's suggestion was approved by the whole family, and even Yu Min did not object. She joked that they really hadn't had enough lobster today, and it was all Huang Xiaochuan's fault for giving them so little.
If Huang Xiaochuan knew that Yu Min complained that he gave her too few lobsters, he would definitely complain. Ten pounds of lobsters were split in half between the two families, and she still complained that it wasn't enough? Then it's just that everyone is too big a eater.
......
Because he had to go to work in the afternoon, Lao Huang didn't drink alcohol at noon. Otherwise, he would have easily had a few beers just for that pot of lobsters.
So they celebrated Huang Xiaochuan's admission to his ideal university with tea instead of wine, and the meal was so good that both Lao Huang and Zeng Lijuan couldn't put down their chopsticks.
The couple never expected that their youngest son, who would never even pick up a fallen oil bottle, could cook such a delicious meal. The sudden maturity of their son brought great comfort to the couple.
Seeing his parents eating with beaming smiles, Huang Xiaochuan seized the opportunity to voice his idea: "Dad, Mom, before school starts, I'll cook all the meals at home. You can come home from get off work every day and have a ready-made meal, okay?"
"What's wrong with that?" Old Huang immediately raised his hand in agreement, but his elderly mother, Zeng Lijuan, was a little reluctant.
"Why don't you just stay home and have some fun for a few days? You'll be going back to school soon, and you'll be busy helping with cooking. It's also hot outside, so maybe you should just stay home!"
"It won't be hot for many more days. Cooking a few meals a day won't tire me out. I can even go swimming in the afternoon. It won't interfere with my fun." Huang Xiaochuan also felt sorry for his elderly mother.
Since Huang Xiaochuan insisted, Zeng Lijuan let him go, and it was quite nice to enjoy her son's company for a few days.
Since the meal was already prepared, the dishes and chopsticks should be washed as well. After the meal, Huang Xiaochuan pushed Lao Huang and Zeng Lijuan into the room for a nap, and took on the task of cleaning up the table and washing the dishes.
Overjoyed, Zeng Lijuan kept praising her son to Lao Huang in the room, and Lao Huang also looked proud, his face beaming with joy.
Yu Wei didn't rest at noon. After eating, he went downstairs to find his friend. When he got to Huang Xiaochuan's house, his jaw almost dropped. Huang Xiaochuan was actually washing dishes.
This is unbelievable! Has this kid lost his mind? He used to do nothing at home, but now he's doing housework.
So he jokingly asked Huang Xiaochuan, "Xiaochuan, you've come back from Suzhou completely different! Is there anything you can't do?"
After washing and putting away the dishes, Huang Xiaochuan, who was already drenched in sweat, said, "There are many things I don't know, I don't even know how to have a baby."
"Hahahaha!" Yu Wei burst into laughter at Huang Xiaochuan's words.
Huang Xiaochuan looked at his friend with disdain: "What the hell is so funny? Are you capable of giving birth?"
"Stand aside, don't block the way. I need to take a shower, I'm so sweaty and uncomfortable." Huang Xiaochuan said, pushing aside Yu Wei who was blocking the kitchen doorway and going straight to the bathroom.
Before going into the bathroom, he didn't forget to order Yu Wei around: "Go to the balcony and get me a pair of shorts and my t-shirt."
"I..." Yu Wei held back, not saying the rest of the words. After all, he was counting on this guy to come to his house to cook lobster on Sunday. If he angered the cook, then no one would cook lobster.
For the sake of the lobster, Yu Wei decided to be generous and not argue with the kid. It was just helping to get some clean clothes!
Fortunately, Huang Xiaochuan showered quickly, finishing in five minutes. After getting dressed, he continued drying his hair with a towel while asking Yu Wei, "Why aren't you at home in the middle of the day? What are you doing at my house?"
Yu Wei looked at Huang Xiaochuan with displeasure: "It's all because of the lobsters you cooked. I barely ate a few of the lobsters before they were gone. I told them you made them, but they didn't believe me. They said you have to come to my house and cook them yourself so they can see for themselves before they'll believe it."
Unfortunately, Huang Xiaochuan had already seen through this little trick. Having grown up together, Huang Xiaochuan knew what Yu Wei was up to the moment he stuck out his butt.
Huang Xiaochuan made a move to kick Yu Wei, but Yu Wei was already on guard and immediately distanced himself from Huang Xiaochuan.
Since my in-laws like it, I'll make it! It'll just take some effort and sweat, but Huang Xiaochuan still said, "Same as always, I can make it, but you have to help peel the garlic."
Yu Wei patted his chest and assured him, "Sure, sure! No problem."