Chapter 83: Visiting the In-Laws

Li Shenxing replied softly, "Not like what Mom says. It's just that Mom usually calls me when she has free time, and when I call, she's always busy."

"Alright, alright, how are you and Hyo-ri doing recently?"

"I'm still the same, Mom knows me. But Hyo-ri has been quite busy lately, so she's a bit tired. Mom, could you help pick out some nourishing herbs for her?"

"Then you should make more things to help her recover. Don't forget to have her drink Goji berry tea every day, and massage her from time to time..." Upon hearing that her daughter-in-law wasn't feeling well, Mom immediately started giving Li Shenxing a lot of advice.

Mom and Hyo-ri got along very well. Both of them had strong personalities, but that was only towards outsiders. There were no conflicts between them like in Korean TV dramas. Instead, they got along very well and always thought of each other when buying things. When Hyo-ri went shopping, she would buy suitable clothes, cosmetics, and other items for Mom and send them over. Mom would often send supplements, pastries, and local specialties from China to Hyo-ri and Shenxing.

After chatting with Mom for a while, he hung up the phone.

Putting away the phone, he helped pull the blanket back up over Hyo-ri, who had turned over, and moved the hair from her face. Then he sat back down and continued playing his game.

Three days later, Li Shenxing received a package from Mom. Inside were not only the nourishing herbs he had mentioned, but also a lot of homemade meat jerky, fruit preserves, smoked fish, yellow plum sauce, pickled lemons, pickled chili peppers, pickled ginger, and more. There were also some of his favorite jackfruit and taro chips, and a large bag of sweet rice wine yeast, all packed in a big box. Everything was divided into three parts and carefully labeled for the in-laws and grandmother.

He called Mom to let her know he had received the package. Mom didn't chat much and hung up to get back to work.

Li Shenxing shook his head and sighed, "Sigh~! It seems like I'm the only one with nothing to do while everyone else is so busy."

Then he made another call, "Mom~ It's Shenxing. Are you at home? I'm coming over to bring you some things. Nothing expensive, just some homemade items from home. Okay, I'll be over in a bit. Alright, bye."

He prepared dinner for the kids first, as he always ate alone in the evenings since Hyo-ri came back late these days and his in-laws always insisted on keeping him for dinner.

After preparing dinner for the kids, Li Shenxing packed the items for his in-laws into a large bag and set out.

About half an hour later, Li Shenxing arrived at his in-laws' house.

His mother-in-law opened the door for him, "Oh! Shenxing, why did you bring so much? Didn't you keep any for yourself?"

Li Shenxing took her hand and led her inside, "I have some too. Mom, these are specially prepared for you by my mom. Don't worry~!"

"Thank you to your mother-in-law," his mother-in-law patted his hand.

In the living room, Li Shenxing took everything out of the bag, "Mom, these fruit preserves, meat jerky, and fish jerky are all homemade. The pickled lemons, pickled ginger, and pickled chili peppers are also homemade. Smell this yellow plum sauce." He opened the bottle and held it in front of his mother-in-law.

"Mmm~ It smells so good! How do you use these?" his mother-in-law asked.

"You can use them in meat dishes to remove the fishy smell and add fragrance. You can also mix them with noodles. The pickled ginger and pickled chili peppers can be eaten directly or used in cooking. Lemon duck is a famous dish in China. I'll cook the fish jerky and lemon stir-fried duck for you tonight. These are for making sweet rice wine. Using this yeast will make it taste better. The fruit preserves can be stored in a sealed jar, and the meat jerky can be kept in the fridge."

"By the way, where are Dad and Second Sister?" Li Shenxing asked, noticing that only his mother-in-law was at home.

"Your father went out to play, and Second Sister took Chan-jin to the park."

Li Shenxing checked his watch, "Mom, why don't you take a nap? I'll go to the market to buy some vegetables."

"No need, I'll go with you. Let me change first," she said, ignoring his protests and heading to her room.

The market was very close, so they didn't need to drive. He pulled a small cart for vegetables and followed his mother-in-law.

His mother-in-law carried her handbag and happily greeted neighbors she knew, introducing Li Shenxing as her third son-in-law whenever they asked.

At the market, when the vegetable vendor asked who Li Shenxing was, his mother-in-law proudly introduced him as her third son-in-law, who had come to buy vegetables with her.

Seeing a nice pumpkin, Li Shenxing bought one. It wasn't the long type from China but a small, flat, round one.

"Mom, do you have glutinous rice flour? I want to make pumpkin pancakes later."

"Yes, I bought a few pounds a few days ago."

He bought a duck that had been raised free-range by the river, not the usual caged, feed-raised ducks. He asked the vendor to clean and cut it up. Then he picked out some vegetables and side dishes and returned home with his mother-in-law.

After getting home, he persuaded his mother-in-law to rest in her room while he went to the kitchen. He washed all the ingredients and set them aside, then marinated the duck with some wine.

Since it was only two in the afternoon and not yet time for dinner, he peeled and seeded the pumpkin, cut it into large pieces, and steamed it. [Pumpkin cooks quickly, so don't steam it for too long, or it will absorb too much water.]

He also washed some mung beans and put them in a blender to make mung bean water to go with the pumpkin pancakes.

He took out the steamed pumpkin and put it in a stainless steel bowl, mashed it with a masher, and mixed in a little sugar and glutinous rice flour. [If there are elderly people, it's best to use less sugar.] He kneaded the dough until it was smooth but not too dry. He then rolled it into a long strip, cut it into small pieces, and shaped them into small balls. He flattened the balls and coated them with sesame seeds on both sides. Once they were all ready, he could start frying them.

He took out a non-stick pan, poured in some olive oil, and when the oil was hot, he slowly placed the pumpkin pancakes in and fried them over low heat until both sides were golden brown.

While making the pumpkin pancakes, he heard someone come in. He looked out and saw that it was Second Sister and Chan-jin returning from the park.

"Second Sister, you're back. I made pumpkin pancakes and mung bean water for afternoon tea."

Second Sister replied, "Okay, I'll give Chan-jin a bath first; she's all sweaty from playing."

"Hello, Uncle," Chan-jin greeted Li Shenxing politely. They got along well because they often saw each other, and Li Shenxing would buy her toys and snacks from time to time.

By the time they finished their bath, Li Shenxing had already brought the pumpkin pancakes and mung bean water to the living room. He took out a few cups and asked Second Sister, "Second Sister, is Mom awake? Should she come out for afternoon tea?"

His mother-in-law wasn't asleep but was just resting. She woke up when Second Sister went in.

They all sat in the living room, enjoying the sweet pumpkin pancakes and mung bean water while watching TV and chatting.

Around five o'clock, Li Shenxing and Second Sister went to the kitchen to prepare dinner.

...

PS: I've created a book club. If you're interested, come and chat with us. The group number is in the book review section.

PS: Time to put on my chef's hat again...

[AD begins]

[AD ends]