Chapter 7

After a hard afternoon's work, and with the return of his younger brother and sister, Wang Haiming decided to prepare a sumptuous dinner. The fish was caught from the pond, and the vegetables were picked from the space, all the freshest ingredients.

Steamed carp, crucian carp soup, green pepper and meat strips, flavored eggplant, stir-fried bok choy, tomato and egg soup, plus a watermelon fruit platter. Wang Haiming, being a master chef, and with the high-quality ingredients, made dishes that were a feast for the eyes, nose, and palate.

"Bro, the dishes you made look so beautiful, I don't even want to eat them. And the watermelon carving is amazing."

To prepare the steamed carp: Remove the scales, gills, and innards from the carp, wash it, and place it on a cutting board. Make diagonal cuts on the fish body at intervals, rub salt all over the fish, and let it marinate for a moment. Peel the scallions, wash them, and cut them into diagonal slices. Peel the ginger and garlic, wash them, and cut them into slices. Wash the bamboo shoots and cut them into thin slices. Wash the mushrooms and cut off the stems. Blanch the tomatoes in boiling water, peel them, remove the seeds, and cut them into diagonal slices. Wash the bok choy and blanch it in boiling water. Place the pot on the fire, heat the oil to about 60-70% hot, and quickly fry the fish until it is firm and slightly golden. Remove the fish and drain the oil, place it on a plate, and add cooking wine, salt, monosodium glutamate, chicken oil, and a little fresh broth. Arrange the bamboo shoots, mushrooms, scallion slices, ginger slices, and garlic slices evenly on top. Steam the fish in a steamer over boiling water for 10-15 minutes until the fish eyes are prominent and the flesh is tender. Remove the fish, pick out the scallion, ginger, and garlic slices, and pour the steaming broth into the pot. Place the pot back on the fire, add the bok choy and tomato slices, bring to a boil, and simmer for a moment. Drizzle with chicken oil and pour over the fish.

To prepare the green pepper and eggplant: Wash the green peppers and cut them into strips. Peel the garlic and ginger, and cut them into slices. Wash the long eggplant, cut it into oblique slices, and coat it with dry starch. Heat the oil in the pot to about 70% hot, and fry the eggplant until it is slightly golden. Drain the oil. Leave some oil in the pot, add Sichuan pepper, ginger slices, and dried red peppers to create a fragrant oil. Add a tablespoon of sugar and stir to create an oil-sugar sauce. Add the drained eggplant and coat it evenly with the oil-sugar sauce. Add the garlic slices and green pepper strips. Sprinkle a little salt and stir gently to mix.

Wang Haiming wanted to share some cooking tips, but unfortunately, no one was listening.

Although the little girl said this, her hands were not slow. She was eating and constantly putting food on her plate. With Wang Xiaoya's jokes, the family didn't hesitate to eat, and in less than half an hour, the large table of dishes was almost completely finished, almost even the watermelon rind.

Seeing his younger brother and sister, and his mother's satisfied smiles, Wang Haiming felt very content. Even if there were great difficulties, he would still set up the farm. After dinner, they naturally watched TV. Although Wang Haiming's TV was quite old, the scene of the family sitting together was very warm. They all yawned, and his mother sent them all back to their rooms.

The bear den was not far from Wang Haiming's bedroom. On the way back, he heard some noise. Who was doing what, and why was there water? As he got closer, Wang Haiming was amused to see that it was the little brown bear taking a bath.

Seeing Wang Haiming, the bear grunted twice as a greeting. "Tsk, you didn't cooperate yesterday, but today you're taking a bath on your own." However, Wang Haiming was still happy. As a new family member, hygiene was important. He praised the bear a few times and then went back to his room, leaving the bear to its own devices.

Closing the door, Wang Haiming first went to the space. Everything was the same as before. The little peach tree he had just planted seemed to have grown taller and was lush, which was a bit surprising. Thinking about the time difference in the space and the rich spiritual energy, he understood.

Seeing the large empty plot and the bare spiritual mountain, Wang Haiming wanted to plant something. He didn't want to plant ordinary vegetables, and he didn't have better things like ginseng. He didn't have time to look for them, so he decided to set up the farm first, which would give him more free time. After consoling himself, Wang Haiming went back to his bed and slept soundly.

Since there was nothing important the next day, Wang Haiming had a rare lazy morning. When he woke up, the sun was already high, and it was ten o'clock.

"Bro, you're so lazy, it's already ten, and you're still in bed." "Aren't I up now?" Wang Haiming put on his clothes, pinched his sister's little nose, and walked out with a smile.

"Bro, go brush your teeth and wash your face, I'll bring you breakfast." "Hey, wait." Wang Haiming looked at his little sister in surprise, not understanding when the wild girl had become considerate. He said, "What's up, no good deed goes unpunished." Wang Xiaoya, being a straightforward girl, didn't hesitate and said, "Bro, the leftover tomatoes from yesterday were so good, can you give me a few more?" She licked her lips, looking like she was still savoring them.

"Little glutton, I give up on you." Wang Haiming said with a sigh, "I know you're not that nice, go get breakfast, I'll bring it for you." Hearing the satisfactory result, Wang Xiaoya cheered and ran off, reverting to her usual wild self.

After breakfast, Wang Haiming called his younger brother, Wang Liang, and they headed to the fish pond. Although the excavator had done most of the work, some small areas still needed manual handling.

Cleaning, disinfecting, and having the construction foreman bring several truckloads of fine sand to the bottom of the pond, the work was not much but was quite tedious. They finally finished before sunset. What made Wang Haiming happy was that Wang Li's cement bridge and Gao Shan's floating bridge were mostly completed, with only some finishing touches left.

"Xiaoya, what are you doing?" A sudden shout from behind startled Wang Xiaoya. Without looking back, she unceremoniously left the little brown bear and ran away. Not paying attention was fine, but when they got closer, the brothers were both amused and exasperated. The little brown bear was sitting on a tricycle, its paws on the handlebars, and its feet pedaling. The pedal was already half broken, and the front tire was severely deformed. The tricycle wasn't moving at all, and the bear was frustrated. It had been running fine just a moment ago, but now it couldn't move. It pedaled harder, and with a clang, the tricycle fell apart. The bear fell forward, landing in a standard bear face-plant.

"Bro, why don't you hire the bear as a driver?" Wang Liang suggested with a laugh, not wanting the bear to just eat without working.

"Bro, what happened, where's Bear Big?" Hearing the noise, the little sister who had just run away came back, asking anxiously. Bear Big? What Bear Big? You have the nerve to ask, look for yourself. Wang Haiming kept a stern face and said, "It's all your fault, go back and reflect."

After some thought, Wang Haiming found his brother's idea good, so he rode his bicycle to Old Gao's house. Old Gao was about sixty years old, the only outsider in the village, and Wang Haiming didn't know where he had moved from, only that it had been a long time.

Old Gao lived alone, fixing bikes, collecting scrap, and hunting, living a rather carefree life. However, he only accepted scrap if it was brought to his doorstep and treated it with indifference. He was a bit eccentric, but the villagers knew his temper and didn't mind. His bike repair skills were top-notch.

It was by chance that Wang Haiming remembered that Old Gao had an old, heavy tricycle, quite old, and he didn't know if it still worked. "Old Gao, do you still have that old tricycle?"

"I'll check. What do you want it for?" Old Gao was leaning against the wall, enjoying the sun, and didn't bother to get up even with a visitor.

"It's in the corner inside, take it, and remember to return it when you're done." Wang Haiming was a bit frustrated, dealing with such an old man was exasperating.

"Old Gao, I don't want to borrow it, I want to buy it, and I want you to make some modifications."

"Hmm," hearing a customer, Old Gao lazily got up.

"Three hundred yuan, come back tomorrow to pick it up." Hearing the price, Wang Haiming didn't get angry but left happily, already imagining the bear riding the tricycle.

The next day was Monday, the start of the school term. Wang Liang and Wang Xiaoya, who was reluctant to leave, got up early and rode their bicycles to the county. However, Xiaoya said with a sad face that she wouldn't come back next week because she had to attend extra classes. Wang Haiming understood; junior high school was a critical time, and the high school entrance exam was only two months away, so extra classes were necessary.

"Haiming, the backyard is so big, why don't you raise some chickens? The weather is getting warmer, and there are already places selling them, and you can sell them in the countryside."

"Got it, Mom. You go to the backyard and supervise. I'll go check if the bridge is done and then have them help build a chicken coop." His mother was a busy person, so Wang Haiming asked the villagers to use a hand tractor to till the backyard. He went to check on Bear Big, who had flipped the tricycle and fallen, a sight that was quite pitiful.

To help Bear Big learn faster, Wang Haiming added two drops of morning dew to its food. Although he hadn't seen the results yet, he was satisfied with Bear Big's persistent efforts.

Bear Big, you must learn, or my two drops of morning dew will be wasted, and I'll be at a loss. Walking around the reservoir, Wang Haiming finally realized what was missing: willow trees.

"Jade-like willow trees, with thousands of green branches hanging down, who could have cut such fine leaves, the February wind is like a pair of scissors."

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