PWDLAW Chapter 229: Xie Yu's Childhood Shadow
Chapter 229: Xie Yu's Childhood Shadow
Initially, Ye Muyu thought that entertaining Xie Wan might be a bit challenging, given that she was the young lady of the Xie family and might have some temperamental traits. However, from beginning to end, Xie Wan didn't utter a single word. There was no need for Ye Muyu to attend to anything,, she simply focused on eating. Even the maidservant behind her seemed to have received instructions not to say anything.
"Not at all, Madam. Your culinary skills are excellent. Otherwise, I wouldn't have the pleasure of tasting delicious dishes like sour cabbage fish and soft fragrant cake." Xie Yu genuinely enjoyed soft fragrant cake, especially when it was baked.
After the appetizers, several main courses were served. Hu and Zhang Shu helped in clearing the dishes and the main dishes were brought in.
Ye Muyu, who had arranged the dishes on the plates, made them look appetizing. Even the quiet Xie Wan couldn't help but glance at each dish.
Xie Yu, however, seemed somewhat surprised. He wasn't someone who would trouble himself unnecessarily and he directly inquired "Madam, these dishes seem different from the common farmhouse fare. Could you help introduce them?"
In fact, when Xie Yu was a child, he had attended a big banquet in the countryside. It was an event hosted by a distant relative when he returned from hunting. At that time he was curious and asked his father, Mr. Xie to take him to the celebration.
However, the experience was far from pleasant.
Firstly, he witnessed villagers grabbing food from the tables without proper manners. Being a young master, he couldn't stand such behavior. It was akin to someone who loved cleanliness witnessing someone else eat messily, causing a strong aversion.
Secondly, despite being seated separately with Mr. Xie, the dishes were basic, lacking in presentation and had no control over cooking techniques. They followed the principle of 'if it's cooked, it's edible,' without any emphasis on aesthetics.
Xie Yu noticed meat being overcooked, green vegetables losing their color, and some dishes being too greasy. After trying some, he realized he shouldn't have had any expectations.
Given this experience, Xie Yu never visited the countryside to eat again. Since the incident happened quite a long time ago, about ten years ago he hadn't thought about it when visiting the Chu family. He believed that a family capable of making soft fragrant cake and sour cabbage fish couldn't be an ordinary rural household. Moreover, Chu Heng was a scholar.
Adding to the fact that, from the moment he entered, he felt everything was thoughtful, except for the slightly old house that was still clean and had a faint fragrance.
The red bean wine lees dish had made him look forward to the Chu family's hospitality.
Until the main dishes were served and he saw the rural-style bowls, he suddenly remembered his childhood experience. He started contemplating how to express himself without offending Chu Heng while keeping his own taste buds satisfied.
In his moments of indecision, the food was already brought to the table.
By the time he felt that something was wrong, he carefully observed the peculiarities of the Chu family's dishes.
Despite the plain bowls, which weren't even porcelain, they were very clean and the food in the plates looked appetizing.
Xie Yu suddenly realized that his concern wasn't about whether the rural dishes were tasty but rather whether they were clean or not.
"This one is chicken stewed with shiitake mushrooms and winter melon, mainly for the soup."
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