Testing (Revised)

People in Junsha usually keep playing cards, mahjong, and other similar items at home. Qin Yanan's family doesn't have mahjong, but they do have playing cards.

Qin Yanan and Zhu Juntang weren't very good at it, but the rules were similar to mahjong, simple and easy to learn. They just played casually to pass the time. Liu Chang'an didn't intend to win any bets. However, Zhu Juntang became confident after playing a couple of rounds and wanted to play for higher stakes, but Liu Chang'an and Qin Yanan ignored her.

After a while, Liu Chang'an went to brush the sheep's head. He used a brush to scrub the scalp, making it as white and clean as possible, but it would be too unprofessional to brush it until it broke. Then he opened the mouth to brush the tongue and rinsed the mouth, nose and ears with water.

"Pretty efficient, huh?" Qin Yanan remarked, standing at the kitchen doorway.

Liu Chang'an didn't reply. He took a knife and made a long cut from the center of the sheep's head skin to the nasal cavity, then put it in a pot, poured in cold water, and started boiling it.

"Did you know that the most famous mutton head in Capital is from Ma Yukun's shop on Erlang Street outside Qianmen? It's a family tradition spanning six generations. During the socialist transformation after liberation, Ma Yukun worked as a transport worker. When Nanlaishun, the manager at the time, Chen Liansheng, finally managed to find Ma Yukun to resume his old trade. Ma Yukun became the renowned Sheep Head Ma... Now everyone says Ma Yukun's skills have been lost, but that's not true." Liu Chang'an was slightly smug; living a long life always brings many advantages. "Today you're in for a treat, as this unparalleled skill has been revived."

"I really don't believe that. I've only heard the older generation talk about Ma Yukun's sheep's head. It's said that once it's made, it's basically sold out. It's been passed down for six generations and it's a family recipe. Can you really make it? Of course, since it's lost anyway, as long as you make it delicious, no one can prove that what you're saying isn't true." Qin Yanan really didn't believe it.

Liu Chang'an didn't waste any words. It would take some time to cook the sheep's head, so he went out to play cards for a while before returning to the kitchen.

Qin Yanan followed him to play cards, and then followed him into the kitchen.

Liu Chang'an checked that the sheep's head was about 70% cooked, then took it out. While it was still hot, he made a cut in the middle of the scalp and peeled the sheep's face, skin, and meat to both sides. He removed the skull, poked out the sheep's eyes with his index finger, split the skull open, took out the sheep's brain, and completely removed the two pieces of sheep's face and tongue, then soaked them in cold water.

The clean and efficient process was so smooth that Qin Yanan was dumbfounded. You know, Liu Chang'an just picked up the sheep's head from boiling water and started peeling it. Wasn't he afraid of getting burned? Qin Yanan didn't bother to stop him from getting burned. They were both adults, and he wouldn't be so reckless. He must have the ability.

Qin Yanan was ashamed of her own skill in this regard. Many experienced chefs could withstand the scalding heat of ingredients. Many things had to be processed while they were hot, and it was impossible to do so if your hands couldn't handle the heat. You also didn't have the finesse to do it through gloves.

After soaking for a while, Liu Chang'an took a clay pot, roasted rock salt over a low fire, crushed Sichuan peppercorns while hot, added other seasonings to make pepper salt, and put it into a horn bowl to prevent the flavor from escaping. In fact, this secret pepper salt is the key to eating mutton head meat.

Freshly sliced and served, when Liu Chang'an placed the mutton head on the long slicing board and demonstrated to Qin Yanan what it meant to "sprinkle salt like flying snowflakes, slice as thin as paper," Qin Yanan was completely convinced. Such skill and culinary expertise had absolutely no need to boast about inheriting someone else's skills. People with exceptional skills are often proud and arrogant; why would they needlessly try to claim credit with others? But since he claimed to be recreating something from the world, then he simply meant it and wouldn't change someone else's name to his own.

"I'm going to fire Zhang Jiawei and hire you as the head chef." Zhu Juntang was full of admiration, but it was just talk. Recruiting Liu Chang'an to her side was a long and arduous task that she couldn't actually do right now. She said with some envy, "I heard from Zhou Dongdong that you often cook delicious food for her."

"No wonder it's so round," Qin Yanan said, seemingly enlightened.

"She often gives me food too; it's just reciprocity," Liu Chang'an thought.

Qin Yanan glanced at Liu Chang'an a few more times, savoring the delicious taste on her lips and tongue. The slices of meat were white and clean, thin and large, tender and crisp, fresh and fragrant without being greasy. With the addition of the secret-recipe salt and pepper seasoning, it was as if every taste bud was dancing with joy. How could it be so delicious?

"If I eat like this every day, I'll definitely gain weight," Zhu Juntang said worriedly.

"You don't have that chance." Qin Yanan thought she was overthinking it.

Liu Chang'an smiled and sliced the meat for himself. The mutton head meat should be cold, but the salt and pepper seasoning should be eaten as soon as it's cooked. If it gets cold and slightly damp, the taste will be much worse.

Qin Yanan ate by herself and watched Liu Chang'an eat as well. She thought to herself that Zhu Juntang was overthinking things, and An Nuan was the one who had the right to have this opportunity. After all, Liu Chang'an had said that he would spend his whole life... no, he would spend his whole life accompanying An Nuan.

An Nuan, that little girl, at least has a good appetite; Qin Yanan found herself actually a little jealous of An Nuan.

Honestly, I'm getting more and more fond of this dish myself. Qin Yanan smiled as she took small bites of the mutton head meat in her mouth.

"Finished eating? Did anything taste familiar?" Liu Chang'an put down the slicing knife and asked casually.

"No, this is the first time I've ever had this taste." Qin Yanan shook her head.

"Perhaps only your great-grandfather could recognize the familiar taste." Liu Chang'an nodded. "When Ye Chenyu was in Capital taking care of her younger siblings, she often made this flavor."

"Ye Chenyu..." Qin Yanan thought for a moment before realizing what he meant, and then chuckled in surprise, "So that's the name."

"So beautiful that fish sink, geese fall, the moon hides, and flowers blush," Zhu Juntang said with a smile.

"How could you joke about an elder's name?" Qin Yanan glared at Zhu Juntang. "It's the 'Chen' of the hour of Chen, and the 'Yu' of 'Jin Yu'."

Liu Chang'an nodded, his eyes fixed on Qin Yanan.

"But why are you calling your great-grandfather by his name?" Qin Yanan asked curiously.

Zhu Juntang lowered her head to drink her tea because she wanted to laugh.

"It's alright, he doesn't mind."

Qin Yanan, of course, couldn't say anything, and said to Zhu Juntang, who was drinking tea with her head down, "We've both done the work, so it's your job to clean up the table."

"Me?" Zhu Juntang pointed to herself, then picked up her phone. "I'll call someone to clean up..."

"Never mind... I'm too lazy to argue with you." Qin Yanan scoffed at this kind of decadent capitalist young lady who did nothing, got up to clear the table herself, and naturally there was no reason for Liu Chang'an to do anything in the kitchen.

Qin Yanan went to the kitchen, and only then did Zhu Juntang look at Liu Chang'an, lowering her voice, "Grandpa, you're testing Qin Yanan, aren't you?"

"You actually noticed that?" Liu Chang'an thought Zhu Juntang's mind was as empty as the universe beneath her skirt.

"So, did you find anything out? I think there's definitely something wrong. What a coincidence, something happened last night, and she formatted the hard drive this morning, not too early, not too late?" Zhu Juntang sneered slightly. "I grew up watching Conan."

"I've tested her, she's fine. You're overthinking it." Liu Chang'an said, sipping his tea.

Zhu Juntang was stunned for a moment, unsure whether Liu Chang'an was just being perfunctory or if he really hadn't found anything.