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Zhao Hexi's mouth watered at the thought of the snails she used to eat, "When are we going to eat these snails?"

Qing Mengzhu: "Anyway, we can't eat them today; they need to be kept alive for at least two or three days. If you have time, let's pinch off the snails' tails together later?"

Zhao Hexi readily agreed, "I may not have time for anything else, but I'm sure I'll have time for a meal."

So the two of them carried the snails home together, poured them into a large iron basin, and each took a pair of needle-nose pliers to cut off the snails' tails.

The shells of older snail varieties are relatively hard, so you can't work quickly; you can only chat while you work.

When Ming Chunxi returned, they were working hard, with two small buckets containing clamped snails beside them.

"Where did these snails come from?" Ming Chunxi stepped forward to take a look. "They're quite plump."

"From the pond." Qing Mengzhu looked up at Ming Chunxi and smiled. "The food is ready, it's keeping warm in the pot. Go wash your hands, we're going to eat."

Zhao Hexi struggled with the snail in her hand. "God Ming, have you ever eaten the snails from the north gate of your high school?"

"I've eaten." Ming Chunxi looked at Qing Mengzhu, "Mengzhu gave it to me."

Zhao Hexi yelled, "I knew it! You definitely wouldn't buy it yourself!"

They went to wash their hands and eat first. After finishing their meal and clearing the table, the three of them continued catching snails.

Snails are very resilient; even if their tails are cut off, they can live for a long time.

Cutting off their tails can speed up the process of them expelling sand and also help clean them more thoroughly.

They worked until after 9 p. m. and finally managed to clamp all the snails together.

Zhao Hexi rubbed his aching lower back and suddenly remembered, "Mengzhu, do you know how to make braised snails with pickled bamboo shoots?"

Qing Mengzhu: "Really?"

Zhao Hexi exclaimed, "Wait a minute, you sound like you lack confidence. Have you never done this before?"

Qing Mengzhu innocently replied, "Who has nothing better to do than stir-fry snails at home?"

Zhao Hexi: "That means we haven't done it before. Foreign aid! I request to call in foreign aid!"

Qing Mengzhu and their team only have Zhou Yan as their foreign aid.

Zhou Yan was quite interested when he heard that they wanted to find a way to cook snails, so he asked Qing Mengzhu to send them pictures.

Upon seeing the picture of the snails, Zhou Yan replied, "[Your snails look pretty good! Mountain stream snails?]"

Qing Mengzhu: [No, just snails from the pond. But you know our pond has pretty good water quality, so these snails should taste similar to those from mountain streams.]

Zhou Yan: [Openly tempting me?]

Qing Mengzhu sent a laughing emoji: [Who told us we're not very good at it? Brother Zhou, are you itching to show off your skills? There's a big bucket of snails waiting for you.]

Zhou Yan: [Tomorrow, by then your snails should have spit out most of the mud and sand. I'll come over and try.]

Qing Mengzhu: [How about stir-fried pickled bamboo shoots? If you want other flavors, we can set aside some for stir-frying.]

Zhou Yan: [No problem, I'd also like to try your pickled bamboo shoots.]

The pickled bamboo shoots at Qing Mengzhu's house have been pickling for over two months, and now they're a beautiful golden color, looking incredibly tempting.

The moment Zhou Yan saw the pickled bamboo shoots, he said, "These pickled bamboo shoots are of good quality. Could you give me some to take home later?"

Qing Mengzhu: "No problem, I'll fill it up for you later, a whole big jar including the mother fluid."

Zhou Yan came over to stir-fry snails and brought along the prepared sauce.

Qing Mengzhu took a sniff of the jar of dark red sauce and was immediately struck by its rich aroma. "What's in this? It smells so good!"

Zhou Yan: "Seasoning oil, fermented bean curd, broad bean paste, beef sauce, fried shallots, and ginger and garlic oil can remove the fishy smell and enhance the flavor. Snails have a strong flavor, so you need to use plenty of seasonings to mask it."

Qing Mengzhu was already looking forward to it just from smelling the aroma of the sauce. "Then I'll stop eating from now on and save room for stir-fried snails. Oh, and I also need to stir-fry some snails with less seasoning for the otter. Should I stir-fry them or Brother Zhou, will you?"

Zhou Yan: "I'll cook it. After it's done, I'll set aside the portion for the otters first, then add the seasonings and cook the portion for us."

Qing Mengzhu gave a thumbs up. "Brother Zhou, it's up to you now."

Zhou Yan didn't like anyone loitering around him while he was cooking, Qing Mengzhu prepared the side dishes for him and then sat in the courtyard to wait.

Soon, Zhou Yan scooped up the snails that the otter had eaten and asked Qing Mengzhu to take them to the otter first.

The otter was inside its burrow when Qing Mengzhu placed a small plate of snails outside and knocked on the burrow, saying, "Little Otter, come out and eat snails."

Hearing the noise, the otter poked its head out of its burrow, its large, round eyes looking at Qing Mengzhu: "Eek?"

Qing Mengzhu pointed to the snails on the plate. "They're edible."

The otter twitched its nose, sniffed several times, before grabbing the snail with its paw and sucking on it.

The stir-fried snails for the otter weren't seasoned with pickled bamboo shoots or sauce, but the snails themselves were fragrant from the oil and tasted much better than raw snails.

The otters ate them one after another, their eyes shining as they sucked on them.

Seeing that the otters were eating well, Qing Mengzhu then went to feed the other little ones.

Neither dogs nor red foxes eat snails, Qing Mengzhu dared not give them snails casually, for fear that they would swallow them whole and suffer intestinal obstruction.

Because the otter received special treatment, Qing Mengzhu, to be fair, mixed dried meat into the other little creatures' food.

The dog and the red fox were very satisfied with the dried meat rice and ate it with great relish.

When Qing Mengzhu and the other kids returned after their meal, the snails were already stir-fried, and the whole yard was filled with the unique aroma of stir-fried snails with pickled bamboo shoots.

Upon seeing Qing Mengzhu, Zhao Hexi excitedly exclaimed, "Smell this! Isn't it the familiar scent?"

Ming Chunxi: "It smells even better than the stir-fried snails at the place next to our high school."

Zhao Hexi: "Yes! Brother Zhou truly lives up to his reputation as a top chef, it smells amazing!"

Zhou Yan smiled and said, "The snails are good, and I saw that everyone was eager to eat them, so I pressure-cooked them. Try them and see if you like them."

Qing Mengzhu washed her hands. "Would you like some alcohol or juice?"

Zhao Hexi: "I want beer."

Zhou Yan also wanted beer, Qing Mengzhu and Ming Chunxi drank juice.

Since the Interstellar Mall came along, Qing Mengzhu has rarely drunk alcohol, and now she doesn't drink at all, to avoid accidentally getting drunk and letting slip something she shouldn't say.

Ming Chunxi accompanied him.

Besides a large bowl of stir-fried snails, there were other dishes on the table, but everyone's focus was on the stir-fried snails.

Zhao Hexi ate the stir-fried snails, sniffing the air, and said, "It's so delicious! I used to love picking out the snail meat with a toothpick. I could eat a whole plate of snails from school to home, and it would be finished in no time. Because the snails were so delicious, the walk was especially pleasant."

Qing Mengzhu looked at Ming Chunxi, and they also recalled the days when they ate stir-fried snails together.

At the time, Qing Yan and Ming Lexin both thought that stir-fried snails had too many parasites and forbade them to eat them. Sometimes, Qing Mengzhu would sneak a bite and eat them. Back then, the snails tasted even better than the regular ones, and it was incredibly satisfying.

Eating stir-fried snails today made me feel like I was back in my childhood.

Looking back now, Qing Mengzhu suddenly realizes that Ming Chunxi was so particular back then, yet he was still willing to eat stir-fried snails with him. It was truly a touching display of brotherly affection.

Ming Chunxi noticed Qing Mengzhu's smile and asked in a low voice, "What are you laughing at?"

Qing Mengzhu whispered, "I remember when you ate stir-fried snails with me. Back then, you seemed to wash your hands several times after eating, and then wash your hair, take a shower, and change all your clothes?"

Ming Chunxi: "The stir-fried snails have a rather strong smell."

Qing Mengzhu's smile widened, "Someone as particular as you is still willing to eat stir-fried snails with me. Have you already developed different feelings for me?"

Ming Chunxi thought for a moment and said, "It's probably because they've been wearing the mask of a good student for too long and want to rebel a little."

Seeing the two of them chatting, Zhao Hexi raised his beer. "Stop talking about yourselves! Come on, cheers! Thanks, Brother Zhou, let's celebrate having delicious snails again!"

Zhou Yan: "Thank you for the pond's harvest."

Qing Mengzhu: "Thanks to the Little Otter for letting me discover the snail."