Chapter 34

The two dogs stopped running and lay down on either side of Qing Mengzhu, panting heavily with their tongues lolling out.

Qing Mengzhu: "Let's not continue climbing. Let's go down the mountain from the other side and see if we can find some more along the way."

Zhao Hexi breathed a sigh of relief, "I really can't climb any further."

Qing Mengzhu glanced at the two baskets on their backs. "It's alright, this basket and a half of mushrooms is enough for us."

Zhao Hexi also remarked, "Before picking mushrooms, I had no idea there were so many kinds of mushrooms in the mountains."

Qing Mengzhu chuckled, "Otherwise, why do you think it's called 'Fried Mixed Mushrooms'? It's because there are so many kinds of wild mushrooms that it's impossible to just find one specific type; we eat whatever is available."

Zhao Hexi gave a thumbs up. "You're amazing. If it were me, I wouldn't be able to tell the difference at all."

Qing Mengzhu: "There are still some I don't recognize."

They found this pile of mushrooms. When he gets back and cleans them, he'll scan them again with the Interstellar Mall to make sure no poisonous mushrooms have been mixed in before he starts cooking.

Otherwise, if someone gets mushroom poisoning and ends up with liver and kidney failure in the ICU, that would be a huge loss.

After resting for a while, they began their descent.

Based on her previous records, Qing Mengzhu found quite a few more mushrooms.

They turned left and right, and when they returned to where they parked, their faces were flushed from the heat and covered in mosquito bites.

Not to mention them, even the two dogs were listless; they lost all their energy after jumping into the car.

They put their things away and drove home.

The two dogs lay down on the back seat and quickly fell asleep.

The dogs were snoring incessantly; it was hard to believe that such tiny creatures could snore as loudly as strong, grown men.

Zhao Hexi quickly fell asleep under the influence of the snoring, and a snoring trio filled the car.

Qing Mengzhu drove with a smile. The cool breeze from the mountains and forests blew in through the car window, and along with the snoring from inside the car, it actually gave a sense of peace and tranquility.

Chapter 34

Climbing the mountain was really tiring.

After returning home, Qing Mengzhu cooked four large bowls of noodles, which she ate with Zhao Hexi and their two dogs before taking a bath and going for a nap.

He slept until four in the afternoon. When he woke up, the sunlight had turned from bright white to a slightly orange hue, making it less intense and dazzling. The world seemed to soften with the sunlight.

The mushrooms I picked today are still in the kitchen. It's hot, so I have to hurry up and process them.

He dragged his feet out, and as soon as he entered the living room, he saw Zhao Hexi sitting on the sofa playing on her phone. Two small dogs jumped onto the sofa and nestled against Zhao Hexi on either side.

Despite the sweltering heat, Zhao Hexi didn't seem to mind.

"Awake?" Zhao Hexi looked up to greet Qing Mengzhu, then put her phone away. "What do we do now?"

Qing Mengzhu: "To clean the mushrooms, you have to fry them first, otherwise they'll spoil."

Zhao Hexi readily agreed, "Okay."

The two went to the kitchen to pour out the mushrooms they had picked that morning and began sorting and washing them.

These mushrooms are all wild, with mud and debris stuck to their stems and caps, making them more difficult to clean than cultivated mushrooms.

Of course, they have a stronger umami flavor and a richer taste.

Qing Mengzhu, along with Zhao Hexi, used a knife to scrape the stems off the mushrooms and then washed them all together.

The two sat on small stools, enjoying the gradually picking up mountain breeze, chatting and washing themselves, and didn't find it too unbearable.

After working for more than an hour, they finally managed to scrape away most of the mushrooms.

Qing Mengzhu said to Zhao Hexi, "Go upstairs and get some dried chili peppers; I'll wash the mushrooms."

Zhao Hexi ran upstairs and saw the rooftop covered in bright red chili peppers. She couldn't help but shout in surprise, "So many chili peppers drying on the roof! You still dare to run around like that? Aren't you afraid of the rain?"

Qing Mengzhu smiled and said, "See that protruding horizontal pillar on the wall?"

Zhao Hexi: "Hmm? What's wrong?"

Qing Mengzhu: "There's a folding awning over there. If it rains, you can just remotely control it with your phone to lower it."

Zhao Hexi leaned closer for a better look and indeed saw the folded tarpaulin. "It really is! When did you install it?"

Qing Mengzhu: "It was specially installed for the chili peppers during this period. It also has a detection function; if it detects rain, it will automatically unfold even if I don't put it down."

Zhao Hexi exclaimed, "Technology really changes lives! If I had these amazing things when I was a kid, I wouldn't have gotten a beating from my mom for forgetting to bring things in when it rained."

As Zhao Hexi spoke, he asked again, "How many chilies do you want? Is a handful enough for me?"

Qing Mengzhu: "Put half a basket of these in; we'll use them to make fried mixed mushrooms later."

Zhao Hexi then remembered. "What should we use to store the fried mushrooms? Do you have a jar?"

Qing Mengzhu: "There are a few. After frying them, put them in a basin to cool. First, put them in jars. If you can't put them all in one jar, put them in sealed bags. Then, seal them with a vacuum sealer and store them in the refrigerator."

Qing Mengzhu quickly washed the mushrooms and squeezed out the excess water.

He put the mushrooms in a basket, poured a large pot of peanut oil into a pan, added a large spoonful of lard, and then poured the shredded mushrooms into the oil, spread them out, and fried them slowly over low heat.

Zhao Hexi watched from the side, already able to smell the aroma of oil and mushrooms. "It smells so good, how long do we need to fry it?"

Qing Mengzhu: "One batch takes about ten minutes, and we should be frying four or five batches here. Could you help flip them? I'll chop the garlic."

The garlic was only planted a short time ago this year, Qing Mengzhu is using garlic that was bought from the village.

These garlic cloves are all purple-skinned single-clove garlic, with a strong garlic aroma and crisp flesh. They are even more fragrant after being fried into minced garlic.

Qing Mengzhu really liked this kind of garlic, and even went out of her way to buy it from an elderly person in the village.

In order to achieve better harvests and higher profits, most farmers no longer grow this type of garlic.

Qing Mengzhu smashed the garlic cloves with a knife, one clove at a time, while Zhao Hexi helped peel the mushrooms while stir-frying them. In no time, the two of them had chopped a large bowl of garlic.

As the mushrooms in the pot gradually turned golden brown and fragrant, Qing Mengzhu scooped in two large spoonfuls of garlic and continued frying.

Once the garlic was fragrant and the mushrooms had mostly lost their moisture, he added dried chili flakes, soybean paste, beef sauce, chicken sauce, and Sichuan peppercorn oil.

Zhao Hexi watched him add all sorts of seasonings and said incredulously, "You're adding so many things? Isn't the main ingredient mushrooms?"

Qing Mengzhu: "The main ingredient now is mushrooms, and the seasonings are to enhance the flavor of the mushrooms. Although everyone says that fried mixed mushrooms are delicious, adding these seasonings will make them taste even better."

Seeing the incredulous look on Zhao Hexi's face, Qing Mengzhu picked up a bowl and plate and put a small dish on his plate. "A chef friend taught me this. You'll know once you try it."

Zhao Hexi took the bowl and chopsticks without ceremony, picked up a mushroom and tasted it. She was instantly captivated by its rich, dry aroma. "So hot! So fragrant! So delicious!"

Qing Mengzhu gave him an affirmative look. "Right?"

Zhao Hexi tasted it carefully. "It really is, it's a bit like eating meat, but softer and more tender. It has a very charming complex aroma, I can't quite put my finger on it. Wait, let me have another bite."

Qing Mengzhu ignored him, sprinkled another spoonful of minced garlic into the pot, stir-fried it briefly, then scooped out the whole pot of mushrooms, cleaned the oil in the pot, and started frying the second batch.

If you add seasonings later and don't thoroughly clean the pot, the mushrooms will easily burn when frying the second batch, ruining the entire batch.

Qing Mengzhu was frying the food, while Zhao Hexi was eating. As she ate, she kept urging Qing Mengzhu to eat more. "It's so delicious! The more you eat, the better it gets. Beef jerky and pork jerky are nothing compared to this. You should try some too."

After preparing the seasonings, Qing Mengzhu also served herself a small bowl of fried mushrooms to enjoy.