บท 7: Chapter 7 Full Belly, Contemplating the Path Ahead
Seeing that the oil was hot, Lu Qing started to carefully clip each small fish onto it and began to fry them slowly.
Actually, it would have been better to add a little salt to the oil before frying, as that would prevent the fish from sticking to the bottom.
But Lu Qing had noticed that the salt recently brought by that uncle had rather coarse grains and wasn't suitable for frying fish directly.
Carefully controlling the heat, Lu Qing slowly fried the fish.
The spreading aroma attracted Little Yan, who had already finished her pancake, and she came over to sit, staring intently at the fish on the stone slab.
Seeing her like this, Lu Qing's heart ached.
He ruffled the little guy's hair.
"Little Yan, just wait a bit longer, you'll be able to eat soon."
"Okay!" Little Yan obediently nodded. "Brother, the fishy fish smells so good."
"If it smells good, then eat a lot later. Brother caught so many fish today, enough for Little Yan to have her fill."
Once the rice in the clay pot was cooked, Lu Qing had also mostly finished frying the fish.
He picked them up and placed them in a bowl.
Then he poured some salt water over them.
Just like that, a simple salt water fried fish was ready.
Lu Qing served two bowls of rice and set them on the table.
"Little Yan, it's time to eat."
"I'm here, Brother."
The little guy had already been waiting at the dining table.
Lu Qing added a small stool to the chair and then lifted Little Yan onto it so she could reach her bowl.
He then picked out a few small fish with little bones for her bowl.
"Go ahead and eat, you little glutton. Remember to spit out the bones; don't get pricked by them."
"I know, Brother."
The little one had been so eager to eat that she immediately picked up a small fried fish and put it in her mouth, chewing quickly like a hamster.
Lucky for her, Lu Qing had chosen fish with few bones, or else she would have definitely been pricked.
After swallowing a small fish, Little Yan's eyes suddenly widened.
"Brother, this fish is so delicious, even better than what Mother used to make!"
Upon hearing this, Lu Qing felt not joy but a wave of sadness instead.
The fish was cooked with just a little oil and saltwater, and even to save, he had dared not add more oil while frying.
How delicious could such a fried fish be?
In times of hunger, one finds everything tasty.
Little Yan must have experienced much hunger during this time to find such a plain dish of saltwater fried fish to be such an exquisite delight.
However, Lu Qing didn't show his feelings and just smiled, "Good to hear it's tasty. Eat more, Little Yan."
"Mhm, mhm!"
The little one shoveled a big mouthful of rice and puffed out her cheeks, unable to speak, just nodding.
Lu Qing laughed and also picked up a fish to eat.
Having eaten a fish, he raised his eyebrows.
The fish wasn't as bad as he had imagined.
Perhaps it was because the ancient environment was unpolluted that the river fish were especially fine.
Therefore, although modestly seasoned, the flesh of the small fried fish was fresh and delicious, with a unique flavor.
Both siblings were so hungry that their eating speed couldn't possibly be slow.
Soon, the rice in the clay pot and the bowl of small fried fish were all devoured by them.
Of course, most of it ended up in Lu Qing's belly.
No matter how hungry Little Yan was, she was just a six or seven-year-old child with a limited appetite.
And Lu Qing deliberately controlled it a bit to prevent her from eating too much at once and hurting her stomach.
"Brother, Little Yan is full!"
The little one put down her bowl, patted her belly, and wore a face full of satisfaction.
Little Yan hadn't felt so full in a long time!
"Once you're full, take a rest, and don't run around; elder brother will go wash the dishes first."
Lu Qing instructed, then began to tidy up the bowls and chopsticks.
"Little Yan will help elder brother."
The little one jumped off the stool.
"No need, just sit here and rest." Lu Qing refused.
So Little Yan could only obediently sit on the stool and watch as Lu Qing bustled about.
Children are prone to sleepiness; by the time Lu Qing had put everything away and came out, the little one's head was already nodding off little by little.
Lu Qing smiled, gently picked up the little one, and walked toward the room.
"Elder brother, Little Yan wants to go fishing with you again next time, the fish was delicious."
Just as Lu Qing put Little Yan down on the bed, the little one mumbled sleepily.
"Okay, next time we fish, elder brother will take you with him."
Lu Qing lovingly covered the little one with a patched quilt and said softly.
It seemed as if she had heard her elder brother's promise, Little Yan didn't speak again and fell soundly asleep.
After making sure the little one was asleep, Lu Qing quietly left the room and sat down on a simple lounge chair in the living room, feeling a wave of comfort.
He had been busy today as well, his body just having recovered and still quite weak.
Despite the hunger, he had done so much work, both fishing and cooking.
To say he wasn't tired would be a lie.
Now, lying on the lounge chair, he felt much more comfortable.
He even felt a wave of sleepiness coming on.
However, he couldn't sleep yet.
There was still some thinking he needed to do.
After a half day of activities and interactions with the villagers, as well as the memories in his mind, Lu Qing had basically deduced what kind of environment he was in now.
First, without a doubt, he was in a world similar to ancient China.
Moreover, it was a time when the productivity levels were rather low.
This could be seen from the fact that an iron pot could be considered a rarity.
However, his knowledge was limited to this.
There was a lot more information that Lu Qing couldn't confirm.
For instance, the social structure of this world, the distribution of power, who the rulers were – he was clueless.
He only knew that this world seemed to lack government institutions like a court or an official's office.
At least in the original host's memory, there was no such concept.
Of course, this wasn't absolute.
After all, the original host was nothing more than a naïve young man who had grown up without ever leaving the village.
How big the outside world was, he had never considered, so how could he possess those concepts?
Nevertheless, although it was uncertain whether there were courts or official offices,
what was certain was that there were towns.
The people in the village would go to the market in nearby towns to buy certain living supplies they needed.
Items like salt and iron were normally only available in towns.
And in these towns, the most powerful seemed to be the City Lord.
Unfortunately, although the original host was fifteen years old, he had never been to the town, which prevented Lu Qing from knowing what the towns were really like.
"It seems that if I get the chance, I should make a trip to the town," Lu Qing murmured softly to himself.
Only with a sufficient understanding of this world would he be able to decide which path to take in the future.
Of course, thinking about this was still a bit far off for now.
The most pressing matter was to find a way to provide for himself and Little Yan.
After all, today he had owed a lot of favors to the villagers, and these needed to be repaid.
And currently, his greatest reliance was undoubtedly the superpower he possessed.
What could his superpower do?
Lu Qing pondered quietly.
Suddenly, a name floated into his mind.
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