Ah, this again?
This argument resurfaced.
Gu Qingcheng felt both amused and exasperated, but decided to let it be. Mi Guo had his own frame of knowledge, and as long as it was self-consistent and convinced him, that was enough.
To celebrate Gu Chaobei's safe return, the family of four arranged a lavish hot pot feast that evening.
There was nothing a hot pot couldn't fix, and if one wasn't enough, then another would be!
This time, with a proper cauldron for burning firewood, the hot pot broth was prepared even more thoroughly.
It was a鸳鸯 (yuān yāng) hot pot, with one side spicy and the other mild.
For the mild side, they generously added dried scallops as thick as an adult's finger, whole dried bones, and dried squid, all gifted by the Prince. These were simmered for over two hours to create a rich broth.
As for the spicy broth, the most crucial step was to stir-fry the base ingredients.
First, heat a wok to thirty percent hot, pour in cooking oil, and add chili peppers, Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, fennel, Chinese basil, bay leaves, cloves, cumin, black cardamom, ginger, and garlic. When the chilies began to change color, a small amount of cooking wine was added, followed by a suitable amount of bean paste, and stir-fried over high heat for a few moments. The stir-fried base was then transferred to the hot pot, along with the broth, salt, and chicken essence. Once the soup boiled, it was ready for dipping.
The chicken, large bones, and other ingredients used to make the broth were retrieved after simmering and given to Wangcai to handle.
Wangcai ate with great relish.
Since coming to the Gu family, Mi Guo had been living in a dream. He had never imagined that he would eat meat at every meal, food typically reserved for festivals.
Moreover, the variety of meats kept changing. Chicken, duck, and fish were commonplace, not to mention pork. He had even tasted caviar, steak, and fried chicken.
Back at his old home, his family might eat chicken three to five times a year, from their own raised flock. But he didn't even get to gnaw on chicken feet; he could only greedily sniff the aroma of chicken soup while his uncle's family enjoyed the chicken and soup, with no relation to him.
At the Gu household, however, it was all-you-can-eat.
If he only ate one bowl of rice, Hu Lanfang would add another, packing it down so tightly that even though he only had one bowl, it felt like he had eaten a bowl and a half.
The hot pot tonight was the most delicious thing Mi Guo had ever tasted in his life.
Seeing Mi Guo eat with such gusto brought a sense of relief and happiness to the Gu family.
In the blink of an eye, Gu Qingcheng took out the osmanthus wine gifted by Xinghua Building and poured a cup for everyone.
This wine was sweet and slightly alcoholic, suitable for both adults and children.
Mi Guo also tasted this osmanthus wine for the first time and was utterly amazed.
Seeing him about to drain his cup in one gulp, Gu Qingcheng quickly stopped him, saying:
"Mi Guo, you can't drink that much at once, you'll get drunk."
"Really? Isn't this just a sweet drink? How can it make you drunk?"
Mi Guo truly didn't believe it.
"If you don't believe me, then go ahead."
Gu Qingcheng knew that some lessons could only be learned through personal experience, so she let him be.
After all, drinking too much of this osmanthus wine would only make one sleepy, not cause a headache or vomiting like other alcoholic beverages.
As expected, after drinking two large cups of osmanthus wine, before the seafood hot pot was even finished, Mi Guo declared he was extremely sleepy and wanted to sleep. Everyone laughed.
The next second, he had fallen asleep on the table.
Gu Chaowei carried him to a bed in the corner and covered him with a quilt.
Before Mr. Zhang could install the underfloor heating in the other room, they had set up a small bed for Mi Guo in the dining room.
The bed was readily available; Gu Qingcheng had bought it from the mountain cat supermarket. It was an antique style, and while slightly different from what was currently common, it was acceptable enough.
Seeing Mi Guo sleeping soundly, the family continued to eat and drink.
"Mom, do you want to watch TV? I bought a Huawei tablet from the mall. The store's mobile hard drives are loaded with hundreds of movies and TV shows, and with many mobile hard drives, there are probably thousands of movies and TV series, enough for you to watch at your leisure."
Gu Qingcheng shared this good news with Hu Lanfang.
"That's wonderful!" Hu Lanfang's eyes lit up with joy. "Let me see it."
Gu Qingcheng took out the tablet, a mobile hard drive, and a power bank.
Once the solar panels had collected enough power, she was able to use all the appliances she had.
Although she couldn't watch live TV, the entertainment stored on the hard drive could still be accessed.
Hu Lanfang took the tablet and eagerly started watching.
Seeing familiar actors appear on the screen, Hu Lanfang smiled from ear to ear.
"Eat, eat, it'll get cold if you don't eat."
Gu Chaobei, seeing his wife getting engrossed in watching the show, quickly urged her.
"Okay, I'll watch after I finish eating."
With that, Hu Lanfang carefully placed the tablet aside, and the three of them continued to eat and drink.
They opened another bottle of osmanthus wine, and Gu Chaobei remarked that they should reduce their trips down the mountain in the future, as there were too many uncertainties.
He also didn't know what Prince Xia would think, and preferred not to interact with him too much.
After all, he was a prince, extremely shrewd. Too much interaction might lead to unforeseen consequences.
Anyone who could survive and grow up in the imperial palace was no ordinary person.
Gu Chaobei had genuinely saved him this time, which was why the prince had shown him so much goodwill. He didn't want to presume upon this favor.
Gu Qingcheng agreed. In the eyes of feudal emperors, human lives were as cheap as grass, as had been truthfully recorded in history books. It was best for their family to stay away from the whirlpool of power.
Hu Lanfang also expressed her strong agreement. She was just an ordinary worker. Even if she had opportunities for promotion in the neighborhood committee, she had no desire to get involved in such workplace competition. She had always strived for mediocrity, working as a grassroots employee and finding joy in doing tangible work for the common people.
The three of them felt that in this era, it was best to keep a low profile. Being low-key was the best form of protection, and one shouldn't be a conspicuous figure.
As the saying goes: the tallest tree catches the wind, or the nail that sticks out gets hammered down.
With the family's major policy clarified, their life goals became clear: for the foreseeable future, they would focus on
continuing to strengthen their internal capabilities, diligently stockpiling supplies, and surviving the natural disasters by staying out of sight.
Speaking of stockpiling, Gu Qingcheng mentioned that she now had 3,000 points, which the system had awarded her after she was rescued.
At the time, the crowd was too large and chaotic, and in her overwhelming joy, she hadn't paid attention to the system's notification.
It was only when she returned to the city and calmed down that she discovered the system had awarded her 3,000 points at once, sourced from: Elation of Salvation from Despair!
Reflecting on such a large reward, Gu Qingcheng realized that she must have been in a desperate situation. Even the system had likely judged her as a goner and was probably already looking for a new user.
Unexpectedly, Gu Chaobei had turned the tide and saved her! That's why the system had generously awarded so many points.
With enough points, Gu Qingcheng then mentioned that she could now share the storage cabinet with them.