Chapter 32: The Side Dish Steals the Show

Chapter 32: Chapter 32: The Side Dish Steals the Show

Feng Si didn’t listen, her hands not slowing as she packed the pickled cabbage. She gave Mao Qiu a reproachful look. "You just don’t get it. There’s no such thing as bad food, only bad cooking."

’Cooking? What cooking?’ If he hadn’t tasted the pickled cabbage last time, he might have actually believed her. Mao Qiu stuck out his little tongue. "Nothing sour is ever tasty."

Mao Ge popped out from Mao Qiu’s collar and twitched his nose.

He looked at the iron pot in the back basket, which held aromatic meat, and MEOWED in excitement. "Yummy, yummy! Not enough!"

Feng Si, having packed ten jars into the basket, reached out to pet the little orange cat and smiled gently at him. "You’re the one with good taste. Auntie will treat you to a delicious breakfast later."

...

Bai Yi’s morning sickness had been severe lately.

She was a sub-female from the White Mouse Clan, fortunate enough to have mated with Niu Lao, an Intermediate Beastman from the Green Bull Clan. Because she was a sub-female and he was an Intermediate-level male beast, it was very difficult for them to conceive.

They had been waiting for a cub for eight years and had finally conceived their first child during the heat season of this year’s dry season.

She and her male beast cherished the cub in her womb. Niu Lao’s strength was considered impressive in Nantong City, so their home was supplied daily with the freshest, plumpest green crab meat, the most tender leafy greens, and expensive, natural foods worth hundreds of coins delivered to their table.

Still, Bai Yi threw up everything she ate, and lately, the vomiting was so bad she couldn’t stomach anything at all.

They went to the Sacrificial Hall to check on the cub’s condition. The Little Sacrificial Officer had already issued a warning: if she couldn’t keep food down, the cub in her belly wouldn’t receive enough nourishment and could be in danger.

She lived among the wealthy in Nantong City’s North City, yet her cub was starving because of her morning sickness. If word got out, other sub-females would only mock her for being melodramatic.

Early this morning, Niu Lao’s mother brought over some meticulously prepared boiled meat. Bai Yi started vomiting violently before she even had a taste and got an earful from her mother-in-law.

She was very upset and had run to her own mother’s house early in the morning, hoping to find a sense of peace in the familiar surroundings where she had grown up.

Niu Lao walked beside Bai Yi, his honest, kind face filled with concern. He said to his sub-female wife, "Let me carry you. This pregnancy is so hard on you. You didn’t eat last night or this morning, and then we had that cart ride. Are you feeling sick?"

Bai Yi pushed Niu Lao’s large hand away and huffed, "Why would I be sick? Your mother already said I’m just using this pregnancy to stir up trouble. I don’t need you to carry me. I can walk on my own."

Bai Yi’s family lived on the south side of the third floor. It was morning, and the market was bustling with hunters, gatherers, and vendors. The elevator wait was too long, so they decided to walk through the market and take the stairs, which would be faster.

As they reached the second floor, the market’s characteristic stench hung in the poorly ventilated air. A chaotic jumble of smells assailed her, making Bai Yi bend over and gag.

She covered her nose and quickened her pace, with Niu Lao carefully shielding her.

Bai Yi was rushing through the market crowd when, turning a corner, she caught the scent of food. It was the distinct aroma of rendered fat, mingled with a fragrance she’d never encountered before, and it shot straight up her nose.

Bai Yi’s morning sickness had gotten so bad she couldn’t eat a thing; even the smell of food made her want to vomit. But now, her empty stomach let out a loud RUMBLE. For the first time in ages, she was struck by a ravenous hunger, a greedy urge to devour an entire pig-beast.

She looked around and saw that while all the other market stalls were deserted, one was surrounded by a crowd packed three layers deep.

The crowd blocked her view of what the stall was selling; she could only see wisps of smoke rising from it as the aroma grew ever stronger.

Niu Lao had been watching Bai Yi closely and understood in an instant. ’Looks like she’s finally got her appetite back! There’s something she wants to eat!’

This was his time to shine.

Niu Lao scooped Bai Yi up in his arms and strode toward the crowd. He used his large, powerful frame to carve a path through the throng, reaching the front of the stall amidst a chorus of complaints.

On the stall’s counter, which was only about waist-high, sat two pots: one was a deep pot, and the other was as flat as a circular plate.

At that moment, a young, black-haired sub-female stood there, a pair of long chopsticks in her hand. She was flipping paper-thin slices of meat on the circular pan. The meat was sizzling, SZZZZZ, its rich fat coating pieces of pickled cabbage and releasing a potent aroma.

Bai Yi’s eyes were glued to the meat on the circular plate, her gaze filled with longing. "What is that? Give me two servings!"

"This is grilled meat. We don’t even have enough for ourselves, so it’s not for sale right now. You can buy this pickled cabbage, though. Take it home and fry it with meat, and it’ll taste just as good," Mao Qiu said, drooling as he came closer, holding Mao Ge, quickly repeating the lines Feng Si had told him earlier.

Feng Si had come to the stall today without eating breakfast on purpose.

She had bought a flat-bottomed pan from the shopkeeper behind her stall, borrowed their small stove, and taken out the pork belly she had marinated with salt and ginger the day before to pan-fry it.

In reality, she just wanted to advertise her pickled cabbage. After all, even though she was confident in her product, she knew that even the most fragrant dish can go unnoticed if it’s hidden down a deep alley. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

"I’ll give you one thousand coins for the plate you’re frying right now," Niu Lao said grandly, pulling out his money pouch and offering two bills.

Seeing this, the surrounding crowd’s eyes fell on the two five-hundred-coin bills. Already annoyed with Niu Lao for shoving his way to the front, they erupted in a wave of jeering laughter:

"Tch, you think you’re the only one with money? I’ve been standing here enjoying the aroma. Do I look like some poor Beastman to you?!"

"What’s so impressive about one thousand coins? I just offered two thousand, and I’m still just standing here watching, aren’t I?"

"Exactly! This is pan-fried meat made by the owner herself. You can’t just buy it whenever you want."

Feng Si listened to the crowd and sighed internally.

’It smells amazing, and you really want to eat it, right?’

’I think so too. I’m dying to eat it myself.’

’That’s why I can’t sell it to you. This is food for the egg-cub in my belly.’

’I wouldn’t sell it for any amount of money.’

Her own appetite was small. Even counting her helper, Mao Qiu, and the little kitten, the amount of meat she’d marinated was tiny—only about a pound. There was no way she could sell any of it.

Niu Lao’s face turned as black as a skillet. He clutched the bills in his hand, and when he received no answer from the stall owner, he stubbornly kept his hand outstretched. "Name your price. I can afford it."

Feng Si flipped a slice of meat in the iron pan, drawing another collective gasp from the crowd.

’The problem is, can you even believe it? After all this promotion, I still haven’t sold a single jar of pickled cabbage!’

She looked at the hand hovering near her face, then looked up and said, "This grilled meat will be for sale starting tomorrow. If you’d like to try it, you’re welcome to come back then."

Tears welled in Bai Yi’s eyes at her words. She begged, her voice choked with emotion, "I’m not just being greedy. I haven’t been able to eat anything since getting pregnant, but smelling the food you’re making now... I want it so, so badly. Please, just sell me one portion. I don’t need much."

A pregnant sub-female! Everyone’s head turned. Those who had been pushing forward now subtly shuffled back, leaving a protective circle of space around Bai Yi, afraid of jostling her.