Chapter 1323: Chapter 1324: The Young Widow of the Courtyard 51 Zhang Yu carried a bucket into the recycling station, and Old Man Wang casually asked, “How was the catch today?” “Caught two or three small fish today.” Zhang Yu had just thought of it, “We’ll have fish soup tonight.” Even though they ate fish every day, Zhang Yu couldn’t help but worry, “If we eat fish every day, won’t we get tired of it?” “No, no.” Zhao Lei indicated that even if they had fish for every meal, it wouldn’t be a problem. Well then, Zhang Yu thought, even though Zhao Lei said it was okay, for Old Man Wang, as long as there was food, it was fine. Zhao Hong, the foodie, didn’t even need to be mentioned—good food and meat did the trick. “Tonight we’ll have fish noodle soup.” Zhang Yu decided there needed to be a change of flavor. Follow current novels on novel·fıre·net Fish noodles? Does that mean just putting some fish on the noodles? Zhao Lei didn’t understand why Zhang Yu was so excited about such a way of eating. Zhang Yu knew they didn’t take it seriously at all, so she didn’t want to explain further, anyway, the truth would reveal itself to them. Since they were having fish noodle soup tonight, Zhang Yu quickly tidied up the storeroom, and by around three o’clock, she was ready to prepare the fish. Zhao Lei watched as Zhang Yu carefully separated the fish meat, then removed the fishy smell before putting it into the flour. Zhao Lei’s mouth gaped wide open, “Mom, don’t tell me this is the fish noodle soup you talked about.” Zhang Yu nodded, “Yes, otherwise, if we keep eating fish, the neighbors would definitely be jealous.” “If we eat noodles, then no one will be envious.” Zhang Yu felt she was truly a genius, really too clever. Zhao Lei looked at the excited Zhang Yu and then at the white noodles in her hand, “Mom, we’re not eating fish, but we’re eating white noodles.” These days, eating a meal of white noodles would also make others envious. Right, how could she forget? Even if it’s not meat, the white noodles alone were enough to make people jealous. Zhang Yu took a deep breath, “You’re right, son, thank you for reminding me, otherwise I would’ve really gotten carried away.” “No problem, we can add some cornmeal.” That way, the color turns yellow, “It’s not conspicuous, right?” Zhao Lei nodded, “That works.” Zhao Hong wasn’t too thrilled to know they were having cornmeal noodles today, but there’s nothing to be done—after all, the little girl was used to having meat every day. Even though there was no meat, which made the little girl unhappy, she didn’t throw a tantrum. When playing with friends, she said that they were having noodles tonight, cornmeal noodles. When others heard that Zhao Hong was eating this tonight, they thought her family’s meals weren’t that special after all. When the noodles were served in the evening, the little girl looked for a long time and saw that besides a bowl of noodles in front of each person, there were no other dishes. Now she understood that they were really having noodles tonight. Oh well, at least it was noodles. Zhao Hong took a bite and immediately noticed something different. “Is there fish inside?” Zhao Hong was delighted and, without waiting for Zhang Yu to speak, quickly started eating the noodles. “Mom, the noodles are delicious.” “Really delicious.” Zhang Hong had always liked noodles, and now she enjoyed them even more, eating at an impressive speed. Zhang Yu was startled by the speed of the girl’s movements, “Don’t rush, there’s more noodles.” “If you like, we’ll make it once a week.” “I just thought of making fish floss.” Zhang Yu had made meat floss before and figured fish floss would be a similar process. “Fish floss?” Zhao Hong had eaten pork floss when she wasn’t feeling well; even though it had been a long time ago, the little girl remembered it vividly. “Is it like the pork floss dad used to buy me?” Zhao Hong asked eagerly and expectantly. Zhang Yu nodded, “Yes, that’s it. Do you want some?” Zhao Hong nodded enthusiastically, “Yes, everyone can have some together.” “Alright, I’ll make some.” “You can put it in steamed buns or cornbread; it’s not noticeable.” Zhang Yu realized they really stood out now. To avoid being the object of everyone’s envy, Zhang Yu said there needed to be some minor improvements to their meals. For instance, making more fish floss to store away and occasionally taking it out to eat. “Okay,” Zhao Hong shouted eagerly, “I’ll help mom.” The little girl didn’t know how to make fish floss; she just knew that when mom and brother were working, she had to contribute. “Absolutely.” Zhang Yu briefly explained the steps to make meat floss, “It’s roughly like that; I’m not too sure about the specifics.” “I just know that’s how pork floss is made.” Zhang Yu gave a simple rundown of the process. What? “So troublesome?” Zhao Lei helped Zhang Yu make fish noodles today, realizing that while it was delicious, it was quite a lot of work. He originally thought this was already troublesome, but compared to fish floss, it wasn’t troublesome at all. “So complicated.” Old Man Wang thought that at Zhang Yu’s rate of fishing, they’d eventually tire of eating fish, and a change of taste would be good. But he didn’t expect that making fish floss would be so complicated, “More complicated than fish balls.” “Otherwise, why would pork floss be so expensive?” After hearing about the price of pork floss that Zhao Jun bought, the original owner was quite shocked, not understanding why it was so pricey. After learning about the process of making pork floss from Zhao Jun, the original owner didn’t remark about the high price anymore, realizing it wasn’t just a simple expenditure of time and effort. “If one day I catch a lot of fish and the weather’s hot, this would have to be the way to handle it.” “And if I’m idle at work anyway.” “If I have to make it back at the courtyard, I’m not willing.” Once that aroma spreads, their family would definitely become everyone’s enemy. For the kids, where the fish floss is made is not an issue at all. What matters is having something delicious; the rest isn’t important. Zhao Hong kept bouncing, “Hope mom catches lots and lots of fish.” That way, she could eat fish floss. As soon as her child spoke, Zhang Yu immediately understood her thoughts, “Yes, and then we can make fish floss.” Zhao Hong grinned foolishly, “Isn’t that great?” Zhang Yu nodded, “Of course, no problem.” “Alright, once we’re done eating, we’ll prepare to head back.” It’s getting late, and there’s still work to be done at home. After eating, Old Man Wang resumed chatting with neighbors at the entrance of the recycling station. When everyone saw Zhang Yu’s family of three coming out, those chatting couldn’t help but glance at the bike Zhao Lei was riding. Someone couldn’t help frowning, “What’s going on? How come Zhao Lei is the one riding a new bike?” “Given to him, I suppose.” They had heard Zhang Yu had a bicycle coupon, and everyone felt envious, but Zhang Yu said it was for Zhao Lei, so they didn’t bother asking. They originally thought when Zhang Yu said it was for Zhao Lei, it meant occasional use, regular maintenance, and oiling the bike. Who would have thought when Zhang Yu said it was for Zhao Lei, she meant it, letting him really ride the bike; everyone thought Zhang Yu was spoiling Zhao Lei too much.