Higher Level Wife - 275 - A Grilled Seafood

Chapter 275: Grilled Seafood

Author: White Pear Flower

Raws: https://book.qidian.com/info/2386994/

Translated by Gumihou

Proofread by Pill Bug

Gumihou: The only reason why there’s no ‘Unedited Version’ is because Gumi can’t be bothered.

“Brother Xuan is the youngest, do keep a closer eye on him, Lord Husband,” said Fu Qiuning.

Jin Fengju snorted in reply, “You only know fear now? Who was it that allowed children to be so lawless?”

Fu Qiuning thought: You’re the one who forced him up the tree, what are you talking about?

“…Just keep an eye on him.”

Fu Qiuning glanced around and noticed that most of the servants had a nervous look on their faces. The children were calling out encouragements to Jin Zhenxuan as he struggled up the tree, determination on his face as he inched up the nearly vertical tree trunk. [1] The higher he went, the more the tree swayed, and just before he reached halfway up the tree, a strong wind shook the tree and the poor child was more or less flung off with a loud cry.

To his credit, Jin Fengju rushed forward without prompting from anyone and caught the falling child in mid-air, landing safely with barely a whisper of sand.

[2] Jin Zhenxuan’s heart pounded as he clung to his father’s neck. Shock reverberated throughout his entire body at the lingering feeling of helplessness as he flew through the air. He was so shocked that he still had not properly formed a reaction when Jin Fengju patted his back and said “It’s alright, it’s all over now.”

[2a] When he was set on the ground, Jin Zhenxuan could only blink. Jin Fengju chuckled as he ruffled his son’s hair and said, “Be honest, were you scared when you fell just now?”

[2a] Jin Zhenxuan looked up at him blankly, before bursting into sudden tears.

[2b] Jin Changjiao, who considered herself the big sister of the group, hurried over to hug him, “It’s alright, you’re fine now. Look, you’re on the ground. Big sister is here…”

[2b] “Th-that’s right, big sister is here…” Jin Xiuzhen said as she hovered close to her little brother, unsure whether to scold Jin Changjiao for taking liberties or comfort her brother. Suddenly she burst into tears too.

The next thing he knew, most of the children started wailing or sniffling quietly. Others, like Jin Changfeng and Jin Xiunan, tried to comfort the others but ended up sniffling too.

Jin Fengju looked around at the crying children in mild panic, “Qiuning…”

For a moment, Fu Qiuning considered letting him fix this situation by himself, but after thinking about it, she approached the children and said, “There, there, you’re safe now, hmm? It was an excellent attempt, Brother Xuan, good job. Let’s try again when you’re bigger, hmm? Look, the servants have returned with some large baskets. Why don’t we have a look and see what they have gathered?”

Jin Fengju snickered, “It’s always food with you, isn’t it? Well, seafood is the best when it’s fresh. Goodness, I bet we don’t even have to season the food when we grill it. Yang Ming, get a few people to set up some fire pits here. We’ll be having grilled seafood today!”

[3] Fu Qiuning thought: Didn’t you just ask me whether seafood could be grilled earlier? Was it you attempting to tease me or are you just pretending to know things now?

[3] However, it looked like the people there really had never heard about grilling seafood before, since the guards looked at each other uncertainly before setting up the cooking pits. Fu Qiuning had to wonder just what they had been eating while hanging out around the shoreline of Fujian all those years. Sure, she could forgive those who had just arrived with them in the past three months… but those who had stayed there for a long time? Just what had they been eating? Had they all been carrying pots around to boil their seafood? Or used their helmets to boil seafood? What about water…

After a while, Fu Qiuning decided that it was not her problem and brought the children to look through the baskets of seafood. The servant tasked to ask after the seafood respectfully bowed and explained, “Madam, the local women gathered these clams and other shellfish. There are also a few fishing boats just a mile out. Little Wu’er and Qian’er had been sent out to purchase the fish and should be back soon. This servant instructed them to purchase as much as they could. Even if they return with over a hundred catties, we would have no trouble finishing them.”

Fu Qiuning nodded, “Good, we have more than a thousand people here, even two hundred catties would not be enough. Have a few servants mind the fire, but instead of roaring flames, it’s best to have good, steady embers. We will start grilling once those two have returned.”

Before long, the servants who went to buy the sea fish came running back. By this time, several pits had been set up under the coconut trees on the beach. The weather was hot and made even hotter by the many people crowding around the place. Jin Fengju, Fu Qiuning, Yue Lan, and the children sat around as they waited for the fish to arrive. [4] It was then that Fu Qiuning realised the very obviously missing Second Madam Wan. Of course, she had noticed it before when Jin Zhenxuan fell out of the tree.

[4] After all, what mother, let alone one as sensitive and protective as Jiang Wanying, would stay back when their child was literally falling out of a tree? [2] At the back of her mind, she could not help but wonder whether Jin Fengju forcing little Brother Xuan up the tree was an attempt to artificially make the child feel gratitude through a ‘rescue’ attempt after falling out of a tree. After all, there was no way a child of seven could have climbed a practically vertical coconut tree without falling.

[2] Moreover, if the ‘real mother’ Jiang Wanying was not around to comfort the child, the father could be the ‘Hero’ of the narrative while the stepmother could step up as the ‘Heroine’ in place of an ‘absentee mother’. Thereby fostering good feelings for his new family sans his mother.

[2] How insidious.

[5] When the servants returned with the seafood, some of the maids attempted to cook the seafood on the grill, Fu Qiuning blinked and said, “It’s fine, I will handle this pit. You go and look after the others.”

Since Fu Qiuning wanted to personally grill the seafood, Jin Fengju could not just sit around waiting to eat. Since he had jumped up, the rest of the women and children also had to get up. They all moved in a bunch to gather around Fu Qiuning as she sorted out the fish and things waiting to be grilled. Jin Changjiao and Jin Changfeng, as well as a few of her personal maids, had already ventured forth to help while the rest stood around uselessly as they stared at her, as most of them had never grilled anything in their entire lives.

[5] Fu Qiuning looked at the group of useless people around her a little exasperatedly, “It’s very simple, just put the food on the fire and grill it. If you don’t know, ask the locals. I’m sure they should know. Go on now.” A few of the servants and some of the guards moved away, presumably ashamed of their lack of insight. Fu Qiuning had to wonder once again how this bunch of lackwits managed to ‘eradicate’ a 500-year pirate problem in just 3 months when she decided that it was probably just some unwarranted boasting on Jin Fengju’s part and left it at that.

The crowd barely thinned out after her remark, but Fu Qiuning could not be bothered by them anymore. Instead, she grabbed a few handfuls of regular clams, razor clams and other types of shellfish, and scattered them onto the grill, saying, “These are very simple, once they pop open, you can eat them.”

[6] That was it, really. If she could have some soy sauce or butter, it would have been even better, but let’s not ask for more.

Once the first couple of the clams opened up, she picked them up with a pair of iron tongs and, looking at the eager children around her, focused on the youngest child, Jin Xiufen [7]. The little child stared greedily at the clams, so Fu Qiuning handed over the plate of clams to her mother, Concubine Cui.

“Let little Fen’er try it first,” she said. Then, turning to the rest, she said, “Is it alright if your littlest sister tries it first?”

[2b] There was a chorus of ‘yes’ from the children. Well, there was a low ‘boo’ from Jin Zhenyi, but everyone ignored him.

Concubine Cui picked out the snow-white clam meat with a pair of chopsticks and fed it to her daughter. The little girl opened her mouth, eagerly ate the clam and beamed, “Delicious! Honoured Mother grilled it to perfection!”

Fu Qiuning’s eyebrows raised. She thought: Wow, even at this young age, little girls know how to flatter important people.

As the clams continued to pop open, there was no need for Fu Qiuning to do anything as everyone quickly snatched them off the grill with either tongs or even their chopsticks. In a flash, all the clams on the grill disappeared.

Fu Qiuning managed to secure one clam for herself as she gingerly tried the clam, her automatic wariness against sand made her reluctant to bite down too hard. To her surprise, there was hardly any sand at all. Goodness, how could this be?

“Come, Qiuning, try this one,” said a particularly greasy voice next to her ear.

Naturally, it was Jin Fengju acting lovable again. The children pretended not to see anything. His other women tried to remain indifferent, but all were too aware as he held out something that looked like a mussel, was it some kind of sea mussel [8]? The shell was thinner than regular mussel shells, and the meat was chewy and bulbous, much like oysters, but was much more delicious than oysters.

(White Pear Flower: This is a unique shellfish found near my hometown when I was young. I have no idea what the scientific name was and have not eaten it for more than 20 years. I missed it to this day [8])

“This is…”

“Just eat it,” said Jin Fengju cheerfully. “I have no idea what it’s called, but what’s important is that it’s delicious!”

Everyone laughed.

Fu Qiuning obligingly laughed as well before biting off the piece of mussel dangling off the end of Jin Fengju’s chopsticks. It was delicious, as expected.

The rest of the impromptu BBQ party went on as expected. More food was eventually acquired, and when people ran out of clams, they attempted to grill fish, with various results. Jin Fengju tended to a single fish, eventually testing the meat by tearing off a piece to check whether it was properly cooked. Eventually, the fish was handed over to Jin Changjiao, “Eat in moderation with your brother. You may spoil your stomach if you eat too much.”

[2b] Jin Changjiao looked down at the pockmarked fish. However, instead of saying anything, she thanked her father and carried the fish away to her brother. Better for her and Feng’er to eat this dubious thing, who knows what would happen if the rest of her siblings with more tender stomachs tried to eat this-

[2b] “Hey! Give me some too!” Jin Zhenyi shouted.

[2b] Naturally, there were some exceptions. Jin Changjiao ‘generously’ shared her largess with her dumbest brother.

Meanwhile, Jin Fengju called out to Fu Qiuning, “Why are you standing there in a daze? Come now, help us grill some fish too.”

Concubines Cui, perhaps in an attempt to be helpful, came up to say, “Didn’t we bring some seasoning with us? Why did Lord Husband only put some oil on the fish? Surely the fish would taste better with a little more seasoning?”

Jin Fengju protested, “The seasonings are for meat, how could they be used for seafood? Right, Qiuning?”

[9] Jin Changjiao could not take it anymore. Her father clearly knew nothing about cooking or grilling seafood, but talked as though he knew everything. As for her, although her knowledge was limited, she and her brother had at least tried grilling small fishes found in the family pond. Still, it was best not to directly correct her father and drop his face. Therefore, she adopted the ‘pointing at the mulberry tree while cursing the locust tree’ method, saying, [9] “Concubine Mother, the oil on the fish is to prevent it from sticking to the grill. As for seasoning, since the fish scales are so thick, there is no point in adding them at all. If you find the fish or clam lacks seasoning, it’s best to make a dipping sauce for them.”

Jin Fengju laughed, “Did you hear that? If I did not know better, I would have thought that a chef from one of Brother’s shops had come to teach us how to cook!”

Everyone laughed.

[9] Jin Changjiao smirked slowly, “Naturally, knowing how to cook is an important skill. A cook’s skill is tested the most when ingredients are limited. Back at Night Breeze Pavilion, Mother did her best to make everything delicious, including frogs, snails and even things that are considered weeds to most people.”

There was an awkward pause before Fu Qiuning laughed into the silence and said, “Surely, it is not difficult to make Shepherd’s Purse delicious?”

[2b] “You ate frogs and snails?” was Jin Zhenyi’s interested question. He turned to Jin Fengju, “Father, can we catch some frogs and snails and grill them?”

“This…”

Jin Fengju’s reaction was not out of the ordinary. In fact, most of the maids and guards have a slightly disgusted look on their faces.

The precocious Jin Changjiao went a step further, “Of course, if we could get our hands on snakes, it would be even better. Snakes are even more delicious than frogs and snails.”

“Snakes?” If anything, Jin Zhenyi looked even more intrigued. “Snakes can be eaten too?”

[Gumihou: This chapter was meant to make JFJ look more sympathetic to his kids, and like, you think I’m going to let it play out so easily?]

Logistic issue: Have you ever had a party of a thousand people? Just 250 people are enough to overcrowd the place, and you want everyone to stand around and stare as the ‘Madam’ of the family demonstrates how to grill ‘seafood’? This scenario could only be conceived by someone who had never been to an overcrowded BBQ party before.

Additional note: I’m surprised to end the chapter in a way that’s similar to canon, with Jin Zhenyi wanting to eat more stuff. However, this one ended in a more interesting way than just Jin Zhenyi being a greedy pig and Jin Changjiao playing more of a role beyond ‘loving daughter A’

[1] Again, the author seemed to believe that it’s that easy to climb up a coconut tree to ‘pick’ the fruits. Have the poor child fall off halfway to the tree instead of after ‘picking two fruits’.

[2] However, at this moment, he was curled up in his father’s arms, thinking that when he was most frightened, it was his father who held him in his arms and landed him steadily. The chest was so warm, reliable and reassuring, so the image of Jin Fengju’s father was in his heart. In an instant, it became extremely bright and tall.

The forcing of a square peg into a round hole energy is strong here. I, author, said so, so there!

[2a] Realistic kid reaction from falling instead of this utterly unnatural: Jin Zhenxuan…hesitated before saying, “Just now… when I climbed up, I didn’t feel scared at first. But then when I looked down, the tree was bare without branches like apricot or poplar trees. It looked so high, and I started feeling dizzy. That’s why I accidentally fell.”

Wow, like, you were shocked to the point that your basic personality changed!

[2b] Realistic sibling reactions

[3] Point out an inconsistency. Didn’t you just ask FQN whether seafood could be grilled?

[4] Let’s notice the very conspicuously missing Second Madam Wan

[5] Let’s have FQN grill the seafood for reasons other than everybody else and their dog doesn’t know how, lol, how dumb.

[6] Add some real cooking info, deleting some fake cooking info. Like, how the ‘tender white meat inside was also browned’ after it popped open, because no. That’s probably soy sauce, miss.

[7] We finally have a name for Jin Xiuwho!!! It’s 金绣芬 Jin Xiufen!!! So glad to know your name!!

[8] It’s probably the ‘Blue Mussel’

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_mussel

[9] Please remember that you’re the one who designed Jin Changjiao to be a sassy character

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