When they first met in the dilapidated temple, Lu Xunguang looked like a chivalrous swordsman being hunted down.
After narrowly escaping death, this man, despite his many wounds, mingled among the dock coolies, clearly not wanting his identity to be seen through.
Li Ying was a sensible person and naturally wouldn't pry too much.
She shifted her gaze away from Lu Xunguang. The fisherwomen, on the other hand, had already changed the topic and were all sighing.
"It's really a pity. Ying's cold - dressed donkey offal smells so good, but I've got gout and can't eat too much of it."
"Alas, who says it isn't? I wanted to try Ying's stir - fried seafood dishes yesterday, but this girl said my joints would hurt even more if I ate them. She just wouldn't sell them to me no matter what."
Although the fisherwomen complained a lot, they all obediently remembered her instructions.
Li Ying couldn't help but look at Granny Sun.
This old lady had the most severe gout and should have been the most careful about her diet. But she was just like a greedy child. Every time Li Ying tried making a new dish, she would wheedle and cajole until she got to taste it.
Granny Sun touched the tip of her nose, smiled sheepishly, and lowered her head guiltily.
After everyone had eaten their fill and dispersed in twos and threes, Granny Sun started clearing the dishes. Only then did Li Ying walk up to her.
"Auntie?"
Granny Sun thought she was going to continue the lecture about "not eating too much seafood and offal as it would worsen the illness". She admitted her mistake obediently, "Ying, I know... I promise I won't steal any more... It's just that your cooking is really too good..."
Looking at her remorseful but also self - aware look, Li Ying couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Auntie, have you ever thought about going to the town's medical clinic to completely cure your gout?"
Granny Sun didn't expect her to say such a thing. She was slightly stunned for a moment, and then a bitter smile appeared on her face.
"Of course I've thought about it. But a plaster in the medical clinic costs ten copper coins. How can an old woman like me afford it?"
Li Ying was confident and tightly grasped Granny Sun's hand.
"Auntie, if you trust me, leave this matter to me. If everything goes smoothly, not only you but also everyone in our fishing village can go to the medical clinic for treatment!"
Her eyes sparkled in the darkness like stars in the night sky.
Granny Sun couldn't see her face clearly. She only saw the determination in her pupils. It was as if someone had swung a sledgehammer and struck the roof of her old house, shattering the old patina on the tiles and letting in a ray of light.
"Ying, if you really have a way, I'll do whatever you say!"
Li Ying's idea was simple. The moment she saw the old black donkey, a bold thought came to her mind.
Boil donkey - hide gelatin.
In her previous life as a food blogger, she had personally boiled the Nine - Dynasty Tribute Gelatin, known as the "king of gelatins".
However, back then, both the donkey breed and the well - water used for boiling were transported at high cost specifically for making the gelatin.
Now, all she had was an ordinary black - haired donkey skin. Whether it would be a success or a complete failure was really an unknown.
Li Ying took a deep breath, picked up the chirping koi fry in the bamboo basket and kissed it, then stroked the furry cat's head twice. Maybe it could bring some good luck.
She lit an oil lamp, burned off the remaining fluff on the donkey skin, and then took a stiff - bristled brush and scrubbed it with great effort.
To clean this donkey skin, she even skipped going out to catch seafood at low tide today. Granny Sun put Mianmian to sleep and then hunched over to help her.
When the fishergirls came back from catching seafood at low tide, they saw from afar that the two were busy with something and curiously came over to inquire.
"Oh, my goodness! Ying, what on earth are you doing! It stinks so much!"
As soon as the wife of the carpenter Li got closer and took a look, she couldn't help but pinch her nose and shout.
The stench of the donkey skin went straight to the top of their heads. Even though the fishergirls were used to the smell of smelly fish and rotten shrimp, they couldn't stand it and stepped back a few steps in disgust.
"Ying, it's okay to eat donkey offal. It does smell really good when stewed. But this stinky donkey skin... What are you cleaning it for? No one can eat this. Don't waste your time!"
Li Ying knew that it would be difficult to explain it to them in a short time, so she just wiped the fine sweat off her forehead.
Finally, she cleaned the donkey skin, added yellow rice wine, scallions, and ginger, boiled it for the time it took to burn an incense stick, and then fished it out to let it cool.
This process sounded simple, but in fact, it was really cumbersome.
Li Ying stayed up all night and was constantly exposed to the strong and stinking donkey - skin smell. As the sun rose higher and higher, she felt that she was so dizzy from the smell that she was a bit dazed.
The cooked donkey skin was too tough to cut, and she still had to carefully scrape off the remaining fat. This huge project definitely couldn't be completed in a short time.
She simply soaked the donkey skin in cold water, took some donkey - meat buns and donkey offal, and went to the dock.
As usual, for three copper coins, one could get a bun and a bowl of donkey - offal soup. If the boatmen were in a hurry and didn't have time to drink the soup, they could exchange it for two buns.
These real - deal marinated meat and crispy buns were naturally very popular.
After all the customers had left contentedly, Lu Xunguang walked over slowly.
Li Ying filled a bowl of thick donkey - offal soup for him and forced a smile, "Brother Lu, you've worked hard today!"
She had said this line to attract customers to every customer, and it had almost become a muscle memory.
"Why are you so tired?"
He took the porcelain bowl but didn't leave in a hurry. He frowned and asked.
Li Ying forced a bitter smile, "It's nothing. I'm trying something new to take a chance. It's a bit cumbersome. I'll be fine after a rest."
Lu Xunguang didn't pursue the matter further. He just looked at her deeply and said in a low voice, "Do you need someone to help you?"
Li Ying didn't care about the taboo between men and women and nodded repeatedly.
If she had to do it all by herself, she might be half - dead by the time she finished boiling this pot of donkey - hide gelatin!
After Lu Xunguang got off work, he followed her back to the village. When he smelled the strong smell of donkey skin in the air, he couldn't help but frown.
"Um... Brother Lu... If you can't stand this smell... You can go back first..."
Before Li Ying could finish her sentence, Lu Xunguang had already taken out a short knife and sat down to scrape the fat off the donkey skin.
With his help, the three of them worked much faster. All they had to do was boil the cleaned donkey skin with yellow rice wine nine times, extract every drop of gelatin, and the donkey - hide gelatin would be ready.
Li Ying's hands trembled as she watched the donkey skin, which had looked like a dirty rag before, turn into a square, smooth, and shiny reddish - brown donkey - hide gelatin. She felt like she was about to cry with excitement.
It had actually succeeded!
Lu Xunguang was also extremely surprised.
"So this is how Penfu Gelatin is made?"
It turned out that donkey - hide gelatin was also called Penfu Gelatin here. Li Ying silently remembered this and quickly said, "Brother Lu, thanks to your help! When I sell this piece of Penfu Gelatin, I'll cook some delicious dishes to thank you!"
After a moment of astonishment, Lu Xunguang quickly regained his composure and said calmly, "You've been working all night. You'd better rest earlier. There's no need for the thank - you gift."
Li Ying wanted to say something else, but he had already walked away gracefully.
Granny Sun looked at the dark circles under her eyes and said lovingly, "Ying, you've finally made this thing. You can finally relax now, right? Go and get some sleep! In my whole life, I've never seen a girl work so hard like this during the postpartum period!"
The donkey - hide gelatin blocks in her hand collided with each other, making a hard and crisp sound. Li Ying was so excited that she couldn't sleep at all. After feeding her daughter, she rushed excitedly to the largest pharmacy in the town, Deji Hall.