Chapter 138: Instant Noodles, Qu Chengfeng

The day after Song Weimin returned from the commune following the removal of Sheng Qianqian and the two others, he issued a gag order, forbidding anyone from discussing the incident under penalty of being assigned to shovel manure.

With Sheng Qianqian gone, the position of village manure shoveler in Guyue Village was vacant once again. Song Weimin found himself desperately hoping someone would commit a mistake so he could naturally fill the role. He even felt a pang of regret for not stopping educated youth Wen; if Hu Baozhu and Chen Damao were still around, they could have stepped up! Alas, hindsight is always 20/20.

The position of manure shoveler caused Song Weimin enough stress to turn several strands of his hair white. While the job sounded foul, it was of vital importance. Crops relied on fertilizer, and fertilizer meant manure. If the position remained vacant for too long, it would jeopardize next year's spring plowing. With no other choice, Song Weimin had to take the initiative and rotate the duty among every household. This decision left the entire village grumbling, straining neighborly relations as everyone lived in fear of making a mistake and having this glorious task fall upon them. In truth, the work was filthy and the work points were low; nobody wanted to do it.

None of this concerned Tang Banxia and Wen Mubai. Their travel permits were ready, and they were departing for the capital tomorrow, likely not to return until next year. Therefore, there was no way the manure-shoveling duty would ever fall on their household.

With their departure set for the next day, Tang Banxia decided to use her free time to prepare some food for the journey. Lacking neither oil, flour, nor meat, the first thing that came to her mind was instant noodles—a dish she hadn't had in a long time and found herself craving. Before that, however, she needed to build a clay kiln; in this era, there were no ovens, so a clay kiln would serve as a passable substitute.

After Tang Banxia described the shape of the kiln to Wen Mubai, she left him to it and went inside to tinker with some sauce. First, she added five ladles of lard to the pot, followed by scallions, ginger, garlic, cinnamon, and bay leaves to fry until fragrant. She then added diced meat and finally the ground chili powder, simmering it down until it reached a thick, rich consistency. The sauce was ready.

Next came the vegetable packets. Since it was winter, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, and corn kernels were plentiful. She chopped these into small pieces, blanched them in boiling water, and set them aside to be dried out in the clay kiln later. The meat bits were handled similarly; lacking beef, she used pork, diced it into large chunks, fried it until cooked, and then dried it as well.

Finally, there were the noodles. This wasn't difficult, though she added extra eggs while kneading the dough to ensure a smooth texture. She rolled it into a thin, round sheet, folded it, and cut it into fine strands. To set the shape of the instant noodles, the most important step was deep-frying. Recalling a tutorial she had once seen, Tang Banxia used chopsticks to twist the noodles into shape, steamed them first, and then fried them to lock in the form.

By the time she finished frying the noodles, Wen Mubai had completed the clay kiln. Tang Banxia inspected it—it was ugly, but functional. She placed the blanched vegetables inside to dehydrate.

Once dehydrated, she used clean, dry glass jars to store the vegetables, the dried meat bits, and the sauce. The fried noodles were wrapped in oil paper and stacked neatly to the side. With that done, she moved on to the seasoning packets, grinding various spices into powder and storing them in jars. Her preservation methods were a bit rudimentary, and the noodles wouldn't last forever, but under the circumstances, this was the best she could do.

After successfully making the instant noodles, she immediately boiled two packets. "This is the flavor," she sniffed, feeling that her culinary skills had improved once again.

Wen Mubai had watched the entire process as the noodles took shape in his wife's hands, and his shock was evident. Just by frying and baking, it was done? His first thought was that this "instant noodle" would make excellent military rations—easy to carry, packed with oil, flour, and meat, nutritious, and durable. Realizing his own train of thought, he gave a self-deprecating smile. Even though he tried to avoid such things, some habits seemed carved into his bones, surfacing from time to time. As the steam rose, he hoped he wouldn't run into any old acquaintances on this trip to the capital.

When Tang Banxia took her first bite, she felt truly satisfied. Instant noodles were something you grew tired of if you ate them too often, but you craved them fiercely if you went too long without them. Wen Mubai ate without even lifting his head. Once finished, he solemnly placed the bottles and jars into a wicker basket. "Wife, I'll put your medicinal herbs in the remaining space of this basket."

Tang Banxia rolled her eyes at him. "Go wash the dishes."

She went to the pharmacy to pick out some precious medicinal herbs to bring along, not forgetting her gold acupuncture needles—a doctor's treasure that could never be lost. Since she was going to the capital, she also packed some local specialties for her grandparents. The old couple had seen everything over the years, so she didn't bring anything extravagant—just dried mushrooms, wood ear fungus, chestnuts, walnuts, and other mountain goods. Oh, and a jar of wolf-bone wine; the elderly could use the strengthening benefits of wolf-bone wine. She would have preferred tiger-bone wine, but she had yet to even see a tiger's hair.

Everything prepared, the two went to sleep.

The next day, Geng Zhengfei and Xu Sheng arrived together. They helped Tang Banxia and Wen Mubai with their luggage and said, "Professor Tang, you and educated youth Wen should head out first. Xu Sheng and I will follow shortly."

Professor Tang's identity was known to very few, and their protectors remained in the shadows to better ensure her safety. Tang understood this. With the two men taking the weight of the luggage, she and Wen Mubai left the village traveling light.

After a short while, they reached a forest. Geng Zhengfei signaled, and a jeep pulled out. A man with a buzz cut jumped out from the driver's seat and saluted Tang Banxia: "Professor Tang, hello. My name is Qu Chengfeng, and I am responsible for ensuring your safety along the way."

Tang Banxia nodded. "I'm sorry for the trouble."

She and Wen Mubai boarded the jeep, while Geng Zhengfei and Xu Sheng were left to travel on foot. Seeing them stay behind, Tang Banxia asked, "Aren't Secretary Geng and the others coming with us?"

Qu Chengfeng was a man of few words, cool and precise: "We are traveling separately to avoid attracting attention." After all, Geng and Xu had lived here for some time; one never knew when an acquaintance might pop up.

Tang Banxia gave a soft "oh" and said nothing more. Along the way to the county seat, she rested her chin on her hand and gazed out the window, her thoughts drifting. What would happen during this trip to the capital? What was this new type of poison like? If possible, she hoped to perform some service that might allow her to probe the authorities' current stance on her parents.

Lost in thought, they arrived at the county seat. Qu Chengfeng drove them directly to the train station. As soon as the car stopped, another middle-aged man with a jovial smile approached: "Chengfeng, Banxia, you finally made it. If you hadn't come, the train would have left already."

Qu Chengfeng remained calm. "Let's get on board first." He and the middle-aged man flanked Tang Banxia and Wen Mubai, shielding them as they squeezed through the crowd and found their sleeper cabin.

Inside the cabin, Qu Chengfeng conducted a thorough inspection, even checking the neighboring cabins to ensure there were no suspicious characters. The middle-aged man extended a hand to Tang Banxia: "Professor Tang, my name is Yuan Jiang. I am in charge of your safety. If you need anything at all, you can come to me."

"Captain Yuan, nice to meet you."

Tang Banxia was genuinely surprised; she had no idea so many people were protecting her from the shadows.

Yuan Jiang smiled warmly. "You may also call me Principal Yuan."