Chapter 72: Lump Soup

Since the menu has been decided, of course the next step is to start cooking right away! The barbecue can be left to the two Beastmen; their grilling skills are getting better and better. As for the lump soup, that still has to be made by Zhang Fan, after all, no one else knows how to cook it.

While Ba Ke Er and Mo De were slicing the beast meat into thin slices and small pieces and skewering them on bamboo sticks, Zhang Fan beside them also began teaching Fei Er how to knead dough. Since they were making lump soup, Zhang Fan had already prepared boiling water, dividing it into two portions: one left to cool to warm water, the other placed in a ceramic jar and chilled in the cold water tank.

Now it was time to knead the dough. Zhang Fan poured the ground flour into a large ceramic basin, added the warm water, and began stirring with chopsticks until the flour formed lumps. While Zhang Fan was doing this, Fei Er had already washed and chopped the pickled vegetables, ready to be put in the pot.

After the dough lumps were ready, Zhang Fan had Ba Ke Er help start a fire. He then began to boil water; once the water in the pot boiled, he added the dough lumps to cook. When the water boiled again, Zhang Fan immediately scooped out the lumps and poured them into cold water.

Next came stir-frying the pickled vegetables. Zhang Fan first poured out the water from the pot, cleaned it, then scooped in some animal fat. When the oil reached the right temperature, he and Fei Er added the pickled vegetables to the pot and stir-fried them.

After the pickled vegetables were stir-fried, Zhang Fan added water to the pot and brought it to a boil again. Once the water boiled, he returned the dough lumps to the pot to cook. When the lump soup was done, he added the seasonings. Ba Ke Er and Mo De's meat skewers were also grilled. Next, Zhang Fan and Fei Er used large bowls to ladle out all the lump soup from the pot, dividing it into four portions, one bowl each.

Fei Er had long been unable to resist tasting the lump soup; seeing his eager expression, Zhang Fan tried not to laugh. Fei Er glared at Zhang Fan, thinking, 'How dare you mock me?' He quickly set down his bowl, wiped the saliva that had unintentionally dripped from the corner of his mouth, and lunged forward to start tickling Zhang Fan, saying while he did so:

"Well done, Zhang Fan, daring to laugh at me! Now watch my Tickling Skill!"

"Hahaha… okay… okay… can't I stop laughing? Great Fei Er, please spare me!" Even as Zhang Fan laughed hysterically from Fei Er's tickling, he did not forget to beg for mercy.

Seeing Zhang Fan beg for mercy, Fei Er stopped tickling, after all he was still thinking about eating the lump soup.

"All right! No more tickling! But you can't laugh at me either, or—hmph! I don't mind showing you how formidable I am again!"

"All right, I know you're formidable, that's enough! Hurry up, it's time to eat!" After Zhang Fan said that to Fei Er, Ba Ke Er over there started calling them over to eat.

After eating the delicious lump soup, Fei Er admired Zhang Fan even more.

"Fan Fan, besides making lump soup, what other tasty things can flour be used for? Can it also be made into vermicelli and starch noodles?"

"Fei Er, flour can be used to make many foods; I can't explain them all right now, but flour cannot be made into vermicelli or starch noodles, though it can be made into flour noodles, cold skin, and similar dishes."

After hearing Zhang Fan list those foods, Fei Er's mouth, still full of dough lumps, formed an 'O' shape. After swallowing the lumps, he finally spoke:

"Who knew wheat could be used to make so many things to eat! No wonder you, Fan Fan, searched for so long."

"Yeah! Alright, hurry up and eat. After eating, we can go rest. We've been busy all afternoon." Having said that, Zhang Fan switched to eating mode. Seeing Zhang Fan eat so fast, Fei Er couldn't help but speed up as well. Ba Ke Er and Mo De, seeing them eat so quickly, knew they were exhausted and also quickened their eating.

After finishing the meal, the four of them began cleaning up together. Only after they were done did everyone return to their own tents to rest.