Yunding Ranch

Chapter 416 Combination of Chinese and Western
Lu Li stretched out his hands, held Cole's and Lily's hands respectively, lowered his head, and then listened to Ronald's prayers. In the flickering and fluttering light, the peace and tranquility of Christmas Eve made the corners of his mouth involuntary. It went up.

After Ronald finished praying, Lu Li turned his head to look at Lily and Ronald, and said sincerely, "Thank you for inviting me here. This is very important to me."

"You're welcome, it's my honor." Lily's eyes shone with happiness, and she patted the back of Lu Li's hand lightly, "Believe me, Liz will be happy to see this day too." The soul that bid farewell to the world , but always in another way, continue to exist in the memory of friends, never leave.Just like the lavender field in Yunding Ranch.

"We believe that if you change your position, you will make the same choice." Ronald stood up with a knife and fork in his hand, and said before leaving.

Lu Li chuckled, "Of course. Next month is the traditional Chinese New Year, and my big family will come over then. You are welcome to come and participate in a real traditional New Year. It's not the one in Chinatown."

Ronald laughed heartily, "We are waiting for your invitation." This made Lu Li smile even brighter.

Lily said excitedly, "Will your parents come over?"

Lu Li nodded in affirmation, "There are also my grandfather, grandmother, and my cousins." Song Kongming and his party originally planned to come over for Christmas, but after deliberation, they decided to come again during the Lunar New Year. Spend a most special New Year here.

"Wow, wow, that's a big family." Lily couldn't help rubbing her hands together, "Is there anything I can help? I can help anytime."

"Mom, mom, calm down." Lawrence pressed his hands down again and again, "Christmas Eve is not over yet, and you are already looking forward to the traditional Chinese New Year? There is still enough time for you to get busy slowly. But Tonight, at least take care of my stomach first, what do you think?"

Lily showed a big smile and nodded repeatedly, "Yes, Ronald, turkey, cut up the turkey quickly."

Ronald stood up just now to cut the turkey. He picked up the steel knife and fork, stood behind the turkey, and began to cut skillfully. Live and start swallowing saliva.

But Lawrence couldn't help but asked, "Is this the dumpling?" Lawrence still couldn't remember Lu Li's name, which made him feel a little bit tied, so he came up with a good way, "Excuse me, what is your Chinese name?" What is it? You know, in New York, Chinese Americans are now an important part of the makeup.”

"I don't think we have introduced ourselves formally, have we?" Lu Li saw through Lawrence's embarrassment at once, so he said very understandingly, then turned to look at Lily, "Why didn't you introduce us?"

"Oh, look at my memory." Lily patted her forehead, and then took the initiative to introduce them. Lawrence then reacted, showing a surprised look, "Fourteen? Is there any story behind this?"

But without waiting for Lu Li to explain, Joel interrupted roughly, "We can chat about these stories later, during the eggnog time, we have a lot of silent time, we need this kind of chat to pass the time. As for now, Fourteen, why don't you introduce to me, these...uh, what are these, why haven't I seen them in Chinese restaurants before?"

Lily stood up, "That's right, that's right, this dish is eaten before the meal, so it's an appetizer, right?" Lily cast a questioning look at Lu Li, then picked up the spoon, and reached out to pick up the soup in front of Lu Li. soup bowl.

Both Lawrence and Joel showed puzzled expressions. Lawrence was better, and his expression didn't change much; Joel directly showed a look of disgust, "It seems...it's nothing. This, shouldn't it be Dump it? It's not soup, it's not water, it looks really bad."

Placed next to it was a pot of soup, which was clear and milky white, but the bottom of the pot could be vaguely seen, and there was nothing in it.As Joel said, this is not soup, at least not the thick soup in the West; this is not water, which is far more cloudy than clear water.It does look very strange.

Lily put on a condemning expression, "This is a good thing, if you miss it, you will regret it."

Lu Li chuckled lightly, "Why did you think of making this dish today? I thought that today's table would be completely Western food. I don't think you chose Chinese food because I came here."

Ronald laughed heartily, "The point is not Chinese food or Western food, but delicious food."

Lu Li turned his head and explained to Lawrence and Joel, "This is a Chinese dish, mutton is hand-cooked. Slowly boil it over a low heat, and for several hours, the essence of the mutton skeleton will be boiled bit by bit. Come out and blend into the soup, only some salt is enough, and other seasonings are superfluous. When you start the bowl, sprinkle a little chopped green onion and white pepper. In winter, there is nothing better than a bowl of mutton soup Warm up."

"But, you said just now, this is...hand-caught mutton?" Joel was still full of confusion, showing his incomprehension.

"After scooping up the mutton, simply cut it into slices, make some sauce, choose according to your preference, and eat it directly." After Lu Li explained, Ronald interjected directly, "After much deliberation, it's better to This dish is the most suitable and the simplest. More importantly, I am hungry. Haha."

Lawrence and Joel exchanged glances, they were not familiar with such a father.Bright, cheerful, and full of smiles, if they hadn't heard his deafening roar in the evening, they would have suspected that it was someone else.

After Lily made the soup, she passed it to Lu Li, Lu Li passed it to Cole, and Cole finally passed it to Lawrence. The soup bowls were passed one by one. In a blink of an eye, everyone had a bowl of clear soup in front of them.

Lawrence was a little hesitant, and looked at the dining table: there were several Western dishes, and some Chinese dishes. This combination of Chinese and Western dishes looked really nondescript, making people wonder what to do. It was Christmas, but it didn't seem to be Christmas.

Looking down at the clear soup in front of him, Lawrence was at a loss, but Joel, who was sitting next to him, was reassured, and started to drink with a snort, and then smacked his mouth indistinctly.

Lawrence knew that Joel did it on purpose, he obviously opened his mouth wide and made an obvious sound, Lawrence sighed speechlessly, "How does it feel?"

"Tsk." Joel just made a crisp sound, then didn't make any comments, lowered his head, drank the whole bowl of soup in one go, and raised the soup bowl, "Mom, everyone is only allowed to drink one cup." A bowl?" Generally speaking, western thick soups have a strong flavor and can be eaten as an appetizer, but after drinking one bowl, you won't want to drink a second bowl.

Lily laughed, "Of course not. You can drink a second bowl if you want. But are you sure you don't want to try other things? If you don't try that mutton dish, you will definitely regret it." See Looking at Joel, Lily seemed to see the original Ronald.

Joel shook his head stubbornly, "I'd better have another bowl of soup."

Seeing Joel like this, Lawrence hesitated for a moment, lowered his head cautiously, and took a sip of the soup.It wasn't the taste as imagined. To be precise, it was far from all the impressions in his mind, which surprised Lawrence. The original aroma had a touch of sweetness, and he couldn't help it, taking one bite after another.

In a blink of an eye, Lawrence finished the whole bowl of soup, and he sighed contentedly. The warm air spread out along the stomach, and the stiff limbs became more comfortable. The warm flame is not hot, but just slightly warm, and it feels really comfortable.

Lawrence sat up straight, stabbed a small piece of mutton with a fork, looked left and right, a little at a loss, because there were two different sauces in front of him, he was not sure which one he should dip in, and then listened Lu Li said, "Both can be dipped. One is made with sesame sauce and the other is made with chili sauce. Just choose what you like. The same is true for dumplings."

Lawrence nodded, dipped the mutton into the sesame sauce, and put it in his mouth. This taste is very special, tender and chewy, "Fourteen, are these all Chinese food? Why don't we see it in Chinese restaurants?" Ever? I mean, I know dumplings, but it feels a little different."

"Because it's a formula specially made for Americans, and it still needs to be improved after all." Lu Kai said, and then Joel's voice suddenly rang out, "Damn God, why did I never have a formula when I was in San Francisco? Have you ever eaten something like this? Are the Chinese restaurants I’ve been to before not authentic enough?”

"Isn't Fourteen just explaining? Why are you in such a hurry?" Ronald interrupted roughly, and then looked at everyone, "Who needs turkey? Or is everyone planning to eat lamb first? Although I also Very hungry for lamb, but it's Christmas after all."

Lu Li picked up the plate, "Ronald, can I have one? Thank you."

"Of course there is no problem." Ronald stabbed a piece with a knife and fork, and placed it on Lu Li's dinner plate. "If you are curious about the recipe, I think Lily can help."

"Ha, of course." Lu Li put down the plate, then picked up the knife and fork, "I've always been curious about the taste of turkey. Today I can finally try it."

"Oh!" Everyone gasped, including Cole, and Lily exclaimed in surprise, "Fourteen, have you never eaten turkey?"

"This is my first time." Lu Li said with a smile, "I hope it won't be my last." This joke made everyone laugh.

Some people were eating turkey, some were eating mutton, some were eating dumplings, some were eating barbecue rolls, and some were eating fried quail... The table was full of dishes, shrouded in a piece of candlelight.Gradually, Lawrence started talking to Lu Li, and Joel started talking to Cole. From time to time, Lily interjected, and Ronald was always willing to speak. In the atmosphere.

Christmas Eve, holy night, so quiet, so bright.

(End of this chapter)