As the bleating of the slaughtered lambs filled the air, Su Ling washed the pumpkins clean and sliced them into thick pieces.
Once a pumpkin was finished, she put all the slices into a pot of water.
The fire was already on, and the water in the pot was steaming.
After adding the pumpkin slices, Su Ling added rock sugar and then covered the pot with a lid.
While her pumpkin soup was cooking, she began peeling preserved eggs.
After peeling a dozen or so preserved eggs, she washed them and then cut each one into four pieces with a thread, arranging them on a large plate.
She prepared green and red chili peppers, dicing them. Garlic was crushed, then minced, followed by chopped scallions.
Everything was placed in a bowl, mixed with soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, and chicken powder, and then spooned over the arranged preserved eggs.
A plate of cold mixed preserved eggs was ready, and Su Ling served it to the table.
Meanwhile, Sister Na was preparing spinach mixed with vermicelli.
When Su Ling’s cold mixed preserved eggs were finished and served, Sister Na’s spinach mixed with vermicelli was also done, and she was sprinkling sesame seeds on it.
As Su Ling turned around, she saw Sister Na bringing over the spinach and vermicelli, and she was enticed.
In addition to these, Su Ling and Sister Na also prepared dried bean curd and wood ear mushroom salad with cucumber.
A total of three appetizers were prepared, and for each dish, a little was set aside for Hanhan, who couldn't eat spicy food.
Once Su Ling and Sister Na's appetizers were ready, they moved chairs and sat at the table to rest.
The pumpkin in the pot was still cooking, gurgling and steaming, and the lid was lifted occasionally.
Gu Shangse and the others had finished slaughtering the lambs and were processing them.
Skinny and Fatty were responsible for cleaning the lambs’ bodies, drying them, and rubbing them with prepared spices.
Gu Shangse and Jiang Jiang were at the outdoor kitchen's washing station with the large basin of lamb offal, cleaning the steaming pile of innards.
Animal organs, to those who love them, are truly a delicacy.
To those who dislike them, even a glance can cause discomfort.
Coincidentally, Su Ling's team was not picky and could accept anything.
As Skinny and Fatty started the fire and placed the lambs on it to roast, Gu Shangse and Jiang Jiang's cleaning of the lamb offal was nearing completion.
Gu Shangse put the lamb offal into a large pot to boil and, at the same time, brought Su Ling’s cooked pumpkin soup to the table.
After lifting the lid, he let the pumpkin soup cool naturally.
He didn't rest and turned back to the outdoor kitchen, starting to prepare minced ginger, garlic, and bird's eye chilies to make a dipping sauce for the lamb offal hot pot.
Su Ling and the others' dinner preparation, which started before sunset, continued until sunset, and as dusk fell, the castle's lights turned on.
Su Ling wanted to drink chilled pumpkin soup, so she poured the cooled pumpkin soup from the pot into a basin. She then took a large basin, lined it with a thick layer of ice, and placed the pumpkin soup on top of the ice.
As the aroma of roasted whole lamb, boiled lamb offal, and rice mingled in the air, it signaled that the dinner, which had been waited for for several hours, was about to begin its grand prelude.
But at this moment, a voice called out from below the castle.
"Hey—"
Along with this "hey," there was the sound of stones being thrown up and hitting the protective barrier.
"Damn it." Su Ling dropped what she was doing, stood up, and moved away from the ground, descending the stairs.
After going down, she didn't open the castle door to go out but instead went to the control room.
Standing in the control room, Su Ling clearly saw the situation outside.
The one making the noise was the man named Qi Ren, whom she had met during the day.