America: A Prodigy of Stereotypes

The vegetable soup on Aunt Mei's recipe gave Li Qun an incredibly familiar feeling.

They simply boil various vegetables in water, putting carrots, zucchini, green beans, cabbage, and other vegetables into a pot and simmering them in water. They add whatever they have on hand, serving both as soup and vegetables.

The most important part of Aunt Mei's vegetable soup is not the vegetables, but the water used to make the soup.

Bottled or barrelled drinking water must be used, and tap water must not be used.

The same thing happened at my uncle's house; my uncle wouldn't let Liqun drink tap water, he had to drink bottled drinking water.

At first, Li Qun didn't understand why, but later he learned that it was because drinking water directly from New York's tap water pipes could cause lead poisoning, as the tap water pipes contained lead.

Li Qun's cousin, Shuangxi, is mentally challenged because he suffered from lead poisoning, serving as a cautionary tale.

After placing the vegetable soup pot on the stove, Liqun started the timer with an alarm clock. There was no need to wait for the water to boil; boiling it in cold water for ten minutes was enough to cook a pot of vegetables thoroughly.

Ten minutes later, the alarm clock rang, and Liqun went to turn off the stove and moved the vegetable soup off the stove.

Peter looked toward the door; he heard Aunt May park her car.

Aunt May parked her car in the driveway in front of her house, and Peter could hear her greeting someone.

He immediately got up to open the door for Aunt Mei, who was just about to take out her keys.

“I got back a little late today,” Peter said.

"Oh, just a few minutes late." Aunt May gave Peter a hug.

"My car had a problem, but luckily the guests who came to see the house today helped me fix it," Aunt Mei said.

"Did you reach an agreement?" Peter asked with concern.

“He’s a bit picky, but he’s a very nice person. His wife is sick and needs long-term treatment in New York, so the couple decided to move here,” Aunt May said.

When Peter heard that Aunt May had thoroughly investigated the other party's family situation, he knew that Aunt May's deal was a done deal.

"Aunt Mei, we've been waiting for you to come back. Li Qun can't wait to cook."

"Oh? What did you do?"

Aunt Mei glanced at the kitchen; it was very clean and tidy, just the way she liked it.

"Vegetable soup, lasagna with cheese and meat sauce, toast, and egg foo yum."

"The only thing missing is the egg yolk soup, which gets cold easily."

"Okay, let's eat first if it's ready. I'll reheat it for him when he gets home."

Aunt Mei watched Li Qun's cooking with a smile; she could tell that Li Qun's cooking techniques were all written down in the recipes she had prepared.

Add some oil to a frying pan, then add chopped onions and sauté until golden brown. Add some celery, some chopped mushrooms, and then mix in the egg mixture. Let the egg and vegetables solidify and turn golden brown together. Occasionally stir the middle of the omelet to break it into pieces before removing it from the pan and plating it.

Onions and other vegetables contain moisture, so the cooked egg custard won't be overcooked, but will remain tender and bouncy.

Aunt Mei smelled the egg custard and thought it was even better than hers.

"That's wonderful!!" Aunt Mei exclaimed.

"Aunt Mei, let me take the lasagna out of the oven."

"Be careful."

Li Qun put on oven mitts and took the cheese and meat sauce lasagna out of the oven. The lasagna in the oven looked just like the ones in the Garfield cartoon, making one's mouth water.

“Leon, you can start working in the kitchen of a Michelin-starred restaurant in Manhattan,” Aunt May joked.

"I'm still far from good enough, Aunt Mei."

Using a kitchen knife, the pot of lasagna was divided into pieces, and dinner was distributed. Aunt Mei led the pre-dinner prayer, and after the prayer, the four of them began their dinner.

"How did your driving test preparation go today?" Aunt Mei asked at the dining table.

“No problem, just waiting for Monday. Aunt May, I need you to help me find some supporting documents,” Peter replied.

"Lyon, you only came to New York this year. Are there any problems with your supporting documents?" Aunt May asked with concern.

“I have proof of medical insurance and proof of enrollment from my school, which meets the requirements for registration,” Li Qun replied.

"Now I can rest assured."

“Aunt May, why don’t you ask me?” Gwen asked.

"You're the one I don't need to worry about the most, right?"

Aunt May and Gwen laughed together.

After dinner, Li Qun and Gwen left Peter's house, and Li Qun gave Gwen a ride home. Uncle Ben didn't get home until very late; he had to attend a cocktail party.

Chapter 53 Don't Litter

Li Qun woke up at five o'clock in the morning, carefully got dressed, went up to the rooftop, and began her morning exercise.

Every day's diligent training can be converted into effort points on the attribute panel. The increase in effort points means that the potential of individual values ​​is realized. The feeling that hard work will be rewarded is what makes Liqun addicted.

Two hours later, Liqun went downstairs, took a shower, and started eating the breakfast prepared by her aunt. Her cousin Shuangxi had just gotten up as well.

"There will probably be a lot of people at the vehicle management office, Liqun, you should go early. Have you prepared all the materials?" Uncle said to Liqun.

“It’s ready. I checked it three times last night, and there are no problems,” Li Qun replied.

"Do you need me to drive you?" the uncle asked again.

"No need, I can handle it myself."

Li Qun's uncle is still a little worried about him going out alone. On the one hand, he thinks that Li Qun's kung fu can help him get rid of any trouble he encounters outside, but on the other hand, he is worried that Li Qun will get into even bigger trouble because of his kung fu skills.

"Call me if you need anything, and I'll come right away."

"I see."

After breakfast, Li Qun slung his backpack over his chest and carefully checked that he had brought everything before heading out.

Today is Monday. Li Qun, Peter, and Gwen have agreed that they will each head to the New York DMV. Whoever arrives first will queue up to submit their documents for review. After the review is completed, they will take a written test. Finally, the three of them will meet up at the DMV entrance after they have finished their own business.

Li Qun arrived at the New York DMV at 9:30 a.m. The DMV was packed with people, with long lines in front of each window.

Li Qun found the driver's license center window, got a number slip, and joined the queue. He waited in line for more than an hour before it was his turn.

Behind the driver's license window was a woman, and Li Qun could tell from her expression that she seemed to be in a bad mood.

"16 years old, first application, let me see..."

"We are well prepared, there's no problem."

"Very good. If only everyone after you were as well-prepared as you are."

"This is the application form. Fill it out quickly and I'll stamp it for you." The woman smiled at Li Qun.

Li Qun nodded, picked up a pen, and quickly filled out the application form.

While Li Qun was filling out the application form, the lady behind the window also took a break for a while.

The original procedure was that Liqun had to take the application form to another place to fill it out, and then return to queue up to wait for it to be stamped before taking the written test.

You can find out your results on the spot after the written exam. Then you will have a physical examination and an eye test. If you pass all of these, you can get your driver's license.

"All right."

Li Qun quickly filled out the application form. He didn't even dare to look at the line behind him; it had been five minutes since the line had moved when it was his turn.

The woman quickly compared the contents of the application form, found no problems, and then stamped it.

Li Qun received another order, and now he can take the written exam.

"Liqun!"

"Hi, Peter!"

Li Qun left from the other side of the window and spotted Peter in the queue behind him; the two gave each other a high five.

"Have you seen Gwen?" Peter asked Li Qun.

“I didn’t see her,” Li Qun replied.

“Maybe she got stuck in traffic on her way here,” Peter said.

Li Qun went to the test center to pick up the written test paper, but the vehicle management bureau didn't even provide a chair to sit on, and made people stand by the counter to answer the questions.

Li Qun finished answering the questions quickly. After handing in his paper, a black man stamped it with a "pass" mark. Immediately afterward, they began testing Li Qun's eyesight.

For the black guy at the DMV, all he had to do was turn his chair around and ask the person across the counter which way the "E" on the vision test board was facing.

The test wasn't for uncorrected visual acuity, but rather for Li Qun to wear glasses for the test. This step was very simple, and Li Qun passed it quickly.

The black man handed several forms to Li Qun expressionlessly, telling him to go back to the driver's license window and queue up.

Another long wait ensued. It was almost lunchtime when it was Li Qun's turn to join the queue, and there was no one behind him.

"See you in six months." The woman behind the window handed Li Qun his driver's license, smiled, and went off to have lunch after work.

As Li Qun walked out of the DMV, he found Peter chatting with Gwen.

“Gwen, you’re just here?” Li Qun asked as he stepped forward.

“Hmm, no.” Gwen waved the learner’s permit she was holding between her fingers at Li Qun.

"I'm the first person to arrive at the vehicle management office today."

“My dad brought me here to work, and I had to wait for half an hour at the DMV before they opened,” Gwen said, annoyed.

"That's really early."

“I’ll have to wait until the afternoon,” Peter said.

“Peter, that was pretty quick. We should be able to get everything done today,” Li Qun said.

“Let’s go get something to eat and see what office workers in New York eat,” Gwen said, glancing at the food trucks on the street.

The DMV is one of the busiest departments in New York. Street food trucks don't dare to park in front of the DMV, but they do dare to park several blocks away.

Gwen walked up to a food truck selling Arabic pilaf, checked the prices, and found that a serving of pilaf cost $6. The price seemed reasonable based on the picture. Gwen ordered three different flavors of Arabic pilaf and added $4 for extra meat to each serving.

"Would you like some drinks?" Gwen asked.

"Let's eat first and then buy more, we're already out of hands," Li Qun said.

“Let’s go sit over there and eat. Liqun, can you hold my portion for me?” Gwen said.