一遇到室友外出的假日，則是我享受一個人居家的最好時光，除了一早五點多上網看新聞外，抵不過寒冷的溫度，又再度鑽進溫暖的被窩，中午我已經懷著欣喜的心情計劃午餐的準備，想到我帶回的麵條與醬罐，加上冰箱裡一道昨晚煮的牛肉，於是十一點鐘不到，已經把所有的材料準備好。先到樓上行李箱內拿出麵條與一罐滷肉醬，把麵條燙熟後，記得有人說要再過冷水後更滑溜，於是也試著作，再另用一小湯鍋把冰箱裡的牛肉放入煮熟，再把麵條放進熱一會兒，就成了我的午餐--牛肉麵，還不錯，只是味道淡一些。
下午竟沒有睡意，小賈來煮飯後，我趁著最好時機到黃金廣場領一些錢，為即將到的千禧年作準備，萬一所有錢被千禧蟲吃掉了豈非更慘，車上有一位長的跟彥碩一樣大的小孩一直看著我，我也不斷的與他作鬼臉，也激起我對兒子的思念，接著進行我今天最大的陰謀--到市場買兩隻大閘蟹，想這一次要用最正確的方式吃，因前幾天中午我代表公司作東請一家外商銀行即將離職的辦事員吃中餐，餐中我的課長點了一道大閘蟹，小朱也作陪，他在我旁邊指導我吃大閘蟹，以前從未吃過這蟹，一到上海後第一次由室友教我們如何吃，因此就成為一種獨特的吃法，吃時不沾醬料，而且從蟹腳開始吃。因此我很仔細的學習每一種細節，因為沒有專用的一套吃蟹工具，所以一切從簡，首先要從蟹身開攻，原因無他--趁熱吃，將蟹腹面中央處將一層殼撥開到底，有一些膏，直接將以沾醬食之。接著翻到背面，從底部接縫處直接把殼掀開分成兩半，背殼的內面裹有一些卵或膏，將醬料倒少許至殼內，用筷子攪和著吃，再把俗稱沙和尚處吐出即可。接著把另一半部著卵或膏的蟹身從中撥成兩半，將無法食用的部位去除，取一隻蟹腳尖，將肉削慢慢摳出食之。最後蟹腳處，將肢節處兩端咬斷，將一端沾醬料並放入嘴中輕輕一吸，整條蟹肉從口中竄入。如此完成整個程序，附帶一提的是醬料，用生薑切成泥，加入醬油與醋及少許糖，最好放入鍋中隔水加熱，此此更能增加趨寒作用。
第三次到了市場專賣店，老闆是另一位，向其說明來意後，指名要兩隻三兩的雄蟹，一斤七十元，我並沒殺價，共花了四十四元。回家後趁著小賈不注意時，將兩隻帶到二樓用牙刷洗淨，泡入原來養金魚的塑膠盆內〈原來僅存的一隻魚在我休假回來後已經做古〉，清洗的過程中右手中指不慎被腳尖處刺了一個微小洞，其中一隻蟹夾子已經露了出來，雖然整個身子已被細線綑綁住，然後整個盆子放在房間裡頭。
好不容易吃完了晚餐，收拾餐盤後趕緊拿出蒸鍋放水加熱，然後上房間要取出兩隻盆中物，驚鴻一瞥，怎麼只剩一隻，於是趕緊進行一場大閘蟹追擊戰，書桌下、垃圾桶旁、床底下遍尋不到，最後終於在公事包後找到，已經掙脫了細線的綑綁，在第一時間立刻往廚房跑去，鍋子正是熱氣騰騰，鍋蓋蓋住是六點十二分，當鍋蓋再度打開時已經是六點三十分了。以上是我偷偷的吃大閘蟹的一日。
Crab Chronicles: A Solo Adventure in Gourmet Delights
Whenever my roommate is out, it's the perfect time for me to enjoy some alone time at home. After browsing the internet for news at around 5 AM, I couldn't resist the cold temperature and crawled back into my warm bed. By noon, I was already excited to prepare my lunch. I remembered bringing back some noodles and a jar of sauce, along with leftover beef from last night's meal. So, before 11 o'clock, I had all the ingredients ready. I retrieved the noodles and the jar of braised meat sauce from my luggage upstairs. After cooking the noodles, I followed a tip I heard about rinsing them in cold water to make them smoother. Then, I used a small saucepan to cook the beef from the refrigerator and briefly heated the noodles in it. Voila! My lunch was ready - beef noodles. It turned out pretty good, although the flavor was a bit mild.
In the afternoon, I surprisingly didn't feel sleepy. While Xiaojia cooked, I took advantage of the opportunity to go to the Golden Square to withdraw some money in preparation for the upcoming millennium. I noticed a child on the bus who looked just like Yan Shuo. I kept making funny faces at him, sparking my longing for my own son. Next, I embarked on my biggest plan of the day - buying two large crabs from the market. This time, I wanted to eat them in the most proper way. A few days ago, I represented my company and treated a departing staff member from a foreign bank to a Chinese lunch. During the meal, my supervisor ordered a dish of crabs, and Xiao Zhu accompanied me. He taught us how to eat crabs since it was my first time. We developed a unique eating style: no dipping sauce and starting with the crab legs. So, I carefully observed every detail because I didn't have a set of crab-eating utensils. I began by attacking the body of the crab, taking advantage of its warmth. I removed the top layer of the shell in the middle of the ventral side, revealing some crab paste that I dipped directly into the sauce. Then, I flipped it over and opened the shell from the bottom seam, splitting it into two halves. Inside the back shell, there were some roe or paste that I mixed with the sauce and ate using chopsticks. I discarded the part known as the "sand monk." Next, I split the other half of the crab body that contained roe or paste into two halves, removing the inedible parts. I took a crab leg and slowly extracted the meat with my teeth. Finally, at the crab claw, I bit off both ends of the joint, dipped one end into the sauce, and sucked it lightly, letting the whole piece of meat slide into my mouth. That completed the entire process. I should mention the sauce - it was made by mixing grated ginger with soy sauce, vinegar, and a little sugar. It's best to heat the sauce in a pot placed in hot water to enhance the warming effect.
On my third visit to the specialized market shop, a different boss was there. After explaining my purpose, I specifically requested two male crabs weighing around three liang each, costing 70 yuan per jin. I didn't bargain and spent a total of 44 yuan. When I got home, I quickly took the crabs to the second floor and washed them in a plastic basin that used to hold goldfish (only one fish was left, and it died during my vacation). While cleaning them, I accidentally pricked my right middle finger with a crab leg, which was already exposed. Although the entire body was tied with thread, one crab claw had broken free. With the other still bound, I placed the whole basin
in my room.
Finally, after finishing dinner and cleaning up the plates, I quickly retrieved the steamer and heated the water. Then, I went upstairs to fetch the two crabs from the basin. To my surprise, there was only one left. I immediately embarked on a pursuit of the missing crab, searching under the desk, next to the trash bin, and even under the bed, but I couldn't find it anywhere. Eventually, I located it behind my briefcase, having managed to break free from the thread. Without wasting any time, I rushed to the kitchen, where the pot was steaming hot. The time on the lid was 6:12, and when I reopened it, it was already 6:30. That was the story of my secret day enjoying the crabs.
