Qiao Wanqing and Gu Yanqing exchanged a glance.

Gu Yanqing said, “The hotel has a kitchen. Why don’t you go and cook a few dishes for us to taste?”

Words alone wouldn’t suffice; the taste was what mattered.

Sun Lanzhi left, leaving only the two of them in the guest area.

Gu Yanqing sat closer, squeezing onto the same sofa as Qiao Wanqing, and reached out to hold her.

Qiao Wanqing pushed him away, saying, “There are people around.”

“What are you afraid of? We’re not having an affair or breaking any laws.”

“…,” Qiao Wanqing couldn’t match his shamelessness.

But seeing that Gu Yanqing only held her and didn’t do anything more, she ignored him.

She nudged him with her elbow. “What should I bring to your parents’ house?”

They had booked their flight to City X for July 5th, which was Qiao Wanqing’s official visit to his parents’ place.

It was their first visit, so she couldn’t go empty-handed.

“You just need to bring yourself. I’ll take care of the rest.”

“That won’t do. It lacks sincerity.”

“They lack nothing. Just buy something they’ll like.”

“How about we go to City C a day early and look around? We can see what’s suitable to buy.”

“Actually, instead of buying things from City C, why not bring some wild products they haven’t tried before? They’ll like that more.”

“… Is that a good idea?” Qiao Wanqing thought it made sense; everyone loved the chickens and pigs from the countryside.

But it seemed a bit low-key for a first visit as a daughter-in-law.

Gu Yanqing nodded. “Trust me.”

“Or how about this,” Qiao Wanqing suddenly had an idea. “It’s mushroom season now. I’m sure someone has found some wild Lingzhi mushrooms. Also, people from our village gather Jinlian flowers. Why don’t I buy some of these to bring to them?”

“Okay, but don’t buy too much.”

Gu Yanqing knew these items were expensive even in rural areas.

Last time, Qiao Wanqing bought some Jinlian flowers to stew soup, and he accompanied her.

The wild Jinlian flowers were sold at 1500 yuan per catty.

Wild Lingzhi mushrooms can also cost close to a thousand yuan per catty.

Although this amount wasn’t much for Gu Yanqing, it was a considerable expense for Qiao Wanqing.

“Alright.”

As they were talking, Yuan Yuan and Koukou, who had been taken out by the hotel receptionist to buy toys, returned.

Each of them held a toy gun as tall as they were.

The guns were replicas of something military, looking particularly imposing.

When you pressed the trigger, they made a “rat-a-tat” sound, which delighted Koukou and Yuan Yuan.

Especially Koukou, who struggled to carry the larger gun.

He insisted on holding it, wobbling as he walked in excitedly upon seeing Gu Yanqing and Qiao Wanqing from afar, exclaiming happily, “Gun, gun, big—gun gun~”

While carrying such a large gun, Kou Kou forgot to watch his step and stumbled.

Everyone was momentarily startled, but Kou Kou quickly got up, dusted himself off, and continued running towards Gu Yanqing and Qiao Wanqing.

They hurried over.

Qiao Wanqing hugged him, brushing the dust off his clothes and affectionately kissing his cheek, asking, “Sweetheart, did it hurt when you fell?”

“Gun.” Kou Kou proudly showed off the gun in his hands.

“Such a big gun, Kou Kou is so brave,” praised Gu Yanqing.

He took the gun from Kou Kou and had Qiao Wanqing check if he had hurt himself when he fell.

The floor was so hard that falling could easily cause injuries.

After being praised by his father, Kou Kou smiled happily, raising his little hand and saying, “It hurts here!”

Qiao Wanqing turned his palm over to see a slight red mark.

Luckily, the floor was tiled, so it didn’t scratch him badly.

But if an adult fell like that, they would definitely get hurt.

Kids seem more resilient to falls, often bumping and scraping without any major issues.

Qiao Wanqing blew gently on Kou Kou’s hand and reassured him, “No cuts, Kou Kou, you’re a good boy, it doesn’t hurt.”

“Daddy, blow,” Kou Kou raised his hand again in front of Gu Yanqing, asking him to blow on it.

Gu Yanqing smiled and blew on Kou Kou’s hand.

Kou Kou then wanted to get down from Qiao Wanqing’s lap and continue playing with Yuan Yuan and their toy guns.

“Xiao Ru, how much for the toy guns? I’ll transfer the money to you,” Gu Yanqing said to the girl who took them out to buy toys.

Since Gu Yanqing usually kept a cool demeanor and rarely smiled, Xiao Ru, who worked at the front desk and had seen him almost every day recently, was surprised to see him smiling so gently and couldn’t help but pause.

She snapped out of it when he asked about the price. “Oh, um, it’s 80 yuan in total, Mr. Gu. I’m sorry just now for not following you here, and sorry for Kou Kou’s fall.”

She had seen Qiao Wanqing and them in the guest area when she entered the hotel, so she stayed at the front desk.

She didn’t expect Kou Kou to fall just a short distance away.

“No problem, it’s not your fault,” Gu Yanqing said, scanning the QR code to pay her.

He thanked her again, and Xiao Ru blushed as she hurried away.

“Mr. Gu, quite charming,” Qiao Wanqing teased intentionally when she noticed.

— Actually, sometimes it’s not about jealousy or unhappiness, but showing a little bit of this kind of concern can help enhance feelings.

After all, jealousy equals liking and caring.

Gu Yanqing indeed smiled and said, “Your husband is loved by everyone. You better hold on tight.”

“… Get lost!”

Meanwhile, Sun Lanzhi had quickly prepared the meal, and they all sat down in a private room at the hotel to eat.

Due to her long experience as a homemaker, Sun Lanzhi’s cooking carried a distinct “mom’s cooking” flavor that everyone recognized as homey.

Unlike Master Liu’s more technical approach, she lacked many fancy techniques, but each dish she made was finely crafted with clear layers of flavors, leaving everyone’s taste buds thoroughly satisfied.

Qiao Wanqing tasted each dish and nodded approvingly, saying, “It’s good.”

Sun Lanzhi brightened up. “So, does this mean I passed?”

Qiao Wanqing glanced at Gu Yanqing, who was more critical in his assessments.

He nodded slightly, indicating approval.

Next came the discussion about salary. Qiao Wanqing’s offer wasn’t exceptionally generous, but it was considered very good for the small town.

She was careful not to create resentment among the staff by ensuring fairness.

Sun Lanzhi’s salary would be just a bit higher than Mrs. Song’s but below Master Liu’s.

Sun Lanzhi was satisfied with the offer.

With the chef position settled, Qiao Wanqing felt relieved to have another matter resolved.

---

Considering they might stay longer during their first visit, Qiao Wanqing made sure everything at home was well taken care of.

She reminded herself to water the plants, especially since Kou Kou’s absence might slow their growth and affect their taste.

She managed to save some extra, thankfully quite diluted, but still useful.

The vegetables from their garden would certainly meet the demand at the vegetarian restaurant first.

Luckily, apart from the agritainment, school, and hotel, other shops weren’t buying their vegetables anymore.

Perhaps because their vegetables were quite expensive.

Coincidentally, the demand for their vegetables was a bit tight now.

Many agritainment customers had tried the vegetarian restaurant’s dishes and knew they were similar to what their agritainment offered.

They would come specifically to buy, increasing sales but also reducing the availability of vegetables for them.

Qiao Wanqing wanted to expand her farming, but their daily urine output was limited.

If they expanded too much, it wouldn’t be enough.

Qiao Wanqing bought dry golden thread lily for 3000 yuan, two pounds of lingzhi mushrooms, one pound of gastrodia, and some pure honey, spending a total of 5000 yuan.

For Qiao Wanqing’s family, this was a significant expense, especially since she still owed Tang Yueyue and the bank.

But for the Gu family, it was just a casual afternoon tea, making Qiao Wanqing a bit nervous.

“It’s totally enough,” Gu Yanqing said, holding her in his lap. “It’s a lot.”

Qiao Wanqing trusted Gu Yanqing not to let her down: “Shouldn’t we package it?”

“I’ll have someone prepare boxes. We’ll go to City C tomorrow,” Gu Yanqing kissed her hair, softly laughing. “No need to be so nervous. You’ve met my mom; she won’t give you a hard time anymore. My dad is serious, but he usually doesn’t meddle in my affairs. So don’t worry, and we have Kouko.”

Kouko could charm his way out of anything.

As they were leaving for a short while, Grandma Qiao was reluctant to part with Kouko.

She had spent a lot of time with him and loved him dearly.

“Will Kouko miss Grandma?” Qiao Wanqing asked, holding Kouko.

Kouko was too young to understand separation.

Qiao Wanqing and Gu Yanqing had been telling him they were going to see grandparents, so he knew they were going far away.

But he knew how to please people, nodding cutely.

In a childish voice, he said, “Miss, miss…”

Poor little stutterer, he couldn’t even finish the phrase.

“Miss,” Grandma Qiao helped him.

“Can’t… can’t miss,” Kouko said unclearly.

Grandma Qiao found him adorable and couldn’t help kissing his tender cheek.

Kouko remembered something and struggled to say, “Buy… buy tasty…”

Grandma Qiao understood, “You want to buy something tasty for Grandma, right?”

Kouko nodded and added, “New… clothes.”

“And new clothes for Grandma too?”

Koko grinned, “Kouko good.”

He meant he would behave well.

Grandma Qiao hugged him, “Kouko is not only good but also very smart.”

The next morning, the family set off for City C.

Though it was a brief goodbye, Grandma Qiao, being older and sentimental, couldn’t help but tear up as she saw them off.

Qiao Wanqing knew she worried they might not come back if they moved there permanently.

She hugged her and said, “We’ll be back soon, Grandma.”

“I know, I know,” Grandma Qiao wiped her eyes, smiling. “Take care on your way.”

Gu Yanqing continued, “Yes, take care of yourself too. Yuan Yuan, Kouko, say bye-bye to Grandma.”

Both kids waved obediently to Grandma Qiao, “Bye-bye.”

After Yuan Yuan said goodbye, Kouko looked up from Gu Yanqing’s arms and said to Grandma Qiao, “Kouko, heart-heart with Grandma.”

Hearing Yuan Yuan’s words, Koko obediently raised his little hand, tilted his head in thought, and finally remembered the gesture, making a not-so-perfect heart shape towards Grandma Qiao, softly saying, “Heart, heart!”

His actions amused everyone, and Yuan Yuan proudly said, “I taught little brother to make a heart!”

Qiao Wanqing fondly rubbed Yuan Yuan’s head and then Kouko’s, praising, “Yuan Yuan and Kouko are both amazing.”