“Strange, it’s almost dinner time, and the kids still haven’t come back.”

“It’s already this late, where could the little rascals be?”

“Big girl, has your brother come back yet?”

These kinds of conversations were happening in the six families living in the compound.

Even the Yu family next door to the Lin family was in the same situation.

Li Yue returned home late from work and found the whole family waiting for dinner but no sign of her son.

She called out loudly, “Chengci, come down for dinner! Chengci…”

But there was no response from her son.

She then asked Yu He, “Where’s Chengci?”

Yu He had just come home from work himself and had no idea where his son was. “I just got home. I don’t know where he is.”

Li Yue turned to her eldest nephew, Yu Chengyuan, “Chengyuan, do you know where your younger brother is?”

Chengyuan replied, “Second Aunt, I was at the Ling family’s house all day doing homework. I don’t know where Chengci is.” As a middle school student, Chengyuan, who was not in the second year yet, had quite a bit of homework.

Being the eldest son of the main branch, he knew he had to take on responsibilities and worked hard from a young age.

He was closest to the Ling family’s children and had always been diligent.

Li Yue didn’t like Yu He’s older brother and sister-in-law, but she had a good impression of this nephew.

He had always been well-behaved and polite, and he took good care of her son.

However, the brothers had an age gap and didn’t play together much.

“Where could that child have gone?” Li Yue was worried.

Yu He suddenly remembered something, “Didn’t he say he was going fishing with the other kids this afternoon? He even invited the Lin family’s children. Why don’t you ask the Lin family?”

“Oh yes, I completely forgot about that.” Li Yue was about to go next door to inquire when her son ran in.

“Mom, I’m not coming home for dinner.”

“Ah? Then where are you going to eat?” Li Yue was taken aback and asked.

Yu Chengci said excitedly, “I’m going to have dinner at Auntie’s house next door.” And with that, he ran off.

“Wait… Wait a minute…” Li Yue tried to call him back, but her son was too fast for her. “This child…” She helplessly turned to Yu He, “Why is he going to eat at the neighbor’s house?”

Yu He said, “How would I know? Maybe he went fishing with the neighbors and was invited to stay for dinner. It’s just a meal. Next time, we can invite the neighbors over for dinner.”

“I’ll go check later.” Li Yue didn’t think too much of it.

If the neighbors were inviting the kids for dinner, it was a good way to build relations.

At this point, Mrs.Yu ( Yu He’s Mother ) spoke up, “Since the kids are eating next door, let’s send a dish over and check what’s going on.”

Li Yue agreed.

But she wondered, “What should we send over?”

Mrs.Yu asked Zhang Cuilan, “Sister Zhang, what’s the nice dish today? We should send something over.”

Zhang Cuilan replied, “Today we have braised pork, tofu soup, and a few vegetable dishes.”

Mrs.Yu thought for a moment, “Send the braised pork over.”

Yu’s Sister-in-law hurriedly asked, “Is there a lot of braised pork today?”

Zhang Cuilan answered, “We only have so many meat tickets, so there’s just one plate of braised pork. Although the pieces are small, everyone can get a few bites.”

The situation reflected the typical interactions and concerns within the families, highlighting both the everyday domestic issues and the social dynamics at play.

Upon hearing that there was only one plate of braised pork, Sister-in-law Yu quickly said, “Just one plate of braised pork? There won’t be enough for ourselves, so why give it away? Mom, let’s find something else. It’s only dinner; it’s fine if we don’t send anything. We can invite the kids from next door to eat with us another time.”

Mrs. Yu usually gives her eldest daughter-in-law face, since Deputy Director Yu had decided to let the eldest son uphold the family name.

She couldn’t afford to be disrespectful to the eldest daughter-in-law.

However, she always felt that this daughter-in-law wasn’t a good match.

Despite having some family background, her behavior always seemed a bit petty.

This was something that couldn’t be compared with the second daughter-in-law, whose family background was better.

“Missing one meal won’t make a difference; you might even lose a few pounds,” Mrs. Yu said leisurely, then instructed Li Yue, “You go and deliver it yourself, and take the opportunity to see how things are over there.”

“Yes.” Li Yue stifled a laugh as she went to get the braised pork.

Her mother-in-law was quite amusing.

Thinking of her sister-in-law’s plump figure, she shivered a bit; she didn’t want to end up with such a figure herself.

Sister-in-law Yu pouted.

She knew the Yu family looked down on her.

If she hadn’t managed to catch Yu’s eldest son during her school years, she probably wouldn’t have entered the family at all.

However, she had a successful pregnancy early in her marriage and gave birth to her eldest son, Yu Chengyuan, in the second year, which won the favor of her in-laws.

Her husband was also successful, and Sister-in-law Yu didn’t care about what others said as long as her husband and son were doing well.

Li Yue, of course, didn’t know her thoughts and was already carrying the braised pork out the door.

When she arrived next door, she found the house very lively.

Not only was her son there, but several other kids who usually played with him were also there, including her son’s best friend, Zhang Mingcheng.

Li Yue immediately understood.

These must be the kids who went fishing.

“Ning Shu… Ning Shu…” Li Yue called out.

“Here…” Ning Shu came out of the kitchen, “Yuejie, what brings you here?” She was younger and had married early, while Li Yue had married later and was several years older.

Seeing Li Yue carrying the braised pork, she wondered what was going on.

Li Yue placed the braised pork on the dining table. “We made some braised pork at home, and I thought I’d bring it over to add to your meal. Zhang Aunt’s braised pork is exceptional; you should try it.” She didn’t mention that her son was eating there.

Ning Shu understood. “Then I won’t be polite. Wait a moment…” She went to the kitchen and brought out a big bowl of fish slice porridge. “My fish slice porridge is also exceptional. It’s made from the fish the kids caught this afternoon. I’ll give you some to try.”

Li Yue was left with no choice.

She originally came to deliver food but ended up being the one to take something back.

However, she wasn’t one to be overly fussy.

Seeing the fish slice porridge with a sprinkling of green onions, it looked delicious, and she really wanted to try it. “I’ll take it back then. I’ll bring the bowl back later.”

“Not urgent,” Ning Shu said.

Li Yue returned with a large bowl of fish fillet porridge, drawing everyone’s attention.

Yu He was the first to ask, “Aren’t you supposed to send over braised pork? Why did you come back with something else?”

Li Yue explained, “According to Ning Shu, the kids must have caught some fish and cooked it there. I’ve had Zhang Aunt’s cooking for years, so I thought it’d be nice to try something different. The fish fillet porridge smells delicious.”

Zhang Cuilan overheard and said with a smile, “If it tastes good, I’ll ask Comrade Ning for the recipe.”

Li Yue replied, “That would be great.”

Yu’s sister-in-law commented, “Generally, women from the countryside aren’t bad cooks; they have to serve their families. If their cooking skills were lacking, they wouldn’t be of much use.”

Li Yue gave Yu’s sister-in-law a glance and remembered the topic that was interrupted earlier because her son mentioned Ning Shu might be a stepmother.

She said, “Ning Shu is a fashion designer, not a country woman. Besides, have you seen her? She’s fairer and smoother-skinned than me. Compared to her, we look like country folk.”

Of course, she said this deliberately.

Given her own appearance, it was impossible for her to look like a country woman.

“Hey…”

“I agree,” Yu He added, “Comrade Ning does have a different aura compared to women from the countryside.” He had met Ning Shu and knew that she wasn’t to be dismissed lightly.

“Alright, let’s not discuss this further. Let’s eat,” said Yu’s wife, rubbing her temples.

Li Yue quickly served herself a bowl of fish fillet porridge and remarked, “Wow, this fish fillet porridge is really delicious.” She then served a bowl to Mrs.Yu as well.

Although it was a large bowl, when served in smaller bowls, it only amounted to two portions. Li Yue kept the remaining bowl for her husband.

At the same time, the Lin family also started their dinner.

With Lin Guodong still not home, and with the children already there, Ning Shu didn’t make them wait.

She had Erbao welcome the eight new friends to start eating.

The main dish was fish fillet porridge, but there were also side dishes.

Ning Shu had prepared salted eggs, stir-fried bacon with cabbage, and, from the app, roasted gluten, scallion pancakes, and sweet and sour fish.

The braised pork sent by the neighbor added to the variety of the meal.

The nine children, enjoying the warm fish fillet porridge and the delicious spread, wished they could eat like this every day.

The children ate quickly, and because there were so many of them, they finished their meal before Lin Guodong came home.

After the meal, the children thanked Ning Shu and went home.

When Lin Guodong arrived and saw that Ning Shu and he were the only ones left eating, he asked, “Didn’t Erbao and the others eat?”

“They finished eating,” Ning Shu recounted the fishing and meal story. “By the way, we’ve settled the plan. You can invite your old friends to come and get familiar with the place anytime.”

“Mm.” Lin Guodong then mentioned the Zhang family, “The Zhang family and the Ling family are two prominent old forces in the capital. Before this year, both families were low-profile. Now that the hard times are over, they’ve both resurfaced. I’m university classmates with Ling Yuanhua, so to the Zhang family, I’m seen as a representative of the Ling family.

But don’t worry, since I’m in the military, the Zhang family wouldn’t dare interfere. As for the children’s competition, let it be their challenge. It’s not a bad thing. But if they try to bully us, don’t be afraid.”

Lin Guodong wasn’t worried about the Zhang family.

Not to mention that the Ling family would support them, he had more friends and acquaintances in the capital than he had relatives back home.

The camaraderie from military school was as strong as that formed on the battlefield, and it hadn’t faded despite the years.

“Sounds like we’re about to fight with the Zhang family. Don’t worry, I won’t meddle in the kids’ affairs, and I’m not the troublemaker type.” Ning Shu thought that if the Zhang family tried to bully them, she’d make them understand that she wasn’t someone to be trifled with.

Although she didn’t engage in online forums, she knew how to handle such matters.

At this point, Ning Shu was unaware that, after just one dinner, she had become a much-discussed figure among several families, more intriguing in person than by hearsay.