Chapter 81.2

Uncle Zhao led them into the house and began introducing the layout.

The house had a traditional, antique style, with all the furniture made of redwood. Upon entering, there was a spacious living room and dining area. Additionally, the first floor had three rooms: one was General Lu’s bedroom, one was the study, and the third was Uncle Zhao’s room.

Apart from that, there was also a separate bathroom and kitchen.

Uncle Zhao explained that General Lu spent most of his time on the first floor, and while there were three more rooms upstairs, no one lived there.

After learning that Wen Nuan’s family would spend the New Year in the capital, Uncle Zhao prepared the second floor for them. Since Lele was still young and not ready to sleep in her own room, he had arranged a large room for the family.

Gu Qinghan went upstairs to put away the luggage. At the same time, Wen Nuan stayed downstairs with Lele, chatting casually with Uncle Zhao.

Before long, General Lu returned home.

Wen Nuan was in the kitchen with Uncle Zhao preparing dinner when she heard General Lu’s voice. She quickly stepped out to greet him, “Grandpa.”

General Lu took off his overcoat and military hat, and the stern look on his face softened into a kind smile. “Finally, you’re all here.”

Uncle Zhao chimed in, “That’s right! The General has been looking forward to this day for so long.”

Wen Nuan smiled and explained, “Qinghan only started his leave today, so we could only come now. Grandpa, just wait a little bit longer. Dinner will be ready soon.”

General Lu frowned slightly—concerned, he asked, “Old Zhao, why are you letting Xiao Nuan cook? You know they’ve been on the road for half a day.”

Wen Nuan chuckled and explained: “I insisted on cooking, Grandpa. I wanted you to taste the food I made.”

Uncle Zhao added with a grin: “Exactly, General. Xiao Nuan said she wanted you to come home and be able to enjoy a meal she made herself. The child’s been thinking about you.”

Hearing this, General Lu’s heart swelled with warmth, and though he tried to hide it, a smile crept onto his face. Clearing his throat, he said, “Well, just don’t tire yourself out. You can cook any time.”

Wen Nuan responded with a gentle smile, “I’m not tired, Grandpa. You just rest for a while. Dinner will be ready soon.”

With the convenience of a gas stove and Uncle Zhao having already prepped the ingredients, all Wen Nuan had to do was stir-fry them. It was quick and efficient and not much work at all.

General Lu watched as his granddaughter went back to the kitchen and glanced at Gu Qinghan in the living room. He noticed a chubby little figure running toward him, shouting loudly, “Great-grandpa, you’re back!”

Lele pounced directly into his embrace, wrapping her arms around General Lu’s thigh. Her round face tilted up high—looking at him with such sweetness that it was hard for his heart not to melt.

Even a tough man like General Lu had his moments of tenderness.

As he met Lele’s bright, shiny black eyes, he couldn’t help but smile wide. He immediately lifted her up, lowering his voice to ask her: “Did you miss great-grandpa?”

Lele wrapped her arms around General Lu’s neck and nodded vigorously, saying: “I did!”

Hearing her say, “I did”, made General Lu feel as if the icy walls around his heart were melting. He asked, “Are you hungry, Lele? Great-grandpa brought you lots of candy. Do you want some?”

General Lu knew that Wen Nuan and the others were coming over to celebrate the New Year, so he made a special trip with Uncle Zhao to Wangfujing to buy New Year’s goods. He had picked up candies for the children and a sweater for Wen Nuan.

As soon as Lele heard there was candy, she didn’t hesitate to say, “I want to eat!”

General Lu carried the child toward the dining room and then set her down before opening a cabinet. He pulled out a large bag of candy and chocolate, saying, “Here, this is all for our Lele.”

Lele accepted the candies from General Lu, smiling brightly as she said, “Thank you, great-grandpa.”

General Lu then glanced toward the kitchen and reminded her, “But you can’t eat too much. Your mommy says it can cause cavities.”

“I know!”

Then Lele dug a piece of candy out of the bag and handed it to him, saying, “This one is for great-grandpa.”

General Lu caught a whiff of the delicious aroma wafting through the air and thought only of Wen Nuan’s cooking. He replied, “Great-grandpa won’t eat it; you should have it, Lele.”

Hearing this, Lele turned around, a bag of candy in hand, and dashed back to Gu Qinghan’s side. She unwrapped a piece of candy and stuffed it into her father’s mouth.

General Lu: “…”

I should have taken the candy!

—o—o—o—

Wen Nuan had prepared four dishes: steamed fish, beef stew with potatoes, sweet and sour napa cabbage, and zucchini pancakes. Later, she heard from Uncle Zhao that General Lu enjoyed cold dishes, so she made an additional cold black fungus salad dish.

Wen Nuan took a seat and said to General Lu, “Tonight, we’ll keep it simple. Tomorrow, I’ll make something even better for Grandpa for New Year’s Eve dinner.”

Looking at the few people gathered around the table, General Lu realized he couldn’t remember the last time he had eaten with family. Ever since his wife had passed away, he had been eating alone.

Most of the time, there were only three bowls on the table: his, Old Zhao’s, and Xiao Zhang’s. But those occasions were rare; often, he eats alone.

Now, being able to share a meal with family filled him with a kind of indescribable excitement, but he didn’t let it show.

Instead, he softly said, “Then I look forward to tomorrow night’s New Year’s dinner.”

Wen Nuan used serving chopsticks to pick up a piece of tender braised beef and fish for General Lu, saying, “Leave it to me. Grandpa, you should try it and see how good it is.”

General Lu had never felt as hungry as he did today.

He picked up his chopsticks, took a piece of beef, and placed it in his mouth.

The rich gravy was soaked into every inch of the beef. After a long time of simmering, the meat became tender and delicate, so delicious that it made him want to eat it with big mouthfuls of rice.

“Delicious!” General Lu didn’t hold back his praise. “It’s really good.”

Uncle Zhao, pulled over by Wen Nuan to join the meal—he can finally taste the food General Lu had been craving for months. He couldn’t help but add, “It really is delicious—way better than what I make!”

Wen Nuan smiled and said, “In front of Uncle Zhao, I’m just showing off my skills. How can I compare with you?”

Uncle Zhao felt quite flattered by Wen Nuan’s words. Not only was she pretty, but her temperament was also pleasant. She didn’t boss him around just because he was her grandfather’s life assistant; instead, she addressed him as Uncle Zhao, uplifting him.

No wonder General Lu looked forward to seeing her every day.

Sitting next to General Lu, Lele mimicked her elders, picking up her chopsticks, eager to serve General Lu some food.

However, she didn’t quite know how to use them and only managed to pick up a bit of gravy.

General Lu chuckled and carefully picked a piece of fish for her, checking for bones before placing it in her bowl.

“Here, let’s give some to our Lele.”

Lele set down her chopsticks again and was about to use her hands to pick up the fish in her bowl. However, Wen Nuan handed her a spoon: “Lele has grown up; you can eat like Sister Dong and the others. Use this spoon.”

While children often explore their surroundings and perceive the world with their hands, it was winter now, and illnesses could come from what they ate, so hygiene had to be considered.

Lele had learned to use a spoon to eat a long time ago. Although she often spilt food, she had mastered the technique, though she occasionally resorted to grabbing vegetables with her hands.

Wen Nuan had already cut some meat for her and placed some vegetables, allowing the child to feed herself.

Lele glanced at General Lu and then at Wen Nuan. She took the spoon from Wen Nuan and said: “Lele will use the spoon.”

After that, she started to eat.

When it came to rice, Lele was particularly focused. Other than occasionally calling out for meat, she could leisurely finish half a bowl of rice by herself.

After a few bites, Lele inevitably said, “Mommy, I want to eat meat.”

Wen Nuan took her scissors and cut some beef for her, then pushed the bowl back to her.

General Lu had initially wanted to feed Lele, but when Wen Nuan saw this, she said: “Grandpa, just let her eat by herself.”

General Lu watched as Lele awkwardly brought the spoon to her mouth, but half of it fell onto the table in front of her.

Having never wasted food, General Lu felt a pang in his heart at the sight of the child.

Just as he was about to say something, Gu Qinghan, sitting on Lele’s other side, reassured him, “Don’t worry, Grandpa; she’ll pick up the food that fell and eat it later.”

Gu Qinghan couldn’t stand to see Lele waste food either, so whenever they ate at the cafeteria, she would teach Lele to pick up any rice grains that fell.

General Lu raised an eyebrow and discreetly observed throughout the meal.

Just as Gu Qinghan had said, even though the child spilt some food, after Lele finished her bowl of rice, she indeed picked up the grains and bits of vegetables that had fallen on the table and ate them as she collected them.

Although she ate a bit slowly, not a single grain was wasted.

This made General Lu feel even more gratified.

He was worried about Wen Nuan raising the child alone in the North—thinking it might be too much for her to handle.

However, it seemed that the child was truly being well taken care of.

—o—o—o—

After dinner, General Lu went into his study to keep busy while Gu Qinghan took care of the dishes.

Uncle Zhao initially felt awkward about it, but Wen Nuan reassured him: “It’s the same at home. I cook, and he wash the dishes. If he cooks, then I wash the dishes.”

After hearing this from Wen Nuan, Uncle Zhao’s eyes widened in surprise.

He had lived in the family compound for so long and had never seen a big man willing to wash dishes in the kitchen!

Uncle Zhao admired her even more!

—o—o—o—

When General Lu finished his work, Wen Nuan happened to come downstairs with a down jacket, ready to let him try it on. If there were any fitting issues, they could be adjusted promptly.

“Grandpa, I made you a down jacket. Try it on first, and if it doesn’t fit, I can make adjustments:” Wen Nuan then handed him the jacket.

General Lu hadn’t expected Wen Nuan to prepare clothes for him either. He took out the sweater he had bought for her and handed it to her, laughing, “Perfect timing! I also bought you a sweater. I initially wanted to get you a coat but was worried you might not like it.”

The sweater was just right; even if she didn’t like it, it could still be worn underneath.

“Thank you, Grandpa,” Wen Nuan replied, taking the sweater from him. “But this down jacket is something I made from scratch, so it might not fit perfectly. You should try it on first.”

“Alright, I’ll give it a try,” General Lu said eagerly.

He couldn’t wait to take off his outer jacket and put on the down jacket Wen Nuan had made for him.

The black fabric suited him well, and once he had it on, he felt that the size was just right, and the garment was incredibly lightweight.

General Lu adjusted the jacket and then asked, “What did you say this jacket was made of? It feels very light but seems warm enough.”

Wen Nuan explained to General Lu the materials and methods she used to make the down jacket.

“Don’t worry, Grandpa; I’ve processed all the feathers, and there’s no smell.” Wen Nuan assured him.

After putting it on, General Lu didn’t detect any unpleasant odour, but he was somewhat surprised by Wen Nuan’s methods. He had never imagined that duck feathers and goose feathers could be used to make clothing.

This shattered his previous understanding.

He hadn’t expected his granddaughter to be so resourceful, even thinking of using feathers to create garments!

The more he looked at Wen Nuan, the more he appreciated her.

She was truly his beloved granddaughter—Lu Mingfei’s kin!

“This is great; Grandpa really likes it. Thank you for the gift,” General Lu said with a beaming smile. “Just in time for the New Year tomorrow, I can wear my new clothes!”

He had completely forgotten how many years it had been since he had worn new clothes for the New Year. In the past, he had felt as if family reunion days had little to do with him.

This year, being able to celebrate the New Year with Wen Nuan and the others felt wonderful.

Looking at General Lu in his new outfit, Wen Nuan smiled and asked, “If Grandpa doesn’t mind, it shouldn’t need any alterations, right?”

General Lu grinned and replied, “No need for alterations; it fits perfectly!”

Even if it hadn’t fit quite right, he would still insist it did, eager to show off his new clothes to his comrades—

This was a clothes made by his dear granddaughter!

—o—o—o—

So, as the wake-up call rang out on the early morning of New Year’s Eve, General Lu climbed out of bed. He hadn’t eaten breakfast yet, but he put on the down jacket and went out to stroll around the compound.