Talking about raising the wall height, Yu Xiuyao couldn’t help but add some frustration to her tone: “You can raise it higher, but our wall here is made from stones and yellow mud that we collected ourselves. When I first raised the wall around our yard, I heard a lot of sarcastic comments. If you want to raise it too, you should be prepared to face the same kind of talk. You know, the reason I raised it back then was because we couldn’t even enjoy our food in peace. If we ate a piece of meat, the smell would drift to the neighbors, and the kids next door would climb over the wall and peek at our door. What could I do? So, I just raised the wall…”

Listening to her, Lin Qingqing imagined this kind of thing happening at their place too, and it gave her chills.

She loved making tasty things for herself, and becoming a food blogger wasn’t just about becoming popular online.

Raised by her grandmother’s cooking, she’d developed a picky taste for food and loved making delicious meals.

But if she had people constantly watching her every meal, that would be hard to tolerate.

After chatting with Yu Xiuyao a bit more and checking the time, Lin Qingqing headed back home with Lu Haici.

On the way back, they didn’t see those people again; it was probably dinnertime, so everyone had gone home.

When they got home, Lin Qingqing took out the things from the basket, seeing Lu Haici squatting nearby.

She said, “Little Haici, shall we have egg fried rice for dinner?”

“Yes!” He loved anything his mom made. But he asked, “Mom, what’s egg fried rice? I’ve had egg custard with rice before.”

“Egg fried rice is when you cook eggs and rice together in oil,” Lin Qingqing explained.

Following her health routine, they ate carbs in the morning, protein at noon, and vitamins in the evening.

So, the egg fried rice for dinner couldn’t have too much rice, but if there was too little, they wouldn’t feel even half-full.

That’s why she had to add vitamin-rich vegetables to the dish.

“Then I’ll light the fire for you,” Lu Haici said, getting up and preparing to go to the stove, “I’m really good at making fires; I’ve done it for Auntie and Dad.”

Lin Qingqing wasn’t comfortable letting her five-year-old handle the fire.

Although many people in this era saw it as completely normal for kids to do so, she still felt that five was too young and lighting a fire was dangerous.

However, while he couldn’t make the fire, washing vegetables was okay.

So she said, “How about Little Haici helps me wash the greens first?”

Hearing that, Lu Haici immediately said, “Of course!”

He just wanted to help Lin Qingqing, and it didn’t matter what task it was.

Lin Qingqing took out some greens, placed them in the washing bowl, filled it with water, and brought it to the yard.

“Come on, Xiao(Little) Haici, wash the vegetables here. Make sure to wash them clean; otherwise, if you eat them dirty, it could make your stomach hurt.”

Lu Haici responded loudly, “I know!”

While Lu Haici was washing the vegetables, Lin Qingqing rinsed out the iron pot and the clay pot.

She poured the washed rice into the iron pot and filled the clay pot with water, starting the rice and hot water at the same time.

Then, she began to prepare the ingredients.

She cracked two eggs, separating the yolks from the whites.

Next, she prepared a cucumber, dicing it finely.

By the time she finished prepping, Lu Haici still hadn’t finished washing the vegetables.

She stepped into the courtyard and saw him washing each leaf carefully.

Lin Qingqing didn’t interfere but praised him, “Xiao Haici, you’re doing such a great job cleaning the vegetables!”

Lu Haici smiled shyly, feeling very pleased inside.

Lin Qingqing also didn’t help him wash.

Instead, she wiped down the kitchen, rewashed the dishes, and then tidied up the living room.

By the time she finished these tasks, Lu Haici was done washing the greens, and the rice in the pot was ready.

“Mom, look!” Lu Haici proudly brought the bowl of washed vegetables to Lin Qingqing.

Lin Qingqing picked up some greens and examined them, “Xiao Haici, you did a fantastic job washing these! Tonight, you’ll get a reward—you can have an extra helping of greens.”

They were indeed very clean since this little guy had washed them leaf by leaf.

Upon hearing he’d get extra greens, Lu Haici’s face fell; he didn’t like vegetables much, preferring meat instead.

But he didn’t want his mom to be disappointed, so he replied obediently, “Alright.”

He figured he could just swallow them down.

Lin Qingqing began chopping the greens finely, separating the stems from the leaves.

Since stems take longer to cook than leaves, she planned to add them separately while stir-frying the rice.

She then dished up the rice, mixed it with the yolks so that each grain was coated, and prepared to cook.

Lu Haici stood to the side, watching his mom cook with curiosity.

After the rice was mixed with the egg yolk, she poured some oil into the iron pot.

Since they were using rapeseed oil, which has a strong smell, she waited for the oil to heat until it started bubbling slightly before adding the egg-coated rice.

With a loud sizzle, Lin Qingqing began to stir-fry the rice.

Since it was already cooked, it didn’t need much time—about half a minute.

Then she added the egg whites, stirred a couple of times, and tossed in the vegetable stems, cucumber, and salt.

Usually, she’d add salt near the end, but the coarse salt of this era needed a bit more time to dissolve, unlike the fine salt of later days.

“Otherwise, if you wait until it’s almost time to take it out of the pan to add salt, the salt will just clump together.”

A delicious aroma wafted from the pan, and Lu Haici eagerly sniffed, taking in the mouthwatering scent.

Just then, a young boy’s voice called from outside, “Lu Haici… Lu Haici…” Accompanying the voice, the boy ran into the kitchen.

“Jiyang.”

Before Lin Qingqing could wonder who this was, Lu Haici called out the name, though he didn’t go out to greet him.

In the past, he would have rushed over to welcome a friend, but today he just stood by the stove, watching Jiyang.

Curious, Lin Qingqing glanced at the young boy.

He was a bold little boy with thick eyebrows and bright eyes.

Jiyang licked his lips, not the least bit shy, and asked, “Lu Haici, what are you cooking? It smells so good.”

Hearing this, Lu Haici proudly replied, “My mom is making egg fried rice, and it’s super delicious.” He emphasized “my mom” with a special childish pride.

However, Jiyang didn’t catch on to this hint.

He walked over to Lu Haici, craned his neck to look into the pan, and kept complimenting, “Lu Haici, your mom’s egg fried rice smells amazing; it must be delicious.”

Though Lu Haici hadn’t tasted it yet, he had a mysterious confidence in his mom: “It’s definitely delicious.”

In his heart, even if it somehow wasn’t, it would still taste great to him.

Jiyang’s eyes sparkled as he listened, “Lu Haici, I’ve never had egg fried rice.”

Lu Haici pouted a bit, looking at him with a hint of caution, “I haven’t had it either.”

Jiyang then asked, “Can I try some?”

Lu Haici wanted to refuse, but he remembered that Jiyang had shared his milk candy with him, so he felt a bit embarrassed to say no.

But he also didn’t want to share his mom’s egg fried rice.

What should he do? Finally, he gritted his teeth and said, “Alright, but only a little bit.”

Jiyang patted his chest and promised, “I’ll just have a tiny bit.”

Though Lu Haici agreed to let Jiyang have a taste, he still didn’t dare make the decision on his own.

He asked Lin Qingqing, “Mom, can Jiyang have a little bit of the egg fried rice? He shared his milk candy with me before.”

Hearing this, Jiyang anxiously watched Lin Qingqing, worried she might say no.

Lin Qingqing couldn’t help but smile at their conversation. “Of course, he can,” she said. “Haici, you’re the little host here; if you say yes, then it’s a yes.”

Hearing his mom say he was the little host, Lu Haici happily clenched his little fists and said, “Then…”

“Alright, give Ji Yang just a little more, and then a little more.” He was so happy that he wanted to give Ji Yang an extra helping.

Lin Qingqing saw that the fried rice was almost ready; the green vegetable leaves she added last had softened, so she grabbed a plate and two small bowls.

She served her portion on the plate, while Lu Haici and Ji Yang each got a small bowl.

While serving, Lin Qingqing said, “Little Haici, your good friend is having dinner here, so he should let his family know so they won’t worry.”

Lu Haici replied, “Oh, Ji Yang’s house is right next door.”

“I’ll go, I’ll go,” Ji Yang said, quickly running outside.

Soon, his voice echoed through the courtyard, “Mom, I’m eating at Lu Haici’s house. Haici’s mom made delicious, delicious fried rice!” He shouted, not waiting for a response, then hurried back to the kitchen.

Lin Qingqing shook her head with a smile. “Xiao Haici, why don’t you invite your friend to sit in the hall while I bring the food over.”

“Okay,” Lu Haici agreed, leading Ji Yang to sit properly at the square table in the hall.

The two sat with their little legs dangling and swinging.

Lin Qingqing brought the fried rice to the table. “Enjoy your meal, kids.” Each child’s bowl was filled two-thirds of the way.

Though rice was limited, there was plenty of green vegetables and cucumber mixed in; otherwise, the addition of Ji Yang would have stretched the servings thin.

Lin Qingqing herself didn’t take much, leaving some rice in the pot in case the kids wanted more later.

Children are naturally drawn to colorful food, and as soon as they saw the fried rice, they eagerly took a spoonful.

Ji Yang’s eyes widened in surprise. “Lu Haici, this yellow stuff is rice!”

After being mixed with egg yolk and fried, each grain was golden and glistening.

Ji Yang hadn’t realized it was rice until he tasted it. “Lu Haici, your mom is amazing! The rice isn’t even white!”

Lu Haici replied confidently, “My mom is the best mom.”

Ji Yang agreed but added, “My mom is amazing too.” In a child’s heart, their own mom is always the greatest.