Chapter 43 : Your Family’s Ancestor Tomb Is Smoking

Zheng Lanhua walked alongside Shen Haiping, watching the affectionate interaction between Fang Xiaoluo and Shen Jinxia. She couldn’t help but smile.

But when Fang Xiaoluo looked over, she immediately suppressed the smile, returning to her usual expression.

“I wasn’t worried about you,” she insisted stubbornly.

Fang Xiaoluo leaned in, “Mm, I know, you’re just worried about your son.”

Zheng Lanhua: “You know, huh?”

Fang Xiaoluo hugged Shen Jinxia and walked leisurely. Shen Zheng asked, “What were you talking about with Mom?”

Fang Xiaoluo deliberately raised her voice, “Mom praised me for being beautiful and capable, said that if you could marry me, it’s because your Shen family has burned incense for eight generations, and your ancestor tomb must be smoking with good luck!”

Zheng Lanhua’s footsteps froze for a moment, her body stiffening for a few seconds, before she continued walking ahead, pulling Shen Haiping along.

Shen Zheng laughed, “You’re right.”

When they got home, Fang Xiaoluo began preparing dinner.

She and Shen Zheng had bought a lot of things today. She started by throwing the quail eggs into a pot of boiling water, then cleaned the freshly bought pork belly and cut it into large chunks.

Shen Zheng stayed in the kitchen, helping with the fire and adding firewood.

Then, he grabbed an apron and tied it for Fang Xiaoluo, standing beside her and seriously watching her cook, silently memorizing the steps.

She heated oil in the wok and began to caramelize sugar. Watching the bubbles in the pot turn into a golden caramel color, she quickly added the pork belly into the pot.

There was a sizzling sound as the heat rose.

Fang Xiaoluo stirred quickly, and soon, each piece of pork belly was coated in a shiny, reddish-brown sugar glaze.

Once it was nearly done, she added broth, scallions, ginger, and various seasonings.

She rinsed the boiled quail eggs under cold water so they wouldn’t be too hot to handle and would be easier to peel.

Shen Jinxia peeked her little head in, “Sister, what can I do?”

Fang Xiaoluo looked at her, noticing the two small red hair clips still in her hair, looking adorable.

She waved her hand to Shen Jinxia, “Go grab a little stool and help me peel the quail eggs.”

Shen Jinxia nodded vigorously, “Okay!”

She quickly ran off, brought back a small stool, and sat down to work.

Although the quail eggs were small, in Shen Jinxia’s little hands, they looked huge.

She mimicked Fang Xiaoluo’s method, tapping the edge of the bowl, then carefully peeling the shell off.

She furrowed her brows and pouted her lips, concentrating hard, working diligently.

Her movements were slow, but she didn’t stop for a moment.

After peeling one egg, she placed it into another bowl, finally letting out a relieved smile.

Fang Xiaoluo praised her, “Our Xiaxia is amazing and so capable.”

Hearing the compliment, Shen Jinxia worked even harder.

Shen Zheng looked down at the scene of his daughter and wife, both peeling quail eggs with happy expressions, and couldn’t help but ask, “What else can I do?”

Fang Xiaoluo directed him, “Peel four or five potatoes, cut them into strips, and then slice a carrot.”

“Got it.”

Shen Zheng responded and quickly moved to wash the potatoes, peel them, and cut them into strips.

Fang Xiaoluo stood up to rinse the rice and started steaming white rice on the stove.

Once the quail eggs were peeled, Shen Jinxia clapped her little hands, “Sister, we’re done peeling! We’re so good at this.”

“Yes, we’re really capable,” Fang Xiaoluo said, giving Shen Jinxia a thumbs-up.

She cleaned the quail eggs and tossed them straight into the pot.

Next, Fang Xiaoluo cut the dried tofu into strips, tied them into tofu knots, and threw those into the pot as well.

The soup was bubbling, making a gurgling sound, filling the air with an irresistible fragrance that made one salivate.

When Shen Haifeng returned home from school, he hadn’t even entered the yard yet when he smelled the tempting aroma.

His classmate, Yu Feixu, who had come back with him, stretched his neck and said, “Shen Haifeng, it smells so good! Your stepmother is really a great cook. When can I come to your house to try?”

Shen Haifeng shot him a cold glance, “Eat my ass, you’re just drooling!”

Yu Feixu snorted, “Such a cheapskate!” and then ran off alone.

When Shen Haifeng entered the yard, he was surprised to see his grandmother, Zheng Lanhua, cooking at the stove in the yard.

He rushed over to take a look and saw that she was frying shredded potatoes.

Although it was called frying, it was more like stewing, basically just oil and salt. Even so, Shen Haifeng thought it was pretty good, it wasn’t particularly tasty, but at least it wasn’t hard to eat.

“Grandma, did my dad come back?” he asked.

Zheng Lanhua responded, “They’re back.”

Shen Haifeng dashed into the house, where he found his father, Shen Haiping, sitting at the table, writing and drawing on a piece of paper.

He walked over and looked at his father, who seemed to be in a good mood. He breathed a sigh of relief.

He leaned over to look at the paper, where there were three children and two adults drawn.

Normally, when Shen Haiping drew this picture, there would only be one adult, but now there was clearly an extra woman.

“Is this the picture of our stepmother?” Shen Haifeng asked.

Shen Haiping didn’t respond, as if he hadn’t heard.

Fang Xiaoluo finished steaming the rice, and the braised pork with quail eggs and tofu knots were done too, all served in a big bowl.

Next, she cleaned the shredded potatoes and carrots that Shen Zheng had cut, blanched them in boiling water, then cooled them under cold water.

She then heated some oil, adding chopped scallions, garlic, and Sichuan peppercorns, which immediately released a delicious fragrance.

She added the right amount of salt and vinegar, mixed it all together, and the cold shredded potato dish was ready.

It was very crisp and refreshing, with a beautiful yellow and red color.

It would have been even better with chili, but since the kids couldn’t handle spice, Fang Xiaoluo had kept it simple.

A large bowl of rice, a whole bowl of braised pork, and a big plate of cold shredded potatoes were placed on the table.

On the other side, Zheng Lanhua’s fried shredded potatoes were also served.

This time, she didn’t bother making a main dish, figuring that Fang Xiaoluo’s rice would be enough for the whole family.

Fang Xiaoluo noticed Zheng Lanhua’s intention, and since everyone was serving themselves, she didn’t say anything.

This was a sign that Zheng Lanhua was slowly changing, which was a good thing.

However, this cold-hearted and sharp-tongued old lady was still slowly breaking down, and the next step would require a little push.

Everyone sat down at the table. Fang Xiaoluo used small plates to serve Shen Haiping and Shen Jinxia some food, making it easier for them to take their portions.

Shen Haifeng watched as Shen Haiping put a soft and tender piece of braised pork into his mouth, and quickly looked away, picking up some shredded potatoes with his chopsticks.

But as he turned his head, Shen Jinxia put a bite of the cold shredded potatoes into her mouth.

The crisp sound of the potatoes was too much for Shen Haifeng, whose food now seemed tasteless. He bit his tongue in surprise.

Shen Haifeng covered his mouth, groaning in pain, his face turning red.

Shen Zheng, noticing, asked, “What’s wrong?”

It took Shen Haifeng a while to recover. “I bit my tongue.”

Shen Zheng, knowing his son’s stubbornness, casually picked up a piece of braised pork and put it in his bowl. “There’s meat on the table. Why are you biting your tongue? You’re too old for this.”

Shen Haifeng stared at the fatty three-layered pork for a moment, unsure of what to do.

He hesitated, glancing at Fang Xiaoluo. To his surprise, his stepmother showed no expression, nor did she stop him from eating the meat.

Isn’t it typical for stepmothers to not let anyone eat meat? Especially with how bad his attitude had been recently, why hadn’t Fang Xiaoluo stopped him from eating this piece of meat?