Chapter 98 : Who Makes the Best Noodles?

Coming out of the finance office, Fang Xiaoluo handed another cloth bag to Chen Meijun. “Sister Chen, these are vegetables I grew myself. They’re nothing special, but you can take them home and enjoy them.”

Chen Meijun did not refuse. “These vegetables look fresh, thank you, Xiaoluo.”

Chen Meijun accompanied Fang Xiaoluo to the front door and said, “Why don’t you take a few more goods this time? I think we have enough time and could make more money.”

Fang Xiaoluo replied, “I have other things to do recently. I’ll come to see you, Sister Chen, once I’m done with this.”

“Okay, you can come anytime,” said Chen Meijun.

Fang Xiaoluo pulled Shen Jinxia out, and Shen Jinxia waved to Chen Meijun. “Goodbye, Aunt Chen.”

“Goodbye, Xiaxia baby. Come visit us often when you have time.”

Shen Jinxia responded seriously, “Okay, Aunt Chen, you can come to my house too.”

Chen Meijun thought Fang Xiaoluo was a wonderful mother. “Okay.”

Shen Jinxia was very happy after leaving the Jiangcheng Embroidery Factory.

“Mom, Aunt Chen and the others don’t hate me, right?”

Fang Xiaoluo said, “No, they all like you because you’re really likable.”

Shen Jinxia held her little face in her hands. “Mom, it doesn’t matter if someone says they hate me, right?”

Fang Xiaoluo nodded. “Yes, let me tell you, it doesn’t matter if someone hates you. But we must always like ourselves.”

Fang Xiaoluo picked up Shen Jinxia and continued, “Look at you now. Mom likes you, Dad likes you, Grandma likes you, your two brothers like you, and Yu Xiaopang likes you too. There are also other children in the compound, Aunt Chen just now, and so many, many people who like my Xiaxia. We must firmly believe that we are the best, the most amazing, and the most powerful children. Whoever doesn’t like us just doesn’t have good judgment!”

Shen Jinxia tilted her head and listened attentively. Then she stretched out her arms and hugged Fang Xiaoluo’s neck tightly. “My dear mother, you’re so kind.”

Fang Xiaoluo gently patted Shen Jinxia’s back. She knew that her family might tell her that they hated her, that she wasn’t worthy, or that she was bad in many ways.

That’s why it was so important to praise Shen Jinxia while she was young and let her forget the unpleasant things as quickly as possible.

She wanted Shen Jinxia to have the best memories of her childhood.

After getting on the bus, Shen Jinxia sat and looked outside. “Mom, are we going home now?”

Fang Xiaoluo smiled and said, “Let’s get some good food first, then go home.”

Fang Xiaoluo brought Shen Jinxia to the department store. “Xiaxia, take a look at which one you want to eat. It doesn’t matter if you haven’t tried it. Mom made money today, so we can buy whatever we want.”

Shen Jinxia looked at the counter. There were so many different kinds of delicious foods, many of which she had never seen before.

“Mom, is that a cookie? Why does it have something white in the middle?”

Fang Xiaoluo took a look. “That’s a sandwich cookie.”

She asked the cashier to weigh five kilograms of the cookies. Anyway, the filling wouldn’t spoil if kept in a cool place. There were many children in the family, so they would definitely finish it quickly.

Besides, Shen Haifeng and Shen Jinxia might have to give some away as gifts.

Shen Jinxia looked at the big bag of cookies and asked, “Mom, are you buying so many?”

Fang Xiaoluo smiled, “It’s not much. You all can eat them. I also have to try them to see if they taste good. After all, I’m a baby too.”

Shen Jinxia nodded. “Yes, Mom is the big baby, and I am the small baby. We’re both babies.”

“That’s right.”

Fang Xiaoluo dragged Shen Jinxia to continue shopping and bought some fruit leather. As they turned another corner, Fang Xiaoluo suddenly saw Sanxian Yimian.

This was her favorite when she was a child.

Without saying anything, Fang Xiaoluo picked up a box.

Shen Jinxia didn’t quite understand. “Mom, isn’t this just noodles?”

Fang Xiaoluo explained, “This is different. These are called instant noodles. We won’t cook lunch. We can just eat these when we get home.”

It was almost noon when Fang Xiaoluo brought Shen Jinxia back home.

Zheng Lanhua found her meal ticket and carried her lunch box, preparing to go to the cafeteria to get her meal.

Fang Xiaoluo asked, “Mom, are you going to the cafeteria?”

When Zheng Lanhua saw them returning, she asked, “What do you want to eat for lunch?”

Fang Xiaoluo took the instant noodles off the bicycle and said, “I’ll make you something you’ve never eaten before for lunch. It’s really delicious.”

Zheng Lanhua saw that Fang Xiaoluo had made plans, so she didn’t need to go get food.

She shook the lunch box in her hand and said, “I’ve seen lunch boxes that haven’t been used for a long time. I’m going to take them out and expose them to the sun to prevent them from getting moldy.”

Fang Xiaoluo didn’t call her out on it, “Ah, that’s right, Mom, you’re right.”

Shen Jinxia took the lunch box and looked inside. “But it’s dry inside, and there’s no water. Grandma, you said before that it won’t get moldy without water. Did I remember it wrong?”

Zheng Lanhua took the lunch box back and said, “I grabbed the wrong one. I’ll go change it.”

Fang Xiaoluo rubbed Shen Jinxia’s little head. Children are really honest and willing to speak the truth.

She put the sandwich biscuits and fruit leather in a cool place in the living room and told Shen Jinxia, “Xiaxia, you can’t eat too many of these biscuits. Only eat two pieces a day. Remember to rinse your mouth or brush your teeth after eating. Otherwise, the little bugs will eat your teeth, and then you’ll have no teeth. Do you understand?”

Shen Jinxia covered her mouth and nodded vigorously.

While Fang Xiaoluo went to light a fire, boil water, and cook some poached eggs, Shen Haifeng also came back.

Shen Haifeng ran in from outside. “Mom, Grandma, I just ran into Uncle Huo. He said Dad won’t be back for lunch.”

“Okay, we’ll eat if he doesn’t come back,” Fang Xiaoluo said.

“Mom, what are we having for lunch? I’m so hungry.” Shen Haifeng saw the poached eggs in the pot.

Fang Xiaoluo shook the instant noodles in her hand and said, “We’re having some fresh instant noodles today.”

Fang Xiaoluo cooked the poached eggs and then went on to cook the instant noodles.

There were five people eating at home, so she cooked eight packets of noodles. “Eat as much as you want, and I cook more if it’s not enough.”

The noodles were ready very quickly, and the whole room filled with a strange aroma that they had never smelled before.

Fang Xiaoluo was almost craving the food herself. This was the taste of her childhood. Nothing she bought after growing up tasted like this.

Each person had a bowl of noodles with a white, tender poached egg on top.

Fang Xiaoluo took a bite and found the noodles chewy and smooth, so delicious.

Shen Haifeng was so busy eating that he couldn’t even lift his head. After finishing a bowl of noodles, he wiped his mouth and said, “It’s delicious. It tastes different from the noodles you made, Mom. But it’s just as delicious.”

Zheng Lanhua also thought that this new thing called instant noodles was really tasty.

She was wondering: the noodles were the same, but Fang Xiaoluo’s were delicious. But this one, with some unknown seasoning, was also so delicious.

Why hadn’t she thought of that?

She loved cooking pasta the most. She had Fang Xiaoluo cut steamed buns into small pieces, coat them with eggs, add seasoning, and stir-fry them until they were barely edible.

Who knew how much effort she had put into resisting making noodles?

As she thought about this, she heard Shen Haifeng praising Fang Xiaoluo again. She remembered that Shen Haifeng had also praised her before, so she casually asked, “Haifeng, what about the noodles Grandma made?”