Chapter 59

Tang Wan and Lu Huaijing had agreed the night before not to invite family members, so none of the soldiers had brought their families.

Now, Qiu Dazhao was here with her two grandsons, which was a bit awkward.

Everyone looked a little embarrassed. Lu Huaijing and Tang Wan exchanged glances. They didn’t say anything.

This was something that Director Xu had to handle himself. He also had to maintain his dignity. He said with a stern face in front of his soldiers,

“Mom, Xia Qing made dinner at home. You and the kids should go back and eat.”

“What do you mean go back? Xia Qing is working overtime at the hospital and hasn’t come back yet. We’ll just eat a little something here.”

Qiu Dazhao’s words sounded rather reluctant. She winked at her grandsons, and Xu Heping immediately said,

“Dad, I’m hungry.”

“Dad, can we go inside and eat soon?”

Xu Weimin looked up at Director Xu. Director Xu had never felt so embarrassed in his life.

It was as if he hadn’t given his family any money and they were starving.

“Hungry? What are you hungry for? Get out of here!”

“The children are still young. Why are you yelling at them?”

Qiu Dazhao didn’t expect her son to be so angry. She said in a sarcastic tone,

“We’re all in the same family compound. What’s wrong with the children eating something?

Are they inviting you to dinner just to curry favor with you? We can’t eat?”

Her words were a bit harsh, and everyone present felt a little awkward.

If it weren’t for the fact that this was Director Xu’s mother, everyone would have been tempted to say something.

Lu Huaijing and Tang Wan’s faces were a little ugly. She thought, it was a pity that Director Xu had such a troublesome mother.

Director Xu’s forehead veins bulged. He glanced at Lu Huaijing apologetically and said through gritted teeth,

“I suddenly remembered that I have something to take care of at home. Huaijing, you guys eat. I won’t eat here.”

“Dashu, what are you doing?”

Qiu Dazhao glared angrily. She had found out that her son was the highest-ranking officer among these people.

She was the family member of their leader. What was wrong with her eating something?

Just as Director Xu’s temper was about to explode, a petite figure walked in.

It was Xia Qing. She was holding Director Xu’s eldest daughter, Xu Qiao.

“Lao Xu, I’ll take care of things at home. You can stay here and have a gathering with your brothers.”

Then her sharp eyes fell on the arrogant Qiu Dazhao.

“Mom, do you want everyone to think that Lao Xu can’t support us?”

She walked up to Qiu Dazhao and lowered her voice.

“If you keep acting crazy in the compound and cause Lao Xu to retire, we’ll all get kicked out of the family compound!”

Her appearance slapped Qiu Dazhao in the face. She was clearly just using working overtime at the hospital as an excuse to mooch off of them.

“What are you talking about?!”

Qiu Dazhao was so domineering because she relied on her son being a director.

But Xia Qing’s words made her heart tremble. Then she saw her son’s dark face.

Qiu Dazhao was even more flustered. She opened her mouth, but she didn’t know what to say.

“Heping, Weimin, I’m making ribs at home. Come back with me.”

Xia Qing smiled at the two children. Before they could speak, Qiu Dazhao pulled them out.

“It’s not convenient for us to be here with a bunch of men eating.”

She ran quickly, afraid that Director Xu would really get angry. Xia Qing apologized to everyone.

“Sorry to interrupt you. Enjoy your meal.”

She took Xu Qiao and left the yard. It was clear that Xia Qing was well-mannered.

Although she was a little fierce, her values were sound.

Tang Wan secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It was better if they could solve it themselves. If they had stepped in, it might have affected Lu Huaijing

“Huaijing, you take everyone to the living room first. I have one more soup. I’ll bring it out soon.”

“Okay.”

Lu Huaijing also cheered up and invited everyone to the living room. A few younger soldiers joked and eased the awkward atmosphere.

When Tang Wan went into the kitchen, she saw Tang Zhou obediently ladling out the soup. It was a full pot.

It was radish and bone soup, and it smelled delicious.

“I’ll take it out first.”

Tang Wan carried a large pot of bone soup out. They didn’t have enough tables and chairs. Besides Lu Huaijing and Director Xu,

many people were standing around the table. Tang Wan felt a little embarrassed.

“I haven’t had time to make some chairs yet.”

“It’s okay, Sister-in-law. We can stand and eat. We used to eat standing up with bowls in our hands in our hometown.”

“Yeah, yeah. We have so many people. How many chairs would we need? You don’t use them much anyway.”

“Thank you for your hard work, Sister-in-law. These dishes look incredibly delicious.”

“…”

Director Xu was a man with a clear gaze. He pointed to the seat next to Lu Huaijing and said,

“Sister-in-law, these stinky boys are used to being casual. Don’t spoil them. Come sit down and eat.”

“Thank you, Director Xu. You guys eat. I left some food in the kitchen. I won’t interrupt your brothers’ chat.”

Tang Wan was telling the truth. They were all young men. It would be awkward for her, a woman, to sit with them.

Lu Huaijing took the soup pot from Tang Wan. He didn’t force Tang Wan, but he said to Director Xu,

“There are too many people. She’s shy.”

“Okay, thank you for your hard work, Sister-in-law.”

Director Xu also agreed with Lu Huaijing. After all, they hadn’t brought their families. It wouldn’t be convenient for Tang Wan, a woman, to squeeze in with everyone.

With Lu Huaijing entertaining them, Tang Wan went back to the kitchen. She left three large buns,

one for herself and two for Tang Zhou.

“Zhouzhou, eat quickly.”

“They all look so strong.”

Tang Zhou looked at the tall men outside through the crack in the door, his eyes full of admiration and envy.

“Then you eat well and grow taller. Sister supports you in contributing to the country.”

Tang Wan took a bite of a meat bun. She could hear their exclamations outside.

“Wow, Sister-in-law’s buns are so delicious. They’re fragrant!”

“The other dishes are good too. Lu Fuduan, you’ve found a treasure!”

“When I find a wife, I’m going to find one like Sister-in-law. She’s so skilled. Hehe…”

“…”

Tang Wan saw with her sharp eyes that they were grabbing the buns and using their chopsticks to quickly pick up the food in their bowls.

These were well-trained soldiers. They didn’t scramble for food in a chaotic way. These large buns were devoured in three or two bites by some people.

Before Tang Wan finished her meal, everyone outside had already finished eating.

“Zhouzhou, you eat first. I’ll go take a look.”

Tang Wan was a little shocked. She walked into the living room and saw that all the dishes were empty.

Even the cornbread she had added later was gone.

Perhaps her shocked expression was too obvious. Director Xu chuckled.

“Don’t laugh, Sister-in-law. The boys train hard, so they have big appetites.”

Perhaps it was because they had eaten her food, but Director Xu felt that Tang Wan was a pretty good person.

These dishes looked plentiful, but there wasn’t much meat. The vegetables were abundant.

She was a good homemaker. No wonder Lu Huaijing was so determined.

“I understand.”

Tang Wan looked at Lu Huaijing. “I was just wondering if I didn’t prepare enough. Should I make something else?”