“Come, let’s sit and eat,” said Gu Linchen’s second aunt as she picked up a piece of pig intestine and put it in her mouth. Instantly, she was shocked. She didn’t know how the intestine had been processed, but there was no unpleasant smell or fishiness at all—it was truly delicious. She casually picked up a coarse flatbread and ate it with the braised dish. It tasted great, and the whole family looked satisfied while eating.

Gu Linchen’s third uncle’s family was the same. At first, Gu Linchen’s third aunt was reluctant to try the pig offal, but after thinking that at least it was meat, she followed Gu Linchen’s mother’s suggestion and steamed it with rice.

“Mom, it smells so good!” Gu Li, the eldest daughter, said as she was cutting vegetables and turned to Gu’s third aunt, commenting on the aroma.

“Yes, it smells really good!” Gu Yue, sitting by the stove and tending the fire, inhaled deeply, enjoying the smell.

“Look at you two,” Gu Linchen’s third aunt said with a bit of a grumble, but inwardly, she agreed with them. She couldn’t help but admit that it did smell amazing.

“Mom!” her youngest son’s voice came before his figure appeared.

“Ai! Slow down, don’t trip!” Gu Linchen’s third aunt saw her youngest son running and quickly called out to him.

“Mom, what are you cooking? It smells so good! When can we eat?” he asked eagerly.

“Good boy, it’ll be ready soon. Go wash your hands. Look at you, you’re all dirty again!” Gu Linchen’s third aunt said affectionately as she looked at him. She turned to the third son who was following behind, “Take your brother to wash his hands.”

“Mom, I want to eat a lot!” The youngest son clung to her leg, shaking it.

“Alright! Go wash up, we’ll eat soon,” Gu Linchen’s third aunt replied.

By the time Gu Linchen’s third uncle came home, the meal was already on the table. Their youngest son was already complaining that he was hungry and wanted to eat. When Gu Linchen’s third aunt saw her husband walk in, she hurriedly greeted him, “Lao Gong, you’re home! Hurry and wash your face, we’re about to eat.”

Gu Linchen’s third uncle was startled by her enthusiasm. It had been a long time since she was this warm and welcoming. He quickly responded, “What’s going on today? You’re so happy.”

“Oh, it’s nothing special. Big Sister-in-law brought a bowl of pig offal today, said it was braised. But you know what? After it was cooked, it really smelled delicious,” she said, not mentioning that she had tasted it herself while chopping it, and it was even better than meat.

“Speaking of braised food, Big Brother invited me and Second Brother to his house tonight for dinner. I’ll change and head over after this.”

Gu Linchen’s third uncle washed his face. “Aren’t you eating here? Liang’er has been asking for food for a while.”

“You go eat with them, I’ll change my clothes and go.”

“Alright, I’ll go eat now, you hurry up and get ready to go.”

“Go ahead, don’t let the kids go hungry,” Gu Linchen’s third aunt called as she walked in. All four pairs of eyes in the room were fixed on her. “Eat, your father’s going to your uncle’s house.”

Before she finished speaking, the youngest son had already grabbed a piece of food and put it in his mouth.

“Mom, sit down,” Gu Li said as she placed a piece of pig’s head meat into her mother’s bowl.

Gu Linchen’s third aunt was also delighted. She took a spoonful of porridge, paired it with a piece of braised offal, and everyone at the table was eating contentedly, not bothering to touch the plate of vegetables.

Gu Linchen had just finished cooking the noodles when Gu Linchen’s second and third uncles arrived one after another. The kitchen was small and couldn’t fit everyone, so since it wasn’t dark yet, they moved the table outside. Gu Linchen brought the dishes to the table, and Gu Linchen’s second uncle’s eyes widened in surprise. There was chicken soup, meat, and even white rice without any coarse grains—this was really a lavish meal.

Gu Linchen’s father told them to sit down and eat without any formality, then took out the wine he had bought earlier. Gu Linchen poured a glass for everyone except for the younger children. They all sat around the table.

“Big Brother, this braised offal is really good. I tried a bit at home just now,” said Gu Linchen’s second uncle, grinning as he looked at the big bowl of braised food.

“I wasn’t lying to you! Come on, don’t just look, dig in!” Gu Linchen’s father said, picking up his chopsticks and starting to eat. Gu Linchen’s second and third uncles didn’t hold back and quickly joined in, immediately going for the braised offal.

Gu Linchen gave a piece of chicken blood to Feng Ge’er and Xige’er, asking them to try it. Xige’er took a bite and looked up, saying, “Dad, this is so delicious! It tastes just like eggs.”

“Then, since Xige’er likes it, eat more. Come, Dad will get you some chicken soup,” Gu Linchen said indulgently.

Feng Ge’er picked up a piece of chicken blood and took a small bite. He was shocked at how tender and smooth it was. He hadn’t known chicken blood could taste so good, so he put the whole piece in his mouth.

“Linchen, what’s that?” Gu Linchen’s third uncle asked, pointing to the dark red chunks on the plate.

“It’s stir-fried garlic sprouts with chicken blood,” Gu Linchen explained.

“You can make chicken blood like this?” Gu Linchen’s third uncle asked, surprised. He usually traveled for business and had never seen anything like this.

“Third Uncle, try it for yourself,” Gu Linchen suggested.

Gu Linchen’s second and third uncles each took a piece and tried it. They had expected only the braised offal to be delicious, but they didn’t expect the chicken blood to be so good too.

“Big Brother, this Linchen kid is quite a cook! He’s even better than the chefs in the town,” Gu Linchen’s third uncle said after taking a sip of wine.

“Hehe, if it’s good, eat more. Come, let me top up your glass,” Gu Linchen’s father laughed, his wrinkles deepening at the corners of his eyes.

When Gu Linchen’s mother saw that the three men had finished their rice, she went inside and brought out a pot of noodles.

“Second Uncle, Third Uncle, try mixing the braised offal and chicken offal with noodles, it’s really delicious,” Gu Linchen said as he served a bowl of noodles for Gu Linchen’s father, adding a spoonful of braised offal and chicken offal.

Gu Linchen’s father, having tried braised offal with noodles in the morning, knew that the sauce would mix well with the noodles. He took the bowl and ate heartily.

Gu Linchen’s second and third uncles also followed Gu Linchen’s steps and made their own bowls of noodles.

“Heh, I didn’t expect the noodles to be so good,” Gu Linchen’s third uncle remarked in amazement.

Gu Linchen’s second uncle focused on eating, and his speed had increased significantly compared to earlier.

Gu Linchen had two bowls of chicken soup and ate some stir-fried chicken blood and chicken offal until he was full. He looked at Feng Ge’er, who was eating while taking care of Xige’er. He decided to let him eat by himself while he served food to Xige’er. Xige’er was eating slowly, but his speed was a bit fast, and Gu Linchen worried he might choke. He kept reminding him to slow down while serving him food.

Xige’er thought the food tonight was abundant and delicious. Though his father had asked him to eat slowly, it tasted so good that he wanted to eat more. He couldn’t eat slowly or else Second and Third Grandfather would finish it all. He had already seen them finish several big bowls.

After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, they started to relax.

“Linchen, have you considered selling your food in the town?” Gu Linchen’s third uncle asked, thinking that even though the braised offal was made from offal, it was so delicious that people would definitely buy it if it were sold.

“I’m actually thinking about it. I want to try making it next time and take it to the town to see. It’s also good cold and mixed with noodles,” Gu Linchen replied.

“Hehe, we’ll have good food in the future!” Gu Linchen’s third uncle laughed.

After Gu Linchen’s second and third uncles left, only the family remained in the yard, digesting the food. Gu Linchen’s father looked at Gu Linchen and asked, “What are your plans?”

Gu Linchen understood that his father was asking about his earlier plan to sell food. “Dad, I want to give it a try. Our family also needs a way forward.”

Gu Linchen’s father thought for a moment. Eventually, he realized that the responsibility of supporting the family would fall on his son. As long as he could help now, it was good, but if he were to grow old and his son didn’t have any skills, how would the family survive then?