Chapter 13

They had already grilled fish once before—it was delicious—so now everyone was looking forward to the taste of the mackerel dumplings.

“Even though I haven’t tasted them yet, I just know these mackerel dumplings will be delicious,” said the eldest daughter-in-law, Madam Zhu.

The second daughter-in-law, Madam Zhang, nodded in agreement. “Wheat flour dumplings are already tasty no matter the filling, but I’m curious what mackerel-filled ones will taste like.”

The sisters-in-law were chatting cheerfully. Ever since Little Sweet Treasure Xiao Tianbao arrived and brought such great fortune to the family, everyone had been in high spirits.

Naturally, everyone was cheerful, and past frictions and unpleasantness had vanished.

Old Madam Zhou, after visiting Little Sweet Xiao Tianbao, came out to make chicken soup for Liu, who couldn’t eat spicy food.

Meanwhile, Madam Zou began preparing the mackerel dumpling filling. The key to this filling was peppercorn, ginger, and scallion-infused water. The mackerel was finely chopped and mixed with fatty pork belly.

Normally, adding chives would enhance the flavor, but since it wasn’t the season, they used scallions instead.

The mixing of the filling had its own technique—while stirring, peppercorn water was gradually added. The filling needed to be slightly loose but still springy.

Madam Zhang kneaded the dough and let it rest before rolling it out for dumplings. Madam Zhu went to grill the fish.

There was also grilled chicken left over from yesterday. Old Madam Zhou thought last night’s meal was too greasy, so they saved it for today’s lunch.

Today’s meal was as grand as a New Year’s feast. Old Madam Zhou felt it was time to improve the family’s meals a bit now that they were making money.

No one went fishing or worked in the hills today—a day of rest, since food like this had to be made fresh to taste best.

At noon, the chicken soup was done, its aroma filling the house.

Old Madam Zhou ladled the soup into a big bowl and had the chicken and drumsticks sent by Madam Zhang to Liu. The rest would be saved for Liu’s evening meal.

The grilled fish was brought to the table, along with the leftover roast chicken. The children didn’t even run around today—they stayed inside, waiting eagerly, lured by the smell.

The mackerel dumplings were cooked, drained, and placed neatly on a plate before being served.

Once Old Madam Zhou climbed onto the heated brick bed, everyone gathered around the table. Although the family was large, there were enough dumplings for everyone.

“Did you send some to the fourth daughter-in-law?” Old Madam Zhou asked.

Madam Zhang quickly nodded. “Yes, she can eat these dumplings. It’s my turn to cook these days, and don’t worry, Mother—I always think of her when making food.”

Old Madam Zhou nodded. “Good. Then let’s eat. Today, we feast. We’ve all been blessed by Sweetie Bao’s fortune.”

Everyone first tasted the mackerel dumplings. Freshly wrapped and cooked, they burst with flavor—absolutely delicious.

Mackerel is normally hard to flavor and has a strong fishy taste, but in dumpling form, mixed with fatty pork, the texture was juicy and springy—like meatballs.

Add to that the rich, aromatic broth and the wheat flour wrappers they didn’t usually have—wow, they were incredible.

Usually, the kids would chatter during meals. Today, heads were down, focused on the dumplings, not a word spoken for fear of missing a bite.

Madam Zhang marveled, “Wow, this is really good. We’ve lived by the sea all these years and never had such tasty mackerel. With Sweetie Bao here, we’re all blessed!”

Old Madam Zhou agreed, “Indeed, in my old age, I finally get to enjoy some comfort. I didn’t enjoy these blessings from my sons or grandsons—but now, I get to enjoy them from my little granddaughter.”

The Song family couldn’t stop praising the food. Old Master Song ate while quietly thinking: he must have accumulated good karma in a past life for a little goddess like this to be born into their home.

Now he was just waiting for Little Sweet Treasure Xiao Tianbao to complete her first month. Then, he could finally go see her in person—he couldn’t wait to meet this extraordinary granddaughter.

Days passed as Old Master Song eagerly waited, and finally, Little Sweet Treasure Xiao Tianbao reached her one-month milestone.

Fishing continued to be fruitful, and money flowed into the household. Life had improved for everyone thanks to Sweetie Bao’s arrival.

Little Sweet Treasure Xiao Tianbao looked at the kind, gentle old man in front of her and smiled so hard her eyes squinted into slits. He looked at her like she was the most precious treasure.

Little Sweet Treasure Xiao Tianbao: “This is my grandpa. He totally looks like the head of the household—he’s led the Song family for years, with a big, filial family. In this hard-to-earn-money era, he still makes sure everyone eats and has clothes. That’s not easy. I heard Grandpa traveled all over when he was young—he’s really seen the world.”

Her sweet and childish flattery made Old Master Song laugh with joy. As a man and elder, there was no greater compliment than being praised as a capable head of the household.

He thought of his mischievous grandsons—always shouting “Grandpa! Grandpa!”—either climbing on the roof for birds, getting stuck on walls, or fighting each other to tears.

Then he looked at Little Sweet Treasure Xiao Tianbao—so cute and well-behaved, with chubby cheeks and big eyes even rounder than his three grandsons’.

“Little Swet Treasure Xiao Tianbao, I am Grandpa. I must’ve done a lot of good deeds in my past life and burned the right incense for you to be born into our family.”

This truly was how Old Master Song felt. With steady income and no more worries about food or clothing, their blessings clearly came from Little Sweet Treasure Xiao Tianbao.

Little Sweet Treasure Xiao Tianbao giggled and kicked her chubby little legs. Her innocent charm made everyone adore her from the heart.

Old Madam Zhou came in, looked at Old Master Song’s glowing expression, and laughed, “We waited most of our lives for a girl and finally got one. Look at you—you’re so happy you don’t know where you are.”

Liu smiled too, saying, “I was waiting for a daughter too, and finally, she’s here.”

Old Master Song played with Little Sweet Treasure Xiao Tianbao while Old Madam Zhou and Liu chatted.

“Mother, we’ll be planting soon. Are we growing corn again this year?” Liu asked.

Old Madam Zhou nodded. “Yes, your father said we’re still planting corn, but it looks like it’s going to be a rough year—no rain yet.”

Because the region was coastal, even the hills had sandy soil—more barren than average.

Only crops like corn and sorghum could grow with slightly better yields. But still, farming here depended heavily on the weather.

Song Tian’er thought to herself—it’d be better to grow sweet potatoes. She’d asked the rooster and found that sweet potatoes didn’t exist in this era yet.

Sweet potatoes were high-yield, easy to store, delicious, and a treasure for people who lacked sugar in their diets.

For now, she was too young, so she planned to help the Song family accumulate wealth. Later, she could use that capital to start her own business.

After all, to get a Wishing Fruit, she needed to earn money from this era, and couldn’t use goods from her space. Starting from scratch was hard—but it’d be easier with some capital.