Chapter 34: One Pot Fish Stew in an Iron Wok

From outside the curtain came Qiu Qianjin’s voice, “The milk is ready, Cousin Qingqing, come take it.”

He Ziqing immediately lifted the curtain slightly and took the bowl, replying, “I’ll come help you in the kitchen in a bit.”

“No need, Cousin Qingqing,” Qiu Qianjin responded, “You and my sister have been on the road for so long. You two just rest. I’ll be done soon.”

Cheng Hongying interjected, “Qingqing, give me the bowl. You better go watch that stinky brat in the kitchen. His cooking tastes awful. Niu’er’s feeding the babies now—she can’t eat the slop he makes.”

Standing right outside the door, Qiu Qianjin was speechless. Of course she’s his mother. Does she have to crush his confidence like that?

They hadn’t prepared anything special for the New Year, but now that his sister was back, they couldn’t just serve plain fish.

“Cousin Qingqing, use whatever you like in the kitchen. I need to head out for a bit.”

“Alright.”

He Ziqing had come here to help anyway, so she didn’t mind doing most of the household work.

Especially after all that had happened—Sister Yinuo hadn’t abandoned her. Instead, she brought her along in their escape. He Ziqing felt deeply grateful.

If there were forty-two hours in a day, she would gladly work every single one just to repay Sister Yinuo’s immense kindness.

About fifteen minutes later, Qiu Qianjin returned carrying a small piece of lean pork and a big bowl of mixed flour.

“Cousin Qingqing, use this mixed flour however you want. We still have cabbage, potatoes, and radishes in the cellar. Do you need anything else?”

“No, just bring up a bit of each.”

“Alright, hang on.”

Before long, He Ziqing had cooked a big pot of fish stew. She added cabbage, potatoes, radishes, and some dried tofu they had brought from the city.

She then pressed the mixed flour dough along the edge of the wok like a ring. In no time, the entire pot gave off a delicious aroma.

Qiu Qianjin was practically drooling at the smell.

He gave He Ziqing a big thumbs-up. “Cousin Qingqing, your cooking is amazing!”

“I’m decent. Your sister’s the one with real skills—everything she makes tastes incredible.”

Qiu Qianjin nodded in agreement. He actually missed his sister’s cabbage and dried fish stew the most. That flavor…

He couldn’t help slurping at the memory, and right after came a loud rumble from his stomach.

Embarrassed, he covered his face. “I only had a bowl of brown rice porridge this morning. Haven’t eaten anything else.”

“Then you better eat more later.”

“Of course. I won’t waste Cousin Qingqing’s kindness!”

…

After such a cold journey, the two babies hadn’t slept well at all.

Now that they were warm and full, lying on the heated kang bed, they quickly drifted off into a deep sleep.

Their cheeks were rosy from the warmth, so adorable that Cheng Hongying felt her heart melt.

“How long are you planning to stay this time?” She sincerely hoped Niu’er would stay longer, but she also knew how stubborn her daughter was—once she made up her mind, she rarely changed it.

“How long do you want me to stay?”

Cheng Hongying shot her a glance. “Until after the New Year, of course.”

“Alright then.”

“If you’re not willing, then at least wait until the babies are weaned… Wait, you agreed?”

“Yeah.”

She was surprisingly agreeable, which made Cheng Hongying feel a bit uneasy. Just as she was about to press further, Jinzi came in carrying a big basin of fish.

“Mom, Cousin Qingqing’s fish stew smells amazing. Come eat!”

Cheng Hongying hushed him. “Keep it down, the babies are sleeping.”

Jinzi quickly nodded and whispered, “You two come eat. I’ll go check on my little nephews first.”

He went over to the kang and looked at the two chubby babies. Their features bore a faint resemblance to the Qiu family, and he felt a rush of warmth in his heart. “Mom, don’t you think their mouths look a bit like mine?”

“They do look a bit like you.”

“Like uncle, like nephews. That saying really holds true,” Qiu Qianjin said proudly, unable to take his eyes off the babies. He could stare at them all night.

“Oh right, which one’s Dabao and which one’s Erbao?”

Cheng Hongying pointed at the baby closest to her. “This one’s Erbao. He’s got thicker eyebrows. People say thick brows mean deep affection and loyalty. That one over there is Dabao, see the thick earlobes? That means he’s destined for a blessed life.”

“Mom, you’re amazing! You actually told them apart just like that. I thought they looked exactly the same.”

Qiu Yinuo gave her a glance and calmly corrected, “The one with the thick eyebrows is Dabao. The one with the thick earlobes is Erbao.”

Cheng Hongying: “…”

Qiu Qianjin: “???”

Just then, He Ziqing walked in carrying a pot full of flatbread. “Everything’s ready. Let’s eat!”

Because the twins were asleep, everyone kept their voices low as they ate.

Qiu Qianjin picked out a large piece of fish for his sister. When she gave him a calm glance, he immediately understood. “Oh right, you don’t like picking out fish bones. I’ll do it for you.”

Qiu Yinuo: “…”

It wasn’t that she didn’t like picking bones—when their father was around, good food like this never made it to the original owner’s bowl.

She pulled the fish back in front of her and began carefully picking out the bones herself.

Silver carp didn’t have too many bones, but it still took some effort to clean them out thoroughly.

“Here you go.” Qiu Qianjin handed the boneless fish back to her, flashing a pleased smile.

He Ziqing, having heard from their aunt that there was some tension between the siblings, had decided to put in a good word for Qiu Qianjin. She could see he wasn’t some spoiled only-child.

“Sister Yinuo, Qianjin brought back some lean pork earlier. Tomorrow I’ll make something else for you with it.”

Cheng Hongying paused. “Where’d you get the meat?”

“I borrowed it from Dongzi’s family. I’ll bring them something in return later.”

Qiu Yinuo pressed her lips together. “We’ll eat whatever we have at home. Don’t borrow from others again.”

Qiu Qianjin froze for a moment, a little caught off guard, then nodded obediently.

Seeing that everyone else was only eating cabbage and radish, and no one had touched the fish, Qiu Yinuo felt a pang of guilt. She picked up a piece and placed it in her mother’s bowl, then another for He Ziqing. “There’s so much fish here. I can’t finish it by myself. You all should eat too.”

She also placed a large piece into Qianjin’s bowl. “You eat some too.”

Qianjin stared at her, stunned. He looked down at the fish in his bowl, then up at his sister’s calm face, wondering if he was seeing things.

His sister… served him food?

For as long as he could remember, as long as their parents were around, she had always acted cold toward him—like a rebel on purpose. She never once gave him the slightest warmth.

Only when it was just the two of them would she occasionally show rare affection—taking him out to play or saving her candy just for him.

But now, in front of their mother, she had actually served him fish. She really didn’t remember anything.

Maybe that was a good thing. Maybe from now on, they could finally get along.

Qiu Qianjin’s eyes turned red with emotion, his heart bursting with joy.

If the twins hadn’t been asleep, he would’ve jumped up, spun his sister around, and cheered out loud.

Instead, he lowered his head and quietly savored the fish in his bowl, bite by small bite, reluctant to finish it too fast.

Qiu Yinuo: “…” It’s just one piece of fish, was that really necessary?

Cheng Hongying noticed everything and felt just as happy inside.

Finally, these two siblings were getting along.

During winter, to save firewood, the mother and son usually shared a room and slept on one heated bed.

But now that Qiu Yinuo was back, she couldn’t sleep in the same room as them.

They gave the large kang bed to Qiu Yinuo, He Ziqing, and the twins, while Cheng Hongying and Qianjin moved to a smaller room—Qiu Yinuo’s old bedroom.