Chapter 5: Quarrel

Just at that moment, Lihua came in and called out,
“Daohua, Linghua, you two lazy girls! Hurry up and get dressed and come eat breakfast!”

Xia Daohua struggled to suppress the urge to grab some clothes from the supermarket, enduring the discomfort as she forced herself into the hollow cotton-padded jacket and pants. While dressing, she asked Lihua:

“Sis, what are Second Aunt and the others arguing about so early in the morning?”

Linghua pouted, rubbing her eyes with her little fists, still dazed as she whined at Lihua,
“Nooo, nooo, I’m not awake yet…”

Lihua leaned over, and with practiced hands, pulled Linghua’s upper body out of the quilt, propping her up so she could sit steadily. As she helped her into the padded jacket, she answered Daohua’s question:

“What else? When are those two not arguing? Just so happens they both want to cook this morning—fighting over who gets to use the main kitchen first! I’m telling you, if they spent half as much energy cooking as they do bickering, they’d have made several meals by now!”

In the past, the Xia family had one big household. Everyone ate together, and the four daughters-in-law took turns cooking.

They only needed to steam some wild vegetable and millet cakes on bamboo trays, make a big pot of porridge, slice up half a preserved radish—and that would be breakfast for the whole family, all done.

But now that the family was split, they couldn’t eat that way anymore.

Since they weren’t eating together, cooking naturally had to be done in shifts.

The people from the eldest branch usually lived in town and didn’t use the main kitchen.

The fourth branch got up early. Before the second and third branches even woke up, Xia Youtian and his wife Jiang had already fetched all the water needed for the day. Then Jiang cooked breakfast while Lihua assisted. The two of them were quick and efficient—within 15 minutes, breakfast was on the table.

As Lihua spoke, she finished dressing Linghua and helped her into her shoes, then guided her to hop off the heated brick bed. On the other side, Daohua had also finished dressing and obediently climbed down from her side of the bed.

Lihua casually folded the bedding into a neat square and tucked it into the bed cabinet. Then she grabbed a broom and swept the surface of the kang bed clean. In the blink of an eye, the whole sleeping area was tidy and orderly.

The three little girls, hand in hand, went together to the main room to eat breakfast.

The table had already been set in the main room.

Sticky millet bean buns sat steaming on the tabletop, white steam curling upward. A large bowl of thin millet porridge gave off an inviting aroma. The shredded pickles had been cut fine, topped with a few drops of sesame oil and a sprinkle of chopped scallions… It all looked delicious even before tasting!

Xia Youtian and Jiang were already eating.

When Wulang saw the girls come in, he quickly got up and urged them to sit and eat.

Lihua took Linghua by the hand and tugged Daohua along, pulling the two little girls aside to wash their hands with warm water leftover from steaming the buns. Then she wiped each of their faces clean with a hot towel before letting them sit at the table to eat.

This was the first time the entire fourth branch sat together like this, warmly and affectionately enjoying breakfast as a family.

Back before the family split, every meal at the old Xia household was eaten together.

The old man and old lady had their own small kang table. The rest sat separately: one table for the men, one for the women, and another for the older kids.

When it was the fourth branch’s turn to cook, Jiang had to bring Lihua and Daohua along to rush around preparing the food, while Wulang and the younger Linghua were allowed to sit down early with the children.

Xia Daohua sincerely felt that this—just the family sitting together—was much more comfortable.

In her past life, she had eaten most of her meals alone.

Occasionally she dined or drank with friends. In earlier years, she had meals with her boss and coworkers. Memories of eating with family were already a distant thing.

Her parents had divorced when she was very young. Both remarried and seemed to have forgotten they ever had a daughter. During key moments in her life, it was her grandfather who was by her side.

Later, after her grandfather passed away, she was completely alone.

The dream of opening a supermarket had stemmed from her childhood, when she loved playing at the small shop at the village entrance. Her grandfather had told her more than once that he wanted to save up and open a small supermarket for her, so she could eat whatever she liked.

Xia Daohua looked up and blinked hard, forcing back the tears that almost spilled over.

Traveling back to ancient times, despite all the hardships and discomforts, there was at least one good thing—she finally had a family that cared about her.

The whole family sat together, warm and cheerful, enjoying their breakfast. As they ate, they quietly perked up their ears to listen to the loud quarrel coming from the main kitchen.

Second Aunt had long harbored resentment over the division of the family. Third Aunt was always someone competitive and unwilling to back down. Even before the family split, the two of them would quarrel every few days.

Now with a “legitimate reason,” the argument was even more dramatic.

Jiang took a couple of sips of porridge to pad her stomach, then stood up, intending to go stop the fight.

Lihua slammed her chopsticks down angrily:
“You’re not allowed to go!”

Jiang couldn’t help feeling both exasperated and amused.
“Lihua, how can you talk to your mother like that? You think you’re in charge now?”

Xia Youtian also frowned.
“Lihua, is that any way to speak to your mother?”

Lihua responded furiously:
“Mom, why do you always want to meddle? Let them argue if they want to! If you go and try to mediate, both of them will just take it out on you!”

Wulang also nodded in agreement. His tone was calm, but his words cut even deeper than Lihua’s:

“Exactly, Mom. Those two never listen to reason or care about right or wrong. If you go to stop them, they won’t appreciate your kindness—they might even accuse you of stirring the pot or watching for drama. Better not tire yourself out. Just enjoy your meal.”

Daohua gave Linghua a glance, and the two girls darted to Jiang’s sides, each grabbing one of her arms and clinging tightly:

“Mom, don’t go. Stay and eat with us!”

“Mom, don’t go~ Linghua’s scared…”

Seeing how united the children were, Xia Youtian also spoke up:
“The kids are right. Sit down and eat.”

Though Xia Youtian didn’t say much, one word from him was more effective than ten thousand from the kids.

Hearing this, Jiang still looked a little uneasy, but she eventually sat back down. She picked up her chopsticks, grabbed a sticky bean bun, took a few bites, and slowly started sipping her porridge with some pickled vegetables.

Seeing that Jiang had finally listened, the children all let out a quiet sigh of relief. Daohua and Linghua also returned to their seats.

Xia Daohua picked up a sticky yellow millet bean bun and took a bite. It was soft and sweet, with a slight hint of bitterness—but that was completely overpowered by the rich, rustic grain aroma.

The bean paste inside was quite good too, full of rich bean flavor with a touch of natural earthiness. The texture was chewy and subtly sweet, clearly made without any added sugar.

“So delicious!” Xia Daohua praised sincerely.

“Isn’t it? Those beans were ones we harvested together back in the autumn. Do you remember, Daohua?” Lihua asked cautiously, her tone a bit tentative.

(End of Chapter)