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Li Xia felt a bit embarrassed. “How could I accept this? Sister-in-law, this is something you should handle—I can’t just take it like that.”
Sister-in-law Tao replied, “I may be the one arranging the match, but you’re the one paying for it. Isn’t it only natural for you to take it? Besides, isn’t my family having dinner at your place tonight? We’re not cooking at home, and this pork offal needs to be cooked right away, or it’ll spoil in this weather.”
“Well, alright then. Thank you, Sister-in-law. Just let me know how you’d like it prepared, and I’ll cook it to your taste,” Li Xia said gratefully.
Sister-in-law Tao chuckled. “Your cooking is great—just make it the way you usually do. You don’t know this, but this morning, my three little rascals were complaining that my breakfast wasn’t nearly as tasty as yours.
“Since you’re hosting today, those three little troublemakers are making a fuss about wanting to eat your cooking too. When you’re done, just scoop out a small bowl for them, and that’ll be enough. I’ll pay you for it.”
These days, everyone was living under modest conditions. As military family members, their circumstances were better than the average people, but it was still an unspoken rule that children weren’t included when attending a housewarming meal. Otherwise, if everyone brought their kids, it would turn into a chaotic feast with too many mouths to feed.
Sister-in-law Tao hadn’t planned on letting her three kids join the meal, but they had pestered her so much that she finally brought it up to Li Xia, feeling a little embarrassed about the request.
However, Li Xia didn’t mind at all. “It’s really no problem, Sister-in-law. Just let them come over and eat. Our houses are so close, and kids don’t eat much anyway. Besides, you gave me so many vegetables this morning.”
“Well then, those little troublemakers are lucky today.” Seeing Li Xia’s generosity, Sister-in-law Tao didn’t insist further.
Li Xia smiled. “It makes me happy to know people enjoy my cooking.”
Aside from buying meat and pork offal, Li Xia also noticed that the supply and marketing cooperative was selling a good variety of mushrooms. She picked out some boletus and bought a bundle of dried rice noodles.
…
When they returned home, Sister-in-law Tao went back to her own house first.
By the time Li Xia arrived, Gu Weicheng had already finished fixing the bed.
This time, the wooden planks he brought were solid and sturdy. After securing them in place, he even jumped on the bed twice to test it, and it didn’t budge at all.
At the moment, Gu Weicheng and An An were busy in the courtyard. Father and son were working together—one hammering away with a mallet, while the other carefully handed over nails and wooden pieces. It was unclear what they were building.
An An was so focused on his task that when he saw Li Xia return, he only called out, “Mommy, you’re back!”
“What are you two up to?” Li Xia asked.
When her gaze met Gu Weicheng’s, she couldn’t help but recall what Sister-in-law Tao had said earlier. Just thinking about it now made her ears feel a little hot.
She took a deep breath to steady herself. There was nothing to feel embarrassed about. The bed had collapsed for reasons entirely different from what they had assumed.
An An, excited, exclaimed, “Daddy is making something fun for me!”
“Alright then, you two continue. I’ll go make breakfast. How about we have rice noodles this morning?”
“Mm-hmm, sounds great!”
People from Yuncheng loved eating rice noodles, while those from Luzhou County preferred rice vermicelli. Li Xia figured that despite the different names, she could prepare the rice noodles just like vermicelli.
She started by soaking the dried rice noodles in cold water. Then, she washed the boletus mushrooms thoroughly and chopped them into slices. Finally, she took a small piece of the meat they had bought and minced it into tiny bits.
She heated oil in the pan, and once it was hot, she added the boletus mushrooms and minced meat, stirring until the aroma filled the air.
Before long, the enticing fragrance drifted into the courtyard.
An An, who had been handing wooden planks to his father, paused and sniffed the air like a little puppy. “Daddy, it smells so good~”
Gu Weicheng agreed. Since joining the army, he had rarely returned home and hadn’t tasted his hometown’s rice noodles in years. People in Yuncheng loved rice vermicelli, which had its own delicious flavor, but he still longed for the taste of home.
Just then, Li Xia called out, “Time to eat.”
“Alright, let’s eat first,” Gu Weicheng took An An to wash their hands.
Once the rice noodles had softened, she boiled them in hot water for about three minutes before scooping them into bowls. She then ladled a generous amount of the stir-fried boletus and minced meat over the noodles and sprinkled some chopped green onions on top. The fragrance was irresistible.
Knowing that Gu Weicheng had a big appetite, Li Xia served his portion in the largest soup bowl they had, filling it to the brim.
“So fragrant!” An An couldn’t wait and started eating right away.
Gu Weicheng picked up a large bite and slurped it down. The rich flavors of the boletus mushrooms and minced meat had fully infused into the rice noodles, making each bite savory and delicious.
Though he didn’t say anything, the way he ate in big mouthfuls made it clear to Li Xia that he loved it.
For the one who cooked, seeing her food enjoyed so much was a kind of happiness. Li Xia smiled.
Just then, a voice came from the courtyard—Hu Songlin’s. “Old Gu, what are you guys eating today? It smells amazing!”
“It’s Uncle Hu!” An An immediately recognized the voice.
Hu Songlin was a humorous man who loved joking around with kids, and An An was quite fond of him.
As soon as he finished speaking, Hu Songlin had already stepped inside. “Sister-in-law, your cooking skills are incredible! I caught the aroma the moment I entered the courtyard. Old Gu is really lucky.”
Li Xia asked, “Have you had breakfast yet? I still have some rice noodles soaking—how about I cook you a bowl?”
Hu Songlin patted his stomach, pretending not to notice Gu Weicheng’s warning glance. “I did eat earlier, but your cooking smells so good that it’s making me hungry all over again.”
“Alright, I’ll cook you a bowl. It’ll be quick—just wait two or three minutes.”
Li Xia wasn’t used to eating too much in the morning, so she had only made herself a small bowl, which she had already finished by now.
She went into the kitchen while Hu Songlin played with An An. Before long, Li Xia brought out a steaming bowl of rice noodles. “Here you go. Eat first, and if it’s not enough, just let me know. No need to be polite.”
“Thank you, Sister-in-law!” Hu Songlin said cheerfully.
Hu Songlin took a bite of the noodles and leaned toward Gu Weicheng, lowering his voice so only the two of them could hear. “Old Gu, I heard you broke the bed last night? You’re really too rough—don’t you know how to be gentle?… Ow—!”
Outside, Li Xia heard Hu Songlin’s yelp and walked over. “What’s wrong? Does it not taste good?”
“No, no, it’s delicious! It’s just so good that I couldn’t help but make a sound,” Hu Songlin quickly forced a smile and waved his hand dismissively.
Only after Li Xia walked away did he lower his voice again. “Gu Weicheng, why did you step on me? What did I say wrong?”
Gu Weicheng’s expression darkened. “Who did you hear that from?”
There were no nails at home, so this morning, Gu Weicheng had gone to Commander Ma’s house to borrow some nails and a hammer. He had even made a point to pull Commander Ma aside to ask for them privately.
Commander Ma wasn’t the type to gossip, and Gu Weicheng trusted him.
Hu Songlin smirked. “I heard it from Old Ma’s second son. Seriously, how did you even let that kid find out? You know he can’t keep his mouth shut.
“By now, I’d bet half the military district has heard that Commander Gu’s bed collapsed.”
Gu Weicheng fell silent. So, it was Ma Aidang who had overheard.
“If you’re done eating, you can leave now.” Gu Weicheng didn’t want to hear another word about this—especially in case Li Xia happened to overhear.
He himself didn’t mind much. If Hu Songlin wanted to tease him a little, so be it. He was just worried that Li Xia might feel embarrassed.
Hu Songlin was being pushed out, still protesting, “My soup, my soup! I haven’t finished my soup yet!”
Gu Weicheng ignored his complaints and continued to drive him away.
“Fine, fine, I’ll leave.” Hu Songlin glanced toward Li Xia in the courtyard and called out, “Sister-in-law, your cooking is amazing. I’ll come back tonight!”
Li Xia replied, “Alright.”
But Hu Songlin wasn’t done yet. He added with a grin, “Sister-in-law, don’t let Old Gu eat too much. Let him go hungry a little—otherwise, he’ll have too much energy, and before you know it, he’ll be breaking the bed again tonight.”
Hmph. That’s what Gu Weicheng got for not letting him finish his soup.