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Although Jiang Yue’s arrival put a damper on things, it didn’t interrupt the Jiang family’s excitement for their dinner of meat and extra servings that night!
Where did the meat come from?
Wasn’t Jiang Shouhai and his brothers out in the mountains collecting firewood today?
They got lucky and brought back a plump, fat wild chicken, along with a whole nest of wild eggs—more than ten of them.
Zhou Guiyun waved her hand generously and said, “We’ll eat it all, don’t leave any behind!”
That was truly being generous.
As daughters-in-law, Zhao Aiying, Zhao Aifeng, and Su Zhirou were all quite happy, smiling as they praised their mother-in-law. “Mother, you’re treating us so well for all our hard work during the harvest season. You’re giving us a good supplement!”
It’s true that Zhou Guiyun did have this intention.
After a whole season of autumn harvest, who doesn’t feel a bit worn out?
Although her daughter had been generous, bringing back plenty of meat to make braised dishes for the family to nourish their bodies, it was still exhausting.
Now, since the meat came from the mountain for free, there was no need to save it—just enjoy it!
After boiling the water, the sisters-in-law quickly plucked the feathers from the wild chicken. Jiang Qian smiled as she worked in the kitchen with her mother.
During busy farming seasons, Jiang Qian couldn’t help with the farming, but she took care of everything else at home.
And she always found ways to make delicious meals for the whole family.
No one knew exactly how she did it, but whatever she cooked always tasted exceptionally good.
Zhou Guiyun was particularly pleased with this because she thought her daughter was just like her.
Back in the days when they used large pots to cook for everyone, Zhou Guiyun was one of the people who handled the cooking!
Whoever ate the meals she made always praised them as delicious.
Cooking truly is an innate talent, and Jiang Qian was born with the ability to cook. Otherwise, how could she have become a food blogger with millions of followers after just a year?
It wasn’t just about managing the account; it required real skill.
Because she was so skilled, every time the family needed to cook meat or make bone broth soup, Jiang Qian would step in to help.
She’d sweetly say it was so she could learn from her mother.
Zhou Guiyun was so flattered by the praise that she couldn’t stop smiling.
The wild chicken wasn’t very big, only about two pounds, and Jiang Qian used it to make a simple dish with wood ear mushrooms.
There were plenty of dried mushrooms and wood ear mushrooms in the house, all stored up during the summer.
While boiling the water to prepare the chicken, the wood ears had already been soaked in warm water. Once the chicken was cleaned, the wood ears were nearly ready as well.
So she threw them all into the pot and started simmering—just a simple dish of wood ear mushrooms stewed with chicken.
Zhou Guiyun didn’t even need to get involved; she just watched her daughter work. Before long, the rich, irresistible aroma filled the air.
Even the nephews and nieces couldn’t help but breathe in deeply. The neighbor from next door couldn’t resist coming over and asking, “Are you all having meat again?”
There was an undeniable hint of envy in her tone.
The Jiang family’s conditions were truly impressive. During the autumn harvest season, the house was always filled with delicious smells, with the scent of braised pork offal, pig ears, and so on wafting through the air.
But the autumn harvest was exhausting, and other families in the village who had the means also liked to go to town and buy some meat to bring home and replenish their energy.
However, with the harvest now over, and no work left to be done, every household was starting to tighten their belts and live more frugally. Yet here, there was still the aroma of meat filling the air.
Zhou Guiyun was actually a low-key person. She didn’t like to show off, but her daughter’s skills were just too good. She smiled and explained, “Today, the brothers went into the mountains to gather firewood. They were lucky and caught a wild chicken, so we decided to stew it.”
Hearing this, the neighbor couldn’t help but envy them even more. “When it comes to skill, your family certainly knows how to do things right!”
Zhou Guiyun also praised the neighbor’s son, highlighting his strengths and complementing him in a way that left the neighbor smiling, clearly pleased.
However, she didn’t forget to ask Zhou Guiyun if the family had settled things with the Han family.
In her heart, Zhou Guiyun felt that it was almost certain, and she was very satisfied with Han Shiguo. However, she was the type to always leave room for ambiguity in her words. So, she simply expressed that it was up to the young people to decide for themselves.
“If the young ones are happy, then there’s no problem,” she said.
“Jiang Qian will definitely be happy,” the neighbor lady said. “She’s not like Jiang Yue, who is blind to good things. How could she let such a fine fiancé slip away?”
After this incident, the whole village had been gossiping about Jiang Yue being blind, and even Jiang Qian’s second uncle and his wife, Sun Shi, were being criticized for letting their daughter act out like that.
“How can the daughter be so clueless, and the parents as well?” they said. “She doesn’t want a perfect man like Han Shiguo—does she think she’s going to marry a fairy?”
Zhou Guiyun replied, “It’s not that she’s blind, just that there was no fate between them. Maybe there’s someone even better waiting for her.”
After all, she was her niece. Zhou Guiyun could scold and reprimand her, but she didn’t want to air her grievances to outsiders.
“Could anyone be better than the Han family? I’ve seen it with my own eyes—their presence, oh, I could tell right away they’re destined for big things. Your daughter, Jiang Qian, is truly blessed. No wonder that old blind man predicted she would live a life of luxury!”
These words from the neighbor hit right at the core of Zhou Guiyun’s heart. Compliments about her daughter’s good fortune were always welcome. She smiled happily as she chatted with the neighbor for a while before heading back inside.
As she entered the kitchen, Jiang Qian, who was busy cooking, looked up and smiled warmly at her. Zhou Guiyun returned the smile and asked, “What’s the matter, mother?”
This was one of the reasons Jiang Qian had adjusted so well after crossing over—she had never felt so loved before. Her mother, Zhou Guiyun, dote on her so much.
Although her father didn’t express his feelings much, he showed his love through actions.
Zhou Guiyun smiled and said, “I was just thinking, once you’re married, I won’t be able to enjoy the meals you cook for me anymore.”
Jiang Qian’s face turned a little red. “Then I won’t get married. I’ll cook for you for the rest of my life, Mother.”
Zhou Guiyun felt very touched by her words. She smiled playfully and said, “I don’t want that! What I hope for is that you quickly find a good match, get married, and give me a few grandchildren!”
As the two of them laughed together, the pot of wild chicken and wood ear mushroom stew was ready. In addition to the stew, Jiang Qian had also prepared a cucumber salad, and finally, there was a bowl of tomato egg drop soup. They were having cornmeal rice for the meal.
“Still, it’s all thanks to little sister’s cooking skills. This aroma is simply incredible!” praised Zhao Aiying, the eldest sister-in-law.
Zhao Aifeng also complimented, “We won’t get to enjoy it too many times, though.” Her teasing tone was just like her mother-in-law’s.
Su Zhirou smiled.
Jiang Qian quickly passed a piece of meat to her second sister-in-law, “Second sister-in-law, you should eat some meat!”
“Are you trying to use meat to shut me up?” Zhao Aifeng joked.
The whole family laughed together.
After the three brothers, Jiang Shouhai, Jiang Shoutao, and Jiang Shouhe, returned, they also heard about the events of the day. When they heard the neighbors praising their future brother-in-law, they all planned to meet him properly tomorrow.
“Eat, eat,” Zhou Guiyun intervened, helping her daughter out of the situation.
Under Zhou Guiyun’s fair distribution, everyone got their share of meat. In her house, there was no such thing as daughters-in-law eating the thin soup while the children got the thick portions.
Everything was evenly distributed.
However, when it came to the parents, they couldn’t bear to eat themselves, so they gave the meat to their children, and Zhou Guiyun didn’t mind.
After finishing dinner and cleaning up, the family gathered together to chat.
Jiang Qian mentioned that her third sister-in-law had passed the school’s assessment easily earlier today. “Third sister-in-law has a solid cultural foundation, and since she’s from a big city, the school was very satisfied. It’s best to have her come in to take over in the future.”
When Jiang Qian said this, it was essentially an indirect approval of her relationship with Han Shiguo.
The whole family couldn’t help but laugh.
But Jiang Qian had already set her sights on Han Shiguo, so there was nothing to argue about. Still, she felt a little shy and ran back to her room.
Reluctant to let their daughter go, Zhou Guiyun exchanged a glance with Jiang Qian’s father. There was a smile in their eyes, but also a sigh. “A grown daughter cannot stay at home forever.”
Their little flower truly couldn’t be kept.