Hu Chunxiao slapped her forehead as a sudden realization struck her.

“How could I forget about this? Your husbands are both regimental commanders—they’ve got plenty of soldiers under them!”

Her own husband worked as a scientific research officer in the military district and didn’t have any personnel he could assign to help with manual labor. Left with no choice, she had to spend her own money to hire workers. To save costs, she only hired two.

Now, looking at Zhou Qiqi and Zhu Yingying’s situation—good heavens, seventeen or eighteen energetic young men had shown up at once—she couldn’t help but feel a pang of envy.

Zhou Qiqi had already anticipated this. She smiled and said,

“I discussed this with Huaichuan last night. We have more people here, so we’ll probably finish by the afternoon. Once our work is done, we’ll head over to your places and lend a hand.”

Hu Chunxiao’s eyes lit up. Without any false modesty, she replied cheerfully,

“That’d be fantastic! I’ve got two packs of Peony cigarettes at home, gifts from someone. I’ll hand them out to the boys later!”

“Sounds good!” Zhou Qiqi nodded in agreement.

Shen Huaichuan didn’t smoke, so she had completely forgotten about this and hadn’t prepared any cigarettes to reward these soldier boys. Thankfully, Hu Chunxiao had brought it up.

Though these soldiers were Shen Huaichuan’s subordinates, they were helping with her family’s work, so she couldn’t let them go unrewarded.

While she hadn’t bought cigarettes, she had purchased plenty of meat, planning to prepare two hearty meals for the day.

The quantity she needed wasn’t available at the supply and marketing cooperative, so she had asked Director Lin for help. As the head of logistics, this was a trivial matter for him. He directly contacted the meatpacking plant that supplied the military canteen.

Just as the two were talking, another small truck loaded with ingredients pulled up. The fresh pork ribs on board made the onlookers drool with envy.

A small number of people grumbled sourly about Zhou Qiqi’s extravagant spending, but she paid them no mind. She quickly directed the unloading of the ingredients and got ready to start cooking.

With so many people working, lunch had to be properly arranged.

She had slept in this morning and taken the easy way out by having Shen Huaichuan take everyone to the canteen for breakfast. But for lunch, she couldn’t cut corners.

Today, the cooking would be done at Yingying’s place. Aside from a coal stove, her house had a large brick stove built by Regimental Commander Wang himself, complete with all the necessary pots, pans, and utensils—even multiple kitchen knives.

Maybe this was what they called “all the gear but no idea”?

It was only yesterday that Zhou Qiqi learned Zhu Yingying couldn’t cook. Though she had been trying to learn, she simply had no talent for it. Most of the time, their meals were brought back by Wang Tiejun from the canteen.

For this toilet-building project, Wang Tiejun had also assigned seven or eight men from his regiment. With a wave of her hand, Zhou Qiqi took charge of their meals as well.

By now, Shen Huaichuan had already led the team in a whirlwind of activity.

The craftsmen had carefully measured the dimensions, and a dozen or so young men had stripped off their shirts, rolled up their sleeves, and gotten to work with full enthusiasm.

Zhou Qiqi quickly tied on her apron and got busy in the kitchen.

For lunch, she planned to prepare four dishes and a soup: braised pork, sweet and sour pork, stir-fried shredded lettuce, wood ear and tofu skin salad, and a pork rib and corn soup.

Two meat dishes, two vegetable dishes, and a soup—just the right amount, with both sweet and savory flavors, so she wouldn’t exhaust herself.

Braised pork took the longest, requiring slow simmering to achieve tender, flavorful meat.

So as soon as Zhou Qiqi stepped into the kitchen, she started by cutting the pork into evenly sized cubes.

At this time, foreign white-skinned pigs had not yet been introduced to the country on a large scale, and the meatpacking plants mostly sourced local free-range pigs from rural areas.

These native pigs were typically fed natural fodder like sweet potato vines and corn, resulting in tender, flavorful meat that carried a faint, pleasant aroma—completely free of any unpleasant smell.

There was no need to blanch the meat to remove gaminess, as with regular pork. A quick rinse under the tap was enough before it could go straight into the pan for frying.

Using low heat throughout, the fat soon sizzled out, and the surface turned a light golden brown. Any longer, and the meat would toughen.

Next came caramelizing the sugar—a step Zhou Qiqi had mastered. Without even removing the meat, she pushed it to one side of the pan, stir-frying the sugar while evenly coating the pork in a rich, glossy color.

The resulting meat cubes glistened with a deep reddish-brown hue, so enticing it made mouths water just looking at them.

Then, she added the spices, poured in hot water, covered the pot, and left it to simmer—no further attention needed for now.

On another burner, the pork rib and corn soup was simple—just prep the ingredients and let them boil.

Zhou Qiqi worked deftly, moving on to prepare the sweet and sour pork.

She had learned this dish from a warm-hearted aunt during a winter trip to Harbin.

Though the steps might seem intricate and tedious, once you grasped the trick, it wasn’t hard at all.

The key lay in slicing the meat uniformly and coating it with just the right amount of batter. Nail these two steps, and the dish was halfway to success.

She had soaked the starch in water half an hour earlier. After draining, it formed a thick, yogurt-like paste.

Dipping the marinated meat slices in, she gave them a gentle toss—the slippery, slightly elastic texture was oddly satisfying.

Once coated, she dusted them lightly with dry starch before frying.

By now, the aroma of braised pork had begun to waft through the kitchen, mingling with the scent of frying meat, irresistible to anyone nearby.

Outside, the soldier boys couldn’t help sneaking glances toward the kitchen every now and then.

Even Zhu Yingying, who was helping wash vegetables nearby, couldn’t resist murmuring, “Smells amazing!”

Even Zhouzhou, quietly shelling peanuts in a corner, unconsciously twitched her little nose.

Seeing this, Zhou Qiqi felt a surge of warmth.

In the few days they’d spent together, Zhouzhou had always been quiet, rarely showing her emotions. She had almost thought she’d forgotten how to express herself.

Who knew the lure of good food could still stir her?

It made all the extra effort she put into tailoring meals to her tastes worth it.

The first fry had already cooked the meat through, but a second round was needed for that perfect crispiness before coating it in the sweet and tangy sauce.

By now, the braised pork was nearly done, the stir-fried lettuce and wood ear salad were prepped, and the rice was steaming in the pot.

Zhou Qiqi decided to check on the construction progress.

She hadn’t expected the sight that greeted her.

Good heavens—in just three short hours, the toilet structure was nearly complete, and the shower room’s foundation was already laid.

The trench for the pipes was mostly dug, and the cast-iron piping was being methodically laid out.

The speed far exceeded her expectations. “You’ve all been working so hard!” she marveled sincerely.

Qin Shi, who had somehow sidled up unnoticed, immediately chimed in.

“Of course! I told ’em long ago—our sister-in-law’s like a fairy descended from heaven! Her cooking’s out of this world!”

“When the regimental commander picked the team yesterday, everyone fought to come. Now that they’ve won the spot, they’ve gotta give it their all!”

As he spoke, his eyes kept darting toward the kitchen, his throat working as he swallowed hard.

“Sis, what’re you making? It smells so good! I could smell it from a mile away—it’s driving me crazy!”

“Oh? While everyone else is sweating it out, you’re the one slacking off here?” Zhou Qiqi pretended to scold.

She’d noticed this kid sneaking peeks more than a few times.

Qin Shi’s tanned face flushed instantly. “N-no! The guys were just too hungry—they sent me to scout and ask when we’re eating…”

Seeing him drenched in sweat, covered in dust and mud, Zhou Qiqi couldn’t bring herself to tease him further.

“Alright, I’ll fry the meat one last time now. Go tell everyone—lunch in fifteen minutes!”

“Long live Sister-in-law!”

With a whoop of joy, Qin Shi took off at a sprint to deliver the good news…