Chapter 17: A Rare, Hearty Dinner

“From the second son’s family—come help out!”

Sun Pingmei was so annoyed that she wanted to shout.

Before she could even open her mouth, her mother-in-law had already called her over.

Resigned, she glared at Jiang Eryong’s back, muttered a few words silently, and went into the kitchen.

Sizzle! — As soon as the chopped fatty pork was poured into the iron pan, it crackled like firecrackers.

Zhu Yingqiu quickly stirred it a few times, then added water.

This method made the lard especially white, and it was less likely to burn.

Nearby, Zhang Jinlan took some pickled vegetables from a jar, washed them, and diced them.

Meanwhile, Sun Pingmei rolled the yellow chrysanthemum dough into small pancakes, waiting for the lard to be ready for frying.

Zhang Yanzi was also busy, using a ladle to scoop chicken soup.

Every woman in the Jiang household had a clear role.

No one was idle.

Men worked outside, women worked inside—this scene was quietly observed by Jiang Fubao.

“Fubao, come taste the lard crisps—they’re really crunchy.” Jiang Fubao, lost in thought, was interrupted by her eldest aunt-in-law.

She picked up a piece of the lard crisp, blew on it, and popped it into Fubao’s mouth.

“Is it tasty?” Zhu Yingqiu asked.

“Delicious!” Jiang Fubao replied.

The lard crisps were perfectly crunchy, not greasy at all.

Even without any salt, they were incredibly tasty.

Once the lard was ready, Zhu Yingqiu scooped it into a jar. There wasn’t much—only about a third of it.

The iron pan shone after being used to render the fat.

It was Sun Pingmei’s turn to fry the pancakes.

Her hands moved incredibly fast.

She placed the rolled-out pancakes into the pan, and somehow managed to cover it completely, leaving no gaps.

Jiang Fubao watched with fascination.

She had never experienced the warmth of family. Her memories were all from the orphanage.

No relatives ever cooked for her.

At the orphanage, meals were like in a cafeteria—someone served the food.

It was nothing like this.

Here, everyone in the family had smiles on their faces, bustling around for the upcoming dinner.

When the pancakes were done, the sixteen members of the Jiang family sat around the round table.

Except for the children, each adult got two pancakes.

Jiang Fubao was only three. Half a pancake filled her up.

She tore the other half and put it in Zhang Jinlan’s bowl.

“Grandma didn’t eat enough today, so I’ll give her my pancake,” Fubao said, shaking her head adorably.

“Since Fubao thought of me, Grandma knows you’re the most filial. Come, Fubao, eat the chicken leg. Drink some soup while you eat the pancake, and taste the pickled pork Grandma made. See if it’s good.”

If Jiang Fubao had a system to measure favorability, Zhang Jinlan’s score would surely be off the charts.

She served a portion of food to her granddaughter—three slices of meat, all lean.

The fatty parts had been rendered into lard.

From two pounds of pork, after removing half as fat, less than a pound of lean meat remained.

The meat had high moisture content. Cut thick and stir-fried, it became tender.

Each Jiang family member got two slices.

Zhang Jinlan gave up one slice for Jiang Fubao.

“Delicious! The meat smells amazing, Grandma’s the best. The pickled vegetables are slightly sour, so tasty!” Fubao’s praise was completely heartfelt.

Grandma’s cooking was better than anything she had tasted in modern times.

And it wasn’t just Grandma.

The lard crisps from her eldest aunt-in-law, the pancakes from her second aunt-in-law, the chicken soup from her mother—all were equally delicious.

The women of the Jiang family were all amazing.

Of course, the men weren’t bad either.

Each one worked hard at heavy, dirty tasks, unafraid of hardship.

The original owner had two elder brothers, aged six and five, who already helped with the household chores.

In modern times, kids that age would be in kindergarten, mostly clueless. Some spoiled families would even feed them by hand.

“Today feels like a holiday. Heaven above, am I dreaming? How did life suddenly get so good?”

Sun Pingmei looked at the dishes on the table, saliva welling up.

She muttered to herself in a daze.

“What dream? It’s all thanks to Fubao that you get to eat such good food. Look at this meat, the yellow chrysanthemum, the chicken soup—aren’t they all because of Fubao? This morning, if Fubao hadn’t guided us, we might never have found that treasure of a field. The ground was wet and full of yellow chrysanthemums, and the wild chicken was caught nearby. You should thank Fubao!”

Zhang Jinlan started her usual brainwashing routine.

The Jiang family was used to it.

Only little Fubao’s face turned slightly red.

“Thank you, little sister. Thanks to you, Third Brother gets to drink such fresh chicken soup,” Jiang Tongshui said, swallowing his soup with satisfaction and closing his eyes.

“Fubao is truly lucky. Surely a fairy descended to earth. In the future, whatever you say, Fifth Brother will never object. We’ll obey your every command,” Jiang Tongtu said while chewing a slice of meat.

The meat smelled so good, he almost didn’t want to swallow.

How wonderful it would be to eat meat every day.

But he dared not say it.

If he did, Grandma would scold him for being greedy, and it would also trouble Mother.

Thinking of this, he turned to his mother, Sun Pingmei.

She was eating a yellow chrysanthemum pancake, head down, focused on her food.

Well, never mind.

As long as there was good food, Mother never worried about anything else.

At this moment, Jiang Eryong had half a bowl of chicken soup left. He placed it in front of his wife and whispered, “Drink it quickly.”

Hearing this, Sun Pingmei looked up.

Seeing the soup, her eyes curved in delight. “Marrying you, I have no regrets in this life.”

“Don’t be cheeky, drink quickly. Otherwise, the soup will cool and taste fishy,” Jiang Eryong said, like his mother Zhang Jinlan—tough on the outside, soft on the inside.

Though he always complained to Sun Pingmei, in private, he adored his wife.

Thus, the meal ended beautifully.

Every Jiang family member had full bellies.

“So satisfying! The last time I ate this much was a long while ago,” Jiang Tongmu said, quieting the hall instantly.

“You kid, stop talking nonsense. Go walk around the yard a bit to digest, then sleep early. Tomorrow we must go to town. Take advantage of these days to earn more money,” Jiang Dahe said, lightly slapping his second son.

“The soil in the field is loosened and fertilized twice. Now we just wait for rain. If seven or eight more days pass without rain, we’ll have to carry water from the river to irrigate.”

Tonight, no one in the Jiang family went out for a walk.

Jiang Shoujia looked at the bright moon, exhaling heavily, his voice full of worry.

“Looks like we won’t be able to plant rice again this year. We’ll continue planting coarse rice. It’s drought-resistant. Hopefully the autumn taxes won’t be too high, so we can sell some leftover grain, marry Tongjin off, and the rest mixed with wild vegetables will last until next year.”

After speaking, Zhang Jinlan exchanged a glance with Jiang Shoujia.

Both sighed together.

Then she continued, “Ah, this world… all the hardship falls on those of us who rely on the weather. If we had savings, I would definitely send some children to town to study. Even passing the civil exam as a child would be fine.”