Chapter 58: Fine Flour

“Sister-in-law~” Sun Pingmei’s cheeks turned slightly red as she stomped her foot and pouted.

Her skin wasn’t yet thick enough to endure endless teasing.

Beside her, Jiang Fubao was holding back her laughter so hard her stomach hurt.

“All right, enough chatter. Hurry and dig some shepherd’s purse. Today we’ll have wild greens and egg dumplings. There’s still some coarse flour left at home. Such a pity though—if only it were fine flour, the dumplings would taste even better.”

Zhang Jinlan swallowed her saliva as she spoke.

The last time she’d eaten fine flour was five or six years ago, back when the family’s days weren’t so hard.

“Grandma, do you want fine flour? Then when we go home, there’ll be some waiting for you!” Jiang Fubao smiled sweetly. Inside her space, she had no less than fifty catties of flour, replenished every single day—so much had already gone to waste.

Hearing her granddaughter’s words, Zhang Jinlan froze a little.

That’s right—her granddaughter had celestial protection. Everything she said could come true.

Could fine flour really appear in the kitchen out of nowhere?

Filled with anticipation, the women sped up their pace in digging wild greens.

By noon, they finally returned home.

They didn’t even wash their hands—just set down their baskets and rushed straight to the kitchen.

Excitedly, they searched every corner.

But of course, no sign of fine flour.

Before disappointment could settle in—

From outside came Jiang Fubao’s cry.

“Grandma! Come quickly!”

The women hurried out at once.

“Grandma, is this flour? It’s so white! It doesn’t look like coarse flour at all.”

Jiang Fubao widened her eyes deliberately, pretending to be amazed.

When Sun Pingmei saw the fine flour, her mouth opened even wider.

So her niece’s words were real after all. She truly could make things come true with her words! Fine flour had actually appeared at home out of thin air.

Heavens—so the morning hadn’t been a dream. Everything was real.

Only at this moment did the Jiang family fully believe Fubao’s words.

They were convinced she had the protection of immortals.

On the side, Fubao lowered her head, secretly laughing at their excitement.

The flour in the jar had been poured there by her earlier when she pretended to wash her hands.

“Fubao, you mustn’t tell anyone else about this, do you understand? Today’s matter must never be spoken of outside.”

On Zhang Jinlan’s face, worry outweighed joy.

She hugged her granddaughter tightly, repeating her warning again and again.

Only when her sons returned from town did she finally put the girl down.

“Mother, we sold all the eggs. When we went to buy bones, the butcher happened to have two big ones left. The shopkeeper let them go cheap—just three coins.”

Jiang Dahe set down his basket and handed his mother a money pouch.

Inside it was full of copper coins.

“No one from the village saw you, right?” Zhang Jinlan asked as she accepted it.

“No, we sold them in a corner, away from prying eyes. Don’t worry, Mother.”

Dahe was drenched in sweat. After speaking, he went to the water jar by the well, scooped half a ladle of spring water, and downed it in one gulp.

After drinking, he let out a long breath of relief.

So refreshing.

“You fool, drinking cold water will upset your stomach! There’s hot water in the kitchen. You’re already almost a grandfather—why act like a child?”

Zhang Jinlan scolded angrily.

“Mother, Dahe was just really thirsty. He’ll be careful next time. Let’s go make dumplings— the wild greens are already washed.”

To shield her husband, Zhu Yingqiu quickly helped, pulling her mother-in-law toward the kitchen.

Before going in, the couple exchanged a glance—each with different thoughts.

“Father, we have fine flour at home! Grandma said we’re having wild greens and egg dumplings for lunch. What are dumplings?”

When Fubao had been born, it was during a drought.

The family had no money.

So she had never once eaten dumplings.

She asked her father curiously.

“Dumplings are dough wrappers filled with stuffing. Delicious! But… where would we get fine flour?” Jiang Siyin looked toward his wife in confusion.

“On the mountain, Fubao said there would be fine flour at home. And when we came back, there it was in the jar outside the kitchen, white as snow—better even than what’s sold in town.”

Zhang Yanzi explained.

Now it was Siyin’s turn to be shocked.

“My daughter, don’t you ever tell outsiders about this, understand?”

The parents’ worries matched the grandmother’s exactly.

So Fubao endured the same nagging once again.

Half an hour later, it was finally mealtime.

“Thanks to Fubao’s blessing, we’ve got fine flour to eat. Since we’ve just sold the eggs, let’s not sell the flour anymore. We’ll keep it for ourselves. There are plenty of dumplings in the pot—eat to your fill!”

As Zhang Jinlan spoke, Zhu Yingqiu and Sun Pingmei each carried out bowls of steaming dumplings.

“Eat up, there’s more in the pot. Refill as much as you like.”

Gluttonous Jiang Tongtu cheered, “Grandma, I want to eat thirty dumplings!”

“Eat, eat—eat forty if you want! Just don’t burst your stomach. Eat however you please.”

The dumplings, made of fine flour with wild greens and egg, hadn’t cost a single coin—only some salt and lard.

So Zhang Jinlan didn’t feel the least bit distressed.

With one wave of her hand, the Jiang family picked up their chopsticks and dug in.

“Delicious, so delicious. Husband, am I dreaming? How did life suddenly get so good? Even if I lost five years of my life, it’d be worth it.”

Chewing her dumplings, Sun Pingmei’s eyes glistened with tears of excitement.

“Bah, bah, bah! Don’t say such nonsense while eating!”

Jiang Eryong scolded her harshly, afraid her words might bring bad luck.

“Fubao, are the dumplings tasty?”

Zhang Jinlan smiled as she watched her granddaughter’s cheeks bulge with food.

“They’re so good, Grandma! I want dumplings again tonight.”

Shepherd’s purse was Fubao’s favorite wild green.

If only the eggs were replaced with meat, making a shepherd’s purse and pork filling—

The dumplings would be even more fragrant.

“There won’t be dumplings tonight. All the eggs are gone, so we can’t even make egg pancakes. But Grandma will make you bone soup noodles instead. Those are good too.”

“Okay~”

Fubao wasn’t picky.

After answering, she kept on eating.

Today, the main room was unusually quiet.

Everyone’s mouths were too busy chewing to chat.

By the end of the meal, they were so stuffed they could hardly move.

The only thing left in the pot was dumpling soup.

Eryong, who had the biggest appetite, even drank a bowl of the broth to settle his stomach.

“With life like this, even if a landlord came to trade places with me, I wouldn’t swap.”

Jiang Tongmu burped contentedly, his face glowing with happiness.

“Me neither. I heard in Zhou Village, even that landlord Zhou doesn’t live as well as us. He only has fifteen more acres than we do, and with harvests so poor now, his family’s eating coarse rice porridge too.”

Like his father, Tongtu was full of gossip.

“Hah, what kind of landlord is that? Real landlords in town have hundreds of acres and eat meat with their rice every day. You fool.”

Eryong picked at his teeth with a fingernail, mocking his younger brother.

“Hmph. Our family will eat meat every day too, sooner or later. Maybe we’ll even get sick of it and beg Grandma to cook vegetables instead.”

Tongtu pouted and snorted disdainfully.

The others just laughed it off as childish nonsense.

Only Jiang Fubao wore a mysterious smile.

Because she knew—

That day would indeed come.