After the New Year, the festive atmosphere in the village grew stronger. Every household radiated an indescribable sense of joy, with smiles on everyone’s faces and a harmonious vibe everywhere.

The atmosphere in Kuzhu Village was more harmonious than ever before.

Even on snowy days, nothing could dampen the warmth rising from people’s hearts.

As the New Year approached, it was time to prepare for a lively celebration.

The Chen family was no exception.

Chen Yuping wasn’t busy with the usual New Year preparations. Instead, he was researching foods for infants. Unsure about what a baby under one year could eat, he took his time exploring and sometimes asked the elders for advice.

Today, for lunch, he prepared egg yolk rice porridge. He split a boiled egg yolk in half for Cao ger and Qiaoniu, mashing it into a paste to mix with the rice porridge.

He also cooked some vegetable and meat congee in a clay pot, adding just a drop of sesame oil. It looked appetizing, though adults would likely find it bland.

“Youngest.”

From the back of the house, Chen Yuanqiu asked without turning his head, “What’s up?”

“Take the food to Qiaoniu.”

“Coming, coming.”

“Cao ger and Qiaoniu have a splendid lunch today,” Chen Yuanqiu said, a bit envious. “Third brother, how can you make bland food smell so good?” He had tried it and knew it had little flavor, and was quite mild.

Yet, every time he saw the steaming food, he couldn’t help but feel hungry.

“Want to try some?”

Chen Yuanqiu hesitated, then shamelessly nodded and grinned at his third brother.

Dad Chen couldn’t bear to watch: “You’re spoiling him. He’s already grown up yet still thinking about stealing food from his niece and nephew.”

“Dad, I’m just tasting it and not eating much.”

“You can’t even say it without feeling embarrassed,” Dad Chen shook his head, feeling helpless.

“I’m eating it openly, what’s there to be embarrassed about? Third brother agreed!”

The egg yolk rice porridge had little taste and was slightly fishy, with a thick, soft texture. It also has a strong egg yolk flavor.

Chen Yuanqiu tasted the vegetable and meat congee again: “Wow!” His eyes lit up in disbelief, quickly scooping up another spoonful to savor: “Third brother, how about we have vegetable meat congee for breakfast tomorrow? It’s delicious and fragrant! Although it’s a bit bland, we can add oil and salt, and it’ll definitely taste good.”

“Having vegetable meat congee for breakfast tomorrow sounds good.”

“Third brother!” Chen Yuanqiu excitedly hugged Chen Yuping, his eyes sparkling. “I knew you loved me most, I’m the happiest little brother in the world!” He felt satisfied and moved!

Amid his usual praise, Chen Yuping coldly shrugged off his arms: “Time to deliver the food to Qiaoniu. If we delay, it’ll get cold and need reheating.”

“I’ll go now.”

“Second sister-in-law!” As soon as he entered the yard, Chen Yuanqiu called out.

Liu Guixiang was sitting by the window, mending clothes with the light from outside. Hearing him, she leaned out to say, “I put a small stool behind the door to block it, push the door slowly.”

Chen Yuanqiu joyfully entered the house with the food: “Second sister-in-law, this the food Third brother made today. The vegetable meat congee is really tasty!”

“You tried it?”

“A little, it’s really good and fragrant. Third brother said we’ll have vegetable meat congee for breakfast tomorrow.” Chen Yuanqiu was gleeful and felt no guilt about tasting his niece’s food.

Liu Guixiang felt tempted too but managed to hold back.

“When you leave, swing by the kitchen, there’s a bowl of salted fish my parents had someone bring. We haven’t bought any in town yet, so we can try it. They say it’s especially good when fried.” Thinking of the salted fish reminded her of the red-braised salted fish chunks Third brother made last time. She was now salivating.

She wanted to sneak a dinner at the old house and even breakfast tomorrow.

“Salted fish? I’ll check it out.”

Cui Yuanjiu had also brought back some salted fish last time. He hadn’t tried it and didn’t know how good it was, so he bought a little and finished it quickly.

Salted fish was salty yet fragrant, crisp when fried, and the red-braised salted fish was spicy and flavorful. Steamed salted fish with radish was also incredibly delicious. Chen Yuanqiu loved it, but it was hard to find in town, he heard it was rare even in the county, requiring coastal areas to find it regularly.

Chen Yuanqiu, stepped out of the kitchen grinning while holding the bowl of salted fish: “Second sister-in-law, I’m off!”

“Okay,” Liu Guixiang replied, her heart feeling a pang of desire.

She craved the red-braised salted fish chunks made by Third brother. They had a bit of salted fish left at home, but knowing her cooking skills weren’t great, she could only manage to fry the salted fish.

Fried salted fish was good, but it couldn’t compare to the red-braised version. Third brother’s cooking was simply divine!

“Mom, eat!” Qiaoniu was drooling as she saw her mother wasn’t feeding her and grew anxious. She was tugging at her mother’s sleeve with her short chubby little hands, and began to cry, “Mom.”

“Coming, coming.” Liu Guixiang snapped back to reality, her face slightly flushed and was a bit embarrassed.

She hadn’t realized how much she craved food.

She was already a mother, sigh!

Qiaoniu ate the egg yolk rice porridge eagerly, making smacking sounds.

With two kinds of complementary food and not much quantity, she had only tasted a little and hadn’t had enough when the egg yolk rice porridge was finished.

“Want, want, want!” The unclear baby sounds were understood by her mother, but probably wouldn’t be by her father.

“There’s more, sweetheart, why the rush?” Liu Guixiang quickly grabbed the vegetable meat congee, which smelled really good! How strange that the bland congee could smell so fragrant. It really looked delicious.

Qiaoniu clearly preferred the vegetable meat congee over the egg yolk rice porridge and was eagerly waiting.

Worried she might choke, Liu Guixiang intentionally fed her slowly, but this only made the child unhappy, whimpering and on the verge of tears.

“Sweetheart, is it really that good?”

Qiaoniu was delighted, her eyes smiling like crescent moons.

“Mom definitely knows you best.” Liu Guixiang pinched her daughter’s chubby cheek: “How about I take a bite too?”

Qiaoniu didn’t understand, she was enjoying her food while swinging her little legs contentedly.

“I still need to feed you some milk later, it should be about time.” As she muttered to herself, Liu Guixiang took the last half spoon of vegetable meat congee and put it in her mouth.

This stirred a hornet’s nest. Qiaoniu, who had her mouth open waiting for food, was momentarily stunned and then burst into tears.

Dad Chen perked up his ears to listen closely: “Sounds like Qiaoniu is crying?”

“She was fine when I went over. The little girl was clever. Seeing the bowl in my hand, she started laughing happily,” Chen Yuanqiu grumbled and continued, “Third brother, tonight we’ll have red-braised salted fish chunks and fried salted fish. We should remind Brother Jiu to bring back salted fish when he goes to the county. It’s not nearly enough, and we can’t buy it in town.”

“All day long, just thinking about food.” Dad Chen felt a bit worried.

After the New Year, Yuanjiu would have to go out again, likely for two to three months, which seemed like a long time.

He glanced at his third son, unsure if the boy was even thinking about it.

In the past, Cao ger loved nothing more than being held by his Dad and playing affectionately with him.

Now, Cao ger’s favorite thing was eating.

If his Dad was the one feeding him, Cao ger would be the happiest child in the world.

Today at noon, it was Cui Yuanjiu who fed him.

Everyone in the family, except Ping ger, enjoyed feeding Cao ger. The child was especially obedient while eating, smacking his little mouth and eating heartily, making everyone watching feel satisfied with smiles on their faces.

“Once Cao ger turns one, we’ll let him use a spoon to eat and buy him a set of small bowls and chopsticks.” Chen Yuping remembered that many toddlers in modern times, even before they turned one, would start learning to use a spoon. Though it made quite a mess, it was part of the process.

He wasn’t sure if it was good or bad as he hadn’t looked into it, but figured he’d give it a try and see how it went. If things didn’t go well, he could always feed him by hand.

“You think that’s a good idea?” Dad Chen laughed at his son: “Even if he turns one, he’s still just a little kid. What can he understand? If you let him eat by himself, food will end up everywhere—on the floor, on his clothes, on the table—except in his mouth. You’ll be the one worrying about it later.”

“Just teach him slowly. Let’s try first, and if it doesn’t work, we’ll feed him.”

“If you can hold out for three days, then you’re this,” Dad Chen said, giving him a thumbs up.

Liu Guixiang ultimately couldn’t resist her cravings. In the afternoon, with nothing much to do, she brought Qiaoniu over, holding the leftover half bowl of salted fish and a piece of meat. This meat was something she had specifically asked her husband to buy since she wanted to visit the old house for dinner. She couldn’t go empty-handed, she had to bring something.

Seeing Qiaoniu, Cao ger started calling out excitedly, “Ah ah ah,” being very enthusiastic.

Qiaoniu flapped her little arms and legs, also calling out excitedly.

“Youngest, come over quickly, she’s about to drop!” Liu Guixiang struggled to hold everything with one hand.

Chen Yuanqiu laughed heartily as he placed Qiaoniu on the bamboo couch, jokingly saying, “Cao ger and Qiaoniu must be talking about how delicious the food was for lunch! Especially the vegetable meat congee—it was so fragrant and tasty!”

“Maybe that’s true,” Liu Guixiang replied with a smile: “Qiaoniu really enjoyed it. After finishing, she cried for a while because there was none left.”

“Cao ger liked it too.” Chen Yuping thought about his precious son’s eager face and added, “Since they enjoyed it, I’ll make more tomorrow. It’s not hard to prepare.”

Dad Chen chimed in, “The little one has been talking about it all afternoon, tomorrow’s breakfast will also be vegetable meat congee. You all should come over with the kids and skip breakfast preparations. Everyone can taste just how delicious this congee is.” He glanced over at his youngest son.

Ping ger didn’t feel the least bit embarrassed and grinned broadly.

Liu Guixiang looked at Dad Chen and felt grateful. Marrying into the Chen family was a blessing from her past life, but never had she felt so deeply that Dad Chen was truly good-hearted until now!

At dinner, naturally, Chen Yuandong’s family of three stayed at the old house to eat.

That night, Liu Guixiang, excited to eat the long-awaited red-braised salted fish chunks, hugged her husband after Qiaoniu fell asleep, daringly giving him a kiss in the dark, and then…

The next day, Chen Yuandong didn’t go anywhere. His legs felt a bit weak, and he needed to recuperate after how enthusiastic his wife had been the night before.

After dinner, they tidied up the house, with some taking baths and others soaking their feet. After a busy time, the family sat by the fire, chatting, and when it seemed the time was right, they each went back to their own rooms to prepare for sleep.

Cui Yuanjiu carried an oil lamp to escort Chen Yuping and Cao ger back to their room.

After placing the peacefully sleeping Cao ger in bed, Chen Yuping glanced at Cui Yuanjiu, who had already gotten used to lingering in their room for a bit each night.

“I believe our Cao ger can do it.”

This seemingly random remark left Chen Yuping a bit confused: “What?” After asking, he quickly realized and laughed, his eyes narrowing with amusement. “You’ve been holding that in since lunch, haven’t you? Were you thinking about it all afternoon?”

Cui Yuanjiu moved closer to Chen Yuping, leaning his shoulder against him, and smiling: “I was worried you’d be shy.”

“If you said that during lunch, I definitely wouldn’t have been shy.”

“What about now?”

Chen Yuping rolled his eyes at him.

Cui Yuanjiu burst out laughing, his usual calm demeanor replaced by a bright, sunny energy.

“You’ll wake up Cao ger. Hurry back to your room and sleep,” Chen Yuping said, waving his hand impatiently.

Cui Yuanjiu peeked into the bed: “Cao ger is sleeping soundly, he hasn’t woken up.” Then he added seriously, “Our Cao ger is sensible, he knows we rarely get time alone.”

“You linger in the room for a while every night. I don’t even know who started that.”

“Even this little time isn’t enough to fill a gap.”

Chen Yuping was amused by his silly comment: “You should be content. We haven’t even gone through the proper steps. If we were outside, don’t say even getting to be alone for a day, just exchanging a few words would have us both grinning from ear to ear.”

“How about…” Cui Yuanjiu began to suggest.

“Stop!” Chen Yuping interrupted: “I know what you’re thinking, it’s too rushed. Let’s wait and see for a while.”

“What I mean is, after the New Year, I’ll go to the county town and resign from my job at the escort agency. Then I’ll stay home to help you out. How does that sound?”

Chen Yuping was a bit surprised: “You… really want to?”

“I’ll be away for several months, and I’m worried about home. We still have no news after the burglary. Business is good in town, and we need people at home, so I can stay and have something to do.”

After a moment of silence, Chen Yuping couldn’t hold back: “Have you thought this through? Staying to help at Chen’s house means after we get married, people might gossip and say unpleasant things. I plan to build a nice and spacious courtyard next to the old house next year, similar to the village chief’s.”

“People can say whatever they want, it doesn’t matter to me. I just don’t want you to think I’m useless.” Cui Yuanjiu looked brightly at Chen Yuping: “You won’t think less of me, will you?”

He remembered when it was known that he had apprenticed under the old hunter in the mountains, so many people in the village whispered behind his back. Even his dad’s death was blamed on him, thought to be a consequence of Cui Yuanjiu’s bad luck, and his father also believed this. If he hadn’t been strong enough, who knew what would have happened?

“I think you’re impressive.” That was heartfelt. Chen Yuping truly felt this teenager was quite remarkable.

Cui Yuanjiu beamed at his words, looking as radiant as sunlight breaking through the clouds.