Chapter 36

Because many people often walk on the field bank, it is very smooth. When the three children arrived at the field bank, instead of walking down, they stood in front of it.

Er Bao loudly shouted, “Grandpa, Grandma…”

Er Bao’s voice was loud, and since everyone was working at the moment, there wasn’t much noise, so Er Bao’s voice sounded particularly clear.

Hearing his grandson’s voice, Grandpa Lin and Grandma Lin looked up. Seeing that they had also brought San Bao, they thought something had happened. Grandma Lin hurriedly asked, “Er Bao, what’s wrong?”

Er Bao said, “Grandma, Mom said that you and Grandpa finished work and are coming to our house for dinner. Today is San Bao’s birthday, Grandma, you’ve worked hard taking care of him, so we’ll eat together.”

Even though Grandma Lin had already heard from Ning Shu in the morning, when Er Bao came to call them, Grandma Lin still found it quite unbelievable.

“Guodong’s wife, Guodong’s wife is still filial to you.” People working next to Grandma Lin took the opportunity to say.

“That’s right, today is San Bao’s birthday, Guodong’s wife must have prepared a lot of delicious food.”

“I wonder if there’s any meat?”

“Guodong’s wife will come back this afternoon and tell us.”

This was the first time Grandma Lin had heard praise for Ning Shu from everyone’s mouths.

Before, when she heard everyone mention Ning Shu, it was either about how lazy or wasteful she was.

Today, hearing them praise Ning Shu for being filial, she also felt somewhat pleased.

So, she also said loudly to Er Bao, “Grandma knows, we’ll come over with your Grandpa later, you guys go home first.”

Er Bao said, “My mom said that we should wait for Grandpa and Grandma to finish work before going together.”

The custom in Qinglin Bay Brigade attaches great importance to a child’s first birthday, so for families who have the means and value this child, once the child turns one year old, they will distribute candy, pastries, or steamed buns, and some will invite the elders in the family to have a meal together.

Therefore, someone like Ning Shu is quite normal.

However, listening to Grandma Lin and Er Bao’s conversation, everyone couldn’t help but be curious about the food Ning Shu had prepared.

So someone joked, “Er Bao, what delicious food did your mom prepare?”

Because her mother had said that they could talk about what they ate at home, Erbao didn’t hide anything: “Tofu, cabbage, edamame, bamboo shoots, wild vegetables from the mountain, wild fruits, and small oranges.”

Erbao listed everything s

he saw on the dining table. he didn’t see the pig trotters and potatoes that were already stewing in the iron pot and also he didn’t recognize the red watermelon, so he only mentioned these.

“Ha, I thought we were going to have some good dishes,” someone snorted.

Indeed, these dishes were somewhat unexpected. Of course, it’s not that the dishes were bad, just that without eggs or meat, it left everyone disappointed.

In everyone’s mind, only meat matched Ning Shu’s style. After all, she was the richest spendthrift woman in the village.

“These dishes are not bad, at least there’s tofu.”

“Ning Shu keeps the meat for herself, and when it’s the child’s birthday, there’s no meat left. What’s good about that?”

“I wonder what they’ll prepare for the child’s birthday, sweets, cakes, or steamed buns?”

“Who knows?”

Most families would prepare steamed buns or cakes because candies required coupons, and everyone didn’t have sugar coupons.

But cakes or steamed buns were made of coarse grains, and when giving things to other families, they would use white flour.

Ning Shu would rather buy candies, which was more convenient. Making cakes or steamed buns would be exhausting.

“Mom, we’re back…”

Just as Ning Shu finished cooking, Erbao’s voice rang out.

“You’re back, we can eat now. Did your grandparents come?” Ning Shu asked as she came out of the kitchen.

Only to see the three children walking happily.

Sanbao was carried back by their grandparents. The youngest son in Lin Family is Lin Mother’s apple of the eyes and so is the grandsons youngest.

Among the grandchildren of the Lin family, Sanbao is the youngest, followed by Erbao and Yibao. Haicai is a month older than Yibao and Erbao.

It’s fortunate that there’s this one-month difference, otherwise the name Haicai would have been given to Yibao.

With talents in both literature and martial arts, adding “Hai” in front, Ning Shu felt that this name didn’t sound very pleasant, a bit awkward.

By the way, what are the full names of Yibao and Erbao? Ning Shu couldn’t remember for a moment; it wasn’t in the original host’s memory.

“Mom, Grandpa and Grandma are here.” Yibao said.

When Lin’s parents arrived, the elderly couple were still a bit embarrassed.

It was their second time coming to their youngest son’s house for dinner, so they were quite reserved.

They didn’t really want to come for dinner; eating the white flour steamed buns at their youngest son’s house wasn’t as good as eating their own coarse grain steamed buns.

But since the children came to the fields to fetch them, if they didn’t come, their youngest daughter-in-law would probably be upset.

“You’ve worked hard today, Daughter-in-law.” Lin’s father, who was usually taciturn, spoke up.

Ning Shu replied, “Sanbao is celebrating his third birthday today. Normally, I’m not so polite, and you don’t need to flatter me. Come on, let’s eat.” Ning showed her two-faced personality.

“Coming, coming, let’s wash our hands first.” Lin’s mother said.

“As for handwashing…”

While Lin’s parents were washing their hands, the children also followed suit.

They had developed the habit of hygiene during this period, even Haicai had acquired this habit by eating here today.

“Bao…bao…” Sanbao clapped his hands in the basket, extending his little paws, afraid that they would forget about him.

Lin’s mother laughed, “Our Sanbao also needs to be clean.”

Sanbao understood that his grandmother was praising him, so he gave her a smile, showing his little millet teeth.

“Oh, you even know that’s a compliment, clever boy.” Lin’s mother was delighted to see her smart grandson.

She fetched some water and washed the little grandson’s hands, and then they all went into the kitchen.

As they entered the kitchen, the three children automatically sat down properly, but Lin’s father and mother were stunned.

Huh, huh, huh…

Why is there meat on the table? Erbao didn’t mention meat among the dishes earlier.

Previously, all the dishes were vegetarian, but with the addition of pig trotters and potatoes, the spread on the table could easily be served during the Chinese New Year.

Especially with the fragrant and tender pig trotters emitting an appetizing aroma, it immediately made one’s mouth water.

“Mom, Dad, please sit down and eat,” Ning Shu said, going to pick up Sanbao from Lin’s mother’s arms. “Mom, let me handle this.”

“It’s okay, let me hold him. You go ahead and eat,” Lin’s mother insisted.

“No need, there’s Sanbao’s high chair over there. He can eat by himself now,” Ning Shu said as she placed Sanbao in the child’s seat.

Sanbao then picked up a wooden spoon and started drinking from the coconut bowl, which was only half full.

Seeing this, Lin’s father and mother also sat down.

They thought the clear liquid in their bowls was water. Having worked all morning, they were also thirsty and began drinking it eagerly.

After taking a big gulp, they realized it was sweet, but not like the sweetness of sugar water.

Looking at the three children, who were sipping it slowly, they wondered if it was soda.

Although curious, Lin’s parents didn’t ask and just focused on eating.

As Lin’s mother took the first bite of the food, she suddenly remembered some past events.

In fact, when their youngest daughter-in-law had just married their youngest son, she used to cook for them to please them, and back then, the dishes she made were delicious.

Later, when their youngest daughter-in-law became pregnant, she started acting up and stopped doing anything.

As a result, everyone forgot about her cooking skills and thought her dishes weren’t tasty.

Now, eating their youngest daughter-in-law’s cooking again, Lin’s mother felt somewhat emotional.

While Lin’s father and mother were enjoying the vegetable dishes, the three children were helping themselves to the pig trotters.

“Mom, this is really delicious, even better than regular meat and ribs,” Erbao said, nibbling on the pig trotters.

The tender pig trotters were indeed tastier than meat and ribs.

“Yeah, everything Auntie Three makes is delicious,” Lin Haicai nodded, showing a favorable inclination towards his aunt.

“Mom’s cooking is the best,” Yibao chimed in.

“Delicious, Bao eats, Mom eats, and pot eats,” Sanbao added in his babbling voice.

Lin’s mother was surprised by the casualness of the children at the dining table.

Not only Yibao and Erbao, but even Haicai was eating pig trotters without reservation, indicating that their youngest daughter-in-law treated him well too.

So, their youngest daughter-in-law had indeed changed.

Seeing Lin’s father and mother not touching the pig trotters, Ning Shu said, “Yibao, Erbao, help your grandparents with the meat. Keep an eye on them. Wait until they finish the meat, then you can add more for them.”

Lin’s father and mother hesitated.

“Erm…”

The two children picked out the two largest pieces of pig trotters for their grandparents.

As a result, this meal became more relaxed with Yibao and Erbao helping their grandparents with the meat.

Even Lin’s father and mother became less reserved.

After finishing the meal, Lin’s mother helped Ning Shu clean up.

Lin’s father couldn’t help in the kitchen, so he went to the thatched hut to check on the chickens.

“These two chickens have grown quite big.”

“We dig up worms for them every day,” Erbao’s voice came from behind Lin’s father.

Lin’s father turned around and smiled at his grandson. “Good boy.”

By the well, as Lin’s mother washed dishes, she said to Ning Shu, “We need to replant the vegetables in the backyard soon. Once we finish harvesting the rice in a few days, your father and I will come help you plant.”

“No need, I’ve already planted them these past two days.” Ning Shu felt a bit helpless. Her in-laws were really too kind.

Lin’s mother was surprised. “You planted them yourself? Do you have vegetable seeds?”

“I bought them the other day when I went to buy a bicycle. I planted Chinese lettuce and spinach. If you need more vegetables over there, you can come and exchange them,” Ning Shu said. She didn’t mention harvesting because the backyard was relatively small, and they didn’t plant a lot.

In contrast, when the third family divided the house for building, Lin’s father even allocated a larger piece of land, presumably for the second family in the future.

But now, this piece of land was also used for planting vegetables, so with their own land, the old house had more land than theirs, and they grew even more vegetables.

“Alright.” She said so with her mouth, but Lin’s mother was truly shocked in her heart.

She hadn’t expected this lazy daughter-in-law to actually plant vegetables herself, and it was even Chinese lettuce and spinach.

However, Lin’s mother just kept her thoughts to herself.

After finishing washing the dishes, Lin’s mother suggested, “Let’s go distribute the sugar candy.”

Ning Shu asked, “Should we take Sanbao with us?”

Looking at Sanbao playing with his three older brothers, Lin’s mother said, “No need, let’s go by ourselves. If you don’t want to go, I can go alone.”

Ning Shu said, “Let’s go together.” She couldn’t be like the original host, pushing all the household chores onto Lin’s father and mother.

The 24 households that needed sugar candy were quite polite. Each household received six candy cubes, which was a fair amount.

Ning Shu followed Lin’s mother to distribute the sugar candy to each household, and the words of gratitude from each household were quite pleasant to hear.

After distributing the sugar, Ning Shu and Lin’s mother each went back home.

Of course, the candy for the old house was brought by Lin’s mother.

Ning Shu didn’t give just six sugar cubes, but gave one sugar cube per person.

When Ning Shu returned home, several children were playing in the yard, and Sanbao was toddling around.

“Sanbao, come to me, Erbao.”

“Sanbao, come to me, Yibao.”

Sanbao stood there, looking at Erbao and then at Yibao, not sure which way to go. In the end, he saw his mother and walked towards her.

Ning Shu took a few steps forward, caught Sanbao, and then said, “Kids, today is Sanbao’s first birthday. Let’s let Sanbao make a wish today, and when it’s Yibao and Erbao’s birthdays, they can make a wish too. Make a wish on your birthday, then tell me, and I’ll fulfill your wishes.”

“Mom, what’s a wish?” Erbao asked.

Ning Shu explained, “A wish is something you want to do the most right now, or something you’ve been wanting to do recently. However, you can only make a wish on your birthday, not at any other time.”

“Then, Mom, when is my birthday?” Erbao wished it could be his birthday today too.

“Nex’ year,” Ning Shu replied, “You just gotta wait patiently.”

Yibao clenched his small fists. Next year, he could also make a wish. His wish was to go to the supply and marketing cooperative with his mother.

“But Mom,” Erbao asked, “Sanbao can’t talk, how can he make a wish?”

Ning Shu hesitated. “We’ll ask. Sanbao, do you have any wishes?”

Sanbao blinked at his mother, then moved his little body towards the door. The thing he loved most was going outside. “Do you wanna go out to play?” Ning Shu asked again.

“Play, go play,” Sanbao nodded.

“Mum, let’s take Sanbao out to play,” Erbao suggested.

She had originally planned to take the children on a picnic.

She remembered when she was in primary school, the teacher took the students on a picnic.

They cooked together and washed vegetables, which was a very fun thing to do and could make everyone appreciate the hard work of cooking and washing vegetables.

But there were problems. When she was cooking just now, she found that the iron pot was too heavy, probably thirty catties, and it couldn’t be lifted.

Also, the bottom of the iron pot was covered in black soot, too dirty to move around.

Moreover, if they went for a picnic in the afternoon, they would be preparing dinner outside, but with October approaching, the days were getting shorter.

It wouldn’t be very suitable to have dinner outside. So, if they wanted to picnic next time, they would have to choose lunch.

“Let’s play at home,” Ning Shu said as she entered the room. When she came out, she was holding a small cloth bag, which she handed to Sanbao, who was being supported by his brothers. “Sanbao, happy birthday. This is your birthday present. Do you like it?”

Sanbao looked at his mother with a few strands of hair standing up, then looked at the small cloth bag in his mother’s hand and took it. When he took it, he shook it a bit.

“Mom, what’s this?” Erbao asked, curious.

Yibao also looked curious.

Ning Shu said, “You’ll know when Sanbao opens it… And when it’s your birthdays, I’ll prepare birthday presents for you too.”

Thinking that his birthday was still a long way off, Yibao didn’t expect a gift, but Yibao’s mind was already wandering.

“Sanbao, open it quickly,” Lin Haicai urged his little brother.

Sanbao placed the small cloth bag on the ground and then squatted down to open it. It wasn’t that Sanbao understood what Haicai was saying, but he was also curious about what was inside.

Sanbao had some trouble opening it, but it didn’t matter. With his three brothers helping him, Sanbao easily opened the cloth bag.

Then his eyes lit up as he saw the round toy ball inside, which seemed very fun.

Yibao and the others also saw the toy fabric ball that Sanbao took out, but they didn’t understand what it was for.

“Mom, what’s this for?” Yibao asked curiously.