“Didn’t buy much?” Seeing that there was only a single bag of Lu Haci on Lin Qingqing’s bicycle and just some tofu and mushrooms in the small front basket, Lu Cheng was curious about why it was so little.

Lin Qingqing replied, “I got a big bucket of pig intestines and half a pig head from Sister-in-law. I brought back materials from the cooperative, and our collaboration with them was successful.”

She spoke softly, wanting to share the good news with Lu Cheng without drawing too much attention.

Noticing her mysterious demeanor and her eagerness to share her happiness, a smile flickered in Lu Cheng’s eyes. “Congratulations.”

Although he said little, his words always conveyed what she wanted to hear.

Sure enough, Lin Qingqing’s smile grew even brighter. “There’s a big bucket of pig intestines, over twenty pounds, and half a pig head. You can go pick them up later; I’ll go home and cook now.”

Lu Cheng suggested, “There’s no need to be so troublesome. Let’s just eat at the cafeteria.”

Lin Qingqing didn’t like eating at the cafeteria. “It won’t take long; I’ll just make two dishes. I’m off now.” With that, she pedaled away quickly, as if hitting the gas.

Lu Cheng watched helplessly, noticing their son sitting behind Lin Qingqing, hugging her waist and looking back proudly at him.

“Lu Cheng, your wife is really impressive today,” Yu Xiuyao remarked, not hurrying to ride her bicycle but pushing it along as she shared the day’s events with Lu Cheng.

She felt the need to talk to someone and had been holding it in all morning.

This person had to be Lu Cheng, so he could know how great Lin Qingqing was.

Undoubtedly, while she might have leaned toward Lu Cheng before, she was now Lin Qingqing’s number one supporter.

Hearing Yu Xiuyao mention Lin Qingqing, Lu Cheng was naturally willing to listen. “What happened today?” he asked in a calm tone, curious inside.

Meanwhile, Lin Qingqing had already brought Lu Haici back home.

“Lu Haici…” Ji Yang was at home playing with dirt and counting ants.

Today, his playmate wasn’t around, and he had lost interest, probably because he was used to playing with someone.

Suddenly left alone, he didn’t feel motivated.

Now that his friend was back, he hurried out to greet him. “Lu Haici, you’re back! Was the county fun?”

Ji Yang was also someone who had been to the county, as Xu Huijuan had taken him there, yet he still couldn’t help but ask.

Lin Qingqing picked Lu Haici off the bicycle, and while he was happy to see his friend, he replied seriously, “I didn’t go to play in the county today; I went with my mom to handle business.”

As Lin Qingqing finally pushed her bicycle through the door, she almost tripped.

She realized that she had indeed neglected her little one today.

Since time was tight, she had rushed back after negotiating at the supply station without spending any time playing with him.

She wondered if there was a zoo in the county town.

If there was, she would set aside a day to take her little one to have fun there.

“Wow?” Ji Yang looked at Lu Hai Ci with admiration. “You’re amazing! You can actually handle serious business now.”

Lu Haici proudly replied, “Of course! I’m not a three-year-old kid.”

The two children began discussing the topic of serious business, while Lin Qingqing started preparing lunch.

It was already noon, and if she didn’t hurry, they would be eating too late.

Unfortunately, there was no dough at home; otherwise, she could have finished making it in half an hour.

Lin Qingqing quickly washed the rice and put it in the clay pot.

Today, she didn’t even add sweet potatoes to the rice, as washing the sweet potatoes would take up too much time.

While waiting for the rice to cook, she washed the mushrooms.

The county market had a pretty good variety of vegetables, and Lin Qingqing had bought golden needle mushrooms, which she hadn’t expected to find there.

She bought two pounds, fearing she wouldn’t be able to get them next time.

She also bought oyster mushrooms and chicken truffles, which she didn’t get from the market but traded with a middle-aged man outside the market.

The wild mushrooms were probably foraged from the mountains.

Ever since the country implemented a barter policy, even on days when the market wasn’t open, people would set up stalls at the market entrance to trade items, as bartering wasn’t illegal.

Lin Qingqing used tickets for transactions; she had originally planned to visit the carpenter’s place today, so she had brought enough tickets with her.

However, she didn’t have time in the morning and needed to make a trip in the afternoon to avoid keeping the carpenter’s wife waiting.

Lin Qingqing laid out the washed golden needle mushrooms on a plate, then boiled water in the iron pot and set up a steaming rack.

Since she didn’t add much water, it only took about ten minutes for it to start boiling.

Just as the water was boiling, Lu Cheng returned.

He placed the pig intestines and pig’s head in the yard and then went to the kitchen to ask Lin Qingqing, “How should we handle the pig intestines and pig’s head?”

Lin Qingqing replied, “You should wash the pig intestines first. By the way, Lu Cheng, how is the wood ash from the cafeteria handled?”

Upon hearing this, Lu Cheng immediately understood, “You want to use wood ash to wash the pig intestines?”

He recalled that he had previously washed pig intestines using wood ash, so he understood her intention right away.

Lin Qingqing confirmed, “Yes, if the pig intestines provided by the supply station are already cleaned, that’s fine. But if they aren’t, we’ll have to wash them ourselves. The wood ash we use for daily cooking…”

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“I’m worried it might not be enough. If the grass and wood in the cafeteria aren’t being used, I’d like to collect some,” Lin Qingqing said.

Lu Cheng replied, “I’ll ask about it after lunch. For now, I’ll wash these pig intestines.”

“Alright,” Lin Qingqing agreed.

Earlier, while she was starting the fire, she had already gathered the leftover ash and placed it in the corner behind the stove, so Lu Cheng simply shovelled the ash out into the yard.

Lin Qingqing didn’t help with the washing since she was busy preparing the dishes.

Once the water in the iron pot boiled, she steamed the enoki mushrooms for nine minutes.

After they were cooked, she took them out and poured the hot water from the iron pot into a wooden basin to use for washing the dishes.

Then she heated some oil in the pot.

While waiting for the oil to heat up, she drained the water from the mushrooms, chopped some green onions, and sprinkled them on top, adding a suitable amount of soy sauce.

When the oil was hot, she ladled it out and poured it over the enoki mushrooms.

Sizzle…

The sound filled the air, along with the fragrant aroma of scallion oil.

Lu Cheng, who was outside washing the pig intestines, caught a whiff of the smell and became curious about what she was cooking, but he resisted the urge to go peek.

Meanwhile, Lu Haci, who had been playing with Ji Yang, noticed his father washing things in the yard and curiously returned home.

As soon as he got back, Ji Yang eagerly followed him, and then Lu Cheng ended up washing the pig intestines with the two little ones.

Xu Huijuan finished tidying up the kitchen and washing the dishes.

When she came out and saw Ji Yang washing things next door, she called out, “Ji Yang, it’s time for your afternoon nap.”

Xu Huijuan felt a bit intimidated by Lu Cheng; partly because of his high position and partly due to his taciturn nature, with eyes that seemed sharp as blades.

Only a few military wives, like Yu Xiuyao, who had often looked after Lu Haici, dared to speak freely in front of him.

In contrast, Lu Cheng was always very polite toward them because he respected the military wives for their care of Lu Haici.

Ji Yang replied, “I’m just playing at Lu Haici’s house for a bit.”

The grass and wood ash from the stove were fun to play with, especially when it came to stinky things.

To the little ones, the stinkier the pig intestines, the more entertaining they were.

“Mom, it smells so good!” Lu Haici exclaimed as he caught the aroma and put down the pig intestines to run into the kitchen.

Ji Yang followed closely behind him.

Lin Qingqing said, “I just finished the enoki mushrooms. I’ll make some tofu soup next, and then we can eat. Just wait a little longer, okay?”

Lu Haici paused for a moment and asked, “Mom, is tofu soup made with tofu brain?”

His mother had mentioned when buying tofu that she would make it with the tofu brain.

“I want to make tofu pudding,” Lin Qingqing said, emphasizing that it would be prepared tomorrow morning.

Lu Cheng, sitting outside, overheard this and felt a surge of anticipation for the next day.

He had tasted tofu pudding before, though it felt like a distant memory; he vaguely recalled that it was delicious.

Now hearing about it, he couldn’t help but feel excited.

Lin Qingqing made the tofu soup quite simply.

She sautéed the mushrooms in a hot pan with some oil, then poured in water and soy sauce.

Once the water boiled, she added diced tofu and then cracked an egg into the pot, stirring with a spatula before adding a slurry made from water and starch.

A bowl of light and tasty tofu soup was ready, and she finished by slicing a plate of braised pig intestines.

They arrived at the family quarters at noon, and the meal was ready by 12:30 PM, which was quite fast—just in time for noodles.

In fact, utilizing cooking time efficiently really saved time.

“Lunch is ready!” Lin Qingqing called out.

Immediately, one adult and two children set down their things, quickly washed their hands, and lined up at the kitchen door.

Today was another day where Lu Haici was blocked from view by his dad’s height.

Lin Qingqing directed, “Lu Cheng, take the tofu soup down. Lu Haici, you take the braised dish down. The tofu soup is hot, so it’s for the older one; the braised dish is cold, so it’s for the younger one.”

“Okay.”

“Yes.”

The older one replied calmly, while the younger one responded excitedly, like a new recruit in training.

The two of them carried their respective dishes into the hall, and Ji Yang watched curiously from the doorway.

Lin Qingqing smiled and asked, “Ji Yang, can you still eat? Do you want to drink some tofu soup?”

Ji Yang swallowed hard.

He wanted to drink it but remembered his mother telling him that food was precious in this era and that he shouldn’t eat at Lu Haici’s house.

So, he shook his head, “Auntie, I’ve already eaten.”

If only his tone didn’t sound so reluctant, his words could have been more convincing.

Lin Qingqing continued, “Then how about just a small bowl of tofu soup? You can have that, right?”

Ji Yang felt tempted, but he replied, “Auntie, I’ll go home and bring back some food to trade with you.”

Then he started running home.

“No need, no need!” Lin Qingqing caught hold of him. “How about this: I’ll treat you to some tofu soup if you help me with a task. Then we can consider it a trade. What do you think?”