In the end, when Lin Qingqing left the carpenter’s house, she hadn’t exchanged any grain but had acquired quite a few other things.

First, she got three jin of white sesame and eight jin of black sesame.

However, she hadn’t picked up the eight jin of black sesame yet because she had asked the carpenter’s wife to grind it into black sesame powder.

This service was free, and Lin Qingqing calculated that she owed the carpenter’s family five and a half liang of oil, but to show her gratitude for their help, she agreed to give them six liang of oil instead.

The second item was peanuts; the carpenter’s wife helped her exchange for ten jin of peanuts and a jar of peanut butter.

Coincidentally, the peanut butter was just made.

The family said that if Lin Qingqing wanted more peanut butter, she could let them know, and they would make more for her to trade.

Because homemade food in that era had no preservatives, it spoiled easily and couldn’t be stored for long.

Lin Qingqing traded this with one shoe ticket and half a jin of sugar tickets.

Lu Cheng’s shoes were issued by the army, while Lin Qingqing had both bought shoes and handmade ones from her family.

Lu Haici’s shoes were also in good condition, so when she saw that the other family wanted shoe tickets, she readily agreed to the exchange.

Initially, Lin Qingqing had only planned to trade for sesame and peanuts, but after others found out about her trading tickets for goods, she ended up exchanging for three jin of clam meat, two jin of dried seaweed, and five jin of dried shrimp.

It turned out that just over the mountain from this brigade was the sea, and during the off-season, everyone often went to the beach.

Collecting seafood was different from hunting in the mountains, as seafood was generally smaller and wouldn’t attract complaints about poaching.

However, these small seafood items could accumulate to a significant amount.

In the end, Lin Qingqing not only managed to trade almost all her unused tickets but also took home a whole yuan.

For Lin Qingqing, this trip was definitely worth it.

She arrived there around two o’clock and had waited for over an hour; by the time she returned to the family compound, it was already three-thirty.

“Haici…” She saw Lu Haici sitting in the yard, resting his chin on his small hands.

It seemed that his playmate, Ji Yang, was not there, and he looked a bit lonely.

“Mom…” Lu Haici’s eyes brightened, and he got up to run towards Lin Qingqing. “Mom, what did you bring back? So much stuff!”

Lin Qingqing smiled, “I’ll show you when I take it out.”

“Okay.” He watched as Lin Qingqing took down the basket and the sack from behind.

However, none of it was something he could lift.

His face turned red in embarrassment.

“Pfft…” Lin Qingqing laughed, “Just leave it to me. Why didn’t you go play?”

“I was waiting for you to come back.”

“When I grow up, like when I’m as big as Dad, I’ll be able to handle it.” Lu Haici said with determination. “Mom isn’t here, and the door is open. I need to watch the door. Mom, Aunt Qin came over today, and she even helped wash the leftover pig intestines.”

Lin Qingqing was somewhat surprised: “How did Aunt Qin know to wash the pig intestines?”

Lu Haici replied, “Aunt Qin came to find Mom. I told her that Mom went to take care of business. Then Aunt Qin saw me washing this and asked if I knew how to wash it. I told her to use this ash, just like Mom and Dad do, and then Aunt Qin washed it with me.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Qingqing felt a surge of emotion; this little child was so obedient, watching over the house and silently washing pig intestines.

For some reason, the scene she imagined in her mind made her feel a bit uncomfortable. “Haici, come here.”

Lu Haici obediently walked in front of Lin Qingqing: “Mom?”

He looked up at Lin Qingqing with wide eyes, his face bright with a smile.

Lin Qingqing cradled his head and lowered herself to give him a big kiss on the cheek. “Thank you, son.”

Lin Qingqing felt that the relationship between parents and children was not just about blood ties, but more about the responsibility that the title conferred upon each other.

From today onward, he was her own son.

Lu Haici slowly widened his eyes, stunned. Mom… kissed him.

Then the little boy suddenly lunged forward and hugged Lin Qingqing. “Mom, you’re so nice.”

His childish voice, even if choked up, was still delightful.

“Because Lu Haici is the cutest, most obedient, and best baby in the world, that’s why I’m good.” Lin Qingqing said.
Lu Haici listened to her praise, feeling both happy and tearful.

Lu Haici would never forget this sentence.

…

It was getting late, and making the braised dish would take time, so Lin Qingqing first put the pig intestines into the earthen pot.

The greatest advantage of braising is that you don’t have to do much—just put the ingredients in proportion into one pot.

However, after cleaning, the twenty pounds of pig intestines weighed around sixteen pounds.

Fortunately, her payment was calculated based on the weight when she received them, not after cleaning.

These pig intestines needed to be divided into two pots.

While braising the pig intestines, Lin Qingqing went to wash the vegetables for dinner.

Today she wanted to eat salted egg yolk pumpkin.

With the peanut butter, she also wanted to eat peanut butter noodles.

What to do?

Adults certainly don’t have to make choices.

Peanut butter noodles…

Making the main dish and cooking salted egg yolk pumpkin isn’t contradictory at all.

Therefore, Lin Qingqing first started kneading the dough.

While the dough was fermenting, she began washing the vegetables.

In addition to the salted egg yolk pumpkin, she also planned to prepare an egg drop soup.

Eating noodles and drinking soup was quite leisurely.

If there were television, cold drinks, or juice as well, that would be perfect.

The method for making salted egg yolk pumpkin was quite simple, and so was the recipe for peanut butter noodles.

The most challenging part was the soul seasoning for the peanut butter.

Many people think that simply mixing peanut butter with noodles is sufficient, but that’s a misunderstanding.

The soul seasoning for the peanut butter consists of one tablespoon of peanut butter and one tablespoon of rice vinegar.

After stirring them together thoroughly, one tablespoon of cooled boiled water is added, as the mixture remains very thick.

Adding the cooled boiled water thins it out. Finally, a sprinkle of white sesame seeds is added.

In her past life, Lin Qingqing often prepared her soul peanut butter this way.

One tablespoon of peanut butter weighs about seventeen grams, which equates to roughly one hundred calories—not too high.

The flavor achieved through this method is about ninety percent similar to the peanut butter served in hot pot or steak restaurants.

This soul peanut butter can not only be used for peanut butter noodles but is also excellent for dressings in salads.

After preparing the soul peanut butter, she checked the time and realized Lu Cheng would be back soon.

She began cooking the noodles.

Once the noodles were cooked and drained, she took out some cucumbers and carrots to slice into shreds.

The cucumbers were not very fresh anymore, as they had been delivered a couple of days ago.

After finishing these less-than-fresh vegetables, Lin Qingqing decided to visit the carpenter’s family to exchange for fresh vegetables.

It was convenient to go to the riverside, whether for lunch or dinner, but visiting the county market required picking a day off.

As Lu Cheng returned from the army, he saw his son squatting at the entrance of the family compound.

“Daddy… hurry, hurry! Mommy made delicious salted egg yolk pumpkin and peanut butter noodles. I’ve already had a bite!”

Lu Haici seemed to be urging him, but in reality, he was showing off.

Lu Cheng replied, “… Looks like it’s another day for wanting to spank my son.”

“Just look at how happy your son is. Salted egg yolk pumpkin and peanut butter noodles sound good, but we’ve never eaten them. Can you tell us how they taste after you’ve tried them? If they’re good, tell your wife to prepare some for the three cooking teams as well, so we can have a taste.”

The chief of staff, who returned with Lu Cheng, couldn’t help but be curious about the delighted expression on Lu Haici’s face.

Lu Cheng responded, “I’ll ask her opinion then.”

He knew Lin Qingqing was a decisive person and wouldn’t make decisions for her without consulting her first.

“Do you really need to ask her opinion? Little Lu, you’re just like our regiment’s Commander Qin…”

“Must be a henpecked husband, right? The entire division has two regiments, and Commander Qin is the commander of the first regiment.”

In the eyes of many, a henpecked husband is a description of a man lacking in backbone.

However, no one would say that about a man like Commander Qin.

Yet behind his back, some still poke fun at him.

Lu Cheng remained silent, neither denying nor admitting it.

He believed that this was a matter of mutual respect.

Influenced by his mother, he had a great respect for women.

Additionally, because his aunt, who raised him, was very strong-willed, women held a high status in his heart.

However, he felt that arguing with the chief of staff about this was pointless.

The chief of staff saw Lu Cheng’s silence as an admission.

He sighed, “Believe it or not, there are quite a few men in our division who are afraid of their wives. But there’s nothing wrong with being afraid of one’s wife.”

“Really?” Lu Cheng looked at the chief of staff in surprise.

Given his earlier demeanor, wasn’t he supposed to be mocking those men?

The chief of staff smiled, “If a man fears his wife, it shows that she’s capable. That way, he can feel at ease at home while he’s out.

After all, our positions mean that our wives often worry about us. So if they can stand up and be brave, that’s a good thing.

You know, before every battle, they do the same thing: they write their wills. While writing their wills, they feel anxious yet determined.

They worry about what might happen to their families, their wives, children, and parents.”

Yet despite their anxiety, they are resolute in shouldering their responsibilities.

Lu Cheng thought to himself, while he’s out here, does Lin Qingqing also worry about him?

Surely she does.

She likes him so much that she uses wild ginseng to negotiate with him, fully aware that it might make him uncomfortable, yet she still chooses to do it.

So, she really does like him.

Lu Cheng couldn’t help but smile, and his mood suddenly lifted.

“Dad, what are you laughing at?” Lu Haici asked curiously, looking at his father.

“You misread it.” Lu Cheng quickly tightened his lips.

“No way! I’m the best at spotting things in kindergarten.” Lu Haici declared. “You clearly smiled. I get it now! You must be happy thinking about Mom’s salted egg yolk stir-fried pumpkin and peanut butter noodles, right?”