The children, who are getting old, came home from school, and Bonnie and Sister Xiang put the food on the table.

Looking at the delicious-looking dishes on the table, even the plating was pleasing to the eye, making it hard not to pick up one's chopsticks.

"Mom, do you think I've gained weight recently?"

Sanqi straightened up and asked his mother to help him confirm that he felt he had gained weight in his stomach.

"No, I've grown taller, and the pants are a bit short. I'll take them to your Aunt Meifeng tomorrow and ask her to loosen the legs so I can wear them through the fall. I don't know if she'll have time, though; business has been good lately."

Bonnie looked at Sanqi's pants, which were a bit too long; he had grown taller in the past month or so.

"Okay, my pants are still pretty new, it would be a waste to throw them away."

Sanqi was relieved to know he hadn't gained weight; he was ready to eat Aunt Xiang's cooking when his dad came home.

"Bonnie, just loosen the child's pants, it's easy."

Sister Xiang has been at Bao Ni's house for over a month. At first, she said she would only be in charge of the kitchen, and Bao Ni really did let her take care of that. She is responsible for her own room, and the children wash their own clothes in the washing machine.

However, after each meal, the children would help clear the dishes, and Bonnie would help prepare the food after get off work. Knowing that Bonnie had an old hand injury, they would even help with chopping bones.

People are all made of flesh and blood, so Sister Xiang stopped sticking to her previous statement that she would only be responsible for the kitchen. She also helped with the vegetable garden in the yard, and dried or pickled the vegetables that couldn't be eaten.

Sometimes she helps tidy up the living room, but it's almost never necessary, as Bonnie, Commander Gu, and the children are all very clean.

"Sister Xiang, I don't know how to sew. I can't even sew the simplest button properly."

Bonnie knew that loosening her pants was all she needed to do, it didn't require any skill. However, while her hands could lift things weighing over a hundred pounds, she couldn't control a tiny embroidery needle.

Sister Xiang was surprised by this answer. It's rare to find someone like Bao Ni, since she used to make her own shoes, clothes, and quilts.

"Everyone has areas where they are not good at something, and you might be the one who does great things."

Sister Xiang even came up with a very grand reason to comfort Bonnie.

"Sister Xiang, you don't need to comfort me. I've been able to go up mountains and down to the sea since I was a child, but I really can't learn the small chores around the house."

My mother and grandmother were both excellent cooks and needlework enthusiasts, especially my grandmother, who could even embroider. Despite their combined efforts, they couldn't teach me, so they eventually gave up.

Bonnie recalled how her grandmother taught her to embroider when she was little. She had squeezed the needle too hard and bent it. She still vividly remembered her grandmother's expression at that time.

"Really? Then there's really no way to learn how to cook. Just like my master's daughter, she just can't seem to learn. Her seasoning is either too salty or too bland, or it just tastes weird."

Bonnie felt that the woman Xiang was talking about was her; she really looked exactly the same.

"Bonnie, if you need anything mended in the future, you can give it to me. I'm pretty good at needle and thread. If you have any clothes you don't wear anymore, you can find them too. I can also make shoes."

Sister Xiang felt that her job was too easy, and she would be embarrassed to accept her salary if she didn't do something.

"Sister Xiang, you are so talented! You're a great cook and a skilled needleworker. You're amazing!"

Bonnie genuinely admires her generation; they're capable of everything, both inside and outside the home—laundry, cooking, sewing, shoemaking, knitting…

"What's so great about it? It's all because of what we had to do. You're so lucky. You don't have to go through what we did. Back then, you couldn't do anything if you didn't know how. You had no clothes to wear and no food to eat. What else could you do but learn?"

The older sister thought about her own daughter, who also didn't know much about these skills.

"Okay, Sister Xiang, I'll find some time to get the children's old clothes. Take a look, if there are any usable ones, you can alter them and make them for the children in your family."

Bonnie thinks this era is pretty good. When giving away old clothes, people don't worry about whether the recipient will mind; they only give them to close friends. Usually, older people wear them out and then pass them on to younger people. When the younger people can't wear them anymore, they keep them to patch up the clothes. Finally, when all else fails, they use them to make shoes.

"That's wonderful! I have two grandsons and a granddaughter, and they're going to go through a lot of clothes. Thank you so much, sister."

Sister Xiang felt a pang of sadness when she thought of her grandchildren. They had lost their father before they were even old enough to understand.

After their casual conversation, the two felt that their relationship had grown closer.

Liu Jiu and the others also felt that Aunt Xiang was much more relaxed and casual, but she was a very tactful person and would not make anyone feel uncomfortable.

As the leaves slowly turned yellow, autumn truly arrived. Bonnie's uncle's family had almost finished their preparations and bought train tickets for three days later, ready to head to Beijing.

Bonnie also received a message from Liu Zi that there were several good properties available.

Since it was the second day off, Gu Ye had nothing to do, so he accompanied Bao Ni to look at houses.

"Hey, Gu Ye, it's been a long time."

Liu Zi was surprised to see Gu Ye. This man was too busy; he and Han Ye could occasionally meet, but seeing Gu Ye was difficult. "He's busy with work, so he spends his free time with his wife," Han Ye had said.

"Why don't you go home? It's not like you don't know where it is. You're busy making money, and you're pushing all the responsibility onto me. You're really something."

We were all fairly familiar friends, so we spoke very casually.

"I was wrong, we're both in the same boat."

Liu Zi is busy too. He earns a little money in his spare time. He's busy every day, and even on his days off, he has to show people houses. When he has nothing to do, he has to find houses himself.

"Liu Zi, where are the houses?"

Bonnie wanted to take a look, and if she found a suitable one, she would buy another one, thus having a little extra money in her hands.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!