After leaving the hospital, Chu Yue made follow-up plans in full swing.

She was going to see Commander He and visit Mrs. He at the same time. It had been a long time since she had a checkup on Mrs. He's condition, so it was time to give her acupuncture again.

If you are going, you can't go empty-handed.

Commander He and Madam He are now in high positions and have seen all kinds of good things. People who want to give them gifts may be able to break down the door of the He family. Giving them valuable gifts would be like humiliating Commander He's shares, and giving ordinary trinkets would not be thoughtful enough. Chu Yue thinks she should make it herself.

She thought of the colorful rice.

After Qingming Festival comes the Beginning of Summer. Different places have different customs for the Beginning of Summer. For example, in Chu Yue’s hometown, there is a folk saying “eat eggs and crush stones on the Beginning of Summer”, which means peace and health.

The Beginning of Summer is also known as the Egg Fighting Day. Every household will boil eggs and tea eggs for their children. They will also weave colorful ropes into net bags, put the eggs in them and hang them on their chests.

When the children meet, they will take out their eggs and compete in egg-cracking. Whoever's egg breaks loses.

On this day, Chu Yue got up early in the morning and boiled a lot of eggs. She also weaved a colorful net bag with her own hands and asked Lu Yuanbao to take the eggs to school to play with other children.

In addition, Chu Yue also prepared to make colorful glutinous rice.

Multicolored rice is a local custom. Different colors can be naturally dyed using flowers, rhizomes, leaves, etc. from different plants.

For example, the blue of indigo grass, the black of liquidambar formosana, the yellow of buddleja, and the red of tall clothes-drying poles. Yellow + blue can be mixed to make green.

Soak glutinous rice in these colored juices for several hours. The glutinous rice will absorb water and be dyed with color while also absorbing the flavor of the plants themselves, making the original rice aroma more intense and richer.

Then separate the glutinous rice into pieces and steam them in a pot. The colorful glutinous rice of red, blue, black, yellow and green is ready.

Chu Yue brought tea eggs and colorful glutinous rice and went to the He family.

It was a special family quarters. Those living there were either provincial-level cadres or retired senior leaders. There was an unusual atmosphere inside and out.

Chu Yue was led in by a kind and gentle old lady, who was the servant who took care of Mrs. He and was responsible for three meals a day.

Although it was the first time the two met, the old woman seemed to know Chu Yue. After hearing her name, she was particularly friendly and enthusiastic. She brought Chu Yue in without even notifying her.

The old woman said, "Madam often mentions Comrade Chu. If she knew you were here, she would be very happy."

Before Chu Yue entered the house, she heard the loud and powerful voice of Commander He.

"Red hit! I'm confused!"

"Wait, wait, let me see... You always fail to recognize the cards and you've failed several times." There was a rare hint of impatience in Mrs. He's gentle voice.

"When did I cheat? You can't talk nonsense!" He Jun said in a loud voice, "I don't even cheat in a war, how could I cheat at the poker table?"

"You still don't admit it. Last time you clearly... one, two, three... eleven, twelve..." Mrs. He's words became increasingly confused. "Your cards are wrong. Why is there one missing?"

"Impossible! How could I be missing a card? It must be there! If it's a loser, it's a loser!"

"Look for yourself, count them yourself, and see if there is one missing."

"Impossible! You must have counted wrong."

When Chu Yue approached, she saw Commander He and Mrs. He arguing with each other. Besides Commander He and Mrs. He, there was also the guard Xiao He and the doorman Lao Li sitting at the square round table.

The two of them, one old and one young, watched Commander He and Mrs. He quarreling in front of them. They were so nervous that cold sweat almost broke out on their foreheads.

The old woman said loudly, "Old leader, madam, Comrade Chu is here."

When Xiao He and Lao Li saw Chu Yue, they quickly got down from the card table and ran away as if they had seen a savior.

Mrs. He saw Chu Yue's eyes light up, and she said happily, "A Yue, why are you here?"

Commander He pulled Chu Yue over and pointed at the mess of cards on the table and said, "Chu girl, you came just in time. Come and see if I won or not!"

The old leader still refused to accept the result and was determined to compete with his lover.

Mrs. He didn't get angry with General He. She pulled Chu Yue to her side and said, "Ah Yue, don't listen to the old man. He is just bluffing. We will ignore him and won't play cards with him in the future."

"Aunt He, is mahjong fun?" Chu Yue asked with a smile.

"It's fun, very fun." Mrs. He smiled and said a little embarrassedly, "Last time you told me that playing mahjong can also cure diseases. I didn't believe it at first. It's just a square thing to touch. What's so fun about it? But after learning for a few days, I really got addicted."

Having said this, Mrs. He smiled shyly, and at this moment she had a girlish look.

"Don't underestimate mahjong because it's a small square. Putting so many square things together can create countless possibilities, just like... everything in the universe. It's magical and fascinating. Since I started playing mahjong, my mind has become especially clear, and I no longer forget things like before."

Speaking of this, Mrs. He was particularly happy. Her condition was not serious for the time being and was well controlled. Perhaps she could last a few more years.

During this time, the old woman served tea.

Mrs. He took Chu Yue's hand affectionately, walked away from the card table, and sat down on the sofa nearby.

When Commander He saw that everyone had left, he felt bored staring at the empty card table alone, so he followed Mrs. He, Chu Yue, and walked over.

Mrs. He was still reluctant to let Chu Yue go, and held her tightly to her side as if she were her own daughter.

"Ayue, how have you been recently? Are you used to your life and work?" Mrs. He asked.

Without waiting for Chu Yue to speak, Commander He said, "Chu girl is doing well. She has become famous. Previously, two groups of people were sent to investigate the case of six deaths in the mountain village, but they couldn't figure out what happened and finally returned empty-handed. She and Lao Hao went there and not only investigated the truth, but also rescued the people. Lao Hao wrote a report to me and asked for credit for her."

"I'm asking A Yue, not you. Why are you stealing flowers?" Mrs. He turned around to look at Commander He and said to him in the gentlest tone.

Commander He was almost speechless. "Alright, alright, I won't say anything. You two both despise me. I can't stay in this family anymore."

The person who kept saying he couldn't stay there didn't move at all.

Chu Yue found it interesting watching the old couple bickering back and forth. She wondered if she and Lu Zhanlin would be like this when they got old. Most likely, they wouldn't, because Lu Zhanlin wasn't as talkative as Mr. He.

Chu Yue spoke up to ease the atmosphere and asked, "Commander He, has Doctor Hao's report on my merit been approved?"

Mrs. He thought for a moment, "Yes! Have you approved Ah Yue's report for merit?"

When Doctor Hao heard this, he stared at her. What the hell, he was trying to trick him!