Chapter 14: Fubao's Full Moon Banquet

The popularity Zhou Weiguo had accumulated during his lifetime and the good deeds Shen Lingning had silently done for more than a year now converged into a warm current.

The Zhang family sent a small bag of fragrant sun-dried wild mushrooms, the Li family brought half a basket of eggs they had saved, dyed auspicious colors with red paper, and the Zhao family contributed a bag of large, sweet red dates they had saved in the fall...

Even the most needy widow, Grandma Sun, trembling with a cane, brought a handful of thin noodles that she had treasured for a long time and was reluctant to eat herself...

In the villages that were short of supplies in 1973, these "treasures" that carried body temperature and were saved with great care were the most profound and sincere gifts that the villagers could give.

Shen Lingning accepted it silently, his eyes burning with heat.

She gritted her teeth and took out ten kilograms of precious white flour she had exchanged for game in her space. "Aunt Wang, please, please, and the sisters-in-law, make us all some sauerkraut noodles on the full moon day! Plenty of food!"

On the day of Fubao's full moon, God seemed to have opened his eyes, and the rare warm sunshine dispelled the coldness of the past few days.

The Zhou family's originally lonely courtyard was now bustling with people.

A dozen borrowed, paint-chipped octagonal tables were put together, surrounded by long benches, and the men set up stoves to warm themselves and boil tea.

The strong young men brought water and firewood and stacked them neatly.

The temporary stove made of adobe in the yard was burning with a crackling sound, and the bone soup in the big iron pot was bubbling.

The rich aroma spreads domineeringly, making people's stomachs growl with greed.

The half-grown children in the village stopped going out to play and gathered around the stove just to smell the aroma of meat for a while longer.

Aunt Wang, wearing an apron, and accompanied by several skillful daughters-in-law, were busy kneading and rolling dough. Because there were so many people, white flour was mixed with red sorghum flour.

Pink noodles fluttered on the chopping board, ready to be made into the luxurious臊子面 (臊子面) of 1973.

In a large coarse porcelain bowl were glistening, fragrant scallion-fried black fungus (from the Zhang family), golden, oily scrambled eggs (from the Li family's red-dyed eggs), and sweet, soft steamed jujube cakes (from the Zhao family's jujubes).

Although there was no big fish or meat, the table was filled with simple warmth and the joy of sharing.

Shen Lingning stood in the yard holding Fubao.

Little Fubao was dressed up in a particularly smart manner, wearing a "military uniform" that was carefully modified from Zhou Weiguo's old military uniform.

Wearing a small hat made of the same fabric, with a pair of big black eyes on her delicate little face, she looked curiously at the yard full of kind smiles.

"Oh my, our Fubao looks like a little PLA soldier in this outfit! So spirited!"

"Sister Lingning, Fubao's eyes and eyebrows are just like her father's, very handsome! She will definitely be a pretty girl when she grows up!"

"Fubao, smile for your auntie! Oh, you really smiled! Lucky baby!"

The villagers gathered around, touched the little hands, teased the little face, their eyes full of pure love. Although rural people favor boys over girls due to labor issues, this was Zhou Weiguo's posthumous child, and no one would look down on him.

Shen Lingning wore a gentle and decent smile on his face as he sincerely thanked everyone one by one, but his eyes were vague and coldly sharp as he swept towards the half-open courtyard door.

She apologized softly, "Nannan, we're pressed for time. Today is your first good day. I'm sorry. I'm going to use today's abundance of people to deal with the bad guys."

Fubao yawned and nuzzled into Shen Lingning's arms, murmuring in his heart, "It's okay, Mom. Once we deal with the bad guys, we'll have a double blessing."

He yawned again as he spoke, then fell into a deep sleep while holding onto Shen Lingning's clothes.

I am so annoyed that she now needs to be held by someone's body, and can only eat, drink and sleep all day long.

Shen Lingning was talking to a few sisters-in-law while she wrapped the "Old Mountain Ginseng" in a half-worn red cloth, deliberately revealing a small section of the wicker basket with the roots covered in soil and in excellent condition...

And an old envelope with the words "Lin Sanquan IOU" written on it were placed on the most conspicuous square table in the main hall, and could be clearly seen from the open window.

The aroma of the soup became stronger and stronger, and white steam rose in the cold wind.

The臊子面 is out of the pot!

The greasy smell of meat was the pork and green chopped green onions that Chen Lingning had exchanged for the game in the space...

Aunt Wang rolled the pink noodles into long thin strips. Bowls of whistle-shaped noodles were scooped into bowls, topped with minced meat sauce and sprinkled with wild onions. The noodles were steaming hot, and even Shen Lingning couldn't help swallowing his saliva.

Since I came to southern Shanxi from Shanghai, I haven't eaten noodles this delicious...

Large coarse porcelain bowls were filled and handed to everyone. Everyone ate the food that they could not eat on ordinary days with big mouthfuls. No one had time to talk and their mouths were full of oil.

Just as everyone was enjoying their meal, the whole courtyard was filled with warmth, laughter, and the sound of slurping noodles—

"Bang!!!"

The gate of the courtyard was suddenly slammed open by a violent force!

The door panel hit the earth wall, making a groaning sound as it could not bear the weight!

Lin Sanquan, along with his wife Zhang Fangqin, and his ruffian-looking and crooked son Lin Youcai, stormed in aggressively, oblivious to who was around!

The lively conversation, laughter and the sound of slurping noodles came to an abrupt end.

Everyone paused, their eyes fixed on the three uninvited guests.

Lin Sanquan's triangular eyes darted around, his greedy gaze instantly locked onto Shen Lingning who was holding the child, and then he quickly glanced towards the open window of the main hall - the eye-catching red cloth bag and envelope on the table were clearly visible!

A smug, sickening grin stretched his lips.

"Girl, my granddaughter is one month old, why didn't you notify her grandfather?"

Shen Lingning and the neighbors sitting in the yard looked coldly at the uninvited family.

Shen Lingning’s indifference angered Lin Sanquan, and his once elegant face became distorted with excitement.

“Shen Lingning!”

Lin Sanquan put his hands on his hips, his voice was sharp and piercing, with a sense of self-righteous arrogance and shamelessness.

"You unfilial daughter! I gave birth to you and raised you, but you hid your wealth and made a fortune! You've grown wings, haven't you? What about that fifty-year-old mountain ginseng? It's the ancestral property of the old Lin family!

And the IOU in Weiguo's hand, hand it over to me immediately! It's mine!"

His saliva flew everywhere, and his skinny fingers almost poked Shen Lingning's face.

Looking at the aggressive man in front of her, Shen Lingning couldn't find any trace of the gentle and cheerful father who carried her on his back and spun around to make her happy when she was a child.

She felt heartbroken and sad for her mother. The eldest daughter of the Shen family in Shanghai was deceived by such a scumbag.

Lin Sanquan's wife, Zhang Fangqin, immediately chimed in with a shrill voice, her voice like scraping the bottom of a pot: "That's right! An unlucky star! Not only does she bring bad luck to men, but she also wants to steal things from your mother's family?

You're such a rebel! If you don't honestly hand over the IOU today and give your parents three hundred dollars of retirement money to make amends, I'll smash your shabby nest! You and that little bastard get out of here!"

His son Lin Youcai also rolled up his sleeves, revealing his lean arms, and took a step forward with a fierce look on his face, full of threats.