Xu Lai cleaned the fish, heated oil in a wok, added the crucian carp and fried it until golden brown on both sides. Then she put it in another pot, added boiling water and stewed it.

She noticed there were still some eels and loaches in the bucket. Her grandparents hadn't eaten any for the past two days and planned to wait until she recovered before eating them together.

She took the fish out, rinsed it clean, and then heated the pot before adding tea seed oil. This is a local specialty; the tea trees cover the mountains and fields, and the oil can be pressed during the Lunar New Year.

Xu Lai poured all the fish in and fried it briefly in oil. Here, when they stir-fry this dish, they first fry the fish and then stir-fry it with scallion leaves, which makes it especially delicious.

The eel was still jumping around in the pot. Xu Lai was still wielding the spatula when she was suddenly splashed with oil. She didn't have time to pay attention to it. With a flick of the spatula, the fish was back into the pot. To prevent the fish from jumping around, she put the lid on the pot.

The dishes were quickly cooked, and Xu Lai served herself a large bowl of rice. During the two days she was sick, she drank porridge every day, and her mouth had no taste. She felt like she was starving.

When she returned to her room that evening, she took off the four-piece bedding set and washed it. She had been sweating from her cold, and the blankets were damp with sweat.

After taking a shower, Xu Lai had nothing to do, so she turned on her tablet and put on a TV series, intending to watch it as background noise. She had watched this Qing Dynasty drama several times, but she never got tired of it.

The TV series was playing, and she turned on her phone to play a round of Snake. She was finally about to survive and get to first place when Xu Yan called. Distracted, she steered the car and crashed into the wall.

Xu Lai's expression changed, and she gritted her teeth, saying, "Xu Yan, you'd better be in trouble."

She answered the phone and asked, "Why are you calling me all of a sudden?"

Xu Yan said from the other end, "Sister, could you send some more local specialties? I'm craving homemade food."

Xu Lai hadn't expected him to bring this up on the phone, so she agreed and asked, "So, what do you want to eat?"

Xu Yan thought for a moment and said, "Cure the pork, you can make the rest as you see fit."

Xu Lai hummed in agreement and was about to hang up when she heard Xu Yan say, "Mother's Day is coming soon, why don't you give your mom a call?"

Xu Lai was silent for a moment, her fingers fidgeting with the duvet cover. Seeing that she hadn't spoken, Xu Yan tentatively called out, "Sister?"

Xu Lai snapped out of her daze and said, "I know, do you think I would forget? I would have reminded you even if you hadn't told me."

On Mother's Day, Xu Lai went to the flower shop in town and picked out some flowers. She asked the shop assistant to wrap them into two bouquets. When she got home, she gave one bouquet to her grandmother. As expected, her grandmother was very happy, but she said that she was wasting money.

Xu Lai smiled and said, "Grandma, it's Mother's Day once a year, so I'm bringing you a bouquet of flowers on behalf of my dad. The sense of ritual is still very important."

She delivered another bouquet to Grandma Jiang next door, who was somewhat surprised and said, "Oh dear, how can I accept this?"

Xu Lai patted Grandma Jiang on the back and coaxed her, "Grandma Jiang, please accept it. Don't let my good intentions go to waste."

After sending flowers to the two grandmothers, Xu Lai was conflicted when facing her mother. She had sent gifts before, but her mother always said, "Why spend money like this? You think you can make money just because you're working? You're so extravagant."

But in every letter or sentence from Xu Yan, she would say, "Thank you, my son. Make more money in the future and buy Mom better gifts."

She gathered her thoughts, sent a red envelope, and typed: "Happy Mother's Day, Mom!"

After a while, Xu's mother saw the message, accepted the money, and was planning to seize this opportunity to have a long talk with Xu Lai about the marriage.

Ever since she said she broke up with Xiao Liang, Xu's mother has been very worried. She has been asking around for men with decent conditions, hoping to marry her daughter off as soon as possible.

As soon as the voice message was sent, Xu Lai blocked her mother's message as soon as she heard the words "blind date".

After getting off work, Zhao Qingyun went to the flower shop. He had already arranged for an employee to deliver flowers to Ms. Yingqiu's place, and now he was going to choose flowers to give to his grandmother.

He chose two bouquets, one for Grandma Xu. When the shop assistant was wrapping the flowers, he saw that the tulips were growing well and thought of the flower buds on her balcony. On a whim, he asked the shop assistant to wrap a bouquet for her.

When he got home, he first gave the flowers to the old lady, and Grandma Jiang's smile deepened: "This is the second bouquet of flowers I have received."

Zhao Qingyun raised an eyebrow and asked, "Xu Lai also sent one?"

Grandma Jiang smiled and said, "Yes, this child is so thoughtful."

Zhao Qingyun took out the flowers behind her and said, "Then she and I are quite compatible."

He went next door and gave the flowers to Grandma Xu. The old lady got up and invited him to sit down and have some tea.

Zhao Qingyun's purpose in coming was not to have tea. He asked, "Is Xu Lai here?"

Grandma pointed upstairs and said, "She just went up. She's probably in her room. Go up and find her."