"Are you done talking?" Zhao pulled her arm away and tightened her grip on the vegetable basket. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the dried green beans inside hadn't spilled.

Meng Yun'er glanced at the dried green beans, and her eyes darkened slightly.

She remembered that Su Hua had loved eating dried green beans since she was a child, but for some reason, the green beans that grew in the Su family's fields were never as long as her thumb. Ever since Zhao married Su Dahu, she would have her family grow a lot of green beans every year and dry them into baskets and baskets of dried green beans.

She would bring back quite a lot when she went back to her parents' home, enough to last for several months.

They were clearly just cheap, worthless junk, but Meng Yun'er found them particularly irritating.

I wish I could stomp all the dried green beans in the basket and throw them into the river!

She clenched her fists slightly, forcing a smile, "I've finished speaking. What do you think, sister-in-law?"

"If you've finished speaking, please move aside." Madam Zhao raised her eyes, her usually gentle gaze now unusually cold. "Also, since you and Hua'er have fallen out, don't call me sister-in-law anymore, lest others hear and tarnish the reputation of my Su family!"

"Do you even know what you're saying? I'm doing all this for your own good!" Seeing that she was unyielding, Meng Yun'er suddenly felt a surge of anger.

I'm starting to wonder if I offended some evil spirit today.

Nothing has gone smoothly since this morning.

Now, even the most timid youngest daughter-in-law in the Su family dares to give her attitude!

No matter how angry she was, Zhao didn't care at all. She grabbed two vegetable baskets and ran quickly towards the end of the village. In no time, she disappeared from sight along the winding path.

Bang!

Meng Yun'er kicked the crooked sycamore tree.

Su Hua! Su Hua! It's Su Hua again...

He's just a fat, ugly idiot!

What kind of spell did she cast on the Su family?

One by one, they all treated her like a precious treasure, the apple of their eye!

Meng Yun'er, in terms of looks, figure, and temperament, far surpasses Su Hua. Why has she been disliked since birth? Even now, with hundreds of acres of fertile land owned by the Meng family, she still has to work tirelessly for a recipe for snails!

God is so unfair.

Meng Yun'er stood under the sycamore tree, her whole being gradually blending into the shadow of the tree.

The darkness in his eyes was even more intense than the sky.

***

At the end of the village, a lively feast of whole pigs was being prepared in a small courtyard.

A whole pig feast utilizes every part of the pig to create several main dishes.

After an afternoon, the pig offal had been thoroughly cleaned and had no unpleasant smell. As for the large pig's head, it had been roasted over a fire and then stewed in a pot with large white radishes for an hour or so until it was tender and falling off the bone.

Su Hua scooped up the pig's head, tore off all the meat, and made a cold pig's head salad with a sauce made of scallions, ginger, garlic, chili peppers, and aged vinegar.

A large fire was burning in the stove; the next dish was stir-fried pork intestines.

The spicy and stimulating aroma immediately distracted the men in the courtyard.

Even Xiao Jinhan, who was usually expressionless, subtly twitched the tip of his nose.

Dalang's eyes darted around, and he exchanged a glance with Erlang and Chunhua. Then he licked his lips and said, "Third Uncle, Uncle Jinhan, you two talk about this kung fu first. Let's go see if Auntie can help us out."

"Go ahead." Su Sanhu didn't even look up.

Her eyes were fixed on Xiao Jinhan as if he were a rare treasure.

In the past, he only knew that Xiao Jinhan had retired from the military camp, but he never expected that he could easily poke a hole in a big wild boar with a small twig. This was clearly no ordinary military officer.

If he hadn't injured his leg, he probably wouldn't have needed to return to their godforsaken Shanghe Village at all.

"Brother Jinhan, you're so amazing, what caused your leg injury back then? Was it like the storyteller said, some kind of trap or ambush?"

Upon hearing this, Su Dahu and Su Erhu's eyes lit up.

Xiao Jinhan raised his eyebrows slightly and nodded gently, "I suppose so."

The three Su brothers were all taken aback.

Is that right?

What kind of answer is this?

It seems like I answered, but it also seems like I didn't say anything at all.

However, seeing Xiao Jinhan's legs, they dared not ask any more questions, for fear of touching on his scars.

A moment later, Dalang came running out, grinning from ear to ear: "Uncle Jinhan, Father, Second Uncle, Third Uncle, Grandma is calling you for dinner!"

Xiao Jinhan followed the Su brothers into the main room and saw a row of dishes with unidentifiable names laid out on an old wooden table in the center. Each dish was a feast for the eyes and the palate, making one's mouth water just by looking at them and smelling them.

"Jinhan, please sit down!" Madam Su raised her hand, her wrinkled face full of smiles.

"These are all new dishes my daughter made, saying they're a special thank you for your whole pig feast. This soup is pork tripe and chicken soup, and next to it are spicy blood curd, stir-fried pork liver with scallions, braised pork heart, stir-fried pork intestines, cold pork head meat salad, spicy stir-fried pork kidney, pork brain stewed with eggs, and spicy pork lung. In the middle are braised wild boar and steamed cured fish. Speaking of which, this cured fish was smoked from the grass carp you sent over before. Come and try them, see if you like them!"

With each dish the woman described, her pride grew.

Immediately, she picked up a soup ladle, ladled out a full bowl of pork tripe and chicken soup, and handed it to Xiao Jinhan, saying, "Here! Drink a bowl of pork tripe soup to warm your stomach first. Hua'er says that a bowl of soup before a meal is good for your stomach and keeps you healthy!"

Beneath the milky white broth, strips of pork belly and pieces of chicken are faintly visible, along with a few bright red goji berries floating on the surface.

It possesses a certain vibrant and lively beauty.

"Jinhan thanks Aunt Su!" The man took the full bowl of soup with both hands, his large hands stroking the edge. The warmth of his palms made the corners of his lips twitch slightly, and with his exquisitely sculpted features, he looked like an innocent and well-behaved person.

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