Happy, she stepped forward and took Shen Qiaoyue's hand, excitedly saying, "I haven't seen your mother for many years. Later, I was assigned to work in Haishi. I wanted to go and say goodbye to your mother, but the neighbors said that your mother had returned to Fucheng. After that, I lost contact with her. We only recently reconnected. Your mother is sick. Is she alright now?"

Shen Qiaoyue had never heard her mother mention having such a friend.

Shen Qiaoyue quickly explained, "My mother is fine. She has almost recovered. She usually takes care of my child in the family compound, while I have to go to work during the day."

"Your mother has retired! That's great!" Fang Junan said enviously, "I'm already in my sixties, and I don't know when I'll be able to retire!"

“My mother didn’t want to retire because she was seriously ill and could no longer work. She was forced to retire, but she still has a fulfilling life,” Shen Qiaoyue replied.

Jiang Mingjing noticed that everyone was about to start chatting, and he felt hungry.

"Hey everyone, let's sit down and eat first. My stomach's upset, so I have to listen to it!" Jiang Mingjing rubbed his stomach, humorously reminding everyone that it was time to eat.

Fang Junan wanted to say something more to Shen Qiaoyue, but when he heard that they should eat first, he didn't say anything more.

At this moment, the child started crying, and Shen Qiaoyue had no choice but to pick the child up and comfort him.

"You guys eat first, I'll go back and check on the children, I'll be right back." Shen Qiaoyue and Lu Chen came in, each carrying a child.

When people sit down to eat together, the elders sit at one table and the younger generation sits at another.

Bai Qingtan sat next to Zhu Yanlan, glancing at her every now and then.

Everyone was waiting for Jiang Mingjing to speak, since he was the oldest and held a higher status than the others.

"Well, let's just eat and chat today, enjoy ourselves. Too much alcohol can be bad for your health, so let's not drink too much." Jiang Mingjing's meaning was clear: it's okay to drink, but don't overdo it, especially since we didn't bring much alcohol today.