The kitchens built by farmers in rural areas are quite large; otherwise, they wouldn't be able to accommodate so many people.

The two little guys probably weren't having enough fun in the main room, so they came here too.

"Did you remember what Mom said?"

The little one nodded repeatedly: "Mommy, Tuanzi remembers, I won't run around or move around."

Ye Wanying chuckled and nodded, then looked at Xiao Jiu:

"Help your aunt look after your little brother for a bit, she'll be frying meatballs soon."

Fried meatballs are one of the two little ones' absolute favorite foods. Even the more mature-looking Xiao Jiu was secretly drooling, then grunted in agreement.

"Xiao Jiu will take good care of her younger brother," she said confidently.

"Good girl."

The two little ones were allowed to roam within the kitchen doorway, furthest from the stove and firebox.

After settling the two little ones in, Ye Wanying took an apron from the cupboard, put it on, and tidied her hair.

"Aunt Zheng, is everything ready?" she asked.

"It'll be ready soon." As she spoke, Ling Jin grabbed a handful of chopped scallions from the side and threw them into the plate. The aroma of the meatball filling was already faintly wafting from the plate.

Ye Wanying casually scooped up a fish weighing at least four pounds from the bucket next to her and slammed it onto the cutting board. The fish, which had been lively and jumping just a second earlier, immediately fainted.

Xia Hong gasped, glared at Ye Wanying, and with a few quick swift movements, chopped off the fish head with a knife and sliced ​​the fish body in half.

Hiss~

Xia Hong wasn't afraid of anything else, but she was truly afraid of taking lives.

Especially seeing my friend effortlessly prepare the fish without even blinking, I forced a few smiles, hehe...hehehe....

Ye Wanying caught a glimpse of Editor-in-Chief Xia's face out of the corner of her eye, feeling both amused and helpless. Let alone fish, even a person... believe it or not, could be dissected neatly piece by piece in the shortest amount of time?

Of course, we shouldn't scare Editor-in-Chief Xia with this.

"Um, is there anything I can help with?" Xia Hong leaned closer to Ye Wanying and asked in a low voice.

Ye Wanying chuckled lightly, then pointed to the garlic in the corner:

"Peel that one."

"Oh, okay."

Xia Hong breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that it was garlic peeling.

The kitchen was bustling with activity as everyone was busy. Ye Wanying had already started frying meatballs.

Sizzle... sizzle sizzle...

As soon as the meatballs hit the oil, they sizzled and released a rich, meaty aroma.

The two little ones at the door couldn't help but swallow their saliva when they smelled the aroma, and then immediately stopped playing:

"Mommy, eat meatballs, Tuanzi wants to eat meatballs."

The little boy stood at the door, his chubby face filled with longing.

Xiao Jiu, standing next to him, was also quite excited. Kids, after all, have almost no resistance to delicious food.

"It's hot, wait a minute."

The two little ones could only endure it, and a few suspicious strands of saliva even trickled from the corner of one of their mouths.

......

At this very moment, on the train bound for H Province, the difference between this place and Yejiacun is like night and day.

"Minister Gu, this is all we have."

Two steamed buns and a small dish of pickled vegetables—compared to the lavish feasts in the Ye family's kitchen, this was truly pitiful and a terrible waste.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, there weren't many passengers on the train, and many of the people who usually sell food had gone home for the holiday. It really was true that even if you had money, you couldn't buy any good food.

Gu Ziling's eyebrows twitched several times before she closed her eyes, reached out, picked up a steamed bun, and swallowed it with difficulty.

At this moment, Gu Ziling was thinking: If you're so capable, then don't let me find out who the people behind all this bad stuff are. Otherwise, I'll definitely get my revenge.

After all, if it weren't for these unpleasant things, Gu Ziling would still be enjoying herself at the Ye family's house, eating big fish and meat. Why would she need to be here eating steamed buns?