“Okay, Grandma, I only prepared one outfit for Wang Hongxi. Is that too little?”

"You can add as much as you like, but too much isn't good either."

"Okay, I'm going back."

When Zhang Hongmei returned home, Wang Xinyi and Wang Ying were both waiting for her. They both breathed a sigh of relief. Although they knew Zhang Hongmei was back, they hadn't actually seen her yet. Now that she was standing before them, they felt reassured. If anything had happened, they wouldn't have been able to explain themselves. Especially Wang Ying; as her bodyguard, it was a serious dereliction of duty of her to let her mistress go into danger while she stayed home.

"Hongmei, what are we having for dinner tonight?"

"Aunt Wang, we're going to someone's house for dinner tonight. Let's divide up the gifts we brought back and take them over later."

"Sister Hongmei, Sister Hongmei!" Shi Tou and San Ya ran into the courtyard.

"Hehe, so Shi Tou San Ya has grown taller. This is Aunt Wang, and this is Wang Ying. You can call her 'sister'."

Shi Tou and San Ya greeted each other politely.

“Sister Hongmei, of course I have to grow tall. I’m going to be a soldier in the future, so of course I have to be tall and strong.”

"Yes, you will definitely grow up to be tall and strong. You've come at the right time; we've brought you some good things."

After Zhang Hongmei finished speaking, she took out six loaves of bread, two pounds of chocolate, two pounds of milk candy, and two pounds of fruit candy, put them all in a bag, and handed it to Shi Tou.

He then found two pencil cases and a few pretty notebooks, and handed them to Sanya.

"This is a gift for you two. Study hard, and I'll be waiting for you in the capital."

"Don't worry, Sister Hongmei, I will definitely get into the military academy in the capital."

"Idiot, the best military academies aren't in the capital," Sanya complained to her brother, who really lacked common sense.

"How could I not know? It's just that Sister Hongmei is in the capital, and there's a military academy there too. It's all the same wherever you are, as long as you work hard," Shi Tou said arrogantly, making Zhang Hongmei laugh heartily.

"Yes, Stone is absolutely right. You can be anywhere, as long as you try your best."

"You two go back. Didn't you get any food from the cafeteria today? I have a few sesame seed cakes here. You two can go back and eat them. I'm going to my great-grandmother's for dumplings. Why don't you come with me?"

"No, we're not going. I haven't had sesame seed cakes yet. My mom must have already gotten food for us. Sister Hongmei, I'll come find you tomorrow morning."

"Alright, you two can go home now."

Zhang Hongmei saw the two off and began preparing gifts for Liu Changhe's family.

Two pairs of cashmere trousers, ten pounds of brown sugar, ten pounds of white sugar, ten pounds of rock sugar, four loaves of bread, meat sauce, and a plate of bananas, all of which were a bit blackened, but that was all we could manage. There were also Zhongshan suits for Liu Changhe and Liu Aimin, two bags of rice, ten meters of work cloth that we bought back, and five meters of polyester fabric suitable for Hu Aifen.

Luckily, Wang Ying had already delivered the wine; otherwise, the three of them wouldn't have been able to carry it all at once. They ended up loading it all into the car anyway, as carrying it would have been too strenuous.

The three of them drove to Liu Changhe's house and started carrying things inside one by one, which made Hu Aifen's eyes widen in amazement.

“Hongmei, why are you spending money all by yourself outside? We have everything at home.”

"Auntie, this is a token of my appreciation. Please don't take it personally."

Everything was moved into the old lady's room. The dumplings were already wrapped and were just waiting for them to come and boil water.

"Grandma, let Wang Ying boil some water. I brought you a gift, see if you like it?" Wang Ying sat down to start the fire. Wang Xinyi also stayed in the kitchen. Although they were poor, their house was very clean. You could tell how clean a family was just by looking at their kitchen.

"Great-Grandma, Great-Grandma, here's a pair of cashmere pants for each of you, in two colors. You can choose whichever you like. This is a Zhongshan suit for my great-uncle, this is a Zhongshan suit for my great-aunt, this is a work cloth for Great-Grandma, and this is a Dacron for Great-Grandma."

Also, these are bananas, a fruit from the south. You all need to eat them quickly, because the peels have developed black spots after a few days and they'll rot in less than two days. Eat them now!

Grandma, this is bread for you. Actually, I think it's not as good as the steamed goat milk buns I make, but you can try it.

"Auntie, this is thirty catties of sugar, and some rock sugar too. My great-grandmother, my first grandmother, and you three can have a few pieces if you want."

Everyone felt a pang of sadness looking at the gifts spread out on the kang (a heated brick bed), as there were many children in the family. But even Jingze never thought of bringing gifts for each of his family members when he came back.

The old lady sat cross-legged on the kang (a heated brick bed) and said, "Take everything back quickly and go cook dumplings."

Liu Changhe put on a Zhongshan suit. "Mom, do you think this suit fits me?"

"Hmm, very good."

Liu Aimin watched his father put on a Zhongshan suit and then picked up his own to try it on. He felt that he looked better in it than his father.

Liu Changhe took off his Zhongshan suit and neatly folded it, placing it aside. "Hongmei, the seafood you brought is so delicious. I especially love it when your aunt mixes dried shrimp with scallions for me. I always end up drinking an extra bowl of porridge with it."

"Grandpa, actually the best part should be the mantis shrimp meat. Stewing it with tofu is incredibly delicious."

"We haven't eaten the rest yet. Neither your aunt nor your maternal aunt know how to cook."

"Yes, I'll tell Grandma and my aunt how to make these things later. You'll definitely love them even more. They're much tastier than dried shrimp."

"What is that green leaf-like thing covered in salt? How do you eat it?"

"That's kelp. It's a type of seaweed. This stuff is good for getting iodine, which can help prevent goiter."

"That's good stuff. When we were kids, there was no cure for goiter, but this stuff was all we had to eat!"

"This can't cure the disease, it can only prevent it. We should make sure the children in the village eat more of it. Next time I go to the beach, I'll definitely send back a lot of seaweed. At least let the children in our village eat seaweed once a month. That way we can prevent goiter."

"And this kelp is also delicious; it can be used in cold dishes or soups. When making cold dishes, add some minced garlic and chili oil. It's really tasty."

"Then you make it for me tomorrow. I want to taste the delicious food you described first."

"Okay, soak the kelp in cold water tonight, and it will be ready by tomorrow morning. I'll come over and make it for you at noon. It's very simple; my aunt and my great-grandmother can learn it in no time."

"Hongmei, go and do your business. Don't worry about your uncle. Just tell your aunt what to do."

“That works. I’m planning to go up the mountain tomorrow to see if I can find any game. I’d like to treat the villagers to a meal.”