Fang Ke stepped forward directly and said, "Auntie, don't be shy. Qi Qi's cooking is excellent. Please stay and try it. Otherwise, if the food you packed back spoils, she will be heartbroken."

She would never say that she said that because she thought Qi Qi's cooking was better.

Fang's mother thought that there was indeed a lot of food left over from lunch. Every grain of rice is hard-earned, and wasting it is shameful, so she said, "Let's eat at home."

Fang Jingru nodded upon seeing this.

"Okay then, we'll eat at home tonight."

At this moment, Xin Xin started rubbing her eyes, and Qiao Qiqi took her back to her room to sleep. Fang Ke and her parents were also sleepy, so everyone went back to their rooms to sleep for a while.

An hour later, when Qiao Qiqi came out of the room, Fang Ke and Fang Jingru were already sitting in the living room.

Seeing that she came out alone, Fang Ke realized that Xin Xin was still asleep, so he quickly whispered, "Qi Qi, my aunt and I are going out to buy groceries. Do you want to come with us?"

Qiao Qiqi nodded, "Okay!"

Although Xin Xin is young, she is very sensible. She never makes a fuss after waking up. If she finds herself not there, it's okay. So the three of them went out.

Qiao Qiqi planned to cook a fish. The fish she had at the Beijing restaurant at noon was quite good, but it had already been eaten by the group.

So Qiao Qiqi plans to make another one tonight, and she'll choose sweet and sour flavor.

Fang Ke hadn't eaten pig's trotters for a long time, so she bought two. Qiao Qiqi also bought green beans, potatoes, and eggplants.

They had originally agreed to cook two dishes, but in the end, the three of them chose three dishes.

Fang Jingru went to the fruit stand and bought oranges, bananas, and grapes—all good stuff. Apart from the grapes, Qiao Qiqi had never eaten bananas or oranges since she transmigrated.

After buying their things, the three of them went home.

Fang Jingru can cook, and her cooking skills are quite good, but because Fang Ke said she wanted Qiao Qiqi to show off her skills, she became Qiao Qiqi's assistant.

Qiao Qiqi skillfully used one pot to blanch the pig's trotters and another pot to fry the fish, showing that she was a good cook.

Fang Jingru witnessed this scene, her eyes filled with heartache.

Qiao Qiqi didn't notice that soon, braised pig's trotters, sweet and sour fish, and the country-style all-in-one dish were all ready.

Seeing that there were no cold dishes, she also made a cucumber salad.

"It smells so good!" As soon as Fang's mother came downstairs, she smelled the delicious aroma and immediately went to the living room. When she saw that Qiao Qiqi had cooked fish and pig's trotters, she immediately looked apologetic.

"I overslept, but everything is ready."

"It's lucky you got up late, otherwise you would have just caused trouble and wouldn't have been able to help at all." Fang Ke chuckled. "Although I did get up, I know my place and only helped pick the green beans and peel the potatoes. My aunt was the one who went into the kitchen to help out."

"You child." Fang's mother was already used to being disliked.

Fang's father came down at this time, and Qiao Qiqi handed over the task of reheating the last dishes to Fang Jingru. She went back to her room to wake Xin Xin up.

Five minutes later, the six people sat down at the table and began to eat.

"This pig's trotter is so tender and falls off the bone, it melts in your mouth, it's so delicious! Sigh, I have a feeling that if you stay at my house for a month, I'll gain at least seven or eight pounds. I already feel like I have more fat on my stomach." Fang Ke complained as she ate, giving a firsthand account of what it means to be in pain but happy at the same time.

Qiao Qiqi raised an eyebrow, "Then I'll leave?"

"No way! I'd rather die of obesity than let you leave!" Fang Ke immediately shook her head.

Seeing her spineless appearance, Fang's mother immediately laughed and said, "Even a pig's trotter can't shut you up. Hurry up and eat."

Fang Ke pouted; she was genuinely distressed, but she never missed a single bite at mealtimes!

Fang Jingru likes to eat fish, but this is the first time she has tried sweet and sour fish.

When I was in the kitchen, I smelled that strong aroma and thought it must be quite sour, but after actually tasting it, I found that the sweetness was also very strong, almost on par with the sourness. It was a very appetizing combination of sweet and sour.

"How is this fish cooked? It's so delicious, and the bright red color is so beautiful. It looks incredibly appetizing." Fang's mother also tried the sweet and sour fish and immediately fell in love with it.

Qiao Qiqi told Fang's mother how to make it, but when Fang's mother heard about the complicated process and the need to prepare the sauce, she immediately gave up, saying, "Okay, I don't have the talent for this."

The family chatted and laughed, and time passed quickly.

Because he didn't go out at night, Mr. Fang, seeing how good the food was, even drank a couple of bottles of ginseng wine.

Fang Ke suddenly looked at Fang Jingru and said, "Auntie, why don't you stay at my house tonight? Sleep in the same room as me."

The Fang family only has five rooms in total. There are three upstairs: one is the bedroom of Mr. and Mrs. Fang, one is the study of Mr. Fang, and the other is Fang Ke's.

One of the two rooms downstairs was used as a storage room, and the other was the guest room where Qiao Qiqi and Xin Xin slept.

Fang Ke's bed is 1.5 meters wide, which is enough for two people to sleep in.

But Fang Jingru looked at Qiao Qiqi and asked, "You don't mind if I come over and squeeze in with you guys tonight, do you?"

When Qiao Qiqi saw that Fang Jingru wanted to sleep in the guest room with her, she immediately shook her head, "I don't mind. It's just that Xinxin is afraid to sleep alone at night. I only slept in one bed, and the other bed is empty."

“Okay, then I’ll sleep in that bed tonight.” Fang Jingru smiled slightly.

Fang Ke was unhappy. Seeing that she was being disliked, she was about to speak when her mother suddenly pulled her and shook her head at her.

A hint of doubt flashed across Fang Ke's eyes, but seeing that her mother told her not to speak, she remained silent.

After the meal, Fang's mother, who hadn't participated in cooking, insisted on washing the dishes herself, so Fang took the others to play cards.

"Qiqi, do you know how to play poker?"

Qiao Qiqi thought for a moment. She probably wouldn't do it in this era, but she would in the 21st century.

So she said, "Tell me how to play, I should be able to."

Fang Jingru followed up, saying, "Since Qiqi doesn't know how, I'll team up with her and let her play a few rounds first."

Fang Ke had no objections, so he explained their game to Qiao Qiqi.

As a veteran player, Qiao Qiqi immediately understood, but she pretended not to understand in the first few games.

"Qiqi, you're so smart! This is the first time I've seen someone who doesn't know how to play cards pick it up so quickly." Fang Jian saw that Qiao Qiqi had mastered the game in just a few rounds and couldn't help but praise her.

Qiao Qiqi felt a little uneasy, but still pretended to be modest and said, "Really? This is my first time playing, I don't know if I'm fast or not!"

"It's super fast, okay?"

Fang Ke really admired her more and more; how could she do everything so well!

Suddenly, she remembered that she had asked Qiao Qiqi to draw a picture for her after lunch, so she immediately said, "Oh right, don't forget you still owe me a drawing."