Chapter 22 The whole family had a hearty meal.

Grandma Ji was so startled that she dropped her chopsticks on the table. Ji Xuening picked them up for her and said, "Grandma, eat."

Grandma Ji finally came to her senses and picked up her chopsticks: "Oh, oh, oh, eat, eat, eat..." She thought she had misheard. Was it her granddaughter-in-law arguing with someone? And she even won?

The three children looked on with admiration and seemed quite happy.

Ji Daming also told Wang Yuqing about what happened in the wheat field. Wang Yuqing regretted not scolding him more fiercely earlier.

The sauerkraut fish, crucian carp soup, and corn pancakes were so delicious that they didn't dwell on what had just happened; everyone's attention was focused on the food.

Ji Xuening was the most surprised, and her stomach growled the loudest.

He had cooked fish before, but it was too fishy and hard to swallow. Plus, he didn't have much time to cook fish, so his family rarely ate it. But the fish in front of him looked very appetizing.

He took a bite, and it seemed as if a whole host of praises were on the tip of his tongue. Wang Yuqing was all ears, eager to hear the compliments. In the end, the man uttered just one word: "Delicious."

This amused Ji Xiaoming, Ji Meimei, and Grandma Ji, who burst into laughter.

Ji Daming smiled modestly and started eating. He didn't dare to eat too much, feeling that he should leave more for his grandmother, father, younger brother and sister, and his mother.

Wang Yuqing proactively served him a lot of fish, and also served Grandma Ji and Ji Meimei a bowl of crucian carp soup. The crucian carp soup was very nutritious and suitable for them to drink.

Her whole family is so thin, it breaks my heart to see them like this.

Ji Xiaoming let out a burp: "This is the best meal I've ever had, and the best fish I've ever eaten. I haven't eaten this much in a long time."

While eating, Ji Meimei recounted her fishing experience, but because she was young and too excited, she spoke unclearly, which made Ji Xiaoming extremely anxious.

After she finished speaking, she patted her belly and said in a childish and cute voice, "My belly is full, I'm full."

Grandma Ji had finished eating and exclaimed, "Mmm, this is really good, delicious! Today feels like New Year's Day." As she spoke, tears welled up in her eyes again, and she quickly wiped them away with her handkerchief.

Wang Yuqing said, "There's a bit too little oil, otherwise it would taste even better, but we've already used quite a bit of oil in today's meal."

Ji Xiaoming blurted out, "We don't usually eat oily food, but Grandma knew you were coming, so she specially brought out the oil..."

Grandma Ji quickly reached out and patted his shoulder, signaling him not to say anything.

Wang Yuqing felt uneasy after hearing this. She thought the Ji family used oil, but only used very little. She didn't expect that they were usually reluctant to use oil.

As Ji Xuening washed the dishes, a smile crept onto his lips. He never imagined that bringing his childhood sweetheart home would lead to such a wonderful life, better than he had ever imagined.

At least, he saw his grandmother and three children smiling all day long.

The fish drying outside really amazed him.

It wasn't even dark when they finished dinner. In those days, there were no cell phones or televisions, and the Ji family didn't have a radio either. Wang Yuqing could only sit at the door and look up at the sky. The thousands of stars seemed so close, so beautiful that she couldn't take her eyes off them.

She remembered seeing such a scene only when she was a child. After she grew up and started working, she rarely saw stars in the sky. At most, there were only a few stars, and their light was very dim.

She thought it was due to two reasons: firstly, environmental pollution, and secondly, perhaps the stars were getting farther and farther away from Earth.

The sky was full of stars, fireflies twinkled, insects and birds chirped, and a cool breeze blew. Wang Yuqing thought the scene was absolutely beautiful and delightful. She even wanted to hum a children's song: "Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are, all the little things in the sky, shining brightly..."

He also sang a few songs that were appropriate for this era.

Ji Xiaoming said that she sang better than the school teachers, and Ji Meimei happily learned to sing along.

Grandma Ji, sitting next to her, also praised Wang Yuqing for having a good voice, saying that she sang even better than the members of the brigade's art troupe.

Ji Xuening heard it too. He sat down next to her and started chopping the books he had cut up during his lunch break into pieces. I don't know what he was doing.

The beautiful singing in his ears made him a little distracted. He loved watching plays but not song and dance performances, but he was somewhat captivated by Wang Yuqing's singing.

Seeing that Wang Yuqing showed no worry or unease, Grandma Ji became more anxious. Although she was happy today, there was still something that hadn't been resolved: Cao Hao's grandmother and mother hadn't come to settle accounts yet.

Could it be that the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law think Cao Hao was indeed in the wrong? And they're letting it go because Wang Yuqing is a new wife?

Let's hope so.

Grandma Ji felt terrified just thinking about the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. The villagers had given them the nickname "Black and White Demons," implying that if you messed with them, they would curse you mercilessly.

Generally, if you offend them, regardless of whether you are right or wrong, you should apologize with a gift and ask them to leave.

Wang Yuqing had long forgotten about this matter. She was still enjoying the praise and admiration of her three children. She had loved singing and dancing since she was a child, and later taught herself musical instruments and participated in some talent shows, but eventually gave them up.

After all, success and standing out are easy for the rich, but extremely difficult for ordinary people. Without money and background, what makes you think you can compete with others?

At that moment, a group of people came out from the Zhou family next door.

Wang Yuqing said a few words of farewell to them, and then Yingzi left with her parents and younger brother. When they passed by the Ji family's door, Yingzi looked up at Wang Yuqing but did not greet her.

She heard the woman in front of her muttering, "Are you even of any use? You're utterly unlikable. You almost ruined the whole thing."

After saying that, the woman turned around and glanced at Wang Yuqing, muttering to herself, "Is she not planning to go back and stay overnight at the man's place? That's so unlucky. They haven't even gotten a marriage certificate yet. Aren't they afraid of losing face? There are all kinds of people these days."

The Zhou family members also peered over. Apart from a plump young woman who grinned at them, the rest of them had expressionless, indifferent faces.

Grandma Ji said that they weren't targeting the Ji family. Except for their daughter-in-law, Li Shuqin, who was always smiling, everyone else in their family was like that—they never greeted anyone and always had a cold face.

The old woman from the Zhou family yelled at Li Shuqin, "What are you grinning about? Go back inside and sew the soles of your shoes!"

Wang Yuqing went back to her room. It was too hot and she wanted to take a shower. She originally wanted to go to the kitchen to boil water herself, but Ji Xuening had already prepared it.

In those days, rural areas didn't have many toilets; people would carry a large basin to their room to take a bath.

Ji Xuening said, "It's still a bit chilly at night, so I made you some warm water." After saying that, she carried a large basin of water and placed it on the floor of her room.

Ji Xuening bought her the towel at the department store, and the handkerchief was the one Ji Xiaoming brought her to wash her face when she came today.

Wang Yuqing wasn't a particularly noble person, but the large basin in front of her was used by the whole family, including for washing clothes, and it was also quite dirty.

She glanced at the foot basin a few more times and noticed some grime inside. After thinking about it, she decided not to be so fussy. After all, this was still a peasant family in those days, and they had to make do with what they had.

"Thanks."

Wang Yuqing politely said thank you.

Ji Xuening felt a little uncomfortable. He hummed in response and turned to leave.