When Zhong Songbai was frying meat, he specially cut the pork tenderloin that was meant for Xia Ning's maternal grandfather and maternal uncle into diced pieces, coated them with batter, and fried them into small pieces.
When Xia Ning arrived, Zhong Songbai was busy preparing this pot of meat. Seeing how many pieces of meat Zhong Songbai had fried, Xia Ning asked in confusion:
"Are you frying so much meat? Is it some kind of custom in your hometown?"
As Zhong Songbai dropped small pieces of meat into the oil, he replied:
"This is for Grandpa and Uncle. They don't have much meat or oil on their side, and the pork tenderloin here can't be made into a good dish. We can't be with them all the time, so it's better to send them slices of pork instead!"
"Whether you put a few pieces of this in the soup or in the cabbage and radish, it adds oil and makes the food taste good."
"If none of these are convenient, you can just stuff it in your mouth and no one will notice!"
"We'll divide them into small paper packets later, and bring a small packet each time we go. That'll be enough for them for two weeks!"
In addition to preparing gifts for Xia Ning's maternal grandfather and maternal uncle, Zhong Songbai also prepared a lot for Uncle Wu.
That's Senior Brother Zhong Muyang, and also Zhong Wanwan and Teacher Xiaobaiyang. It's impossible for them to leave him out, both emotionally and logically.
Xia Ning was deeply moved, but the feeling was different from her previous ones.
In the past, Xia Ning was always moved and thought about giving Zhong Songbai something, afraid of owing him something.
In retrospect, this behavior somewhat hurt Zhong Songbai's sincere feelings!
Why would someone be so considerate of her family for something like that?
Xia Ning didn't intend to give anything this time; instead, she sincerely said:
"Pine and Cypress, thank you."
Zhong Songbai looked up and smiled brightly:
"No need to thank me, as a junior, this is what I should do!"
The fire-burning clock. The light bulb. Every evening, I joked:
"Don't thank me, you have no idea how cunning this kid is. He's trying to win over his future mother-in-law by starting with his grandfather and uncle!"
Upon hearing this, Xia Ning and Zhong Songbai both blushed.
Zhong Wanwan used to make similar jokes before. After all, they were in a relationship, so there was nothing to be ashamed of.
But at that time, Xia Ning was always anxious to explain herself, and Song Bai looked at Xia Ning's attitude with a somewhat dejected expression.
This time was different. Neither of them offered any explanation; they both blushed, blushed, blushed…
Something's not right. When did their relationship change right under her nose?
Zhong Wanwan looked the two of them up and down, and after a long while, she clicked her tongue and said:
"Are you two going to confess directly, or do you want me to torture you severely before you confess?"
Xia Ning pretended to be stupid and said:
"What do you mean by 'confess'? I have no idea what you're talking about!"
Zhong Wanwan stepped forward and said:
"You two are definitely up to something, talking about something else!"
Zhong Songbai made an excuse:
"Add more firewood, the fire's almost out. By the way, sister, besides meat, sweet potatoes, and fried dough sticks, what else do we fry?"
"I remember Aunt Qian said that Suhuang vegetables were delicious, and fried dates were also delicious. Shall we make them?"
Zhong Wanwan gave Zhong Songbai a deep look, and Zhong Songbai quickly gave Zhong Wanwan a wink, meaning that it was enough.
Zhong Wanwan naturally wouldn't expose him, and went along with his words:
"I want them all, I want them all! I was already craving Su Huang Cai when I heard about it. Let's make a plate of it for dinner tonight after we finish frying the egg slices!"
Suhuang cuisine was Zhong Wanwan's favorite dish for women at the old restaurant in Harbin during her modern-day days.
This dish is troublesome, and most restaurants are unwilling to make it. If Zhong Songbai hadn't mentioned it, she would have forgotten about it.
Xia Ning breathed a sigh of relief. Her sisters had almost seen through her act, but Song Bai was quick-witted and managed to fool them.
To keep Zhong Wanwan quiet, she indeed ate Su Huang Cai that night. To be fair, Zhong Songbai really did have a talent for cooking; his dishes were even better than those from the old restaurants of later generations.
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