It took half an hour just to figure out the name. When Chen Lie looked at the wall clock, it was already half past seven.
Shen Lie rolled up his sleeves and said, "I'm going to cook."
While Shen Lie was busy in the kitchen, Ning Tang had nothing to do, so she walked around the Shen family's house.
The whole building has two floors. The first floor is the living room, kitchen and bathroom. The living room is furnished with some mahogany furniture, a long table, stools, and a wall clock.
There were three rooms on the second floor. Ning Tang just took a quick glance and didn't look closely.
Above the second floor is the roof. Perhaps for the sake of space utilization, the roof is replaced by a fenced terrace. The small door leading to the terrace is locked. Ning Tang was unable to go up, but just looked at it from a distance in the yard. It felt empty and there was nothing interesting to see.
Looking at the entire two-story building, Ning Tang found it to be quite spacious, clean and tidy, and expressed his satisfaction.
After all, this is where she will live in the future, so it will definitely be better if she lives comfortably.
By the time Ning Tang finished touring the two-story building, Chen Lie had already prepared the meal.
There was some rice and flour left at home, as well as some barnacles that Mrs. Luo had given to her as a kind gift. Chen Lie simply cooked a pot of noodles and steamed the barnacles.
So what was served on the table were five bowls of thin noodles and a large plate of steamed barnacles.
Chen Lie looked at the simple thin noodles and said a little embarrassedly, "Noodles are all we have left at home. Let's just make a simple meal. I'll go to the grain and oil station tomorrow to buy some daily necessities."
Ning Tang nodded, picked up the noodles with chopsticks, and ate them in two or three bites. "It's okay, the noodles are also very fragrant."
You know what, Chen Lie’s craftsmanship is pretty good.
The simple thin noodles were only drizzled with two drops of sesame oil and tasted pretty good.
The three children were probably hungry too, so they took the bowls and started to eat voraciously.
Ning Tang looked at the three people eating and couldn't help but ask Chen Lie curiously, "How did they get food while you were gone?"
When they got home, they only saw three children and no adults. Could it be that these three children could cook? They were too precocious.
However, Ning Tang was overthinking it.
Chen Lie said, "I have guards, and the army also has a canteen. During the few days I was in Shangang Village, the guards prepared meals in the army canteen and brought them to Da Wa, Er Niu, and San Wa."
Shen Lie glanced at the three children and said, "Two meals a day, one at noon and one at night."
Ning Tang's eyes lit up, "Can I eat in your army cafeteria every day?"
Chen Lie was speechless. "How is that possible? I can eat it, but you can't. This is a special situation. Otherwise, if everyone did the same, all the military families would go to the army cafeteria to eat. How could the army withstand such consumption?"
"Okay." Ning Tang lowered his eyelids, expressing his disappointment.
After dinner, Chen Lie went to wash the dishes, leaving Ning Tang staring at the three children in the living room.
Ning Tang glanced at the three children and continued packing.
After all, she brought a lot of luggage and needed to organize it properly.
Unexpectedly, just as Ning Tang raised her legs, she was stopped by Da Wa, "Hey——"
Ning Tang turned around, opened his hands like a trumpet, and shouted towards the kitchen, "Shen——"
"Stop, stop, stop!" Da Wa choked and quickly changed his words, "Stepmother..."
Ning Tang raised his eyebrows. This was more like it. "Tell me, what do you want to talk to me about?"
Big Baby tugged at the corner of his clothes uncomfortably and said, "I'll just call you."
Problem!
Ning Tang was speechless and continued to pack his luggage.
This time, Da Wa didn't call her. After Ning Tang packed her luggage and Chen Lie washed the dishes.
Chen Lie glanced at the wall clock. It was nine o'clock, so he called out to the three children, "Big One, Second Girl, Third Girl, go take a bath."
The eldest, second, and third children all went into the bathroom to take showers. Chen Lie explained to Ning Tang, "We'll shower after they're done. The houses in the military compound are all connected to the water pipes. We don't have to boil water like we did in Shangang Village, and showers are quicker."
Ning Tang nodded, it was quite convenient.
After the three children took a bath, they went to Ning Tang to take a shower. Ning Tang could only simply wash herself in the bathroom on the train. After a few days, she felt that she could smell the sour smell on her body.
Now she could finally take a shower, she scrubbed herself all over and washed herself clean for almost an hour.
The last one to take a shower was Chen Lie. Perhaps it was due to his military style, but he showered the fastest. It was a combat shower, which probably took less than five minutes.
After taking a bath, Shen Lie drove all three children into their rooms.
The bedrooms are all on the second floor. The eldest and third child live in one room, and the second daughter lives in one room by herself. Perhaps because they lost their mother at a young age, the three children are relatively precocious. Even the youngest, the third child, does not cry or make a fuss.
Chen Lie asked them to go to bed, and the three children went into the house and covered themselves with quilts to sleep.
While Chen Lie was settling the three children, Ning Tang looked around their rooms.
The rooms are quite spacious, each about 20 square meters. Erniu sleeps in one room by herself, so her room only has a small wooden bed. Da Wa and San Wa sleep in one room, and their rooms only have two small wooden beds facing each other.
Only after the children fell asleep did Chen Lie tiptoe out of the room.
Ning Tang noticed that the doors of the two children's rooms were not closed, and she guessed that Chen Lie would have to get up several times at night to check.
Chen Lie led Ning Tang back to their room. Their room was the master bedroom, which was slightly larger than the children's room, but not much, about 30 square meters.
There was a big bed in the middle of their room, with two bedside tables at the head of the bed, a dressing table next to the windowsill, and a mahogany wardrobe on one side of the bed.
Ning Tang sat down on the bed, and Chen Lie took out a brand new set of bedding from the mahogany wardrobe, "You cover yourself with this tonight."
Although the two were nominally husband and wife and had obtained a marriage certificate, they had never consummated their marriage.
It looked like Chen Lie didn't have that intention for the time being, and Ning Tang breathed a sigh of relief.
To be honest, the two of them had only known each other for less than two months, and they met through a blind date. They didn't know much about each other, and she would feel uncomfortable if she really had to do that with Chen Lie.
Besides, there are three children just across the wall, which is extremely embarrassing.
This arrangement by Chen Lie is actually the best.
So Ning Tang took the quilt without hesitation and said, "Okay."
The two of them slept in one bed, each covered with a quilt.
After such a long journey, Ning Tang finally got to lie down on the bed. He fell asleep almost as soon as he closed his eyes.
However, because Ning Tang was used to her bed, she woke up several times in a daze. Twice, she felt that her side was empty. She probably thought that Chen Lie had gone to the next room to see the child.
He is a competent father, Ning Tang thought vaguely.
The next day, Ning Tang got up, stretched himself, and looked out the window sleepily. It seemed that the sun should be getting late.
When I looked to my side again, it was empty. The quilt was folded into a neatly shaped tofu block and placed on the pillow.
Ning Tang went downstairs in her slippers, washed up in the yard, and walked around but didn't see Chen Lie.
There were only three children in the living room. The eldest was sitting on the floor playing with a small wooden toy car. The toy car had just four wheels and a box-like carriage. It was so simple, and I didn't know why he was enjoying it so much.
Erniu was busy braiding her hair. She divided it into two parts, braided one on the left and one on the right. After she finished braiding, she touched the left braid and found that it was crooked. She then took apart the right braid and tied it again. When the right braid was tied, she found that the left braid was crooked again. She kept braiding her hair over and over again.
The third child sat on a stool. He was short and his feet could not reach the floor, so his legs were shaking. He looked at the eldest and second children and laughed foolishly, clapping his hands from time to time to cheer his older brothers and sisters.
Ning Tang glanced at the three children and asked Da Wa, "Da Wa, where is your dad?"
Da Wa paused holding the wooden toy car, looked at Ning Tang, and said with a pursed mouth, "My dad has gone to the army."
"Oh." Ning Tang responded.
In order to get married, Chen Lie went to Shangang Village twice. He probably had a lot of work piled up, so he had to report to the army as soon as he came back.
Ning Tang glanced at the wall clock. It was already eleven o'clock. She touched her stomach, which growled in response.
She asked Da Wa, "Well, what are we having for lunch today?"
Big Brother was speechless. This stepmother was obviously an adult, so why did she ask him what he wanted to eat for lunch?
But thinking of Chen Lie's instructions, Da Wa still agreed obediently, "Dad prepared lunch for us before he left. He said he would cook for us when he came back in the evening."
Ning Tang nodded with satisfaction, "Thank you for your hard work, Captain Shen."
Ning Tang walked into the kitchen, searched around, and finally found a pot of noodle soup cooked by Chen Lie on the stove.
Chen Lie had to go to the army at seven in the morning. He had made this pot of noodle soup at around six o'clock, and it had become a little lumpy by now.
Ning Tang frowned and ate the noodle soup. How would he describe the taste? It was neither good nor bad.
Ning Tang is not picky, as long as she can fill her stomach, she is fine. She doesn't cook, and people who don't cook have no right to be picky.
After dinner, Ning Tang washed his own dishes.
Ning Tang came out of the kitchen after washing the dishes. Da Wa, Er Niu and San Wa were sitting at the dining table, all looking at her.
Ning Tang lowered his sleeves that had been lifted up to wash the dishes and asked, "Why are you looking at me?"
Big Boy frowned and knocked on the bowl with a pair of chopsticks, "Where's our rice?"
Ning Tang folded his arms across his chest, leaned against the door frame, and pointed in the direction of the kitchen. "It's in the pot, go get it yourself."
Ning Tang thought for a moment and added, "Remember to wash the dishes after dinner. It's hot, and they'll get smelly if left out for too long."
Erniu opened her mouth in disbelief, so small that a quail egg could fit in it, and asked in surprise, "Aren't you going to help us serve the rice?"
Ning Tang was even more surprised than her, "Why should I help you serve the food?"
The eldest child pursed his lips and said, "When Dad was here, he would serve us the food and bring it to the table for us to eat."
Ning Tang thought about it carefully. When they were having dinner yesterday, Chen Lie did make thin noodles for the three children. Even the plate of steamed barnacles was made by him peeling the barnacle meat and putting it in the bowls to share with the three children.
Ning Tang: "That's because he is your biological father."
Erniu continued, "You are still our stepmother. Dad said before he left that he would tell you if there was anything."
Ning Tang was amused. "What are you talking about? You said it yourself. I'm your stepmother, not your biological mother. Why should I serve you food?"
She walked to the rocking chair next to the windowsill and plopped down on it, basking in the sunlight coming in from the window and rocking with enjoyment. "Also, your dad doesn't have the final say. Don't come to me if you have any problems."
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