Wenxi nodded thoughtfully. Her second brother's values were indeed quite sound. He believed that girls should be pampered and that household chores should be done by stronger men. Therefore, she and her eldest sister rarely did housework, and almost all the household chores were done by her second brother and two younger brothers.
"Does your second brother have a girlfriend?" Shen Jiaojiao asked curiously.
“My second brother didn’t have a girlfriend before he left home, so he probably won’t have one so soon, right?” Wen Xi shook her head uncertainly. She couldn’t contact her family now, so she naturally didn’t know anything about her second brother. “It would be good if he had a girlfriend. After all, he’s over twenty years old, and it’s time for him to experience the taste of love.”
Her second brother is such a good person, handsome, and has the right values. If he has a partner, he will definitely be devoted to her and make her happy.
The three of them worked together to clean the half-basket of small fish. Jiang Yue asked curiously, "Xiao Xi, how do you plan to eat these small fish?"
"Today, we have enough pork tripe and chicken soup with minnows. We can cook these small fish in a couple of days. When I bring back some tofu, I'll make stewed fish for you. If we can find some kelp, we can add some more. It will taste especially delicious." Wenxi put the cleaned small fish into a wooden basin, took it to the kitchen, and placed it in the cupboard.
Afterwards, Wenxi went to check the pork tripe and chicken in the pot. Although it hadn't been stewing for long, it was already very fragrant. Although life at home was good before, no one could eat like this every day because the neighbors wouldn't allow it. If the aroma wafted out of someone's house every day, the neighbors would curse them to death.
It's different in the countryside now. Their house is in a good location, with mountains behind it and a certain distance from the houses in front. Moreover, the neighbors are all very nice people, so no one makes a big deal out of their eating meat. Otherwise, why would Tian Shengnan and her family bring rabbits to her house to cook?
Wenxi had just finished cooking lunch when Song Lan and the other two returned. Wenxi told them to clean the fish right there by the well before taking them back to the educated youth settlement. Seeing their hesitant expressions, Wenxi asked in surprise, "What's wrong?"
"Wenxi, we don't want to take the fish back to the educated youth settlement because we want to dry them and send them home," Tian Shengnan said embarrassedly.
"That's possible, but I don't have any pickling jars or much salt here. You'll have to figure out how to pickle them yourselves and then come over to dry them yourself." They weren't that close, and even if they were, Wen Xi wouldn't add to her, Shen Jiaojiao's, or Jiang Yue's workload.
Tian Shengnan has been here for a long time and knows many people in the village. She can easily borrow a pickle jar for a few days, so why should Wenxi worry about them?
Tian Shengnan nodded, "Okay, thank you. Let's clean the fish first."
Afterwards, Song Lan, Zhou Bai, and Tian Shengnan processed the fish by the well. They decided to put all the fish together, let them dry in the sun, and then divide them into three equal portions.
Wen Xi hadn't expected that Song Lan and Zhou Bai would become friends with Tian Shengnan so quickly. It was good to have someone to get along with; at least in the educated youth settlement, there was someone to talk to.
Although Tian Shengnan is a lesbian, she has a neat short haircut, which makes her look somewhat like a lesbian from a distance, so the three of them walking together won't cause any misunderstandings.
Wenxi, Shen Jiaojiao, and Jiang Yue were in charge of cooking in the kitchen. Wenxi used the triangular iron stove she had signed for to stir-fry the dishes.
After lunch was prepared, Wenxi called Song Lan, Zhou Bai, and Tian Shengnan to the kitchen to eat.
Lunch consisted of six dishes: pork tripe and chicken, spicy pork heart, pickled fish, stir-fried shredded potatoes with vinegar, stir-fried cabbage, and stir-fried eggs with chives.
Song Lan said apologetically, "Wen Xi, you've gone to so much trouble."
“It’s alright, didn’t we eat your rabbit and hen too?” Wenxi sat down and said, “Of the eighteen educated youth, only the six of us are on good terms. We must help and support each other in the future, and we can’t let others bully us.”
Two more groups of educated youth will arrive later. Although they are all educated people, their character varies. If it's just the three of them, it might be difficult to handle. So it's better to unite more people.
Wenxi served everyone a large bowl of pork tripe and chicken soup, and then finished off all the pork tripe and chicken soup in the pot. Everyone picked up their bowls, took a small sip, and then let out a satisfied sigh.
I never imagined that something smelly could be transformed into something so delicious by Wenxi's hands. Wenxi's skills are even better than those of the chefs at state-run restaurants. If it were possible to open a private restaurant now, Wenxi's skills would definitely make it a huge success.
In Wenxi, everyone ate heartily, their mouths greasy from all the food. But at the educated youth settlement, they didn't get such good treatment; the table only had stir-fried cabbage, stir-fried potato slices, and stir-fried wild vegetables.
Because there wasn't much oil, the potato slices all turned black from being fried.
Looking at the food, Chu Wan'er's face turned as pale as the food itself. Several of the people here were quite well-off, especially Xia Minglei, as well as Jiang Mo, Cheng Yu, and Gu Xiangbei, who were usually quiet and had little presence. They had money and tickets, but they refused to buy anything nice to improve everyone's meals. They only knew to go to state-run restaurants for a treat.
Chu Wan'er grew angrier the more she thought about it, but she didn't dare to put down her chopsticks and refuse to eat, otherwise she would go hungry in the afternoon.
"I don't know where Song Lan, Zhou Bai, and Tian Shengnan went. They didn't have dinner together last night, and they weren't here at noon today either." Chu Wan'er's eyes flickered. She hadn't spoken much with Song Lan and Zhou Bai, and she couldn't tell their circumstances from their clothes.
Thinking of this, Chu Wan'er glanced up at the men sitting around the table. These men knew her quite well and were not easily fooled. She could choose between Song Lan and Zhou Bai, since she would never marry a country bumpkin and stay in the countryside for the rest of her life.
Liang Zhaodi glanced at Lu Xiaoyun and said in a somewhat unpleasant tone, "Shouldn't you go out and eat alone? Don't you all like that?"
They keep all the good things to themselves, as if they're afraid someone will take advantage of them.
Those who frequented the restaurant for treats looked somewhat uncomfortable upon hearing Liang Zhaodi's sarcastic remarks, but quickly regained their composure. Their money was their own; of course they should eat and drink quietly. Why should they bring others along? What could others possibly offer them?
After the meal, Lu Xiaoyun saw Xia Minglei leave the educated youth settlement, so he quickly followed. Seeing that Xia Minglei was not heading towards the Lin family's house, but towards the river bend, Lu Xiaoyun put his hand on Xia Minglei's shoulder and asked, "Xia Minglei, why didn't you go to see Lin Yiwan today, but came to the river bend instead? Is something bothering you?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com