Ningyou didn't turn on the air conditioning; instead, she opened all the car windows.
She let the wind howl across her face.
The cicadas chirped incessantly, as if burning their lives out and trembling throughout the entire summer.
As they drove through the silent highway, more and more neon lights appeared in front of Ningyou, and the car gradually entered the city center.
Ten minutes later, Ning You drove the car to the front of a villa.
Open the door and get out of the car.
Butler Li respectfully went to greet her: "Miss is back."
Ning You gave a soft "hmm," handed him the key, and then entered the villa.
In the more than five years since Ning Wan disappeared, the Ning family has also undergone tremendous changes.
Ning You graduated from her dream university with excellent academic performance.
However, she gave up her postgraduate entrance exam plans after graduation.
Ning You met her current husband, Lu Chen, through a blind date, and the two got married a month later.
Actually, Ningyou has always been quite curious.
How exactly did Su Lin and Ning Jianshe manage to connect the Ning family, who could barely be considered a middle-class family, with Lu Chen of the Lu Corporation?
After their marriage, Ning You and Lu Chen were affectionate in public and respectful to each other in private.
Although Lu Chen had no affection for Ning You, and their marriage was only due to pressure from his parents, it must be admitted that Lu Chen was indeed a refined and courteous man.
With Lu Chen's help, the Ning family's development has been rapid in recent years.
Ning Jianshe founded his own small advertising company.
Su Lin also gradually infiltrated the circle of wealthy wives through social interactions.
The two of them transformed into a wealthy and influential family.
The Ning family even bought houses, cars, and villas.
Everything went so smoothly it seemed unbelievable...
...
When Ning You returned home, Uncle Li had already informed Su Lin and Ning Jianshe.
So when Ning You appeared at the villa's door, she didn't even need to turn the doorknob; the door opened automatically.
The maid stood behind the door, respectfully saying, "Miss."
"Youyou, you're back!"
Su Lin raised her lips slightly and greeted her with a smile as she entered: "The soup Mom made for you has been kept warm in the kitchen. Come and have a taste."
She winked at the maid standing by the kitchen door.
The maid immediately understood and turned to go into the kitchen to serve the soup.
Upon hearing that she wanted soup, Ning You unconsciously frowned: "I've already eaten out."
“No food outside can compare to the nutrition and health of home cooking.” Su Lin pulled Ning You to sit on the sofa without allowing any further discussion: “With Xiao Lu not home, which of those maids can be as attentive as Mom? Mom is doing this for your own good.”
On the other side of the sofa, Ning Jianshe was looking at his phone while wearing glasses.
When Ning You returned, he raised his eyelids but didn't say anything.
Su Lin took the tray from the maid, on which was a stew pot.
She placed the tray on the coffee table in front of the sofa and opened the lid: "Mom specially asked someone to buy this. It was just caught from the mountain this morning. It's completely wild. I heard it's a very nutritious food."
Su Lin put the spoon into the jar and stirred it. Ning You stuck her head out to look and her expression changed.
Inside the small stew pot were sections of snake meat...
...
The snake's skin is black and curled, while its belly is white.
Ningyou could even clearly see the patterns on its body.
Because of the long cooking time, the oil from the snake was rendered out and floated on the soup, giving it a yellowish color.
Faintly, one could still see a hint of green.
Ning You instinctively covered her mouth and nose, trying to suppress the nausea churning in her stomach.
"I don't have much of an appetite right now." She took two steps back and sat back on the sofa.
"Nonsense!" Ning Jianshe broke his previous silence and slammed his phone down: "You're not eating for yourself now, you're eating for the baby in your belly."
“Your father is right. Take good care of your health so that you can give birth to the Lu family’s first grandson and solidify your position in the family.” Su Lin also advised, “We’re doing this for your own good. You’re so old, why are you still being so picky about food like a child?”
"What if I have a daughter?" Ning You asked them.
"Don't talk nonsense!" Su Lin's brows furrowed slightly with displeasure. "I had someone calculate it, and your baby is definitely going to be a big, healthy boy!"
Su Lin pushed the jar forward and handed over a spoon.
The firm stance left Ningyou no room for refusal.
Ning You had no choice but to accept it.
She put the spoon into the soup and stirred it, but didn't drink it.
Swallowing hard, Ning You looked away from the disgusting snake meat and asked casually, "Dad, Mom, do you still remember Wanwan?"
"Who?" Su Lin was momentarily stunned.
Ning Jianshe's memory is pretty good.
He snorted and picked up his phone again to scroll through short videos: "Why bring up that shameful thing? It's probably dead out there by now."
"It would be best if she died. If others found out, where would I put my face?" Ning Jianshe added, seemingly casually, "If she had been half as sensible as you back then, I could die in peace."
Ning You pressed her lips together tightly, her jaw clenched.
"Why bring her up? You've made your dad angry again for no reason." Su Lin glared at her reproachfully. "The soup won't be effective if it gets cold. Drink it while it's hot."
Ning You couldn't quite describe her feelings.
Ningyou felt very sad when her biological parents mentioned their other daughter with such disdain and disgust.
She tossed the spoon onto the tray and picked up the stew pot.
Looking at the layers of butter floating on the surface of the soup, Ning Youqiang suppressed her nausea.
She closed her eyes in disgust, tilted her head back, and drank it all in one gulp...
...
A few days later, Ning Wan's health certificate was successfully obtained, and the business license was also successfully obtained after being notified by Lin Guihua.
After missing several days of work, I can finally get busy again.
To celebrate the reopening of her stall, Ning Wan prepared an exceptionally generous number of boxed meals and a wide variety of dishes this time.
Braised lion's head meatballs, stir-fried shredded pork with green peppers, and bok choy with shiitake mushrooms.
Lion's head meatballs are made with pre-ground pork belly. They are marinated with soy sauce, oyster sauce, salt, and cooking wine, and then coated with starch to form round balls.
"When the oil is hot enough, put the meatballs into the pot to fry and set their shape. Don't rush to flip them; be careful to fry them over low heat."
Ning Wan instructed Aman from the side, "Are you alright? Does the burn site from last time still hurt?"
"It doesn't hurt anymore," Aman said with a shy smile.
After frying all the meatballs, heat oil in a separate pan and sauté scallions, ginger, and garlic until fragrant. Add the spice packet and water, then add the fried meatballs and simmer over medium heat for about 40 minutes.
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