When Wang returned, she said, "Yunying, come and eat."
"Second sister-in-law, Mother only steamed one pot of rice. Won't it be enough for so many people?"
"That's enough. The men drink alcohol and don't eat much. The children are full after eating vegetables, and only the women eat some rice."
Seeing that there were quite a few dishes left on the table, Xiao Yunying worried that there wouldn't be enough to eat: "How about we add two more dishes, so we don't run out of food?"
Zhang said, "It's all because your cooking is so delicious that we can't stop eating. Even your older brother and the others stopped drinking."
Xiao Yunying smiled demurely and asked Zhang to serve her some peanuts, along with a few sweet potatoes. She also added a salt and pepper peanut for her father and the others to have with their drinks, and a candied sweet potato for the children.
The two sisters-in-law brought out peanuts and candied sweet potatoes, while Xiao Yunying brought out two bowls of water, placing one on each table, and demonstrated how to eat candied sweet potatoes to the women.
"This dish must be eaten while it's hot. Once it cools down, it will solidify and become difficult to separate. If you pick it up and dip it in cold water, the sugar threads will break. Be careful when eating it so you don't burn yourself."
Xiao Yunying's second aunt said, "This dish is really interesting. Yunying, did you come up with this yourself?"
"Yes, I like to experiment with different dishes when I have nothing to do. Please forgive me if they don't suit your taste."
A girl of about thirteen or fourteen said, "How could it not suit your taste? Sister Yunying's cooking is so delicious. This is the first time my brother has been so quiet at the dinner table. He can't even lift his head while eating, and he can't hear me talking to him. I told him he's stupid, but he doesn't even know it. You can see for yourselves."
The little girl nudged a six or seven-year-old boy next to her: "Little brother."
The little boy, with a rib in his mouth, looked up at everyone blankly and asked, "Sister, why did you call me?"
"Ha ha ha ha."
A burst of laughter erupted in the yard, and the little boy blushed as he laughed: "What's so funny?"
Then he continued to gnaw on the ribs.
The village chief's wife said, "Yun Ying, stop busying yourself and call your sister-in-law to come and eat with you."
Mu Lianrong said, "Don't worry about them. There's food left in the kitchen, so you won't go hungry. You can eat."
Zhang and Wang brought out two bowls of rice and placed them on the stools next to them. A stack of bowls was placed on the table, and they first filled a few bowls with rice and placed them on the women's side.
Wang said, "The food is here. Everyone can help themselves. Don't be shy. There's more in the kitchen. I'm taking my sister-in-law to eat."
"Go eat quickly, you must be hungry after working so hard."
When Xiao Yunying entered the kitchen, all the children stood up and were competing to see who could pull the longest sugar thread.
Those whose hairs broke were sighing and groaning, while those whose hairs didn't break were beaming with joy.
Children's happiness is so simple.
Wang said, "Eat your food properly and sit down quickly."
Luo Chen and Luo Yang, one carrying water and the other a towel, said, "Mom, you should wash up first."
Xiao Yunying habitually said thank you, washed the greasy sweat off her face, and dried herself with a towel.
He placed the basin aside and said, "Eat first, then clean up."
The Xiao family was well-mannered; the children only ate the food in front of them, while she and her two sisters-in-law didn't touch the food in front of them. The dishes on the table were neatly arranged, with half of them missing.
Xiao Yunying had been smelling the cooking fumes for too long and really had no appetite. She took a couple of bites of each dish to taste it before putting down her chopsticks.
Sigh... I feel like something's missing if I can't bring out the carbonated drinks.
Zhang said, "Why aren't you eating?"
"It's nothing, I just smelled the oil for too long. I'm not hungry. I'll eat something when I get hungry later."
"Let me set some vegetables out for you."
"No need, I'm not really hungry. If I get hungry, I'll just have a couple of snacks. Meat and vegetables don't taste good when they get cold. You guys eat quickly."
Xiao Yunying chatted with her nephews while serving food to Luo Xin. After they finished eating, she started to combine the dishes and clear the table.
The two sisters-in-law wouldn't let Xiao Yunying do anything, and told her to sit and rest on the side while the children helped out.
Xiao Yunying didn't act coy and sat down to stretch her shoulders.
This was the first time she had cooked for so many people, and the amount of food was quite large. She had to use a lot of strength every time she stir-fried the food. Her left shoulder was also hit by a tree by a big insect that morning, and both of her arms were a little sore.
The women at the two tables in the courtyard finished eating first and, instead of leaving immediately, spontaneously helped clear the tables.
Xiao Yunying quietly told her mother to take the uneaten food back with them, since no one would eat it if it was left behind.
After her dad's table finished eating, they started drinking. Whether they were drunk or not is unknown, but the atmosphere got lively, and they started reminiscing about the old days… about me back then…
Those who know, know.
When it was completely dark, Mu Lianrong lit an oil lamp and came out. The people at the table were still reluctant to leave, and in the end, they were forced to leave by their mothers or wives.
Each family left a few women to help clean up the yard before taking their own tables, chairs, bowls, chopsticks, and leftover food with them.
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