"Dad." Meng Wan looked up when she heard the noise, and Meng Boqun walked in after changing his shoes, with a smile on his face, showing no trace of his previous distraught appearance.
"Wanwan, how did you sleep last night?"
"It's great. I even went grocery shopping with my mom. It was quite a novel experience."
Four sets of bowls and chopsticks were placed on the table. Meng Boqun's eyes suddenly became a little moist. He lowered his head as he put down his briefcase, and when he raised his head again, he had already composed himself.
"You're back! Wash your hands and eat. Old Huang specially saved some fish for me today; it's super fresh. I only need one more dish; it'll be ready soon." Qin Yi smiled, her expression unchanged.
“Okay, I’ll help you.” Meng Boqun replied and went into the restroom.
They both knew the truth, but neither said it aloud. This family had already suffered too much; they needed to support each other, not blame one another. Everyone was working hard to make things better for the family, and that was enough.
"Wanwan, can you go and call Yaoyao out for dinner?" Qin Yi put the pot on the table and wiped her hands on her apron.
Meng Wan nodded and walked towards their room. Out of politeness, she knocked on the door first, waited a few seconds, and when no one responded, she tried turning the doorknob.
The door wasn't locked, and Meng Wan opened it easily. She was a little stunned, but quickly composed herself.
The room was pitch black, with only a small lamp illuminating a corner. Meng Zhiyao sat curled up on the floor, concentrating on her drawing by the dim light.
Just a door away, it felt like midnight inside, even though it was noon outside. Unlike the bright and spaciousness of her room, there was barely any room left after a double bed was placed there, and the only small window in the room was blocked from sunlight by the building next door.
Nevertheless, a small corner was cleared out, with a low table and an easel, a stack of books on top, and a few nearly empty cans of paint scattered below.
Meng Wan pursed her lips, carefully walked to Meng Zhiyao's side, and squatted down. The other party was engrossed in creating, and Meng Wan saw that the painting was almost finished, so she quietly squatted down beside him and watched.
But as she looked at it, she frowned.
Meng Zhiyao's paintings are very inspired. Both the lines and the composition are smooth and grand. He uses bold colors, but they are also well integrated. However, there is always a sense of oppression. Even the brightest colors in his hands eventually turn into endless black holes, making people feel suffocated.
Meng Wan studied painting for a while, but according to her teacher, she had talent but no skill.
She has a unique aesthetic sense regarding composition and color, but she lacks practical skills. No matter how much she practices, her drawings always end up being tiny figures. This almost drove her teacher crazy.
As she was lost in thought, Meng Zhiyao had already finished the last stroke. He put down his brush and was about to tidy up when he turned around and was startled by Meng Wan beside him.
Fortunately, Meng Wan reacted quickly and grabbed him, preventing his newly completed painting from being ruined.
"Dinner's ready." Seeing the wariness in Meng Zhiyao's eyes, Meng Wan didn't say much. She simply let go of his hand after he was seated, stood up, patted off imaginary dust, and spoke in a calm tone.
Meng Zhiyao didn't say anything, and Meng Wan didn't care either, turning around and leaving the room. Less than a minute later, Meng Zhiyao followed her out of the room.
"Eat more, everyone is growing, and you, as the head of the family, need to replenish your strength." Qin Yi was busy serving food to the three of them, but she didn't even pick up a piece of meat for herself.
"You've been so busy, you should eat more." The couple's relationship didn't break down after the bankruptcy; instead, they became even closer.
Meng Wan paused in her chopsticks and looked at Qin Yi.
"Mom, have you ever thought about setting up a stall?"
"Wanwan is so good at talking." Qin Yi thought Meng Wan was praising her cooking, and she couldn't stop smiling. But Meng Boqun could tell from Meng Wan's attitude that there was eight parts seriousness and two parts probing in her words.
"Wanwan, do you think it's feasible?"
"Yes, Mom's cooking skills are very good. She could easily set up a small stall."
Qin Yi put down her chopsticks, a hint of insecurity on her face. "I'm okay at cooking at home, but if I go out and cook, I'll definitely lose money. Besides, these are just ordinary home-style dishes; how can I run a business like this?"
"I think we should give it a try. Putting everything else aside, isn't the third child the pickiest eater? But ever since you started cooking at home, when has the third child not eaten the most?"
"Times have changed..."
Although Qin Yi said that, it was clear that she was still slightly wavering inside. Seeing this, Meng Wan seized the opportunity to add fuel to the fire.
"Whether we make a profit or not, it's worth a try. We can start with some low-cost foods."
In the past 17 years, Meng Wan has not been a lazy, idle young lady. She has both the time and the money, and with Tang Jia's eldest son and Yan Nian, two business prodigies, by her side, anyone who isn't stupid can learn something useful.
As soon as the idea of setting up a stall came up, Meng Wan immediately came up with a series of complete implementation plans.
"It just so happens that school starts in the next couple of days. It would be nice to set up some sandwiches or seaweed rice rolls at the school gate. If you're good at cooking home-style dishes, you could see if there are any construction sites nearby that are planned for development. You could contact the contractors and provide lunch boxes for the workers."
"Okay, then I'll take these two days to learn and try it out, and then I'll set up a stall when school starts." Qin Yi is also the kind of person who does things on a whim.
Qin Yi's mental state has been very poor since she moved in, and the youngest child also needs someone to take care of him. So after discussing it, the group decided to let Qin Yi stay at home, and the four of them would take care of making money.
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