Mrs. Gao yawned as she walked toward Gao Jiazhi's room.
My mind was foggy after staying up all night. I sensed something was wrong, but I couldn't pinpoint what it was.
Until I saw the room with the door open, the messy bed, and clothes and luggage scattered all over the floor, there was no sign of anyone, not even the dog.
"Honey, our son is missing, and he took our eldest child with him!!!"
"Dabao, Dabao!?"
Gao's mother rushed into the room and lifted the clothes covering the doghouse. Not seeing Da Bao, she anxiously lifted the blanket on the bed, but still couldn't find him. She immediately bent down to look under the bed.
Mr. Gao, who had just sat down downstairs, jumped up in shock upon hearing Mrs. Gao's words.
My mind immediately cleared up considerably.
"What's going on? Did you go out?"
Mr. Gao rushed upstairs, taking three steps at a time, and when he saw that his two eldest sons were nowhere to be seen in the room, he almost burst into tears.
Then, realizing that despite all the commotion on their side, there was still no sound from his parents' room, he immediately turned around and ran to his parents' room.
"Mom and Dad? Are you home?"
Why is there no sound at home this early in the morning?
Gao's father walked to his parents' bedroom door, and without knocking, he opened the door and barged in.
I saw another empty room.
Mr. Gao immediately took out his phone to make a call.
Where did the whole family go during the Lunar New Year?!
Then he took out his phone, and Mr. Gao looked at the black screen and the unresponsive phone, and awkwardly scratched his head.
I was playing cards all night, my phone was in my pocket, and I didn't even realize when it ran out of battery.
"Honey, my phone is dead. Check your phone, the kids left you a message."
My family members aren't the type to keep quiet about where they're going. They were probably playing cards all night and their minds were foggy. Why are they looking for something here? They could have just called and asked.
Upon hearing this, Gao's mother realized what was happening, took out her phone, and immediately turned it off.
No one said anything then, and they all went back to their rooms to find their chargers.
After charging and turning the phone on, I saw that my son had called both his parents, but their phones were off and no one answered.
When I opened my WeChat messages again, I saw a message from my son.
"Mom, where are you playing cards?"
"Boss Lin has set up a stall in Jiangdong!!! Come back soon, let's take Grandpa and Grandma back to Jiangdong for the New Year together."
"Mom and Dad, if you don't come back soon, I'm taking Grandpa and Grandma back to Jiangdong first. You can drive back yourself after you see this message."
"..."
Upon seeing the news, Gao's parents looked at each other in disbelief, completely dumbfounded.
For a moment, I didn't know whether to be happy that Boss Lin had returned to Jiangdong to set up his stall, or to feel sorry that they were so engrossed in playing cards that they missed the news immediately.
Mr. Gao wiped his face, looked at his wife who was clearly smitten, and sighed helplessly.
“It’s not the right time to go back. We haven’t slept all night, how can we drive? Besides, they’ve all left, and it’s almost time to visit relatives and friends for the New Year. Someone has to stay home, and I still have to go out with my older brother and the others to visit relatives and friends.”
Gao's mother wasn't a willful person; after thinking it over carefully, she realized that they had no way to leave now.
During the Lunar New Year, everyone in the village knew they had returned, but in the blink of an eye they all left again. Who knows what kind of gossip will spread?
"Sigh, I'll send a message to my son and tell him to buy more and put it in the refrigerator so we can eat it when we get back."
Mr. Gao glanced at the time and knew that the group of people going to pay New Year's visits would be setting off soon.
There's no time for breakfast at this hour, so I can only take a shower to clear my head.
Even with heating, taking a shower in the dead of winter is a refreshing and invigorating experience.
...
Meanwhile, Gao Jiazhi was already on the highway with his grandparents on their way back.
Perhaps because no one was returning home on New Year's Eve, the highway was completely clear, creating a stark contrast with the adjacent lanes.
My grandparents have never done anything so exciting in their lives.
Instead of staying home during the Lunar New Year, they embarked on a spontaneous trip.
Such rebellion is actually quite enjoyable.
After the excitement subsided, the two elderly people started to feel sleepy. After all, they were getting old and couldn't stay up as late as younger people.
One person lay down and slept in the passenger seat, while the other lay down and slept in the back seat.
Da Bao was sleeping in the trunk.
Only Gao Jiazhi drove diligently.
My mind was filled with thoughts of Boss Lin's dumplings, and I wasn't sleepy at all.
Seeing my friends taking pictures of the cooked dumplings made my mouth water.
Winter is the season for eating mutton. At the end of the year, many sheep farmers will slaughter sheep to sell. Needless to say, the ingredients that Mr. Lin bought were probably from sheep raised on Mr. Lin's farm. Fresh mutton was chopped into filling and mixed with snow-covered scallions to make filling. I can't imagine how delicious it is!
Just thinking about it makes my mouth water.
He's never tried pork and kimchi dumplings before. Kimchi is usually only eaten with grilled meat to cut through the grease. I wonder what they taste like. Oh my god, I'm so curious!
It wasn't that dumplings would have made him so obsessed; it was just that it was Boss Lin who made them.
Actually, besides rushing to Jiangdong overnight, it wasn't just because I wanted to eat Boss Lin's dumplings, but also because I missed Boss Lin.
How happy those days were when I took my son, Da Bao, to search for Boss Lin all over the streets and alleys!
It makes me nostalgic just thinking about it.
Never doubt the bond between the chef and the diners.
Sometimes their bond with food is deeper than you can imagine!
And it wasn't just Gao Jiazhi who was like this.
Those who originally lived in Jiangdong all went back to their hometown for the Chinese New Year.
Upon seeing the news, everyone tried their best to rush to Jiangdong.
People weren't so obsessed just because they saw Mr. Lin setting up a stall. Everyone at the scene asked him, and he said that Mr. Lin would be setting up his stall every night for the next few days.
This isn't a question of whether or not we can meet Boss Lin; it's a question of whether or not we want to.
Boss Lin is right there. Even if he can't go back tonight, he can still go back tomorrow or the day after!
You'll have a chance to eat it as long as you go back.
The dumplings that Boss Lin makes are right in front of me. If I try hard, I might be able to eat them. If I don't try, I won't even be able to smell them.
So this year's New Year's Eve dinner in Jiangdong was exceptionally lively, even though fireworks and firecrackers couldn't be set off.
After finishing their meals and receiving the news, a large number of people flocked to Lin Zhou's stall.
In less than an hour, the queue had grown to over a thousand people.
While cooking dumplings, Lin Zhou looked at the endless queue, quickly took out the megaphone he had prepared in advance, and then carried the rice balls out of the warm carriage.
The rice ball, which was sleeping soundly, suddenly came into contact with the cold air, and its fur bristled.
Staring blankly with his small eyes, he looked around in confusion, seemingly not understanding what was going on.
Without saying a word, Lin Zhou turned on the loudspeaker, tied it to the rice ball, and made it patrol along the crowd.
The message played over the loudspeaker was a pre-recorded message from Lin Zhou.
"Don't queue anymore, we don't have enough to go around. Come again next time. Thank you everyone for your support..."
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