Seeing Xing Zhaozhao standing there blankly, seemingly lost in thought, her face contorted with rage, Ying Hongyi raised an eyebrow and said, "Hello, sister-in-law. My name is Ying Hongyi, and I am Mingcheng's comrade-in-arms. This is my wife, Wen Sinan, and my daughter, Rongrong. We were on our way home to visit relatives and stopped by with Mingcheng. Sorry to bother you."
Xing Zhaozhao snapped out of her daze, forced a smile, shook her head, and said, "It's nothing, it's nothing. It's rare for Mingcheng to bring friends back, let them stay a couple more days." She had to take good care of her eldest son's future father-in-law and mother-in-law; she couldn't let them hold her back.
Xing Zhaozhao bowed slightly to let Ying Hongyi and his family of three into the door, and asked with a smile, "Why have I never heard Mingcheng mention you before?"
Ying Hongyi said with a smile, "Mingcheng and I were in the same class when we were new recruits. Later, we were transferred to other units and hadn't seen each other for several years. We met on the front line not long ago. He had just returned from behind enemy lines and happened to run into us when we were ambushed. We joined forces to fight back and wiped him out. Otherwise, I'm afraid I would have lost my life there. We even stayed together in a field hospital for half a month afterward."
When Ying Hongyi talked about the front lines, he seemed relaxed, but recalling the harrowing moments on the battlefield, he couldn't help but feel lingering fear, and his hand, which was stroking his daughter's head, trembled involuntarily. He almost wouldn't have been able to come back and watch his daughter grow up.
Beside her, Wen Sinan couldn't help but hold her husband's arm tightly.
Xing Zhaozhao's heart tightened upon hearing this. So, was the one Mingcheng was referring to as Ying Hongyi, the one who could return safely? Perhaps not only Ying Hongyi, but also countless other soldiers like him.
Xing Zhaozhao felt relieved and gave a sincere smile: "I see. In that case, stay a couple more days before you leave."
"I'm sorry to bother you, sister-in-law," Ying Hongyi said apologetically.
"It's nothing," Xing Zhaozhao said casually, then asked, "Did you just go out with Mingcheng?"
Ying Hongyi shook his head: "I took Anan and Rongrong for a walk in the nearby mountains, but I'm not familiar with this place, so I didn't dare to go too deep in. It looks like there are a lot of treasures hidden in there."
“That’s right. Our mountains are full of treasures. I’ll take you for a walk in the mountains sometime. I know this place well,” Xing Zhaozhao said.
"What if there are wild animals?" Wen Sinan asked with some concern.
“They have their own territory. Just be careful and you won’t run into them. I’ve taken Hongfei and Hongyu in before, and we even found a hot spring with lots of wild fruits growing next to it. They’re so sweet. I’ve picked them several times,” Xing Zhaozhao said.
"Really? Then we have to go check it out." Ying Hongyi and Xiao Rongrong both looked eager to try.
Although Wen Sinan still had some concerns, she didn't want to spoil their fun, so she shook her head helplessly and acquiesced.
The sound of children's laughter rang out again outside, a clear, crisp laugh that was unmistakably Xiao Hongling's.
"Flying! Our little red water chestnut is flying!" Gao Mingcheng's voice rang out as he teased his daughter.
Xing Zhaozhao narrowed her eyes slightly. They're finally back.
Little Hongling giggled happily: "Daddy, Feifei, Lingling, Feifei..."
"Me too, me too, Daddy, I want to fly too!" Hongyu cried anxiously from the side.
“Only little kids can fly. You’re a big kid now, so you can’t.” Gao Mingcheng didn’t spoil his son at all.
"Daddy, Feifei!" Little Hongling urged anxiously.
"Okay, Daddy will take Xiao Hongling flying right away," Gao Mingcheng coaxed his daughter.
Soon, Gao Hongfei was seen carrying his daughter on his shoulders, his arms raised high, holding his daughter's two little hands, as he "flew" in from outside.
Xing Zhaozhao crossed her arms and looked at them with a forced smile: "You're back?"
"Hmm." Gao Mingcheng looked at his wife, and even the hard lines on his face softened.
Having not seen his mother all afternoon, Hongyu ran to Xing Zhaozhao, took her hand, and asked with a look of longing, "Mom, what important thing were you and Dad doing in the house all afternoon? You didn't come out. I wanted to see you, but Dad wouldn't let me, saying you were tired and sleeping."
Xing Zhaozhao: "..."
Xing Zhaozhao's face burned. She glared at Gao Mingcheng and explained to Hongyu, "Your father did something wrong and hasn't come back for so long. Your mother is scolding him."
"Oh, I see." Hongyu believed it, turned to look at Gao Mingcheng, wrinkled her nose angrily, and complained to her mother, "Dad is biased. He only loves my sister and not me. He only takes care of my sister Feifei and not me. Mom, you should teach him a lesson next time. You should teach him a lesson."
Xing Zhaozhao: "..."
Gao Mingcheng looked at Xing Zhaozhao with a meaningful smile in his eyes: "Alright, I'll be waiting."
Xing Zhaozhao: "..." This shameless bastard.
Starting from morning, Xiao Hongling hadn't seen her mother all day. Upon seeing Xing Zhaozhao, she immediately reached out to her, saying, "Mommy, hug me..."
Xing Zhaozhao walked over, took her daughter from Gao Mingcheng, and secretly pinched his waist hard while gritting her teeth and whispering in a voice only the two of them could hear, "You just wait, I'll settle the score with you later."
I didn't expect that when I tried to pinch him, all I found were hard muscles.
Xing Zhaozhao: "..."
Xing Zhaozhao got angry and wanted to find another place to continue pinching, but she couldn't find one; everything was hard and unyielding.
Xing Zhaozhao: "..."
Gao Mingcheng's smile deepened, and he grabbed her hand and pressed it against his face: "Here, there's lots of soft flesh here."
Xing Zhaozhao slapped him across the face and said, "Get out of here." Then she turned and left.
Gao Mingcheng didn't take it to heart and followed closely behind.
We have guests at home, so tonight's dinner is especially lavish.
Although the cellar was stocked with many good things, Xing Zhaozhao didn't dare to take out any rare ingredients because there were outsiders around. They were mostly ordinary pork and chicken, or seasonal vegetables, or wild game from the mountains.
In addition, she also brought the dishes that she had packed from there to the table. In this hot weather, they would spoil if not eaten, and it would be a waste to throw them away. However, she rearranged them all. One dish of garlic lobster had its shells removed, leaving only the lobster meat, and another dish of squirrel-shaped mandarin fish was chopped into pieces.
Wen Sinan ate with an amazed expression: "Is this shrimp? How come the pieces of meat are so big?"
"The shrimp were caught in the river, chopped into mince, and then reshaped into shrimp pieces," Xing Zhaozhao lied through her teeth.
"So this is what it tastes like when shrimp is minced into a paste. It's really good. I'll try it next time," Wen Sinan said.
Xing Zhaozhao: "..."
Gao Mingcheng and Ying Hongyi had both seen what the dish originally looked like. They exchanged a glance, then silently ate without uttering a sound. "Go ahead and make it," they thought, "it would be a miracle if it could even be made."
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