Erniu's eyes widened. "Can pineapple honey seeds still be eaten?"

Without thinking, Da Wa retorted, "Of course you can't eat it. I've never seen anyone eat pineapple seeds. They just peel them out and throw them away."

When Sanwa heard that pineapple seeds were edible, he grabbed one without thinking and took a bite with his little baby teeth.

Ning Tang quickly rescued the pineapple seeds from his mouth. Sanwa pouted with a bitter face, "Stepmother is lying. Pineapple seeds are not edible."

"I'm not lying. Don't you all believe that jackfruit seeds are edible?" Ning Tang asked them. She thought for a moment and said, "How about we take a gamble?"

Da Wa said hurriedly, "Let's gamble."

Sanwa has tried it just now and found out that pineapple seeds are definitely not edible, so he is not afraid of gambling with Ningtang.

But Da Wa remembered Ning Tang's cunningness and added, "You want to prove that jackfruit seeds are not only edible, but also delicious. It's not enough to just say that they are edible." He was afraid that Ning Tang would take advantage of him.

Ning Tang smiled secretly in her heart, but pretended to be hesitant on her face, "Just now, I just said that pineapple seeds are edible, but I didn't say they are delicious."

The eldest child thought he had succeeded, and his tail was about to fly up to the sky. "Then I won't bet anymore."

"No, we have to gamble." Ning Tang pretended to grit his teeth and said, "Tell me what you're betting on first."

The eldest thought for a moment and said, "If we win, you'll have to make grilled oysters and garlic vermicelli scallops for a week."

"So? What if you lose?" Ning Tang asked.

Da Wa said without hesitation, "You decide."

"Then? You have to buy me food for a week, okay?" Ning Tang said.

The eldest child was speechless. "I can see that you just don't want to get up early."

"Nonsense." Ning Tang said, "Anyway, if you bet with me, you will definitely win. If I lose, you have to make grilled oysters and garlic vermicelli scallops for a week, and if you lose, you only have to buy me food for a week. Isn't it a good deal?"

"Calculation—" Big Boy stretched out his voice, "What the hell! But I'm betting with you, and you can't win anyway."

After hearing that Da Wa agreed to the bet, Ning Tang finally revealed a proud smile, "Well, you wait and see."

Seeing Ningtang smiling so proudly, Da Wa finally realized that he had been deceived.

However, it was too late.

Ningtang carefully cleaned the mucus on the pineapple seeds with salt water, put them in a pot and boiled them. After a while, the whole pot of water turned dark red.

Ning Tang scooped out the cooked pineapple honey seeds with a colander, put them in a bowl, and handed the bowl to Da Wa, "You three judges, taste it and see if it tastes good."

The eldest child stood on tiptoe and looked at the dark red water in the pot with a look of disdain, "It's already cooked like this, how can it taste good?"

"Well, if you don't want to eat it, and I eat it alone, you won't believe me if I say it's delicious." Ning Tang said, "Don't worry, it's edible. If you don't believe me, try it."

"Okay." Da Wa picked up a pineapple seed and stuffed it into his mouth with doubt. Ning Tang quickly stopped him, "You haven't peeled it yet."

She took a jackfruit seed and showed the three children how to peel it. The cooked jackfruit seed can be peeled easily. She used her thumb and index finger to gently pinch out a notch, then peeled off the shell to reveal the edible part inside.

Erniu frowned and said, "This looks like garlic." She was most afraid of eating garlic.

"Although it looks like garlic, I think its taste is closer to chestnut or water chestnut," said Ning Tang.

"Chestnuts and water chestnuts?" Big Boy's eyes widened. "What are those? I've never eaten them."

"Uh..." Ning Tang didn't expect that the three children had never eaten chestnuts and water chestnuts. "So? If you take a pineapple honey seed and eat it, it's the same as eating chestnuts and water chestnuts at the same time."

Under the temptation of the triple deliciousness, the three children reluctantly followed Ningtang's example and peeled the shells of the jackfruit seeds, revealing the tender white core inside.

Big Boy closed his eyes and took a bite. Unexpectedly, it was soft and sticky with a special fragrance. He widened his eyes and said, "It's delicious." He finished it in just a few bites.

Ning Tang said, "It's delicious, right? Comrade Shen Dawa, please accept the bet and buy me food for a week."

Da Wa kept talking, "It's just buying vegetables, what's so difficult about that? I, Shen Da Wa, will take on two people at once and I'm sure I can complete the task."

"Oh, one for two." Ning Tang pinched his little face, "Well, it's a deal. From tomorrow on, you and Erniu go shopping for groceries. Maybe people will give you more because you two are so cute."

Erniu tilted her head and said, "Stepmother, if my brother and I go to buy food, can we just buy whatever we want to eat?"

Ning Tang always felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't put his finger on it. "...Yes."

"Great." Erniu cheered and looked at Da Wa with sparkling eyes. "Brother, let's buy oysters and scallops tomorrow. I've got oysters with garlic sauce and scallops with vermicelli in garlic sauce."

Da Wa patted Er Niu's shoulder and said, "Our Er Niu is still smart." He looked at Ning Tang and said with a frown, "Stepmother, you should accept the defeat."

Ning Tang was surprised. These two kids were so cunning. They thought she had won. It turned out that she just thought so.

How could she forget that this is one thing, gambling is one thing, she asked the two kids to buy groceries, and she had to do whatever they brought back.

Ning Tang rolled his eyes and said, "Who said that if you buy oysters and scallops, I have to grill them and make them garlic flavored? I can't just steam them."

The eldest child looked confident of victory and shook his head, "I don't believe that you, stepmother, would still like to eat steamed food."

Yes, totally defeated.

August 27th, morning.

As soon as Ning Tang got up, she saw Da Wa standing on a small stool in the living room and tearing off the calendar on the wall. "What day is it today?"

Da Wa flattened the torn calendar and placed it on the cabinet, pressing it with something so that Shen Lie could use it as a draft paper when he came back. "It's the 27th, stepmother."

It's the 27th. Ning Tang nodded, and then suddenly realized, "It's the 27th? Well, finally Captain Shen is back, and I'm finally relieved." She collapsed on the mahogany bench in the living room, sighing.

The eldest child was also very happy, "Don't forget to make fried instant noodles for us. You said so yourself, wait until dad comes back..."

"What are you waiting for me to come back for?" Shen Lie's voice came from the door.

"Dad!" The first one to react was Erniu. She rushed to Shen Lie like a little cannonball and surrounded him with her little face full of joy.

Shen Lie picked up Erniu and weighed her. "Yo, our Erniu seems to be heavier."

"How can it not be heavy? I take good care of you with delicious food and drink every day." Ning Tang spoke across the back of the chair.

The eldest child took the third child and ran to Shen Lie in two or three steps. They tilted their heads to look at Shen Lie and said, "Dad, are you darker?"

Shen Lie put Erniu down and touched her face. "Is there anything?"

"Yes?" Ning Tang glanced at him, "It's a lot darker."

Shen Lie was originally dark-skinned, but this time he probably trained at sea for a long time, and was exposed to the wind, sun and rain, so he became even darker.

"It's okay, it doesn't matter if it's dark, anyway I can come back in the winter." Shen Lie said, "By the way, what were you guys talking about just now? What did you talk about when I came back?"

"My stepmother said that when you come back with your salary and allowance, she will make fried instant noodles for us," said the eldest son.

"Fried instant noodles?" Shen Lie was stunned.

"It's the kind of packaged instant noodles sold by the supply and marketing cooperative. I cooked a few bags for them when you were out at sea. They kept missing them after eating them, so I promised them that I would make fried noodles for them again when you come back." Ning Tang said.

So that's the case. Shen Lie nodded, "I'll have to go to the army later, and I'll buy a few bags from the supply and marketing cooperative when I come back."

The eldest child's eyes sparkled, "Dad, buy a few more bags and store them. We eat instant noodles every day."

Shen Lie looked at Da Wa's little face curiously. It was the first time he saw him so enthusiastic about eating, so he replied, "Okay."

Ning Tang reminded, "By the way, you can also go to the market and buy some prawns and cuttlefish."

Shen Lie was speechless. "I just came back from the sea, and you asked me to do this and that."

Ning Tang glared, "Do you think it's easy for me to help you take care of three kids at home? How about we switch roles?"

Shen Lie surrendered. "Okay, okay, I can't argue with you. Shrimp and cuttlefish, right? What else do you want? "

"Let's buy some clams." Ning Tang said, "Fried instant noodles will taste better with some clams."

"Okay." Shen Lie responded and went out.

Near noon, Shen Lie came back with a few bags of instant noodles and vegetables bought from the market.

Shen Lie: "You are really generous. You even buy instant noodles for 80 cents a bag."

He wondered how expensive instant noodles could be, but he didn't expect it to be sold for only 80 cents a bag. He felt very painful, but Ningtang and the three children all wanted to eat it, so he gritted his teeth and bought it.

Ning Tang stretched out her index finger and shook it, "Now you are willing to give it up." She looked at the bags in Shen Lie's hand, "How many bags did you buy?"

"Three bags. These are all left in the supply and marketing cooperative." Shen Lie said.

Ning Tang rolled up his sleeves and said, "Three bags are not enough. Go cook some more rice. I'll show you my cooking skills later."

Shen Lie muttered, "Just don't show your butt."

Ning Tang snorted, "Big Boy, Second Girl, Third Boy, are the instant noodles I made delicious?"

The eldest child nodded, "It's delicious."

"Did you hear that?" Ning Tang looked at Shen Lie.

"Really?" Shen Lie was skeptical. His impression of Ning Tang's cooking skills was still limited to the daily steamed seafood. "Big kid, what benefits did your stepmother give you?"

Ning Tang: "If you don't believe me, I'll prove it to you later and let you know what a chef is."

She brought the food Shen Lie bought into the kitchen, opened the bag of instant noodles first, and put the noodles and seasonings separately.

She then boiled another pot of water. While the water was boiling, she removed the shells and shrimp threads from the prawns, cut the cuttlefish into cuttlefish rings, and then blanched the shrimp meat, squid rings, and clams and set them aside for later use.

Then boil another pot of water, put the dough in, and when the dough turns into noodles, use a colander to scoop up the noodles and place them in cold water.

After doing all this, Ning Tang heated the oil in a pan and poured in the chopped garlic. As soon as the garlic entered the pan, it started to sizzle and oil popped up one after another, scaring her so much that she quickly took the pot lid to cover it.

Shen Lie, who was standing by, was speechless. He took the spatula from her hand and said, "Let me do it." While sautéing the minced garlic, he asked Ning Tang, "Are you so scared?"

Ning Tang glared, "You're not afraid? Fortunately, I was quick to act. If I had been a step slower, the oil would have splashed onto my hands and face. It would have been so painful."

Shen Lie saw that the fear on her face was not fake, so he explained, "It's because there is water in the pot. It will stop making noise soon. What's the next step?"

Ning Tang put down the pot lid and said, "Okay, let me do it."

She was just frightened just now. If she prepares herself mentally, it won't be difficult for her to make a fortune.

Ningtang took the spatula, put in the cuttlefish rings, stir-fried them for two times, then poured in an appropriate amount of salt and soy sauce, and then put in the prawns and clams, stir-frying evenly. Soon, all the ingredients were coated with a beautiful sauce color.

The last step is to cook the noodles. Ningtang pours the noodles soaked in cold water into the pot, stir-fries them quickly, and then adds a few drops of oil to enhance the flavor. The aroma immediately bursts out.

"Wow, it smells so good." The eldest child ran into the kitchen with the second and third children.

Shen Lie chased them out, "Just watch from the door. The kitchen is small, and if you come in again, we won't be able to move around."

The three children waited obediently at the door when they thought about the instant noodles they would have in a while.

Ning Tang stir-fried it twice more and said, "Okay, you finish the rest."

It was the end of August, the weather was still hot, and the kitchen was stuffy. Should I just stay in the kitchen? After a while, Ning Tang wiped off a handful of sweat when he wiped his face.

Soon, Shen Lie brought out a large plate of seafood fried noodles and several other dishes.

Da Wa was already very hungry, and without waiting for Shen Lie to do anything, he used chopsticks to pick up a full bowl of seafood fried noodles and ate it non-stop.

Shen Lie was stunned. "Is it really that delicious?"

It’s just three kinds of seafood and instant noodles, how can it be delicious?

Shen Lie picked up a piece of seafood fried noodles with chopsticks and put it into his mouth half-believingly. He was amazed as soon as he took a bite. The rich seafood flavor, coupled with the golden and chewy noodles, made him unable to stop eating one bite after another.

Ning Tang said proudly, "How is it? Is it delicious? If it wasn't, would the three little ones be able to read it until now?"

She's not bragging, she's really good at making fried instant noodles. She used to make it for her friends and they all said she could sell it at a stall.

Shen Lie just focused on eating and gave Ningtang a thumbs up.

Ning Tang saw a stack of pancakes made by Shen Lie on the table, so she took one and put it in her hand. She put a piece of seafood fried noodles on the pancake with her chopsticks, and then put some prawns and cuttlefish rings on it, wrapped it up, and put it into her mouth along with the pancake. "You guys try it, it tastes good when you eat it with the pancake."

Shen Lie discovered that Ning Tang was not good at cooking, but she was the best at cooking those "deviant" things.

Da Wa believed Ning Tang's words without a doubt. He followed her example and made a pancake and put it into his mouth. The delicious seafood fried noodles with the crispy and greasy pancake skin made the taste even better. He wiped his greasy mouth and said, "Delicious, delicious."

Erniu and Sanwa were small in stature and had small appetites, and the seafood fried noodles and pancakes filled their stomachs. Ningtang didn't dare let them eat more, and only let them have a bowl of noodles and half a pancake.

The family of five had a delicious meal. Shen Lie and Ning Tang each leaned on a chair, looking at the dishes on the table and looking at each other tacitly.

Shen Lie said, "I finally came back from the sea, you can't let me wash the dishes, right? Besides, this is lunch, according to our agreement, you should wash the lunch dishes."

Ning Tang burped, "So, in the month since you left, I cooked all the meals and washed all the dishes. Calculate how many meals you owe me."

Shen Lie, "We agreed before that I will give you wages and allowances, and you will do the housework for the month I am out at sea. You are not allowed to shirk your responsibilities."

Ning Tang held out his hand, "What about the money? You also said that I did the housework when you were out at sea, and now you are back."

"Wash the dishes for one more day, and let me rest for one more day." Shen Lie paused, "I promise, I will give you the subsidy as soon as it is issued. Is that it?"

"No, I won't do anything until I see the rabbit." Ning Tang said, "Hurry up and wash the dishes."

Ning Tang saw Shen Lie rolling his eyes and knew he was going to do something naughty. "Don't expect to order the three little ones around. They helped me do a lot of work in the three months you were away."

Shen Lie: "Comrade Ning Tang, if you go around the island, you will find that there is no daughter-in-law who doesn't wash dishes and do housework."

"Your family." Ning Tang said, "Don't think that men washing dishes is an exception. As the old saying goes, how can you clean the house if you can't clean it? If you can't even wash a bowl properly, how can you be expected to lead troops to fight and contribute to the country?"

Shen Lie glared, "How can these two things be mixed up? I can only say that housework does not necessarily belong to men."

"That doesn't necessarily belong to a woman." Ning Tang quickly replied.

Shen Lie glanced at the dirty dishes on the table and sighed, "But they must belong to someone who can't stand it." He muttered, "If we keep arguing, the dishes will become smelly."

"That's right." Ning Tang said, "If you had the time to argue with me, you would have washed the dishes long ago."

Shen Lie stood up and cleared the dishes. "Let the active military return home to do housework. Comrade Ning Tang, only you can do it."

Ning Tang snorted, "Captain Shen, let me reiterate to you, taking care of children and doing housework is not any easier than your training. If you quantify the housework done by women, you don't know how much you will have to pay me."

"Yes, yes, yes." Shen Lie raised his hands in surrender.

We had a simple meal in the evening. There was the seafood fried noodles we had for lunch, and the three children were quiet.

After washing up, Shen Lie and Ning Tang lay side by side on the bed.

Ning Tang had been sleeping alone for a month, and suddenly there was another person by his side. He felt a little uncomfortable and tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

Shen Lie opened his eyes helplessly, "What are you doing here? Where are the pancakes?"

Ning Tang rolled his eyes, "What do you care about me?"

Shen Lie turned his back and said, "How dare I care about you? I'm going to sleep first."

Ning Tang rolled his eyes and patted his shoulder, "Don't worry, don't go to sleep yet, let's chat for a while."

Shen Lie couldn't sleep either. He had been drifting on the sea for a month. Sleeping on a boat and sleeping on land were two different feelings. He was also a little used to his bed and couldn't fall asleep for a while. He turned around and closed his eyes and said, "What do you want to talk about?"

Ning Tang didn't know what to talk about, but she just didn't want to sleep for the time being. She suddenly remembered something, "You should get to know Wang Di."

"Wang Di is coming?" Shen Lie thought for a moment and said, "You are talking about the lover of Captain Wu of the Third Regiment, right?"

Ning Tang remembered that Luo's wife seemed to have mentioned that Wang Di's lover was the battalion commander, "That should be it."

Shen Lie curled his lips and said, "Why are you mentioning her for no reason?" This made him lose the mood to sleep.

Ning Tang repeated to him the story of Wang Di cutting in line. "That's what happened." She blinked. "Is it okay for me to handle it this way? Will it cause you any trouble?"

No matter what kind of person Wang Di is when she comes here, her husband is the battalion commander and a colleague of Shen Lie after all. Who knows, he might cause trouble for Shen Lie because of this.

Shen Lie sneered, "It's okay, you did the right thing, it's not a problem, next time if there is such a thing, you don't have to give face to Wang Di, no matter what, I will cover it for you."

Ning Tang curled up her lips and was in the mood to gossip with him. She frowned and said, "Hey, I heard from Sister Luo that Wang Dilai wanted to be a matchmaker for you and let you marry her cousin."

Shen Lie thought about it and said, "Is that so?"

Ning Tang suddenly perked up, "Then? Why don't you agree?"

Shen Lie was speechless. "If I agree, what does it have to do with you?"

Ning Tang glanced at him and said, "That's right. If you agree, I won't be the one washing clothes until my hands cramp."

"But I can tell you too." Shen Lie said, "Help me do the housework for a week."

"Then? Forget it." Ning Tang immediately stopped talking.

Shen Lie sighed, "I just can't understand why you hate doing housework so much. It's not troublesome and it's quite simple."

That's because you haven't lived in that technologically advanced era, Ning Tang complained in his heart, and changed the subject, "Anyway, I just don't want to do housework. Let's not talk about this. Tell me why you don't agree."

Shen Lie saw Ning Tang looking at him with sparkling eyes, and knew that she would not stop until she got the answer. If she continued to talk nonsense, it would probably be dawn. He sighed and said, "Wang Dilai has three concubines. Do you know their names?"

Ning Tang was confused. How did it bring up the name of Wang Dilai's daughter? She said truthfully, "I don't know."

Shen Lie counted on his fingers, "Her eldest daughter? Her name is Pan Di, the second daughter? Her name is Zhao Di, the third daughter? Her name is Ying Di."

Pan Di, Zhao Di, Ying Di?

Ning Tang suddenly had an idea and curled his lips, "Oh, favoring boys over girls? Ah."

"Yeah, she gave her young lady such a name, like Pan Di, Zhao Di, Ying Di, and she calls herself Di. People who don't know would think she and her young lady are of the same generation." Shen Lie laughed sarcastically.

Ning Tang secretly complained in his heart, it seems that the name you chose is very good. Erniu’s name is Shen Ya, doesn’t it sound nice?

Shen Lie guessed what Ning Tang was thinking from her eyes and said with a glare, "Isn't Shen Ya better than Pan Di, Zhao Di, or Ying Di?"

That's true. At least it doesn't have that hint of favoring boys over girls.

Ning Tang asked, "I still don't understand why Wang Di favors boys over girls? Why don't you agree to marry her cousin?"

In fact, logically speaking, it is quite suitable for the two families to get married. At least it will not do any harm to Shen Lie, and it may even have many advantages.

"When Wang Di came to me and said she wanted to introduce her cousin to me, I asked someone to inquire in her hometown. It's like this everywhere. There are many people who throw their daughters under the bridge after giving birth to them." Shen Lie said.

"So Wang Di's coming here is not an isolated case. Her cousin might have the same temper as her." Shen Lie paused and continued, "I don't want her to treat Erniu harshly after she gets married."

After Shen Lie finished speaking, he looked into Ning Tang's eyes seriously, "Of course, there is also the possibility that her cousin is a kind person, who, unlike Wang Di, advocates equality between men and women. But how low is the probability? I don't want to gamble with my own child on this possibility."

Ning Tang looked back at him straight, taking in his resolute face, as if he had just truly gotten to know this person today.

An idea suddenly flashed through her mind. "Hey, maybe you married me because my parents love me very much and don't discriminate against girls at all, right?"

Shen Lie looked away, not daring to look at her directly, and hesitantly said, "Well, there is? This? factor..."

Ning Tang glared and tried to pinch his ears, but Shen Lie quickly excused himself, "No, no, no, okay, let me tell you, it's because of this that I decided to marry you. I thought that your parents loved you, and you would be influenced by them, so naturally they wouldn't treat my daughter too badly."

This? That’s more like it. Ning Tang’s expression relaxed.

Shen Lie saw her attitude relax, and continued, "You don't know, Da Wa's biological mother is also a son-loving person. When she was still alive, she was a bitch and treated Er Niu harshly. However, Er Niu was young and didn't notice it, and I secretly compensated her behind her back, so nothing happened until now."

After he finished speaking, he looked at Ning Tang's face and found that she didn't look surprised at all. He was surprised and said, "Why don't you look surprised at all?"

Ning Tang: "Why are you surprised? Have you forgotten that I was responsible for the three children's daily food and clothing during your one-month trip to the sea? I noticed a long time ago that Erniu had fewer clothes than the eldest and third children."

Even though Erniu has her own room, the box she uses to store her clothes is very small. In contrast, Da Wa has two or three sets of old clothes a year. Even the youngest, San Wa, has more clothes than Erniu, and Erniu only wears those two sets of clothes over and over again.

Shen Lie didn't expect that he had told Ning Tang so much without realizing it.

As the conversation started, he became more and more interested. "When I was in the same class with your brother, he often told me how much your parents-in-law loved you. I didn't believe it at the time. After all, it's rare for people to love their daughters more than their sons."

"But when I arrived at your house, I saw that you did nothing but spent money lavishly, slept until noon every day, and your father-in-law and mother-in-law acted like my daughter was the best. I believed that they really loved their daughter, so I made up my mind."

Ning Tang glanced at him and said, even though her brother Ning Jun and Shen Lie were comrades-in-arms, it was impossible for Shen Lie to agree to the marriage without saying anything. It turned out to be because of this.

Even if Shen Lie did it for Ning Jun's life-saving grace, he still has three children: Da Wa, Er Niu, and San Wa.

When Shen Lie got married, he not only married a wife, but also the mother of his three children. If he really married someone with bad intentions, the three children would suffer.

Shen Lie crossed his hands behind his head and continued, "Actually, there is one more thing you don't know."

"Just tell me everything at once." Ning Tang said weakly, "I'm going to marry you anyway, it's a done deal."

"On the day of the blind date, I drank quite a bit of wine, and I woke up in the middle of the night because I had to pee. When I went to relieve myself, I passed by your dad's room..."

Shen Lie looked at Ning Tang's expression and said, "You know that room of yours is not soundproof. If someone is talking inside, people outside can hear it. I have good hearing and good eyesight..."

Ning Tang glared, "Stop giving yourself too much credit and get to the point."

Shen Lie shrugged and continued, "I heard everything you discussed. Then I remember my mother-in-law said that she didn't regret marrying her daughter to a soldier who defends the country. At that time, I felt that your family had a good reputation and I should marry this daughter-in-law."

Ning Tang was completely shocked this time. It turned out that there were so many things she didn't know. "No wonder you agreed right away the next day. I thought it was strange at the time."

"What's so strange? This is getting married, a major event in life. How can I not consider it more?" Shen Lie said, "Anyway, I have explained everything, nothing is left."

Ning Tang narrowed his eyes and said, "So, I am at a disadvantage."

I really didn't expect that Shen Lie looked silent and didn't say much, but behind his back, he was even more cunning than the abacus beads.

Shen Lie curled his lips, "What loss, Comrade Ning Tang, don't forget your reputation outside." He counted on his fingers, "Lazy, greedy..."

As he was talking, he realized something was wrong. Why did Ning Tang look at him more and more dangerously?

Shen Lie swallowed carefully, "What? I'm going to sleep first. Good night!"

"An, you big head ghost." Ning Tang spit on his face, "No, get up, let me talk it out."

In response to her, she was met with Shen Lie's repeated snoring.