Lu Lin quickly gave Jiang Manyue assurances and coaxed her, making her happy. He then changed the subject and continued to ask about what had just happened in the compound.
"You haven't told me yet. Her family asked Brother Cheng how much dowry he wants?"
Jiang Manyue snorted twice, "One thousand yuan! And I have to arrange a formal job for Xuemei's brother, one that pays thirty-six yuan in the factory."
Lu Lin found it funny. "Why don't they just rob? A thousand yuan? And arrange work?"
"That's right, Xuemei didn't agree either, so she just moved in. Then they came to ask Brother Cheng for money, but they couldn't get into the compound. Sister Ma and I saw with our own eyes that Xuemei's brother pried open the iron gate and came in."
Lu Lin scoffed, "Stupid."
Jiang Manyue nodded in agreement. "That's just stupid. Who in their right mind would do such a thing? They had just come in and didn't even know where Cheng lived, but they were pinned down by the guards."
Jiang Manyue then asked Lu Lin, "Given their situation, they won't really go to jail, right?"
Lu Lin shook his head. "It's hard to say. The military zone isn't just any place. It's very confidential. If they were to accuse them of being an enemy spy who broke into the military zone, not only would they end up in jail, they might even get shot."
Jiang Manyue's eyes widened. "Is it that serious?"
Lu Lin was afraid that she would be frightened, so he comforted her, "It may not be that serious. It depends on what the higher-ups say. Mainly, no one has ever entered the military area, so I don't know how they will handle it."
Jiang Manyue clicked her tongue and shook her head. "It's over. He did something no one else dared to do. Isn't this going to be made an example of, a warning to others?"
Lu Lin shrugged. He really didn't know how the higher-ups would deal with this family, and it was not something he could interfere with.
"Okay, forget about them. What are we having for lunch today?"
Lu Lin didn't want Jiang Manyue to think too much, so he abruptly changed the topic to lunch.
Jiang Manyue also understood, so she cooperated and showed him the vegetables in the basket.
These vegetables were bought today with real money and tickets. Fortunately, she brought some money and tickets with her, otherwise she wouldn't know how to buy these vegetables today.
"Here, I bought pork tenderloin, pork belly, and a chicken. These ribs are for stewing soup. I also bought some plum meat to chop into minced meat to make four-happiness meatballs. Then there are some vegetables."
Jiang Manyue said as she rummaged through the basket of vegetables, "When you went out before, I promised Xie Anbang that I would treat him to braised pork when you came back. It just so happened that I found some good meat today, so I bought some to treat you and your comrades to a meal, as a welcome treat for you and Xie Anbang."
Lu Lin hugged her and nuzzled her, "How can my wife be so considerate? Those animals are in for a treat today."
Jiang Manyue poked him with amusement, "Why do you call them animals? They are animals, what are you?"
Lu Lin also laughed. "Let me give you an example. They have big appetites. This basket of vegetables might not even be enough for them."
"It's okay. There are so many dishes here. Just cook some more rice. Since we don't drink alcohol, this rice will definitely be enough."
Jiang Manyue said this, but actually she was planning to secretly add some more food. With so many soldiers, if they ate too much, they would be very greedy.
"Okay, come and help me wash the meat and vegetables. I have to put them in the pot and stew them quickly, otherwise I won't be able to eat them until noon."
Lu Lin obediently let go of Jiang Manyue and took the basket of meat and vegetables outside to wash.
Jiang Manyue was preparing seasonings in the kitchen. After making sure that Lu Lin was washing things outside, she quickly entered the space and took out a few boxes of pre-washed meat.
She had to cut it up quickly and put it away, and then mix it with the meat she bought while Lu Lin wasn't paying attention.
Jiang Manyue quickly cut the meat, put it away, continued to pretend nothing had happened, and prepared the seasoning for stewing the meat.
Lu Lin quickly washed the meat and vegetables and brought them in. He had nothing to do in the kitchen anymore, so Jiang Manyue sent him to notify a few comrades so that they wouldn't go directly to the cafeteria after training.
After Lu Lin left after being sent away by Jiang Manyue, Jiang Manyue took out the meat, mixed it together, and officially put it into the pot to stew.
The menu she prepared consisted of four meat dishes and four vegetable dishes. The four meat dishes were braised pork, four-happiness meatballs, deep-fried pork tenderloin, and braised chicken. The four vegetable dishes were scrambled eggs with tomatoes, mushrooms and vegetables, stir-fried winter melon, and stir-fried wild rice stem with shredded pork.
Although two of the four vegetarian dishes are not completely vegetarian, compared with braised pork and braised chicken, they can only be classified as vegetarian dishes.
In addition to these dishes, there is also a pork rib soup, which is cooked in a pressure cooker. The bones are crispy and the meat is tender, and the broth tastes particularly fragrant.
Jiang Manyue was busy in the kitchen for a long time. Fortunately, there was more than one coal stove at home. She bought two more for convenience, and they came in handy now.
The four meat dishes were soon out of the pot, and Jiang Manyue was busy preparing the vegetarian dishes, and finally a table full of dishes was served.
As soon as the dishes were served, Lu Lin came back with Lu Jun'an and several comrades.
Several people were holding things in their hands, and when they saw Jiang Manyue, they quickly handed the things in their hands over.
"Sister-in-law, please keep it. It's not something valuable. It's just a set of pillowcases. You can make do with it."
"Sister-in-law, this is mine. It's a pair of enamel cups. One for each of you and Brother Lu."
"Sister-in-law, I brought you a box of snacks. Do you girls like sweet things?"
Jiang Manyue accepted them one by one with a smile, "There are so many gifts. Fortunately, there are a lot of dishes prepared today, otherwise I would be embarrassed. Come and take a seat, the dishes are on the table."
Seeing that she didn't refuse, they accepted it directly and everyone sat down happily.
They are all straightforward and not very good at speaking. If Jiang Manyue refuses, they really don't know how to persuade her.
"Wow, there are so many dishes. I'm really enjoying a feast today."
"Brother Lu, what a heavenly life this is leading! It makes me want to get married. I wonder if my wife's cooking skills will be as good as yours in the future."
"You're just daydreaming. It's good enough that you're able to get a wife, but you're still thinking about marrying someone with the same craftsmanship as your sister-in-law."
A few people started arguing again. Jiang Manyue smiled and put a large pot of rice on the table. "Don't be polite. Serve."
Since there was no wine, everyone at the table just served themselves some rice and started chatting while eating. It was actually more lively than a wine table.
I have to say that soldiers really can eat. The big table of dishes and two big pots of rice prepared by Jiang Manyue were all eaten up.
If they weren't really burping, Jiang Manyue would have thought that they were not full at all, but were just embarrassed to say it, so they all said they were full.
They finished all the food and felt quite embarrassed. After the meal, they took the initiative to clean up the pots and pans with Lu Lin.
Jiang Manyue didn't care. The person who invited guests wanted all the food they cooked to be eaten up, which was also a recognition of her cooking skills.
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