For the family of four, Song Xia was afraid her parents would say she was too wasteful, so besides the chicken soup that had already been cooked, she only made three other dishes: braised prawns, stir-fried pork, and stir-fried vegetables with garlic.
As it turned out, her decision was correct, and her parents were very satisfied with the four dishes.
After taking a sip of chicken soup, all three of them sighed contentedly, feeling extremely comforted.
Song Xia felt a pang of sadness. Come to think of it, her parents had barely eaten any of her cooking, let alone Tingting.
"No wonder you said you wanted to open a restaurant. With your soup-making skills alone, you can attract a number of customers."
"How did you make it?" Hua Ling asked in surprise. "I've made chicken soup before. If the chicken is flavorful, the soup will be too salty. If the soup is just right, I can't eat the chicken meat. And with the same chicken, how come I can't make it taste this fresh?"
"Mom, you don't need to learn. If you want to drink it, I'll make it for you often in the future."
"This stir-fried pork is delicious, it has that wok hei (wok aroma), and the garlic is cooked just right." Song Xia's father used to be a soldier in southern Hunan and had eaten countless stir-fried pork dishes, so he gave it a very high rating.
Ye Tingting's chopsticks kept reaching for the braised prawns, showing how much she liked the dish.
This meal was arguably the most satisfying one Song Xia had eaten since her rebirth into this world. Indeed, the best cooking skills should be shared with the most beloved family members.
After dinner, Song Shunguo didn't go out with them. He took on the task of washing the dishes and then had to go to his shift. So, Song Xia and the other two wandered around the neighborhood. Seeing Song Xia walking and talking on the phone, Hua Ling asked in surprise, "You already looked for her?"
"I just checked the qualifications of a few training courses online and asked if they were currently working and if it would be convenient for me to go and take a look."
Ye Tingting glanced at her mother again. She thought her mother had only said it on the spur of the moment, but she hadn't expected her to have been preparing for it all along. So, did her mother really care about her?
“There’s one right here.” Song Xia looked at the entrance of the residential complex. “This place is set up in a rented apartment in the complex. The person in charge said they’ll come out to pick us up soon.”
As they were talking, a middle-aged man wearing glasses walked over. He first looked the three of them up and down. Perhaps because they were dressed plainly, his smile visibly faded, his tone was not very warm, and he even spoke with an air of superiority.
"I don't just take on any student, and the tuition isn't cheap. Of course, I believe the tuition is commensurate with my teaching level, after all, I've won many industry awards." He held up his phone, quickly flipping through photos of trophies and certificates.
Song Xia had lost the will to ask any more questions. Putting aside his skill level, she looked down on his character if he was the one teaching her.
Although it's just teaching calligraphy, Chinese calligraphy also has an element of moral education. How can you teach someone if they have bad character?
Seeing her daughter frowning as well, Song Xia stopped at the gate of the residential complex: "I'm sorry, since you're so high and mighty, we probably can't afford to attend your class."
The man immediately became angry: "Are you playing me? If you can't afford it, why did you call me out?"
Song Xia said calmly, "Sir, as I mentioned on the phone before, we were just here to take a look. We didn't say we had to decide to buy the course, did we?"
"But I haven't told you the price yet!"
“We just want to find an ordinary teacher; your status in the calligraphy world is too high.”
Ye Tingting almost burst out laughing. She hadn't expected her mother to be so sarcastic. Although she didn't know what awards the man had actually won, all he mentioned was some provincial-level award of excellence. If he had really won a national-level award, wouldn't he have boasted about it by now? And as far as she knew, a provincial-level award of excellence wasn't considered high-status in the calligraphy world. After all, there were countless competitions like that every year, and who knew which organization he was participating in? Did it even have any real value?
Even if it's truly valuable, she doesn't want to study here; it makes her uncomfortable.
After Song Xia finished speaking, the three of them turned and left, while the man cursed behind them: "If I can't even afford to study here, where else can you study? If you can't afford it, don't waste my time, you poor bastards."
Ye Tingting pouted: "Even if I could afford it, I wouldn't study here. A qualified teacher wouldn't talk like you."
Song Xia took her daughter's hand and said, "Don't lower yourself to his level. Since he's already in this line of work, he'll eventually see your talent. You don't need a lot of certificates, just higher awards than his."
Ye Tingting was also very ambitious: "No matter how much I have to pay, I will achieve more than him. What kind of person is he to insult me like that?"
Hua Ling watched the mother and daughter with amusement. It was good that Tingting's distance from Xiaxia was getting smaller and smaller. That's how it should be. That's what a family should be like.
Afterwards, the three of them went to the mall to meet a painting class. Although the person in charge was very enthusiastic and did not look down on them, Song Xia still felt it was unsatisfactory. It was not a matter of price, but rather that the training class was obviously the kind of course that taught routines. Some of the excellent paintings that were displayed were just like templates, and they did not show any inspiration.
"Tingting, shall we take another look?"
Ye Tingting nodded, and the person in charge still saw them out and gave them a discount coupon for a trial class.
Hua Ling didn't understand any of this, but she continued to ask, "It's getting late, do you still want to continue watching?"
"There's one last one left. Should I contact them and see?"
“Okay.” The three of them stood by the roadside, ready to hail a taxi at any time.
Song Xia hung up the phone and hailed a taxi: "The other party said they can't guarantee any results from the training, and the fee isn't low either. Let's go and take a look first."
Hua Ling nodded: "I actually think this one is more reliable."
“I agree. How could someone who is truly skilled charge a low price? If they start by promising results, I find that unreliable.”
The three of them took a taxi for a short distance. This was an area that had not yet been developed by developers. After all, their place was not in the city center. Of course, there were no farmlands here, only vegetable gardens cultivated by local residents in front of their courtyards.
Looking out, Song Xia saw a mountain that was quite famous in the city. It had been developed into a tourist attraction by the government. Although it wasn't well-known and was unknown to outsiders, many locals would come here on weekends to exercise and set up tents.
A thought struck her: what if she rented a courtyard here to open a private restaurant? Not only would the environment be nice, but she could also grow her own vegetables, ensuring their freshness and health.
"This teacher lives in such a remote place!" Hua Ling was a little worried, after all, she couldn't be sure that Tingting would come to class every time.
Song Xia only had that plan in mind and intended to take a few more looks before making a decision, so she advised, "Since we're already here, let's not keep them waiting in vain. Let's take a look first."
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