Grandpa Su squinted, tapping his fingers lightly on the armrest of the rattan chair, and suddenly grinned.
"Jianguo, have you ever heard of the village guardian?"
The palm-leaf fan paused in Su Jianguo's hand.
"The village guardian? Isn't that the kind of... simpleton people the villagers talk about!"
That's right!
The old man nodded in satisfaction, and then continued.
"We have two like that in Sujiatun. One is over seventy and can't move around anymore, but that Wu Ermaitai guy hasn't taken a bath since he could eat. He's over fifty but acts like a five-year-old."
He lowered his voice and leaned closer to his son.
"Go back to the village tomorrow and bring him here."
The sound of dumplings boiling came from the kitchen, and the steam mixed with the aroma of chives wafted into the yard.
Su Jianguo refilled his father's tea.
"Father, you mean..."
"Wasn't the house awarded to Yufen?"
The old man sipped his tea, his eyes gleaming.
"Let Yufen rent the house to Wu Er for a few days. That old hag lies down in there, and lice will crawl all over the walls. Let's see what tricks that old woman Zhang can pull!"
Su Jianguo knew the legend of the village guardian.
These people who are born mentally challenged are regarded by the villagers as "guardians" to protect the village from disasters.
Wu Er was a notorious slovenly man in the surrounding area; the lice in his cotton-padded jacket could be used to make a stir-fry.
"this..."
Su Jianguo suddenly burst out laughing.
"Dad, that's a brilliant move! If that old lady Zhang isn't afraid of being ridiculed to death, then let her come and cause trouble!"
The old man swayed proudly in his rattan chair.
"These are minor issues. Back when we were fighting as guerrillas, the puppet troops would occupy the villagers' houses and refuse to leave. We would just grab a sack of snakes and throw them into the rooms in the middle of the night."
Su Jianguo gave his father a thumbs up.
Grandpa Su suddenly said.
"Oh, right, we can't let the village guards be used for nothing. I'll have Xiulan steam a pot of sugar triangles later, and give them to them then."
These words instantly reminded Su Jianguo of something.
The older generation says that you have to give sweets to the village guards, otherwise you'll lose good fortune.
Su Jianguo recalled seeing Wu Er squatting at the village entrance in a dirty manner when he was a child, his cotton-padded trousers showing cotton, and he would smile foolishly when he received a cornbread from an old lady.
Immediately, Su Jianguo shouted to his wife.
"Honey, go steam a pot of sugar triangles, I need them for tomorrow!"
From the kitchen came Wang Xiulan's reply, and also Su Jianguo's mother's reproach.
"We've already made so many dumplings, why bother steaming sugar triangles!"
Fortunately, Su Jianguo went to the kitchen and explained to his mother, who then shut up. However, she did casually toss Su Jianguo a few cloves of garlic.
"Go peel the garlic, and make some minced garlic later."
Su Jianguo, the head of the family, had no temper whatsoever.
He was honestly peeling garlic there.
If you dare say a single word against your own mother, I'll slap you across the face.
Soon, all the dumplings were cooked. Su Jianguo had also peeled the garlic and used a rolling pin to cut the garlic cloves into strips.
Everything is ready.
At the entrance of the courtyard, Su Mingqiang and his wife came in carrying a net bag.
Li Jinhua had a smile on her face.
"Grandpa and Grandma, Mingde and I have come to add some dishes for you."
The old man didn't say anything.
Su Jianguo was very surprised. He had never seen Li Jinhua act like a dutiful daughter-in-law in his previous life.
Su Mingqiang hurriedly stepped forward, handed the net to Wang Xiulan, and then spoke.
"I bought these pig ears especially for Mom. Take them and mix them with cucumber for Dad and Grandpa to have with their drinks."
Wang Xiulan took the net bag, which contained a braised pig's ear.
She instinctively turned to look at her husband.
Seeing Su Jianguo nod almost imperceptibly, Wang Xiulan turned and walked towards the kitchen.
Li Jinhua immediately jogged after him.
"Mom, let me help you!"
Li Jinhua's voice was sickeningly sweet. When she took a plate out of the cupboard, she deliberately rubbed her fingers against the old lady's arm.
"Please sit down and rest for a while; I'll take care of these heavy tasks."
The kitchen was steaming, and Li Jinhua's figure was faintly visible in the mist.
She deftly sliced the cucumber into thin strips.
Looking at his daughter-in-law who had suddenly become so diligent, Su Jianguo secretly admired the old man's methods. In just a few days, he had managed to make this shrew put on such a virtuous act.
Soon, the table was filled with food.
The plump, white dumplings were steaming hot, the pig ears, mixed with sesame oil and minced garlic, glistened with oil, and there was also a dish of pickled garlic, the old man's favorite.
Li Jinhua diligently set out bowls and chopsticks for everyone, and even specially brought a bowl of dumpling soup for the old man.
"Grandpa, it's a little hot, please drink it later."
She explained to the old man with a smile.
"They say the original broth helps digest the original food, so eating dumplings and drinking the dumpling soup is the perfect combination."
The old man nodded in satisfaction.
However, Su Jianguo did notice it.
Li Jinhua nudged Su Mingqiang with her knee under the table, and the latter immediately straightened his back.
"Dad, you should eat too."
Su Mingqiang picked up a dumpling for Su Jianguo, but his chopsticks trembled in mid-air, and the dumpling almost fell onto the table.
Su Jianguo took the dumplings, his gaze lingering on his son's face for a moment.
Fine beads of sweat appeared on Su Mingqiang's forehead, and his eyes darted around, glancing at his wife every now and then.
Li Jinhua, on the other hand, acted as if nothing was wrong, serving soup to the old lady, only her toes kept lightly tapping Su Mingqiang's shoes under the table.
"Mingqiang."
The old man suddenly spoke.
"Isn't the factory busy lately? I've noticed you've been taking a lot of time off these past few days!"
Su Mingqiang was startled and almost knocked over the vinegar dish in front of him.
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