After mailing her things, Du Yuhan carried her luggage and walked back to the courtyard. Although it was a bit far, she walked and stopped at her own pace, which was very leisurely.
When Du Yuhan arrived home, it was a little after 11 a.m. Han Yixian was sitting in the living room chatting with Zhou Zhengye, who was on vacation that day.
Liu Gang was also in the living room, and he immediately spotted Du Yuhan walking into the yard.
He stood up in surprise and exclaimed, "Yuhan is back!"
After shouting, he ran out of the house and into the yard to greet Du Yuhan.
Zhou Zhengye was very happy to see Du Yuhan return and went to the yard to greet her.
Han Yixian, in his wheelchair, arrived at the doorway and looked excitedly at Du Yuhan as she entered the courtyard.
He rarely showed emotion, but today, seeing Du Yuhan return stirred his emotions. Only now did he realize how much he had longed for Du Yuhan's return.
It's been more than a month since Du Yuhan left. Apart from the grapes on the trellis turning red and being almost all eaten, and some changes in the vegetable garden, nothing else has changed much.
Liu Gang took the bag from Du Yuhan and asked, "Yuhan, was the journey smooth?"
Du Yuhan nodded and said, "Everything went smoothly. Is everything alright at home?"
Liu Gang replied, "Everything is fine at home."
Du Yuhan greeted Zhou Zhengye, saying, "Brother Zhou, are you resting today?"
Zhou Zhengye nodded and said, "I took the day off today to come and see Yixian. You've been gone for a month. We've all been so worried about you."
Du Yuhan smiled and said, "You miss the food I cook, right?"
Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhengye burst into laughter. "You have no idea, Liu Gang hasn't been able to learn anything from you in all this time, and his cooking is still terrible. I'm alright, I only come over occasionally for a meal, but your Brother Han has been tortured to death."
If I hadn't eaten your cooking before, it would be easier to compare. But you've spoiled my palate, so going back to my old ways is naturally tough. I've noticed you've lost some weight lately.
Liu Gang scratched the back of his head sheepishly and said, "I just can't seem to improve my cooking skills. The regimental commander has been eating much less lately. It's good that you're back."
Du Yuhan smiled and said, "I will definitely make it up to Brother Han later."
Du Yuhan walked into the room and carefully examined Han Yixian's face; he did indeed look rather thin.
Han Yixian was very happy to see Du Yuhan return safely. He noticed that the girl was a bit darker than before she left, but she seemed to have grown taller and was still as slender as ever, perhaps because she was still growing.
Those big, watery eyes sparkled with excitement; it seemed the journey had gone smoothly.
Han Yi first asked Liu Gang to pour Du Yuhan a glass of water and said, "You must be tired. Sit down and have some water to rest. You should have called Liu Gang to pick you up before you came back."
Zhou Zhengye also said, "Yes, you could have just given me a call, and I could have driven to pick you up. That way you wouldn't have to walk such a long way."
Du Yuhan drank a glass of water and said, "I also rest when I get tired. I walk and stop frequently, so I'm not that tired."
Han Yixian asked, "Did you go home to see your parents? Are they alright?"
Du Yuhan nodded and said, "They are all well."
Du Yuhan didn't mention her adoptive parents' move because she felt it was unnecessary and didn't want to bring up her biological parents.
Han Yixian, of course, would not ask about this matter, nor did he want Du Yuhan to know that he had sent people to follow and protect her.
The food in the courtyard has plummeted since Du Yuhan left home. Not only is Liu Gang's cooking terrible, but he's also no match for Du Yuhan when it comes to hunting.
Liu Gang only went into the mountains to hunt occasionally, and he didn't always have any success.
Du Yuhan's return seemed to bring the courtyard back to life.
Zhou Zhengye didn't know why he hadn't been dreaming lately. In his dreams, his relationship with Du Yuhan would just start to progress but then stall, yet he longed to see Du Yuhan in his dreams every day.
Now that Du Yuhan is back, he is naturally more willing to see her in person.
Du Yuhan returned, and Liu Gang quickly handed over the kitchen.
Du Yuhan planned to cook a nice meal for everyone at noon. There was no meat at home, but there were still eggs.
Du Yuhan cut some chives to make egg and chive dumplings.
Many of the vegetables in the yard had already been harvested. Following Du Yuhan's instructions, Liu Gang planted radishes, cabbages, a patch of spinach, and some lettuce in the vacant vegetable plots, though not many.
The two rows of scallions planted in the yard were growing thick and strong. There was no need to worry about having scallions this year. Du Yuhan planned to send some to the Yuan and Yao families after the harvest.
The cabbages have grown quite tall; now is the time to eat the baby cabbages.
Du Yuhan plans to gradually grow the seedlings tomorrow and stir-fry some bok choy to eat.
Everyone worked together to pick the chives and finished quickly. Du Yuhan first kneaded the dough and then fried a few eggs.
Once the eggs have cooled sufficiently, add them to the chopped chives, along with various seasonings, and mix well. By the time the filling is ready, the dough should have rested sufficiently.
Du Yuhan put the cutting board on the living room table and everyone made dumplings together.
Liu Gang was in charge of rolling out the dumpling wrappers, while the other three were in charge of filling them.
Everyone chatted while making dumplings, asking Du Yuhan about her experiences along the way.
Du Yuhan only talked about what she could, but she didn't reveal anything about finding her biological parents.
Her background shouldn't be revealed yet; she doesn't want to cause her parents any trouble.
With many hands making light work, the dumplings were quickly put into the pot.
It's a pleasure for everyone to sit at the table and enjoy freshly cooked dumplings.
After eating Liu Gang's inedible cooking for over a month, Han Yixian now felt a sense of relief as he ate the delicious dumplings.
Having been spoiled by Du Yuhan and then subjected to a month of torment by Liu Gang, Han Yixian felt even more grateful for Du Yuhan.
It is truly easy to go from simplicity to luxury, but difficult to go from luxury to frugality.
After the meal, everyone sat at the table drinking dumpling soup. As the saying goes, the original soup helps digest the original food, so most people drink a bowl of dumpling soup after eating dumplings.
Zhou Zhengye patted his stomach and said, "It's been so long since I've had such a satisfying meal. Yuhan, you have no idea how much trouble you've caused us while you were gone. Without a decent meal every week, I've lost my motivation to work."
Liu Gang said somewhat apologetically, "Although my cooking has improved a bit, it's still far from perfect. And my hunting skills are lacking, and I haven't had much oil or fat lately, which is why the commander has lost weight due to malnutrition. Yuhan, now that you're back, you must make sure to nourish the commander properly."
Du Yuhan nodded and said, "No problem, but you also need to learn how to cook properly from me, at least it should be edible."
Han Yixian keenly noticed that Zhou Zhengye's attitude and tone of voice towards Du Yuhan had become much warmer, as if Zhou Zhengye not only did not feel estranged from Du Yuhan during the time she had been away, but seemed to have become even more familiar with her.
This puzzled Han Yixian greatly and also made him feel inexplicably irritated.
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