After all, this is something you're going to eat; who knows if there are any malicious people involved?
"Thank you, I have them all with me—"
Seeing the food Jiang Qiao brought out, everyone secretly swallowed.
There's no other reason than that, even though the girl is young, the food she eats is by no means lacking.
When traveling, Jiang Qiao would never mistreat herself, and Qiao Jie would never let his granddaughter go hungry on the road.
The old man specially made rice balls for Jiang Qiao, filled with meat filling, and deep-fried them until they were very crispy.
In addition, the old man also prepared pickled vegetables and boiled eggs for her, which was enough for Jiang Qiao to eat.
Not to mention the food she kept in her space, and the things she prepared herself.
At first, it was fine, and everyone ate their own food. But by the second meal, some people couldn't stand the aroma anymore and were craving it.
The five-year-old boy sitting in the woman's arms opposite Jiang Qiao watched Jiang Qiao eat with longing eyes. He secretly swallowed his saliva, but perhaps due to his family upbringing, although he was tempted, the child did not ask for any.
Instead, she secretly whispered in her mother's ear. Jiang Qiao's ears were so sharp that she didn't miss a single word the child said.
"Mommy, what should I do? My tummy wants something delicious."
The woman kissed her son affectionately and whispered to comfort him, "Shuanzi, your sister is alone and didn't bring much. If we eat her food, she'll go hungry. Be good, when we get there, Mom will ask your dad to buy you something delicious, okay?"
The little guy nodded reluctantly, but his longing gaze made Jiang Qiao almost forget what to eat.
Her little nephew was about the same age as Shuanzi back then, and he was a sensible child who lived with his grandfather. Despite his young age, he knew how to care for others.
Thinking of her nephew, Jiang Qiao's gaze softened considerably when she looked at Shuanzi.
"Auntie, this is for my little brother—"
The woman waved her hand in alarm, "No, no, this isn't cheap—"
The child was genuine; just as he reached out to take it, his own mother stopped him.
Jiang Qiao grabbed the woman's arm. "Auntie, don't be shy. My grandpa fried this for me. It's nothing special, just homemade. Here, Shuanzi, take it and eat slowly. I have more here, but I can't finish them all."
The woman watched with embarrassment as her son took the golden-fried rice ball, especially after she saw the meat filling exposed inside after he had taken a bite.
The woman was busy teaching her child to thank Jiang Qiao.
The little guy was quite polite, and said to Jiang Qiao in his childish voice, "Sister, thank you, the food is so delicious, it smells amazing."
Then the child's actions warmed Jiang Qiao's heart. The little guy raised his arm and brought the rice ball he had eaten to the woman's mouth.
"Mom, you should eat too, it's so delicious—"
The woman smiled and shook her head. "Shuanzi, you eat by yourself. Mom isn't hungry."
Jiang Qiao could tell whether the woman was hungry or not. She had only eaten a small pancake. How could she not be hungry with such a small amount of food? She was probably trying to save food.
She didn't know what kind of living conditions this woman's family had, but even in such a difficult life, the woman hadn't lost her way in teaching her children, and she admired her for that alone, not to mention that the other party was a military family member.
Jiang Qiao handed the woman another one, saying, "Auntie, you should try this too. See how my grandfather's cooking is. I also have other things here. My grandfather was worried that I would get hungry on the road, so he prepared a lot, including some for my parents. Don't worry, I don't have a big appetite and I can't finish it all."
Jiang Qiao's attitude was very sincere. The woman thanked him shyly and accepted the food. To be honest, she thought it tasted delicious, let alone her own child.
The young man next to her also came over and said, "Little sister, can I have one too? I can smell it as I sit next to you, and it's making my mouth water, but I'm too embarrassed to ask."
Jiang Qiao glanced at him and said, "You said it out loud, it seems you couldn't resist. Here, have one too. Since we're sitting in the same seat, we must be destined to meet, so don't be shy."
Having greeted both of them, Jiang Qiao didn't want to leave the old woman out.
The old woman took one, and the act of eating helped everyone get to know each other better.
However, Jiang Qiao remained the same as before. When others asked her anything, she would answer what she could and give them a mix of truth and lies.
Even the young man next to her seemed similar to her. She wondered what he did for a living; he seemed rather cunning. Only Meng Yuzhi and the old lady seemed to be having a lively conversation.
After they got to know each other, the old lady would occasionally bring hot water and help look after the children.
Jiang Qiao found the old woman increasingly suspicious. She seemed to know the train procedures perfectly. Who would take the train every day if there was nothing wrong with her being a poor old woman from the countryside?
She raised an eyebrow at Song Junqiang beside her, who returned a knowing smile.
"Ugh, I'm so sleepy, I'm going to bed now—"
Song Junqiang fell asleep leaning back in his chair, and soon Jiang Qiao also felt sleepy, so she lay down on the small table and fell asleep with steady breathing.
However, her ears were not idle; she heard every word of the conversation between the old lady and Meng Yuzhi.
However, when it was time for dinner, the old woman didn't seem to do anything unusual. Jiang Qiao wondered if she was being too sensitive.
Maybe they're just being low-key, and dressing like that makes it easier to walk around outside?
Song Junqiang woke up earlier than her. When he saw Jiang Qiao raise her head, he sighed repeatedly, "Oh dear, you can really sleep. You missed all the scenery along the way."
Meng Yuzhi chimed in, "What scenery is there? It's all drought-stricken, just like our hometown. It's better to just sleep, otherwise, it'll be too hard to get through."
She wanted to rest, but the old lady next to her had been chatting with her all afternoon, so she didn't even have a chance to sleep.
What Jiang Qiao and the others didn't expect was that the old lady would actually go to the trouble of treating them to noodles.
"I have some here, so I don't need it. These things will go bad if I don't eat them soon, ma'am. Please don't be shy, I don't want them."
Jiang Qiao refused to eat, and Song Junqiang beside her also declined. The old lady was anxious, "Look at you two kids, really! I've already bought it, you can't waste it. I've already eaten yours, what's wrong with eating some of mine?"
Jiang Qiao was very firm in her stance; she refused to eat, and no amount of persuasion could change her mind.
"Then why don't you just give it to someone else? If all else fails, you can eat two bowls yourself."
The noodles weren't given to anyone else. The old lady ate two bowls, Meng Yuzhi also ate two bowls, and Xiao Shuanzi ate the other bowl.
Jiang Qiao didn't dare bring out anything else that night. Instead, she ate a steamed bun and some salted fish. The salted eel was steamed and smelled delicious, even better than meat. Jiang Qiao liked it.
Song Junqiang ate steamed buns with pickled vegetables, but when he saw Jiang Qiao's salted fish, he didn't hold back and ate quite a bit of it, praising it as he ate.
"Little Qiao'er, I've discovered that your grandpa is an amazing cook. I'll definitely come over to your house for a few meals sometime in the future."
Jiang Qiao smiled and said, "Sure, maybe we'll meet again sometime in the future."
The other party doesn't even know the address, what's the point of going?
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