The table was indeed laden with food. Jiang Qiao first drank a bowl of soup made by Ma Liu, then picked up a steamed bun and ate it. It was a meat bun, absolutely delicious, the kind that oozes broth with every bite.
"It's delicious, Grandpa Liu's cooking is still the best."
Ma Liu quickly picked up another bun for Jiang Qiao, saying, "This one is made with seaweed. I made it last night. Try it."
Jiang Qiao ate another one, exclaiming, "It tastes incredibly delicious!"
"No, your aunt and uncle sent it over because they know you like it."
Qiao Jie ate the same food as Jiang Qiao. The old man also drank a bowl of soup and ate two meat buns, which was about enough. Seeing that everyone was staring at the meat and vegetables and not putting down their chopsticks, Qiao Jie liked it.
"Eat more, everyone. It's so great that all the children are back safe and sound."
Jiang Qiao looked at how everyone was eating, and it seemed like they didn't eat meat often, so she couldn't help but ask a question out of curiosity.
"Grandpa, we're out of meat?"
Before Gu Hanting could speak, Zuo Zhankui spoke first, "Don't even mention it. After your accident, your grandfather and the others had no appetite for food. Besides, they were all sick and had no time or inclination to eat."
Ma Liu nodded frantically. "We're out of fresh meat at home, and we don't know when you'll be back. We're thinking of using this meat as a temporary measure, and saving it for when they're doing heavy work. Spring plowing is coming soon, and that's hard work. I plan to make meat for them every day then."
Who would have thought you'd be back? Did you see everyone got a treat?
Jiang Qiao smiled and nodded, "That's right, I thought we were out of food at home. It's okay, let's eat. If we're out of meat, let's go up the mountain and set some traps."
Ning Hao smiled and swallowed the food in his mouth. "If you want to hunt, don't go alone. I can't stop you from going to the valley; there are people helping there. But if you want to go into the back mountains, you should let us go."
Hou Diankui nodded. "I think it's a good idea. I'll go into the mountains with Haozi and the others, along with Zhou Yu and the others. They're all top-notch."
"Don't even mention you guys. We haven't eaten anything particularly good in Beijing either. I'd like to go queue up, but I can't out-queue people. These old folks have been waiting since before dawn. It's not as convenient as staying at home."
Jiang Qiao nodded with deep feeling, "That's exactly how it is."
Hou Diankui took a sip of wine. "This is a treat for the two of us. What should we do? Joel and I are going fishing. Oh, come to think of it, there are stories everywhere. We actually managed to discover the enemy's hideout. Isn't that a coincidence?"
Zuo Zhankui couldn't help but laugh. "Old Hou, did you get a craving and take our Qiao'er to steal fish?"
Hou Diankui waved his hand sheepishly, "You can't say that. We went to scout ahead and also to get some fish to improve our diet."
As they were chatting, a car suddenly pulled up outside. Gu Hanting's face lit up with a big smile when he saw the people getting out of the car, while Ning Hao jumped down and went out to greet them.
"Uncle, what brings you back?"
Gu Zhengkai handed the things directly to his nephew-in-law without any ceremony, saying, "I came here for a meeting and took the opportunity to visit my family. Are you having dinner?"
"We were just eating, you've come at the right time. Come on, wash your hands, let's eat."
After Gu Zhengkai finished washing, Ning Hao had already set out a new set of bowls and chopsticks.
Gu Zhengkai entered the room and greeted everyone one by one, and Qiao Jie gave up his seat.
"Hey bro, come sit down next to your dad. You didn't see how happy he is. Ever since you got off the bus, his mouth hasn't stopped smiling."
Gu Zhengkai climbed onto the kang (heated brick bed) with a smile. "Uncle, have you finished eating?"
Qiao Jie smiled and nodded. "Are you hungry? Eat up."
Jiang Qiao handed over the soup bowl. "Uncle, have some soup first. It's good for your stomach. Are you resting or something?"
"I came back for a meeting, and this is the first stop I'm inspecting, so I'm going home first. It's been so long since I've been back, and I miss home."
Gu Hanting quickly urged his son to eat, "Eat first, then we'll talk. Are you hungry?"
In front of his father, Gu Zhengkai rarely acted spoiled for a moment, saying, "I'm so hungry, I'm starving to death. I rushed back all the way just to eat home-cooked meals."
Ma Liu and the others quickly helped Gu Zhengkai pick up food, saying, "Eat quickly, eat quickly, we'll talk after we finish eating."
Gu Hanting looked at his son from the side. He had lost weight. He knew that the boy's work was not easy and that he was under a lot of pressure. Fortunately, the boy was able to hold on.
With Gu Zhengkai leading the way, everyone who had almost finished eating started a new round of eating and drinking with each other.
After finishing his meal, Gu Zhengkai remarked, "Home-cooked meals are still the best. Uncle Liu made them, right?"
"That's right, Grandpa Liu is the head chef at home now. Jianling and the other two stayed in the county to give a report, so Haozi and I came back first." (78Chinese fastest mobile version)
Gu Zhengkai ate until his belly was round and full. Although the three of them had improved their cooking skills, their family's resources were limited. The three men could eat a lot, and meat was scarce. When his niece was at home, she often brought them meat, but since her accident, they hadn't been able to eat meat to their heart's content.
"It's so delicious!"
Gu Zhengkai's belt was loosened by two buttons, and he looked like he was full inside but not out of sight.
"Oh, Dad, I'm so envious of you."
When his son started acting spoiled, Gu Hanting's old face beamed with joy. "When you get back, bring some food from home. You know, a grown man like you can still treat yourself like this. I don't know how thin my two grandsons have become. It's only because Qiao'er is back that we don't have any fresh meat at home."
Gu Zhengkai let out a burp. "Your grandson is fine, but I'm almost starving for your son. Those two brats eat too much; I, their old man, can hardly feed them."
Hou Diankui couldn't help but laugh. "You half-grown boy, you've eaten me alive! Zhengkai, go back and get some food from home. Even if you three cooked it yourselves, you couldn't make it taste like this."
Gu Zhengkai nodded vigorously, "Master Hou, you really understand me."
Seeing Gu Zhengkai leaning against his father, Zuo Zhankui was filled with envy. To be honest, his eldest son had never done anything like this before. Despite being from a landlord family, Gu Zhengkai certainly enjoyed all the family bliss. His grown son was still acting cute and affectionate with his father.
After everyone had eaten their fill, Jiang Qiao brewed tea for everyone. "You can drink slowly. Haozi and I will clean up the kitchen and the dining table. Uncle, go take a shower later. I'll go boil some water."
Gu Zhengkai sighed again, "It's so good to have a daughter at home."
Zuo Zhankui pointed at Gu Zhengkai and said, "You brat, that's enough. I know you and your son have a deep bond, but you need to consider the feelings of us."
Gu Zhengkai, thick-skinned as ever, said, "Uncle, then you should treat me like your son. Just tell me what you want to do."
Hou Diankui and the others couldn't help but laugh. "You've made your uncle jealous, Zhengkai. What new ideas have you come up with this time?"
Gu Zhengkai sat up straight. "No, I discussed it with Lao Yang. We'll inspect the situation in various places and then come up with a plan based on each locality. We can't let everyone continue to live a hard life; we need to develop the collective economy."
"The city relies on supplies for everything, and even that's difficult to buy. That means supply is less than demand. We need to find a way to solve this problem."
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