Before Ruan Shengpeng could even appease Yao Tongjia, the sound of brakes came from the doorway, followed by Yao Tongxu's high-pitched cry: "Mom, Mom, Sister!"
Yao Tongjia quickly ran out: "Mom is sleeping, keep your voice down!"
Yao Tongxu's face changed: "Is Mom sick?" In his memory, his mother usually didn't go to sleep except for her lunch break.
Yao Tongjia shook her head: "Old Mrs. Ruan has been here for the past few days and has given Mom a real hard time!"
"What? That old lady is here? Where's Ruan Shengpeng? Is he just going to let Mom be bullied?"
Ruan Shengpeng: "......." Were the little cotton-padded jacket and leather jacket soaked in cold water today? They're really chilling to the bone!
Yao Tongjia refused to explain for Ruan Shengpeng: "Ask him yourself!"
Ruan Shengpeng smiled wryly and patted Yao Tongjia's hair: "Save some face for your father, he's a division commander!"
"If you can't protect your wife and children, you're useless no matter what your rank is!" Yao Tongxu was no longer the easygoing person she used to be, and looked at Ruan Shengpeng with her arms crossed.
Ruan Shengpeng was embarrassed. He looked at the people on the roadside ahead and said, "Didn't you bring guests? Please come in first!"
He Jiayin and He Jiale were quick to respond, calling out in unison, "Uncle Ruan!"
Ruan Shengpeng nodded happily, ignoring Yao Tongjia and Yao Tongxu: "Come in quickly, come in! Xiao Gengwu, how long are you going to take those things out of the car?"
That brat! I was counting on him to come to my rescue, but he just wandered around in the car and wouldn't come over. He's such a bad boy!
Xiao Gengwu, carrying some things in his hands, said, "Hello, Uncle. I brought some gifts, but I forgot where I put them and have been looking for them!"
Ruan Shengpeng: "..." I'd be a fool to believe you! Your memory is superb, how could you forget where you put things! Xiao Gengwu didn't come over because he wanted Yao Tongjia to vent her anger; she couldn't keep it bottled up inside!
As the group went inside, someone kept staring at the license plate: "This license plate looks familiar?"
Someone pointed out, "That license plate number belongs to a leader!"
Someone realized: "Are you talking about the leader?"
Seeing the approving looks in others' eyes: "No wonder he became a division commander at such a young age, he must have connections in the court!"
That's just how the world is; it's hard to admit that someone is excellent!
Ruan Shengpeng led the children into the main room and introduced them to Old Man Ruan: "Dad, these are the children who go to school with Tongtong and Axu. This is He Jiayin, the leader's daughter!"
He Jiayin clearly recognized Old Man Ruan: "Hello, Grandpa Ruan!"
Old Man Ruan's eyesight was failing, so he put on his glasses and looked at her: "It's you, He girl. What brings you here? Do you know our Tongtong?"
He Jiayin pointed to her younger brother He Jiale: "My brother lives in the same building as them, so I only know them. I came here today to give them a reward!"
"What reward?" Ruan Shengpeng asked curiously.
"Doesn't your military region have several scrapped jeeps? Your son-in-law knows how to assemble vehicles. I'll have him come over; if he can assemble one, I'll give him one!"
Now Old Man Ruan was intrigued: "Can it be assembled? Are you Xiao Gengwu?"
Xiao Gengwu quickly walked to Old Man Ruan's side: "Yes, Grandpa, I am Tongtong's fiancé. I can assemble the vehicle. If you're not in a hurry to go back, why don't we go watch the excitement together later?"
Old Man Ruan was clearly intrigued: "Alright, alright, I'll stay here tonight and see how you assemble the vehicle!"
Ruan Shengpeng glanced at his watch: "Let's go to the cafeteria for lunch together. I'll go wash the lunchboxes, and then we'll take them!"
Xiao Gengwu stood up: "I'll go to the kitchen and see if there are any noodles. If so, we can cook them ourselves. It's not cost-effective for so many people to go to the canteen!"
Actually, Xiao Gengwu was worried that Old Man Ruan wouldn't be used to the food in the canteen. The canteen's communal meals weren't that delicious!
Xiao Gengwu stood up, and Yao Tongxu not only stood up as well, but also tugged at He Jiale: "Let's go and help Brother Xiao!"
He Jiale really wanted to tell Yao Tongxu that he could go by himself, but seeing Yao Tongxu's expression, he was afraid that Yao Tongxu would threaten him again, so he had no choice but to go with Yao Tongxu!
Seeing her younger brother's discomfiture, He Jiayin wanted to laugh: "I'm not eating anymore. You guys stay here and assemble the vehicle. I'm going back first!"
Yao Tongjia, however, held onto He Jiayin tightly, saying, "Wait a minute, Brother Xiao cooks very quickly. I'll go check if there are any noodles at home. It should only take about ten minutes. You drive fast, so you can bring some for Brother Jun while you're at it!"
He Jiayin glanced at her watch. If she went back now, there probably wouldn't be anything left to eat in the cafeteria. Of course, she could use her privileges, but it wasn't worth it just for a bite to eat!
We might as well eat here; we're familiar with them anyway!
Seeing He Jiayin nod, Yao Tongxu quickly found a secluded spot, grabbed a bunch of noodles, and went to the kitchen: "Brother Xiao, Sister Jiayin is in a hurry to leave, let's cook some noodles!"
Xiao Gengwu glanced at Yao Tongjia and raised an eyebrow, but Yao Tongjia ignored him, put down the noodles, and left!
He Jiale was unhappy: "Why doesn't she have to do any work? Aren't the kitchen chores all done by women?"
"Who says women have to do kitchen work? Did your sister do it?" Yao Tongxu wasn't going to tolerate He Jiale.
He Jiale really wanted to suggest that his sister do it too, but after thinking it over, he realized that his sister had never done any kitchen work. In fact, not only his sister had never done it, but neither had his mother or father done much kitchen work either.
So why does he insist on doing it? Everyone says that the more you learn, the more you have to do. Does that mean he'll have to do all the housework from now on?
Thinking of this, He Jiale shuddered: "Will I be doing all the housework in the future? I don't want to learn anymore!"
"It's just learning, it's not like you have to actually do it. Learning to cook means you won't go hungry. You can cook whenever you want, and if you don't want to cook, you can eat out!"
"Then why don't you ask your sister to come and learn?"
"My sister can cook, it's just not very good! Not everyone is like Brother Xiao, who can master everything he learns!"
The two of them finished picking and washing the vegetables while bickering. Xiao Gengwu had already boiled water, and just as the vegetables were washed, he put in the oil first, and then put the vegetables in.
When the vegetables were almost cooked, the noodles were added in. Soon the water was boiling several times. Xiao Gengwu added some salt and started looking for a bowl to serve the noodles.
He Jiale asked curiously, "Is Brother Xiao finished?"
Xiao Gengwu simply nodded slightly. He didn't speak while cooking, and it felt like his saliva was spraying into the food!
He Jiale and Yao Tongxu brought out the noodles they had made. He Jiayin pulled the bowl that He Jiale had taken out and said, "I'll eat this bowl today. I'm so happy!"
"When I get back, I'll brag to Dad and Azhu that I ate the noodles Lele brought!"
Seeing his sister's happy face, He Jiale felt happy too. He suddenly realized that doing some work to make his family feel happy was really nothing.
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