Seeing that her older brother, whom she hadn't seen for many years, already had a few gray hairs despite his young age and was even wearing glasses, Xiao Jiu couldn't help but tease him.
"You must have been working a lot of overtime. Look at you, you've got gray hair and you've become nearsighted."
Tao Zui, who was used to being quiet and reserved, used to be a real shut-in. But now, looking at this familiar face, a light seemed to flicker in her eyes.
He silently walked up to her, hugged her tightly, and then gently patted her back.
"You heartless little brat, do you even know how we've been living all these years? Do you know how many tears you've made out of us?"
Xiao Jiu looked up in surprise. Her reserved and taciturn brother quickly wiped away the tears on his cheeks and awkwardly pushed her away.
She pursed her lips, then suddenly felt a lump in her throat, her voice choked with emotion: "Brother, I'm sorry, I actually..."
"Alright, you don't need to explain. Just being alive is good enough."
You and A-Yue have worked hard all these years. Now you're free. The sky's the limit. The world is so big, go out and see more of it.
Besides, your sister is also in Guangzhou, so it's not necessarily a bad thing for the two brothers to live closer to each other.
Come back and visit more often when you have time. I'll take care of Mom and Dad for you.
Fourteen-year-old Tao Yuan, through his parents' behavior and the explanations he received on the way, had already understood his aunt's predicament.
He silently gave a thumbs up: "Auntie, you will always be my role model and my pride."
Xiao Jiu's eyes were slightly red as she gently rubbed her nephew, who was a head taller than her.
"Your mom said you're good at basketball, no wonder you're so tall. Your aunt will cover your milk nutrition expenses from now on."
Tall and upright, with an appearance that inherited all the advantages of Tao Zui and Yuan Yuan, the outstanding and sunny Tao Yuan immediately grinned upon hearing this.
"Thank you, Auntie!"
"Good boy, study hard, and your aunt will be waiting to send you your college tuition."
With a large family, especially picky children, it's no longer possible to cook stew in an iron pot alone.
Fortunately, there were several large freezers in the yard, filled with various fresh ingredients for entertaining guests.
Tao Yuan, who grew up in Xichang, not only speaks fluent Shaanxi dialect, but also enjoys eating noodles.
I wasn't a fan of the elaborately prepared seafood, but I actually enjoyed her pasta and pan-fried steak.
But children who grew up in this era know that food is hard-earned. Although he didn't like to eat it, he tried to finish what was on his plate, and if anyone took more food, he would politely tell them.
"Auntie, I don't really like this taste. I've already tried it, and it's pretty good."
He smiled and remarked about the sweet and sour tomato-flavored pasta.
"Actually, we could have more of this."
When fried chicken and fries are served, the kids love them even more, but Xiao Jiu can't help but shake his head at the sight.
"You're still not eating enough. If you ate this every day, you'd know how much suffering you'd endure."
"Only you know how to cook. If you're not home, who will cook for them? Don't worry, they'll never get tired of it."
Xiao Jiu shook his head. The fast-food era is coming soon!
By then, Tao Yuan and Tao Xilin will also be working and will have achieved financial freedom.
They're at that age where they're curious about everything, so they're bound to eat a lot.
After eating it a lot, you start to think that stuff is just so-so.
It's nowhere near as delicious as the Chinese cuisine created by our ancestors, which carries the curse of being unaware of one's blessings and missing them the moment one leaves.
These days, I don't enjoy drinking as much alcohol as I did when I first went to Japan a few years ago.
Perhaps I've passed the age of indulging in culinary desires, and now I prefer the taste of home.
When there are many people in Northeast China, they like to make dumplings. The most classic filling is sauerkraut and oil-fried dumplings. When the whole family works together, it shows how big the family is. At the same time, the young children are at the age where they can eat a lot, so everyone prepared a variety of fillings and made dumplings all day long.
The packaged items were taken outside to freeze naturally in the freezing cold. Once they were all frozen, they were collected and stored in a room without a heated brick bed.
When you want to eat it, simply mix together five kinds of fillings: radish and pork, pickled cabbage and fried dough sticks, mackerel and celery, mutton and scallion, and garlic chives and eggs. It's convenient and satisfying.
She originally wanted to use fresh chives and eggs to wrap the filling, but at the crucial moment, her mother replaced it with garlic chives that she had prepared herself.
"That makes sense. How do you explain producing chives in this freezing weather?"
Xiao Jiu pouted, "Didn't I also make a celery dish?"
“It’s different. I’ll say the celery is frozen scraps, but how do you freeze chives?”
Come to think of it, if this were in their Henan province, the average temperature of minus seven or eight degrees Celsius would only be around half a month.
It would be possible to set up a family-style greenhouse to grow some fresh vegetables, but of course, this would require continuous experimentation to achieve.
However, the average temperature in Heilongjiang Province is below -30 degrees Celsius, making it too difficult to achieve; at least with current capabilities, it is not yet possible.
"Didn't I prepare two or three freezers for you? Mom, just put them on display before I come back next year."
Zhao Lingli tapped the tip of her nose in an annoyed tone.
"You, I'm just worried you won't be able to come back. Once things get busy, who knows what might happen!"
She choked on her drink, and realized that it was indeed possible. She frowned.
"Then once we've settled in, you can fly to Guangzhou to spend the winter."
As he spoke, he winked at her secretly, "I'll take you to Hong Kong to broaden your horizons; it's a shopping paradise."
Zhao Lingli, who had been meticulous all her life, sighed after hearing this.
"Mother is getting old. I could never wear all these clothes you've bought for me in my lifetime. What's the point of shopping?"
The older I get, the less I want to go out. The south is nice, but it's too far...
Once we go home for Qingming Festival and bring your grandparents here, we'll officially settle down in Northeast China.
From now on, it's your world. I don't expect you to achieve great things; I just hope you all stay safe and sound.
Xiao Jiu touched her mother's rough hands, tears streaming down her face, and nodded obediently.
"Okay, may we all be healthy and happy."
The days of reunion always fly by, and Tang Cuihong had only stayed here for a week before she had to set off again.
Before leaving, they also picked up Tang Cuilan and her five daughters.
“My house is big, and there’s an east wing room you can stay in. Cuilan will spend the Spring Festival with us this year.”
You haven't been to my house before, have you? This is a good opportunity to familiarize yourself with the place!
Since we're all in Northeast China, isn't hibernation somewhere just like being a cat?
Having already met Xiao Jiu, and with their family needing to reunite, the mother and her daughters felt awkward being there.
So he happily packed his things and followed Tang Cuihong back to Shen City.
When they left, Xiao Jiu secretly took out a car from her spatial storage, installed snow chains, and drove them to the station before dawn.
"Your car is nice. Do you have any more? Can you get me one?"
Xiao Jiu smiled and said, "Okay, then you can sit in the front and learn to drive with me, but it's not covered by warranty. You'll have to figure out how to fix it yourself."
"Okay, you teach me first, and I'll figure it out myself later."
So, while they were getting out of the car to find a place to use the restroom, Xiao Jiu transferred a jeep with a dump truck and about a ton of gasoline to Tang Cuihong.
Cuihong was equally generous, presenting her with a wooden box filled with various underwater treasures. The moment she opened the box, she was nearly blinded by their magnificence.
"Fourth Sister is so domineering!" Little Wine flattered her relentlessly, then drove off humming a song, completely satisfied.
Tang Cuihong shook her head with a smile, "Little money-grubber!"
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