Chapter 111 Chapter 111 Jiang Dong’s mother is not going out at this time…
Jiang Dong's mother didn't go out at this time. She sat beside her son and watched him eat a bowl of rice with relish, just like when he was a child.
Jiang Dong was familiar with the smell of his mother's cooking, and he'd been craving it even when he was out. This bowl of noodles was especially filling; he hadn't had a single bite that was satisfying on the road. As usual, he took a sip of the hot soup from the side of the bowl, which immediately settled his stomach. Then he picked up the noodles and started eating.
When a mother sees her child enjoying her meal so much, her heart is warmed and the smile on her face never fades.
"Eat slowly, there's more in the pot!"
Jiang Dong nodded, swallowed the rice in his mouth, and said, "That's enough, Mom! This bowl is enough for me."
Little did he know that in the kitchen outside, Jiang Mingming was also clamoring for some noodles made by his grandmother. He wasn't really hungry, but as a child, he always looked hungry but his stomach was full. He couldn't wait to see something fresh, or else he would even try his shit.
Ma Lijuan's hands were also covered in noodles, so she couldn't pull him at this moment. She could only threaten him with words: "That's what your grandma made specially for your uncle. Behave yourself. Have you been eating everything you see all day? If you keep making trouble, I'll beat you up! Go to your dad and let him teach you how to live!"
Erdong's brother finally came home, so he must have brought something home. At this time, no matter what the mother-in-law cooks for others, no matter what she adds to it, she will approve of it with both hands. This damn child still wants to eat, how come I don't know when it's time!
She couldn't say anything to the child at this time. He was too young and probably wouldn't understand. She could only quickly kick him out. If Jiang Dong didn't have enough to eat later, he would have to come out to get more rice. She couldn't let her son eat it.
Jiang Mingming was unwilling to do so, but he saw so many delicious foods in the pot. "I want to eat meat. Grandma put a lot of meat in the pot!" Taking advantage of the fact that his mother's hands were busy, he insisted on squeezing to the side of the pot.
Ma Lijuan was anxious and didn't care about the noodles in her hands. She slapped him on the butt twice.
The clothes we wear in winter are thick, so it hurts if you hit them with your hands. But Jiang Mingming suddenly burst into tears, and the sound was so loud that Jiang Dong's mother came out from the west room to see what was going on.
"What's going on! It's almost New Year's Day and the child is still crying!" It's true that the old lady loves her son, but her grandson is also her biological child. She feels distressed when she sees him crying for no reason.
Ma Lijuan was a little embarrassed. What a stupid kid! She explained, "This kid insisted on eating his uncle's noodles. Do you think he could be hungry? He ate two steamed buns today, besides his meals. Even adults can't eat as much as him. Now that he sees you making noodles for his brother, he wants to eat this too!"
Ma Lijuan was really angry at this moment. The more she thought about it, the more she felt that this child was really something. How could he eat so much every day!
Don't let him grow up to be a fat boy. His father Jiang Erdong is not fat. Although she is not familiar with him, she is not fat either. It can be said that there is no one else in the Jiang family, but this child is now growing fat.
How to find a wife in the future? Ma Lijuan thought long-term.
Jiang Dong's mother, however, thought that the child should be allowed to eat whatever he wanted. There were not so many delicious foods on weekdays. It was the New Year and he could eat whatever he wanted.
"If he wants to eat, just give him some. If you're worried that he can't finish it, just give him a little less so that he can taste it." Jiang Dong's mother went to the cupboard to get a bowl, and then scooped some of the hot noodle soup she made for her grandson.
"Mingming, eat. Eat this little first. We'll talk to you later if it's not enough. Don't waste it. Grandma put a lot of good things in it!" She also put a lot of meat in the child's bowl, which immediately appeased Jiang Mingming's greed.
"Thank you, grandma!" Jiang Mingming shouted to Jiang Dong's mother.
Jiang Dong's mother touched her grandson's head and said with a smile, "Go and eat!"
She turned around and saw her second daughter-in-law who looked reluctant, so she went over and explained: "Your eldest brother doesn't have to worry about not having enough to eat. Just let the child eat!"
As the saying goes, if you are not deaf or dumb, you cannot be a father-in-law. Jiang Dong's mother only says nice things.
Ma Lijuan didn't know whether her mother-in-law understood her thoughts. She didn't know, so she could only stand there for a while. Seeing that her mother-in-law didn't go to the west room and continued to make steamed buns in the kitchen, she also went to the table to continue kneading the dough.
After all, the three of them had a clear division of labor and had been busy all day. When Jiang Dong came back, there was almost only a little dough left on the desk.
Finally, the filling was used up and there was only white flour left, so I steamed plain buns without filling. Sometimes, if customers don’t want to eat red bean paste buns, I give them this.
Jiang Dong's mother put the last pot of steamed buns into the pot, told her second son to remember the time, and then went back to the kitchen to start cleaning up.
The steamed buns were finally finished. She had to pick up the buns she had just taken off and make room for them. Otherwise, if they were left untouched for too long, the bun skin would stick to the buns and break.
After wiping the chopping board clean of any stuck-on noodles, Jiang Dong's mother brought over two cabbages and a couple of radishes from the backyard. She'd save the cabbages for dinner, and later, she'd wipe the radishes and fry them into radish balls, which she could eat dry or cook in soup.
At this time, Jiang Dong also came in with bowls. When Jiang Dong's mother saw him, she asked him why he washed the bowls and told him to just leave it to her.
"Where's the water you're using? I had your brother tie the faucet with straw. Don't twist it, or it'll break."
The temperature here can be below zero in the winter, and the weather is so cold that the faucets in the yard outside will freeze, so no one uses them. They either use well water or choose other methods.
Jiang Dong's mother had two water vats in the kitchen. She used the water from the vats for washing and eating, and would go get more if it ran out.
It's winter, it will pass if you just make do with it.
Jiang Dong said, "It's just this one bowl. I washed it with the water next to Erdong outside." Jiang Dong's mother nodded after hearing this. Yes, Erdong had water to add to the pot.
He saw his mother shredding radishes and asked, "Are we starting to make fried radishes?" His mother made this every year.
Jiang Dong's mother's hands were constantly moving, rubbing a large, green-skinned radish against the grater. The radish was large and juicy at this point, not yet ripe, so it smelled fresh. As she rubbed, a layer of shredded radish fell into the basin.
"Don't you eat radishes outside? They say radishes are like little ginseng and are good for winter." She was still worried about her son's life outside. She didn't count on Xia Li anymore; she still had to take care of Jiang Zai. She didn't know what was happening to the couple now.
Jiang Dong thought of the radish cake in Guangcheng. Although it was different from the one at home, it was made with radish, so he talked about it with his mother.
His mother still didn't believe him, so Jiang Dong said, "Really? I've had it a few times for breakfast. It's quite substantial. But I still prefer our fried radish."
Jiang Dong's mother thought her son was comforting her, saying that the things she made could not be as good as those sold outside, but she was still very happy.
"Okay, you'll have to eat more when it's ready!"
She would grate a few more radishes, add flour and eggs, and fry them for the child.
After wiping the radish, she went to scoop flour and came back to see the nice young man in the kitchen. In a mother's eyes, no matter how old her child is, he is still her boy.
He is tall and looks energetic. He can earn money outside and work at home. She thinks he is not bad. Why can't he live a normal and peaceful life?
In the past, she could still blame Xia Li, the eldest daughter-in-law who abandoned her husband and children, but now she dared not blame her, nor could she. She was indebted to him, and he was helping her old Jiang family raise their grandson.
She only blamed her fate. She had to find time to go to the temple to burn some paper.
"How is my grandson?" I couldn't help but ask.
Jiang Dong heard his mother ask and replied, "The child is fine. I gave him a new set of clothes when I came back. I asked his mother to give it to him during the New Year."
"Oh! That's good. I feel relieved that my mother is watching over me. Has the child grown taller?"
"Grown up. I see he's grown quite a bit. By the way, when I came back, Charlie asked me to bring you a photo of the baby. I'll show it to you when you're done."
Jiang Dong's mother reached out to hit him. What do you mean by "show it to her after you're done"? Is there ever a time to finish all the New Year's work? "No, go get it now and show it to me. Let me see if my grandson has changed. When I first went there, Xia Li sent me a photo, but it's been so long now."
Jiang Dong laughed. Even if a child grows up, how can his appearance change so quickly? His mother is worried that she won't be able to recognize him! "Okay, I'll take it out and show it to you."
Ma Lijuan had just walked out of the house and into the kitchen when she heard what the mother and son were saying. She felt bad. Her mother-in-law was too partial. She only cared about the grandson her eldest son had given her. Wasn't it obvious that her family had picked up the child from outside?
But she wasn't stupid. She pretended to be calm. When she saw Jiang Dong coming out of the kitchen, she called out, "Brother!"
Jiang Dong stepped aside to let Ma Lijuan go in first. After Ma Lijuan went in, he went back to his room to get his things.
After Jiang Dong took it back, he saw his sister-in-law Ma Lijuan was still in the kitchen, washing a piece of meat. "Mom, let's stew the meat later. It's a good time to do it while Erdong is still there boiling the pot!"
Jiang Dong's mother was thinking of stewing it the next day. The meat would not go bad in winter. If she stewed it now, it would take at least two or three hours.
She turned her head to look at her daughter-in-law Ma Lijuan, "Isn't it too late to stew it today?"
Ma Lijuan smiled and said, "It's okay, just stew it for a while longer!"
Then she didn't care. Anyway, the second daughter-in-law was the head of the family now. "Then you do it. Talk to Erdong." It was her husband who did the work, so she could talk herself.
Seeing Jiang Dong coming in again, she quickly wiped her hands with a rag, then took the photo he handed her and looked at it carefully.
The child in the photo is holding a toy and smiling happily. It's great! It looks like he's grown taller and fairer than the one I kept at home.
Ma Lijuan came over to watch from behind, saying, "Oh my! This is incredible! Our Jiangzai has really become a city kid. Look at him now, he's completely different from the ones at home. There's no other child as fair-skinned as him in the whole village!"
Jiang Dong frowned when he heard what she said. Doesn't this mean that the child raised by the mother is not good? So he added lightly: "Whose child in the village is not dark-skinned? Besides, the child looks like his mother, and Xia Li is also white."
Ma Lijuan had no ill intentions at the moment, but she never thought before speaking and said whatever came to her mind. As soon as the words came out of her mouth, she seemed to feel that something was wrong, but she didn't know what was wrong.
After hearing what Jiang Dong said, it felt even more strange.
Jiang Dong's mother knew her second daughter-in-law's temper. She didn't take anything she said to heart. She just looked at the child in the photo, stroking it slowly with one hand, as if she could see the person. Gradually, her smiling eyes were filled with crystal tears.
She didn't want the younger generation to see it, so she stuffed the photo into her pocket. Then she turned around and went to the chopping board to stir the shredded radish, coaxing them out: "Jiang Dong, go back inside and pack up the luggage. And Lijuan, go tell your husband to stew the meat later and tell him not to rush out to stroll around because we still need to keep the fire going."
At least the two of them were obedient and went out. Only then did she stop and wiped her tears hastily with her sleeve.
He is also a strong-willed person!
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