"Why are you looking at me like that? If you don't hurry up and eat, it'll all be gone!"
Xiao Lanyi, sitting next to Huo Xiaolong, chewed on a crispy and delicious roast chicken while glancing at the little dumpling. He would look at her every now and then. In the military camp, food was mostly obtained by fighting for it, and roast chicken, which was almost unheard of, was even more so.
A whole chicken is split in half and neatly placed in a steamer rack. It has been marinated in sauce and then brushed with honey water, making it crispy and fragrant.
After roasting, the bones are crispy, and people with good teeth can even swallow them whole.
The little girl had some black food stains around her mouth; things are different in the military camp, where food tastes better when a group of people are fighting over it.
"Are you still going to eat?" Xiao Lanyi asked.
Two more, please.
"What a big eater this child is!" General Xiao squeezed in and took out a basket, but he still hadn't had enough and wanted some more.
"Have you always been such a big eater since you were little?"
Huo Xiaolong wiped his mouth twice, his hands still busy grabbing the second chicken, and replied...
"What do you mean by being such a big eater since childhood? How can you have the energy to wield a big knife if you're not full!"
"really……"
Xiao Lanyi ate with a certain elegance, just like the characters in TV dramas. The little dumpling would try to imitate him from time to time, but then found it a bit inconvenient and stopped.
"At what age did you start practicing martial arts?"
"last year"
Watching Huo Xiaolong crunching away beside him, Xiao Lanyi was reminded of his younger sister when she was little. Back then, his Lanhua was just like this little girl, innocent and carefree.
"Your brother is a good cook. Do all the men in your family know how to cook?"
"My second brother, Erhei, is the best cook. My dad and my brother's cooking is barely edible."
"And what about your mother?"
"Most of the time my mother does it; if she doesn't want to do it, someone else does it."
"That's great. If your brother hadn't joined the army, we wouldn't even be able to afford something like this."
The man shook the roast chicken in his hand and said...
"What's the big deal? We can just do it again."
"It's not as good as yours."
Huo Xiaolong looked at Xiao Lanyi. She had a feeling that this old man wanted to slap her, but she had no proof.
"You're still young, you don't understand these things in the military. These soldiers didn't go home for the New Year, they didn't even get to eat dumplings..."
The little dumpling didn't respond, just stared at him.
The man was a little confused. Didn't Mr. Gu say that this kid was a real tiger? Why isn't he responding? If he had said something pitying to them, wouldn't Er Ya and the others have been able to stay and help make dumplings tomorrow?
"oh"
"Then you, as the boss, should do it for them."
If you, as the boss, can't handle things, then no one else will help.
Seeing that Huo Xiaolong wouldn't take the bait, Xiao Lanyi had no choice but to change her story.
"Why don't you stay here with your family tonight?"
"Can you just live anywhere in the military?"
Isn't that ridiculous? Anyone can stay in a military camp, it's a restricted area. We're lucky if they let us in to visit relatives, let alone expect us to stay here.
"If I say it's okay to stay, then it's okay to stay. I'm the boss, and they all listen to me."
The little dumpling was somewhat tempted, its little mouth constantly pondering.
"You guys can stay here tonight. Tomorrow I'll have your dad and brother keep you company all day, then we'll make some dumplings, and you can rest again tonight."
Huo Xiaolong glanced at Xiao Lanyi sideways. Such a grown man was being a bit shameless, going through all this trouble just to get a bowl of dumplings.
"Do you just want my sister Er Ya to make dumplings for you?"
Xiao Lanyi didn't speak, but nodded. He was a little embarrassed, like a child.
"Have you bought all the groceries?"
"I bought them a long time ago, and there are still three pigs left."
"There are so many dumplings for so many people, my sister couldn't possibly make them all by herself!"
"It's alright, tomorrow the cooks will all be under your sister's command."
"Alright, I can only ask for you. If Sister Er Ya isn't happy, we'll leave today."
"become!"
The little dumpling threw away the bone in its hand and wiped its mouth twice with its hand.
Xiao Lanyi realized that Huo Xiaolong was the most influential person in the family; as long as she opened her mouth, the adults would agree.
The little dumpling ran to Er Ya's side and told her about it.
"As long as your mother agrees, none of this matters. I was just worried that my stay wouldn't be long enough. Look how thin your brother Erhei has become in just over a month; he's lost a lot of weight on his shoulders."
Huo Xiaolong looked at Erhei's broad arms and even more muscular biceps with a bit of a conflicted expression. Perhaps... these two were somewhat obsessed with each other's physiques, a concern unique to foodies.
"Then I'll trouble you to make the arrangements, General," He Yi said, bowing respectfully to Xiao Lanyi.
"No trouble at all."
Being able to eat a hot bowl of dumplings was really no trouble at all; heaven knows he had never eaten such a terrible meal during the hardest times of his life. However, Xiao Lanyi glanced at He Yi a couple more times.
Why does Mrs. Huo look so familiar? I feel like I've seen her somewhere before.
"You'll stay here with Long'er tonight," Huo Xiaocheng said, holding Chunying's hands.
"Um"
"Then wait until she falls asleep, then come find me?"
"What do you want?"
The girl's eyes seemed to speak volumes; just one glance from them was enough to melt the man's bones.
If Er Ya attracted attention in the kitchen, then Chun Ying was simply blinding everyone who stood there. Those with wives didn't care, but the soldiers without wives felt that even glancing at her was a desecration.
How can this person look like this? They only have two eyes and one mouth, yet they look like a celestial being descended to earth.
I'll take you horseback riding.
Chunying smiled and said charmingly.
"I can ride!"
"I know, but the scenery is even better on the grassland, and the moon is huge, much bigger than the one we saw at home before."
She didn't hesitate and Chunying nodded in agreement.
"Okay, I'll come find you after she falls asleep."
So now I'm the only one left in the tent, huh? At midnight, Huo Xiaolong sat up in the dark, feeling a little annoyed! Even his second sister, Er Ya, was sewing clothes for her brother at the tent entrance.
What's wrong? Her brother has been doing this all these years without anyone sewing for him, why does she have to make her second sister sew for him?
"Junior sister, I can sew it myself, there's no need to bring it over for you."
"Come on, look at what you've done! It's all over the place. It'll tear again in just a couple of days. Then this cotton-padded coat will be a waste, all the cotton will have escaped!"
No wonder I felt cold wearing the cotton-padded coat before, Erhei thought. The burly young man held up a candle for his junior sister, watching the round-faced girl carefully sewing clothes for him by the moonlight.
For some reason, Erhei was a little shy.
But his face was dark, so you couldn't tell, especially since it was the middle of the night.
"Then...then I'll hold the light for you, junior sister."
Huo Xiaolong rolled her eyes so hard they almost reached the sky inside the tent. What a hassle! Being a kid is so frustrating! She also wanted to ride horses under the moonlight, and she also wanted to stay up all night and play outside.
But no, she's a child, she needs to grow! She needs to sleep!
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