NOVPUB
Chapter 312: Chapter 302 Watching Her Cook with Heartache
Li Hongjun went to the yard to fetch some firewood and just happened to see Wu Chaoyang returning home.
"Chaoyang, why are you just getting back? Gone to the camp? Sister-in-law didn’t come back this week, huh?" Li Hongjun, standing in the yard, called out.
"Hmm, your sister-in-law is staying in the city with the kid this week," Wu Chaoyang said with a smile.
His wife was a strong-willed person, putting in no less effort at work than him, the company commander. As her revolutionary partner, he supported her career.
"Ah, I was thinking about calling you and sister-in-law over for dinner with the kid later, how unlucky that neither sister-in-law nor the kid came back." Li Hongjun wasn’t very sincere in his words; he didn’t really like Liu Shuli, his sister-in-law. They were not on the same wavelength.
"Hehe, no worries, they’re not here, I can just eat their share," Wu Chaoyang said, laughing so hard that the wrinkles on his face showed up.
He could definitely hear that Hongjun invited him over for a meal because he knew his wife wasn’t home. Anyway, with his wife away, cooking was a hassle too, and he was more than willing to enjoy a meal at Hongjun’s place, and have someone to drink with.
"Haha, I knew you’d be delighted if sister-in-law didn’t come back for the weekend so you could drink a few, right?" Li Hongjun laughed. "Then hurry up later, I went up the mountain today and got some good stuff to eat."
"Eh, then I’ve got to hurry. Has that rascal Wu Guoqiang been camping at your place early?" Wu Chaoyang also knew about Li Hongjun’s capabilities.
"Haha, what do you think?"
"Who’s talking about me? Look what I’ve caught."
Just at that moment, Wu Guoqiang happened to walk out the door, followed by three kids. They were all set to freeload a meal.
"Ah, speak of the devil and he shall appear. Alright, I won’t go back home, let’s go straight to dinner," Wu Chaoyang said as he walked out from his yard directly into Li Hongjun’s.
Chatting and laughing, the group went inside and saw Shen Yunfang and Wu’s sister-in-law wrapping large dumplings in the main room, the delicious scent of meat wafting through the house.
"Looks like I made the right decision coming here today; little sister-in-law is cooking up something delicious again," Wu Chaoyang smacked his lips and commented.
"Commander Wu has arrived. Where’s sister-in-law? Why didn’t she come? Call her over to eat together," Shen Yunfang said politely.
"Don’t worry about her; she hasn’t come back this week, so I alone represent our family," Wu Chaoyang said boastfully.
"Give me a break, just say straight up you want to eat more. What’s the use of putting it so nicely?" Wu Guoqiang teased him from the side.
"You old rascal, always trying to undermine me."
"Hongjun, take your guests inside to wait; we’ll start eating in half an hour," Shen Yunfang told Li Hongjun. The main room wasn’t that large, and seven people standing there made it a bit crowded.
"Sure," Li Hongjun spoke to the others: "Let’s go, come inside and see my son."
Shen Yunfang was silent, thinking how this man treated his son like a toy.
"Little sister-in-law, sister-in-law has worked hard," Wu Chaoyang consoled the working people before leaving.
Wu’s sister-in-law chuckled, "These folks just love to make a fuss, imagine, each one of them is not young anymore. But you know, our company is the most united compared to others. You see, they tease each other all the time, but when it comes down to business, they are really dependable."
"That’s stronger than anything. Let’s make more dumplings today and let them eat a couple more each."
"Auntie, I want to eat more too," Tingting, the little girl tempted by the dumplings, had not moved from the spot, so she did not follow the adults inside. Instead, she squeezed up to Shen Yunfang and spoke up with her cute little face looking up.
"Alright, aunty will give you lots and lots later," Shen Yunfang tapped Tingting’s little nose affectionately.
Tingting giggled upon hearing that.
Half an hour later, dinner was served in the west room.
There was a plate of dumplings and a bowl of dumpling soup for each person, a large plate of rabbit stewed with potatoes in the middle. Shen Yunfang had also tossed in a big radish and prepared a dish of sweet and sour shredded radish, a bowl of steamed egg custard, and a plate of deep-fried peanuts.
This was considered a full spread of dishes and rice.
The men took a bite of the dumplings and couldn’t stop singing praises—delicious, thin skins and generous filling, juice spurting out with each bite. Then the two men surnamed Wu raised their glasses to toast Li Hongjun. Since Shen Yunfang, the hero of the day, couldn’t drink, it was Li Hongjun who took the honor.
"Don’t just drink, eat more dishes, otherwise Yunfang’s skills are wasted," Wu’s sister-in-law loaded up the men’s plates with a piece of rabbit meat each, signaling them to focus not just on drinking but eating as well.
Wu Guoqiang obediently took a bite of the rabbit meat, "Mmm, this taste is really good, delicious." 𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑝𝘶𝘣.𝑐𝘰𝘮
Wu’s sister-in-law rolled her eyes, "Nonsense, didn’t you see how much oil Yunfang put in?"
"Hahaha, Lao Wu, how can you praise your sister-in-law right in front of her? See, she’s not pleased," Wu Chaoyang loved teasing Wu Guoqiang.
"Go away, you joke about everyone," this time Wu’s sister-in-law rolled her eyes at Wu Chaoyang, but then she laughed first.
"I propose, we should toast Yunfang—she’s the hero today. Yunfang, you don’t have to drink, just some juice is fine," Wu Guoqiang raised his glass to Shen Yunfang, "You all stop eating and quickly toast your aunt, do you still want to eat good food in the future?"
"Want," Tingting cooperated with her father, drawing out the word long and making everyone laugh.
Shen Yunfang also casually raised her glass of juice and smiled, "What hero or not, I’m just happy everyone could come over for dinner today. Besides, I didn’t do this all by myself, your sister-in-law has been helping me out all morning."
"You two split the medal of honor," Wu Chaoyang interjected.
"Go away," Wu’s sister-in-law playfully cursed.
The whole table was bustling as they finished the meal.
Shen Yunfang and Wu’s sister-in-law had made three hundred dumplings in total, and by the end, not one was left—they were all eaten.
That night, Shen Yunfang lay on the heated brick bed, still marveling at how much everyone could eat.
"Hey, by the way, didn’t Wu Big Brother mention that there was a letter for you today? Who sent it?" Shen Yunfang usually referred to Wu Guoqiang as Wu Big Brother, and Wu Chaoyang as Captain Wu.
It was because there were two leaders with the surname Wu in the unit, making it difficult to distinguish them.
Li Hongjun pulled a letter out from under the blankets and handed it to his wife.
Shen Yunfang opened it and saw that it was from the Li Family, with Qiu Shuping’s style all over it—no greetings for the couple or the kids, just complaints and grievances.
But there was indeed some news in the letter.
"What does this mean, your parents want to go see Li Hongqi?" Shen Yunfang was quite surprised. She couldn’t speak for others, but Qiu Shuping, her mother-in-law, was known to be tough only within her own domain, completely lost once she stepped outside the house. Thus, she seldom went out. The last time she traveled the farthest was when Li Hongjun was injured. Afterward, she declared she would never leave the house again. Why would she want to visit Li Hongqi in the south now—a place far beyond the provincial capital?
"Well, who knows?" Li Hongjun didn’t particularly care. It wasn’t that he, as a son, was unfilial, but his mother at home was too much to handle, and her actions couldn’t be reasoned with using common sense. Plus, he didn’t want to hear or ask about anything related to Li Hongqi.
"Hey, why don’t you care? Your mother said in the letter that she and your dad want to go together, and they don’t have the travel expenses, she’s asking you to send some."
"No money," he replied very succinctly.
