"That's the spirit," Li Mu said, patting her daughter's hand with relief. "We eat as your sister-in-law arranges, and if eating well makes us healthy, that's the truth."
"It's only been a few days, and my health has already improved. I think it's because I'm eating heartily, following her lead. Of course, my body is getting stronger. I won't talk any more, go help out quickly!"
Li Min: "..." Weren't you the one dragging me into this conversation?
Li Min quickly ran to the kitchen. Her sister-in-law had asked her to come back and knead the dough.
Tian Jing looked at Li Min, who had just rushed in, with a smile that was half-smile, half-grin. "Slacking off?"
"No, no," Li Min waved her hands repeatedly. Seeing that the dough had already been kneaded, she reached out and took the chopsticks from Tian Jing. "Sister-in-law, you and Big Brother go eat. I'll fry them."
"Alright then." Tian Jing let go of the chopsticks. "You practice a bit. If you want to eat them later, you can make them yourself."
"Okay, okay," Li Min nodded incessantly. "Sister-in-law, don't worry. From now on, you just give the orders, and I'll do the work."
Tian Jing smiled with satisfaction. This was exactly what she wanted to hear. She didn't want to be stuck in the kitchen every day, fussing over different ways to prepare food.
Li Zhengguo just watched the interaction between the two sisters-in-law, completely unaware that his sister was signing an unequal treaty.
Seeing Tian Jing look at him, he held up a pumpkin pancake and said, "Delicious. Can I... can I have one?"
"Of course." Tian Jing nodded. "Although I'm managing the household, you are the master of this home. You have the right to dispose of things in the house, as long as you don't develop a habit of squandering and don't help those who don't need help."
"Thank you." Li Zhengguo's eyes were a little moist. She understood him.
After her elder brother took a bowl of pumpkin pancakes, Li Min also thanked Tian Jing. "Thank you, sister-in-law. You've brought hope to our family, hope for the future. My elder brother..."
Tian Jing waved her hand. "Don't mention it. Your elder brother and I have already communicated. We give each other space and don't probe into the past. As long as he doesn't take everything from the house and just shares a little food with others, it's not a big deal."
"In the future, if you feel the food at home is good and you want to give some to your friends to try, I have no objections."
"Sister-in-law, you're so kind."
Li Min was so touched that she almost wanted to hug her sister-in-law. However, despite her sister-in-law's approachable demeanor, there was an underlying sense of aloofness that always made her hesitant to make overly intimate gestures.
"Hurry and flip the pan, it's sticking to the bottom."
"Oh dear." Li Min frantically tried to flip the pumpkin pancakes in the pan. Indeed, some had stuck. "Hehe, it was an accident, an accident."
Tian Jing picked up a bowl, took out two pumpkin pancakes, and left the kitchen. "I won't talk to you anymore. You can fry them yourself."
Frying dozens of pumpkin pancakes would take half the day, and she didn't want to be steamed by the oil.
Her hair needed washing, but she had no shampoo or soap. She would endure. She could go shopping tomorrow.
Li Zhengguo had already returned, put the bowl back in the kitchen, and then busied himself with making a cart frame.
Li Mu had finished the four pumpkin pancakes her daughter had brought her. Now, she walked out of her room herself. Seeing Tian Jing basking in the sun again, she couldn't help but smile.
Her daughter-in-law was much like them old women; she enjoyed this kind of comfortable, leisurely life.
What she had said to her daughter was guessed from her daughter-in-law's lazy posture while sunbathing.
She was like a cat, lazily basking in the sun, closing her eyes and purring softly.
Having eaten, Tian Jing didn't want to move anymore. She was leaning against the wall, squinting her eyes. When her peripheral vision caught sight of Li Mu walking out, she wanted to get up and help her.
Li Mu waved her hand. "No need. My body is much better. I think I'll be able to help out in a few days. Then, I..."
"Oh, Auntie Li, what delicious food are you making? From yesterday to today, the kitchen has smelled better and better. Not to mention my child, I'm almost crying from cravings."
Li Mu's words were interrupted by a woman pulling a three or four-year-old boy. The woman looked to be in her forties, with a hearty laugh and a loud voice, appearing like a simple, rustic old woman.
Li Mu turned. "It's Sister Wang, isn't it? Come and sit down."
Sister Wang said to Li Zhengguo, who was working by the roadside, "Big brother, your craftsmanship is excellent." Then she pulled the little boy over. "Auntie Li, your health looks much better."
"That's right," Auntie Li smiled and nodded, sitting down on the prepared cool bench. "Come and sit."
Sister Wang sat down unceremoniously on the other end of the cool bench and looked at Tian Jing, asking Li Mu, "Is this Zhengguo's younger wife?"
Tian Jing smiled and nodded. "Hello, Sister Wang."
"Good, good," Sister Wang's dark face broke into a smile like a blooming flower. "Your daughter-in-law is truly beautiful. Zhengguo is a lucky man."
"That he is," Li Mu also beamed. "Ever since my daughter-in-law came, she's been making all sorts of delicious food. Plus, with the wild boar meat they brought back, my health has improved these past few days."
"As you can see, I don't need anyone's help and can walk out on my own. Min Min," Li Mu raised her voice and called towards the kitchen, "bring Xiao Dongzi two pumpkin pancakes."
"Alright!" Li Min responded, and appeared with a bowl in her hand. She thrust it into Sister Wang's hands and ran back to the kitchen. "Sister Wang, hold this. Watch out, these pumpkin pancakes are hot, don't burn Xiao Dongzi."
Looking at the two golden-yellow round cakes in the bowl, Sister Wang smiled and said, "I'll thank his Auntie Min Min on behalf of my Xiao Dongzi. I came today to shamelessly beg for food."
"For the past two days, Xiao Dongzi has been standing on the west side of the courtyard, smelling the aroma wafting from your kitchen. I can't call him away or move him. He won't eat anything else at home. I boiled him an egg, and he ate that. After eating, he stood by the west courtyard again. I felt sorry for my grandson, so I came to beg for food."
Saying this, she reached out to test the temperature of the cakes in the bowl, then broke them in half. Hot steam emanated from within. "Oh, they are quite hot. Xiao Dongzi, wait a moment before you eat, okay?"
"Okay," the little boy replied obediently.
"Why are you saying all this?" Li Mu chided gently. "For so many years, our family has received so much help from you. If we needed to borrow anything, your husband would bring it over without a second thought."
"We wanted to repay you, but we were unable to. Recently, Min Min has been too embarrassed to borrow things from your house, owing too much and feeling ashamed."
"Auntie Li, you shouldn't say that," Sister Wang said, displeased. "They say close neighbors are better than distant relatives. When your family was doing well in the past, you also helped us quite a bit. Everyone has difficult times, and who can say they've had smooth sailing their entire life?"
"I see your family's situation seems to be improving lately. To put it bluntly, in the future, I'll probably have to come over and freeload something."
"Come over, come over," Li Mu's smile deepened. She loved hearing that last sentence. She also felt that her family was on the rise.
"Don't worry about coming over. Min Min is learning to cook from her sister-in-law. Xiao Dongzi is a picky eater. Have him come over and try. If he finds it delicious, then it means Min Min's cooking is successful."