Chapter 672: Night Lights
Translator: Endlessæantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Su Binglan understood Jiang Nainai’s feelings from her expression. “You don’t need to thank me, Nainai.”
Su Binglan cared for her mother’s adopted family. Moreover, she knew Jiang Nainai had a good personality because the latter gave off a gentleness when speaking.
Jiang Nainai’s personality utterly differed from Madam Ma’s.
“Eat while it’s still warm. The meat is soft, so it won’t take much effort to eat. That’s because I’ve already stewed it for a while.
Jiang Nainai nodded but felt too embarra.s.sed to eat alone. She looked at her husband, and he nodded at her. Only then did she start eating. Her eyes widened in surprise after taking a bite of the chicken.
Jiang Nainai was shy and seldom showed such an expression. However, her eyes sparkled when she ate something so delicious. She was in shock at how delicious the dish was.
She took another bite. Indeed, the meat was soft and tasted incredible. The texture was fresh and tender instead of gamey. Additionally, the fragrance was rich, especially from the soup.
Jiang Nainai took in the aroma, and her eyes lit up, saying, “It’s too delicious, Binglan!!
Shen Zhishan knew his wife was overjoyed because she never babbled. It meant that she genuinely enjoyed the food. He smiled when he saw how happy his wife was.
However, he also felt guilty because he could never feed her this well. Still, Jiang Nainai never complained because she was different from Shen Zhishan’s mother.
Shen Zhishan had learned to be patient from his wife. He was also grateful to his grandmother for choosing someone like Jiang Nainai as his wife. At that moment, he looked at Su Binglan with grat.i.tude.
He was happy that Su Binglan and Shen Qiuhua had brought so many provisions to them. He was also thankful for the dinner the family prepared.
Su Binglan loved it when the people around her tasted her food. She was glad whenever everyone cooked together.
Shortly after, she made shredded sweet potato and sour and spicy potato pancakes. She even cut some dried sausage meat and placed them on a plate.
Su Binglan also made braised chicken and roast duck easy for the family to store. However, she had made the braised chicken for dinner and would save the dried sausages and roast duck for her grandparents.
The staple food was the rice cake and peanut cake she had reheated. Everyone enjoyed the sumptuous dinner. Afterward, Su Binglan looked outside and said, “Why isn’t Grandpa back yet?”
Shen Zhishan became anxious. “Yeah, he should’ve been home long ago. I should look for him and bring him home.”
As for his parents, they worked for a wealthy family in town and would only return twice a month.
He was anxious to pick up his grandfather because the older man promised to return earlier tonight. Shen Zhishan wondered if anything had happened to his grandfather.
He put down his chopsticks and was about to leave, but Su Fengmao said, “I’ll take the carriage to town to look for him. It’s already so late, so I can’t let you go to town alone. It’s not safe.”
Just as they were about to leave, Shen Gang returned with a bundle of firewood on his back, looking depressed. However, he was puzzled when he realized the lights were still on.
Usually, the family would go to bed when it turned dark to save on candles. They were not even willing to use oil lamps.
‘What’s going on today?’
After some thought, he remembered it was the second day of the Lunar New Year. Moreover, his G.o.ddaughter would visit on that day.
‘How could I forget?!’
He quickly entered the house and saw the family. Immediately after, his stomach growled when he smelled the food. He had not eaten much in the afternoon, and his stomach could no longer take it.
Su Binglan saw Shen Gang and happily addressed him, “Grandpa, you’re back! ”
The others, including Shen Qiuhua, followed suit in greeting him. Shen Gang was thrilled to see his G.o.ddaughter, exclaiming, “Oh, my dear Qiuhua!”
“Father, why’d you come back so late? It’s not safe to travel in the dark alone.” Shen Qiuhua’s heart ached when she saw her G.o.dfather’s gray hair and thin body.
“That’s okay. I’ve traveled this road more than I can count. I’m sorry for being late. I forgot you’d visit today,” Shen Gang entered the house as he spoke.
Shen Qiuhua said, “Father, put on this sweater. You don’t have to wear the sweatpants now that you’re back. You can wear them tomorrow.
“If you don’t have enough money, I’ll give it to you. I don’t want you to work out there anymore. What if you catch a cold?”
Shen Gang and Lin Qin were delighted to see Shen Qiuhua. They knew their G.o.ddaughter was the most considerate.
Su Binglan smiled when she saw how happy her mother was. She placed some plates on the heated brick platform and said, “Grandpa, Grandma, come and eat.”
Shen Zhishan said, “Binglan made all this food and brought us all these things.”
Shen Gang and Lin Qin were shocked when they saw all the fragrant dishes. Lin Qin knew Su Binglan wanted to help with dinner but did not expect her to cook so much.
The older woman had just taken her medicine and rested for a while, so she was sweating. She felt much better after talking to her G.o.ddaughter. However, she felt as if she was hallucinating when she looked at the dishes on the table.
Lin Qin even suspected the medicine of causing her to hallucinate.
Shen Qiuhua said, “Binglan’s cooking skills are unrivaled. Your lives will improve with Binglan around. Don’t be shy and eat as much as you want.”
She had hired someone to send silver to her G.o.dparents and thought they would use the money to buy food and provisions. She did not expect them to keep the money aside and not touch it instead.
Shen Gang and Lin Qin kept praising the food they ate. Meanwhile, Su Binglan kept filling their bowls, asking them to eat more.
“These are delicious, Cousin Binglan!”
Everyone laughed when Shen Mohen spoke. It created a wa_rm and lively atmosphere. Even Lin Qin, who typically had a poor appet.i.te, ate a lot. After all, her granddaughter’s cooking was exceptional.
“So, these are what you call dried sausages? It went perfectly with the rice. I ate a whole bowl of rice with just one piece of sausage.”
Shen Qiuhua kept putting food in Jiang Nainai!s bowl, saying, “Please have more, Nainai.”
“T-Thank you, Aunt Qiuhua.”
“There’s no need to be so polite. We’re family..”