Ye Weiliang was heading down the mountain when—
Suddenly, her gaze was caught by something else.
Hanging among the tree branches was a beehive!
The discovery made her wildly happy, as if she had found a hidden treasure.
After all, roast suckling pig could only truly reach its peak of deliciousness when brushed with fragrant, sweet honey.
Without hesitation, Ye Weiliang happily walked over and carefully stored the beehive into her space.
Then, using her powerful mental force, she cut several bamboo tubes from the bamboo grove inside the space, preparing them to hold the precious honey.
When Ye Weiliang returned to the Educated Youth Compound with a full load, Li Xingxing had already finished processing the piglet.
Fortunately, just yesterday, they had gone to the county supply and marketing cooperative to buy some essential seasonings.
Now, they were simply waiting to brush the spices onto the pork and begin the mouthwatering roast.
“Sister Xingxing, come quick and see what good stuff I brought back!” Ye Weiliang shouted excitedly.
“Oh? What is it? Liangliang, hurry and let me take a look,” Li Xingxing replied curiously.
Ye Weiliang immediately handed over the bamboo tubes, then turned to wash her face.
Although the forest itself wasn’t hot, the walk down the mountain and back to the compound still made her feel a bit flushed.
“Wow—this is honey!” Li Xingxing exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with delight.
“Liangliang, you’re amazing! Roast suckling pig is perfect when brushed with honey.”
Hearing the praise, Ye Weiliang’s face lit up with an unabashedly smug smile.
“Right? That’s exactly what I thought!”
The two exchanged glances, then burst into hearty laughter together.
Seeing that it was getting late, Ye Weiliang quickly joined in preparing dinner.
She scooped out some rice from the jar, mixed with various coarse grains like sweet potatoes and corn kernels.
Then she went to a corner of the courtyard and carefully washed the freshly picked wild vegetables—shepherd’s purse and wild scallions.
Thankfully, the Educated Youth Compound had its own well, which meant they didn’t have to haul water from the river—very convenient.
Li Xingxing, meanwhile, was fully focused on roasting the suckling pig.
She skillfully brushed the pig evenly with a special sauce, then carefully placed it over the charcoal fire, letting it slowly roast.
“Liangliang, you even found wild chicken eggs? That’s incredible!”
Li Xingxing spotted several eggs on the stove and was instantly delighted.
“Let me think about what I should make with these…”
At that moment, Ye Weiliang walked over and handed her the washed wild scallions and vegetables.
“Sister Xingxing, how about stir-frying the wild chicken eggs with wild scallions? I deliberately dug up extra scallions.”
“Mmm, that’s a great idea. It’ll definitely smell amazing!”
Li Xingxing seemed to already smell it and couldn’t help swallowing.
Once everything was arranged, Ye Weiliang stepped out of the kitchen to keep an eye on the roast pig’s heat, while Li Xingxing stayed inside, showing off her cooking skills and preparing the dishes.
The entire compound was soon filled with a rich, mouthwatering aroma of food.
Everyone coming off work could smell it, and their stomachs only grew hungrier.
“I wonder who’s making something so good—this smell is incredible.”
“Sounds like it’s coming from the Educated Youth Compound.”
“I didn’t see Comrade Ye or Comrade Li working this afternoon. Must be the two of them cooking.”
“Ah, hurry home. There’s food waiting at home too.”
The team members didn’t dare linger—this smell was too tempting.
They were afraid they’d end up standing outside the compound, drooling.
The male educated youths also returned one after another.
“Comrade Ao, Comrade Chen, Comrade Yu, Comrade Hao, Comrade Zhao—you’re back?”
Ye Weiliang greeted them with a smile.
“Go wash your hands and come eat. Today, the Educated Youth Compound is hosting the team leader for dinner.”
“That’s right, hurry and wash up. Little Ye caught a piglet today—I made roast suckling pig, and there’s also wild chicken eggs stir-fried with wild scallions,” Li Xingxing added.
The men’s eyes lit up instantly.
They had been wondering whose house was cooking meat—it smelled amazing.
Turns out it was their Little Ye making roast suckling pig.
“Thank you, Little Ye.”
They were all high–EQ types. After washing up, each of them brought out whatever they had from home; those who had nothing brought some coarse grains instead.
Once everyone had gathered, Liu Aimin and Li Erni also arrived at the compound.
They didn’t come empty-handed either.
Li Erni had dug up several large napa cabbages, along with cucumbers and green beans, from her family’s private plot.
Seeing the piglet roasting in the middle of the courtyard, Liu Aimin immediately understood what was going on.
He wanted to remind Ye Weiliang of a few things, but when he thought of her unusual strength, he gave up.
This girl knew what she was doing.
“Girl Ye, these are vegetables from our private plot. Keep them and eat them.”
“Uncle Team Leader, Auntie Erni, how could we take your things? We’re the ones who invited you to dinner,” Ye Weiliang tried to refuse.
Liu Aimin said firmly, “No. If you don’t take them, we won’t eat.”
He felt that a bit of vegetables couldn’t possibly compare to meat—
Especially meat that smelled this good.
Liu Aimin took a look around.
Not only was there roast pork, there were also fried eggs, and even a pot of mushroom chicken soup so fragrant it made one want to swallow their tongue.
Now he felt this girl really didn’t know how to live frugally—she had brought out every good thing she had.
“Alright, alright, we’ll keep them. Everyone, sit down quickly. Today, Chef Li is in charge. I’m clumsy—my cooking is nowhere near as good as Sister Xingxing’s.”
Unable to argue against Liu Aimin and Li Erni, Ye Weiliang accepted the cabbage, green beans, and other vegetables.
Everyone gathered around the roast pig.
After Li Xingxing chopped it into evenly sized portions with a big cleaver, they placed a whole pig leg into Ye Weiliang’s bowl.
“Thanks to Little Ye for catching the pig and the chicken—thanks to you, we’re having a feast today.”
“You’re welcome, you’re welcome.”
Ye Weiliang accepted the pig leg without the slightest hesitation.
Then she placed the other two pig legs into Liu Aimin’s and Li Erni’s bowls and poured wine for everyone.
“Uncle Team Leader, Auntie Erni, these are for you. Thank you for taking care of us.”
The two waved their hands repeatedly, only to be “forcefully suppressed” by all the educated youths.
The oldest, Hao Jianguo, laughed.
“Uncle Team Leader, Auntie, just eat. Otherwise, Little Ye won’t dare go hunting in the mountains next time.”
“Oh? You little brats—are you bribing me now?” Liu Aimin joked with interest.
“Yes, yes. Uncle Team Leader, will you accept our bribe?” Ao Jiarui laughed as he raised a toast.
Liu Aimin took a sip of wine.
“You lot… just know it in your hearts. No need to shout it everywhere.”
Hearing this, everyone happily dug in.
By the time Shao Song and Yi Manyu finally got back from work, everyone was eating with great enthusiasm.
Seeing the lively scene, Shao Song’s face darkened.
Yi Manyu shouted angrily, “Why didn’t you call us to eat?”
Ye Weiliang rolled her eyes.
“I’m the one hosting the meal. Why should I call you?”
“You called everyone else. Why didn’t you call us?”
“And why should I? Because you’ve got a big face? Or because you’re shameless?”
Ye Weiliang shot back coldly.
“I’m treating people. I’ll invite whoever I want. At noon, I kindly gave you rabbit meat, and you complained that I gave too little and that it was too spicy. You’ve really been spoiled rotten.”
“If you don’t call us, you’re excluding us. Team Leader, don’t you think this will damage the team’s unity?”
Now they were dragging the team leader into it.
“I say, if you two don’t stir up trouble, will you die?”
Ye Weiliang snapped.
“If I feed a dog, it’ll wag its tail at me. If I feed you, all you do is complain the food is bad. If I throw something into water, at least I hear a splash. If I throw it into your mouths, you still curse me for not giving enough.”
“What, am I your parents? Do I have to spoil you? Have you even thought about whether you deserve it? Running into you two is really my misfortune. Bad luck.”
Her small mouth rattled on in a full verbal barrage, leaving everyone stunned.
At the same time, they all felt that these two were truly shameless.
“You—you—”
Shao Song and Yi Manyu were so angry they couldn’t speak.
They didn’t eat a single bite and went straight back to their room to sleep.
Ye Weiliang couldn’t care less.
People who couldn’t stand each other shouldn’t be forced together.
She didn’t need to rely on them to take care of her anyway.