When Su Qiao realized that the bamboo had actually come from Xiao Qifeng’s own home, she felt even more embarrassed.
Previously, the whole broken engagement had caused such a commotion. Although she hadn’t known about it in advance, no matter how she looked at it, it had somewhat humiliated the Xiao family.
It was already generous of Xiao Qifeng and Aunt Xiuping not to hold a grudge, how could she even think of taking their things?
Thinking of this, Su Qiao quickly took out the money. “Big Brother Xiao, we’re already very grateful that you’re helping us fix the fence. There’s no way we can let you front the cost for this. And the lock, and the bamboo…”
As she spoke, an odd unease washed over her, an inexplicable pressure that made her suddenly unable to continue.
She instinctively looked up, and met Xiao Qifeng’s calm gaze.
Although his expression seemed neutral, for some reason Su Qiao could feel that he was angry.
Seeing her fall silent, Xiao Qifeng steadied the tricycle and began unloading the bamboo, walking toward the center of the yard.
Su Qiao quickly picked up the wire and tools from the tricycle and followed him.
She placed the items beside him and, politely, handed him a small stool to sit on.
The more she thought about it, the more awkward it felt, but she forced herself to continue: “Big Brother Xiao, let’s forget the bamboo… but the lock and the wire…”
“Su Qiao, do you really need to count everything so precisely with me?” Xiao Qifeng suddenly interrupted.
Su Qiao fell silent, attempting to explain, but he continued: “Since you want to count, let’s do it properly.
Previously, Uncle Su replaced all the roof tiles for our house, helped us replace a wooden window, and fixed all the doors. How much would that be? You can calculate that.
Besides that, when my eldest sister got married, my mother isn’t good with sewing. Her new cotton jacket, apron, and quilt were all made by Aunt Qiuyue. Aunt Qiuyue spent three full days at our house, make sure you add that labor cost. And then…”
“Big Brother Xiao, I was wrong, please stop,” Su Qiao quickly reached out, grabbed Xiao Qifeng’s arm, and bent her head in apology.
She couldn’t let him go on. If he continued, all the goodwill and relationship between the two families built over generations would be reduced to numbers.
Su Qiao might not have remembered her father replacing the roof tiles for the Xiao family, since she was in school at the time. But when her mother went to help make quilts for Aunt Xiuping’s eldest daughter, she had taken Su Qiao along.
She remembered how happy her mother had been, almost as if she were preparing to marry off her own daughter.
And now she was here, trying to calculate money over it?
Su Qiao thought that if her mother knew, she would come find her in her dreams in the middle of the night to scold her!
Thinking of this, Su Qiao knew there was no way she could hand over the money today.
“Big Brother Xiao, you keep busy, I’ll go get you a bowl of water.”
She awkwardly withdrew her hand, looking slightly embarrassed, wishing she could find some excuse to step away for a moment.
Seeing her like this, a faint smile flickered across Xiao Qifeng’s eyes. He didn’t press further and simply nodded with a soft “hm.”
Just then, the familiar sound of laughter and chatter came from outside again. Soon, the three siblings who had gone out earlier came rushing in like a gust of wind.
Seeing Xiao Qifeng, Su Wei greeted him first, then proudly held up the large rooster he had been carrying by the legs.
He shouted to Su Qiao, “Sister, we bought the chicken! Look how big it is! And it’s so meaty!”
Seeing her brother show off like that, Su Peng didn’t lag behind. He quickly lifted the bamboo basket he had, saying, “Sister, there are eggs too! I picked each of these eggs myself at Aunt Yuegui’s, they’re the biggest and prettiest!”
“Sister, garlic! Garlic!”
Seeing her two older brothers showing off, Su Lan didn’t want to be left out.
She couldn’t speak much yet, so she ran up to her eldest sister, tilting her head up and stuffing the two large cloves of garlic she was holding into Su Qiao’s hands. She even climbed up against her while doing so, looking like a little animal seeking affection.
“All right, all right!”
Su Qiao laughed, giving her two brothers a thumbs-up first, then picked up her youngest sister and planted a big kiss on her cheek.
She said, “Our Xiao Lan is amazing, already helping sister with the shopping at this age. Later, I’ll reward you with a big piece of chicken!”
The little girl looked a mix of proud and shy, burying her head in her sister’s neck and giggling uncontrollably.
Xiao Qifeng sat in the yard, watching Su Qiao laugh and chat with her siblings, her face glowing pink, eyes curved into crescent moons.
He couldn’t help but recall that day at third sister Su’s house, when she held the little sister, stood with her two brothers in the crowd, small, fragile, and exuding a cold “keep away” aura.
For a moment he felt disoriented, unable to reconcile the two images in his mind.
Yet a thought flashed in his heart: this girl’s smile is really beautiful! If she could always be this cheerful, he would do anything for her.
Su Qiao, along with her younger siblings, carried the vegetables back to the kitchen, leaving her eldest brother Su Wei outside to help Xiao Qifeng.
She handed the vegetables she had picked to Su Peng, letting him and their sister help clean them, while she took out the bag of flour and began kneading the dough.
Half wheat flour, half cornmeal were mixed together, then just-boiled water was added and stirred until there were no dry patches. Once the dough cooled slightly, a small pinch of alkaline powder was added and kneaded into a smooth dough. A damp cloth was placed over it, and it was set aside to rest.
Next, Su Qiao turned to preparing the vegetables.
First, she had to kill the chicken.
Her eyes landed on the [1]Lu Hua rooster refers to a type of Chinese chicken known for its vibrant feather patterns, particularly with colorful, streaked plumage. It’s often prized for its lively appearance, strong build, … Continue reading jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1729874_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1729874_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });Lu Hua rooster, tightly bound by Su Wei and left in the corner.
She had no idea how much her brother had spent on this chicken, but it probably wasn’t cheap, it was far too vigorous and spirited!
Even with its legs tied and wings twisted back, it flapped relentlessly. Most striking were its small, round eyes, staring straight at Su Qiao.
Watching it like that, she simply couldn’t bring herself to do it.
“Su Wei! Come help me kill the chicken!” she shouted outside, exasperated.
“Huh? I can’t!” Su Wei’s reply came quickly and confidently: “I’ve never done it before!”
Su Qiao: “…”
So it was as if he had done it!
She herself had never done such a thing in her entire life either.
“You little rascal! You’re completely useless!” Su Qiao muttered angrily under her breath.
But scolding wouldn’t help, there was no choice but to do it herself.
This death-stare from the chicken was almost unbearable. With a resigned sigh, she closed her eyes and reached out.
Hearing the exchange between the siblings, Xiao Qifeng put down what he was doing and walked inside. He immediately saw Su Qiao groping blindly at the chicken with her eyes shut.
He couldn’t help but smile.
He stepped forward and caught her hand, still flailing in midair. Wet, delicate, and soft, it made his heart skip a beat.
Clearing his throat, he said softly, “I’ll do it.”
Then he released her hand, picked up the chicken from the floor, grabbed a knife, and strode out of the kitchen.
Su Qiao’s hand hadn’t even touched the chicken before it was held by a warm, strong hand.
She hurriedly opened her eyes and met Xiao Qifeng’s gaze, full of amusement and light, and froze.
Before she could even react, he had already let go of her hand, picked up the chicken, and gone outside. She was left squatting there, feeling the lingering warmth of his hand spreading through hers.
Su Qiao didn’t understand what that sensation was, strange, odd, and unsettling.
She quickly stood up, rubbed her hand against herself, grabbed the kettle and basin, and hurried after him.
With Xiao Qifeng’s help, the remaining steps became much easier.
The chicken was plucked, cleaned, and cut into small pieces; scallions were sliced, ginger cut into pieces, and garlic smashed.
Then, she and Su Peng moved all the ingredients to the newly built temporary stove outside.
The pan was heated, and when the oil reached a medium-hot temperature, Sichuan peppercorns and star anise were added and fried on low heat until aromatic. Next, the scallion, ginger, and garlic were sautéed until slightly golden.
Once the aroma spread, the chicken was added and stir-fried until the meat changed color. Soy sauce, salt, and other seasonings were added, and the chicken was fried until fully flavored.
When the chicken was coated in sauce and glistening with oil, pre-cut potatoes, green beans, and bell peppers were added along with some boiling water, letting it slowly simmer.
After finishing all this, Su Qiao covered the pot, instructed her younger brother to watch the fire carefully, and returned to the kitchen to take out the rested dough and start making the flatbreads.
She hadn’t realized just how much the aroma of the simmering chicken had spread until she started moving, by now, the fragrance had filled the yard and probably reached the neighboring houses.
Sure enough, before she even got close, she heard Su Wei shouting: “Sister, is it ready yet? Can we eat? It smells amazing! How come I didn’t know you could cook this well?!”
“You don’t know half of it!” Su Qiao replied with a smile, not bothering to explain further.
Of course, her brother didn’t know she could cook, this was something she had only learned in her previous life after the accidents with her siblings.
Back then, Su Peng had been disfigured and lost his hearing, shutting himself in his room every day, refusing to go out or see anyone.
Su Qiao had no choice but to cook for him herself.
To make sure her brother could eat more, she racked her brains, coming up with all kinds of dishes in rotation. Over time, she naturally became an excellent cook.
As she spoke, Su Qiao walked back to the center of the yard. She stopped in front of Xiao Qifeng and explained: “Brother Xiao, just wait a little longer, the flatbreads will be ready soon.”
Before she could finish, her gaze fell on the fence the two of them were working on.
Having been inside cooking all this time, Su Qiao hadn’t noticed before, but now she saw that while they said they were “repairing” the fence, they had essentially rebuilt a brand-new fence on top of the old one.
The original fence was only about one and a half meters tall, so any adult standing at the gate could clearly see everything happening inside the yard.
But this time, using bamboo poles and wire, they had rebuilt the fence to be at least 1.8 meters tall. Not only did it completely block the view from outsiders, but they had also sharpened the tops of all the bamboo poles into points.
Now, anyone with ill intentions thinking about climbing in would have to seriously consider whether they were capable of doing so.
Su Qiao was both surprised and delighted. She circled the newly built fence for a long time, even standing on tiptoe to try to touch the pointed bamboo tops, completely not sure how to express her excitement.
Her family was either weak or small, and while her limited self-defense skills were enough to protect herself, there was no way she could handle multiple intruders.
Yesterday, Wang Lanxiang’s trespass had already put Su Qiao on high alert. She had been pondering ways to reinforce the doors inside the house, and now Xiao Qifeng had brought her such an incredible surprise!
“Brother Xiao, wait here! I’ll go grab some more vegetables!”
Feeling that words alone couldn’t express her gratitude, Su Qiao turned and ran straight back to the vegetable patch.
That day’s lunch was extremely abundant. In addition to the large pot of “di guo chicken with flatbreads,” Su Qiao had also stir-fried a full plate of tender chives with eggs.
The freshly picked chives were incredibly tender, and when stir-fried with eggs, they glistened with oil and smelled heavenly. Just looking at it made one salivate.
On ordinary days, this would already be considered a rare delicacy; most households wouldn’t dare eat such good vegetables so freely.
But today, even such fine vegetables couldn’t compete with the pot of chicken.
Since the di guo chicken had to be simmered on the stove while eating, everyone carried their bowls and small stools and sat around the temporary stove.
At that moment, all eyes were on Su Qiao as she lifted the pot lid.
As the lid came off, a rich, mouthwatering aroma rose with the steam, filling everyone’s nostrils instantly.
Everyone instinctively inhaled deeply, reluctant to exhale, wishing the captivating scent could linger just a little longer.
Su Qiao used an iron ladle to scoop the tender chicken pieces along with the soft, flavorful potatoes and green beans into each person’s bowl.
Su Wei and Su Peng, unable to wait, immediately picked up a piece and put it in their mouths.
The chicken chunks were cut just the right size and now fully coated in the savory sauce. Each bite was fragrant and delicious, tender yet still retaining the meat’s natural texture.
The two children chewed slowly, unwilling to swallow, wishing they could make the chicken last forever.
After a long while, Su Wei finally exclaimed sincerely, “This is really delicious!”
Su Peng, even more flustered, nodded eagerly in agreement: “It’s so fragrant! Sister, you have to make this again next time, the chicken is just too good!”
Thinking about the next meal even before finishing today’s, Su Peng’s childish words made the two adults laugh.
Xiao Qifeng didn’t take a bite until he saw Su Qiao serving chicken pieces into her own bowl.
The moment he tasted it, the flavor, something he had never experienced before, made him hum in appreciation, eyes closing with enjoyment.
Growing up poor and joining the army early, Xiao Qifeng had never been picky about food. To him, as long as he could fill his stomach, anything was fine.
But now he suddenly realized it wasn’t that he was unselective, it was that he had simply never eaten anything this delicious before.
This meal left everyone completely satisfied; even the usually self-controlled Xiao Qifeng felt a little embarrassed realizing he might have overeaten.
Su Qiao had made such a huge batch of dough and so many flatbreads, yet they had managed to finish it all in one meal.
After eating, Xiao Qifeng helped Su Qiao carry everything back into the kitchen and then said, “We probably won’t finish all the work outside today; we’ll have to come back again tomorrow.”
Su Qiao was momentarily taken aback.
“Do you have something tomorrow?” Xiao Qifeng immediately noticed.
Su Qiao didn’t hide it and nodded: “I plan to go to the county again tomorrow.”
She didn’t explain what she needed to do there, and Xiao Qifeng didn’t ask further.
He simply replied naturally, “Around what time will you leave? I’ll ride with you.”
Su Qiao was about to refuse, but Xiao Qifeng, as if sensing something, added, “I won’t come into the village, just tell me a time. I’ll wait for you at the road in front of your village.”
Hearing that, the refusal on Su Qiao’s lips vanished.
She knew Xiao Qifeng said this to avoid gossip from the villagers, but as someone reborn, she didn’t care about that at all.
She wasn’t planning to stay long in the village anyway, and even if she stayed out of town, idle chatter didn’t matter.
More than that, she didn’t want to let someone who sincerely helped her family feel discouraged.
“Brother Xiao, if you’re at the gate, of course you have to come in! I managed to get some fine flour yesterday, so come early tomorrow and I’ll make you some noodles with gravy! My noodles are really good, we can eat first and then go.”
Her words warmed Xiao Qifeng’s eyes. He didn’t say anything more, just looked at Su Qiao and acknowledged with a quiet “hm.”
The next morning, someone knocked on the Su family’s gate bright and early.
Su Qiao brushed the flour off her hands and ran out to open the door.
As soon as the door opened, the first thing she saw was a small child sitting on the front of a bicycle.
The little boy looked no more than three or four years old, thin and slight, but with a pair of big, dark eyes.
He sat on the bicycle’s front bar, tilting his head, blinking, and staring at Su Qiao with pure, unguarded curiosity.
Su Qiao was so stunned by his gaze that her mind went blank, and she suddenly remembered something her cousin Su Xiaona had once said: “He even has a three-year-old boy. If you marry him, you’ll be coming in as a stepmother!”
This was… bringing his son along?
“Is this your son?” Su Qiao asked instinctively.
Almost immediately, she felt her tone was a little too blunt and hurriedly added, “He actually looks a lot like you. How old is he?”
Xiao Qifeng clearly froze for a moment.
It was as if her question had completely thrown him off, and for a moment he didn’t know how to answer.
He first looked blankly at the boy, following Su Qiao’s gaze, seemingly trying to find the resemblance between them.
Then he snapped back to reality and blurted out, “No, I don’t have a son.”
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