“Jiejie… cooking… tasty! Smells so good!”
An’an tilted his head up and gave Shen Wenzhao a sweet smile. Shen Wenzhao gently pulled An’an into his arms, feeling the warmth he had not felt for so long.
A thousand unspoken words dissolved into the breeze.
Time always passes quickly after a long-awaited reunion. In the blink of an eye, Shen Wenzhao had already stayed for nearly half a month.
It was another rest day. Su Tian thought of taking An’an out for a stroll. A child shouldn’t always stay cooped up in the back courtyard. After learning of it, Shen Wenzhao hinted, both openly and subtly, that he wanted to join them. Su Tian had no reason to refuse and agreed.
During this period, Su Family Restaurant had earned some silver. Su Tian asked her grandfather, Su Dashu, to purchase the courtyard they had been renting. Now the entire family lived and ate together under one roof.
At dinner, Wu Fen mentioned that she planned to return to the neighboring village during the rest days to visit Su Miao.
Su Tian realized it had already been a year since she last saw her eldest sister. Ever since Su Miao married, she contacted the family less and less. Her letters were always brief, often sharing good news but never worries. No one truly knew how she was doing.
“Come by later and take some more silver from me. Tomorrow, find a chance to slip it to Miao-jie,” Zhang Guihua said as she picked up a mouthful of noodles.
Wu Fen shook her head. “Mother, there’s no need to ask you for money anymore. We all receive monthly wages from the restaurant now. We’ve managed to save a little.”
“That’s from you as her mother. This portion is from me as her grandmother.” Zhang Guihua frowned.
Wu Fen could only agree.
“Mother! I want to go see Eldest Sister too!” Su Wenchen slurped up a big mouthful of noodles, cheeks puffed full.
Today Su Tian had made his favorite minced meat noodles. The noodles were coated thickly in sauce, paired with pickled radish. It was rich yet not greasy.
“See her? Don’t you have school tomorrow? Who has time to take you?” Wu Fen tapped his forehead.
Su Wenchen pouted. “I already know everything they teach at school. The teacher even praised me a few days ago. Right, Chen-ge?”
Su Wenyang lifted his head from his bowl when called. “Mm…”
Wu Fen ignored that. “Knowing it means you can write essays? Can you recite from memory?”
Seeing his mother about to start lecturing again, Su Wenchen looked pitifully at Su Wanhe for help.
Su Wanhe coughed lightly. “A-Fen and I will stop by the cloth shop later to buy some bolts of fabric to bring tomorrow for the in-laws.”
“I’ll make some pastries too. Second Uncle can bring them to Eldest Sister,” Su Tian said after finishing her last bite, already thinking about what to prepare.
An’an had eaten until his little belly was round. Seeing Su Tian finish, he patted his own stomach proudly for her to see.
Shen Wenzhao seemed to have something on that evening. As soon as the restaurant closed, he left in a hurry, only managing to confirm the time to go out the next day.
Su Tian didn’t think much of it.
Early the next morning, Su Tian was woken up by the noise outside. Since she was already awake, she got up to prepare some snacks for their outing. Children get hungry easily, having homemade food was safer.
Wu Fen and Su Wanhe had rented a carriage and were loading things onto it. Su Tian brought out a basket from the kitchen. Inside the basket were dried mustard greens meat flatbreads she had made the night before, large and thin, baked until crisp and flaky, the filling glistening with oil.
“Second Aunt, just reheat these on a pan for Eldest Sister before eating.”
Wu Fen accepted the basket. “Tian-jie’er, you’re thoughtful.”
Just then, Shen Wenzhao arrived. Wu Fen gently pushed Su Tian and gave her a meaningful look before climbing into the carriage with Su Wanhe. “Tian-jie’er, you go ahead. Your Second Uncle and I are off.”
“Travel safely.”
Su Tian waved, then turned to invite Shen Wenzhao inside.
“You’re early. How about wontons for breakfast?”
“Alright.” He still remembered the wontons she made last time.
In the kitchen, Su Tian quickly minced pork and told Shen Wenzhao to peel the shrimp. He obediently helped her. One had to admit that Su Tian truly knew how to “train” people. An’an had learned self-care here, and Shen Wenzhao who had never touched food preparation before could now peel shrimp skillfully.
She rolled out pre-prepared dough into neat wrappers. On each wrapper she spread a little minced pork, placed one shrimp inside, and with a pinch of her fingers formed a wonton.
Soon, neat rows of small, adorable wontons lined the board.
She stoked the stove fire until the water boiled and dropped them all in. In three bowls, she added dried shrimp, salt, and a spoonful of lard.
Once cooked, she ladled hot broth into the bowls. The lard melted instantly, releasing a rich aroma.
She placed six or seven wontons into An’an’s small bowl, half a bowl for herself, and gave the rest to Shen Wenzhao. A sprinkle of chopped scallions on top and the breakfast was ready.
An’an, still half asleep at the table, sniffed before even opening his eyes. “Mm… Jiejie… is wun-ton!”
“So smart. You guessed it right away.” She handed him a spoon. “Careful, it’s hot.”
He blew on it and took a bite. The thin wrapper revealed faintly pink filling inside. The pork was three parts fat, seven parts lean, minced slightly coarse for better texture.
“So good!” He stuffed the rest into his mouth, panting from the heat but refusing to spit it out.
Shen Wenzhao watched and took a sip of soup himself. The broth shimmered with oil, sprinkled with dried shrimp and green scallions. Before he knew it, he kept eating spoon after spoon.
Seeing the two of them eat so heartily filled Su Tian with satisfaction. After the last sip of soup, all three sighed in contentment.
“Let’s go.” Su Tian packed up and picked up the prepared bundle.
“Let’s gooo!” An’an ran out happily.
By noon, An’an was exhausted and asleep on Su Tian’s shoulder. Shen Wenzhao reached out to carry him.
“I sent a letter home earlier,” Shen Wenzhao said. “I’ve received a reply.”
“What did they say?” Su Tian massaged her sore shoulder.
“They’re coming. By the time I received the letter, they should already have departed. It will take about half a month to arrive.”
Su Tian nodded casually. “Miss Su.” He stopped walking. She turned back to him. “Ning’er was born into the Anchang Marquis Manor. His father is the heir of the Anchang Marquis…”
Before he finished, Su Tian’s expression shifted. She inhaled deeply. “Is that so? Then An’an will have a good life in the future.”
“And you, Young Master Shen?”
“I am the legitimate youngest son of the Anchang Marquis Manor. Shen Wenzhao.” A faint flush colored his face.
Seeing her expression change, he asked softly, “Are you unwell?”
“I’m fine.” She shook her head. “I always knew An’an’s background wasn’t ordinary. I just didn’t expect such wealth and status.”