Looking at this family and Liu Sanjin's attitude, Xie Jinghao knew that Shen Meng and the children would all go hungry at noon. While feeding Xiaogang, she considered what food she had in her room.
After Lu Mingyang and his younger siblings handed in the pig feed and recorded their work points, they started heading home. The usually chattering Lu Mingliang became silent as they got closer to home.
Lu Mingfang was even too scared to walk any further.
Seeing his younger siblings' expressions, Lu Mingyang's face darkened, and he tightened his grip on Lu Mingkai's hand.
"Don't be afraid. Once we get home, you can go back inside. I'll go find you something to eat. If Mom gets angry and hits someone, she can hit me instead. Don't be afraid."
As long as she didn't kill him, he would make that vicious woman pay the price when he grew up.
"Brother, why don't I go with you? Even if we get beaten, it'll be half and half so it won't hurt so much."
"No need, just watch over your younger siblings." After saying that, Lu Mingyang pulled Lu Mingkai and walked home together.
Lu Mingfang and Lu Mingliang exchanged a glance and quickly followed behind. Both of them were determined to stand with their brother and not let him get beaten alone.
After the children entered the yard, they stopped in their tracks, which were originally heading towards the west house. The aroma wafting from the kitchen made the children turn their heads frequently. Even Lu Mingyang started swallowing.
"Brother, smell it, it smells so good! What do you think that bad mother made?"
Lu Mingyang didn't speak, but he sneered inwardly. How could that bad woman make food for them, especially something that smells so good? Maybe someone else made it and brought it over. It's hard to say if she's even left anything by now.
"You're back?" Shen Meng emerged from the kitchen, her back slightly bent. Her expression was expressionless. She knew that rushing things wasn't a business deal, and even if she wanted to get along peacefully with these children or build a better relationship, it wouldn't happen overnight; there was a long road ahead.
The children, including Lu Mingliang, were still inhaling the aroma. The youngest, Lu Mingkai, had his mouth agape, his mouth agape with craving. When Shen Meng suddenly spoke, he was startled and forgot what he was doing.
"I'm still not fully recovered, so I only made some noodles. I've served them to you all. Go and eat. If it's not enough, there's more in the clay pot. I'm going to lie down on the kang first. After you finish eating, Mingyang, wash the dishes. Don't go to work this afternoon. Go and gather some firewood. From now on, it'll just be us, mother and children, living together. It seems your grandmother doesn't care whether we live or die. Be diligent and gather more firewood so we can cook."
As Shen Meng spoke, she stroked her head and slowly moved towards her room.
After she left, Lu Mingliang rushed to the kitchen. On the small kitchen table sat four bowls of steaming noodles, each topped with a golden-brown fried egg—they looked delicious.
He excitedly ran out of the kitchen.
"Brother, there really are noodles! Noodles with golden-brown fried eggs! It smells so good! There's also a plate of cucumber salad. Let's eat!"
The noodles smelled amazing, and next to the golden-brown eggs were several stalks of vibrant green vegetables. The aroma made his stomach rumble uncontrollably.
Lu Mingkai and Lu Mingfang looked at him, unable to bring themselves to refuse. Lu Mingyang nodded. Even if he didn't want to eat, his younger siblings couldn't go hungry. Didn't that wicked woman just say they should go gather firewood?
That was so they'd be full before they started working. Thinking this, Lu Mingyang straightened his back.
"Go eat, don't waste food. We won't eat for nothing. After we're full, we'll go gather firewood. The little firewood in the yard isn't enough for two days!"
"Okay."
Shen Meng seemed to have gone back inside, but she was actually hunched over, peering out the window, observing the children's movements. Today, she had only boiled a pot of water and cooked two handfuls of handmade noodles. The broth and side dishes were all from her spatial storage, made with high-quality stock and organic vegetables—the taste was naturally excellent.
No one can resist the temptation of delicious food, especially children. Using food to win over the little devils was the first step.
Shen Meng didn't eat with the children. It was obvious to anyone that they didn't want to eat with her; if she were there, they probably wouldn't even dare to eat.
Seeing that they had all gone to the kitchen, Shen Meng finally felt relieved and got onto the kang (a heated brick bed). The family didn't have much food, and she couldn't rely on the Lu family; they might even try to morally blackmail her into handing over some things, since Lu Zhenping wouldn't be sending money home for several days.
Shen Meng was already planning her next move. She was a little tired from cooking noodles for the children. She hadn't used a traditional earthen stove in years, and she hadn't been able to get the match going several times. The bellows, too, was difficult to use; she wondered if Zhou Jiaojiao and Lu Jiaxuan had kicked it when they moved out.
She ate some bird's nest porridge and light side dishes in her spatial dimension before lying down to rest. Everything had to wait until she was fully recovered.
In the kitchen, the children devoured four bowls of noodles. Lu Mingyang and Lu Mingliang, the two boys, were naturally still hungry. Lu Mingliang was still thinking about the clay pot Shen Meng had mentioned. He lifted it and found some noodles inside. Without hesitation, he scooped them into his own bowl and shared some with Lu Mingyang.
"Brother, eat some more. We don't know if we'll have anything to eat tonight. Eat more so we can gather more firewood this afternoon. Let Mingkai and Mingfang rest at home; the sun is scorching this afternoon."
"Brother, let Mingkai stay home. I'll go too. I've eaten so much; if I don't do any work, Mother will be angry." Perhaps it was because of the delicious bowl of noodles, or perhaps because Shen Meng had made it despite her injuries, but Lu Mingfang suddenly felt that the "bad woman" wasn't so bad after all. Come to think of it, she used to be quite good to them. If it weren't for her second aunt and aunt always saying things, Mother wouldn't have changed.
Lu Mingkai pouted and didn't say anything. He didn't want to be home alone. If Mother saw him alone, she would be unhappy and pinch him.
"You stay with Mingkai. Mingliang and I will go gather firewood. What if our little brother gets bullied if he's home alone? That bad woman only cooked us one meal; don't think it's so great. Who knows when she'll beat us again?" Lu Mingliang stuffed noodles into his mouth while lecturing Lu Mingfang. He clearly felt that his sister was softening.
Lu Mingyang didn't speak, but he felt the same way. He wasn't afraid of being treated badly or scolded, but he was afraid of them suddenly being nice to him. His aunt had mentioned sending them away to save food for the family. That wicked woman had thought of it, but she didn't dare because she was afraid her father would stop sending money home.
This thought always weighed on his mind, so he always took his younger siblings with him and never separated them. Today, that wicked woman had actually cooked for them, and made such a good meal—noodles made with fine white flour and eggs, glistening with oil. If she wasn't up to something, she must have been struck by lightning.
He agreed with Mingliang's idea of leaving Mingfang and Mingkai at home, wanting to see what that wicked woman was up to.