At noon, the two returned home.
The sun seemed to show itself only briefly, and after the commune members finished lunch, the sky gradually turned overcast again.
Seeing this, the brigade leader didn’t dare delay and, even before it was time to return to work, hurriedly used the loudspeaker to call everyone to gather at the granary.
After returning home, Xu Chuan first soaked glutinous rice and red kidney beans in water. The glutinous rice needed at least five to six hours to soak, and the red kidney beans even longer—an entire day.
While waiting for the rice and beans to soak, he didn’t sit idle. After a simple lunch, he grabbed two kilograms of flour he had bought a few days ago and rushed to the old house at the village entrance.
Cheng Baozhu was still slowly munching on spicy diced chicken, her lips swollen and red, huffing and puffing, refusing to stop.
She found Xu Chuan a little odd.
Lazy as he was, he seemed unusually diligent in this matter. Since returning home, he had only sat for two minutes while eating; the rest of the time, he was rushing about.
After finishing the last piece of chicken, Cheng Baozhu wiped her mouth with her small handkerchief and curiously asked the system, “Did you give him some kind of brainwashing medicine?”
System: [We are a legitimate system; host, please mind your language.]
Cheng Baozhu: “Hmph~”
Meanwhile, Xu Chuan had barely left when Gao Gangtie stopped him. He rubbed his eyes in surprise, as if seeing a rare sight, and exclaimed, “The sun’s rising from the west today! You’re rushing off to work?”
“Go!”
Xu Chuan brushed him aside. “Work? I’ve got things to do, move aside.”
He hurried forward, but Gao Gangtie followed.
His eyes gleamed as he said, “Could it be you know Xiao Qian has returned to the village?”
Xu Chuan: “Who?”
“Xiao Qian from the Tao family, Chuanzi, don’t play dumb.”
Gao Gangtie thought back to how Xu Chuan had once delivered chickens and mushrooms to her, yet now pretended not to know her.
Back then, Tao Qian had some bad luck. She once broke her leg while picking wild vegetables in the mountains, and since her family didn’t treat it properly, her left leg remained impaired.
Normally, it wasn’t noticeable when she walked, but if she walked quickly, the limp was obvious.
Because of this, many who intended to propose to her family backed off, leaving the Xu family to benefit.
Had their marriage gone smoothly back then, they might already have children. Yet Tao Qian was shrewd and had somehow gotten involved with Xu Feng in the commune.
Technically, Xu Feng was Xu Chuan’s cousin, and tracing back four or five generations, they were one family.
But Gao Gangtie thought she was clever. Xu Feng’s family lived in the commune, his father was still a clerk, and their four-room house was neat. Even if Xu Feng was remarried with two kids, his conditions were better than Xu Chuan’s.
While he stood there reflecting, Xu Chuan glared at him. “Cut the nonsense. Keep your thoughts straight. She’s married now, I’m married, don’t talk about the past—it’ll only affect Tao Qian.”
More importantly, it would affect him.
If Baozhu were to hear, there’d be no telling what would happen that night.
The bruises on his body were thanks to Cheng Baozhu holding back!
Gao Gangtie marveled, “You’re still thinking of her?”
Xu Chuan pushed him away, frowning seriously. “Thinking of her? My mind is full of Baozhu. Can you keep your mouth shut? Would you like it if someone gossiped about your wife?”
It was strange—if not for the age difference, he might have thought Gao Gangtie was born to Aunt Bai Feng.
Xu Chuan didn’t want to waste time with Gao Gangtie and needed to reach the old house before his brother went to work.
He quickened his pace, leaving Gao Gangtie behind after a few futile steps.
Gao Gangtie grumbled to himself: Xu Chuan might be poor and lazy, but when it came to being a man, he was the real deal.
The weather grew more oppressive, hinting at rain.
Like Cheng Baozhu, Xu Chuan discovered the system had a weather forecast function. He asked, “How long until it rains?”
System: [Based on cloud observations, light rain will begin in approximately three hours, lasting forty minutes. At 9:10 tonight, there will be thunder and moderate rain. Friendly reminder: take an umbrella if you go out, and avoid unnecessary trips after 9 PM.]
Xu Chuan nodded.
Even without formal study, using the system’s forecast made him seem like a diviner.
System: …
Both of them were oddities.
Xu Chuan arrived just as his family was about to leave the old house.
Jiang Yulan, knowing her son’s temper, didn’t take him to work and asked irritably, “Why didn’t you grab some firewood before the rain? Why come to the old house?”
Xu Chuan grinned, handing her the flour. “Xiao Gu’s birthday is in a couple of days, right? Making some noodles for him.”
Before Jiang Yulan could respond, Li Cuifen eagerly took the bag. “Oh, so polite! Xiao Gu talks about his uncle every day, always wanting Hutou to take him to the village end.”
Xu Chuan said casually, “Then later let Hutou take Xiao Gu to my place.”
Li Cuifen paused. “Better not; don’t know when it’ll rain, Xiao Gu’s health isn’t good.”
She thought Xu Chuan had won over Hutou, and now Xiao Gu kept saying he wanted to be like his uncle—she hadn’t slept well for several nights.
Xu Chuan didn’t mind and asked Xu He, “Brother, do you still have a cedar log to make me a wooden bucket?”
Li Cuifen: … She knew Xu Chuan never gave up the flour easily.
He then asked Jiang Yulan, “Mom, give me a bag of red dates too.”
Jiang Yulan: … She knew Xu Chuan always left her house with something he wanted.
So Xu Chuan and Xu He carried the cedar log, and Xu Chuan held a large bag of red dates, heading toward the village end.
The road was filled with villagers gathering, and Xu Chuan greeted them all, almost like showing off.
From the Tao family’s yard, one could see the street activity.
Most of the family had gone to work, only Tao Qian and her ailing mother were home. Tao Qian hurried back from the commune due to her mother’s illness.
Tao’s mother sighed, “I now think that if you’d married Xu Chuan back then, life might have been better.”
At her age, she understood that no matter how good the conditions, a man’s character was more important.
Xu Feng wasn’t bad, but being a stepmother meant enduring hardships. Plus, he had two young sons, aged six and under one.
She noticed bruises on Tao Qian’s waist, knowing it came from a child kicking her while being held.
Meanwhile, at Xu Chuan’s home, Bai Feng often said Xu Chuan did all the work—cooking, fetching water, laundry. Poor, yes, but he knew how to care for others.
Tao’s mother sighed again.
She didn’t want to burden her daughter with these thoughts, fearing they’d weigh heavily.
Tao Qian, startled, said, “Don’t dwell on the past, I’m doing well now.”
It was true. Since marrying Xu Feng, life had been good. Xu Feng was temperamental but not violent like his father, and she managed the household.
Besides, in that dream…
On the day she was engaged to Xu Chuan, she had a vague dream: years later, the commune would produce a wealthy benefactor, donating money, building roads, buying a nearby mountain, and constructing many houses.
And the neighboring village’s Old Phoenix, lucky after losing his parents, married into wealth and had a secure life.
Tao Qian had initially ignored the dream, but when she heard of Old Phoenix’s parents passing, she paid attention.
Her brother knew the Cheng family elder, who intended to arrange her marriage to Xu Feng.
At that time, Xu Feng’s wife had died six months prior, and the household needed care. Cheng Baozhu had a poor reputation but could match Xu Feng’s household status.
Tao Qian didn’t know why she had that dream, but since she did, she couldn’t do anything.
She hadn’t expected her interference to result in Cheng Baozhu marrying Xu Chuan instead of Xu Feng.
Tao Qian felt guilty and sympathetic toward Cheng Baozhu.
Xu Chuan was famously lazy.
At the village end, the Xu brothers carried the cedar log inside, only to hear the sharp sound of breaking bowls.
“Crash—”
Followed by Cheng Baozhu’s small exclamation.
Xu Chuan instinctively groaned, “I told you not to wash the dishes, why are you at it again?”
Xu He: … His mother was truly a character.
He recalled suggesting a diligent bride for Xu Chuan, and his mother’s words: if Xu Chuan married a diligent wife, he’d remain lazy; if Baozhu, one of them would need to work hard.
He added, “What if both are lazy?”
His mother: Impossible, living people can’t die of laziness.
Jiang Yulan had only intended to get approval for the 180 yuan engagement; she didn’t expect her words to become prophecy.
Cheng Baozhu had washed only three times recently and broken three bowls. Continued washing would deplete their supply.
She frowned. “Fine, I won’t wash next time.”
She didn’t enjoy washing anyway.
After cleaning up the shards, Xu Chuan quickly washed the remaining dishes and began making the wooden bucket.
This bucket, called a “Zeng,” was used for making Zenggao.
Having it allowed him to make two batches. Clearing the dining table, he worked quickly.
As the sky darkened, light rain began around four, the wind driving raindrops indoors.
Cheng Baozhu draped a jacket over Xu Chuan.
People in the fields hurried to finish work before the rain; everyone was busy, and Cheng Baozhu felt bored.
The mountains opposite, shrouded in mist, resembled a watercolor painting, reminding her of childhood days in the countryside with her grandmother.
Inside, the stove bubbled, sending out white steam.
Cheng Baozhu threw in tea leaves; after a few minutes, she added some candies.
The milk candies Xu Chuan bought from Lao Ban were the same as those from the system, both big White Rabbit candies.
The scent of milk tea spread through the room, sweet and comforting.
On rainy days, holding a warm cup, Cheng Baozhu felt inexplicably happy.
Occasionally, Xu Chuan glanced up to see her sipping from a tin cup by the door, eyes squinting in delight.
He smiled quietly.
Night fell. People returned home, and Xu Chuan had prepared dinner.
After eating, he began the second batch. By the time it was finished, it was nine at night.
“Boom—boom—”
Thunder rumbled as expected.
Xu Chuan, after bathing, relaxed with a book, while Cheng Baozhu lay beside him, unable to sleep listening to the thunder.
Bored, she teased the system, “System, you’re the Chef God System.”
[Yes.]
“Do you also have a Medical God System?”
[Yes, full name: Medical Advancement System.]
“Too bad!” Cheng Baozhu groaned, frustrated. She wanted to improve herself, yet had no way to do so.
The system protested: [That’s because you don’t know how to use it.]
Cheng Baozhu was baffled: “How would I? You teach cooking; I want medicine. One uses knives, one uses herbs—nothing connects.”
The system felt insulted.
It argued: [Food is medicine, medicine is food. If used properly, you could still learn medicine.]
Systems had few restrictions, often granting many permissions. There were various types: Chef God, Medical, Infrastructure, Technology—but at their core, they were learning systems.
If the host wanted to learn, the system would assist within its permissions.
Indignant, it said: [Why do you think I let you sort herbs? If not tied together, I wouldn’t bother.]
Cheng Baozhu paused, recalling: [You said I could only do this, so points could be assigned to my account.]
System: …Think about the deeper meaning.
Cheng Baozhu didn’t understand, sensing the system was holding back something.
She summoned a space via the system and brought up the light screen to browse.
True to its name, the Chef God System included recipes beyond the eight cuisines: small dishes, pastries, folk snacks. She found the Zenggao recipe Xu Chuan intended to make.
With thousands of recipes recorded, she felt overwhelmed.
Just as she skimmed the categories and considered exiting, her hand froze mid-air.
On the screen, the last two lines read:
“…Beyond the above, there exists a category of dishes with medicinal properties—medicinal cuisine. As this belongs to the medical field, details are not provided here. Hosts may request access to study the medicinal cuisine section.
Note 1: Studying medicinal cuisine earns points from this system. Note 2: Hosts gain equivalent permissions in the Medical Advancement System’s medicinal cuisine branch. Note 3: To protect original system rights, hosts may not study only medicinal cuisine. Note 4: To protect host rights, the system shall not induce study of medicinal cuisine.”
Cheng Baozhu sat upright, heart racing.