Home Cooking

Aunt Gu only found out later that Jiang Ning had been biking Tongtong to school these past few days.

She had been busy in the countryside until today, when she finally returned.

Now, seeing her daughter obediently staying by Jiang Ning's side, she felt it was quite nice.

Ever since renting the house to Jiang Ning, she had thought the boy was honest and polite, though he looked a little frail. Who would have thought that after just a few days apart, he had shot up noticeably and looked much more spirited?

"Wait a moment, Jiang Ning. There's just one more dish left to stir-fry." Yesterday, she had told Tongtong to ask Jiang Ning over for dinner.

Jiang Ning did not refuse and politely said, "Thank you for the trouble, Auntie."

"It's no trouble, no trouble."

Watching the two exchange pleasantries, Xue Yuantong cut in:

"Mom, stop talking and hurry up with the food. I'm starving to death."

Aunt Gu glared at Xue Yuantong, but Xue Yuantong was not afraid at all. She pulled Jiang Ning over to wash his hands, then dragged him into the Main Room and pressed him down onto a little stool beside the folding table.

Xue Yuantong cut up a plate of watermelon and sat at the table chatting with Jiang Ning.

"Isn't it so cool? Did you notice?" Xue Yuantong asked curiously.

Jiang Ning nodded. "It really is cool."

He had used Spiritual Energy to lower the temperature around them. He did not mind spending that little bit of Spiritual Energy on Xue Yuantong. He rather liked this clever, quirky girl who laughed all day long.

"Mm-hmm, maybe it's because of the shade from the trees." Xue Yuantong thought it over.

Quite a few trees had been planted around this row of single-story houses, providing shade and keeping the homes from heating up too much. Though summers were still hot, they could get through them with an electric fan.

Her family's circumstances were ordinary, and only her mother earned money. These days, installing an air conditioner cost several thousand yuan, and the electricity bills were expensive too, so their home had no air conditioning. Every summer, they simply endured it.

Jiang Ning smiled. These days were indeed not that hot. It was unlike a certain year in the future, when temperatures soared across the country. Summers became unbearable without air conditioning, and one even had to leave it on all night to fall asleep.

"Super cool!" Xue Yuantong took a bite of watermelon and lifted a bottle of Minute Maid Pulpy Orange, giving it a shake. Just as she was about to twist off the cap, Jiang Ning said, "I'll do it."

"No need, I can do it." Xue Yuantong twisted with all her strength and opened it.

She said smugly, "I'm a tough girl. It's just a bottle cap. Easy peasy."

"Impressive, impressive." Jiang Ning praised her kindly, as though he were complimenting a child.

Xue Yuantong snorted. "Eat your watermelon, eat your watermelon. My mom brought it back from the countryside. My grandpa found the seeds and grew it himself. It's really sweet. Later, I'll set aside two for you to take home and eat slowly."

As she spoke, she looked at Jiang Ning expectantly, hoping he would try it.

Jiang Ning took a bite. It was indeed very sweet, a little better than the watermelons usually sold on the street. Though he had eaten all kinds of rare Spiritual Fruit in the cultivation world, he still ate it happily, finishing several pieces right in front of Xue Yuantong.

Whether something tasted good sometimes depended more on who one ate it with.

Jiang Ning had been a left-behind child. His parents only came home around the Lunar New Year each year, staying less than twenty days before heading back to the coastal regions for work.

They left him home alone. His grandparents had passed away early, and he usually bought all three meals outside. The village was fairly safe, and some neighbors and relatives looked after him from time to time.

Jiang Ning had once resented his parents, but as he grew older, he gradually came to understand.

Hui Province was underdeveloped. If people stayed in their hometowns, those like his parents, with little education, could either farm and earn less than ten thousand yuan a year, or go into business.

The wages at local factories were low, far behind those in the coastal regions. If both of them worked there, they could save seventy or eighty thousand yuan a year, enough to buy their child a house and a car someday.

That was why nearly all the adult men in Jiang Ning's village had gone away for work. Many people his age had not even finished middle school before following their parents elsewhere.

For all these years, Jiang Ning had always eaten alone. Later, after graduating from university and drifting through society, he still ate alone. To be honest, it was all rather flavorless.

He preferred eating with family, chatting about everyday matters over a meal. Yet such opportunities were rare. Living in society, one was always at the mercy of circumstances.

Now, sitting in Xue Yuantong's home, chatting and eating with her, he felt a relaxation he had not experienced in a long time. Though he had also been at Uncle's Home a few days ago, he had always felt there was an invisible barrier between himself and that family.

Even though he had done many times better in this life than in his previous one, those memories would forever remain buried deep in his heart. Cultivators might possess methods close to those of immortals, but they were still human in the end.

On the contrary, being with Xue Yuantong now made him feel exceptionally at ease.

"It's delicious," he said.

Xue Yuantong beamed. When Jiang Ning praised her family's watermelon, she felt as though every bone in her body had loosened with delight.

Aunt Gu came over carrying a pot, and its fragrance spread through the room, making mouths water.

Xue Yuantong stood up with her hands on her hips and excitedly introduced it to Jiang Ning:

"Look, this is chicken my mom brought from the village—fresh chicken, braised with dried string beans. It was cooked in an earthen pot over a wood fire. Just look at how sweaty my mom is, and you'll know how delicious this chicken is!"

"There are also unleavened flatbreads soaked in the sauce. The taste is unbelievable. I guarantee that once you take a bite, you'll want to come mooch meals at my house every day!"

"You're in for a treat today, hahaha."

Aunt Gu shot her daughter an ugly look, unable to understand how she had given birth to such a goofy child.

Jiang Ning took the pot and set it on the table, while also circulating Spiritual Energy. A wave of coolness spread out.

"The Main Room is so cool!" Aunt Gu said in surprise.

"I noticed it ages ago. It's especially cool today!" Xue Yuantong agreed.

Aunt Gu served the dishes one by one. Besides the Earthen Pot Chicken, there were two more dishes: braised soybeans and cold tomato salad. Together with the watermelon Xue Yuantong had cut, it barely counted as four dishes.

"Today's meal is rather simple, Jiang Ning. I hope you don't mind," Aunt Gu said apologetically.

"It's already very generous," Jiang Ning said.

Aunt Gu brought over the rice cooker. Inside was Mung Bean Soup, perfect for quenching thirst and cooling off in summer.

"Let's eat, let's eat." Xue Yuantong reached out and grabbed a piece of flatbread, only to get burned. She immediately pulled back her paw, her expression full of grievance.

Jiang Ning could not help laughing at her.

Aunt Gu picked up a piece of flatbread for Jiang Ning and placed it in his bowl.

The flatbread had been braised together with the chicken. Half of it was drenched in sauce, while the other half remained crisp.

Jiang Ning took a bite and praised her. "Auntie, your cooking is really good."

Xue Yuantong's little face filled with pride, as though the praise belonged to her too.

"If it tastes good, then eat more. I can see you've grown quite a bit taller. This is when you need nutrition most. You have to keep up with it if you want to grow taller," Aunt Gu said.

Jiang Ning put on an attentive, teachable expression.

Xue Yuantong felt a little sour inside. She felt that if she kept listening, jealous drool would start dripping from her mouth, so she deliberately changed the subject:

"Mom, how did you get home today? By bus?"

Aunt Gu nodded. "Yes, I changed buses twice, but there weren't many people."

When Xue Yuantong thought of her mother carrying so many things and having to transfer buses, not knowing how hard the journey must have been, her heart ached a little.

But there was nothing she could do.