Grandma, Love Me Again!

"Zhou Yan, not opening up today?"

"Long time no see. I heard your restaurant's doing great."

"Taking so much stuff to see your grandma? What a filial grandson."

Along the way, villagers greeted Zhou Yan. He replied to those he recognized and gave a vague acknowledgment to those he couldn't remember.

Before long, an old house came into view. Its rammed-earth walls were mottled with brown moss, foxtail grass swayed atop the gray-tiled roof, and a persimmon tree stood by the door, laden with golden fruit.

A recliner sat beneath the tree. Half-reclining in it was a gray-haired old woman in a dark-blue cross-collar cloth shirt, smiling as she watched a skinny young man crouched beside her with an enamel basin in his hands.

The young man was hunched over, dressed in ragged clothes, with messy hair so filthy it had clumped together. Only after he had polished off every last drop of sweet potato porridge in the basin did he set down the bowl and spoon, grin foolishly at the old woman, and get up to leave.

Zhou Yan rode over on his bike. As they passed each other, the young man even smiled at him.

Zhou Yan remembered him. Mr. Tree from Zhou Village.

"Grandma!" Zhou Momo called out in her soft little voice.

The old woman turned around, rose with a smile, and replied, "Ah, Momo and Zhou Yan are here."

The old woman was named Zhang Shufen. She was seventy-five this year and still remarkably healthy, with a straight back and neatly combed silver-white short hair tucked behind her ears. She even had more hair than plenty of college students.

Her clothes had a few patches, but they were washed spotless, and her smile was gentle.

Zhou Yan parked his bike by the door and lifted Zhou Momo down first.

"Grandma!" Zhou Momo dashed straight at the old woman and hugged her leg.

"Good girl." The old woman reached out and stroked her head with a smile. "You've grown a little taller again."

"Grandma." Zhou Yan took down the things hanging from the handlebars and casually asked, "Was that Zhou Qi just now?"

"That silly boy, still as foolish as ever. His head's as dull as a block of wood—he'd chase ants moving house for three miles." The old woman nodded with a smile. "He looked like he hadn't eaten, so I gave him the leftover sweet potato porridge from the pot."

"Grandma, what happened to him?" Zhou Momo asked curiously.

"He had a fever when he was two and took the wrong medicine, so he became a simple-minded child. His father died when he was four, and his mother couldn't survive while raising him, so she ran away. He wandered around the village and town picking up food, living like a beggar." The old woman shook her head, pity appearing on her face as she sighed. "He's a poor child too."

"Then... next time, I'll give him one of my candies." Zhou Momo still couldn't really understand hardship.

"All right." The old woman smiled again as she looked at the fish and ribs in Zhou Yan's hands. "Why did you bring so much? Don't I have anything here for you two little ones to eat?"

"I bought you two jin of liquor. I just learned how to make houttuynia crucian carp, so I came to show off today. I guarantee you'll be satisfied after eating it." Zhou Yan smiled.

"These past couple days, all the village gossips have been saying my grandson got rich. Looking at this display today, it really does seem a bit like it." The old woman spoke humorously as she bent down to pick up the enamel basin. "Come on, go inside and sit."

Zhou Yan carried the things inside. The main room was spotless, and the square table and wooden stools had been polished until they gleamed.

A black-and-white photograph hung on one wall. It showed a middle-aged man in an old military uniform. On the small table beneath the photograph sat a slender-necked liquor bottle with a wild chrysanthemum in it.

"Hello, Grandpa." Zhou Momo walked over, placed a candy on the table, and warmly said, "Grandpa, have a Big White Rabbit candy."

"He doesn't like sweets. I'll eat it for him." The old woman casually picked up the candy, unwrapped it, and popped it into her mouth. Smiling, she said, "Mm, this Big White Rabbit is still so sweet."

"Then next time I'll bring Grandpa cola." Zhou Momo looked at the old woman. "Cola is really, really good."

"What's cola?" the old woman asked Zhou Yan.

"A drink invented by foreigners," Zhou Yan explained with a smile.

"Your grandfather crossed the Yalu River back then to fight those foreigners. He even wrote me a letter saying foreign chocolate was tasty and that he'd bring me a box." The old woman smiled. "If you bring him foreign cola, he'll definitely be happy too."

Zhou Yan smiled but said nothing, looking at the man on the wall whose stern expression carried a trace of reserve.

This was his grandfather, Zhou Yi. He had fought in the Sichuan Army during the War of Resistance, then later volunteered for the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea. He never came back.

His father and four brothers had all been raised by the old woman alone. His youngest uncle, who had been born the year his grandfather died in battle, had been named Zhou Weiguo by the old woman.

The old woman opened a cabinet, took out a pile of snacks, and placed them on the table. "Come on, you two little ones, eat. Take whatever you want."

The fruit plate held sunflower seeds, candy, dried longans, and loose biscuits. There was quite a variety.

Then she made tea for them.

Zhou Momo had already climbed onto a stool by herself and sat at the table nibbling on a small biscuit.

"Where's Uncle? I don't see him around." Zhou Yan put the two crucian carp into a wooden bucket in the kitchen to keep them alive, then came back out and asked the old woman.

"He went out to weed early this morning. He'll come back for lunch. Don't worry about him." The old woman shelled sunflower seeds for Zhou Momo as she answered casually.

"All right." Zhou Yan pulled over a stool and sat down as well. He took two tangerines from the bag and handed them to the old woman. "Fresh red tangerines. Really sweet."

"I can't eat that many. Later, take half of them back with you. Your uncle doesn't eat any fruit." The old woman looked at the bag of tangerines.

"All right."

"How's business at your restaurant?" the old woman asked warmly again.

"Not bad." Zhou Yan smiled. "I sell noodles and hot pots. I can make a hundred yuan a day."

"Making a hundred yuan a day, and you call that not bad?" The old woman chuckled. "You little rascal, still trying to play humble?"

"Then just think of it as your grandson getting rich. I'll take you to live a good life someday." Zhou Yan peeled a tangerine for Zhou Momo.

The old woman said leisurely, "My life is already very good. I have cured meat every day, liquor to drink, and I play a little mahjong in the afternoon. I don't lack food or clothes; my days are better than an immortal's. As long as I eat well while I'm alive, who cares whether I stink or smell sweet after I die?"

"That's a good attitude." Zhou Yan praised her sincerely.

"If your restaurant's doing well and you're making lots of money, don't go telling everyone about it." The old woman looked at him and carefully advised, "Like a mute eating glutinous rice balls, just keep the sweetness to yourself. Don't give people reason to set their sights on you."

"Mm, I'll remember that." Zhou Yan nodded, warmth filling his heart.

Having an elderly family member who understood things and loved you—it turned out this was what it felt like.

It felt a little like happiness.

Zhou Yan chatted with the old woman. She was very talkative, and whenever she spoke of her younger days, there was light in her eyes and a smile on her face.

Especially when she mentioned his grandfather, her smile grew even brighter, and her tone brimmed with pride. "Your grandfather was in the Sichuan Army. In 1938, he left Sichuan to fight the Japanese. Later, he came home to recover from an injury for a year, then returned to his unit to keep fighting. His body was covered in scars, and he said they were medals.

"After the Japanese were defeated, the family was allotted land. He wanted to come back and farm, but the foreigners had reached the Yalu River again. There were orders from above, and he was a company commander, so he packed up overnight and returned to the army to fight them. He wrote me a letter over there, but it never got mailed. It was sent back with his belongings.

"He said he wasn't a coward. He'd killed seven or eight foreign soldiers and hadn't disgraced me or the children..."

The old woman spoke slowly, like gently flowing water.

Zhou Yan listened quietly.

Zhou Momo, meanwhile, kept her head down and ate snacks, utterly unconcerned with anything else.

After the old woman finished, Zhou Yan went to the kitchen to braise the ribs. Ribs had to be cooked until tender to taste good; the heat couldn't be lacking.

"Zhou Qing brought over beef intestines, beef tongue, and a jin of beef shank this morning. I braised them early and left them soaking in the pot. We'll slice up two plates for lunch. Don't make too many dishes. There are only three of us and one little baby—we can't eat that much."

The old woman lifted the lid of a nearby pot, and the rich fragrance of braised food instantly filled the air. The pot held gleaming red-brown braising liquid, with a corner of beef shank exposed and braised beef intestines floating on the surface.

"That smells amazing!"

Even Zhou Yan couldn't help swallowing. The old woman had maintained this old braising stock for more than ten years. During holidays, she used it to braise beef offal, beef tongue, beef shank, chicken feet, duck heads, rabbit heads—everything tasted delicious when braised in it.

Whenever braised dishes were served, they were always snatched clean.

The old woman treasured this pot of old braising stock dearly. Even her most precious great-grandchild wasn't allowed to touch it.

Two years ago, Fanwa accidentally tipped over the pot and spilled a third of the braising stock. His father and grandfather beat him terribly with thin bamboo switches. In the end, the old woman had to step in to settle the matter.

Only later did Zhou Yan learn that his eldest uncle and Brother Fei had been afraid the old woman would beat them, so they had struck first.

Everyone in the family knew how precious that pot of braising stock was, but no one dared set their sights on it.

[Ding! A pot of high-quality old braising stock detected. Side quest triggered: Collect this braising stock to obtain initial old braising stock and unlock the journey of braised-food cooking! Quest reward: Complete Guide to Braised Foods. Accept: Yes/No]

Zhou Yan's eyelid twitched.

This system really was a bastard!

But selling braised food was good business.

It could be served as a dish in the restaurant, and customers could also buy it to take home.

Once it was braised, he only needed to arrange for someone to slice and weigh it. It wouldn't take up any kitchen space at all.

Fortune came with risk. He was going for it!

"Grandma, your old braising stock tastes unbelievably good. Could I take it back to use at my restaurant?" Zhou Yan asked cautiously.

"Scram!" "Magic cloak!"

"You dare set your sights on my old braising stock? Don't make me slap you!"

The kind old woman had vanished.

The shadow of the original Sichuan-Chongqing tyrannosaur descended.

Zhou Yan: ༼;´༎ຶ۝༎ຶ༽

"Grandma, love me again..."