Chapter 91 Brother Joins the Army, Making His Wife Cry

When the three people who went out to work opened their courtyard gate, they smelled a sweet aroma of steamed buns and corn mixed together.

After a morning of farm work, the three of them returned home carrying two baskets of pig feed and a basket of firewood. The smell of the food made their stomachs rumble, and Xiao Jiu, who was cleaning the lettuce, laughed out loud when she heard it.

"Grandpa, Grandma, Third Sister, you're back! Wash your hands quickly, dinner will be ready soon. Sister, I've already cleaned the lettuce leaves. The skin is hard to peel, can you do it? I'll go wash the lettuce leaves, we'll stir-fry them later. How about we make a cold salad with the root?"

The articulate little girl rattled off the lunch arrangements in one breath, surprising and delighting the three of them. Grandma ran to the kitchen first to check, and her older sister had already come over and hugged her.

"Oh my, my thoughtful little girl is cooking for us again? Let me guess, you made corn porridge, right?"

Xiao Jiu raised her chin smugly, "Not only that, sister, go and see, Grandma, the pot is ready, let it simmer for a little while longer and then we can open the lid."

Grandpa, who was washing his face, was shocked when he heard this: "Did I hear that right? You little girl even steamed buns?"

Grandma was also extremely surprised at the time, especially when she saw the clean cutting board in the kitchen. She felt that this girl had come to bring good fortune to their family. How could she be so worry-free? Not a single grain of flour was wasted, and there was no sour smell of fermentation in the air. Looking at the obvious traces of baking soda on the cutting board, she was so excited that she couldn't speak.

Pandi reacted quickly and took the pot away, placing it on the stove next to her.

Just then, Xiao Jiu came in with the washed lettuce leaves. "Sis, the vegetables are washed. Why don't you cook them?"

Grandma realized what was happening and quickly took the vegetables from her hands, affectionately pinching her little cheek.

"Grandma's little darling, you are so thoughtful. Here, Grandma will cook this vegetable. Panpan, go peel the lettuce, be careful not to cut your hand."

She placed the lettuce on the cutting board, made a few casual cuts, and handed the knife to Pandi. As soon as Pandi left, she put the wok on the rack, scooped a small spoonful of lard from the oil jar, heated the oil, told Xiaojiu to step back, and with a sizzle, the vegetables were put into the wok.

"Grandma, you can add the chili peppers. Don't worry about me. I just had a bowl of noodles at Grandma Zhou's, so I'm not hungry right now!"

To take care of her, I rarely add chili peppers, but stir-fried vegetables don't taste good without chili peppers, so I specifically told her to add them and then ran out, worried that adding chili peppers later would make her choke.

"Grandpa, my brother Yue gave me a handful of peanuts, you can have some too."

She ate one peanut, and stuffed the remaining four into her grandfather's hand. Her grandmother's teeth weren't as good as her grandfather's, and she didn't eat much hard food. However, their generation had endured hardship, and even though they hadn't brushed their teeth much growing up, their teeth were still stronger than those of the new generation born in the 21st century who brush their teeth every day but still don't have good teeth.

"My family's wine is so thoughtful. Did you hang out with that kid Zhou Yue this morning?"

"Xiao Jiu taught Brother Yue how to braid hair, and Brother Yue even treated Xiao Jiu to noodles. Xiao Jiu isn't hungry at all right now."

“Good boy, my Jiu has grown up and knows how to help adults with chores. It’s been worth raising him. He’s better than all your older brothers.”

These boys have grown up so much, and I've never cooked them a single meal. Unlike this little girl, who is so sensible at such a young age.

He is now incredibly grateful that he didn't object to his daughter-in-law taking in these girls; these little girls are just more considerate than the boys.

"My goodness, how did you do that? You steamed buns so well on your first try? They're just as good as your older sisters'!"

When Xiao Jiu heard her grandmother's voice, she quickly ran to the kitchen to see what was happening. She saw freshly steamed buns, all fluffy and without any visible baking soda. Her grandmother couldn't wait to take a bite and gave her a thumbs up.

"My family's liquor is really amazing, it's not sour at all, and the baking soda is added just right. When did you learn how to do that?"

"I watch Grandma make it every day, and the wine is so clever!"

"If people knew about this skill, they'd probably think I was bragging."

The older sister came in and joined in the praise, even chuckling to herself, "Grandma, does this mean we can have ready-made meals when we come home from now on? Look how capable my grandma is!"

"No problem at all. As long as I don't have to roll out noodles, I think I can do anything!"

The little wine-loving girl, puffed out her cheeks in pride after being praised, then her older sister lifted the lid of the pot, and her grandmother chopped vegetables to make a cold lettuce salad. Once the meal was ready, they set up a table under the grape trellis.

Xiao Jiu broke off a piece of steamed bun, wanting to try her own cooking. Although the bun was a bit coarse, it tasted really good. In particular, the steamed bun she made really had a nice texture. With this sense of accomplishment, she finished the bun in her hand in no time.

My sister immediately handed me half: "Want some more?"

Xiao Jiu shook her head vigorously, "No, no, I'm too full. Grandma, can I take four for Grandpa Zhou and the others to try?"

"Of course, this is homemade wine, so I definitely have to share it with everyone. Here, let Grandma fill it for you."

When Ajiu brought the steamed buns to the front yard, she was praised again. Grandma Zhou even said that when she wasn't busy, she would braid a pretty hair ornament for her.

"This little guy is amazing! He's only two years old and he can already steam buns. What were you two doing when you were two?"

Zhou Yue's eyes darted around, his thoughts drifting far away. When he was two years old? He was probably still working on the farm with his mother, right?

“Your good-for-nothing cousin, when he was two years old I had to carry him to work in the fields, I had to feed him, and he could walk…”

As she finished speaking, her gaze sharpened.

"What's the use of being good to them? If only your own uncle were still alive, wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Now, his son and daughter are both dead...

"Alright, you're starting to overthink again. Don't you want two grandsons? Now that they've changed their surname to Zhou, aren't they our own grandsons? As long as we live our lives honestly, we'll have no trouble making a living. There aren't many people this afternoon, so you two can go to a literacy class to learn more characters. It's better to be educated than to be blind. Once we get through this year and have some money, we'll send you to school too."

However, the thirteen-year-old brother and the ten-year-old brother already had their own ideas.

"Grandma, I want to join the army,"

"Grandpa, I also want to join the army. It's good to join the army. We can save food and we get a monthly allowance that we can send back home. That way, you won't have to work so hard."

The children's words made Grandma Zhou unable to hold back her tears any longer.

"Why would you want to be a soldier? It's not like we can't afford to eat if we don't join the army. Have you forgotten how your uncle died? Besides, with our family's situation, we don't even know if we can join the army!"