09/eng_cont/i_0026.txt

Chapter 26 Feasts.


He would have to give Ah Nan a good talking-to that night, reminding her to always clean up her messes. He quickly wiped away the traces for Tian Sisi, then left with his hands behind his back, in a very good mood. He was now certain that there was a mysterious figure behind Tian Sisi, though he didn't know if it was Lord White Ape. But he was sure that this person had no ill intentions towards the Tian family. Thinking of the old man's words that the Tian family would prosper for a hundred years, his heart suddenly felt warm.

Grandma Zhao came in carrying a chicken and a rabbit. Seeing Grandpa Zhao about to leave, she asked curiously, "What are you doing in the kitchen?"

Grandpa Zhao never liked going into the kitchen. He was a bit of a chauvinist, believing that kitchen work was for women, and men should just focus on the important things outside. Grandpa Zhao coughed and said, "I'm just taking a walk."

Grandma Zhao didn't think much of it. She lifted the lid of the rice jar and muttered to herself in confusion, "Huh, I clearly remember there was only half a jar of rice left yesterday. How come there's still half a jar left after cooking two meals last night and this morning?"

"Perhaps you're mistaken?" Grandpa Zhao chuckled inwardly. He definitely had to tell his wife about A-Nan's matter; she was the head of the household, and nothing escaped her eyes. Grandma Zhao didn't think much of it either; she probably really was mistaken. Her memory was getting worse with age, she couldn't help but sigh.

But when she went to the stove to cook, she realized it wasn't that she had a bad memory; something was definitely wrong. She clearly remembered that the oil in the oil bottle was at the spout that morning, so why was the oil level higher after cooking? Something was wrong. Thinking about how her husband, who never went into the kitchen, had come in earlier, Zhao's first thought was that he had secretly put rice and oil in there. But she quickly dismissed that idea. She controlled the family finances; where would her husband get the money to buy rice and oil?

Zhao didn't bother thinking about it anymore. She would just ask her husband that evening. She never liked to rack her brains; she would just ask directly. Guessing was too much of a mental drain. That's why she got along very well with the equally straightforward Li Yuedi. Li Yuedi brought in freshly picked vegetables from the garden, and Zhao gave her sister-in-law the chance to cook.

Li Yuedi readily accepted the ladle, and the two sisters-in-law worked together seamlessly, one tending the fire and the other stir-frying. Because there was a lot of food, Old Lady Zhao used both cooking pots on the stove – one for rice and the other for stir-frying. She even lit a small stove to simmer pheasant soup.

Tian Sisi, having nothing to do, played with Xiao Niu Niu and peeled peanuts for him. Tian Xinhua and the others, unable to sit still, saw there was nothing to help in the kitchen and went up the mountain to gather firewood. Soon, the young men each carried a large bundle of firewood home.

Before noon, Tian Bajin and the others finished work, fetched hot water from the kitchen, washed their faces and hands, and went into the room. As soon as they entered, they smelled the aroma of meat, making everyone's stomachs rumble after a long day's work. Zhu Qingping felt a little embarrassed and stood at the door, hesitant to come in. Tian Jinhua pulled her inside, reminding her that they had agreed last night to apologize to A'nan today.

When Tian Sisi saw Zhu Qingping, she greeted her generously as "Sister-in-law." In her opinion, what happened last night was no big deal, and besides, Zhu Qingping hadn't meant any harm. Hearing Tian Sisi's greeting made Zhu Qingping even more embarrassed. She blushed and stammered, "Anan, I'm so sorry about last night. Please don't blame me."

"What are you saying, Sister-in-law? Nothing happened last night! Go take Niuniu to eat; there'll be good food for lunch!" Tian Sisi replied with a smile. Although she didn't blame Zhu Qingping, she simply couldn't get along with her personality; they couldn't really talk to each other.

The old man and the old lady Zhao were very satisfied with their granddaughter's behavior. Although they also blamed Zhu Qingping, they were family after all. If they kept nagging, it would seem petty. They couldn't be too calculative with their own relatives. Being domineering at home isn't a real skill;

true ability comes from being assertive outside! On the table lay a large bowl of braised rabbit, a large bowl of stewed pheasant, a bowl of scrambled eggs with scallions, a bowl of stir-fried chicken giblets and blood with pickled vegetables, a bowl of vegetable rolls, a bowl of fried tofu, and a large bowl of steamed sweet potatoes. Each bowl was piled high, a truly generous portion.

Everyone looked at the hearty dishes on the table and couldn't help but swallow hard. My goodness! This is even more lavish than the New Year's feast! Grandma Zhao smiled and invited everyone to sit down and eat. "Don't be shy," she said. Because there were so many people, Grandma Zhao set up two tables, one large and one small. The large table was for the men, and the small table was for the women and their children. Tian Sisi was called to their table by Grandpa, and she sat down next to Tian Xinhua and Grandpa.

The old man was in a very good mood. He asked Old Lady Zhao to bring out a pot of wine and poured a small cup for Tian Bajin and Tian Mantu. The men in the Tian family all liked to drink, and the young and old could all have a few sips. However, in these days, the harvest from the fields wasn't even enough to fill their stomachs, let alone have any extra grain to brew wine. The sorghum that the two families pooled together was barely enough to supply Old Man Tian and Tian Bajin with wine for a year. The others might sip a few mouthfuls if they felt like it, but they didn't dare to drink much.

Everyone ate and drank to their heart's content, eating meat in large mouthfuls and drinking wine in small sips. Old Lady Zhao told them to finish all the food and not leave any, so she could cook something fresh for dinner. With Old Lady Zhao's instructions, no one was going to be polite anymore. They ate like hungry tigers, taking big bites.

The old man placed a chicken leg on Tian Sisi's plate, but she refused, giving it to Tian Xinhua instead. "Brother Xinhua, here, have the leg. Next time, we'll go to the mountain to gather meat."

She whispered the last sentence in Tian Xinhua's ear. Tian Xinhua rolled his eyes at her. "You're dreaming. There's no way you'll find so much meat to gather."

He didn't stand on ceremony and ate the chicken leg, then placed chicken wings and chicken feet on her plate. A-Nan didn't like chicken legs; she preferred bones and ribs. Tian Sisi looked at the chicken wings and feet with a beaming smile. She hadn't expected the original owner to have such similar tastes!

"Thank you, Brother Xinhua, but I love gnawing on chicken feet."

Tian Xinhua watched Tian Sisi gnaw on the chicken feet with disdain. Her hands were greasy, and she would delicately spit out a bone every now and then. Her mouth was also covered in grease. He frowned, took her floral handkerchief from her pocket, and wiped the grease from her hands and mouth. But he retorted, "Look at you eating like that, your face is all greasy. You must have been a dog in your past life, otherwise why would you love gnawing on bones so much?"

Tian Sisi rolled her eyes at him and wiped the grease off her hands on Tian Xinhua's clothes. "You're the dog!"

The Tian family all watched Tian Sisi and Tian Xinhua bicker with smiles. Among all the cousins, Anan and Xinhua had the best relationship and loved to argue the most. Tian Shouhua also watched his younger brother with a smile, thinking to himself, "Let them argue, let them argue, it would be best if they argued until we finished eating!"

Everyone ate their lunch with their mouths full of grease. The dishes on the table were all gone, and even the soup in the bowls was eaten by Tian Jinhua and the other young people. Everyone burped contentedly, rubbing their bulging bellies. Today's meal was rich enough to last for several days. The rice in the pot was also eaten clean. Tian Sisi only ate chicken feet and chicken wings and a few pieces of rabbit meat before she was full. Tian Xinhua ate all the rice in his bowl.

Tian Xinhua ate her leftovers and then complained, "I'm the only one who doesn't mind your leftovers. How much of your leftovers have I eaten? But how come you eat so little? You're practically skin and bones. Country folk don't like girls like you. Be careful you don't end up unmarried."

Tian Sisi ignored him. Humph, where was she skinny? She only looked thin; she had plenty of meat on her bones. There was still more than half a bowl of sweet potatoes left on the table. With so much delicious food today, no one wanted to eat coarse grains like sweet potatoes. Tian Sisi picked up a piece of sweet potato and ate it slowly. Sweet potatoes were good for beauty, detoxification, and weight loss.

Li Yuedi scooped up the leftover bones in a large bowl, intending to feed them to Da Huang. Poor Da Huang had never had a full meal since birth. In this world, not only people are starving, but even dogs are starving! Today, Da Huang had to have a good meal.