I have few friends, but many childhood sweethearts.

Chapter 509. It would be best if all five were daughters-in-law.

When they returned, there were only the three of them in the elevator.

However, Xu Qingfan was afraid of being filmed and having the video go viral, so he didn't make any physical contact.

"Auntie, you're not going home for lunch, are you? Yi Yi and Wan Ning will come over for lunch." Xu Qingfan took Zhang Yi Yi's hand, while her other hand hung down naturally, having been held by Lin Wan Ning earlier that morning.

"Okay, let's go to my brother's house." After smiling, Zhang Yi gently rested her head on Xu Qingfan's shoulder, her eyes fixed on the floor displayed on the elevator.

Seventh floor, sixth floor, second floor, first floor.

After the door opened, the three of them tacitly separated their hands, and Xu Qingfan pushed the wheelchair away from the elevator.

"Brother Qingfan, where are we going now?" Lin Wanning leaned back in his chair and looked up at him.

Xu Qingfan looked down at her with a slight smile, pinched her cheek and said, "Let's go to the market first to buy some groceries, and buy pig's trotters for Wan Ning to eat. You are what you eat."

"Okay, okay~ I want to eat pig's feet with ginger, make a stew of pig's feet with ginger, and piss Zhu Yuanzhang to death." Lin Wanning is not a picky eater, so he doesn't mind that pig's feet are not clean.

"Where did you learn that rhyme? Are you preparing for the postgraduate entrance exam?" Xu Qingfan said with amusement, feeling a strange sense of familiarity.

"Yi-Yi knows, but Brother Qingfan, don't you know?"

Sure enough, as soon as Lin Wanning finished speaking, Zhang Yiyi smiled and chimed in, "Grab the pig's feet and bump into Zhu Yuanzhang."

"Put down the pig's feet and ginger, and call out to Zhu Yuanzhang!"

"Call out Zhu Yuanzhang's name, but you won't find him serving up a pot of pig's feet and ginger!"

"Grab Zhu Yuanzhang and ask him where he got the braised pig's feet with ginger!"

Lin Wanning probably found it amusing, and recited the rest of the tongue twister by himself. The girl's Cantonese was adorable.

Xu Qingfan was stunned, wondering what sins Zhu Yuanzhang had committed to be portrayed like this.

But I must say, it actually rhymes quite well, enough to beat 99% of college-level rap.

"Hehe~ Brother Qingfan, don't you know? He's the duck in Heart of Greed." Lin Wanning's eyes crinkled into crescent moons as she smiled, thinking that Brother Qingfan seemed a bit silly, even though they were all watching TV together.

Hearing her say that, Xu Qingfan did recall the scene on TV, but he still stubbornly retorted, "My head is full of useful knowledge, do you think I'm like you?"

"Hey~ Brother Qingfan is cheating!" Lin Wanning immediately started to tease, his shushing voice drawn out.

"Brother, you rascal!" Zhang Yiyi covered her mouth and chuckled from the side.

"Yi-yi is right, Brother Qingfan is a scoundrel!"

"You shameless snake, you shameless snake!"

"Rogue snake."

Xu Qingfan was defeated by the two of them. He covered his face and begged for mercy in a low voice, "Stop reading, stop reading, everyone is watching us."

"Brother Qingfan is such a scoundrel!"

"Brother Qingfan, do you admit it or not?"

"Hee hee hee"

However, the more Xu Qingfan said this, the more excited Lin Wanning became.

"Brother, you rascal." Zhang Yiyi felt even her steps had become lighter, as if she had returned to her carefree childhood.

Xu Qingfan wasn't really afraid of losing face; he was just playing along with the two of them. He whispered, "I'm a scoundrel, I admit it, stop reading now."

"Yeah! (＾－＾)V"

"Brother Qingfan is a scoundrel."

Lin Wanning waved her little hand excitedly, and she spoke the last three words in sign language.

She kept muttering something to herself until she got back into the car.

Xu Qingfan and Zhang Yiyi exchanged a smile, sharing a tacit understanding of doting on their daughter.

It was inconvenient to push a wheelchair to the market, but at the girl's request, Xu Qingfan agreed to take Lin Wanning with him.

Fortunately, it wasn't peak time for grocery shopping, so when they encountered a crowded stall, the two girls waited where they were, while Xu Qingfan squeezed into the crowd to buy pig's trotters.

"I've bought the pig's trotters. I'll go to the grocery store to buy sweet vinegar later." He hung the groceries on the raised armrest of his wheelchair. His hands were dirty, so he couldn't pinch Wan Ning's face anymore.

"Let's go!" Lin Wanning pointed in the direction of the general store.

People in Hong Kong always use Zhimeizhai sweet vinegar when making braised pig's feet with ginger. Depending on individual taste, you can add water or not.

Xu Qingfan and his friends can't handle too much sourness, so they usually mix water and vinegar in equal parts. If it's still too sour, they add half a piece of cane sugar to neutralize the sourness.

"Old Jiang, Brother Qingfan, and Old Jiang too," Lin Wanning reminded them as they came out of the general store.

Xu Qingfan naturally remembered to buy ginger, but he pretended to just remember and patted his head, saying, "Luckily Wan Ning reminded me, I almost forgot to buy ginger."

"Hehe~ It's not ginger, it's old ginger!" Lin Wanning said smugly.

Zhang Yi just watched with a smile, without exposing her brother's performance.

After everything was laid out in the open, the three of them seemed to get along much better.

After buying ginger, eggs, and other ingredients for lunch, the three returned to the car.

"Should we ask Ruan Wen? Everyone's come over for dinner, it wouldn't be good to leave her out," Xu Qingfan said.

Lin Wanning and Zhang Yi exchanged a glance, and the latter pointed to his phone: "Brother, look at your phone."

Xu Qingfan was slightly stunned. After turning on his phone screen, he saw that there were 99+ unread messages.

"what?"

"I didn't even notice when you started chatting."

In their group chat of six, five girls had already started building a thread.

"No wonder Yi-yi just said she wanted sweet and sour pork ribs, it turns out it was Ruan Wen who wanted them." Xu Qingfan realized this after quickly reading the information.

"Hee hee~"

“Brother, let’s go pick up Ruan Wen now,” Zhang Yi said with a smile, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

Without Xu Qingfan saying a word, the driver had already replanned the route.

“Okay, let’s go pick up Ruan Wen first. The champion of sleeping in is actually up so early today.” He tagged Xiao Ruan Wen in the group chat and sent a nose-picking emoji.

Xiao Ruanwen lived in the phone, and in a short while, Xu Qingfan immediately received three angry emojis from her.

Xu Qingfan continued sending three nose-picking messages, and the next second, Xiao Ruanwen sent three bombs.

Xu Qingfan continued picking his nose, and Xiao Ruanwen chopped at him with a kitchen knife; Xu Qingfan picked his nose, and Xiao Ruanwen ignored him.

"Brother Qingfan, you're so boring~" After watching the two's meme war, Lin Wanning also posted a pig head emoji and tagged Xu Qingfan.

Zhang Yiyi didn't say anything and silently continued the conversation.

Soon, five identical pig heads appeared in the chat group, all tagging Xu Qingfan.

"The world is vast, but sisters are the greatest. Hmph, Brother Fan, what can you do to fight me?" Xiao Ruanwen said smugly.

Xu Qingfan simply ignored this and put his phone away after turning off the screen.

Sitting on the sofa waiting for Fan Ge's reply, Xiao Ruanwen giggled, her eyes never leaving the screen.

However, a minute passed, then three minutes passed, and still no message was received from Xu Qingfan.

[Why aren't you saying anything, Fan-ge?] [Are you so angry you're secretly shedding little pearls?]

Xiao Ruanwen sent him two messages in a row, and Lin Wanning showed his phone to Xu Qingfan.

"Brother Qingfan, did you secretly drop your little pearls?" She leaned closer to observe Xu Qingfan's eyes.

Xu Qingfan tapped her on the head and sent a message from Lin Wanning's phone: "Brother Qingfan said he doesn't talk to idiots."

"I rely on!"

"Ahhhh!"

"That bastard Fan, that damn Fan, he must have used Wan Ning's phone to send it!"

Xiao Ruanwen didn't know whether Fan Ge had broken down or not, but it seemed that she had.

"Wenwen, what's wrong?"

"Girls shouldn't use foul language."

Zhao Yuemin, who was hanging clothes to dry on the balcony, returned to the living room to check after hearing the noise.

"I'm fine without my mom. I won't say anymore, I won't say anymore." Xiao Ruanwen gently slapped her own face.

Zhao Yuemin glanced at her a few more times, then shook her head helplessly, as if to say: "What a fine girl, I wonder who she takes after?"
After her mother left, Xiao Ruanwen awkwardly stuck out her tongue, completely forgetting that she was at home.

"One who stays near ink gets stained black," and the phrase "I'm so damn damned" is obviously something he learned from Xu Qingfan, but even if he said it, Zhao Yuemin probably wouldn't believe him.

"How could such a good kid like Xiao Fan swear!"

It can only be said that Xu Qingfan left a very good impression on the mothers.

[You stinky Fan, if you're so capable, use your own phone to speak! This definitely wasn't posted by Wan Ning!] Xiao Ruanwen angrily picked up her phone and edited.

Xu Qingfan stopped teasing her and used Lin Wanning's phone to confirm: "Don't call me. We'll be there in five minutes. Be downstairs by 10:50. If you're late, we'll leave. You'll have to walk to my house yourself."

Xiao Ruanwen bared her fangs at him, but unfortunately Xu Qingfan couldn't see it.

After picking up Xiao Ruanwen, the girl treated his head like a roasted chestnut and turned it into a chicken coop.

Xu Qingfan didn't bother arguing with her, and patted her on the bottom, and Xiao Ruanwen immediately behaved herself.

"It's freezing! What are we having for lunch?" she asked, her pretty face slightly flushed, trying to appear calm.

"Eating Zhu Yuan, not pig's feet and ginger duck," Lin Wanning blurted out, almost making a mistake.

"Great! I haven't had pig's feet with ginger this year." Xiao Ruanwen's eyes lit up instantly. What could ease the awkwardness? Only delicious food.

"Wanning, how's your foot getting better? Did the doctor say you can go to the hot springs?" She deliberately ignored Xu Qingfan and started chatting with Lin Wanning instead.

"Mmm, the doctor said the bandages can be removed next week. Brother Qingfan asked, and we can go to the hot springs, hehe!" Lin Wanning said happily.

"Okay, okay, I was worried that Wan Ning wouldn't be able to have any fun."

"Yes, duck, we can soak in the hot springs now~"

The two chatted casually, with Xu Qingfan playing with Zhang Yiyi's small hand, and the car quickly returned to Donghui City.

Xia Xiaoxiao and Wu Lingyu received the news and opened the door early to wait at the elevator entrance.

As soon as the elevator doors opened, the two groups of people greeted each other with delight, calling out each other's names.

"Alright, alright, I thought you hadn't seen each other in ages. Didn't you just come back from school yesterday?" Xu Qingfan pushed the wheelchair out first, and went straight in when he saw the open door.

"Where's my mom? Did she not get up or went out?" he asked.

"Auntie went to collect salaries," Xia Xiaoxiao explained.

Yao Jinping employs eight staff members across three stores, paying their monthly salaries at the end of each month.

Compared to those unscrupulous bosses who withhold a month's wages to prevent staff shortages, this is already quite good.

"Oh, I was hoping she'd make the braised pig's feet in vinegar, but I'll have to do it myself." Xu Qingfan shrugged.

Even though everyone says that the steps for making braised pig's feet in vinegar are the same, Xu Qingfan just feels that Yao Jinping's version tastes better, probably because of childhood nostalgia.
After changing into slippers, Xu Qingfan bent down and carried Lin Wanning to the sofa in a princess carry, then pushed the wheelchair directly to the balcony.

"Brother Qingfan, I can help too! I'll peel the ginger!" Seeing everyone else going into the kitchen to help, and only he sitting alone on the sofa watching TV, Lin Wanning raised his hand and said.

"I never intended for Wan Ning to slack off, so don't rush, your work will be done soon." Xu Qingfan put his hands on his hips, glanced at the ingredients, and handed over the vegetables that needed to be peeled and picked.

Soon only he and Wu Lingyu were left in the kitchen. Xiaoyu picked up an apron, stood on tiptoe, and helped him put it on from behind.

"Thank you, Xiaoyu." Xu Qingfan glanced at the living room and, seeing that no one was looking their way, quickly pecked Xiaoyu on the cheek.

Wu Lingyu was startled and quickly turned her head to look in the direction of the living room. After confirming that she hadn't been discovered, she gave Fan Ge a reproachful look.

"Cook properly now, you weren't being affectionate just now."

The scoundrel laughed, "If I dared to kiss you just now, would Xiaoyu have dared not to dodge?"

"Hmph~" Wu Lingyu pouted slightly, rolled up her sleeves, and ignored him.

Xu Qingfan was in charge of blanching the pig's trotters, while Wu Lingyu was in charge of boiling and peeling the eggs. The two worked together quite well.

After blanching, clean the pig's trotters to remove any surface scum. Drain the water and dry-fry them in an iron wok. Add white wine in the middle to remove the porky smell. Dry-fry until the skin is golden brown, then transfer them to a clay pot.

After peeling, flatten the old ginger with a knife, then dry-fry it in an iron pot until the skin is golden brown, then transfer it to a clay pot.

The ratio of old ginger to pig's trotters is about one to four. Add sweet vinegar and water, and add peeled eggs in the middle. Bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat for about an hour and a half.

Xu Qingfan always followed this procedure, but the pig's feet with ginger he made never tasted as good as his mother's.

Around noon, Lin Jing and Yao Jinping returned together.

"Poor pig, does your foot still hurt?"

"It's not swollen like last time. How long will it take to heal, according to the doctor?"

The two squatted down in front of Lin Wanning and asked with concern.

"Hehe, thank you, Auntie. It doesn't hurt anymore. The doctor said the splint can be removed next week." Lin Wanning wasn't the type to be afraid of her parents, and she said with a grin, pointing to her foot.

"We need to be careful when exercising in the future, and we won't do any sports that are too dangerous."

"Yes, Auntie, I understand!"

Yao Jinping was very pleased with Lin Wanning's obedient nodding.

But Yao Jinping also liked Xia Xiaoxiao, who brought her slippers, Wu Lingyu, who was busy in the kitchen, as well as Xiao Ruanwen and Zhang Yiyi.

There wasn't a single girl in the room who didn't like her.

[That brat, I don't know how he got so lucky to meet all these amazing girls.]
Yao Jinping has given up on thinking about which one will become her daughter-in-law in the future. She wants them all, but that's impossible!

"Mom, Auntie, you're back. You can cook the rest of the dishes. Let us rest for a bit and chat." Xu Qingfan came out with a spatula and handed the apron and spatula to Yao Jinping.

Yao Jinping looked at the sweat on his forehead and took a tissue to wipe it away for him.

"Rest now, spend some time with Wan Ning and the others." She handed the tissue to Xu Qingfan, waved to the girls, and said, "Auntie will make something delicious soon."

"Thank you, aunt!"

"Auntie is the best!"

The five girls' voices were in unison, sweet and melodious, which made Yao Jinping very happy.

[It would be wonderful if all five were daughters-in-law!]
(End of this chapter)