Courtyard House: Purchasing Agents' Comeback from the Great Famine

12 o'clock noon.

Lou Xiao'e and Lu Banxia each carried two large bowls of hearty dishes to the table, including braised goose in an iron pot, Kung Pao chicken, stir-fried mutton with scallions, braised pork, and hot and sour cabbage.

Wang Feng looked at the four main dishes on the table. In this year, even ministerial-level officials probably don't eat as well as they do.

"Brother Feng, Sister Jingru, dinner's ready. Banxia, ​​try my cooking."

Lou Xiao'e served Wang Feng a bowl of rice, and also served Qin Jingru and Lu Banxia a bowl each.

"Um."

Wang Feng responded to Qin Jingru and started eating immediately. They were an old married couple, so there was no need to be polite.

"Thank you, Sister Xiao'e."

Lu Banxia picked up a piece of Kung Pao Chicken and put it in her mouth. Her eyes lit up immediately. Xiao'e's cooking was very delicious, only slightly inferior to Jingru's.

Then she ate a piece of stir-fried mutton with scallions, and then a piece of goose meat. All three dishes were very delicious.

"Sister Xiao'e, your cooking is delicious," Lu Banxia exclaimed.

Lou Xiao'e smiled gently: "If you like it, eat more. But you eat Sister Jingru's cooking every day, so you probably don't think much of my cooking anymore, right? Let me tell you, all my cooking skills were taught by Sister Jingru. Her cooking is the real deal."

"Hehe, both of you made delicious dishes," Lu Banxia said playfully.

Qin Jingru proudly raised her snow-white neck: "My son, your cooking skills are now 90% of mine. Don't be modest. Your cooking skills are only average among chefs at state banquets."

"You taught me very well," Lou Xiao'e said modestly.

Wang Feng watched the three women chatting amongst themselves and said speechlessly, "Alright, we're all family, stop with the formalities. Isn't it tiring?"

"That's right, Goose, Banxia, ​​don't be shy. I heard from Sister Hongyan that we are called, by the way, we are all good sisters who have fought together."

"Hey, Sister Jingru, we're eating! How can you say that? You're so rude!"

Lu Banxia's face flushed red, and she didn't dare to look at anyone. The meaning of those words came from a dirty joke that Mu Hongyan had told them when they were chatting earlier. At the time, neither she nor Qin Jingru understood what it meant, and it took Mu Hongyan a while to explain it to them before they understood.

Seeing Lu Banxia's embarrassed expression, Lou Xiao'e asked in confusion, "Sister Jingru, what does 'we fought together' mean?"

Qin Jingru smiled indifferently, and was about to explain, since they were all family, what was there to hide? Just then, Lu Banxia exclaimed in surprise.

"Sister Jingru, don't say it!"

"Okay, okay, I won't say it, I won't say it in front of you, is that alright?" Qin Jingru said with a smile.

Lu Banxia nodded, her face flushed, "Fine, as long as you can't say it in front of me."

Lou Xiao'e was completely bewildered by the two men's actions; it was the first time she had ever heard of such a novel term.

Wang Feng certainly understood the meaning of those words. According to Jing Ru, these words came from Mu Hongyan. In later generations, almost everyone could understand them, but in this era, they were somewhat inappropriate.

Mu Hongyan's backing is incredibly powerful. Her grandfather is a general, her father is the Minister of Metallurgy, and her uncle is the Vice Minister of Public Security. For a second-generation official like Mu Hongyan to say such things, one can only say that the entertainment industry is truly chaotic.

Lu Banxia put a piece of braised pork on Wang Feng's plate, and then put a piece on Qin Jingru's plate as well as Lou Xiao'e's plate.

"Brother Feng, Sister Jingru, Sister Xiao'e, please try this braised pork."

Wang Feng nodded, picked up a piece of braised pork and put it in his mouth. Soon, his brows furrowed, but he didn't say anything more.

After Qin Jingru ate the braised pork, she smiled and commented, "Not bad, Banxia, ​​you must have made this braised pork, right? For your first time cooking, it's already quite good. It's still a bit inferior to Shazhu's cooking skills."

After a pause, Qin Jingru continued, "The main problem is that you didn't control the heat well, and the timing of adding the seasonings was also wrong. With more practice, you'll definitely make it better and better in the future."

"Yes, thank you, Sister Jingru. I asked Sister Xiao'e to teach me how to make this braised pork today. I didn't expect you to be able to tell the difference as soon as you tasted it."

Lou Xiao'e also ate the braised pork, and comforted her with a smile: "Banxia, ​​you already have a great talent for cooking. I didn't even teach you step by step, I just explained it once, and you were able to cook it like this. I believe your cooking skills will soon reach the same level as ours."

"Yes, thank you, Sister Xiao'e."

Wang Feng was very pleased to see that Lu Banxia's culinary talent had also improved and that she was diligently learning to cook.

His three future wives will all be top-notch chefs for state banquets, and he and his future children will be blessed with delicious food.

The meal was finished amidst laughter and chatter. Of the four main dishes and the spicy and sour cabbage, only a third remained. The braised pork belly was the most left over, mainly because it wasn't very tasty.

Now, Wang Feng, Qin Jingru, and the other two women are all big eaters. If they don't eat premium rice, they can easily eat two or three pounds of meat in one meal.

If Wang Feng doesn't have the space to raise them, his salary of 99 yuan really isn't enough to support the three of them.

Lou Xiao'e and Lu Banxia tidied up the dishes. Lu Banxia washed the dishes while Lou Xiao'e made tea. They seemed to be getting along very well.

Wang Feng moved the table outside the door, where several kinds of fruit were placed. He then moved his recliner outside and lay down on it, drinking tea.

Qin Jingru and the other two women sat beside him, drinking tea and eating fruit, chatting and laughing. The afternoon passed quickly.

When it was time for dinner, Lou Xiao'e made another dish of spiced beef, then heated up the leftovers and started eating.

After dinner, it was already six o'clock in the afternoon. Lou Xiao'e brought over two oil paper packages and handed them to Qin Jingru, saying:

"Sister Jingru, these are chicken and goose innards, chicken and goose heads, chicken butts and stuff. Didn't you say before that Aunt Wu in your courtyard was very nice to you? You can take these to Aunt Wu."

"Okay, son, now that I don't have to go to work, I'll have more time to chat with you."

Qin Jingru took the oil paper package and left Courtyard No. 28 with Wang Feng and Lu Banxia, ​​returning to Courtyard No. 95.

Upon entering the front yard, Qin Jingru handed the chicken and goose innards to Aunt Wu, which moved Aunt Wu deeply. The three of them returned to the house, took a shower, and went straight to bed.