The sky collapsed, and in the blink of an eye, I found myself transported to Nanluoguxiang.

I rode my bike back to my home in courtyard number 93. Since I got off work early today, my parents and younger siblings hadn't come home yet.

Li Kaixin went straight into the kitchen and began preparing dinner.

The kitchen beams were covered with marinated meats.

There was the wild boar meat and venison he brought back at the beginning, as well as chicken, duck, fish and rabbit, and the tuna he bought in Haicheng before.

However, Li Kaixin didn't touch those; instead, he took out fresh ingredients from the secret realm space.

Since we're going on a long trip and will be apart for several days, we should at least have a good meal before we leave.

The meal was prepared exceptionally lavishly, almost everything found in the secret realm was included, and it took more than two hours to prepare.

I made a total of eight dishes: fried tuna chunks, spicy crayfish, spicy and sour crucian carp, braised pork, etc., almost all of them were meat.

When the parents pushed open the door and saw the table full of dishes, they were so surprised that they were speechless.

"Dad, Mom, what are you standing for? Please sit down!" Li Kaixin came out of the kitchen with a large bowl of chicken soup, greeting them with a smile.

Father Li Mingde snapped out of his reverie, a smile spreading across his face: "Kaixin, what's the occasion today? Why such a lavish feast?"

"Dad, please sit down first. I'll tell you everything when we eat," Li Kaixin said, keeping everyone in suspense before returning to the kitchen.

The parents exchanged a glance, didn't ask any more questions, and sat down at the table.

After Li Kaixin served the last dish, her younger siblings came home from school and entered the house one after the other.

"Wow! Mom, did you prepare such a lavish feast today?" Li Kai, the younger brother, was the first to see the table and ran over excitedly.

Mother Qin Xiuli patted her second son's head and said with a smile, "Xiao Kai, you guessed wrong. Your eldest brother cooked this meal today. I couldn't bear to cook so many dishes."

Li Kai, the younger brother, looked surprised and turned to Li Kaixin: "Big brother, why are you cooking today?"

"What, can't I cook if there's nothing wrong?" Li Kaixin smiled, then waved towards the door, "Xiaoxiao, come on over, dinner's ready!"

"Okay, big brother!" Li Xiaoxiao replied and quickly walked over.

The family sat together, but no one touched their chopsticks; the parents stared intently at Li Kaixin.

Li Kaixin felt a little uncomfortable being stared at, so he cleared his throat and said, "Father, Mother, I'm going on a long-distance trip tomorrow. This time I'm going to Inner Mongolia, and I'll be back in about ten days."

"That's it? Why all the secrecy? I thought something big was going on," Father Li Mingde immediately chimed in.

Qin Xiuli, the mother, glared at her husband and scolded him, "Honestly, you're so happy to go on a long trip. It's one thing if you're not worried, but you're making sarcastic remarks."

"Wife, don't be angry, don't be angry." Father Li Mingde chuckled twice, "I just thought it was some big happy occasion because Kaixin prepared such a big table of food."

"Besides, Kaixin isn't going to Inner Mongolia for the first time, what could possibly happen?"

Upon hearing her husband's words, Qin Xiuli, the mother, retorted irritably, "You're full of twisted logic."

"Mother, please don't talk about Father. I actually have some good news to tell you and Father."

Li Kaixin smiled and tried to smooth things over, his tone filled with barely suppressed laughter, "There was an assessment at the station today, and I passed the Level 2 Deputy Driver qualification test."

"What?" Father Li Mingde suddenly exclaimed, then asked in disbelief, "Kaixin, are you serious?"

"Dad, of course it's true." Li Kaixin nodded with a smile.

Qin Xiuli, the mother standing nearby, couldn't help but ask out of curiosity, "Honey, what exactly is this 'Deputy Second Level' thing you're talking about? Look how excited you are."

"Wife, let me tell you this!" Father Li Mingde straightened his back, his face full of undisguised pride, "Now Kaixin's salary alone is eighty-six yuan!"

He didn't know that drivers had different levels until he saw his eldest son in the newspaper, where it was specifically mentioned that Kaixin's driving skills were at the second-level. That's when he made a point of looking into it.

Upon hearing this, Qin Xiuli, the mother, was shocked: "Eighty-six yuan? That's more than our combined salaries!"

When the younger brother and sister heard that their older brother's salary was higher than their parents', they looked up at him with admiration.

"Wife, this salary is nothing!" Father Li Mingde continued to boast. "I heard from my coworkers that once you reach the third-level driver's rank, you can apply to be an examiner. They're people even some leaders have to respect!"

"Then after you're happy, won't you be a leader?" Mother Qin Xiuli exclaimed excitedly.

"Mom, it's not that exaggerated." Li Kaixin smiled, and seeing that the matter was over, she said, "Let's eat! The food won't taste good if it gets cold."

He didn't actually know about this, and thought to himself that he would ask Uncle Xie later.

"Okay, okay!" Father Li Mingde nodded happily, picked up his chopsticks, and said, "Kaixin, you have to drive a long distance tomorrow, so we won't drink this time. We'll have a good drink together when you come back."

Li Kai, the younger brother, couldn't wait any longer. Seeing his father pick up his chopsticks, he immediately reached out and grabbed some food as well.

The meal was quite lively, with the younger brother, Li Kai, wolfing down his food while constantly muttering how delicious it was.

My younger sister, Li Xiaoxiao, also ate much more than usual, her little face full of satisfaction.

After the meal, Li Kai, the younger brother, sat on a stool and touched his slightly protruding belly.

He licked his lips, still savoring the food, and said, "Big brother, your cooking is so delicious! I wish I could eat your cooking all the time."

Li Kaixin figured she had nothing to do after dinner, so she decided to tease him: "Xiao Kai, is Mom's cooking not good?"

"Big brother, you think so too?" Li Kai, the younger brother, lit up as if he had found a kindred spirit. "You don't know, Mom only makes the same two or three dishes over and over again. I'm so tired of them."

Li Kaixin was a little dumbfounded, not expecting her younger brother to be so honest. She quickly interrupted, "Xiao Kai, don't talk nonsense! Mom's cooking is so delicious, your taste is too picky!"

Seeing his mother walking out of the kitchen, he had no choice but to sacrifice his friend rather than himself.

The moment Li Xiaoxiao saw her mother approaching, her younger sister quietly slipped away to the side.

Li Kai, the younger brother, was still oblivious and continued to mutter, "What's wrong with me? All I do is stir-fry cabbage or boil potatoes all day long, and the meat is so salty it's inedible."

Li Kaixin coughed twice and desperately winked at his younger brother behind him.

"What's wrong, brother? Is your throat sore?" The younger brother, Li Kai, was completely unaware of the impending danger.

Qin Xiuli's mother's voice came slowly from behind: "Oh? Is my cooking really that bad?"

Li Kai, the younger brother, stiffened and slowly turned his head. He forced a smile that looked more like a grimace: "Mother, when...when did you come out?"

"Ever since you said you were tired of eating it." His mother, Qin Xiuli, looked at him with a half-smile.

"Mom, I was wrong!" Li Kai immediately admitted defeat, then stood up and hid behind Li Kaixin: "Big brother, save me!"

"No, no, no, I didn't say anything. You were the one who said Mom's cooking wasn't good, it has nothing to do with me." Li Kaixin quickly hid behind her.

"Big brother! You clearly did just now..." Li Kai's eyes widened, but before he could finish speaking, his mother grabbed his ear.

"Ouch, Mom, be gentle! Your ear's about to fall off!"

"You think my cooking isn't good enough? Then you can cook from now on." Mother Qin Xiuli tightened her grip slightly.

"No, no, no, Mom's cooking is the best, really! I was just led astray by my older brother!" Li Kai covered his ears, still trying to shift the blame onto his older brother.

Li Kaixin shrugged: "I didn't lead you astray, you said it yourself."

Li Xiaoxiao, the younger sister, covered her mouth and chuckled.

Father Li Mingde chimed in, adding fuel to the fire: "Xiao Kai, I've been eating your mother's food for twenty years and have never complained about how bad it is. You've got some nerve, haven't you?"

"Father, you won't help me!" Li Kai wailed, seeing no way to get help, he could only look pitifully at his mother: "Mother, I won't dare to do it again, can you give me another chance?"

In the end, it was only after her younger brother, Li Kai, agreed to take on the task of washing dishes that their mother, Qin Xiuli, finally let him go.