Chapter 108

Yo, you brought the supply and sales cooperative back? He Yuzhu looked at the things on Li Qiang's car and said half-jokingly.

We've barely started, I still have to go out again, come over and lend a hand to unload the stuff. Li Qiang said with a smile.

What else are you planning to buy? He Yuzhu asked.

Besides, we can't just eat mutton; this one sheep isn't enough for so many of us. I'll go get some beef, a fish, and two chickens back. Guoqing that kid likes fish. Li Qiang's bicycle cargo capacity is a bit small; otherwise he wouldn't have to make two trips.

No wonder that kid is close to you; whenever there's something good to eat you think of him. He Yuzhu said with a hint of sourness.

That's right, and besides, Yushui is good to our two families' kids. Li Qiang said with a smile.

In the evening, the four families gathered in Li Qiang's small courtyard and set up two full tables. He Yuzhu was grilling mutton skewers but it wasn't enough to eat; He Chen anxiously urged him to hurry, stoking the fire.

Silly boy, don't you know you can't rush eating hot tofu? If the fire's too strong you'll burn it. He Xia, come over and grill; I'll go drink with your uncles. He Yuzhu, really annoyed by his own son's urging, directly handed the task to He Xia.

Fine, go keep them company drinking; I'll handle things here. He Xia perfectly inherited He Yuzhu's honest and solid character.

Second brother, it's not a holiday, why did you suddenly want to eat this? He Yushui asked Li Qiang.

Not long ago you were busy, I went to Inner Mongolia, saw them roasting a whole sheep there, thought it was good, so I had the workers rig this oven when I got back. Let you all come over to try it. Li Qiang could only make up a casual excuse. He couldn't very well say he knew there would be an earthquake tonight and didn't trust them staying home, so he deliberately invited them over.

Second brother, do you think roasting a whole sheep and mutton skewers taste the same? Zhuang Yan asked with a smile.

Definitely the same flavor. I originally wanted to roast a whole sheep, but building the oven was too troublesome, so I had the workers simply put together this oven. It can not only grill mutton but also other things, making it more practical. Li Qiang said with a smile.

I remember you didn't like it when you were little; how come you like it more as you've grown older? Li Bin asked Li Qiang with a smile.

Brother, it's not that it's bad; when we were young we simply had nothing to eat. Now living conditions have improved, we can't always be eating chaff and vegetables, can we? That would be slandering our socialism. Li Qiang said somewhat forcefully.

You just have a sweet tooth; if it's tasty, it's tasty, no need for all these excuses. Zhou Rong followed up.

Second sister-in-law, don't say that about second brother; how much can he eat alone? In the end it's still a bargain for us. Upon hearing Zhou Rong say that about Li Qiang, He Yushui immediately stood up to defend him.

You still shouldn't say that; eating barbecue while drinking beer, this life is something even immortals can't compare to. He Yuzhu said contentedly after taking a sip of wine and a bite of meat.

Virtue. Yu Li gave him a white-eyed look.

Zhuzi. Don't just drink beer, pour some baijiu; drinking only beer isn't satisfying enough. Li Bin said; people his age really aren't used to drinking beer.

Alright. With such good food, not having a couple of drinks would be a real waste. He Yuzhu said with a smile.

You say that, but what you just drank wasn't alcohol, was it? Yu Li said disdainfully.

For men, beer is just a beverage; you don't understand. He Yuzhu looked at Yu Li as if she were an idiot.

What kind of look is that? Yu Li stared at He Yuzhu and asked.

Nothing. He Yuzhu gave an embarrassed laugh.

Several families were drinking and eating skewers in Li Qiang's small courtyard, laughing and chatting; the kids were drinking soda. Li Qiang specially ran a wire from the house and installed a light bulb in the courtyard.

Dong, dong, dong

Who could it be at this hour? He Yuzhu said, frowning.

Probably Yan Butgui; this afternoon he saw me bringing back so much stuff and asked me to bring him some to try. I forgot about it. Li Qiang said a little embarrassed.

That stingy old Yan, acting like a kid—forgetting something and then showing up at the door to demand it. He Yuzhu had always looked down on him, now even more contemptuous.

Ah, this is also my fault. If I had asked Yanzi to send him some, this wouldn't have happened. Li Qiang said embarrassedly.

Second brother, let me say this: being a nice guy doesn't mean you have to put up with him. You don't need to bother with someone like him. He Yuzhu said, pursing his lips.

Alright, since people have come, we can't not open the door for them; they're all neighbors. Li Bin interrupted He Yuzhu's continuing grumbling.

He Xia, go open the door and see who it is. He Yuzhu shouted loudly on purpose.

Grandpa Yan. How come it's you? He Xia opened the door and saw that the person standing at the threshold was indeed Yan Butgui.

Grandpa Yan, is your second uncle home? Yan Butgui asked with a smile.

He's at home, please come in. He Xia sincerely ushered Yan Butgui inside.

Teacher Yan, I'm really sorry, I got busy and forgot. Li Qiang saw Yan Butgui come in and quickly said with a smile.

It's nothing. I came myself, after all. Yan Butgui truly didn't treat himself as an outsider.

Fine. Since you're here, sit down and have a drink together. Li Qiang truly hadn't expected Yan Butgui to be so shameless. He didn't send anything, yet the guy showed up on his own doorstep.

Then I won't stand on ceremony. Yan Butgui was delighted, his face all wrinkles. Tonight Third Aunt cooked but he hadn't eaten, and he had assured her with conviction that someone would bring him food. When it got dark and still nothing happened, he kept peeking outside, who knows how many times. Seeing it was getting late, he came to the door himself, lest they'd have eaten everything by then.

Teacher Yan, I'm not saying this to criticize you. Your nose is sharp enough— the back yard isn't close to the front yard, yet you could smell the aroma and find your way here; I'm impressed. He Yuzhu said with a mocking tone.

Zhuzi, you're wrong about that. I didn't come because I smelled it; I saw Qiangzi carrying all that stuff this afternoon, and we had actually agreed on it, right, Qiangzi? Yan Butgui, being utterly shameless, turned his uninvited visit into a prearranged meeting with Li Qiang.

Yes, Teacher Yan, you're right. By this point Li Qiang saw no need to quibble with him anyway; since everyone was already there, no matter what he said he couldn't leave, so might as well let him have his say.

He Xia, are these skewers yours? Yan Butgui asked while eating a skewer.

Yes, Grandpa Yan. He Xia replied with a smile.

Not bad, you've got your father's bearing from back then. This flavor speaks for itself. Yan Butgui gave a thumbs-up.

Of course, you should also look whose son he is. Upon hearing Yan Butgui praise He Xia, He Yuzhu's attitude toward him improved considerably— which parent doesn't want others to praise their child?