Chapter 1055: Let

A basket full of radishes and cabbage—that's really not necessary.

They've already hosted a pig-slaughtering banquet for over a dozen tables; there's no need to be stingy about this.

Song Tan sighed and waved a hand: "Qiao Qiao, this is a class reunion held for you, and you need to be responsible for hosting your little friends. Go prepare the party favors yourself—no tea leaves, no pork; as for the rest, you decide."

"Okay!" Qiao Qiao instantly brightened up: "I'll go pick some vegetables right now!"

Clearly, he was pouring his heart and soul into it.

Watching his back as he ran off into the distance, Song Tan suddenly felt a pang of the bittersweet heartache of raising a son.

Tsk.

Lu Chuan withdrew his gaze, and a faint smile couldn't help but appear on his lips.

Perhaps only by being nurtured by such family members can a "child" like Qiao Qiao, whose intellect is lacking, bloom with such brilliant radiance.

……

The midday winter sun was warm and cozy. After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, it was inevitable that they would feel a bit sluggish.

Just at this time, the Song family was tidying up the courtyard. Several handsome, well-built young men were sweeping the ground with large brooms, huffing and puffing, so everyone wandered from the courtyard to outside, eventually strolling aimlessly along the asphalt road where there were neither people nor cars.

The villagers who had come to help clean up had already gone home after tidying the kitchen, while others held their own thoughts, deciding to come back and chat in detail tomorrow after the Song family had fewer guests.

The netizens looked at the bamboo forest in the distance, rustling in the wind, then at the vegetable patch down the slope that had lost its spring vitality, and the two conspicuous white greenhouses in the middle…

Finally, they shifted their gaze to the yellow mud stove in front of them.

If they remembered correctly, because they had eaten the dishes clean at noon, there was actually quite a lot of rice left…

The top-ranked fan, Wubainian, swore he was full at noon.

But…

He cleared his throat: "So… have you guys ever eaten rice balls?"

"Not the kind sold outside filled with pork floss or other stuff, but the kind made in a big pot in the countryside."

Soft rice and crispy, broken scorched rice gathered in the palm, squeezed hard with both hands, and you get an authentic rice ball.

Those who like sugar dip them in white sugar; those who don't like sweets wrap them with fermented bean curd or small pickles.

If that doesn't work, even eating them plain, the rice grains themselves are fragrant and sweet.

As he described it, the few people present silently rubbed their stomachs.

The two girls were the first to look regretful, almost shedding tears: "No, stop talking. I'm still so full, I really can't eat another bite."

The other few men looked at each other:

"My stomach is still full, I'm not that hungry either, but it's a waste to just leave the rice there…"

"Exactly, whoever scraped the thinner scorched rice from the edge didn't scoop it up; there's still a lot left."

"Yeah, I'm not very hungry either, but this rice is really fragrant. I think I could manage a small one if I eat it slowly…"

"I'm okay. I feel like this hawthorn pill really helps with digestion. My stomach doesn't feel like much after a while; I should be able to eat another one…"

"I like the savory kind. I wonder if I can wrap some pickles or chili sauce inside…"

As they talked, their footsteps moved toward the stove in unison.

However, before they could lift the pot lid, they saw several men walking over with hoes:

"Come, come, we're freeloading a meal today, we can't just do nothing! What was said about how to clean up this stove just now?"

"Xiao Zhu, you stand aside and rest your mouth; it feels like you've been the busiest today. My ears are tired too; we can handle the heavy lifting."

"That won't do! What heavy or light work? We didn't do any work today, why divide it so much? Come, come, I remember the chef's request just now—here's a rag for you, let's lift this iron pot together."

"You guys just smash this mud stove. The aunts said the village is checking strictly lately, and burning fires here is easily detected by satellite."

In the past, after the pot was removed, the mud stove would be left there, and it would collapse on its own in two days, then turn into a pile of dirt after a few days of wind and sun, no special cleaning needed.

But now that environmental monitoring is strict, even if a small thing wouldn't cause trouble, it's better to clean it up!

It also saves them from finding trouble.

The few men were about to start, but Wubainian, who had just set the mood, hadn't even tasted anything yet—how could he tolerate this?

He quickly stepped forward: "Brothers, brothers, no rush, no rush." He lifted the pot lid, "Look, there's still half a pot of rice left in each one."

As soon as the lid was lifted, the few spirited young men instantly lost their fighting power.

They put the rags in their hands back on the stove. Staring at the pot of rice, the rough men patted their hands, feeling a bit conflicted:

"Can't eat anymore."

"We can, we can!" Wubainian and the others patted their bellies, which sounded like drums, as if they were carrying ripe watermelons inside.

They swore: "We ate those big hawthorn pills, and now the digestion is almost done; we can still eat another bite."

Saying this, they were all grown men; the rice was so delicious, if they could eat it, they would want to stuff a bite in too!

Everyone looked at each other and lifted the remaining two pot lids again—alright, there was leftover rice in all of them!

So there was no need to hesitate anymore; several people picked up spatulas and started.

With a grab and a squeeze of their big hands, an irregular rice ball was formed.

But this time, they had to remember not to wolf it down. For something this delicious, you have to savor it slowly to kill time and satisfy your stomach.

By the time everyone was squatting on the curb eating rice balls, Secretary Wang also wandered out. Seeing this, he couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.

It was fortunate that he was on an incognito visit with the leader. If he had really brought media like the city leaders, and this group of people were just squatting here eating rice balls…

That would be so damaging to their image!

After all, they were all from Ningcheng. Secretary Wang chuckled for a while. Seeing the leader still talking to the old men, he felt a bit restless.

He walked up a few steps: "Eating rice balls?"

Wasn't that exactly what they were doing?

Wubainian stood up, ready to say something polite: "Do you want one too?"

She then subconsciously glanced at the pot.

Just now, those dozen or so people had actually scraped the pot clean of the remaining rice; now, even if she wanted to give them more, there was none left to give.

Fortunately, Secretary Wang was sharp-minded; seeing their expressions and then looking at the empty pot, he could roughly understand.

He shook his head at this moment: "No more, no more, I can't eat any more—don't you all really feel stuffed?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than he saw the 'Peppa' man in front of him suddenly clutch his stomach in pain.

"Ouch..."