As Mrs. Lin passed by the yard, she saw her son Gou Dan and the nearly three-year-old child from the fourth branch, Xiao Chu, playing with stones on the ground. An idea popped into her head.
She squatted down and said to Gou Dan and Xiao Chu, "Do you want to eat dumplings?"
When it ca to food, both little ones nodded in unison, with Gou Dan being more expressive.
He threw the stone in his hand, rushed over to hug Mrs. Lin’s leg, and started to act cute.
"Mom, I want to eat dumplings, I want to eat dumplings!"
As he spoke, he sniffed, and the snot that was about to reach his lips was sucked back into his nose by Gou Dan.
Looking at her snotty son, Mrs. Lin pulled out a cloth handkerchief from her pocket and handed it to Gou Dan, "You little rascal, how did you get so dirty? Wipe your nose quickly."
Gou Dan took the handkerchief and, like a gust of wind, sared all the snot on Mrs. Lin’s handkerchief.
Though he was her own son, Mrs. Lin was utterly disgusted.
The cloth handkerchief in her hand was sothing she really didn’t want anymore. Yet not having it was unaffordable, so she reluctantly put the handkerchief back into her sleeve, shivering a few tis.
"Mom, you still haven’t said how to eat the dumplings!" Gou Dan asked impatiently.
"Go to your third uncle’s house. He made dumplings. Later, you can go and ask for so. If your third aunt doesn’t give them to you, roll on the ground, cry, and keep doing it until she gives in. Understand?"
The thod Mrs. Lin taught Gou Dan was the typical strategy of crying, making a fuss, and threatening to hang oneself. However, this tactic usually worked for little kids like Gou Dan.
Gou Dan imdiately nodded.
Although Xiao Chu was still young and didn’t understand much, he nodded when it ca to food.
She grabbed the two children and strutted toward the third branch.
When they reached outside the yard of the third branch, Mrs. Lin put the two little ones on the ground.
She let the two kids go in first to scout the situation.
...
At this ti, more than half of the dumplings at the third branch had been wrapped. With many kids craving dumplings, Mu Shuangshuang simply had Yu Si Niang cook so first so everyone could get a taste.
Yu Si Niang was also waiting for Mu Shuangshuang’s at dumplings and other fillings. When Mu Shuangshuang suggested cooking them in batches, she didn’t refuse. Instead, she called Xiao Han to help in the kitchen.
After finishing cleaning the pot and adding water, Xiao Han had already lit the fire. Strings of various filled dumplings were being dropped into the pot like dumplings.
Xiao Han sat steadily at the stove mouth, watching the fire without moving.
In the yard, Mu Shuangshuang and Lu Yuanfeng were still busy wrapping dumplings. After countless failed attempts, Lu Yuanfeng finally managed to wrap his dumplings properly.
Not only did they have a full shape, but the rice inside the dumplings was also tightly packed.
Mu Shuangshuang was amazed.
"Fengzi, you’re simply a genius. In such a short ti, I can’t even tell which dumplings you wrapped and which ones I did."
Mu Shuangshuang’s straightforward praise made Lu Yuanfeng blush a bit.
He looked at the girl beside him, and although her face was still tender, her dark eyes were always full of spirit.
Standing beside her, he always felt positive energy.
It always seed that life was full of hope when with Shuangshuang.
Lu Yuanfeng wrapped more dumplings. This ti, the dumplings ca out so similar that they couldn’t be distinguished, just like Mu Shuangshuang said.
Because they were really too much alike.
"By the way, Fengzi, what should we do with the leftover dumpling leaves?" Mu Shuangshuang pointed to a large wooden basin filled with dumpling leaves on the steps.
Lu Yuanfeng had collected dumpling leaves from a far place where almost no one went, and there were many leaves there. Leaving them was a waste, so Lu Yuanfeng brought back a sack.
Mu Shuangshuang took half a sack of dumpling leaves to town to sell and earned various fillings for making dumplings.
"After we’re done wrapping, let’s see who else needs them, and we’ll give them away!" Lu Yuanfeng replied.
Mu Shuangshuang nodded with a smile. They had already wrapped so many dumplings this ti, and the leaves were no longer needed.
She roughly calculated and estimated there were about a hundred dumplings.
Even the students at the academy each got one dumpling.
They also prepared twenty dumplings for Luo Bai, so he could take them back and celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival with his mother.
Initially, Mu Shuangshuang didn’t plan to give any to Zhang Huai Shu and Zhang Yutou, but later knowing they hadn’t tasted Mu Shuangshuang’s dumplings with different fillings, she decided to give each household four or five dumplings.
Mu Dalang and Huang Bita, who were in Tie Dao Village, had neither kin nor acquaintances nearby, and with not much money on hand, they might not even wrap dumplings at all.
In the end, after splitting so many dumplings, not much was left for the third branch, Lu Yuanfeng, and Yuanbao.
While they were chatting and laughing, two little kids suddenly walked into the yard.
It was Xiao Chu and Gou Dan.
Xiao Chu was a child from the fourth branch. Mu Shuangshuang had always treated him well. As soon as he arrived, Mu Shuangshuang greeted him.
"Xiao Chu, co over here and let your sister see if you’ve gained weight."
Xiao Chu waddled over to Mu Shuangshuang and hugged her waist.
"Sister Shuangshuang!" he called out sweetly.
Mu Shuangshuang put down what she was doing and started playing with Xiao Chu.
Watching this, Gou Dan’s eyes started to burn with jealousy.
Not because Mu Shuangshuang hugged Xiao Chu, but because she didn’t greet him when he arrived.
To be fair, the conflict between Mu Shuangshuang and Gou Dan was sowhat irreconcilable.
Before Mu Shuangshuang crossed over, Gou Dan often bullied the kids from the third branch. The worst was when he nailed Mu Shuangshuang’s hair to a bench, almost causing her unbearable pain.
Little Zhi and Xiao Han also suffered under his bullying.
Even after crossing over, Mu Shuangshuang experienced Gou Dan’s shalessness, so generally, she would ignore him.
"Hey, brat, I heard your family made dumplings? Where are the dumplings?" Gou Dan swaggered up to Mu Shuangshuang, extending his hand to ask for so.
"Co ask for dumplings when you learn to respect your elders and call sister!" said Mu Shuangshuang.
Gou Dan rolled his eyes. "Wishful thinking! I won’t ever call you this stinky sister!"
"Oh, really? I rember soone who cried for their parents when I caught them at Aunt’s house in Dahuo Village, promising never to act tough in front of again?"
Mu Shuangshuang reminded Gou Dan of his past embarrassing deeds.
Indeed, even a young Gou Dan flushed with anger when reminded of past sha.
Reaching out, he tried to hit Mu Shuangshuang, but she extended her hand and caught his.
But that hand was sticky, unknown why, almost causing Mu Shuangshuang to lose her grip.
"Oh wow, she’s hitting, Mu Shuangshuang is hitting people!"
A short distance away, Mrs. Lin saw Mu Shuangshuang grabbing her son Gou Dan’s hand and began to jump and shout.
While walking into the yard of the third branch, her mouth didn’t forget to sar Mu Shuangshuang’s reputation.
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