Under Lin Mu’s guidance, she entered the area and found where they kept their clothes. Seating herself, it wasn’t five minutes before three guys were running over to her.
"I’m quite thirsty, we won’t be shy about it." Wen Xiao was also in their class, tall enough to sit in the last row, and shared a dorm with Lin Mu. They were tight-knit, and he was quite robust, rumored to be an athletic student. She hadn’t talked much to him, but he seed easy to get along with.
"I was going to buy soy milk, but I worried you wouldn’t like it. This water is a bit cold, so drink slowly."
It was already mid-October, and each day was colder than the last. Drinking cold water after exercise actually wasn’t a good idea, although only Chinese people drank hot water, their constitution had adapted to this habit. A little reminder was still a good thing.
The three of them didn’t sit down, standing in front of her, sipping water and organizing their Noon activities.
Both Lin Mu and Zhou Mo’s family conditions were quite good, their parents were civil servants, and being only children, they had plenty of spending money. But she wasn’t used to spending boys’ money, so if soone treated her she’d reciprocate elsewhere, like how Zhou Mo and Lin Mu would buy her snacks at school if she treated them. Everyone was very conscious about this, and nobody had the habit of taking advantage.
Boys weren’t as petty as girls, nor did they overthink things. They did as they pleased, rarely getting upset over money unless soone was quite excessive. Generally, they could gloss over such issues; this was the difference between boys and girls, and on reflection, it was the boys who were more concerned about face.
Their hair was sweaty after exercising, temples beaded with sweat, and a lock of hair on their forehead was damp and especially sexy.
"What do you like to eat?"
Zhou Mo’s abrupt query cut through Lin Mu’s chatter, which brought Lin Mu back to the mont, "Right, right, what do girls like to eat?"
Zhou Yiyi chuckled, "It’s not so exaggerated. I’m not picky. Let’s go with what you guys want, I’m just tagging along today. I had a late breakfast and I’m not that hungry yet!"
Lin Mu’s eyes darted around, "Then how about we go for a barbecue in the countryside? I have a grill at ho,"
"How are we going to get there? Can you drive? Taking the bus is a hassle, but if we take a taxi..."
Wen Xiao’s words were cut short by Lin Mu, "Or shall we go to my Grandma’s place? She lives in the suburbs, and she could make us stove chicken? We could also stroll by the river, and it’s just a bike ride away, not too far."
The proposal was well-received, and the boys quickly got ready, but as they left the park, Zhou Yiyi sadly discovered her beaten-up bike had been stolen, "Are you kidding ? Soone would steal such a wreck? Is there no justice left?"
They searched around the park but couldn’t find it, and finally, Zhou Yiyi decisively gave up.
"Forget it, let it be lost. Don’t look anymore. Maybe I forgot to lock it, an opportunity literally presented to soone—how could they resist?"
"Get on, I’ll take you." The bikes of Lin Mu’s trio were all GIANTS, mountain bikes typical for boys of that era.
Before she could move, Zhou Mo nodded towards Lin Mu, "You lead the way, I’ll take her."
Taking the cue, Lin Mu didn’t persist any further, but just as they were about to leave, Wen Xiao’s Xiao Lingtong (a cell phone that could only make local calls) rang. After hanging up, he turned apologetically, "Really bad timing, my Mom said my aunt’s family is coming over for lunch, so we have to go out for a al. Why don’t you three go ahead?"
The group of four eventually beca a trio, as Yiyi hopped onto Zhou Mo’s bike. Too embarrassed to wrap her arms around his waist, she could only awkwardly hold onto the back of the seat.
Their ride was smooth on the asphalt road, but once they left the city and hit the dirt roads, things got a bit unstable. Zhou Mo took the opportunity to say,
"Grab onto my clothes."
With his permission, Yiyi switched to clutching his clothes. After about an hour of a bumpy ride, they finally reached the small town in the suburbs. Surely they couldn’t visit the elderly without bringing anything, right? So they bought a chicken, a box of milk, so desserts, and a bag of fruit before heading to the rural area surrounding the town.
Upon arriving in the village, she noticed a river nearby and so not-too-high hills. The environnt was really nice.
Granny Lin and Grandpa Lin currently lived alone, able to take care of themselves, and even fard their own land. They lived in a newly built bungalow with an enormous courtyard, where vegetable plots lay both inside and outside the yard, and chickens, ducks, and geese road everywhere, presenting a scene of harmonious beauty.
Their eldest grandson had co to visit them, bringing friends along, which naturally made them quite happy. After so warm greetings, the elderly couple insisted on cooking a al for them.
Yiyi, not wanting to impose, took the initiative to cook instead, asking Grandma to help start the fire, while Grandpa Lin took the two boys to play by the river.
Yiyi was quite skilled at cooking, especially at making stove chicken, which was a simple task for her. Unfortunately, Grandma’s house didn’t have many seasonings, just oil, salt, dark soy sauce, and Five-Spice Powder; nothing else. It didn’t matter though, as stove chicken didn’t require much in the way of ingredients. Spicy food was delicious, but not suitable for the elderly, so she ended up making a Five-Spice-flavored dish. Once the chicken was nearly done, she stuck flatbreads around the edges of the pot to cook until they were perfectly done.
While the chicken stewed, Grandma made so flatbreads with sweet potato leaves, to be dipped into garlic sauce—a taste that was nostalgically delightful.
To finish off, she made a pot of millet porridge with red dates to warm the stomach and cut through the greasiness.
Just as she finished preparing the al, the three returnees from the river ca back, carrying a bucket. Curious, she went over to take a look.
"Wow, you guys did well catching so many fish in such a short ti!"
"What are you talking about? These are the fish Grandpa caught from his fish cages. Look, two Changyu, one Crucian Carp, and about twenty small ’Little Whites,’"
It was a sha the chicken was already stewing; they clearly couldn’t eat the fish right then, so Yiyi called them to dinner.
The most important aspect of eating stove chicken was the wood; it needed to smolder and smoke to bring out its unique flavor, and with a large iron pot and the bread added, it tasted even better. When they learned that Yiyi was the one who made the chicken, their faces showed complete disbelief: "You’re so impressive! You can cook too?"
Yiyi laughed and said, "What’s so rare about that? Ask Grandma and Grandpa— which girl in the village can’t cook?"
The grandparents shook their heads. "You can’t say that. Not everyone knows how to cook; It all depends on how the adults teach them. Yiyi, you did well. It tastes good."
"You hear that? That ans being able to cook really is impressive!"
A bit embarrassed by the praise, Yiyi said, "I guess I’m just used to it. I’ve been cooking since elentary school. Even though there weren’t many spices, and the taste was so-so, Mom never complained. Looking back now, I am really thankful to her for teaching how to be self-sufficient early on. It was good."
And it was true—the original owner of the body had started learning to cook in the third or fourth grade. Perhaps even then, Mrs. Zhou had foreseen this?
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