Chapter 15: Taking a Step Forward, Then Retreating

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Fu Xiaoxiao glanced at Lu Lin and Lu Chen beside her and smiled lightly. “When others go out of their way to pick us up from afar, what should we say to them?”

Lu Lin and Lu Chen exchanged a look. They seldom expressed gratitude to others. Since Wang Lu had brought them back, they felt a bit embarrassed and thanked him.

“Thank you, Uncle Wang Lu.”

Wang Lu looked at Fu Xiaoxiao in surprise. He had seen the two children adopted by Captain Lu many times and had only heard Aunt Li’s complaints about them. But now, they didn’t seem as mischievous as Aunt Li had described. Moreover, the older sister just mentioned it casually, and they didn’t resist but spoke up?

But calling him uncle…

He was only eighteen years old—was he really an uncle to them?

“Call me brother instead. You don’t look much younger than me!” Fu Xiaoxiao saw through Wang Lu’s thoughts and reminded him with a gentle smile.

“Hehe, just call me Brother Lu,” Wang Lu said, scratching his head and grinning sheepishly.

“Thank you, Brother Lu,” Lu Lin and Lu Chen obediently called out.

“Sis-in-law, you all get busy. I have to report back now,” Wang Lu nodded happily. He still had to hurry back to report to his superior.

“Thank you for your trouble.” After seeing Wang Lu off, Fu Xiaoxiao took Lu Lin and Lu Chen inside.

“It’s a bit late to come back today, so cooking will be late too. How about we just make some simple noodles?” Fu Xiaoxiao brought the ingredients into the kitchen. The neighbors had already prepared their meals, and delicious aromas wafted through the air.

“Sounds good.” Lu Chen’s eyes brightened; he liked noodles.

“Do you need our help?” Lu Lin looked at Fu Xiaoxiao awkwardly and asked.

“Can you help me pick some greens and scallions from the backyard?” Fu Xiaoxiao had already poured flour and was kneading dough, so it was inconvenient for her to go pick vegetables.

Without a word, Lu Lin left the kitchen and headed to the backyard.

“Brother likes noodles too,” Lu Chen whispered to Fu Xiaoxiao after Lu Lin left.

Hearing that Fu Xiaoxiao didn’t have a mother either, Lu Chen felt a twinge of sympathy. He thought that if she was like them, then she was one of their own.

“Do you like eggs?” Fu Xiaoxiao squatted down and asked Lu Chen quietly.

“Yes. Are you going to give us eggs to eat? Aunt Li stole all the eggs we collected. They were saved up by me and my brother for a long time.” Lu Chen’s voice was muffled as he recalled Aunt Li.

Every day, he and his brother would go to the back mountain to find various eggs, but they never dared to eat them. They wanted to save them for Grandpa Bai, but Aunt Li stole them all, not leaving a single one.

He had been disappointed for a long time.

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“Aunt Li?” Fu Xiaoxiao raised an eyebrow, thinking this was a chance to deal with Aunt Li.

“What do you do every day besides going to see Grandpa Bai?” Fu Xiaoxiao stood up and continued kneading dough, casually asking.

“A lot of things! My brother and I go to the back mountain every day to look for herbs, catch rabbits, and collect bird eggs…” Lu Chen counted off on his fingers.

Fu Xiaoxiao listened to him and realized the two little ones were indeed busy, wandering through the mountains yet still managing to spend two hours going to town to see Grandpa Bai.

“What do you do with so many herbs?” Fu Xiaoxiao asked curiously.

They weren’t injured, after all.

“We take them to the bl—” Lu Chen chuckled but was abruptly cut off by Lu Lin’s sharp voice.

“Xiao Chen!”

Fu Xiaoxiao and Lu Chen turned around and saw Lu Lin. Lu Chen quickly covered his mouth, startled.

“Sorry, I didn’t know I couldn’t ask that. Don’t mind him,” Fu Xiaoxiao hastily smoothed things over as Lu Chen’s face turned pale from fright.

Lu Lin placed the washed vegetables on the cutting board and, with a stern expression, led Lu Chen out of the kitchen.

Hearing the word “black,” Fu Xiaoxiao guessed it probably referred to the “black market.”

Private trading was tightly controlled now. It wouldn’t be until the college entrance exam opened in ’77 that individual businesses would gradually appear. For the time being, anyone caught trading privately would be charged with “speculation and profiteering.”

No wonder Lu Lin warned Lu Chen so harshly.

The little guy must have been terrified.

Fu Xiaoxiao sighed softly. Just as they were starting to warm up and get close, the atmosphere cooled again.

After finishing kneading the dough, she covered it with a damp cloth and set it aside to rise. She was about to light a fire to fry some eggs when a small hand reached out, snatched the matches, and sat in front of the stove to start the fire.

Fu Xiaoxiao watched Lu Lin silently begin working and returned to her spot, taking out three eggs from the cabinet.

The sizzling sound came as the eggs met the hot oil, and the fragrant aroma filled the kitchen.

When one side turned golden, Fu Xiaoxiao glanced at Lu Lin. “Xiao Lin, do you like your eggs fried on both sides or just one?”

“…Both sides,” Lu Lin was startled but answered when Fu Xiaoxiao called him.

Opening up the conversation, Fu Xiaoxiao smiled and nodded, skillfully flipping the eggs to fry both sides until golden.

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“And what about Xiao Chen?” Fu Xiaoxiao scooped the fried eggs into a bowl and asked again.

“…I like one side,” Lu Chen’s timid voice came from the kitchen doorway.

“Alright.” Fu Xiaoxiao nodded in response and took the eggs off the heat once they were nearly done.

She preferred runny yolks, so she removed the eggs after frying for a while.

Lu Lin looked at Fu Xiaoxiao, hesitating, his face wanting to say something but unsure how to begin.

Fu Xiaoxiao poured cold water into the pan and said casually, “Just say whatever’s on your mind.”

Encouraged, Lu Lin awkwardly spoke up. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Fu Xiaoxiao finally looked up at Lu Lin. Was he apologizing for suddenly shouting and scaring her?

“Alright, I forgive you,” she smiled. His willingness to lower his guard and apologize was a good sign.

She was confident that one day, their closed hearts would open to her and accept her.

Fu Xiaoxiao looked at the risen dough. After rolling the sheets to the right thickness, she stacked them and cut them into even noodles. She gently shook them apart and carefully placed them into the pot.

“Xiao Chen, can you come help?” Fu Xiaoxiao called to the small head outside the kitchen, watching the noodles in the pot.

Xiao Chen’s eyes lit up, and he ran over immediately. “What do you want me to do?”

“Hold the chopsticks and gently stir the noodles in the pot, just make circles!” Fu Xiaoxiao smiled, teaching him.

“Like this?” Lu Chen followed her instructions, twirling the chopsticks in the pot. The noodles slowly swirled with the water.

“That’s right, just like that. Keep stirring!” Fu Xiaoxiao praised him and continued adding the cut noodles into the pot.

Lu Chen was very happy to be helping. His serious face was fixed on the pot, filled with a sense of accomplishment.

After cutting all the noodles, Fu Xiaoxiao took the chopsticks from Lu Chen. “Thanks, Xiao Lin and Xiao Chen, for helping. The noodles will be ready soon. Go wash your hands.”

Lu Lin and Lu Chen washed their hands and returned, watching curiously as Fu Xiaoxiao added seasonings to their bowls, ladled soup over the noodles, divided them into three portions, and blanched some greens for garnish. Three bowls of hand-rolled noodles were ready.

“Let’s go! We’ll eat in the courtyard,” Fu Xiaoxiao said with a smile, carrying two bowls outside and placing them on the table before returning to the kitchen for her own bowl.