"Can your house accommodate so many of us?"
I wasn't too sure about that.
Zhang Shuying laughed in a drawling tone, "You're kidding, this old man is the village chief. Does he ever come up short? His house is the biggest in the whole village."
"Yu Longting, how about we stay at Old Man Gu's house for the night?" I put my hands together in a pleading gesture and earnestly suggested to Yu Longting.
When it comes to being thrifty, I'm no worse than Zhang Shuying. Naturally, I'd prefer to save money when traveling.
If we stayed at a hotel, we'd have to spend money.
The moment Yu Longting saw the look in my eyes, he probably guessed my little scheme. He playfully scraped his finger across my nose, "Okay, we'll do as the lady of the house commands."
Old Man Gu took out his cell phone, a feature phone, and called his children to bring over some more umbrellas.
Old Man Gu's house didn't have enough umbrellas, so he also borrowed two from the neighbors.
Our group arrived at Old Man Gu's house with a collection of colorful umbrellas. His house was one of those common rural cement bungalows.
Light shone from the bungalow, which housed Old Man Gu and his family of seven.
Because of the Tree Infant incident, we were delayed and had already missed the proper dinner time.
Considering everybody hadn't eaten, Old Man Gu's daughter-in-law was ready to cook. Get full chapters from novel※fire.net
I had nothing better to do, so I went over to help Old Man Gu's daughter-in-law, Tian Na.
Tian Na was a very gentle and industrious girl, and as she cooked, she kept asking me what the outside world was like.
I laughed and told her that I actually lived in a small town and hadn't really been to a big city.
However, Spring Wind Town could be considered far more significant compared to Ancient Water Village.
As I described Spring Wind Town to Tian Na, her face lit up with longing.
I had secretly learnt a few tricks from the master chefs at the restaurant, while Tian Na only knew some home-style dishes so I ended up taking charge.
I cooked stir-fried river snails with tofu, rice wine-marinated fish, spicy braised pork, deep-fried tofu glazed with sauce, plain-boiled greens, chilled wood ear mushrooms in dressing, and steamed a large batch of flower rolls.
"Everybody, try this out quickly. Su Wan's cooking is exceptional, on par with a big restaurant. I was so impressed in the kitchen, I almost took her as my master on the spot," said Tian Na as she handed out chopsticks to everyone.
In a modest and demure manner, I replied, "Sister Tian Na, you're too kind. My cooking skills are just average. Please excuse any shortcomings."
Yu Longting pulled me to sit beside him, showing helplessness on his face, "Even when we're guests at someone else's house, you can't sit still."
"Helping out was just an excuse," I confessed my true feelings to Yu Longting, "I just wanted to find an opportunity to cook for you. Try the stir-fried river snails, that's the best dish. I added a lot of chili peppers, it's so fragrant and flavorful."
"Okay," Yu Longting's gaze softened for a moment as he served a spoonful for himself and another for me.
While I sipped on the river snails, I watched Yu Longting's expression.
After he finished, he commented, "Hmm, spicy, fragrant, and delicious. And I'm not just saying that to please you—it's the truth."
"Aw," I saw a glimmer of a smile spread across his face, and I actually felt too embarrassed to keep my head up, so I silently continued to eat my rice.
Though I was the one longing for his praise the most, once I received it, I felt quite bashful~
The rain outside was pouring down heavily, the sounds of a torrential downpour dominating the atmosphere.
At the dinner table, the three members of the Gu Sect mingled seamlessly with the Gu Family, drinking, playing drinking games, and making a raucous noise.
After finishing my meal, I just wanted to sleep. I had no energy left for games and fun.
So, Yu Longting and I excused ourselves and headed to the room arranged by the Gu Family. I got out of my Taoist robe and burrowed under the covers, "Oh my, I'm dead tired. Finally, I can lie down. I feel like my bones are falling apart."