He Jinxuan heard these words and looked towards Yu Xinyan not far away, feeling full of gratitude. If it weren’t for her careful care during that time, the two little nephews might not have been able to integrate into the family compound so quickly.
Ye Siyan eagerly opened the cloth bag: "Sister, look, these are loquats that Uncle Lu brought back for us. My brother and I saved some for you. When we came over this morning, you weren’t here, so we left them with Grandpa Zhang."
She had already left Director He’s house, but these two kids got some fruit and were still thinking of her, making her feel warm instantly: "Thank you, boys. Sister really likes them."
Even though she already got some loquats from He Jinxuan last night, she didn’t want to dampen the kids’ spirits, so she accepted them from their hands: "I also have prepared something for you. We truly think alike."
These words were not false. She really had left apricots and mulberries for them, originally intending to give them if she met them. Unexpectedly, she met them so soon.
While speaking, they arrived at the small courtyard where Yu Xinyan was currently staying temporarily. She opened the door: "Come in. I’ll get them for you."
She opened the door, took out a few loquats, quickly fetched some apricots and mulberries from the space, placed them inside, and then left the courtyard: "Take these back to enjoy."
Ye Siyan jumped for joy when he saw the items inside: "The other day, Brother Changjun and his big brother went to the mountain to pick mulberries and shared two with us. They were so delicious."
Yu Xinyan, seeing his delight, laughed and said: "Sister knows where there are more. By next Sunday, there should be some to pick. Remember to come by, and I’ll share some with you."
Ye Siyan was overjoyed: "Thank you, Sister. You’re so nice."
After the interaction on this side was over, He Jinxuan also helped take out the small stove and double-ear pot from the basket: "Should these be placed under the stove shed or brought inside the house?"
Yu Xinyan quickly intervened: "These are not heavy. I can handle them myself. Have you eaten yet?"
He Jinxuan was about to say: We have eaten.
But Ye Siyan, the little guy, spoke faster: "No, Uncle bought buns at the state-run restaurant and said it’s impolite to eat in the car, so we’ll eat at home."
Yu Xinyan saw the three of them eagerly looking at her and didn’t want to shoo them away: "Then I’ll make some sour soup noodles for you to settle for a meal."
Luckily, there was a fish in the bucket under the stove shed, kept just in case. She didn’t hold back: "Brother He, can you help me handle the fish? I’ll go and get the noodles."
He Jinxuan was naturally delighted about this. Ever since Yu Xinyan left, their meals were hard to describe.
He quickly handled the fish, and Yu Xinyan returned to the house, took out a new enamel basin from the space, washed and dried it, and put some white flour and cornmeal inside.
When she came out, He Jinxuan had already finished handling the fish: "Slice the fish, right?"
Yu Xinyan nodded, then took out a small porcelain jar from inside the house. The jar was retrieved from the space; it wasn’t big, and she used it to pickle sour vegetables.
In the corner of the courtyard, Yu Xinyan had planted some chives and scallions herself, though only a little had grown, but they could be pinched and eaten.
She prepared the vegetables, and He Jinxuan had finished slicing the fish. Soon, the two switched tasks with great harmony.
He Jinxuan went to knead the dough, while Yu Xinyan started frying the sour vegetable fish soup. Without a chopping board, Yu Xinyan asked him to knead the dough into a firm dough and used the steel sheet that Zhao Jianlan helped find to cut into knife-cut noodles.
Soon, the sour soup fish knife-cut noodles came out of the pot. The long-lost aroma left the three people drooling. Yu Xinyan watched their expressions, both amused and a little heartbroken: "Eat more today."
Because there weren’t many bowls, He Jinxuan directly took the enamel basin. Yu Xinyan almost burst into laughter. He Jinxuan was a bit embarrassed at first, but after seeing her laugh happily, he didn’t care anymore, as long as she was happy.
The three ate delightfully, completely ignoring the buns bought from the state-run restaurant.
After the meal, He Jinxuan volunteered to help clean up. With no reason to stay longer, he left a few buns for Yu Xinyan and took the two little ones with him when leaving.
However, he noticed that Yu Xinyan was still missing a chopping board and rolling pin, and remembered to help her get them in the coming days.
After the people left, Yu Xinyan finally closed the door, planning to enter the space to plant the loquat seeds; she hadn’t gotten around to it yesterday because she was busy until late.
The space now was lush and vibrant, bringing peace of mind and a refreshing feeling.
She took a cleaned loquat and began eating it in small bites. The taste of these loquats was really nice, with a sweet and sour flavor she liked.
She took out the fruit nuclei and soaked them in creek water before moving on to other tasks. Some vegetables needed replanting, while others needed harvesting, keeping her busy with joyful fervor.
She thought to herself: If only the space could automatically harvest.
As soon as she thought about it, the mature vegetables automatically picked themselves and stored in the underground warehouse, surprising Yu Xinyan greatly, making her laugh out loud with excitement.