Chapter 312 - 310: Old Ginger is Spicier

Chapter 312: Chapter 310: Old Ginger is Spicier

"Dinner’s ready."

Zhang Dazhuang called out, and everyone’s attention immediately focused on the table. There were two main dishes: beef chow fun and a glistening golden egg fried rice dotted with carrots.

Although there were only four side dishes and a soup, every portion was enormous. Two large platters were piled high with beef and lamb chops, pan-fried to perfection and thoughtfully cut into small pieces, making them the center of attention. By comparison, the other two dishes—cold-tossed spring vegetables and yam stir-fried with salted egg yolk—seemed much smaller and rather inconspicuous.

The soup was, of course, chicken soup, but with kui taro added in.

Kui taro is the finest variety of taro and was once served as a tribute item on the Emperor’s dining table. When cooked in the chicken soup, it absorbed all the savory flavor, becoming exceptionally delicious itself.

Lin Qiao had eaten at the Zhang family’s home so many times that she no longer needed to be prompted. She reached out with the serving chopsticks, filled a bowl to the brim with beef chow fun, and took a bite, her eyes narrowing in bliss. "I think the greatest happiness in the world is getting to eat Grandma Wen’s beef chow fun."

"Then you should marry into our family. You can take your pick of Zhang Su or Zhang Kai, how about it? I guarantee you’ll get to eat this every day," Wen Xiu deliberately teased her.

Lin Qiao blushed. "Grandma Wen, if you keep this up, I’m not going to say anything next time, no matter how good the food is."

"Hahaha—" Everyone at the table burst out laughing, Lin Fu included. After a few chuckles, Gu Nuan Nuan started defending her own interests with a grin. "Grandma, can you not try to poach my people? You already know Lin Qiao promised to work for me."

"What are you so worried about? It’s not like our family is the kind that forbids a daughter-in-law from working, is it? So her working for you doesn’t conflict with my suggestion at all," Wen Xiu said dismissively.

"Are you two going to let a person eat in peace?" Lin Qiao cried out, flustered and indignant.

"Haha, you two, stop teasing Qiaoqiao. Hurry up and eat, or the little lady is really going to get angry," Zhang Dazhuang quickly played peacemaker. At his words, Wen Xiu quickly placed two pieces of lamb chop on the plate in front of Lin Qiao, coaxing her with a grin, "Don’t be mad, don’t be mad. What’s a pretty girl like you to do if you get ugly from being angry?"

Gu Nuan Nuan, taking the hint, quickly followed suit and put two pieces of beef steak on her plate as well...

Soon, the dining room was once again filled with joy and laughter.

After the meal, once they had seen the father and daughter pair of Lin Fu and Lin Qiao off, Zhang Dazhuang remarked to Wen Xiu and Gu Nuan Nuan, "I have to say, a meal is just so much more enjoyable with more people around."

"Exactly. When you get old, you love a lively atmosphere. Normally, with you all at work or school, your grandpa and I barely have the motivation to cook much at home. Sometimes we just make a big batch of food in the morning, toss it in your grandpa’s storage bag, and pull it out for a meal at noon. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if it could be this lively every day?" Wen Xiu lamented to Gu Nuan Nuan, making her heart ache a little. In the end, she could only comfort them, saying, "But I’m on vacation now, so I can have lunch with you two every day, right? And in a few more days, we’ll be back in our hometown. I’m sure even more people from the village will invite us over to eat then."

"That’s true. With the New Year just around the corner, it’ll be lively for a while. ’Quiet’ won’t be in our vocabulary," Zhang Dazhuang and Wen Xiu said with a smile.

Meanwhile, on their way home, Lin Fu pushed a small, three-wheeled cart. Inside, besides an assortment of fruits, were large cuts of beef and lamb and other New Year’s goods that Wen Xiu had insisted they take. He sighed to his older daughter, "We only give them a few chickens and ducks from time to time, things that aren’t worth much. But look, every time, we come back with so much more than we gave."

"Dad, they’re good to us, so we just have to be even more sincere in how we treat them. They aren’t actually looking for anything in return. If you’re constantly being overly formal, it just makes them unhappy. After all, giving can be a source of happiness, too. Dad, didn’t you teach me that treating people with sincerity is the most important, and yet the most difficult, thing to do? Now I’m starting to feel that when you’re with people, you don’t always have to be so calculating about who owes who more. The most important thing is just one word: genuineness. You’re good to me, and I’m good to you. To sum it up: as long as everyone feels comfortable and at ease with each other, that’s what counts," Lin Qiao said with a smile as she walked beside her father.

"You’ve really grown up. You can see things more clearly than your dad now," Lin Fu said, deeply moved by her reasoning.

"It was just a random thought." Lin Qiao smiled, a little embarrassed by the praise. Then, remembering the purpose of their visit, she quickly asked, "By the way, Dad, did you mention the thing about Lin Yan?"

"I did."

"And? Did Grandpa Zhang refuse?"

"No. He said he’ll tell your Uncle Zhang to arrange it when he gets back tonight. We can go back the day after tomorrow for a definite answer, but she won’t be able to start work until after the New Year." There was a smile in Lin Fu’s eyes.

"Huh?"

Lin Qiao stared at Lin Fu in disbelief. Seeing his relaxed and cheerful expression, her jaw dropped and she grew anxious. "Dad, how can you still be smiling about this?"

"Don’t worry, this is a good thing. We’ll tell them when we get back and let them be happy for a bit. This will also prevent them from running around saying we didn’t try our best to help when the truth eventually comes out." Lin Fu recalled what Zhang Dazhuang and Wen Xiu had said to him that morning and snorted, speaking with a hint of satisfaction.

"But, but..." Lin Qiao was getting truly frantic. "Didn’t you say before that we shouldn’t care whether they’re happy or what nonsense they might spread? And you know what Lin Yan is like. What if she shows her true colors after just a couple of days? Won’t Grandpa Zhang and the others end up blaming us? This morning you clearly said you had it all figured out..."

Lin Qiao thought her father had changed his mind because he felt bad for their grandmother’s side of the family. ’If Mom finds out about this when we get home, who knows how upset she’ll be?’ At that thought, her heart sank and she pouted, feeling on the verge of tears.

"What are you thinking about?" Seeing that something was completely off with Lin Qiao, Lin Fu knew she had jumped to the wrong conclusion, just as he had earlier. He quickly said, "This visit made me realize my original plan was too simple. Qiaoqiao, don’t worry. I told your Grandpa Zhang and Grandma Wen everything they needed to know. It was their idea to have Lin Yan come to work."

"Their idea?" Lin Qiao was astonished.

"That’s right. Our original plan wasn’t wrong, but your Grandpa Zhang and Grandma Wen said there’s a better way—one that will shut outsiders up and leave even her own family with nothing to say. Think about it. When Lin Yan starts working at the Zhang Group, they’ll already know what kind of person she is, so they’ll naturally have someone keep a close eye on her. If Lin Yan can behave herself from now on, then fine. It’s just one job, after all; what does it matter who they hire? But if she doesn’t... hehe, that’s fine too. With someone watching her, she won’t be able to stir up any trouble. When she eventually messes up and gets fired, it’ll be because she brought it on herself. At that point, who could possibly say we did anything wrong?"

"Oh, so that was the plan all along!" Lin Qiao clutched her chest, her frightened expression giving way to a brilliant smile. "You nearly scared me to death! I really thought you’d changed your mind. Dad, it looks like the old saying is true: the older the ginger, the spicier it is. Grandpa Zhang and Grandma Wen really do think on another level."

"Of course. Otherwise, why would people say that the longer you live, the more you see, and the wiser you become? Or that having an elder in the family is like having a treasure?" Lin Fu said in deep agreement.

"Mhm, but I don’t think *all* old people are treasures," Lin Qiao nodded, then giggled meaningfully.

Lin Fu knew exactly who his daughter was referring to. Privately, he couldn’t agree more, so he simply smiled and remained silent.