Chapter 195: Chapter 191: It’s Enough That I Like It

“The turritella snails are washed.” Wu Shufen took them. “Everything else is ready. Yuezhen, take Brother Yong to sit for a while. Little Lan, go call Little Douzi back for dinner. I’ll fry the snails.”

Li Xiangyang said, “I’ll go get him!” and strode off.

Lin Yuezhen led Brother Yong to a seat in the main hall. She then returned to the kitchen to pour him a glass of honey water, her face blushing as she sat down beside him.

Brother Yong took a watch and a jar of snake oil cream from his pocket and pushed them toward her. “I bought these for you!”

Lin Yuezhen stared at the watch and the cream, hardly believing her ears. “You bought these for me?”

“Yeah!” Brother Yong nodded, a little embarrassed. “I’m not good at shopping, so I just bought what Xiangyang did!”

Lin Yuezhen carefully picked up the watch to examine it before gently pushing it back toward Brother Yong. Picking up the snake oil cream, her eyes filled with a smile as she said, “Thank you, Brother Yong! The watch is too valuable. This face cream is perfect!”

’At this moment, she was completely content. She wasn’t the worthless woman Zou Laoer had called her, a woman so undesirable that no one would have her even if she paid them!’

Brother Yong took her hand and fastened the watch around her wrist. He looked at her and said softly, “Keep it. The most valuable things only have worth when they’re being used. I may not be much, but if you’ll have me, I’ll spend my whole life treating you right.”

Staring at the watch on her wrist, tears suddenly streamed down Lin Yuezhen’s face.

Brother Yong grew anxious at the sight. “Oh, don’t cry! If you’re not willing, it’s okay. I won’t force you!”

Lin Yuezhen lowered her head to wipe away her tears. Looking up into Brother Yong’s worried eyes, she clutched the watch on her wrist and nodded firmly.

Overjoyed, Brother Yong took Lin Yuezhen’s hand. They gazed at each other, breaking into bashful smiles.

Wu Shufen appeared at the doorway to the main hall, a platter in her hands. A gratified smile spread across her face as she watched them.

When the pair saw Wu Shufen, they hastily let go of each other’s hands. Brother Yong shot to his feet, his face red. “Auntie, let me get that!”

Blushing, Lin Yuezhen headed for the kitchen.

“No need!” Wu Shufen set the dish on the square table and looked at Brother Yong with a happy grin. “You and Yuezhen aren’t getting any younger. You should find a matchmaker soon, pick an auspicious day, and make it official.”

Brother Yong nodded earnestly. “Alright! I’ll go with Xiangyang tomorrow and ask Aunt Yang to formally propose the marriage!”

Lin Lan and Li Xiangyang came in as well, one carrying a large bowl of vegetables and the other a rice steamer.

“Dinner’s ready!” Little Douzi announced, placing the fried turritella snails on the table.

The group sat down and enjoyed a happy dinner together. Afterward, Brother Yong and Lin Yuezhen went to see a movie. Lin Lan was busy at the workbench making mung bean cakes, while Li Xiangyang helped her strain the bean paste.

Wu Shufen got Little Douzi washed up for bed and said to him, “Your mom’s busy, so why don’t you go to sleep first, Douzi, okay?”

Little Douzi glanced at Lin Lan, who was busy at the workbench, and nodded. “You don’t have to stay with me, Grandma. I can sleep by myself!”

Lin Lan smiled and looked over her shoulder at him. “Good boy. Mommy will come join you as soon as I’m finished.”

Little Douzi nodded. “Okay! Mom, Uncle Xiangyang, I’m going to bed now!”

Li Xiangyang replied, “Good boy. Uncle Xiangyang will take you to see a movie on Sunday.”

“Okay, okay!” Little Douzi nodded eagerly, his eyes shining. “I want to see one about war!”

Li Xiangyang nodded back. “Alright, a war movie it is!”

Little Douzi happily followed Wu Shufen into the bedroom.

As Li Xiangyang strained the bean paste, he realized the task was harder than it looked. “Little Lan, straining this paste is such a pain. It’d be great if there was a machine for this.”

Lin Lan smiled and nodded. “Yeah! I wonder if they’ll exist someday?” ’Old Chen hasn’t written back. Maybe he hasn’t found those machines yet.’

’When she’d started her pastry business before, it was already the nineties, and the equipment was quite advanced. She had no idea if any of it existed in this day and age.’

“We should go check out the coastal cities sometime. Maybe they have machines like that there.” As he spoke, Li Xiangyang remembered the gifts he’d bought for Lin Lan were still in his bag. “Little Lan, I had someone get a couple of things for you. They’re in my satchel. Go have a look after you finish making the pea cakes.”

Lin Lan glanced at the satchel hanging on the back of the door and nodded. “What did you buy this time?”

Li Xiangyang just smiled. “It’s nothing. You’ll see later.”

Lin Lan turned her head and glanced at the army-green satchel Li Xiangyang had put under the workbench. Thinking of the watch Lin Yuezhen was now wearing, she looked at him and asked, “Did you buy me a watch?”

“Yeah!” Li Xiangyang nodded with a smile. “I got it from an Uncle Da who deals in smuggled goods. I also bought you an alarm clock to make it easier for you to get up in the mornings. And two jars of snake oil cream. My mom used to say it works great.”

“Xiangyang…” Lin Lan started, but seeing his beaming smile, she was at a loss for words.

Li Xiangyang carried the bowl of bean paste over to the workbench and sat down beside her. He gazed at her lovingly, his voice as sweet as honey. “What’s mine is yours. I’ll buy you anything you like.”

“You goof!” Lin Lan laughed, gently tapping him with the handle of her spoon. “If you keep that up, people will call me a spendthrift!”

“Why would you listen to those gossips?” Li Xiangyang gazed at her adoringly. “Little Lan, I’m the one who’s going to spend my life with you. All that matters is that I love my wife!”

Their eyes locked, and Li Xiangyang began to lean in. Just then, the sound of Wu Shufen getting out of bed and slipping on her shoes came from the other room. A blush crept up Lin Lan’s face. Not daring to meet his eyes, she straightened up, nudged him with her elbow, and whispered, “Who said I’m your wife? Now sit back where you were!”

“You are!” Li Xiangyang chuckled, moving with his bowl back to the small square table.

Wu Shufen came out of her room and saw that the peas in the clay pot were boiling over. She quickly grabbed a ladle to skim the foam off the top. “Little Lan, the peas are boiling over and you didn’t even notice! Come pour in the gardenia sugar-water!”

“I wasn’t paying attention!” Lin Lan said with a smile, turning her head. “But don’t you know how to do it?”

Wu Shufen shook her head. “You changed the recipe. I’m afraid I’ll get the measurements wrong and ruin the flavor.”

“Alright, I’ll do it.” Lin Lan got up and began pouring the gardenia sugar-water into the clay pot in increments, telling Wu Shufen the new measurements as she went.

Wu Shufen made a mental note, then took the ladle and resumed stirring. Once the mixture thickened, she started on the next pot.

After Lin Lan finished the mung bean cakes, the pea mixture was also ready. She brushed the molds with oil and poured in the thick pea paste. While leveling the surface, she gently pressed it down with a spatula. Then, she placed the filled molds on a bamboo rack to cool completely before cutting the cakes into squares.

Just as Li Xiangyang was finishing up straining the kidney bean paste, Lin Yuezhen and Brother Yong came back from the movie.

Seeing Wu Shufen peeling a pumpkin, Lin Yuezhen quickly rolled up her sleeves and went to help.

“What movie did you guys see tonight? Was it any good?” Li Xiangyang asked Brother Yong with a smile.

Brother Yong nodded, then shook his head. “It was called *A Sweet Cause*. Seemed like propaganda for the family planning policy. It was about the only son from the Li family marrying into the Tang family and living with them. That stuff only happens in the movies. Who in real life would ever agree to that!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep