The aroma of cooking filled the house: I sent my eldest brother to become the Grand Secretary.

In the past few days, after the incident with the Persians, the Shen family members have not changed on the surface.

However, Shen Cao could clearly sense the tension in her parents' eyes.

They seemed afraid that the Persians would retaliate against them, and lived in constant fear.

Despite Shen Cao's attempts to dissuade them, they were still uneasy.

Therefore, Shen Cao had no choice but to let the two of them close the door early every day.

As the weather gets colder, fewer people are eating in the afternoon after lunchtime.

Only occasionally do some people who work at night come to eat a bowl of wontons.

Therefore, it doesn't really affect business.

Shen Cao had also secretly inquired and found out that the Persians were still in Xin'an County and had not left.

His parents will probably only be able to rest easy once those people leave.

However, to put Shen's parents at ease, she bought a puppy from outside; it had golden fur and was very fluffy.

Its limbs are very strong, and it looks like it could grow into a big dog, making it a good guard dog.

Believe it or not, Mr. and Mrs. Shen felt much more at ease after having a puppy at home.

Although the dog was small, it barked immediately at the slightest disturbance, showing great diligence.

Mr. and Mrs. Shen then fed it even more diligently every day.

Since Shen Cao became acquainted with Granny Zhang, she has arranged a time to deliver fish to Granny Zhang every day.

Grandma Zhang sells her fish to Shen Cao and earns some money every day. She has now saved up some money.

Even her health has improved compared to before.

She still occasionally does needlework and has started saving money for her granddaughter.

The appointed time has passed, and Grandma Zhang still hasn't arrived.

Shen Cao anxiously looked outside the door, wondering if something had happened to Granny Zhang.

She didn't know where Grandma Zhang lived.

Just as she anxiously looked towards the door again, she saw a familiar figure appear there.

"Li Xiaoyu?"

"Sister Grass?"

"Xiaoyu, what brings you here?" Shen Cao asked, somewhat puzzled. In the past, Li Xiaoyu would always come in through the back door of his house with Shen Qing and his friends.

This is the first time we've come from the front door.

"I've brought fish for my grandma."

She took the fish basket off her back and showed it to Shen Cao.

"Is Granny Zhang your grandmother?"

"correct."

Shen Cao was a little confused at first. So, Li Xiaoyu had refused her request earlier because she wanted to take care of Granny Zhang.

And the "good granddaughter" that Grandma Zhang always talks about is Li Xiaoyu.

This is truly a case of the flood blowing away the Dragon King's temple; even family members don't recognize each other.

Grandma Zhang had told her more than once that her biggest worry was what would happen to her granddaughter if she died.

If her granddaughter had the same skills as Shen Cao, she would definitely not starve.

At the time, she didn't know what kind of person Grandma Zhang's granddaughter was, and she didn't dare to interrupt.

I never expected that Grandma Zhang's granddaughter would be Li Xiaoyu.

Then her problem of finding an apprentice would be solved.

"You are the kind person my grandma was talking about."

"Sister Cao'er, I never imagined that I've been eating your cooking all this time."

“I used to make a bet with Shen Qing.”

"It turns out it was just one person."

"Yes, what does that mean? It means we're destined to meet."

"You are destined to be my apprentice."

Shen Cao's apprentice couldn't escape now, so she first took the fish to the kitchen.

Li Xiaoyu followed her into the kitchen, which she had always loved.

She watched as Shen Cao skillfully poured the fish out and then cleaned the fish basket.

I packed two boxed lunches as usual.

She seemed to have thought of something else, and went to get another bowl of boxed lunch, preparing to put it in.

"Sister Grass, that's enough. These two boxes are enough for us."

"I'll come again tomorrow."

"Row."

"By the way, how's your grandma? Why are you the one delivering the fish today?"

"My grandma went to collect the fish traps before it rained yesterday. She got caught in the rain on her way back and caught a cold."

"Have you seen a doctor?"

Li Xiaoyu hesitated for a moment, "My grandma has hidden all the money in my house. Today I'm trying to persuade her to take it out to see a doctor."

"She insisted that drinking some of the folk remedies she had used before would cure her."

“She insisted that the money was saved for me to use in the future and could not be spent.”

As Li Xiaoyu spoke, tears streamed down her face like beads from a broken string.

"Sister Cao'er, I can earn money slowly in the future. I don't want Grandma to get sick."

"Could you lend me some money? I promise I'll pay you back later."

Shen Cao handed a clean handkerchief to Li Xiaoyu.

"Don't worry, your grandma will be fine."

"Go to the front hall and wait for me. I'll go home with you in a bit."

He followed Li Xiaoyu back to her home, a thatched hut similar to his old home in Stone Village.

Although it was dilapidated, it was kept very clean.

The exterior walls look like they were recently repaired; some parts aren't completely dry yet.

As soon as I opened the door, a blast of cold air hit me.

Looking inside from the outside, it was all dark.

Before they even went inside, they heard weak coughing coming from within.

The person inside heard the door open and asked in a weak voice, "Xiaoyu, is that you back?"

"Well, you didn't tell Miss Grass that I was sick, did you?"

Hearing her grandmother's voice, Li Xiaoyu quickened her pace and rushed to Grandma Zhang.

With tears welling up in her eyes, she said, "Grandma, I'm back."

"Don't worry, just focus on getting better. Sister Cao'er came with me."

Grandma Zhang was surprised that Shen Cao had come in person, and she wanted Li Xiaoyu to help her up.

Shen Cao quickly stopped her, "Grandma Zhang, you're really something, you're sick and you didn't even let me know."

"If you get sick, who will deliver my fish?"

"On the dock..."

“I don’t like the fish at the dock; I only want the fish that Grandma Zhang catches herself.”

"You need to get better soon, or my fish-loving customers will be worried."

When Granny Zhang heard about Shen Cao, her eyes also reddened.

Shen Cao took out a bowl of chicken soup porridge from the lunchbox she was carrying.

"Xiaoyu, go eat. I brought some light porridge; feed some to Grandma Zhang."

"No, you mustn't," Granny Zhang tried to refuse.

"Grandma Zhang, what's there to be reluctant about? We might still be family in the future."

"I want Li Xiaoyu to be my apprentice so she can learn to cook from me."

"Before..." Shen Cao told Granny Zhang about her previous desire to have Li Xiaoyu become her apprentice while feeding her porridge.

After hearing this, Grandma Zhang was both touched and reproachful as she said to Li Xiaoyu, "Xiaoyu, why didn't you tell me about this sooner?"

"It's a good thing that Miss Cao'er wants to take you as her apprentice. How many more years can I hold on with my health?"

"You don't need to worry about me, you can go with peace of mind."

Li Xiaoyu's voice choked with emotion, "Grandma..."

Shen Cao put down the empty bowl in her hand. "Grandma Zhang, don't say she's worried, I'm worried now too."