After transmigrating, he supported his family by working at a garbage dump.

There was no meat left at home. Zhang He was peeling bamboo shoots and thinking about how to eat them when Hu Sanniang called out from afar outside the yard.

"He Niang! Open the door quickly, I've brought you something."

Zhang He was busy, and Xu Zhuzhu, who was trying to please her mother, ran over to open the door and rushed into Hu Sanniang's arms, "Godmother, you're here!"

Last time they ate at the Li family's house, Hu San Niang wanted to recognize Xu Zhuzhu as her goddaughter. Seeing how much Hu San Niang liked Xu Zhuzhu and that she seemed to have a connection with the Li family, Zhang He and his wife simply had Xu Zhuzhu kowtow three times to Hu San Niang, offer her wine, and formally recognize her as her godmother.

So Xu Zhuzhu now calls her "godmother".

Hu Sanniang smiled and hugged Xu Zhuzhu tightly, giving her a good spanking.

However, upon closer inspection, one can see that she carefully shifted one hand away, saying, "My dear daughter, be careful of the bowl in your godmother's hand."

Xu Zhuzhu then noticed that Hu Sanniang was holding a large bowl.

"Zhuzhu, don't be naughty."

Zhang He washed her hands, came over, and led Hu San Niang to sit down by the stove.

He hurriedly asked, "Sister-in-law, is there something urgent? It's getting dark, and the road is so difficult to walk on. Why are you coming so late?"

I was afraid she might have something urgent to do.

“It’s nothing urgent,” Hu San Niang finally released Xu Zhuzhu, looking at Zhang He with a mixture of mystery and joy. “I’ve brought you something.”

As he spoke, he opened the large bowl that was wrapped and handed it to Zhang He.

“My son told me that the kids went to dig up a lot of bamboo shoots today. I saw them at home, and they were so tender. They’re delicious stir-fried with pickled vegetables. I figured your vegetables were just planted, so they probably wouldn’t be ready to be pickled yet, so I brought some over. I just don’t know if you’ll like them…”

As she spoke, Hu Sanniang felt a little embarrassed. People always brought her meat and rice, but she could only give them some of her own pickled vegetables.

It is indeed a bit shabby.

With a forced smile, she said, "It would be best if it were stir-fried with cured pork, but unfortunately the harvest was bad this year, and the pigs didn't grow big. Only the one my father gave us was left... Please don't mind these pickled vegetables."

Hu San Niang smiled somewhat awkwardly. Last time, she said she was treating everyone, but the rice and noodles were all provided by the Xu family, and even the noodles were cooked by Zhang He.

On the contrary, the father and son in her family did nothing but eat the most, which made her feel quite embarrassed.

Zhang He understood Hu San Niang's meaning perfectly. Hu San Niang was genuinely kind, and Zhang He was grateful enough not to mind.

She grabbed a small handful of pickled vegetables from the bowl, took a bite, frowned and clicked her tongue, "These pickled vegetables are really fragrant and sour enough. It just so happens that my family loves sour food. Thank you so much, sister-in-law. We're in for a treat today."

He added, "I can't pickle them this well. Sister-in-law, you should teach me sometime."

Feeling that she was in a predicament, Hu Sanniang immediately stood up, and her smile became much brighter in the dim firelight.

After being teased by Zhang He for a couple of times, he became interested. "...As long as you can get used to it. It's not difficult at all. You just need to boil the water and let it cool, dissolve the vegetables in coarse salt water, wash the cleaned cabbage and drain it, put it in an earthenware jar, put it by the stove to pickle for ten days, and then open it."

She waved her hand and laughed as she spoke, clearly indicating that the topic had struck a chord with her.

Zhang He listened carefully and wrote everything down. Then she asked Hu San Niang if she had eaten and if she wanted to eat some more at their house.

Seeing the rice simmering on the stove, Hu Sanniang guessed that Xu Zhuzhu's family hadn't eaten yet, so she decided it wasn't appropriate to keep them any longer. She urged Zhang He to hurry up and cook: "Don't let the child go hungry; she's at the age where she's growing..."

Xu Zhuzhu, who had been hiding to the side, finally had a chance to interject. She rested her chin on her hand and added, "I'm not hungry yet."

Seeing how adorable she was, Hu Sanniang couldn't resist gently pinching Xu Zhuzhu's cheek and said with delight, "Even if you're not hungry, you have to eat. You can only grow up quickly if you eat well."

Xu Zhuzhu sighed helplessly, wondering why everyone loved to pinch her cheeks.

It hurts, I thought, and then I squeezed it myself. To be honest, it did feel a bit bouncy.

Just as Hu San Niang was about to leave, she suddenly remembered what Li Xiao Mo had said and wanted to ask Xu An what was going on, so she asked, "Where's An An? My son said he wanted An An to teach him how to memorize his lessons today..."

“He’s studying inside. His father hasn’t woken up yet, so I told him to go inside and watch the brazier.”

Zhang He glanced into the inner room and explained absentmindedly in a slow voice.

Thinking of Xu Wenjie, she felt sorry for him but also a little strange. She had never seen Xu Wenjie this tired before, so why had he slept for so long today and still hadn't woken up?

Hu San Niang then remembered what had happened to those two people from Wang Shan's family not long ago.

Then the gossip started: "Quanfu said it was done by robbers. They were really ruthless; they even slapped his face crooked..."

Zhang He hadn't met with them, but from the news Xu Wenjie and Xu Zhuzhu brought back, she knew it was indeed quite serious.

"What did Brother Li say?" Zhang He shook her head and sighed. If this was really done by bandits, would Qingshan Town ever be able to live in peace again?

Hu Sanniang spread her hands, shaking her head with a sorrowful expression, "They said they'd be going to town in a couple of days, and that day happens to be market day. Do you want to go to town to sell dumplings?"

Speaking of this, Zhang He shook her head, her eyebrows curved into a smile, and said, "We're not doing business. Let's take a break. My husband and I have already agreed to take the kids out for a stroll. It's been so long since we've had a proper look around!"

Hearing this, Hu Sanniang's eyes lit up. "It just so happens that I'm also going to town to see my sister-in-law. Why don't we come together? It'll be nice to have company, and I can show you around. You're not very familiar with this street, are you? You mentioned last time that you wanted to buy some better thread, right? Don't go to that shop. I know a stall where the old lady spins thread that's both fine and strong..."

Seeing Hu Sanniang's enthusiasm and knowing it was her good intention, Zhang He naturally nodded in agreement and continued, "Then sister-in-law, wait for me at the village entrance the day after tomorrow, let's go early."

They arranged a time with Hu San Niang again.

Hu San Niang readily agreed, and after teasing Xu Zhuzhu for a while, she said she really had to leave.

Zhang He quickly grabbed her and tried to stuff a few eggs into the bowl so she could take them with her. "I hid them in a basket hanging on the beam. They weren't eaten by wolves. Sister-in-law, take them back and cook them for Xiao Mo. The child is growing up!"

Actually, Xu Wenjie had just brought them back from the garbage dump a few days ago. This time, there were very few other things, but quite a lot of eggs. The millet jar was filled with eggs on two whole layers, totaling more than thirty eggs.

"Oh dear, what's going on? You're trying to use my words against me," Hu Sanniang hurriedly refused, "Do you think my pickled vegetables are made of gold? I cherish my goddaughter's things, how can I take back a gift? If you really do this, I'll never dare to send anything to your family again..."

Zhang He couldn't argue with Hu San Niang, so he smiled helplessly and had no choice but to give up and let her leave.

But in his heart he was thinking of boiling a few eggs for breakfast on market day, not afraid that she would refuse.

By the time she looked up, Hu Sanjia had already walked far away...

When Zhang He was about to cook, she finally had a chance to take a closer look and was shocked to find that there was actually half a piece of cured meat hidden in the pickled vegetables.

She looked them up and down; it was clear that the last small piece left over from the last meal she had treated them to, which Hu San Niang had been reluctant to eat, had given to their family instead.

"Mother, Godmother gave them all to us."

Looking at the small piece of cured meat, Xu Zhuzhu felt a mix of emotions. The simple and genuine feelings of the poor mountain village were so heartwarming and touching.

Zhang He's eyes were a little sore. She was an only child with no brothers or sisters. This was the first time she had experienced such a different kind of emotion, and her heart felt both bittersweet and warm.

He bent down, hugged Xu Zhuzhu, and gently stroked her light eyebrows: "Your godmother loves you very much. You must be filial to your godmother in the future."

Xu Zhuzhu nodded.

She knew it without her mother telling her.

Just then, Xu Wenjie, who had been sleeping in the house all day, finally woke up.

However, his head still felt heavy. When Zhang He found out, she tentatively touched his forehead and found that he did not have a fever.

Looking at her father's appearance, Xu Zhuzhu suddenly remembered that it was her father who used his blood to make the bead work last night. Could it be because of this?

She opened the tablet and asked a question.

Sure enough, a single word appeared on the screen.

【Yes. 】