She never asked what they did for a living. It was just that the smell of her filling was too tempting. The children on both sides of the street had sharp noses.
Following the smell, they sneaked out of the house. An eight-year-old boy and a four-year-old boy peeped through the door's crack.
"Little brother, this smells so good!"
"Yeah, it's even more tempting than my mother's stewed meat."
"This is the house of the aunt who sells fruits."
"What do you think she's cooking?"
"I don't know."
Qiao Mai placed the prepared filling on the table in the courtyard and started to cook again. When she heard the conversation between the children outside, she smiled.
She moved the chopping board to the table in the courtyard and tilted her head to look at the door. The two greedy boys were still there.
Qiao Mai used her mind to look at Ling'er in her space. This little fellow was sleeping soundly.
The child was growing up slowly. She could not stay in the space forever. She needed playmates.
At the thought of this, she opened the courtyard door and looked at the two little ones.
"Who's nagging at my door? Tell me your name."
The eight-year-old boy blushed. "Aunt, I, I'm Aunt's neighbor on the left. My surname is Chen, my name is Hao, and my nickname is Niu Niu."
The four-year-old boy smiled at her. "Auntie, we've met several times. I'm your neighbor. My name is Yuan Haichuan, and my nickname is Chuan'er."
"Welcome to my house."
Qiao Mai moved her body and made an inviting gesture. The two fellows giggled and walked in.
Qiao Mai didn't close the door and left the courtyard door ajar. She brought them inside and placed two stools in front of the table.
"Come, sit down and talk."
The two boys sat down obediently, looking a little restrained.
"Auntie, what do you cook that smells so good?"
"Dumplings. Have you eaten dumplings before?"
Chen Hao stretched out two fingers. "I think I've eaten them twice since moving here."
"What about you?" Qiao Mai asked Yuan Haichuan.
He pursed his lips. "I don't think I've eaten it."
"Then, after Auntie is done, can I treat you to dumplings?"
The two little ones' eyes lit up, and they nodded happily. They sat on the bench obediently and didn't move at all. Their obedience was very likable.
Qiao Mai took a small bunch of grapes from her space, washed them in a small basin, and placed them in front of the kids.
"Before the dumplings are done, Auntie will treat you to this."
"Wow, what is this?"
"Grapes!"
Qiao Mai reached out and took one, peeled it, put the meat into her mouth, and spat out the seed.
"It's eaten like this. It's very sweet. Try it."
The two little ones then reached out their hands and grabbed the grapes on top to eat.
When the noodles were done, she began to rub the skin. She had never used the green curtains she bought before, and now, she had a place to use them.
She was talking to the two children as she wrapped the dumplings. When the boys heard their family calling for them, they quickly responded.
When Yuan Jiaqi and Madam Chen, who was next door, came to find them, they saw such an enviable scene.
When Madam Chen saw her son eating such precious fruits at Madam Qiao's house, she immediately ran over to hold his hand.
"Why didn't you play at home? Why did you come here to disturb Auntie?"
Yuan Jiaqi didn't complain about the child and came up to greet Qiao Mai.
"Sorry for troubling you, Madam Qiao."
"It's no trouble at all. I also like children. They're quite obedient here."
Madam Chen smiled at her in embarrassment. "These grapes haven't been released yet, right?"
"Soon. I plan to sell this in a while. You don't have to take it to heart. How much can a child eat? He's a guest at my house. It's my duty to entertain my little guest."
The two little ones liked Qiao Mai very much. Chuan'er looked up at Yuan Jiaqi.
"Dad, Auntie said she would treat me to dumplings tonight."
Yuan Jiaqi and Madam Chen were in a dilemma. Qiao Mai could see that both families were thin-skinned.
"Go back. Let them play at my place. After dinner, you can come to pick them up."
"How embarrassing is that?"
"We're neighbors. There's no need to be so calculative. I live alone, so I need you to take care of me more."
"Alright, we'll pick them up after dark."
"Yes, yes."
The parents of the two children had left. Knowing that the kids were playing here, they were relieved.
An hour later, the dumplings were all wrapped. Qiao Mai started a fire and filled the pot with water. She planned to cook a pot first for the two children.
It just so happened that Shopkeeper Lu and the others had arrived. Someone cooked the fire, and someone cooked the dumplings, so she and Lu Sanniang were freed.
"Sister, who are these two children?"
"My neighbors. They smelled the food when I was mixing the fillings."
"Be careful when making friends. I'll help you find out about their character and family background later."
"When I caught the thief that day, they all came over. I was so busy that I didn't have time to make friends."
"I understand. Take your time."
The first pot of dumplings was ready. Everyone took their bowls. They were so close that they didn't stand on ceremony.
Qiao Mai placed two small bowls in front of the little ones and put the dumplings in their bowls.
"Eat it when it's cooler, or it'll burn your mouth."
The two little ones looked at the dumplings and swallowed their saliva. They blew the hot air with their mouths. It was indescribable how cute they looked.
Shopkeeper Lu observed Qiao Mai as she ate. Seeing that she liked children so much, she couldn't help but say something.
"Do you miss your child when you see them?"
"Yeah. If that child were still alive, she would be able to eat and drink now. She could even crawl on the ground."
"When things settle down, and you did your household registration, you can have another family. You're still young. You'll have children."
"Sigh, let's eat. Let's not talk about this."
Lu Sanniang knew she was sad and quickly changed the topic.
"I say, your cooking skills are outstanding. Everything you cook is especially delicious. If it doesn't work, you can open a restaurant."
"It's too tiring to open a restaurant. Besides, I don't want to compete with Shopkeeper Tong for customers. As long as someone else is doing it, I won't do it."
"Do you think trouble won't come to you just because you don't compete? If others were jealous of you, you can't escape either."
"We'll talk about it when the time comes."
All the dumplings were cooked. Everyone gathered around the big table for dinner. Tonight's dumplings were especially delicious. They praised them as they ate.
After Chuan'er was full, he patted his stomach. "Auntie, these dumplings are too delicious. I'm full, but my father has never eaten such delicious dumplings. Can I bring a bowl back for him?"
This kid was really filial. He didn't forget his father even when he was eating well.
"Sure. Auntie still has a lot of dumplings here. If we don't finish them, they'll go bad the next day. You can take a bowl with you and help Auntie share the burden."
Qiao Mai thought, 'You little smart bean, take my food home and be filial to your father. He didn't raise you in vain. I have the space. How can the dumplings go bad? They'll be the most delicious when I fry them tomorrow morning.'
"Then I'll send it to my father now. If it's too late, it'll get cold and won't taste good."
Qiao Mai pointed at Chuan'er and told Shopkeeper Lu, "Did you see that? He's only a kid but already knows how to dote on his father. He'll definitely have a future when he grows up."
"Where's his mother?"
"She was gone during the birth-giving."
"How pitiful!"
Shopkeeper Lu picked up a bowl of dumplings and placed it in front of Chuan'er.
"Let's go. I'll send you back."
Shopkeeper Lu picked up the bowl in her arms and walked out of the yard.
Chen Hao also wanted to get a bowl of dumplings for his mother. "Auntie, I want one too."
"I'll give you a bowl too. You can choose."
"Thank you, Aunt."
The two little ones came to her house as guests and left with food.
Shopkeeper Lu looked at Qiao Mai strangely after she came back.
"Sis, what's wrong?"
"I think that young man is quite good-looking. You're nice to his child. Have you taken a fancy to him?"
Qiao Mai didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "What if I treat that other boy well? Could it be that I like his mother?"
"Pfft, haha!"
Everyone in the courtyard laughed, and even Shopkeeper Lu couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"I was overthinking!"
"I've already said it. No matter what, I must buy a house and register my household registration. I won't consider anything else."
"Why don't I give this house to you? The sooner you settle the household registration, the sooner you can be at ease."