Xu Ying chuckled and, upon seeing Xu Jing in the yard, she ran out with a beaming smile, "Sister, I missed you."
"You missed me?" Xu Jing was startled and sized Xu Ying up, her face full of disdain, "There's something off about you today."
"What's off?" Xu Ying blinked and asked.
Xu Jing replied irritably, "What's off is that you've become normal again, humph! I thought Dong Zhiqing was the only one left in your eyes."
"That's not true." Xu Ying suddenly turned serious and spoke earnestly.
Xu Jing burst into laughter, "If it's not true, it's not true. Why so serious all of a sudden?"
Seeing her laugh, Xu Ying also started laughing.
Seeing her cousin now so vibrant and animated, Xu Ying clenched her fists; she was determined to take control of her fate in this life and would never allow anyone else to hurt her family again.
"Granny, you guys must try the chicken soup I made and see if it's tasty," Xu Ying urged.
Upon hearing that her granddaughter had made it, Mrs. Xu's eyes showed a hint of surprise, and she got up with the aid of her walking stick, "It smells quite good, but let's see how it tastes."
"Mom, try it, the chicken soup Yingying made is amazing, it even tastes better than the one from the State-owned Restaurant in our town!" Xiu Hua said, licking her lips, looking like she hadn't had enough.
"Let me try it." Mrs. Xu picked up the bowl Xiu Hua handed to her and took a slurp, her eyes instantly lit up.
[Goodwill Value +1.]
When Xu Ying heard the voice, she felt delighted inside, "Grandpa, Second Uncle, all of you should have some too, sister-in-law, you should try it as well·····"
Under her urging, Xiu Hua served everyone a bowl of chicken soup.
[Good Perception +1, +1, +1.]
Listening to the system prompts, Xu Ying could hardly contain her excitement, her whole being radiating joy.
"System, what's my goodwill value now?" Xu Ying asked curiously.
[Host, your current goodwill value is thirty-three.]
Yes!
Only seventeen more points needed to unlock the new recipes. If she had known, she would have brought out the rest of the dishes too.
That's right, there's also Third Uncle Xu's family.
If there was one word to describe Third Uncle Xu, the first that came to Xu Ying's mind was layabout.
Her Third Uncle never did his work properly, always slacking off and wandering around the streets, shirking the responsibilities of a husband and a father.
Thankfully, Third Aunt Xu was a woman who could endure hardships; otherwise, their children would have been the ones to suffer.
Xu Ying raced back home, "Mom, do we have any extra dishes? Let's send some to Third Aunt Xu's place."
"Why bother sending them? It's just a waste. I've never seen anyone as irresponsible as your Third Uncle. Xu Jian Country, you and your second brother know how to live, but why is the third one like a complete deadbeat?" Mrs. Xu complained.
Xu Jian Country gave a sheepish smile, "The third one was born that way; there's nothing I can do."
Mrs. Xu's face showed reluctance but still, she scooped out a little bit of each dish for Xu Ying, "Take it to your Third Aunt, but don't let your Third Uncle have any."
Third Aunt Xu was such a pitiful woman!
"Alright, Mom, don't wait for me. I'll stay at Third Aunt Xu's place for a while then come back. You guys go ahead and eat," Xu Ying said with a smile, taking the basket and running out.
After she left, Mrs. Xu muttered in puzzlement, "What good is there to stay in that dump?"
Third Uncle Xu's family lived quite far away, by the edge of the mountain at the end of the village.
Initially, Mr. Xu didn't have any fondness for this disappointing son—out of sight, out of mind, he'd arrange for him to live far away.
"Third Aunt Xu, Third Aunt Xu, it's me, Yingying." Xu Ying knocked forcefully on the gate.
Soon after, the gate opened and a little girl in clothes full of patches with somewhat messy hair looked at Xu Ying hesitantly, "Second sister, my mom is cooking."
"Third Aunt Xu, my mom asked me to bring you some vegetables." Xu Ying led the little girl's dark-skinned hand into the courtyard.
Upon hearing the sound, Third Aunt Xu hurried out from the kitchen, her simple and weather-beaten face lighting up with surprise, "Yingying, are you feeling better now?
I was thinking of finding some time to come see you, but I never had the chance. Things are a bit chaotic at home. Please sit down."
"Third Aunt Xu, where's Third Uncle Xu?" Xu Ying looked at her with distress. This little aunt of hers had been good to her in her previous life and had also advised her not to be with Dong Zhiqing.
At that time, she had been disobedient and scoffed coldly at Third Aunt Xu, despising her for not being able to control Third Uncle Xu and daring to interfere in her affairs. Now that she thought about it, she really wanted to slap herself several times.
"Your Third Uncle Xu is in the room. I'll go call him out." Third Aunt Xu was about to go inside after wiping the dust from her hands.
Xu Ying directly stopped her, "Third Aunt Xu, no need to stir-fry anything. Just make something simple for the main dish, I'll be eating at your house."
Third Aunt Xu was startled and said with a touch of flattered surprise, "All right, then I'll go cook."
Inside the room, Third Aunt Xu still wore an incredulous expression. This girl had always looked down on her, so what made her change her disposition today? Whatever the reason, Third Aunt Xu felt a bit exhilarated.
Glancing at the flour in the kitchen, Third Aunt Xu scooped up an extra ladleful and made a pot of thick, mixed grain porridge.
"JianShe, it's time to eat." Hardly had Third Aunt Xu finished speaking when Third Uncle Xu, with a tobacco pipe hanging from his mouth, jauntily made his way out.
"Yingying, what brings you here too? Oh my, what a fine day this is, we've even got chicken to eat." Xu JianShe glanced at Xu Ying and then turned to look at the food on the table, swallowing hard.
Without even washing his hands, he reached for the chicken on the table with his chopsticks.
Before his chopsticks could pinch a piece of chicken, Xu Ying's hand slapped down on his.
"Ouch, Yingying, why are you hitting me?" Xu JianShe looked puzzled, his eyes fixed hungrily on the small bowl of chicken soup on the table. He was dying for a taste.
He wanted to explode in anger, but the person standing there was his brother's dearest daughter. If he dared to lift a finger against Yingying, his elder brother, second brother, and father would surely join forces to cut him down to size.
"You don't get any, it's shameless for a grown man like you to laze around at home every day, not even providing for your own child and wife." Xu Ying looked at Xu JianShe, her face indifferent.
Then, turning to Third Aunt Xu, she said, "Third Aunt Xu, why don't you consider remarrying?"
At these words, Third Aunt Xu looked shocked, and Xu JianShe became even more furious, "Yingying, what are you doing? People say it's better to dismantle ten temples than break up one marriage.
I'm your real uncle, what do you mean by encouraging your aunt to divorce me?"
"Third Uncle, tell me, who else in the world would let their wife work while the man rests at home.
Since you can't treat Third Aunt Xu and Lanlan right, it's better to divorce sooner rather than later.
Let someone else be good to them, so they can suffer less. I think this idea isn't bad, I'll discuss it with my dad and grandpa when I go back."
Xu JianShe became agitated at once, "You can't talk about that."
"I won't say anything, but you must go work in the fields," Xu Ying threatened.
Xu JianShe's face twisted with anger. What crazy idea had gotten into this girl? Why should she meddle in his business out of the blue?
Xu Ying didn't know what he was thinking; she just didn't want to deal with her third uncle. But in her previous life, Third Uncle Xu hadn't learned his lesson, sneaking around to learn gambling from others, and ended up owing a huge debt.
To repay the money, he had secretly sold the house and even his children. And that still wasn't enough; he had ended up selling his grandfather's house too.
Her grandfather, well into his old age, had hoped that his children and grandchildren would live well. But Third Uncle Xu had gambled away the whole family property, leaving the old man without a place to stay.
So, in this life, she had to prevent Third Uncle Xu from repeating his mistakes at all costs.
If he went off to work, he wouldn't be idle wandering about, running into that group of people who led him to gamble.
"Work in the fields?" Xu JianShe's gaze shifted evasively, clearly reluctant.