It was not easy for anyone to have something to eat, let alone the conditions of the couple.
Also, Xiulan still planned to go to the black market. If she stayed for lunch, she wouldn’t be able to go to the black market anymore.
But Mrs. Chen still insisted for her to stay, “Xiulan, you don’t have to be courteous as well. You’ve helped us a lot during this time, so what’s wrong with having this rare meal?
“If you still refuse, we will be embarrassed to trouble you again in the future.”
Mr. Chen also followed suit and said, “Yeah, Xiulan, you saved the lives of our two old fellows. We want to treat you to a meal, which can be regarded as our intention to repay you.”
Xiulan didn’t know how to refuse anymore after hearing them speak.
Cheng, who was on the side, also hoped that she could stay and have a meal so that they could spend more time together.
“Comrade Xiulan, if you don’t have a matter to worry about, then let’s all have a meal together at noon. It is rare to have this kind of fate,” Cheng persuaded, for fear that she would still refuse. He looked at her expectantly.
Seeing a row of big white teeth when Cheng smiled, which looked very handsome, Xiulan’s heart trembled slightly. “All right then, I’ll stay and have a meal!”
The couple was very happy. Although Cheng didn’t show much excitement, he couldn’t help but smile slightly at the corners of his lips.
***Original translation is from enchantesstranslations.com. Please read it on the translator’s website.***
“Cheng brought pork today and I happened to get some shepherd’s purse today, so how about we eat dumplings filled with shepherd’s purse and pork today?” Mrs. Chen suggested and then explained, “The fragrance of pork is too strong. If it is braised or stewed, the fragrance can easily drift away.
“Since everyone has nothing to eat, if there is anything delicious, especially meat, its fragrance would be easy to reach those who have a sharp nose.
“Our status is somewhat special, so it’s better to keep a low profile. If someone reports that we eat meat, I’m afraid that we won’t have a safe life.”
Her worries were all justified. For them, who were considered as bad elements of society, if they ate meat, they would be labeled with the name of capitalist hedonism.
It was undeniable that there were many good people in this world, and there were also many bad people. When someone’s heart was sinister, it was extremely terrifying.
In situations just like where the Chen couple were, if you didn’t want to cause trouble and want to live with peace of mind, then you could only keep a low profile.
Xiulan agreed with Mrs. Chen’s proposal, she smiled and said, “Okay, Auntie Chen, then we will eat dumplings stuffed with pork and shepherd’s purse at noon.”
Cheng also expressed that he had no opinion, “Ma’am, I am just a person who eat and drink anything. I can eat whatever you will make, so you can make your own decision on that.
“Speaking of which, I haven’t eaten dumplings for a long time. The dumplings you’ve made before were so delicious, but I haven’t eaten them in years, so I kind of miss it a little!”
Seeing that there was no objection from them, Mrs. Chen also smiled with satisfaction. “All right, I’ll prepare them now.”
Fortunately, Xiulan sent a lot of fine grains before and there was white flour at home now. Otherwise, even if they wanted to eat dumplings, they would not be able to without flour.
There was not enough foodstuff to eat and fine grains were even rarer. Good things like white flour could make people jealous when they were taken out.
Even if it was a family with good conditions, it was still not easy for them to eat dumplings. The couple also had forgotten how long they hadn’t eaten dumplings. It seemed that they hadn’t eaten dumplings since their downfall and they had almost forgotten the taste of dumplings.