During the past winter, Xie Yuejin had been extremely attentive to Li Ying. Perhaps because he finally had some financial breathing room, he practically invited Li Ying to the restaurant every day.
Even when the waitresses were off-duty, Xie Yuejin would personally cook for Li Ying—big meat buns, big dumplings—and after she finished eating, he’d even wrap up a pig’s trotter for her to take home.
So this winter, not only did Wang Yongshun’s whole family gain weight, but everyone in the Li family, except for Wang Pingping, had also put on quite a bit.
Old Lady Li was smiling so hard her eyes couldn’t even open. Her Li Ying had landed a top chef—there were good days of eating meat and drinking oil ahead.
With how often Li Ying came around, she naturally became very familiar with the state-owned restaurant, treating it as if it were her own family business.
Sure enough, today she strolled in again, and as soon as she arrived, she sat down at a good table like she was the proprietress and started cracking sunflower seeds.
Li Ying said, “Put in more meatballs for me, less winter melon.”
Winter melon wasn’t in season at the time, and it tended to be stringy. Li Ying was very picky—she felt that since her man was in charge of the kitchen, it wasn’t too much to ask for a few special requests.
She had no idea that as soon as the waitress turned away, she rolled her eyes in displeasure.
The waitress did feel that Xie Yuejin was easier to deal with than Xu Shuang and more generous, but comparing their partners, Li Ying didn’t seem all that great.
Every time Wang Ying came in, she ate and drank politely. Xu Shuang never gave them a hard time either—they always paid with ration tickets as expected. If they ordered extra, they’d pay extra accordingly, without ever making things difficult. Sometimes Wang Ying would even slip them some cheap medicinal herbs, like motherwort or licorice root, which they could take home and brew as tea—supposedly very beneficial for women.
But Li Ying had only come a few times and was already utterly insufferable.
Last time she demanded a meat-stuffed sesame flatbread; this time she was ordering winter melon meatball soup. Each time she acted all high and mighty, as if everyone else were beneath her.
The waitress was holding in her frustration. Even if she had received some perks from Xie Yuejin, she never intended to suck up to his girlfriend.
They weren’t even married yet, and she was already acting like the state-owned restaurant belonged to her!
And look at Xu Shuang—he was a head chef, and he and Wang Ying were properly married. Yet they were always polite and respectful.
Just like now—Wang Ying had come in, quietly exchanged a few words with Xu Shuang at the back kitchen, and then waited patiently outside without eating. Meanwhile, Li Ying waltzed in and sat down, didn’t even greet Xie Yuejin, and immediately started ordering the staff around!
The waitress was starting to feel some quiet regret. If she’d known that accepting favors from Xie Yuejin would come with so little standing, she wouldn’t have agreed in the first place.
Now look at the mess. Sure, she got a two-month break and made some decent money, but now she couldn’t even speak up about Li Ying!
Fuming, the waitress shouted toward the kitchen, “Chef Xie! Sister Ying wants winter melon meatball soup!”
As for her specific request about more meatballs and less winter melon? She didn’t mention that at all.
If it had been someone else ordering the food, the waitress wouldn’t have even bothered to pass on any special requests to the kitchen.
Spoiled, aren’t you! Eat it or don’t!
But aside from that, the truth was that state-owned restaurants now had standardized evaluation criteria.
These standards weren’t about customer volume or how much money you made, but whether the food you served used real, quality ingredients.
Take meat buns, for example—whatever the customer’s ration ticket specified, the buns had to match in weight and filling. If an inspector came, they would weigh your buns. The meat filling had to meet a minimum requirement, and the size of the buns had to comply with regulations—genuine ingredients were a must.
So even the most miserly chefs at a tightly regulated state-owned restaurant could only cut corners to a very limited extent. If you ran into someone who insisted on the rules, they could make a scene.
On this point, Xu Shuang did very well. Every time he served extra dumplings to Wang Ying, he would pay according to one and a half portions. But as for Xie Yuejin…
Heh. Might as well stick to the rules.
If she really wanted a winter melon meatball soup with more meatballs, she could just make it at home!
The waitress was no fool. She’d originally thought she could slack off a bit during the winter, but once she returned to the restaurant, she realized something wasn’t right. Xu Shuang’s attitude toward Xie Yuejin had gone beyond indifference—it was downright cold.
The two had divided up the kitchen duties, and Xu Shuang was now even more meticulous than before the New Year. The notebook for tracking ingredients in and out was no longer left out in the open but had been tucked away somewhere unknown.
Even Wan Guodong showed a clear bias—every time he came to the restaurant, he’d first ask about the situation with Xie Yuejin.
The waitress wasn’t stupid. When it came to picking sides, she would obviously follow Wan Guodong, but that didn’t mean she had to cozy up to Xie Yuejin or his girlfriend.
Keeping things polite was one thing, but did they really expect her to like Li Ying’s arrogant face?
The waitress spoke in a less-than-pleasant tone, and Xie Yuejin, quick-witted as he was, instantly understood.
Li Ying had come looking for him again, and she was making all sorts of demands with her food order.
Just from the tone, he could tell she was probably being rude to people again.
Xie Yuejin sighed bitterly to himself. He had wanted to find a girl with a steady job in town, and it had taken him quite a bit of effort to land someone like Li Ying. All her brothers were factory workers, no financial burdens, and no siblings needing support. As for himself, he was a worker at the thermos factory, with a stable salary and the possibility of a housing allocation.
From his point of view, getting someone like Li Ying was quite the accomplishment—more impressive than earning over 500 yuan in side income over the winter.
But after actually spending time with her, he was starting to feel overwhelmed.
He had lied to Li Ying, telling her that he called the shots in the kitchen. But Li Ying really didn’t treat herself like an outsider at all.
Not only did she eat and take food home all winter long, but two or three times she even dragged her sisters-in-law over for food and drink. Xie Yuejin had warned her repeatedly, telling her to be careful. If word got out, it wouldn’t just be about him letting her eat there—it could cost him his job.
At first, his words did scare Li Ying a bit, and she promised to explain everything clearly to her sisters-in-law, swearing they wouldn’t say a word.
But it didn’t take long for her to fall back into old habits.
She stopped bringing others along, but she started showing up every other day herself.
After winter, Xie Yuejin told her another lie—that a new head chef had been assigned to the restaurant, and that from now on, the kitchen decisions would be shared, so she needed to keep a low profile.
He really didn’t want to say things that would damage his image in front of his girlfriend, but Li Ying was just too much. She came to the restaurant every afternoon after work and always ordered meat dishes.
She got tired of the meat buns and started demanding stir-fried dishes.
Xie Yuejin didn’t dare play tricks under Xu Shuang’s watchful eye, so every time he still had to pay and hand over ration tickets.
Just from eating at the restaurant every day, Xie Yuejin had burned through nearly 40 yuan in just one month!
Who could sustain that?!
His real intention was to get Li Ying to rein it in and stop coming to the restaurant so often.
But Li Ying completely missed the subtext and confidently insisted that no newly appointed chef could possibly cook better than Xie Yuejin.
If he hadn’t been forced to keep lying, Xie Yuejin would’ve grabbed her by the ear and yelled:
The food you’re eating isn’t even made by me!
Just like this time—when he heard Li Ying had ordered winter melon meatball soup, he had no choice but to plaster on a smile and go beg Xu Shuang.
“Brother Xu, do me a favor, will you? Make a bowl of winter melon meatball soup.”
As he spoke, he quietly slipped Xu Shuang fifty cents.
Xie Yuejin couldn’t help but sigh. Technically, if someone placed an order, Xu Shuang was the one who was supposed to cook it—that was part of his job.
But since it was Li Ying who placed the order, Xu Shuang refused to lift a finger. He claimed that since she was Xie Yuejin’s girlfriend and specifically named him to make the dish, he’d stay out of it.
That really pushed Xie Yuejin into a corner. He knew his own cooking skills—he was just about passable at braised dishes, dumplings, and buns. Any other dishes wouldn’t taste nearly as good as Xu Shuang’s. Some of the things Li Ying ordered, he hadn’t even made before.
Afraid she’d taste the difference, he had to keep sweet-talking Xu Shuang and slipping him money.
He gave that money without a shred of pride—Xie Yuejin didn’t even have any leverage over Xu Shuang.
Because he was also afraid Xu Shuang might one day tell Li Ying the truth.
So he could only keep suffering in silence, pretending to be humble to everyone.
Once Xu Shuang accepted the money, he finally got to work on the soup without hesitation.
He sliced the winter melon, took out the half-prepared dumpling meat filling from the restaurant’s stock, added some seasoning, and began mixing and pounding it for texture. Once the pot of water boiled, he tossed in the winter melon to simmer. Then, with one hand clenched into a fist and the other holding a spoon, he started shaping the meatballs—scooping and pressing them into the pot. The floating, plump meatballs bobbed up and down in the boiling water, looking mouthwatering and tender.
Xu Shuang ladled the meatball soup out with a big iron spoon—then casually served up an extra bowl.
Just then, Xie Yuejin returned from handing over the money and ration tickets to the waitress, making sure to throw in a few kind words. When he came back, he saw that Xu Shuang had made two bowls.
He panicked: “We only ordered one bowl!”
Had he not been clear? He was sure he had said just one bowl earlier!
Xu Shuang’s face remained cold: “The other bowl’s for my wife.”
As he spoke, he handed over the money and meal ticket to the server and carried a bowl of winter melon meatball soup out himself.
Li Ying had been sitting quite comfortably, but was startled when a handsome man walked out of the kitchen carrying a bowl of soup. First, she was taken aback, then a hint of delight crept into her expression.
“Hey, hey, over here!”
She didn’t even bother to call him “comrade,” just directly started ordering Xu Shuang around.
Li Ying was quite pretty herself, and back in school, she had received anonymous notes from admirers. But none of those boys could compare in looks to Xu Shuang.
The moment she saw him, she felt a burst of pride.
So what if he’s good-looking? He’s still just working under her boyfriend.
Still, having a good-looking person serve her was undeniably pleasing.
Li Ying waved happily, shouting loudly as if the soup had been ordered by her.
Xu Shuang, however, didn’t even glance at her. After years of being head chef, carrying dishes to tables wasn’t part of his job—he only did it enthusiastically for Wang Ying.
There were others in the restaurant besides Wang Ying and Li Ying—some men who had come to drink in the evening. They were studying the menu on the wall and, hearing Li Ying’s loud voice, all turned to look.
Li Ying was filled with pride. Though her boyfriend Xie Yuejin wasn’t much to look at, at least he gave her enough face.
Seeing that Xu Shuang didn’t come directly over, Li Ying thought he was just being slow.
She even stood up, yet he was still detouring?
“Hey! I’m talking to you! That winter melon meatball soup is mine! Hurry and bring it over!”
Xu Shuang still ignored her.
Li Ying got annoyed: “Hey! I’m talking to you, didn’t you hear? Hurry up—”
Xu Shuang placed the bowl of soup on the table in front of Wang Ying. “I figured you must be hungry too. Eat first, I’ll bring you a steamed bun in a bit.”
Li Ying: …
Wang Ying was even embarrassed for this woman who happened to share her name.
She whispered to Xu Shuang, “Is this okay?”
Given the situation earlier, it was hard to believe it wasn’t intentional.
Xu Shuang shook his head. While it had been on his way, he really didn’t like Xie Yuejin’s girlfriend.
When he was in charge of the kitchen, even Xie Yuejin had to behave himself. But Xie’s girlfriend would come by every few days to eat, always sneaking peeks into the kitchen. It was irritating. Xu Shuang always avoided her, didn’t even want to see her face. Just a few days ago, he’d overheard her telling Xie Yuejin that he “managed the kitchen,” which had left Xu Shuang speechless.
People like that—it’d be best if she were too ashamed to ever come back!
Li Ying, seeing that Xu Shuang ignored her, saw instead Xie Yuejin jogging over with the bowl of soup.
“Yingzi, look, the soup’s ready—plenty of meatballs!”
Li Ying felt blood rush to her head, her face flushing red. So she had misunderstood the whole situation just now? The men at the neighboring tables were already whispering among themselves. Li Ying felt more humiliated than she ever had before.
Winter melon meatball soup—she now wished she had never ordered it!
Pushing Xie Yuejin aside, Li Ying covered her face and ran out, leaving Xie standing there helplessly.
The server, who had witnessed the whole thing, felt a satisfying chill of delight—like drinking ice water on a hot summer day.
Serves you right!
Trying to act like the boss’s wife? Ran into the real head chef’s wife, didn’t you?
Wang Ying was speechless. That “Yingzi” woman had even glared at her before leaving.
What did that have to do with her?!
Turning back to the soup, she saw it was topped with chopped cilantro—fragrant and inviting!
Whatever—food is king!
Wang Ying happily began eating. The winter melon had been simmered to a translucent state, and the flavor was excellent. The meatballs were springy and firm. With a steamed bun on the side, she was full before finishing the bowl.
Wang Ying rubbed her belly. “I can’t eat anymore.”
The weather had been getting warmer, so her calorie consumption wasn’t as high as in winter. After a period of recovery, her appetite had also become more manageable. The nutrition she’d been getting was already showing on her face. Though her hair wasn’t thick yet, there were many new, messy little tufts growing at the roots. Once dull and yellow, it was now noticeably darker.
Her complexion had also improved from unhealthy yellow to a rosy, hydrated glow.
Her eyes were bright and moist, like flowers blooming in a desert—still delicate and frail, but full of life.
Since Wang Ying often misjudged how much food she could eat, Xu Shuang had been finishing her leftovers more and more frequently.
Wang Ying watched him polish off the rest of her food and happily gave him a handful of stir-fried melon seeds that Chen Dong had made. After a few words between them, Xu Shuang returned to the kitchen to help with the dinner rush.
Only after they clocked out in the evening did the two of them push their bicycles home together.
On the way, Wang Ying told Xu Shuang about her encounter with Yao Shunjun at the county hospital and through Chen Dong. Yao Shunjun wasn’t the hard part—the wild ginseng would take time. She planned to go into the mountains every day, starting nearby to see if she could find anything before venturing deeper.
But the issue with “Old Dog” was something she needed Xu Shuang’s advice on.
She didn’t know the brigade folks that well, and her only interaction with Old Dog had been when she beat him up once. She figured it was best to ask Xu Shuang for some background first.
Xu Shuang thought back on what he knew about Old Dog: “Back during that mudslide, he wasn’t really hurt. He just got scared and pissed himself, insisted he couldn’t stand up, so we took him to the infirmary. But afterward, no one ever heard about him having any real problems.”
That old bachelor claimed his legs had been crushed, but turned out he was healthier than the young men who had worked for days helping out.
Wang Ying considered it. “So, do you think I can get him to talk about what happened to my mom during those days?”
Wang Ying didn’t believe that the original mother only left money. Apart from the money, was there no word at all about the original father?
This didn’t make sense.
Xu Shuang thought for a moment and said, “Why not just ask?”.
Old Dog, this person, always speaks without any restraint. If he knew something, he would definitely blurt it out. Since he hasn’t said anything, maybe it’s because he doesn’t know, or maybe he heard something but didn’t think it was important.
So, it’s best to find the person and ask them in detail.
Wang Ying felt a bit uneasy. “But we both beat him up, will he really tell the truth?”
Xu Shuang looked at her with some surprise. “Why would you think that? Right now, he probably wants to say everything he knows.”
This wasn’t surprising. Xu Shuang’s beating had given Old Dog some serious psychological trauma.
From last year until now, almost half a year had passed, and Old Dog had basically been avoiding Xu Shuang.
Wang Ying said, “Alright, then shall we go find him tomorrow?”
Xu Shuang replied, “No, we’ll go tonight.”
If they woke him up in the middle of the night to ask, Old Dog would definitely spill everything.
