Reborn in the 1970s — Married a Proud Rough Man

Chapter 394 - 143: Grandpa and Granny Move Away

Qin Mei covered her nose, then poured another ladleful of water. Seeing the fire was completely extinguished, she was finally satisfied.

She helped Jing Qi to a seat in the courtyard. ’I’ll wait for the smell in the kitchen to fade before I go back in,’ she thought.

When Qin Xiang returned from buying groceries, he saw Qin Mei and Jing Qi sitting in the courtyard. He parked his bicycle, and holding up the net bag, he looked at Qin Mei and asked teasingly, "Little sis, is the rice cooked?"

Qin Mei thought for a moment, an embarrassed look on her face. "It’s half-cooked."

Qin Xiang took this to mean she had drained the rice and was steaming it. "The meat was sold out, so I couldn’t buy any. I got tofu instead, and the roast duck that Jing Qi likes."

The mention of roast duck reminded Qin Mei that this was the second time Qin Xiang had bought one. From the first duck, she had only eaten the head, the neck, and one foot. Qin Xiang had eaten the other foot, and the rest had been given to Jing Qi.

Qin Mei looked toward Jing Qi. ’She couldn’t have finished it all already, could she?’

"I wasn’t hungry. I haven’t touched it," Jie Jingshan said, keeping her head down. She hadn’t been in the mood for roast duck, so it was still in her room, completely untouched.

"No, that’s not what I meant," Qin Mei explained.

"I’ll go get it." Jie Jingshan got up and slowly walked toward her room.

"Qin Mei," Qin Xiang called out.

Qin Mei ducked her head and walked toward the kitchen.

When Qin Mei entered the kitchen, Qin Xiang pointed at the briquette stove. "Explain this."

Qin Mei explained what had happened. A wave of fear washed over Qin Xiang as he listened, and he regretted letting her cook alone. Nothing serious had come of it, but if something had, he would have been to blame.

"Little sis, just go play outside." Qin Xiang had given up. His little sister cooking alone was terrifying. He finally understood why Jie Jingchen would rather let her eat out than teach her how to cook.

’Go play outside? Does he think I’m a three-year-old?’ Qin Mei glared at Qin Xiang. "You help me start the fire. I’ll cook it again."

"No need. I’ll cook," Qin Xiang said, a smile fixed on his face.

"You’ll cook?" Qin Mei was surprised. Just at lunchtime, he had insisted she cook by herself, solemnly declaring it was for her own good and saying, "You don’t have to cook, but you must know how."

Only a few hours had passed, and he had already changed his tune.

"That’s right, I’ll cook," Qin Xiang said, nodding with a smile.

"What about the other dishes?" Qin Mei asked.

"I’ll stir-fry them," Qin Xiang said, patting his chest confidently.

"So you’re cooking the rice and stir-frying the dishes. Do you need any help from me?" Qin Mei asked.

Qin Xiang shook his head. "Nope. You just need to wait outside to be served."

"For real?" Qin Mei asked in disbelief.

"You’re being a pest. Don’t just hang around in the kitchen; you’re in the way and cramping my style. Now, get out." Qin Xiang grabbed her by the shoulders, spun her around, and pushed her toward the doorway.

Just as Qin Mei stepped over the threshold, Jing Qi approached, holding the roast duck wrapped in oil paper. It was, indeed, untouched.

Qin Mei took the duck from Jing Qi, turned to Qin Xiang, and handed it to him, saying deliberately, "I told you Jing Qi doesn’t like roast duck, but you refused to believe me. See? The duck you bought, returned to you completely untouched."

Qin Xiang took it and looked at Jing Qi, completely bewildered. After all, Jing Qi herself had told him she liked roast duck.

Jie Jingshan was a little confused and wanted to explain, but Qin Mei pulled her away.

Qin Xiang glanced at the new roast duck sitting on the table, then at the one in his hands, and was lost in thought.

Jing Qi returned to her room to study, and Qin Mei kept her company. But after a short while, Qin Mei grew bored.

"Jing Qi, I’m going to go for a walk," Qin Mei said.

Jing Qi was so focused on her studies that she merely nodded upon hearing Qin Mei, not offering a verbal reply.

Qin Mei got up, left the room, and closed the door behind her. She wandered around the courtyard for a bit, pausing under the grapevine for a moment before ambling outside to sit on the threshold of the main gate, waiting for Jie Jingchen to return.

Students got out of school and workers began heading home from their shifts. They passed by the Jie family home, some on foot, others on bicycles. Seeing Qin Mei sitting on the threshold, none of them greeted her. They weren’t familiar with Qin Mei, and since she was just sitting at the gate by herself, no one stopped.

The ones who were a little more familiar might call out her name, nod, or offer a smile, but not a single one actually stopped to talk to her.

Qin Mei didn’t mind. She had no intention of getting particularly close with the neighbors anyway. ’My mother-in-law gets along great with everyone in the neighborhood,’ she thought. ’She’s respected by practically everyone. But she’s a doctor, and they only respect her because they hope she won’t charge them for treatment. To put it bluntly, it’s a relationship built on self-interest.’

Seeing that Jie Jingchen still hadn’t come home, Qin Mei noticed a group of neighbors not far off, chatting together under a tree.

Qin Mei had no desire to join them, but she was so bored she wanted to eavesdrop on their conversation. She got up and slowly moved closer to them.

An older woman, cracking melon seeds, asked, "Have you all heard?"