Back to the 1970s: Building My Fortune Through Time Trading

Chapter 162: Pleasing Her Two Little Brothers

Forget it, today I’m in a good mood, I won’t argue with these two rascals.

She took out two oiled paper packages from the mesh bag, one containing a bunch of duck goodies, the other a vegetarian dish gifted by the braised food shop owner.

She unwrapped the two oiled paper packages one by one, and the spicy and savory aroma quickly filled the entire room.

Liu Cuilan had just returned from work and smelled the delicious aroma in the air as soon as she walked in.

"What’s that smell? Why does it smell so good?"

Curiously, she looked at the items on the table and saw two oiled papers on it.

One contained things like duck necks, while the other had some lotus root slices, potato slices, and other vegetarian foods.

Su Xiaoxiao smiled and hooked her arm, pulling her to sit at the table: "Mom, try this. I bought this braised food from the city; the taste is really good."

Liu Cuilan skeptically eyed the pile, full of cheap duck necks, duck vertebrae, duck heads, and not much meat.

Normally, these items wouldn’t be popular even in the market.

Though inexpensive, they were mostly bones and had little meat; buying two pounds of pork belly seemed more practical.

"It’s all bones, what’s so tasty about them? With this money, I might as well buy some braised pork."

Before Liu Cuilan could finish speaking, a duck vertebra was stuffed into her mouth. She instinctively took a bite and immediately widened her eyes in surprise.

The taste was unexpectedly delicious, spicy and savory.

"Mom, how is it, tasty?"

Su Xiaoxiao spoke with confidence, believing few could resist the allure of modern braised food.

"Tasty it is, but there’s just too little meat on these; not as cost-effective as buying real meat."

"Don’t worry, your daughter has money now. We can eat whatever we want; I’ll earn even more money so our family can have meat every day."

"Good, good, I know our youngest is the most promising."

Liu Cuilan laughed and rubbed her head, and the two younger brothers immediately chimed in: "Mom, when we start earning money, we’ll buy you meat every day too."

Liu Cuilan’s eyes reddened slightly: "No need to cheer me up, let’s just eat."

Dinner was cornmeal steamed buns with sorghum rice mixed in, paired with the braised food Su Xiaoxiao brought, even the coarse buns, usually a bit harsh on the throat, became a perfect complement.

The two younger brothers ate until their stomachs were round before reluctantly putting down their chopsticks.

After dinner, returning to her room, Su Xiaoxiao carefully packaged the pre-ordered braised food before contently climbing into bed.

Early the next morning, while Su Xiaoxiao was sleepily dozing, someone knocked on her door.

Who was disturbing her sleep at such an early hour?

"Third Sister, are you awake? You promised to go with us to see the teacher today."

Su Jianwu’s deliberately lowered voice came from outside.

The two were afraid of Liu Cuilan finding out about the parent-summoning issue, so they came early to knock on Su Xiaoxiao’s door.

Su Xiaoxiao irritably ran her hand through her hair, walked over and opened the door. It was dim and foggy outside, barely hinting a bit of daylight in the east.

It was at most 5am, these two rascals really cared about her.

She had been up till midnight packaging braised food, and hadn’t slept long before being dragged up by them.

"You must be hungry, right? Here, have this."

Su Jianwen offered a hot sweet potato warmly into her arms.

Su Jianwu cautiously pulled out a steaming boiled egg from his embrace and placed it in Su Xiaoxiao’s hand, earnestly staring at her.

"Third Sister, I picked this from the chicken coop early this morning; quick, eat while it’s hot."

Their thoughtful gestures softened Su Xiaoxiao’s morning grumpiness by more than half.

"Alright, seeing you two being so considerate, I’ll help you this time."

Su Xiaoxiao tidied her messy hair, pocketed the egg, peeled the sweet potato and took a bite.

You wouldn’t believe it, the sweet potato was roasted perfectly, the golden oily core was bursting, with a sweet taste in every bite.

The two younger brothers gazed at it eagerly, uncontrollably swallowing, their eyes almost tearing up over the sweet potato.

It was clear they only prepared breakfast for her, not themselves.

Seeing their filial piety, Su Xiaoxiao generously broke a piece for each of them.

"Thanks, Third Sister."

The two younger brothers’ eyes shone, quickly finishing the sweet potato in their hands.

This time the school had morning study sessions, and teachers usually arrived at school by six, ensuring no wasted trip.

Matter resolved at school and off to work, neither side delayed.

Su Xiaoxiao pulled out her bicycle, calling out to the two younger brothers: "Get on quickly, sister will give you a ride, just one at the front, one at the back."

Su Xiaoxiao planted the bike firmly on the ground: "Come, Old Five, you’re shorter, sit in front, Old Four can sit at the back."

No need to walk, Su Jianwu eagerly attempted to squeeze onto the bike rack, but just as he made a move, Su Jianwen grabbed him by the nape.

He displeasedly pursed his lips: "Fourth Brother, what are you up to?"

Su Jianwen lowered his voice as he leaned close: "You dare ride Third Sister’s bike? Not afraid of being thrown off."

Su Jianwu pictured the state of Third Sister riding to work each morning and took a step back, diplomatically saying: "Third Sister, suddenly walking seems nice, perfect to digest after eating."

No sooner did he finish speaking than his stomach rumbled uncontrollably.

Su Xiaoxiao squinted, "You two aren’t doubting my riding skills, are you? Let me tell you, in this dialect region, no one dares to boast about bike skills in front of me, watch closely, come aboard quickly."

Seeing them still standing there, Su Xiaoxiao straightforwardly unleashed: "Who gets on first gets to eat the egg."

Saying this, she waved the egg in front of their faces from her pocket.

Su Jianwu gulped and shot forward: "Sister, I’m up."

Isn’t it just falling off?

He’d taken spills more than a few times, and Third Sister assured them her skills were fine.

As the words fell, Su Jianwen quietly climbed onto the rear seat.

"That’s more like it."

Su Xiaoxiao split the egg, handing each half to the boys: "Eat up quickly, then off to school."

The two younger brothers polished off the egg in no time: "Sister, we’re ready, let’s go."

"Alright, hold on tight, today I’ll show you my exceptional biking skills."

Su Xiaoxiao pushed down hard, and the bike shot forward quickly.

Unexpectedly, as they approached the intersection, another bike zoomed toward them from another direction.

Su Jianwen yelled, "Third Sister, watch out!"

"Don’t worry, sister’s riding skills are fine."

Su Xiaoxiao flicked her hair, but before she could react, she was directly hit and sent flying by the other bike.