Chapter 29: Chapter 29: Northeastern Imperial Chef?

"You’re from the countryside too?"

Wen Ci: "Yes."

Hearing this, the women smiled, their impression of Wen Ci improving. In this era, most city dwellers looked down on people from the countryside.

A few city folk had moved into the military family compound before.

But after getting to know them, they decided they preferred to stick with people they could get along with. "Sister, your skin is so fair. Do you have any secrets?"

Wen Ci shook her head. "Maybe I was just born with it."

The calluses on her hands proved that Wen Ci was a capable worker.

"Which building do you live in?"

"Uh..." Wen Ci hesitated.

She honestly didn’t know which building she lived in. She tried hard to remember, vaguely recalling that it was written on the wall, but she still couldn’t bring it to mind. "I can’t remember which one it is."

"It’s fine if you can’t remember. Come hang out with us often from now on!"

The women introduced themselves. The big sister from the Northeast was named Zhu Jing.

The woman sitting next to Zhu Jing was named Hou Li, the one with the tan was Xiang Qin, and the quiet one was Miao Ling.

A gentle smile on her face, Wen Ci said, "My name is Wen Ci. From now on, would it be okay if I called you all Sister Jing, Sister Li, Sister Qin, and Sister Ling?"

The women had mentioned their ages during the introductions. Wen Ci was twenty-three, and they were all a few years older, which was why she addressed them as ’sisters’.

"Sister Wen Ci, come to my place for lunch!"

After just a few minutes together, Zhu Jing had taken a real liking to a girl with a personality like Wen Ci’s, so she spontaneously invited her over for lunch.

Wen Ci quickly waved her hands in refusal. "No, no, I couldn’t. I can just eat at the base cafeteria for lunch."

"The cafeteria is so expensive. It’s cheaper to cook for yourself."

Aside from the free breakfast, lunch and dinner cost money. Many people in the family compound bought their groceries for the week and kept them stocked at home.

When you calculated it, cooking your own meals was cheaper than eating at the cafeteria.

Wen Ci hesitated for a moment, then remembered that Huo Jingyuan might come back for lunch. Even if he didn’t, Xue Li would come and deliver food for her.

If she wasn’t at home...

That would be bad.

Wen Ci said, "My husband might be coming home for lunch."

"He won’t be back," Zhu Jing explained with a smile. "The men all went out for field training today. The earliest they’ll be back is tomorrow."

Zhu Jing was one of the first to move into the family compound. Her husband was from Li Family Village and had served as a soldier in the Northeast for years before being transferred back recently.

She knew the fixed monthly schedule for field training like the back of her hand.

Seeing Wen Ci’s hesitation, Zhu Jing pretended to be angry and said, "Wen Ci, are you looking down on me?"

"No, not at all," Wen Ci answered earnestly.

"Wen Ci, you should just agree. Ah Jing’s ancestors were Imperial Chefs from the Northeast! We’ve all tasted her cooking—her vegetables are even better than meat."

An Imperial Chef!

Wen Ci’s eyes widened, and she couldn’t help but lick her lips. She considered that since Huo Jingyuan could buy vegetables and meat from the cafeteria, why not pay for a meal for everyone herself?

Wen Ci slowly began, "How about this, Sister Jing, Sister Li, Sister Qin, Sister Ling? Lunch is on me today, and Sister Jing can do the cooking. How does that sound?"

Wen Ci made the final decision. "It’s settled. Otherwise, I’ll just assume you don’t like me and don’t want to be my friend."

Hearing Wen Ci’s "threat," Zhu Jing and the others exchanged helpless smiles before finally saying, "You can treat today, but next time, it’s my turn. We’ll each take a turn treating."

"Deal."

The women chatted for a while longer until Zhu Jing heard her child crying upstairs. "The kid’s awake," she said. "I have to take him to school."

In this era, women generally married and had children young.

Except for Sister Ling, the others all had children who were old enough for nursery school.

With that, Wen Ci left and headed toward the main gate of the family compound. ’Huo Jingyuan asked Xue Li to bring me lunch,’ she thought. ’That means Xue Li probably didn’t go on the field training. I’m not familiar with the cafeteria, so to buy meat and vegetables, I’ll have to trouble Xue Li to help me talk to the aunties in the kitchen.’

When she arrived at the guardhouse, the two young men Wen Ci had met the day before yesterday were on duty. Seeing her, they called out loudly, "Hello, Sister-in-law!"

"Hello," Wen Ci said, waving at them. "Do you know Xue Li?"

"We do."

Out of the corner of her eye, Wen Ci spotted a landline on the desk in the guardhouse. She suddenly remembered there was also a landline in her living room—she could call Xue Li directly.

The military compound had a single internal number. No matter who you were calling, the call first went to the main switchboard and was then transferred to the intended party.

"Do you want us to call Captain Xue for you?"

"Can you do that?" Wen Ci’s eyes lit up.

"Of course. We’re here to serve the sisters-in-law of the family compound."

A minute later, the call connected. "Sister-in-law, you can come in and take the call."

Wen Ci put the receiver to her ear, and Xue Li’s voice came from the other end. "Sister-in-law, did you need something from me?"

Wen Ci said, "Xue Li, I have a small favor to ask you."

"Sister-in-law, just ask."

"I want to treat a few of the sisters from the family compound to a meal. We’re planning to cook lunch ourselves, and I was hoping you could help me buy some meat and vegetables from the cafeteria kitchen."

"Of course."

Xue Li agreed without a second thought. He often went to Sea City on business and frequently brought back supplies for the kitchen, so he was on very good terms with the cafeteria staff.

Buying some meat and vegetables from them would be a piece of cake.

"But..." Xue Li paused. "I still have some things to take care of here. I probably won’t be back for about an hour and a half."

"That’s fine. I’ll wait for you at home."

"What I mean, Sister-in-law, is you can tell me how much meat and vegetables you need, and I’ll deliver them directly to your door later."

Hearing this, Wen Ci pulled the receiver away from her ear, looked up at the young guard, and asked, "Do the children in the family compound come home for lunch?"

She didn’t know if Sister Jing and the others’ children would be coming home.

"No, they stay at school all day."

"Thanks." Wen Ci brought the receiver back to her ear and said, "It’s just for four people. I need ingredients for Northeast cuisine. It would be great if you could get something for a main dish. I’ll pay you back later."

"Alright, Sister-in-law."

After hanging up, Wen Ci gave a slight smile. She placed the receiver back in its cradle and thanked the two guards. "Thank you. What are your names?"

"Zhang Cheng, Li Wei."

Wen Ci repeated their names to herself, then suddenly remembered the case of instant noodles she had at home. She could give some to them. "Do you guys like instant noodles?"

"Instant noodles? You mean the kind that costs fifty cents a pack?"

Wen Ci nodded. "Yes. I’ll bring you a few packs later."

The instant noodles she had bought were the largest size available at the department store. A single case contained a full fifty packs, so giving away a few was no problem. Zhang Cheng and Li Wei were young; they would probably like them.

Zhang Cheng swallowed. "Really, Sister-in-law?"

Li Wei nudged him with his elbow and said with a laugh, "Sister-in-law, we have a rule against accepting things from the residents."