Disaster Apocalypse: Farming, Family, and My Hidden Secret Space-Chapter 109: Auntie is coming

"Sister, you’re up?"

Hua Yunao’s voice, directed at his cheerful sister, immediately caught the attention of others in the courtyard.

Hua Chengtian happened to see his daughter shiver from the cold, and his heart ached.

"Jin’er, it’s too cold outside, don’t come out. I’ll have your mother bring your meal inside shortly."

Hua Jinjiao: "..."

Back inside... it seemed she had just gotten out of bed.

"Dad, I’m not cold, it just takes a moment to get used to it." Hua Jinjiao said quickly.

Although being pampered by the family felt rather addictive, it wasn’t to the extent that she couldn’t leave the house.

Seeing his son smiling on the side, Hua Chengtian realized he might have been overly anxious, knowing his daughter wasn’t as fragile as he imagined. He nodded, but still reminded Hua Jinjiao to return indoors if she got cold.

Hua Jinjiao nodded repeatedly, afraid her father would continue, and quickly headed to the kitchen without lingering in the courtyard.

As soon as she entered, she saw the mother-in-law duo busily working in the kitchen, which was much warmer compared to the cold outside, making one reluctant to leave.

Both stove mouths were enveloped by glowing flames, with one warming Hua Jinjiao’s breakfast and the other filled with hot water ready for use at any time.

Flower wife and Qi were preparing lunch, one washing vegetables and the other cutting them.

Though they seemed so focused on their work, as Hua Jinjiao walked in, it was as if both women had eyes in the back of their heads and immediately sensed her presence, almost simultaneously putting down their tasks to look at the entering Hua Jinjiao.

Seeing the mother-in-law put down the knife to approach her daughter, Qi did not move but instead took out the food warming in the pot.

When the grandmother saw her granddaughter up, her face immediately broke into a fond smile, her gentle face unfolding its wrinkles.

"Why not sleep a little longer since it’s so cold, you must be hungry, come in quickly," she said, touching the child’s hand first and feeling reassured that it wasn’t as cold as she had feared. freewebnøvel.coɱ

"Nai, I’ve slept enough, what’s tasty? I’m so hungry!" Hua Jinjiao said, rubbing her belly as she leaned towards her grandmother and peeked into the pot.

"Millet porridge, and your mother made a couple of egg pancakes for you." The grandmother’s heart melted with her boneless granddaughter’s coquettishness, and she couldn’t help but pinch her slightly upturned little nose.

"Alright, don’t cling to your grandmother, if you’re hungry hurry over," Qi said, carrying out the food and teasing her daughter indulgently.

"Alright!" Hua Jinjiao, starving, agreed quickly, sitting at the table, taking a large mouthful of millet porridge, and exclaimed exaggeratedly, "Mmm."

"I love Mom and Nai’s cooking the most, this porridge is so aromatic."

"No more theatrics, just eat." Qi couldn’t help but laugh at her daughter’s exaggerated expression, playfully chastising.

"It really is delicious, Nai, Mom, try some." Hua Jinjiao held up an egg pancake with her chopsticks for her mother and grandmother to try.

Seeing Hua Jinjiao’s sparkling eyes, the grandmother felt a warm flush, smiling broadly.

"My granddaughter’s so considerate, unlike those rascally boys who eat like wolves, but we’ve already eaten, Jin, so eat quickly before it gets cold."

"Nai’s right, eat up," Qi chimed in while cutting vegetables.

Seeing her grandmother and mother indeed did not eat, Hua Jinjiao nodded and began eating earnestly.

Waking up truly made her hungry!

A bowl of porridge and two pancakes soon found their way to Huajijiao’s belly.

Once her stomach was full, she instantly felt more energetic, moving to wash up only to have her grandmother’s exaggerated shout stop her.

"Leave it, leave it, the water’s too cold, let Nai wash it, lest your hands get chilled."

Looking at the faint steam rising from the water, Hua Jinjiao: "..."

"Nai, the water’s not cold," Hua Jinjiao said softly.

"Even so, with me and your mom around, you needn’t do any work."

A young lady’s days at her parents’ home should be comfortable, and the grandmother couldn’t bear to let her granddaughter work at all.

It’s still early for marriage, there’s plenty of time to learn before then.

Seeing her tender, fair hands, Hua Jinjiao silently stood aside.

Such hands would be hard to find among all the girls in Hua Village.

Even in her former era, children were rather spoiled, but sometimes you still had to do things yourself.

Though she had grown accustomed over these days, she couldn’t help but be moved again by her family’s love, snuggling into her grandmother’s arms and nuzzling her face into her.

"Nai, you’re the best!"

Though she enjoyed her granddaughter’s cuddles, seeing her oily hands, the grandmother quickly stopped her.

"Alright, alright, stop snuggling, I’ll get oil on your clothes," the grandmother warned, gesturing with her oily hands in front of the granddaughter.

Those words worked, as Hua Jinjiao immediately stood properly.

Oil stains on clothes were tough to clean, and if it got on, her mom would be the one to deal with it, again struggling to wash it out.

Although she had degreasing detergent in her space, her mother still had to exert herself scrubbing, indirectly adding to her mom’s work.

"Be good, go play," the grandmother gave a fond smile at her well-behaved granddaughter, continuing their unfinished work cutting pork.

Watching the snowflakes occasionally whirling into the kitchen with the wind, Hua Jinjiao shook her head, not wanting to play at all, and plopped herself into her usual spot, "Nai, I’ll help you stoke the fire."

With the stove warm, the grandmother didn’t object, continuing preparations for lunch with her daughter-in-law.

The chicken, fish pieces, and braised pork were pre-prepared, needing only reheating.

But since it was rare for the two daughters to visit, as the house was well-stocked, the grandmother wanted to prepare extra treats.

She added another piece of meat and decided to cook more dishes, and to steam an egg and make a fresh rib soup, so the grandchildren could have a good supplement.

The grandmother and daughter-in-law prepared energetically in the kitchen, while Hua Chengtian and his sons cleaned the courtyard spotless, replenished the carbon indoors, just waiting for the sisters and their children to arrive.

As for the old man Hua, he wore a thick cotton coat and tottered to the village entrance, occasionally glancing at the only road leading to Hua Village.

On the second day of the new year, it was evident not only the old man felt this way, as those unable to patiently wait at home couldn’t resist coming to take a look at the village entrance, making small talk with others gathered, which made the cold seem less biting.

Having finished tidying, Huacheng Tian couldn’t sit still either, so with his son, they hitched up the ox cart to go pick up the two sisters.

At the village entrance, he greeted his father, who was in lively conversation with several uncles, then drove the ox cart out of the village.

A single road leads from Hua Village to the official road, no worries about going the wrong way or not meeting anyone.

Only that the two sisters were married in opposite directions, so unless they coincidentally met, the likelihood of picking them both up simultaneously was small.

Reaching the intersection, Hua Chengtian didn’t fuss, choosing a direction at random and driving on.

Both sisters needed to be picked up; whoever was met first would be first, and the other would be fetched later.

The snow was so heavy, it wasn’t easy to urge the ox cart faster, and before long, it was covered with a layer of snow.

Even driving was difficult, let alone for the sisters on foot, Hua Chengtian felt anxious.