"All right, this should be good enough. Look how much the young lady is craving it," Zhang the technician said with a suppressed smile, announcing the meat was nearly cooked.
Song Daiyao looked up immediately, her eyes blinking. "Really?" she asked.
It was purely a conditioned reflex. She had been staring at the meat, her mind consumed by it. Hearing the news, she reacted instantly.
Shen Yan couldn't stand it anymore. She made a cut and directly handed the meat to Song Daiyao. "Yes, you can start eating now."
"Mmm~"
"This meat is as delicious as I imagined!" It wasn't tough, but tender, and the seasonings perfectly brought out the meat's aroma!
"Ah~"
Followed by a sip of Little Xi's special lemonade, the night was perfect! The meat was fragrant, and Song Daiyao's eating was also very appealing. In just a moment, the sounds of chewing filled the air. Occasional sips of drinks, it was truly like gazing at the moon in the sky, enjoying roasted meat and life's pleasures. However, it would be even better without the gossip from Grandma Shen and Mother Shen.
After the two sheep were roasted, the women, children, and elderly gathered on one side, while the men were on the other. As Qiu Xi and the others were engrossed in eating, they heard Mother Shen's question.
"Little Xi, how old are you? Do you have a boyfriend at school?"
"Let me tell you, I know several fine young men..."
Mother Shen's words also drew Grandma Shen's attention, and the two chatted back and forth.
"..."
Was this what Yan Yan called "matchmaking"? Qiu Xi didn't look up, her first move being a quick glance at Shen Yan. Seeing that Shen Yan was unable to help, Qiu Xi could only brace herself and start chatting with Aunt Hu.
"Auntie, I'm 19..."
"I have a boyfriend at school."
"Ah? Really? Which young man is so fortunate..." Hu Yanhua, who was speaking enthusiastically, suddenly felt like she'd been doused with cold water. She paused for a moment before continuing.
"Mom, he's a top student at our school!"
"That's right, Auntie. Let me tell you..." As the saying goes, gossip is a girl's nature. Grandma Shen and Mother Shen aside, Song Daiyao and the others were decades younger than Mother Shen, yet they chatted about this topic with great enthusiasm.
"Oh my! Then this young man is indeed excellent!" With no other option, and finding it hard to dislike the conversation, they could only join in the praise. If she were a few decades younger... Never mind, let's not go there. Gossip is more important.
Although Hu Yanhua was an English teacher, her mindset was different from those stuffy teachers who were decades older. Otherwise, she wouldn't be thinking about good young men for Shen Yan at such a young age.
"Then Daiyao and Yunfei, you two must have boyfriends too, right?" She believed these excellent children must have them.
"Auntie Hu, we..."
Hu Yanhua looked surprised. "No way?"
"Yes!"
Seeing Aunt Hu's expectant eyes, they could only nod helplessly.
"Oh!" This immediately dashed her hopes. However, it only lasted for a moment. Mother Shen turned to Shen Yan and started chiding her. "I think fate's red threads are definitely tied around you..." One end of the red thread is with one person, and the other end is with another. But your daughter's red thread has one end in her left hand and the other in her right, all on herself.
"Mom, haven't you heard the saying, 'Searching for him a thousand times through the crowd, then suddenly turning back'..."
"And the person still ignores you, right?"
"..."
"Didn't that person also say that when looking for someone, one should find someone who wishes for a devoted heart? So I'm still figuring things out."
"I think you need to find someone properly, otherwise, you'll really wish for a devoted heart and end up going on blind dates when you're old."
"..."
Alright... I can't win. Shen Yan decided to make an excuse to leave. "Mom, I drank too much lemonade. I need to go to the restroom first~" She said this while already running away.
Shen Yan left, but Qiu Xi and the other two were still stunned! They truly didn't expect that Aunt Hu, who had seemed gentle and quiet for the past few days, would actually have the side that Yan Yan described! She truly lived up to being an English teacher; she could really talk!
Seeing the three stunned young girls, Hu Yanhua finally realized what she had said. Truly, her daughter had ruined her good image in an instant. "You three, hurry and eat. Don't pay attention to her. She's just lazy and runs around all day."
"Mm..."
After hearing this, the three girls could only nod stiffly and then buried their heads in their food.
"..."
Hu Yanhua was helpless and could only chat with the elderly woman. Seeing that the young girls had calmed down considerably, she started to interject occasionally, and the atmosphere became quite harmonious.
...
The last day of the holiday.
Because they had enjoyed the roasted whole lamb so much last night, no one planned to go out today. They all slept soundly. When they finally woke up, it was already quite late. Going downstairs, they saw Mother Shen sitting in the living room with a pile of notebooks beside her... It seemed she was grading homework there.
As they thought this, Mother Shen's words in the next second confirmed their thoughts. "You're awake? Come and sit for a while, have some water. I'll get you lunch."
"Yan Yan, come here and help me grade some homework." Putting down her red pen, Mother Shen directly assigned the task.
"Got it..." Seeing this scene as she came out, Shen Yan had already anticipated the outcome. So, she responded unhurriedly and skillfully. Of course, grading homework after that was even more practiced.
"Yan Yan, you do this often?" Song Daiyao asked curiously, finding it astonishing.
"Yes, I've been doing it for many years." It started in elementary school, when it was mostly copying, checking if the handwriting was correct. Her mother was essentially hiring child labor for free, calling it beneficial for her to learn more words. Only when she grew up did she start to feel fortunate that her mother was an elementary school teacher; otherwise, it would have been even worse.
"Amazing!"
Hearing this, they all gave a thumbs-up, expressing their admiration.
"Don't just stand there, you three. Help me out." Elementary school teachers teach several classes, sometimes not just one subject. So, her mother must have three to five classes. It was just right for each of them to take one, and the remaining ones could be handed back to her mother.
"..."
Seeing Shen Yan now bossing around her sisters without hesitation, the three of them witnessed her true character.
"It's very simple. These are just practice books, mostly copying and writing."
"..."
And she even kindly explained the difficulty of the work.
"Alright, come on over then." They weren't going to refuse such a small favor.
"I knew you guys were reliable. Come on!"