Ye Hao walked into an empty alley, took out a crucian carp weighing about eight liang and a 2-jin grass carp from his spatial storage, and tied the two fish with cogongrass he pulled from the roadside.
He then leisurely walked out of the deserted alley.
Humming a tune, he walked home.
The pedestrians on the road looked on with envy.
In those days, these two fish were considered a feast anywhere.
Ye Hao walked into the courtyard and found it bustling with activity: people cooking, chatting, children crying, and many kids running wildly in the already crowded space.
Ye Hao, a stranger, entering the courtyard still caused quite a stir.
Bringing these two fish as a gift was quite impressive back then.
Everyone was whispering, "Whose relative is this? So generous, bringing two fish directly to the door."
An old man, who looked to be sixty or seventy, asked, "Little Comrade, who are you looking for? I've lived in this courtyard for so many years, and I've seen all the relatives of every family here. How come I've never seen you?"
"Hello, Grandpa, I'm going to Aunt Wang's house in the middle courtyard. I just moved in today, so it's normal that you haven't seen me."
"I haven't heard that Wang Director has relatives outside. This young man looks quite energetic," another whisper came from the side.
"Little Comrade, since you're going to Xiao Sun's house, hurry up and go." "You women, stop gossiping and disperse," the old man said, then directed Ye Hao toward the middle courtyard.
After escaping the scrutiny of the crowd, Ye Hao returned to Aunt Wang's house. Upon entering, he found Aunt Wang chopping meat filling.
"Aunt Wang, why did you actually buy pork? Didn't I say there's no need to be so polite?"
"Xiao Hao, you're back! Are you hungry? Wait, the dumplings will be ready soon. I left work early today to buy meat, just to celebrate your new beginning," she said, her hands not slowing down at all.
At this moment, Aunt Wang also saw the fish Ye Hao was carrying.
"Ah~ Xiao Hao, where did you get the fish? You must not do anything illegal! Where did you get them? We'll return them right now."
"Oh, Aunt Wang, what are you thinking? I caught these in the Hucheng River. This afternoon, I was bored being alone at home, so I went out for a stroll. I ended up at the Hucheng River and saw many people fishing there. I didn't have any gear, so I just went into the river and caught them by hand. See, this is my harvest from this afternoon," he said, raising the two fish in his hands.
"Xiao Hao, don't go catching fish in the Hucheng River anymore. It's too dangerous. Your aunt's family isn't short of food."
"I know, Aunt Wang, I won't do it again," Ye Hao also knew Aunt Wang was worried about him.
"Aunt Wang, look at these two fish. Let's stew this crucian carp for Yue Yue to nourish her. Isn't she about to take her high school entrance exam? Crucian carp soup is the most nourishing. As for this grass carp, let's steam it. You and Uncle Sun work so hard, eat more fish to supplement your nutrition."
"No, we have dumplings today. Keep these two fish for a few days later."
"Aunt Wang, the weather is getting warmer by the day, and these fish won't keep. Let's cook and eat them today. I also want to eat fish."
Aunt Wang couldn't argue further and took the fish out to kill them.
Ye Hao chopped the filling inside, looking at the pork on the table, he was filled with emotion. Aunt Wang was truly kind-hearted.
Such a piece of pork belly was hard to come by in this era, as everyone's food was rationed.
In the hardest times, being able to eat one's fill was already a luxury, let alone meat.
After Aunt Wang finished preparing the fish, she took the cleaver and continued chopping the filling. Today, they were making pork and cabbage dumplings, which was also Ye Hao's favorite filling in his previous life.
It was then that he realized Aunt Wang was the only one home.
He learned that Uncle Sun had a case today and would be home late, and Yue Yue had gone to a classmate's house to do homework. As for Sun Chaoshu, he wouldn't be back until dark.
"Mom, I'm back! What are we eating today?" A clear, bell-like voice came from outside.
As soon as the voice fell, a little girl with twin pigtails bounced in from outside.
"Yue Yue, you're back! Have you finished your homework? Today, I'm making dumplings for you," Aunt Wang replied with a smile.
It was then that Sun Chaoyue also noticed the stranger in the house. "Who are you? I haven't seen you before."
Sun Chaoyue looked at Ye Hao with a puzzled expression.
"Yue Yue, this is your Brother Hao. He's preparing to go to the countryside, and he'll be staying with us temporarily during this time," Aunt Wang quickly explained.
"This must be Yue Yue, right? My name is Ye Hao, nice to meet you," Ye Hao said.
"Yue Yue, since you've finished your homework, go call your brother back. Tell him we're having pork-filled dumplings today."
"Got it, Mom," Sun Chaoyue put down her schoolbag and ran out.
"Aunt Wang, Yue Yue is really cute and sensible…" Ye Hao praised Sun Chaoyue profusely, after all, what mother doesn't like hearing others praise her child?
The dumpling filling was ready, and Aunt Wang began to knead the dough. There was only a bit left at the bottom of the flour bag, which Aunt Wang poured all into the mixing bowl.
At this point, Ye Hao couldn't say much, thinking he would compensate Aunt Wang well in the future.
Just as Aunt Wang was kneading the dough, another person entered from outside.
This person was burly and tall, standing at one meter ninety, giving off a strong sense of oppression.
Beneath thick eyebrows, a pair of sharp eyes looked at people with a scrutinizing gaze.
His entire face appeared so serious.
He didn't need to think much to know that this should be Uncle Sun Youde.
As expected.
Aunt Wang, seeing Uncle Sun's scrutinizing look, quickly explained, "Youde, why the stern face? This is Ye Hao. He came to our place to get his identification today. I saw he was an orphan, quite pitiful. He's preparing to go to the countryside, and he has nowhere to stay for now, so I let him stay with us for a while."
Aunt Wang recounted Ye Hao's background to Uncle Sun.
Sun Youde, seeing that the dumplings would take a while to be served, called Ye Hao to the adjacent side room for a chat.
It was called a chat, but it was actually an interrogation.
Perhaps it was a professional habit.
Uncle Sun asked very detailed questions, from his childhood all the way to adulthood.
He also asked why he had been a beggar for so many years and why he suddenly thought of getting identification today.
Ye Hao didn't dare to hide anything and told Uncle Sun his life story in detail.
As for why he suddenly thought of getting identification today, Ye Hao also said that he was almost starved to death a few days ago.
Having experienced the fear of death, he became afraid.
He also heard that going to the countryside to build the country was being advocated now, so he thought of going to the countryside to earn work points to support himself.
While Ye Hao was speaking, Uncle Sun kept staring into Ye Hao's eyes.
To see if he was lying.
Fortunately, apart from being a reborn person, everything else was the original owner's personal experience.
Ye Hao was also open and honest, and Uncle Sun didn't find anything suspicious.
With things cleared up, Uncle Sun stood up, patted Ye Hao's shoulder, and said, "Xiao Hao, from now on, treat this as your own home. If you have any difficulties, just tell me or your Aunt Wang. Stay here with peace of mind for now. As for your going to the countryside, there's no rush. First, get your body healthy. Look how thin you are, without two liang of meat. How can you contribute to the country's construction in the countryside?"
Uncle Sun was a military man, having been on the battlefield when he was young. He was very dissatisfied with Ye Hao's current physique. According to him, he alone could beat 100 Ye Haos.
Ye Hao could only respond with a bitter smile.
Otherwise, what could he say? Say he had three hundred jin of strength?
He would probably be treated as a madman.
As they spoke, the two walked towards the main house. Before they even entered, they heard a boisterous voice.
"Mom, my little sister said you found me an older brother, where is he?"
"Mom, why did you suddenly find me an older brother? What does he do?"
From the voice, Ye Hao guessed that this should be Sun Chaoshu.
Ye Hao followed Uncle Sun into the main room.
Immediately, the boisterousness disappeared, and the air instantly became quiet.
When Sun Chaoshu saw Uncle Sun, he was like a mouse seeing a cat.
He immediately transformed from the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, Sun Wukong, who wreaked havoc in the Heavenly Palace, to Sun Wukong, who wore the Golden Fillet and accompanied Tang Monk on his journey for scriptures.
He was incredibly well-behaved.