Starting a new chapter in life

Chapter 176 Ci'en Tells a Story, Quite Boring

Dou Zhixiao responded quickly: "Don't worry, Sister Yan. We're all familiar with the work we do every day. We'll definitely keep up with the shop while you're away."

Jing Yan smiled and promised, "If everyone takes good care of the store, I will pay you double your salary in September when I come back. Consider it a reward for everyone helping me keep the store afloat."

Everyone cheered immediately, and Jingyan laughed along with them. After a while, Jingyan said, "We're having a graduation banquet for Ci'en tomorrow at noon. Everyone should go home and rest early today. We need to prepare for ten tables, so there's a lot of work to do. We'll be eating in the main hall; the second floor won't be open."

After explaining everything, the couple said goodbye to the shop assistants and left, leaving the remaining cleanup work to them.

The next morning, the whole family came to the shop to help Sister Wang with the preparations. Dou Zhixiao brought back meat and eggs early in the morning and made sure the refrigerator was full of beer. He then put two cases of beer in the freezer in the hall to chill. The beer would be perfect for lunch, chilled for two hours before it froze solid, which many customers liked.

The three children couldn't help much, so they picked vegetables in the yard with baskets. They mixed tomatoes with white sugar, and after the sugar melted, they could be served as dessert. He Zhijun and Chen Qing made a special trip to the market and brought back four large watermelons. As soon as they entered the house, they washed the watermelons and put them in the freezer to cool them down.

At 10:30, the He Jiaoxu and He Zhicheng families, along with the uncle's family, arrived at the shop one after another. With the addition of three children, the shop became quite lively. Jingyan got a headache from the children's chattering. She filled a plate with peanuts, melon seeds, and White Rabbit candy, and cut a plate of watermelon chunks. She then sent them upstairs to eat and make noise, as long as they didn't get into any trouble downstairs.

He Ci'en looked around but couldn't find anything he could help with, so he led his younger siblings upstairs. Now that the pressure of college entrance exams was over, he had been renting various novels from the bookstore. He couldn't stand romance novels, but he had recently become quite engrossed in martial arts novels.

His aunt teased him when she saw him reading the book, saying that he entered puberty much later than other children. Usually, these kinds of books are popular with junior high and high school students. He didn't start reading them until he was about to go to college. Although it was a bit late, it was okay. Even though it was late, it came at the right time, so he didn't waste his youth.

He actually thought these words were quite unconventional. Many parents hope that their children can focus solely on studying, but his aunt never thought that it was wrong for children to do other things besides studying. On the contrary, she was very supportive.

She had previously told him that after he finished reading the novel, he could tell it to her as a story when he had time, so that she wouldn't have to read the book herself, and it would strain her eyes if she didn't have time. So even though he was reading the novel for leisure, he was very serious and didn't want to miss too much when he told his aunt the story in the end.

I just finished reading Gu Long's novel "The Legendary Twins," and before I even had a chance to tell it to my aunt, I used it today to coax my younger siblings. But it's good to practice on them, since I'm usually quite quiet.

Several children sat obediently on the sofa near the second-floor stairwell, cracking sunflower seeds and skewering watermelon while listening to their older brother tell stories. To be honest, they didn't know if the stories were good or not, but their older brother's storytelling was really... boring.

Her tone was flat, there was no dialogue, only the plot. The younger brothers wanted to ask questions but dared not interrupt, and could only look at Zhizhi frequently. Zhizhi was also quite speechless. "Brother Ci'en, you're not telling a story, you're summarizing your reading notes. I've heard Brother Xiaoli's reading notes before, and his was more emotional than yours."

He Ci'en... It's rare for someone to say so much at once in their life, and yet they still get criticized. So frustrating...

Composing himself, he forced a smile (the kind that seemed rather strained) and asked gently, "Then, Zhizhi, tell your brother, how should the story be told?"

Zhizhi coughed lightly, stood up, and walked to the open space in front of everyone. With animated gestures and a vivid voice, she recounted the story of "Nezha Conquers the Dragon King," a cartoon that everyone had seen more than once and was very familiar with.

But Zhizhi's narration was still quite interesting to watch. Seeing Zhizhi's demonstration, He Ci'en fell silent once again. This kind of exaggerated language, accompanied by actions, was really difficult for him.

The children, caught up in their commotion, didn't notice their great-grandmother leaning against the corner of the stairs. She watched with a smile as the children discussed how to tell a story correctly, from simple storytelling to a heated debate. She watched for a while before happily going downstairs.

He went into the kitchen and told everyone what he had seen as a joke, adding at the end, "Each of the children will tell a story, and then we'll judge who told the best one. Although I didn't see the whole thing, I know that Ci'en was definitely the worst one, hahaha..."

Hearing this, Jingyan rolled her eyes and said, "Grandma, you said Zhizhi is so young but has such a desire to perform. Why don't we wait until we get back and see if I can find her a teacher to teach her hosting and broadcasting?"

I remember there were performances every year in elementary school, and the hosts were all elementary school students. If Zhizhi really likes it and learns hosting and broadcasting, maybe she can perform on stage at school someday.

Everyone agreed, saying it was a good idea. Jingyan kept this in mind and planned to ask Teacher Shen if they could find a suitable person on the island. Otherwise, they would have to send Zhizhi to the Cultural Palace to study, which was too far for them and would require them to leave the island, which would be very inconvenient.

With everyone's help, the meal was served much earlier than expected. The staff brought out the dishes and bowls first. In the summer, the food wouldn't be cold. Sister Wang had just finished preparing the tomatoes with sugar, which she would bring to the table towards the end of the banquet. Then, she would cut the watermelon, which would be just the right time.

After all the dishes were laid out, guests for the graduation celebration began to arrive at the restaurant one after another. It had been mentioned when the invitations were made that this was a celebration for the child's achievement, so gifts were not accepted, but no one came empty-handed.

We'd said we wouldn't accept gifts, so bringing money would be disrespectful to the host. Therefore, some people brought drinks, others brought their own food, and many more brought eggs—some brought a dozen or twenty, others at least six.

Jing Yan glanced at He Zhijun, who smiled and accepted the things handed to him, so she followed suit. She then had Dou Zhixiao and Chen Qing lead the people inside. Everyone was quite surprised to see the dishes on the table after entering.

He Zhijun's former boss had always taken good care of him. Several years ago, when He Zhijun hosted a banquet, he invited him. Looking at the dishes on the table, he smiled and said to his wife:

"The He family's wife is quite capable. Four years ago, the housewarming and onboarding banquet they hosted was considered lavish at the time, with plenty of meat dishes. This time it's even more impressive; these are almost all main courses."

Look at this, it's a classic Hunan dish, a "Family Reunion." I had an old friend who was from Hunan, and one year when I visited him for Chinese New Year, this was one of the dishes on the table.

"Back then, he said this was a specialty dish. I never imagined that after so many years, I would see it here again. Ah, it really brings back memories of those days," the old leader sighed.

Most of the guests at the banquet knew each other to some extent. He Zhicheng led the old leader to the main table, and the others took their seats as well. The table was almost full, and all the guests had arrived. Only then did Jing Yan and He Zhijun return from the entrance to the main hall.

Jingyan went to the kitchen and asked Dou Zhixiao to serve some of all the dishes and take them upstairs so the children could eat there. She also asked her to bring He Ci'en down, since he was the guest of honor today and couldn't be left out.

Before the banquet ended, the staff didn't need to work in the main hall; they ate lunch in the kitchen first. Jingyan had actually prepared enough food for thirteen tables, with half a table for the children and one table for the staff. The amount of food was sufficient.

After arranging these things, Jingyan and Sister Wang helped Grandma into the hall. Grandma sat at the main table, while Jingyan and Sister Wang sat at the table next to the main table with their mother and sister-in-law.

Grandma, He Jiaoxu, Uncle He, He Zhijun, He Zhicheng, He Zhijun's former leader, three school leaders, and He Ci'en, ten people sat at the main table.

There isn't as much of a drinking culture at banquets now. Although it's said that alcohol makes for better business conversations, it's not essential. But today we do have alcohol: beer is being served by the case, and two cases of Shaoxing wine have been brought to the lobby.

As soon as the beer was taken out of the refrigerator, Jingyan immediately threw another batch of room-temperature beer from the wall in the hall into the freezer and refrigerator. She was quite busy. Fortunately, the people eating in the kitchen had finished, so Dou Zhixiao and Chen Qing came out to help, allowing Jingyan to sit back down and eat in peace.

In the sweltering summer heat and noisy hall, the cool beer was surprisingly refreshing. Everyone who came to the banquet was very satisfied with the food. Jingyan also felt that this banquet went much more smoothly than the first one, probably because she had more experience and could think of many things in advance instead of scrambling at the last minute.

Around 1:30, the banquet ended, and everyone said goodbye and left one after another. He Zhijun personally saw off the old leader, while his uncle took He Ci'en to see off several school leaders and teachers. The teachers really liked He Ci'en, after all, she was a good student.

Even after he reached the gate, a teacher was still advising him to cultivate relationships in university, not to be as solitary as he was in high school. The teacher explained that university is a microcosm of society, and understanding how to get along with people there will make his future career path smoother…

He Ci'en knew that her teacher meant well, so she nodded respectfully in agreement. After everyone had seen her off, He Ci'en's shoulders slumped.

"I'm so tired, Uncle. Why did you have to hold this banquet? It's just that I got into university. I don't think it's necessary. My classmates talked about it before. They said that holding a graduation banquet is either to show off to relatives and friends or to collect money. But our family has never accepted money. My aunt paid for this banquet herself. What's the point?"

He Zhijun patted him on the shoulder: "Because of interpersonal relationships, everyone around you knows you got into university. If we don't hold this event, those who know will understand, but those who don't will think we don't value you."

Some people will say that your aunt runs a catering business and caters to other people's banquets, but when it comes to her own nephew, she keeps quiet. Too much gossip will damage your aunt's reputation. It's just a banquet; it's not like we can't afford to host one.”

He Ci'en nodded knowingly: "Then I understand. So this is what the teacher meant when he said that many times we do things not for ourselves, but for others to see."

After the banquet, Sister Wang accompanied Grandma and a bunch of children home first. Grandma is old and needs a nap at noon to rest. The others stayed at the shop to help clean the first floor.

The staff couldn't help much, so they all gathered in the kitchen, washing dishes and cleaning up, cutting meat skewers, slicing and dividing braised meat, and watching the pot while the braised meat was cooking. Everyone was busy and it was quite lively.

Sister Feng Cailian was preparing to make noodles when she looked at the various leftover vegetables on the noodle counter and hesitated. She asked Jingyan, "Boss, what should we do with these leftovers? Should we put them in lunchboxes and refrigerate them?"

Jing Yan looked at the brick and said, "Pack the three dishes—fried river shrimp, 'Great Harvest,' and steamed chicken—into lunchboxes and put them in the refrigerator. I'll take them home tonight to heat up for my family. I'll leave some of the other seven dishes for Xiao Dou. You can take the rest home after get off work so we can all share in the joy. As for how to divide the dishes, you can decide for yourselves."

Sister Feng looked shocked: "Take these home for us? These vegetables aren't cheap."

Jingyan smiled and said, "My family can't finish all of this. It would be such a waste to leave it. It's perfect that we finish early tonight so you can take it home for dinner."

The staff thanked her happily. Sister Feng packed and arranged the dishes Jingyan wanted to keep before starting to portion them out for everyone. Everyone had brought their own lunchboxes to work, and they packed a little of each type of meat and vegetable dish without broth into the lunchboxes.

Those with soup were divided into seven bags, and there wasn't much left. After that, Aunt Li took the bowls and basins away to wash them, and Sister Feng started kneading the dough, preparing to roll out noodles when guests needed them.

After cleaning the hall, Uncle He, He Jiaoxu, and He Zhicheng prepared to go back to Jingyan's house. Jingyan took out three kinds of dishes, four lunch boxes, and a bag containing steamed chicken from the refrigerator and handed them to them: "Take these back with you. You can heat them up and eat them tonight. We'll also ask Sister Wang to make a few vegetarian dishes, and that should be enough."

He Zhicheng took it without hesitation, and the group then left.

Around 7 p.m., Jingyan decided to close the shop and end business. Everyone went home to have dinner. Everyone was happy, carrying their lunchboxes and bags. Jingyan told Dou Zhixiao to heat up the food before leaving to go home.

The next morning, those who had gone back to Yangzhou returned. Knowing that Jingyan and her family had gone to see He Ci'en off, her uncle felt relieved and went back to the city. Jingyan had previously asked them if they wanted to go to Beijing together, but her uncle had declined.

He was worried about his three children's studies. A trip to Beijing would take so long, and by the time he returned, the children would have already started school. Besides, traveling far from home wasn't easy, and he was certain he wouldn't have to pay for anything if he went with He Zhijun's family.

Ci'en has already received a great deal of kindness from their family, so how could she possibly go out and play with them? Grandma understood her uncle's concerns, so she didn't let Jingyan persuade her. She only said that she would take her uncle's family to Beijing to see Ci'en when there was a chance.