My era, 1979!

Chapter 99 Family members sit together, the lamplight warm and inviting (Basic Update 33)

Xu Chengjun went back into the inner room and took out milk candy, spiced beans, snow cream, and polyester fabric tied with a red silk ribbon from his bag, handing them to Xu Xiaomei one by one.

"So much stuff!"

"Second brother is really amazing!"

Xu Xiaomei's eyes crinkled into crescent moons with laughter as she clung tightly to Xu Chengjun's arm.

"These White Rabbit candies I brought from Shanghai are for you. Share them with your friends later. I'll buy you more if you run out!"

"Thank you, Second Brother! You're so kind!"

"I'm your brother, who else would I be nice to if not you!" Xu Chengjun was extremely proud.

"Really? Really? Hehe."

"What's so good about it? Chengjun, Xiaomei, come and eat!"

"Come and serve the dishes!" Lu Xiulan's voice came from the kitchen, with a light and cheerful tone.

Xu Chengjun pulled Xu Xiaomei, who was reluctant to part with the gifts her second brother had brought back from Shanghai, and quickly went over. They saw the iron pot on the earthen stove steaming.

My mother was ladling a large bowl of stew into an enamel basin: chunks of pork, with alternating layers of fat and lean meat, were stewed until they were glossy and tender, coated in a dark brown sauce. At the bottom were sweet potato noodles that had absorbed the aroma of the meat and chunks of white radish. The radish was stewed until it was translucent and trembled when you picked it up with a gentle touch.

In the small pot next to it, four golden fried eggs lay, their edges slightly curled up, oil still sizzling on the surface. This was a "main dish" that was only served when guests came or when the children came home.

The eight-immortal table was quickly filled to the brim.

Besides stewed meat and fried eggs, there was also a plate of stir-fried spinach, its leaves a vibrant green, carrying the fresh scent of just picked from the small vegetable garden in the yard.

A small dish of homemade pickled radish, finely chopped and sprinkled with chili powder, is a perfect accompaniment to staple foods.

On the far side was a bowl of stewed tofu and cabbage. The tofu was bought at the market that morning and stewed until soft and tender, absorbing the sweetness of the cabbage.

The staple food was pure white steamed buns, which were steamed until fluffy and soft, steaming hot, much more refined than the cornbread that was usually mixed with cornmeal.

The family sat around the table.

Xu Chengjun ate with great relish; no matter how delicious the food outside was, it couldn't compare to the pork stew his mother made.

The family sat around the table, eating and chatting.

Perhaps feeling that Jianjun was missing, Lu Xiulan sighed.

"If your brother could come back today, he would be able to join us for this meal, and our family would be reunited."

Lu Xiulan put a large piece of meat in the bowls of Xu Chengjun and Xu Xiaomei, her eyes filled with regret. "He loves my stewed pork with vermicelli the most. The last time he came back was five years ago. He was so thin that his cheekbones were protruding."

Xu Zhiguo didn't say anything, but simply pushed the plate of fried eggs towards his youngest son.

He picked up a steamed bun and slowly chewed it with dried radish. His gaze behind his glasses fell on the stewed meat, as if he were thinking of his eldest son who was far away in another city.

Xu Chengjun took a bite of the steamed bun, then picked up a piece of stewed vermicelli with his chopsticks. The vermicelli slipped into his mouth, full of the aroma of meat and sauce, and the warmth went down his throat to his stomach.

He looked up at his parents and said, "Dad, Mom, you should eat too. This stewed meat smells delicious."

Lu Xiulan waved her hand with a smile: "You eat yours. We eat at home every day. It's nothing like you suffering outside."

She added another fried egg to his bowl, saying, "Eat more, studying takes a lot of brainpower." Xu Xiaomei protested, "Mom! You're being unfair! You only give eggs to my second brother!"

"Here you go! Here you go! You little rascal~" Lu Xiulan shook her head and handed Xu Xiaomei a piece of bread.

"Hehe, Mom is so nice!"

"Dad is good too!" Xu Xiaomei glanced at her father again.

"My second brother is invincible!" He can't be left out either!
Xiaomei, the younger sister, has always been the joy of the family. Although many families still have some preference for sons over daughters in this era, Xu Zhiguo and his wife are relatively open-minded and are still a rare "dual-income" couple in this day and age. They would give some of what they could to Xu Chengjun to Xu Xiaomei as well, which fostered her optimistic and charming personality.

She was good-looking from a young age, inheriting the good genes of Xu Zhiguo and Lu Xiulan. She was the darling of her family and even the whole street since she was a child.

In the past, whenever Xu Chengjun caused trouble, Xu Xiaomei would always pull Xu Zhiguo aside and say nice things, and it always worked.

Xu Zhiguo finally spoke, his tone tinged with emotion: "The climate at Fudan is hot and humid, not as dry as in the north. You need to take care of yourself when you get there. If you can't get used to the rice in the south, buy some flour and make it yourself. Don't make yourself suffer."

Northern Anhui is in the north.
He paused, then picked up the Shanghai brand cigarettes that Xu Chengjun had brought back, but didn't light them. He just rubbed the cigarette box. "You've made something of yourself now. There's nothing I can give you. Just remember, if you ever encounter any difficulties you can't overcome, our family will always be your support."

"Understood, Dad."

Xu Chengjun's mouth was stuffed full, but his eyes were a little hot.

Since his transmigration, he had been trying to adapt to the identity of "Xu Chengjun," but only now, looking at the steaming food on the table and listening to his parents' nagging advice, did he truly feel like he had become part of this family.

The cicadas chirped noisily outside the window, the sunflowers in the yard tilted their heads towards the sun, and the wild grass sprouting from the cracks in the mud wall swayed in the wind. This ordinary yet warm atmosphere of everyday life was more reassuring than any earth-shattering achievement.

Lu Xiulan suddenly remembered something, got up and brought a porcelain mug of cooled boiled water from the kitchen, with a few dried hawthorn slices soaking in it: "You liked sour food when you were little, so I made you some hawthorn water to cut through the greasiness."

Xu Chengjun took the jar, the cool touch spreading along his fingers, mixed with the sweet and sour taste of hawthorn, which perfectly balanced the greasiness of the meat and vegetables.

There were no delicacies on the table, but every bite was the best that Lu Xiulan could offer.

Pork that I saved up for half a month with ration coupons, eggs from my own chickens that I couldn't bear to eat, and fresh vegetables that I just picked from the garden.

Xu Zhiguo occasionally asked about the local customs and culture of Shanghai, and Xu Chengjun would pick out the interesting ones to talk about. Lu Xiulan would then chime in with questions like, "Is the fabric in Shanghai really softer than here?" and "Is the gate of Fudan University big?" There were also exclamations of surprise from Xu Xiaomei in between!
The laughter of the family of four mingled with the aroma of food, filling the small main room.

Halfway through the meal, the voice of their neighbor, Li Xiangyuan, came from the courtyard gate: "Xiulan, your Chengjun has really made something of himself, a graduate student at Fudan University! If my sons were even half as capable as him, I'd be laughing in my sleep!"

Lu Xiulan responded with a couple of words through the door, her smile widening. She turned back and winked at Xu Chengjun: "Did you hear that? From now on, you're the 'role model' of the family compound!"

Xu Chengjun smiled helplessly, but he ate the steamed bun in his hand with even more relish.

This meal contains more than just the aroma of the food; it also carries the pride and concern of parents for half a lifetime.

In this lifetime, wandering the ends of the earth, what I long to hold onto is—

It was just a small house with the lights on.
-
In the blink of an eye, a week has passed.

Days at home always seem to fly by.

There is a father, a mother, and a younger sister.

Most importantly, it seems my older brother has really come back—

(End of this chapter)