Reborn at 80: From Village Scoundrel to Billionaire

Soon, Liu Bei had stripped the pangolin of its scales and cleaned out the meat.

He put the scales in a broken bowl and placed it on the windowsill to dry, while he took the meat into the kitchen and gave it to Zhao Da'e.

"Okay, this meat is tender. With the few pounds of wolf meat we had this morning, it should last us for a while."

Upon hearing this, Lin Wanqiu leaned over to look at the pangolin meat in the bowl.

"Mother, I've never cooked this meat before, how do I prepare it?"

"first step……"

Before Zhao Da'e could speak, Liu Panpan poked her little head in.

She held her younger sister Liu Nian's hand, glanced into the kitchen, and swallowed hard as her eyes fell on the pile of raw meat on the cutting board.

"grandmother."

"What's wrong?"

"Your younger brother likes stir-fried food, while your younger sister prefers sweet or braised dishes. You should cook them separately instead of mixing them together."

"Well?"

Zhao Da'e was stunned for a moment.

Lin Wanqiu looked over there.

This girl is only eight years old.

She was also growing up at that time, but when it came to meat, she didn't say a word about what she wanted to eat; her heart and eyes were full of her younger siblings.

Zhao Da'e felt a lump in her throat, reached out and touched the back of her eldest granddaughter's head, rubbing her fine hair a few times.

"What about Panpan? What does Panpan want to eat?"

"I'm not picky. I'll eat whatever's left."

Zhao Da'e squatted down and pinched her little cheek: "You're a child too. What your younger siblings have, you'll have too. Today, your grandma is in charge. Panpan likes spicy food, right? Grandma will make you a plate of stir-fried pork with chili peppers! Bao'er is weak, so I'll make it plain. Niannian wanted braised pork, so I'll make her braised pork. One plate of each, no one will be short!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Panpan's eyes lit up.

Lin Wanqiu turned around to add firewood, keeping her head down and not saying a word.

The flames leaping up in the stove cast flickering light and shadow on her profile.

Just then, Zhao Chunyan stepped across the kitchen threshold.

"Remember to make an extra plate of stir-fried pork with chili peppers."

"We haven't had any oily food in our house for more than half a year. Today we have plenty of meat, so we can eat as much as we want to avoid it going bad and going to waste."

"Okay." Zhao Da'e nodded. "Late Autumn, turn up the fire on the stove. Let's cook a proper meal today."

"Okay!"

Lin Wanqiu responded and started working.

Zhao Chunyan stood at the kitchen door for a while, then rolled up her sleeves and came in to help wash and chop the vegetables.

The three women, crammed into the tiny kitchen, worked together seamlessly.

Zhao Da'e was in charge of cooking, Lin Wanqiu was in charge of the fire, and Zhao Chunyan was her assistant.

Liu Bei peeked into the kitchen from outside and saw his three ex-wives and his mother, four women bustling about in front of the stove.

The scene was pleasing to the eye no matter how you looked at it.

He was staring blankly when he was suddenly kicked.

"What are you staring at?" Zhao Da'e kicked him in the shin. "Didn't you say you wanted to be a good son, a good husband, and a good father? Go and straighten the roof tiles!"

"Tiles?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei looked up and saw that there were several gaps in the roof, some tiles were broken and leaning to one side, and there were several holes the size of a fist.

If the rainy season comes, the house will definitely turn into a waterfall.

"Okay, I'll go fix it right away."

He turned and went to the storeroom, rummaged through it, and found a broken ladder. He also found a few spare old tiles at the base of the courtyard wall. Then, he leaned the ladder against the wall and climbed up in a few quick movements.

……

Soon, the kitchen was filled with the aroma of cooking oil and meat.

"Cough cough..."

Zhao Da'e, who had just entered the kitchen, coughed from the fumes, and Lin Wanqiu pushed her out.

"Mother, why don't you go out and rest for a while, and keep an eye on the children? This stove is too small, all the smoke goes in, don't let it ruin your throat."

"Am I not that delicate? Cough cough cough~"

"Please sit in the yard. We can manage things here."

"All right."

Unable to refuse, Zhao Da'e had no choice but to leave the kitchen.

Three children were playing under the big locust tree in the yard.

Liu Panpan used a twig to draw on the ground, teaching her younger sister to draw.

Liu Nian squatted down beside her sister and followed along, mimicking each stroke.

Liu Bao sat on a low stool to the side, coughing occasionally.

Upon hearing the coughing sound, Liu Panpan ran to find a coat and draped it over her younger brother.

"Put it on, don't catch a cold."

Seeing this scene, Zhao Da'e felt a pang of tenderness and sadness in her heart.

She didn't want to stop her three daughters-in-law from divorcing her son.

Why should three good women suffer along with their son for the sins he committed?

But after looking at Panpan, then at Niannian, and then at the sickly Bao'er, she couldn't sleep for several days, tossing and turning.

The three children are still young.

She knew better than anyone what it was like to be a child without a mother.

Besides, she had seen the character of her three daughters-in-law.

Lin Wanqiu is gentle and virtuous, Su Yuehe is weak and honest, and Zhao Chunyan is stubborn but soft-hearted.

Each of them, taken individually, is a rare find—a truly exceptional woman.

Unfortunately, it all fell apart because of her good-for-nothing son.

She talked to each of her three daughters-in-law back then, and she will remember what she said for the rest of her life.

"If you meet a man who truly cares for you, I won't stop you. But if you haven't met one yet, stay here for now. The children will have a companion, and you won't have to go out alone with the kids, letting those gossipy old men talk behind your backs."

After crying, the three women all agreed to stay.

At first, Lin Wanqiu and Zhao Chunyan couldn't stand each other.

Su Yuehe was caught in the middle, suffering from both sides and shedding tears every day.

But as time went on, living under the same roof, the three of them didn't develop any feuds, but their friendship grew stronger.

Zhao Chunyan may verbally criticize Lin Wanqiu, but whenever Lin Wanqiu is sick, she is the first to make ginger soup.

Lin Wanqiu remained silent, but Zhao Chunyan's clothes were always the cleanest and folded the neatest.

Su Yuehe was gentle by nature, and her two older sisters protected her, taking the initiative to do all the heavy and dirty work so that she wouldn't have to touch it.

Not to mention the three children.

Panpan protects Nian Nian, Nian Nian clings to Panpan, Bao'er follows everyone.

Sometimes, when Zhao Da'e saw this scene and then looked back at her good-for-nothing son, she would get furious.

I really don't know what kind of bewitching potion this bastard used to lure three perfectly good girls into his house.

What's even stranger is that all three girls actually believed him.

I believe he will live a good life.

I believe he will be a good husband.

The results of it?

You're wrong to believe everything you believe.

"Sigh~"

Zhao Da'e shook her head and sighed.

Forget it, I don't want to.

The more I think about it, the angrier I get.

She looked up at the roof and saw Liu Bei lying there changing the tiles, his hands and feet moving quite quickly.

That scoundrel must have taken some kind of medicine today, hunting and repairing roofs all day long. Has he really changed?

Will not!

Zhao Da'e shook her head.

She couldn't believe it, and didn't want to believe it.

You believe once, and you get hurt once.

……

Before we knew it, the dishes were ready.

A plate of stir-fried pork with chili peppers.

A plate of braised pork.

A plate of stir-fried lean pork slices.

There was also a large bowl of pangolin stew, which was specially reserved for Su Yuehe.

Liu Bei came down from the roof, dusted himself off in the yard, and went into the main room.

There were seven people sitting at the table.

Seven people, four benches, all seated.

But there was no place for him.

Liu Bei asked, "Mom, where should I sit?"

Zhao Da'e looked at the table, then at Zhao Chunyan.

Zhao Chunyan held the bowl and glanced at the three children.

Liu Panpan put down her chopsticks, raised her head, and stared coldly at Liu Bei.

"Bad people don't deserve to sit at the same table with us."

"..."

The main room fell silent instantly.

Liu Bei stood still, holding an empty bowl in his hand.

He wasn't angry.

Because he has no right to be angry.

The worst times he ever beat his daughter in his past life were at the dinner table. The reason was simply that Panpan had taken an extra bite of food, and he slapped her so hard that the bowl flew away.

Therefore, he really doesn't deserve to be at the table.

They deserved it.

"Alright," Zhao Da'e broke the silence. "Get yourself some food, fill your bowl with porridge, and find somewhere to squat and eat. Don't get in the way."

Liu Bei picked up a few bites of food with his chopsticks, then ladled out a bowl of corn porridge and squatted under the eaves, eating the rice mouthful by mouthful with his back to the main room.

Behind me came the sound of chopsticks clattering against bowls, occasionally mixed with Liu Bao's cough and Liu Nian's soft chewing sounds.

"Grandma, have some meat!"

"Grandma, this big one is for you!"

"Milk, eat."

"Grandma is old and her teeth aren't good, so she can't chew. You guys eat it."

"No!" the three children exclaimed in unison.

"Grandma is the pillar of our family! If Grandma doesn't eat, we won't eat either!" Liu Panpan said.

"Okay, okay, Grandma will eat. And you grandchildren, eat too!"

Hearing the commotion in the main room, Liu Bei's lips twitched, and he shoveled the corn porridge in his bowl clean.

Just then, a hand reached out from the side and placed a bowl in front of him.

There were a few pieces of pangolin meat in the bowl, still steaming hot.

Liu Bei looked up and saw Lin Wanqiu standing to his side, but her gaze was fixed on the clothes drying in the yard.

"I saved this for you. Eat it while it's hot."

After saying that, she turned and walked away.

Watching Lin Wanqiu's retreating figure, and looking down at the meat in his bowl, Liu Bei's Adam's apple bobbed.

"Late Autumn, don't worry. I will make sure you eat meat every day."

"Yo."

Zhao Chunyan had just finished eating and came out of the main room, casually tossing her bowl into the basin of water.

"Eat meat every day? You make it sound so easy. If you're so keen on that, then hurry up and finish eating and get to work. Don't just talk the talk but walk the walk."

"Chunyan, don't worry, I will keep my promise."

Zhao Chunyan scoffed, "I'll be waiting. If you can't do it, you don't deserve the surname Liu."

She shook the water off her hands and strode towards the side room.

Watching her retreating figure, Liu Bei silently finished eating the meat in his bowl, piece by piece.

No sooner had Zhao Chunyan left than Zhao Da'e came out of the main room.

"I heard everything you said to Chunyan just now."

"If you really want to change, don't just talk the talk. Yuehe is still burning up inside. I fed her pangolin soup, and the fever has gone down a bit, but this girl is weak, and to make matters worse, she's started her period."

"Go to the fields and catch some eels and loaches. These two things replenish qi and blood, which is exactly what you need."

Liu Bei nodded: "Okay, I'll go right away."

He had just turned around and taken a step when Zhao Da'e added another sentence from behind.

"Don't come back empty-handed."