The Game of Life

Chapter 582: Chapter 580 New Year’s Eve Dinner (Part 2)

Jiang Xiaoran forced a wry smile, “Grandma, I’m already in high school.”

“It’s all the same.” Mrs. Jiang smiled amiably as she took the iodine handed over by Jiang Yanlu, who had just come out of the room, as if nothing had happened, and carefully tended to the wound on Jiang Xiaoran’s face.

Though Lin Juan was quite dissatisfied with Jiang Zhe’s attitude just now, considering it was the Lunar New Year and they were about to have the New Year’s Eve dinner, making a scene would only ruin the harmony. She had no choice but to hold her tongue for the moment, her expression still not very pleasant.

People in the midst of a situation are often confused, but outsiders see it clearly. Standing among these people, Jiang Feng could distinctly feel that aside from Jiang Xiaoran’s just-arrived family, everyone seated had their own issues.

Jiang Zhe’s sudden and provocative outburst was aimed solely at Jiang Xiaoran. Though he was unpleasant to everyone, he hardly dared to look at Jiang Yong, evidently very fearful of this uncle.

Since entering the house, Mrs. Jiang had been ignoring her eldest son and his family. It was quite obvious that something Jiang Yanlu’s family did had offended her prior to their arrival. Jiang Yanlu’s wife, while being ignored by everyone, also ignored everyone in return. From years of watching family dramas with Mrs. Jiang, Jiang Feng could bet that Jiang Yanlu’s wife didn’t get along well with Lin Juan. Perhaps due to the holiday, they were both feigning cordiality. The mild reprimand to her son earlier was just for show.

And Jiang Yanlu was even less worth mentioning; the words ‘at someone’s mercy’ might as well have been written on his face.

Jiang Feng walked back and forth inside the house, trying hard to observe everyone’s expressions, hoping to discern some genuine thoughts beneath their bogus exteriors.

After much observation, Jiang Feng could see through everyone except Jiang Zhe. After all, it’s rare to find people like Jiang Zhe who had ‘I’m a jerk’ practically etched on their faces.

Most jerks at least put on a disguise, but a jerk like Jiang Zhe who couldn’t even pretend was indeed a rare breed.

Jiang Xiaoran didn’t give Jiang Feng much time to observe as, despite claiming to be a high school student no longer a child, he still did what every kid does—sneaking into the kitchen to see what dishes the elders were cooking up.

In this memory, Jiang Feng had a limited range of movement. He could only stray about 5 metres from Jiang Xiaoran. This short distance severely limited his actions; he couldn’t go to the kitchen, otherwise, he would have already snuck in to see Jiang Weiming cooking, instead of standing in the living room playing the high-difficulty version of ‘Undercover’.

When Jiang Xiaoran entered the kitchen, Jiang Weiming was sitting on a small stool by the stove, lost in thought.

Seeing Jiang Weiming, Jiang Feng could hardly believe that this man was the same Jiang Weiming from 10 years ago.

He looked too old.

Dressed in a thin cotton jacket, he curled up on the chair, his hair white, his skin saggy, his eyes dim, with no trace of vitality, looking nowhere near energetic.

He seemed like an old man worn down by the years, breathing heavily as if on his last legs.

“Grandpa,” Jiang Xiaoran called out.

“Ranran is here, huh?” Jiang Weiming face lit up with his signature smile, and only when he saw Jiang Xiaoran did he look a bit more spirited, “Were you getting anxious waiting outside? Dinner will be served soon.”

“What happened to your face?” Jiang Weiming noticed the injury on Jiang Xiaoran’s face after he finished speaking.

“I took a fall at the village entrance,” replied Xiaoran.

Jiang Xiaoran expertly glanced at the dishes already prepared on the cooking counter. Because their family was small, they made seven dishes and one soup each year for the New Year’s Eve dinner.

The dishes on the counter were all familiar to Jiang Xiaoran, so he wasn’t surprised. Then he turned his gaze to the steamer on the stove.

The gap between the lid and the body of the steamer was sealed with a layer of grass paper, a trick to better lock in the flavor. Jiang Xiaoran, curious about this, asked, “Grandpa, what’s steaming in the pot? Steamed eggs?”

“Steamed green eel,” Jiang Weiming said with a beaming smile. “Weiming brought these green eels over this morning, they’re incredibly plump and quite rare at this time of the year. You’re never home when the eels are in season, so you haven’t had steamed green eel. I thought I’d make it tonight for Ranran to try.”

Although Jiang Xiaoran didn’t know what green eel was, he still swallowed involuntarily, “Is it tasty?”

“Of course it is tasty. If Ranran doesn’t like ginger, Grandpa can pair it with other dipping sauces for you. Absolutely delicious,” said Jiang Weiming.

Jiang Xiaoran’s gaze was intently fixed on the steamer atop the stove.

Seeing his grandson like this, Jiang Weiming smiled even more kindly, “It’ll be ready to come out of the steamer in just a few more minutes.”

Jiang Xiaoran stood there, waiting.

Jiang Weiming took a small bowl and filled it with some salted fried pork rinds for Jiang Xiaoran to nibble on while waiting, and took the opportunity to chat with him for a while.

“Ranran, did you come by train or by car this year?” Jiang Weiming inquired.

“I couldn’t get a train ticket, so my dad drove us here,” Jiang Xiaoran crunched on a fried snack. “Grandpa, your fried bits taste better than my mom’s. Hers are way too tough.”

“I just made a half basin of these today, if Ranran likes them, take them all home later. You can have your mom stir-fry some pickled vegetables with them,” Mrs. Jiang offered.

Jiang Feng stood by, green with envy, at the divine treatment Jiang Xiaoran was receiving. In his wildest dreams, he and his cousins wouldn’t even dare to imagine such luxury!

“Is high school tough?”

“It’s okay. It feels like middle school, but English has gotten tougher, especially cloze tests. I miss half of it with one wrong answer. My mom forces me to practice English cloze tests at home every day. Just before I left today, I was still doing them, and there was…” Jiang Xiaoran started talking to Jiang Weiming about his studies.

That was about all he could talk about. As an ordinary high school student in the Celestial Dynasty, from the moment he stepped into the high school, his life became nothing but studying, especially since smartphones hadn’t been invented yet.

Jiang Xiaoran continued to eat fried bits while complaining to his grandfather about his studies for several minutes until his grandmother came in, which made him shut up and just eat instead of talking.

“Is dinner ready?” Mrs. Jiang asked.

“Almost. Start by taking these dishes out, the steamed eel will be ready soon. Ranran, stop eating and help your grandpa carry these two plates out,” Jiang Weiming began to distribute the dishes.

Jiang Xiaoran hurriedly put down his bowl filled with fried snacks and started to help out.

Taking the opportunity, Jiang Weiming quietly asked, “Have you talked to Yong about it yet?”

Mrs. Jiang glanced at him irritably, equally quietly, “What’s there to talk about? You tell him if you want to. I couldn’t bring myself to say it.”

“Do you know the attitude the eldest’s family had outside just now? Is that how you ask for a favor? Except for the good-for-nothing eldest, they all act like they’re the boss. I don’t want to bring it up during the New Year celebration,” Mrs. Jiang’s voice got louder, and Jiang Xiaoran, who had already taken a couple steps out, couldn’t help but notice.

“Keep it down, don’t talk about this in front of the child,” Jiang Weiming advised.

Jiang Xiaoran: ?

“Ranran, take the dishes to the living room first. Your grandma has something to discuss with your grandpa,” Mrs. Jiang managed a strained smile.

“Oh.” Jiang Xiaoran carried the dishes out, then tiptoed to the door to eavesdrop.

Jiang Feng: …

Brilliant!

While Jiang Xiaoran squatted at the door to eavesdrop, Jiang Feng unabashedly stood in the kitchen to listen.

“Old man, I’m not being partial. And if we talk about being partial, we’ve been partial towards the eldest for many years. Some things aren’t discussed openly, it would save no one’s face,” Mrs. Jiang suppressed her anger.

“Right now, it’s not even about the money. Besides, do we have any? We’re just a couple of old folks living in the countryside; we don’t have much. Look at Zhe now, if Yanlu doesn’t discipline him things will only get worse. Even if we pull out all our savings, it won’t be enough to cover Zhe’s mess!”

“I know, but, but… but Yanlu is out of options now. 150,000 yuan is a lot of money; he can’t just come up with that. We can’t make him sell his house or let Zhe really end up in jail,” Jiang Weiming’s face was filled with compromise.

“You… just keep indulging them. Look at what you’ve turned the two of them into,” Mrs. Jiang was too angry to continue, “Anyways, if you’re going to ask for it, you do it, I can’t bring myself to. You may not care about the second son, but I do. They’re all my flesh and blood. Go ahead and show favoritism.”

After saying that, Mrs. Jiang was ready to leave the kitchen, not even willing to carry the dishes.

Squatting by the door, Jiang Xiaoran didn’t actually hear much. He poked his head out but still couldn’t make out anything; the wind outside was too strong to hear clearly.

Seeing that his grandmother was about to walk out, Jiang Xiaoran quickly took off towards the living room. Meanwhile, Jiang Feng, still unprepared in the kitchen, got knocked over by a sudden breeze. Jiang Xiaoran ran so fast that Jiang Feng didn’t even have a chance to get up, and ended up being dragged to the living room, lying on the floor too beaten to want to get up—he felt like he’d just been mugged by a gang.

“What are you running for, kid? Be careful not to spill the dishes,” Lin Juan complained.

Struggling to his feet, Jiang Feng wanted nothing more than to grab Jiang Xiaoran and yell.

“Why were you running?”

Of all the people I’ve seen eavesdropping, you’re the worst!

Useless!