Chapter 011: A Punch into Cotton
“Big Brother, I just happened to read about it in a book, so I remembered it. But if you ask me why I know it, I can’t explain the specifics!”
How else could she explain it? The point was, she just knew!
“It’s delicious, Wanwan has a thoughtful heart.” Su Jing patted her head, just like an ordinary person, the way an older brother would stroke a younger sister’s hair.
This gesture warmed Su Wan’s heart deeply. Having lacked family affection since she was little, she truly longed for family to care about her.
The brothers were still wanting more. Su Yun licked the corner of his lips, still wearing an arrogant expression.
Picking up his sickle again, he went to harvest the rice. This two-acre field would take at least three days to finish. Su Jing looked at Su Wan helplessly.
“Wanwan, do you remember the way back? It’s too hot outside, hurry home and get some rest. I’ll make you lunch when I get back!”
Su Wan nodded.
“I remember!” She picked up the empty water jar, waved at her brothers, and headed home along the small path, glancing back every few steps.
Watching her small figure walk away, Su Yi smiled and said to his brothers:
“Sister Wanwan is different from what we imagined!”
They had always assumed Su Wan would be full of “spoiled rich girl” syndrome. It didn’t seem to be the case, at least for now.
Su Mu remained silent, Su宸 nodded in agreement, and only Su Jing smiled with satisfaction:
“That’s why you shouldn’t judge a person by their appearance, or rely on your own assumptions.”
With the licorice root water having won the brothers over, Su Wan returned home in a good mood and began preparing lunch.
There wasn’t much flour left in the bag. She scooped out a small bowl, mixed it with water into a thin batter—conditions were tough now, so she couldn’t be too extravagant. She stirred in shredded potatoes, just enough to coat them in the batter, seasoned it with salt, and brushed the pan with oil, only to find the oil jar was at the bottom. She searched the house, but couldn’t find a single drop of extra oil. Su Wan sighed helplessly; the Su family was truly even poorer than she had imagined.
She diced a large piece of pumpkin, mixed it with a small bowl of rice, and put it in the steamer. She blanched purslane and seasoned it with a bit of vinegar—that was it. There was no chili, but it couldn’t be helped. She reheated the cornmeal cakes left over from the morning, and it was done.
When the five Su brothers returned from the fields, they smelled a fragrant scent from afar. Su Yun was sniffing the air, wondering whose kitchen smelled so good.
Upon returning to the courtyard, they realized the aroma came from their own home. Smoke was curling from the chimney, and clothes were hanging on the line—whose else could they be?
Under the scorching sun, they were almost dry.
Hearing them, Su Wan ran out of the kitchen, wearing a gray apron. She wiped her hands, looking down-to-earth and smiling:
“Brothers are back! You’ve worked hard. Wash your hands and eat!”
She picked up a wooden basin, drew water from the vat, and let them wash their hands. The five brothers were dumbfounded!
“Sister Wanwan, you washed all these clothes?” Su Yi asked, pointing at the line.
“Fifth Brother, what a question. Is there anyone else here besides me? Father and Mother left early this morning. Did you forget, Fifth Brother?” Su Wan explained with a smile, her expression quite playful.
Su Yun ran over and poked at the nearly dry clothes, inspecting them front and back:
“You, who have never lifted a finger, know how to wash clothes? Don’t end up not washing them clean, forcing us to wash them all over again!”
Su Yun was highly skeptical of Su Wan’s capability, filtered through his bias that she was a pampered young lady who couldn’t handle chores.
“Fourth Brother, why do you have to question everything I do? If it were Miss Gu doing these things, you probably wouldn’t say that!” Su Wan said, looking aggrieved.
Su Yun was choked by her words, not knowing how to explain: “I just think that as a young lady who usually has maids and servants waiting on her, how could you possibly lower yourself to wash clothes?”
Well, the more he explained, the messier it got.
“Enough, Fourth. Are you done yet? Wanwan had good intentions; you should be grateful, yet you keep nitpicking. I can’t watch this anymore!”
Su Chen couldn’t help but step in to speak a word of justice.
“I…” Su Yun couldn’t argue back.
“Fourth, apologize to Wanwan. You are definitely in the wrong!” Su Jing spoke to Su Yun, his face stern.
Su Yun gritted his teeth, realizing he was in the wrong:
“I’m sorry, alright? But you doing all this is just to replace Yueyue in our hearts. I’d like to see how long you can keep it up.”
That was hardly an apology. He was still arguing stubbornly, hurting Su Wan’s heart over and over again. But Su Wan didn’t get angry; instead, she laughed.
“It doesn’t matter if Fourth Brother likes it or not. I only did this because I treat you like a brother. Since you can’t accept it, that won’t stop me from being good to the other four brothers!”
Su Yun was the type who yielded to firmness but not to softness.
Wasn’t his goal to see her lose her temper and show her “true colors,” so that the small amount of goodwill she had built up would vanish?
Nice try, but I won’t give you what you want!
Su Yun had thrown a punch into cotton, and he ended up being the one furious to the point of collapse.
Su Mu quietly watched the changes in Su Wan’s expression, then looked at the red-faced, angry Su Yun, thinking: This new sister is young, but she has high-level methods!
Interesting!
They gathered at the table. On it were plates of potato pancakes, golden in color, cooked just right without a single burnt spot. The pumpkin rice had the perfect amount of water, fragrant and fluffy.
Su Yun, who considered himself quite an expert in the kitchen, was stunned at the flawless potato pancakes. Even he couldn’t fry them to this level!
“Wanwan, you made all this?” Su Jing asked, feeling her skills might even be better than the Fourth brother’s.
“If I didn’t make it, could it have been made by a fairy?” Su Wan was truly baffled. Why couldn’t they believe anything she did?
But then again, in their eyes, girls from wealthy families never did housework. But it didn’t matter; she would slowly change their perspective.
“Hurry up and eat, you must be exhausted from working!”
Su Wan went to serve them their rice. Su Jing thanked her. When it reached Su Mu, he refused calmly:
“No need, I’ll do it myself.”
“Su Wan, you worked hard cooking, we’ll serve ourselves!” Su Chen also politely refused, and naturally, Su Yi followed suit.
The six siblings were getting along quite formally!
Except for the Fourth brother, who couldn’t accept the sudden change of sisters, the other brothers, despite being distant, did not show any rejection toward her.
Su Yun reacted so violently due to specific reasons. Moreover, he was young, only fifteen, and his speech was a bit blunt. He probably never thought about hurting Su Wan’s feelings; he simply couldn’t accept that the sister he had doted on since childhood was suddenly gone.
Furthermore, before Gu Yue left, she had specifically asked him if he would stop liking her now that he had a new sister. Seeing her so aggrieved, Su Yun’s heart ached, and he promised her that he would never let the new sister take her place in his heart.
