Chapter 53: The Old Master Is Very Pleased

"So delicious."

"It smells amazing."

"Gu Zhongning, can I have some?!"

"Song Yu, is it good grilled?!"

"Grandpa Gu, we want to eat too! Can we have some?!"

"Old Gu, what is your family roasting over there?! Why does it smell so good?!"

"Oh, barbecue? That's quite a novelty. We used to grill meat back in the day, but it never smelled this good."

"That's for sure. Look at what kind of meat this is! And they used special seasonings too, how could it be the same? It smells so good my mouth is watering."

"Grandpa, I want to eat, I want to eat too."

"Little Gu, what special occasion is it today?! Why is it so lively?"

...

The children could no longer bear such an overbearing aroma. They swallowed hard as they tried to cozy up to the two older boys, Gu Zhongning and Song Yu, while the rest of the kids ran off to find Elder Gu.

The other elderly residents in the courtyard were also drawn by the fragrance and the commotion. They couldn't even finish their game of chess because their grandchildren were pestering them to get some of the Gu family's barbecue.

Left with no choice, the elders had to come over and see what was going on at the Gu household today.

However, the moment they caught sight of Lu Xiaoning in the courtyard, it all clicked for them.

One of the conditions the Gu family set for agreeing to the divorce was that Lu Xiaoning had to spend time with the children on three separate occasions, and today must be the first.

"It was Xiaolu's idea. She called it a barbecue, where everyone pitches in to make food. She also boiled some health teas and flower teas, and bought a lot of soda."

Elder Gu said with a beaming smile. In truth, he was utterly delighted. Not only was his young granddaughter-in-law thoughtful, but she was also wonderful to the children, which left him exceptionally satisfied.

If only Lu Xiaoning weren't in the picture, or if Lu Xiaoning loved children as much as Xiaolu did, what a pity...

Who couldn't see the smug smile on Elder Gu's face? The Gu family members were all fine people—everyone except Lu Xiaoning.

"Alright, we want to eat too. What do you have to say about that?!"

Elder Fang couldn't watch any longer. Didn't he see his grandson tugging relentlessly at his sleeve, staring with eager puppy-dog eyes at the grill? If the child hadn't been so well-raised, he would have already rushed over to grab some.

The other elders felt the same way. Whether they were given any or not, they were going to eat; they weren't leaving.

"You old folks should forget it, eat less at your age and let the kids have more. Go ahead, little Tiger, join the other big brothers for barbecue and soda. Your Aunt Lu bought plenty."

Elder Gu chuckled cheerfully, speaking with utmost warmth to the children who had come running upon hearing the news. As long as the kids were happy, that was all that mattered.

Elder Gu's words brought a cheer of excitement from the children in the courtyard. Without any hesitation, they ran over to grab ingredients and tried grilling things themselves.

With nearly twenty children crowded together, the single grill simply didn't have enough space.

Seeing this, Lu Jiaojuer promptly asked the guard to fetch another large piece of wire mesh. She then worked quickly with the family's housekeeper to gather a dozen bricks, arranging them into a makeshift stove and lighting the charcoal.

Before long, the guard returned with the wire mesh, washed it clean, and placed it over the new fire, urging the remaining children to come over and grill.

Yet, that wasn't the end of it. There were too many kids, and the pre-skewered meat certainly wouldn't be enough, so they hurriedly sliced up more and strung them onto skewers.

Lu Jiaojuer felt she had a realistic sense of proportions. She had bought five pounds of pork belly, a portion each of pork small and large intestines, and even half a side of spare ribs, though she only bought two chickens.

"The taste is really incredible."

"This is large intestine?! You can eat large intestine like this?!"

"I've got small intestine here. It looks fragrant, wonder how it tastes."

"I have no idea what cooking style this is! I've never seen it before."

Several of the elders had also been offered a few skewers by their juniors—large intestine, small intestine, pork belly, and chicken.

They didn't know until they tasted it, but once they started, they couldn't stop.

It was genuinely delicious—fragrant, chewy, and entirely devoid of any gamey odor.

The elders instantly fell in love with the large intestine, small intestine, and pork belly. Not only was the flavor wonderfully bold, but it truly opened up a whole new world for them.

The only pity was that there was no wine to accompany the dishes.

Fortunately, even without wine, there was still some fine tea.

The barbecue party lasted until the afternoon. The children finished every single thing Lu Jiaojuer had bought, polishing off over twenty bottles of soda and numerous pots of herbal tea.

Lu Xiaoning had been assigned to accompany little Dongdong for his afternoon nap. Fortunately, with so many people around, the kids didn't cling to her; even little Dongdong ran off to play with the older boys and girls, giving Lu Xiaoning a massive sigh of relief.

Still, she had to stay for dinner before she could leave, meaning her tasks for the day wouldn't truly be over until then.

Elder Gu and Gu Fengrui had both been persuaded by Lu Jiaojuer to go rest. After cleaning up the courtyard, Gu Zhongning took his younger siblings and cousins back out to play with the neighborhood kids.

Dinner was much lighter: a nourishing soup, two vegetable dishes, steamed eggs, and pan-fried fish.

The children still had wonderful appetites. Once they finished eating, they were heraded upstairs to do their homework and wash up.

Lu Xiaoning was finally leaving too. Her mission was accomplished, and a huge weight lifted from her chest.

Though she didn't have to do much all day—mostly just standing off to the side while the children had fun—she simply didn't care for such bustling liveliness, nor did she like this kind of place, where she always felt entirely out of place.

Fortunately, the Gu family only required this three times, and now there were only two occasions left.

Lu Jiaojuer was also heading home after dinner. Just as she bid farewell to the Elder and Gu Fengrui and turned to leave, the Elder called her back and shoved a roll of money into her hand.

"Xiaolu, you've worked hard today. I can't have you doing all the heavy lifting and spending your own money on top of that. You must take this back, and don't stand on ceremony with Grandpa. Family doesn't keep separate accounts."

Elder Gu was truly satisfied with his young granddaughter-in-law from head to toe. Everything she did looked right in his eyes.

There was no comparison without contrast; just looking at Lu Xiaoning's actions compared to Lu Xiaoning's made it clear how sincere Lu Jiaojuer was toward both the children and the elderly.

"Thank you, Grandpa."

Unlike country elders, Elder Gu had a retirement pension. Therefore, Lu Jiaojuer didn't put on airs; she expressed her thanks and accepted it gracefully.

After stepping out of the Gu residence, everyone she met while strolling through the large courtyard greeted her warmly and proactively. In fact, not only did more people take the initiative to greet her, but the greetings themselves were exceptionally warm.

She had no idea that her barbecue party in the courtyard had become the talk of the entire compound; not a single household was unaware of it.

Especially the families whose children had eaten at the Gu house—they spent the entire evening discussing the Gu family and her.

Everyone compared her to Lu Xiaoning, and those in the know even brought up the attitude that Gu's parents held toward Lu Jiaojuer in their conversations.