The rest of the Qi Family saw that the adults and children returned safely without any discomfort and also breathed a sigh of relief.
After dinner, all the family members were present.
The adults sat at one table, while the women sat with the children at another table.
The dishes were the same, but in front of Qi Manman, there was an additional small bowl of egg custard.
The golden-yellow custard was dotted with a few drops of oil on top, and the fragrance, as if finding its way, wafted into Qi Manman's nose without stop.
"It smells so good!"
Qi Manman couldn't help but swallow her saliva.
Mrs. Qi's heart almost melted. She scooped a bit with a wooden spoon, blew on it, made sure it wouldn't burn her precious little one, and then brought it to Qi Manman's mouth.
Qi Manman was about to open her mouth when she noticed several gazes on her.
She looked around and found several older brothers staring at her eagerly.
She turned her little face aside and leaned towards her mother.
Mrs. Qi panicked at the sight and hurriedly coaxed, "Manbao, turn around, let Grandma feed you the egg custard, it's really delicious."
"No! Manbao wants to eat together with my brothers!"
The little one not only refused to turn her head back but even leaned her whole body towards Yi Meng.
"Oh dear, you little one, they are all boys; what do they want with egg custard! Come on, turn around or it will be cold and won't taste good."
Mrs. Qi was extremely anxious and simultaneously glared at her grandsons.
The several grandsons, intimidated by her glare, lowered their heads in unison.
The egg custard truly smelled wonderful, but they couldn't compete with their little sister for it.
The only one, Qi Shilang, swallow his saliva, looked at Manbao and said, "Sister, the egg custard, it's slurp, really good, you, you eat it quickly! Slurp!"
He was indeed a considerate brother, but the sound of him swallowing was so loud that it made even the adults feel uncomfortable.
"No no, I just want to eat with my brothers!"
Qi Manman shook her little head like a rattle, adamant that she wouldn't eat if she wasn't allowed to do so together.
Listening from the next table, Qi Zheng chimed in, "Today, Manbao's household registration has been settled; from now on, she's officially our family's child. Today is a good day, and tomorrow is the start of the autumn harvest."
"Old lady, bring out a few more eggs, steam two big bowls of egg custard, and let both adults and children have a taste to celebrate."
Once the old man spoke, Mrs. Qi had to comply, no matter how much she cherished the eggs.
With more than twenty people, adults and children combined, there's no way Mrs. Qi would agree to one egg per person.
But realizing that today they genuinely gained a precious addition to their family, she gritted her teeth and instructed her eldest two daughters-in-law to take ten eggs and steam two big bowls of egg custard.
Upon hearing that everyone would get to eat the egg custard, nobody was in a hurry to eat; instead, all waited eagerly for the egg custard to arrive.
Qi Manman looked at this person and then at another, and only then did she grin with satisfaction, and smile.
"Grandma is so good! Grandpa is so good!"
The little one, though young, had a particularly sweet mouth and could listen to the adults. Now she praised them one sentence after another: "Manbao is really so happy!"
Qi Shilang, though not as clever, could imitate words. Seeing his little sister saying this, he followed suit.
The other kids felt a bit embarrassed to say such things, but they all smiled broadly.
Little sister is truly wonderful!
With a little sister around, they all got to eat egg custard. From now on, they must treat their little sister even better!
Just because of a few bites of egg custard, the ten boys of the Qi family all tacitly made such a promise.
After eating and drinking their fill, Qi Manman was carried back to the room by her mother.
Qi Quanjin brought in warm water, and Yi Meng gently undressed the little one and placed her in the basin.
"Hee-hee-hee, Mum, so ticklish!"
The little one felt her mother's gentle touch as she was washed and laughed so much she leaned back and forth.
Yi Meng felt a mix of wanting to laugh and feeling helpless, "Sit properly, hurry up and bathe, or else when the water gets cold, you might get sick."
"Hmm, hee-hee-hee..."
She agreed readily but simply couldn't stop giggling.
Oh dear, it really is so ticklish!
After the bath, wearing the little clothes crafted personally by Yi Meng, Qi Manman sat on the kang and picked at her toes, leaving her mother to softly wipe away her sparse baby hair.
"Mum, Manbao loves you the most!"
Because you carried me back, because you cuddled me to sleep, because you bathed me, and you even made me new clothes.
Oh, I really like this Mum!
Yi Meng listened, feeling both sweet and soft, "Mum loves Manbao the most too."
"Mm-hmm..."
The little girl responded twice and then tilted over to sleep.
As quickly as children's sleep comes, Yi Meng paid it no mind, covering her little daughter with a quilt, and only then calling in her husband and sons.
The father and sons all moved quietly, afraid of waking Qi Manman, looking as though they were tiptoeing like thieves.
In Qi Zheng and Mrs. Qi's room, the old couple sat at opposite ends of the kang, one smoking a pipe while the other leaned against a pillow lost in thought.
The oil lamp on the kang table burned with a flame only slightly larger than a soybean, lending a small measure of brightness to the room.
"Old man, do you think it will rain tomorrow?"
Mrs. Qi was reminded once more of the ants moving house.
Qi Zheng paused in his pipe-smoking before putting down the pipe and sighing, "Whether it rains or not is up to the heavens. Who can say for sure!"
"But that girl Manbao..."
Before Mrs. Qi could finish her sentence, she abruptly thought of something, hurriedly adding, "Old man, did you eat the fish today?"
"I did, why?"
Qi Zheng looked at his wife, puzzled.
Mrs. Qi said with an odd expression, "Didn't you find the taste of that fish a bit off?"
Qi Zheng thought for a moment and nodded, "It wasn't as tasty as usual. Who cooked the fish today? Wasn't it the fourth daughter-in-law?"
The fourth daughter-in-law was the best at cooking in the house, although she used a lot of oil and salt. So, usually, only major dishes like fish or meat would she take on.
Today they had fish, and since Qi Manbao, their precious one, had requested it, naturally it was Yi Meng who cooked.
Mrs. Qi's expression became even more peculiar, "But the fish was indeed cooked by the fourth daughter-in-law. I even took a look at the process, and it was the same as usual. Tell me, why does it taste so different?"
The same ingredients, the same process, the fish from the same river, yet the taste was different—what does this mean?
Qi Zheng shivered all over, "Wife, you mean..."
"I, I didn't say anything!"
Mrs. Qi instantly became a bit tense, "Old man, could it be that Manbao can really..."
Speaking, Mrs. Qi pointed upward.
The next moment, the old couple fell into silence.
Before long, they tacitly put on their outer garments, slipped on their shoes, and quietly left the room, kneeling in the courtyard, facing the sky...