Paired with cooked bright green bok choy, silky fried eggs, and her unique seasoning skills, topped finally with sesame oil, even Master Chen was drawn over by the aroma.
“Really smells good, Mr. Qin, your wife’s cooking skills could open a restaurant.”
Mr. Qin smiled, his wife does indeed own a restaurant, and it’s doing quite well.
Just as Lin Chuxia was about to serve the noodles, a pair of large hands reached out first, “Let me do it, careful it’s hot.”
Lin Chuxia let him serve the noodles to the table outside and sat across from him, seeing the man not moving his chopsticks for a while, she smiled and said, “Eat, it won’t taste good once it gets clumpy. Also, Qin Yang, happy birthday!”
Qin Yang looked up, his eyes brimming with mirth and emotion, scratching the back of his head embarrassedly.
“Lin Chuxia, you know? It’s been a long time since I celebrated my birthday.”
Back in his hometown, his mom would make him longevity noodles, but after he went out to study and work, nobody remembered his birthday anymore, and over time, he himself forgot.
“Then from now on, I’ll celebrate your birthday with you every year,” Lin Chuxia said.
Qin Yang’s dark eyes looked at her, and suddenly his smile widened, showing a mouthful of big white teeth.
Lin Chuxia couldn’t help but look away, what a silly guy.
Before long, Bai Xiaoming, Li Wei, Zhang Dawei, and others also arrived.
Bai Xiaoming, as the eldest among them, brought his family, feeling a bit embarrassed, “I heard earlier that the sister-in-law had come, and we, as hosts, should have treated you properly. Instead, you had to spend first.”
Qin Yang introduced Lin Chuxia to the newcomers. He had occasionally mentioned his colleagues here in his letters, including Bai Xiaoming, whom Lin Chuxia had already taken note of because Qin Yang had made a point to invite him.
“Brother Bai, you are being too kind. Today is Qin Yang’s birthday, and I also took this opportunity to invite everyone to join in the fun. These are your two sons, aren’t they? They look very spirited, both handsome young men.”
Bai Xiaoming’s smile grew bigger, “They are both quite mischievous, come over here and call her aunt.”
Bai Liang and Bai Tian called out loudly, “Auntie!”, with Bai Tian being noticeably more lively, giggling, “Auntie, you are so pretty.”
Bai Xiaoming’s wife Song Ye slapped her son playfully, laughing, “You child…”
Just as everyone was seated, three more people entered the cafeteria through the door. It was past mealtime by then, and the cafeteria was mostly empty except for their table.
Among the newcomers was Sister-in-law Feng, who immediately spotted Lin Chuxia and pulled the man and child next to her over to greet.
“Sister-in-law, you’re also having a meal here?”
“Yes, sister-in-law, haven’t you eaten yet?”
“Not yet, we ran out of coal at home today, so I couldn’t cook. We came here to see what’s available.”
After she finished speaking, she turned to the man next to her, “Da Jun, this is Qin Yang’s family, I told you about them earlier today. You can tell they’re urban people, educated, see I wasn’t wrong, right?”
Feng Dajun wasn’t planning on coming over initially but was dragged by his wife. Seeing the table of people, he felt slightly awkward but still managed a smile and greeted everyone.
Qin Yang and he were not on the same project team, but they were colleagues and met often, and Qin Yang had a good impression of Feng Dajun.
“Since you’re here, come sit down and have a meal with us.”
Li Wei, Zhang Dawei, and a few others were about to help make room and find seats. Feng Dajun also seemed intrigued, as he always admired Qin Yang.
Before he could say anything, Sister-in-law Feng shouted from the side, “You guys go ahead and eat, we won’t join you. Jingjing and I don’t deserve this fancy meal; we’ll just grab something simple over there.”
Then she looked at the man next to her with eyes sparkling, “Da Jun, just stay here and eat with Mr. Qin. We’re lucky today to run into Mr. Qin and Mr. Bai. Mr. Qin respects you; don’t ruin their fun. Later, make sure to accompany Mr. Qin and drink a couple of glasses, taking good care of them to eat and drink well.”
As she spoke the first half of her sentence, everyone present felt a bit uncomfortable, and as she continued, it became even more awkward.
Bai Xiaoming interjected, “Sister-in-law, Engineer Feng and we are colleagues. Regardless of rank or job type, we are all equal. Mr. Qin inviting Engineer Feng to eat is just to liven things up a bit; you’re thinking too much.”
“No, no,” Sister-in-law Feng didn’t think there was anything wrong with her statement. “Our Da Jun can’t compare with you guys. You are the backbone of the department, all very capable. Da Jun has his job because of his ancestors’ good fortune. Knowing you all is the blessing of his eight past lifetimes…”
As Sister-in-law Feng continued exaggerating, Feng Dajun looked increasingly embarrassed and hurriedly pulled her away, “Mr. Qin, you guys continue to eat and drink well; we will not disturb you.”
But Sister-in-law Feng didn’t want to leave, “Hey, Da Jun, Mr. Qin wants you to eat with them. It’s a good opportunity. Haven’t you always said Mr. Qin is a nice guy…”
Feng Dajun, without a word, just kept his head down, forcibly pulling Sister-in-law Feng out of the cafeteria without even getting their food.
“Come on, let’s not worry about them. Let’s first wish Mr. Qin a happy birthday and welcome Sister-in-law on her family visit. Let’s have a drink together.”
Bai Xiaoming raised his glass, and Zhang Dawei, Li Wei, and Wu Zhenfa enthusiastically responded, moving past the recent awkward incident.
Today, Master Chen in the cafeteria also put in extra effort—braised pork ribs, red-braised lamb, squirrel-shaped mandarin fish, and several other stir-fried and cold dishes.
Lin Chuxia, who doesn’t care about spending, had a good chat with the chefs in the kitchen, ensuring each dish was generous and tasty.
The liquor was a unique sorghum liquor from the Northwest, brewed purely from sorghum with a rich aroma.
As it was baijiu, when pouring, it was only served to the men at the table, with Sister-in-law Song and Lin Chuxia drinking tea.
After several rounds of toasting, Lin Chuxia found just drinking tea boring, especially since the aroma of the liquor was so enticing.
Qin Yang got her a piece of pork rib, then noticed the young lady eyeing his glass with sparkling eyes.
He warned, “This has a high alcohol content; you probably can’t handle it.”
Yet he found it amusing in his heart; this girl, always so bold, wanting to try everything.
Lin Chuxia extended a finger, “I’ll just have one cup.”
“One cup?” Qin Yang outright laughed, “This one cup is just a tiny tael; it could make you lose your bearings.”
“If I lose my bearings, I’ll still have you, won’t I?” Lin Chuxia said nonchalantly.
She knew that the alcohol content of baijiu was generally high in this era, and she had drunk strong liquor before. At the last apprentice banquet, she had three to four taels, which had no effect.
She knew her own body. In her past life, she also drank plenty the first time she was at a wine table, without any issues.
It was only later, when she often had to drink for social reasons and some clients were too demanding—drinking too much red, white, and beer—that her stomach started having issues, but that was later.