The car came to a stop less than three meters away from the two of them.
The window rolled down, revealing Yu Changqing’s furrowed brows and gloomy expression as he barked at the guard at the sentry post, "Move the barrier now, hurry!"
"Yes, sir!" the guard responded promptly.
As soon as the barrier at the gate was lifted, Yu Changqing slammed on the accelerator and sped out of the compound.
"What’s gotten into Army Commander Yu today?" the guard scratched his head in confusion.
Having stood guard at the compound for so many years, this was the first time he’d seen Army Commander Yu drive so recklessly.
Hearing this, another guard recalled something. "Early this morning, before dawn, Army Commander Yu’s daughter left the house. Her eyes were swollen like walnuts—looked like she’d been crying all night."
Lowering his voice, he added, "You think she had a fight with Army Commander Yu and ran away?"
"No way. Her wedding banquet is on the sixth," the first guard reminded him. "Don’t spread baseless rumors. It’s not good if someone hears."
Unbeknownst to them, their conversation had been overheard by Jiang Si and Huo Tingzhou just a few meters away.
Jiang Si wasn’t the least bit surprised.
Though she hadn’t interacted much with Yu Manli, it was obvious that the girl had been sheltered her entire life.
So when someone showed her even the slightest kindness, she’d pour her heart out to them.
She had no idea how cruel the world could be.
But this was the Yu family’s business. Let Army Commander Yu and his wife worry about it—Jiang Si couldn’t be bothered.
Ten minutes later, the two arrived at the courtyard house.
From a distance, they spotted Third Granduncle and Uncle Zhong waiting outside. Jiang Si sighed in resignation.
"I knew they’d be standing out here early."
She immediately broke into a jog toward them.
Her first act was to clasp Third Granduncle’s hands—unsurprisingly, they were icy cold.
"How long have you been waiting out here?"
"Not long. We just stepped out."
Jiang Si didn’t buy it. "It’s freezing. Why wait outside instead of staying indoors? What if you catch a chill?"
Her voice was a mix of concern and frustration. "If I’d woken up later, you’d have been out here for three or four hours!"
"You’re almost seventy. Can’t you take better care of yourselves?"
Normally, Uncle Zhong would side with her without fail.
But today, he defected. Stepping forward, he greeted Huo Tingzhou with a respectful "Son-in-law" and took the bags from his hands.
"Miss Si, this is the first time the young master has visited after marriage."
"The old master is overjoyed. Let him indulge just this once."
"Besides, it’s an old tradition in the capital."
"Welcoming the bride and groom home means bringing good fortune into the household."
"Exactly! Come inside, both of you," Third Granduncle chimed in, patting Jiang Si’s hand and beckoning Huo Tingzhou to follow.
"Today, you two are the guests of honor—take the seats of honor."
"Oh, and since you woke up so early, have you eaten breakfast yet?"
Though they’d already eaten at home, they exchanged a glance and nodded in unison.
"Not yet."
Third Granduncle grinned knowingly. "Sit tight. Have a light bite for now. At noon, I’ll show off my culinary skills!"
With that, he and Uncle Zhong cheerfully headed to the kitchen.
Despite telling them to eat lightly, Uncle Zhong had prepared a lavish spread.
Within minutes, they returned with six or seven dishes—steamed buns, fried dough sticks, crispy rings, boiled eggs, and pickled vegetables.
"Here, Si—your favorite yellow fish wontons."
"Let me, Third Granduncle."
Huo Tingzhou stood and took the bowl, placing it in front of Jiang Si.
"Be careful, it’s hot."
Knowing she wouldn’t finish it, he added, "Eat what you can. I’ll take the rest."
Jiang Si nodded, eyeing the bowl of savory soy milk in front of him.
"Pour me a little. It’s been ages since I’ve had salty soy milk."
"Mm." Huo Tingzhou obliged.
Watching the young couple’s easy rapport, Third Granduncle and Uncle Zhong exchanged a glance and broke into knowing smiles.
After the meal, Huo Tingzhou moved to clear the table, but Uncle Zhong stopped him.
"Young master, no chores for you today. Go sit and relax."
When Huo Tingzhou opened his mouth to protest, Uncle Zhong swiftly gathered the dishes and darted off faster than a rabbit.
"Let him be," Jiang Si sighed. "If we insist on helping, they’ll only feel uneasy."
Then she called toward the kitchen, "Uncle Zhong, I’ve been craving your braised tongue!"
Delighted, Uncle Zhong popped his head out.
"Of course! I’ll prepare the pig’s head right away. We’ll have some fine dishes to go with drinks at noon."
"Mm!"
Jiang Si smiled, then turned to Third Granduncle. "How about a few rounds of chess?"
It's worth noting that aside from sweets, Third Uncle's greatest passion is playing chess.
But today, to everyone's surprise, Third Uncle waved his hand dismissively.
"No, no, not today. I don't have time."
Seeing Jiang Si's puzzled expression, Third Uncle didn't keep her in suspense.
"I asked Old Ninth to get me some sea sausages and chives. Later, I'll make dumplings with sea sausage filling for you all."
In this era, transportation wasn't well-developed, and many people had never even seen sea sausages before.
But for Third Uncle, this ingredient was an absolute delicacy.
Just thinking about it made his mouth water. "Let me tell you, the dumplings made with this are incredibly delicious—one bite, and the umami will knock your socks off."
"Later, when you head back, take some for your in-laws to try. I guarantee they'll love it."
"Third Uncle, we weren’t planning to go back tonight..."
"That won’t do."
Before Jiang Si could finish, Third Uncle cut her off.
Even though theirs was a two-sided marriage, as the old saying goes, "Staying overnight drains three pecks of wealth."
Third Uncle said, "If you two weren’t married yet, you could stay as many nights as you wanted. But now that you’re married, we ought to respect the traditions passed down by the elders."
"Besides, we’ll be returning to Qiongzhou Island in a few days. Who knows when you two will be back next?"
"While you still have time, you should spend more of it with your family."
"Be good now. After dinner this afternoon, head back early. This isn’t something to be stubborn about."
Jiang Si wasn’t trying to be stubborn—she just wasn’t familiar with marital customs.
Of course, a big part of it was also her in-laws' indulgence and affection toward her.
Had they hesitated even slightly or frowned, she would’ve noticed something was off.
But they said nothing, simply accommodating her preferences.
Thinking this, Jiang Si nodded. "Understood, Third Uncle."
And so, the group sat in the living room chatting about everyday matters for a while.
When the time felt right, Third Uncle assigned Huo Tingzhou the task of kneading dough while he headed to the kitchen to prepare the sea sausages.
Huo Tingzhou was strong, and the dough obeyed his hands effortlessly.
In no time, the dough was ready.
By then, Third Uncle had also emerged from the kitchen with the prepared dumpling filling.
The three of them then got to work in the living room.
Watching Third Uncle deftly pinch the edges of a dumpling wrapper with both hands, forming a plump, ingot-shaped dumpling, Jiang Si grew intrigued.
After observing for a while, it seemed simple enough.
Just then, Huo Tingzhou handed her a dumpling wrapper. "Want to try?"
Jiang Si accepted it with confidence.
Seeing her interest, Third Uncle paused to give her some pointers.
"First, place the filling right in the center, like this. It’s best to press it down firmly with the spoon."
"Then, fold the wrapper over like this, pushing gently with both hands."
Up to this point, Jiang Si was doing a decent job mimicking him.
But then came the step that looked easy but was actually the trickiest.
"Watch closely now."
Third Uncle applied slight pressure with the base of his thumbs, and in the next moment, a perfectly plump dumpling took shape.
Jiang Si copied his movements.
Instead of the expected round dumpling, half the filling squirted out.
Third Uncle, however, offered blind praise. "No worries, no worries! For your first try, this is already great."
Half an hour later, Jiang Si stared at the misshapen dumplings she’d made.
Then she looked down at her hands, unable to help doubting herself.
These hands could paint the myriad facets of life and capture the play of light and shadow in all things.
So why were they so hopeless when it came to cooking?
Huo Tingzhou noticed her mood immediately and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.
"Darling, leave me some purpose in life, won’t you?"
What did that mean?
Jiang Si blinked, confused.
Huo Tingzhou didn’t explain right away. Only after dropping all her oddly shaped dumplings into the boiling pot did he say earnestly,
"Darling, different talents suit different callings. Your hands were made for painting."
"If you were good at everything, what use would I even have at home?"
"..."
Well, Jiang Si had to admit he had a point.
Soon, steaming hot dumplings were served. Even though there were only four of them, Third Uncle and Uncle Zhong had prepared a whole table full of dishes.
While this family enjoyed a warm and lively meal, over at the Yu household, chaos had erupted.
