Chapter 141: Uninvited

Chapter 141: Chapter 141: Uninvited

And the smell of that stewed meat was truly fragrant.

It drew the eldest daughter from the Zhang Yali family next door, who clung to the cracks in the wooden fence, eagerly watching the Qin Family’s courtyard.

Gu Qiaoqiao actually didn’t want to give it to them, it wasn’t that she was reluctant to part with the meat, but because Zhang Yali was such a person that no matter what you gave her, it never ended well.

Yet that child’s gaze was pitifully compelling.

Although the circumstances had improved slightly from a few years prior, Engineer Mu’s family was burdened with supporting both parents and sending four younger siblings to school.

One could imagine, even with a decent salary, there wasn’t much left at the end of the month.

And Zhang Yali had no job, with two children at home, they lived a tight life.

Thus, in her past life, when Zhang Yali got her hands on Gu Qiaoqiao, this naive bird, she really didn’t let go.

But that woman was ungrateful.

A classic ingrate.

Gu Qiaoqiao really didn’t want to bother with her.

Still, in the end, Gu Qiaoqiao stood at the wooden fence between the two houses, holding a bowl of meat, calling out to Zhang Yali.

It seemed she had been waiting for Gu Qiaoqiao.

No sooner had she called out than Zhang Yali came out through the door.

Zhang Yali greeted Gu Qiaoqiao with a beaming smile, “Big sister, what do you need?”

Gu Qiaoqiao was somewhat speechless.

But she still managed a smile, “Sister-in-law Mu, I’ve just stewed some meat, let the child have a bowl to taste.”

Zhang Yali’s hand shot out swiftly to grab the bowl of meat, even as she said, “Oh, how embarrassing this is.”

Gu Qiaoqiao just smiled without saying a word.

She certainly didn’t say it was nothing.

No one’s money comes from the wind, and meat doesn’t grow from the ground.

And what Zhang Yali was good at, was acting innocent after taking advantage.

As if eating your food was an honor for you, and a favor to you.

Zhang Yali didn’t get the response she hoped for and could only smile sheepishly, “Thank you, big sister.”

“You’re welcome,” Gu Qiaoqiao said before adding, “I have to get busy now…”

After speaking, Gu Qiaoqiao smiled and turned to enter the house.

Zhang Yali looked at the meat in the bowl, unable to help swallowing her saliva, and then, shoving her child’s head, the little girl quickly understood and opened the half-closed door.

Saturday arrived quickly.

And Gu Qiaoqiao’s preparations were almost complete. This was truly the first time she was hosting guests, and she thought she would make sure everyone had a wonderful meal.

About ten people were coming this time.

Gu Qiaoqiao thought they would bring their families, but only when she saw the people coming in single file did she realize she had thought too much.

If they had brought their families, the house probably couldn’t have fit everyone.

Qin Yize introduced them calmly to Gu Qiaoqiao, then joined the others in the living room to chat.

Meanwhile, Luh Fei was in the kitchen, cheerfully helping out.

In fact, Gu Qiaoqiao had already made preparations in advance.

With an extra small iron pot in the house, the speed of cooking had increased significantly.

There were six cold dishes, nine stir-fries, two stewed dishes, and then a pot of egg drop seaweed soup.

The cold dishes were already plated ahead of time, and the ingredients for the stir-fries were ready, just waiting for the braised pork with potatoes to come out of the pot.

Luh Fei, smelling the aroma, exclaimed in disbelief, “Sister-in-law, your cooking skills are even better than those of a restaurant’s head chef, it’s so fragrant, we’re really lucky today, such a treat!”

“Then eat a bit more later.” Gu Qiaoqiao smiled and then added, “It’ll be ready in another ten minutes, and then we’ll start stir-frying.”

Before Luh Fei could respond, three more people walked in through the door.

Gu Qiaoqiao was startled, it was Choo Lan and Zhu Xiaohong, accompanied by a young man with a delicate appearance, probably around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, who looked good-natured and was all smiles.

Gu Qiaoqiao recognized all nine people in the room; she wasn’t very familiar with them, but she had met them all before.

However, she had never seen this young man before, though his name seemed somewhat familiar.

As for Choo Lan and Zhu Xiaohong, Gu Qiaoqiao did not remember Qin Yize mentioning that he had invited them.

They truly had shown up uninvited.

It wasn’t about avoiding anything, but because Qin Yize had invited his usual colleagues, those he often worked with.

In other words, all were gentlemen.

Having two women there would definitely put a damper on the drinking.

So Gu Qiaoqiao kept her expression neutral regarding the uninvited appearance of Choo Lan and Zhu Xiaohong, although she felt something was odd inside.

Qin Yize had also come out from the living room, and his eyebrows knitted ever so slightly upon seeing these three people.

He still turned to Gu Qiaoqiao and said, “This is Zhao Ying, who is responsible for the daily tasks at the base.”

“Nice to meet you, Xiao Gu, it smells really good, seems like you have some impressive culinary skills,” Zhao Ying complimented with a smile.

Zhao Ying appeared refined and spoke in a gentle and soft manner.

Gu Qiaoqiao quickly smiled back and said to the three, “Please go to the living room and have some tea.”

Zhu Xiaohong, feeling awkward upon seeing Qin Yize’s indifferent attitude, said, “Doctor Qin, Choo Lan and I are just here to help; we won’t be joining you for the meal and drinks.”

Engineer Zheng, raising his voice, said to the room, “You two girls gave us quite the scare; we thought you came to keep an eye on us and prevent us from drinking.”

The other colleagues chuckled as well.

With that laughter, much of the awkward atmosphere dissipated.

Zhu Xiaohong glanced at Gu Qiaoqiao and said with a smile, “With so many of you here, we’d feel terrible if we exhausted Sister-in-law,” then she walked straight into the kitchen.

Choo Lan naturally followed her in, and the already small kitchen suddenly felt much smaller.

However, there wasn’t much Gu Qiaoqiao could do about it; she couldn’t just kick them out right away.

But what could these two do if she had already finished everything that needed to be done?

“You two should go and have tea in the living room, the kitchen is small and can’t fit so many people,” Gu Qiaoqiao said in a kind tone.

By then, Qin Yize had already led Zhao Ying into the living room.

The smile on Choo Lan’s face faded significantly, “Don’t worry, Sister-in-law, we won’t eat a bite of the meal or the dishes.”

Gu Qiaoqiao dropped the bowl she was holding with a clang, visibly annoyed, and said with a half-smile, “Choo Lan, Zhu Xiaohong, you see for yourselves, what is there that you can actually help with?”

Choo Lan and Zhu Xiaohong’s expressions changed, and they glanced simultaneously at the prepared semi-finished dishes, as if they were at a loss about what to do.

Naturally, what help could they provide?

Gu Qiaoqiao continued, “Although we didn’t invite you, since you’ve come uninvited, using the excuse of offering help, Ah Ze and I can’t possibly refuse to let you join us for the meal. Otherwise, others might think that our family’s Ah Ze is abusing his authority to exploit his subordinates…”

“You…” Choo Lan’s face flushed with sudden anger and she lowered her voice, “Sister-in-law, how can you talk like that, we came with good intentions to help you.”

“Exactly,” Zhu Xiaohong echoed with a forced laugh, “Sister-in-law, you’re misunderstanding us.”

“This is only the second time we’ve met, we’re not that close, and there’s no misunderstanding to speak of,” Gu Qiaoqiao said coolly, the corners of her mouth tinged with coldness.

At that moment, Qin Yize reappeared from the living room, his gaze sweeping over Choo Lan and Zhu Xiaohong blocking the kitchen door and then indifferently shifting away.

He then called Luh Fei out, apparently not anticipating another guest, and sent Luh Fei to the canteen to borrow more dishes and utensils.