Chapter 43: Attending a Wedding Banquet

“Grandpa, Grandma! You should try the candied chestnuts I made later.”

Zhou Yimin knew how to please the elderly. Seeing his grandparents return, he quickly went up to support his grandmother.

At first, Grandma felt a bit distressed—using sugar to roast chestnuts? Probably only their family in all of Zhoujia Village did such a thing, maybe even the neighboring villages as well.

Sugar was precious!

People in the countryside understood that best.

But as soon as her eldest grandson supported her and invited her to try some, everything else became unimportant.

Grandma didn’t have many extravagant wishes—she was easily satisfied.

“Alright, alright! Grandma will wait to taste them,” she said with a smile.

Grandpa also nodded. “Mm! This aroma smells delicious.”

Outside the yard, a group of village children peeked in curiously. Though they wanted to eat some, their families had already instructed them not to enter without permission, so none dared step through the gate.

Originally, they had planned to join the wedding reception for Brother Dachun (or Uncle, depending on the child’s age) today and try to get some wedding sweets. But after smelling the chestnuts, they completely forgot about the wedding candy.

After about half an hour, the sweet, roasted fragrance had everyone’s appetite fully whetted. Finally, the chestnuts were ready.

Zhou Yimin picked one from the wok, peeled it, and put it in his mouth.

Soft, glutinous, and sweet!

Perfect.

He scooped up a large plateful and handed it to Laifu, who was already drooling. “Take this to eat with your great-uncle and great-aunt. Laicai, go wipe your nose and wash your hands first.”

Laicai had already dashed out.

As for the kids waiting outside, Zhou Yimin had noticed them long ago. He scooped another basketful and brought it outside.

The children lined up obediently, well aware of their Sixteenth Uncle’s (Grandpa’s) ways. He disliked disorder and disobedience. The last kid who didn’t queue up didn’t get any sweets and cried miserably.

The chestnuts Zhou Yimin roasted today were quite large—about 40 per pound. With 20 pounds, that was roughly 800 chestnuts. Since there were plenty, he wasn’t stingy, giving each child four.

“Be careful, they’re hot!” Zhou Yimin reminded them.

The kids who received their chestnuts were overjoyed and didn’t forget to thank their Sixteenth Uncle. The moment they bit into them, they thought it was the best thing they had ever eaten.

After distributing to the children, Zhou Yimin went back inside and scooped another basketful, heading toward the “construction site” nearby.

“Zhiming, let everyone take a break and try some chestnuts I roasted.”

“Great! These guys have been drooling over the smell and can’t even focus on their work,” Zhou Zhiming said, having already scolded them multiple times.

“We’ll just have one each.”

It felt too extravagant—using sugar to roast chestnuts!

Zhou Yimin reassured them, “These are all for you. I have more inside, enough for everyone.”

Only after hearing that did Zhou Zhiming distribute the chestnuts fairly. Each person filled their pockets with them, though they only ate one themselves, saving the rest to bring home for their families to try.

“This is too good!”

They had eaten chestnuts before, but usually just steamed ones—nothing like this! The difference was night and day.

“Of course it’s good! Roasted with sugar—hell, you could roast a shoe with sugar and it’d taste great. Now hurry up and eat! Once you’re done, get back to work properly. Damn it, I let you eat something this good, and you still don’t put in effort?” Zhou Zhiming half-joked, half-scolded.

That was a bit unfair, though.

Everyone secretly thought, This is the most seriously we’ve ever worked, okay?

Back inside, Zhou Yimin poured warm water for his grandparents. As delicious as the chestnuts were, they did make people thirsty.

“Grandma, how is it? Tastes good?”

Grandma nodded with a smile. “Delicious! These are the best chestnuts I’ve ever had. Yimin, you should eat more too.”

Of course, anything made by her grandson was the best!

Grandpa was thoroughly enjoying himself. He thought to himself that even the old landlords in the past probably didn’t live any better than this.

Meanwhile, Laifang and the others were eating like little hamsters, their cheeks puffed out.

“Eat slower, there’s plenty at home. No one’s fighting you for them. Go have some water,” Zhou Yimin told the three siblings, Laifu, Laicai, and Laifang.

In his heart, he had already come to see them as his own younger brothers and sister.

“Grandpa, Dachun is getting married. Let me go with you to the banquet.”

Most families only invited one guest, but their family was probably the only one sending two.

Grandpa nodded. “Alright, let’s go.”

Honestly, the food at home was better.

What did Dachun’s family have? The potatoes and corn they were using had all been traded from his grandson for lumber. But since they had been invited, it was a sign of respect, and they should show face.

“I’ll bring something over later,” Zhou Yimin said.

He knew Dachun’s family situation—those two tables of food probably wouldn’t have many good dishes.

Grandpa didn’t entirely approve of this idea but didn’t oppose it either. He just knew that after this, anytime there was a celebration in the village, people would likely invite Yimin.

Not necessarily a bad thing, though.

The advantage was strengthening relationships with the entire village, making his words carry more weight in the future. People would show him respect, and getting things done would be easier.

The downside? A bit of food loss.

Other families definitely wouldn’t do this—after all, they didn’t even have enough for themselves. But Yimin was a procurement officer; he didn’t lack food, so it didn’t matter.

A few days ago, Grandpa might have hesitated, but after seeing how easily his grandson earned bonuses and prizes, he no longer sweated the small losses.

Zhou Yimin didn’t waste time. He grabbed a few pounds of rice and two cured ducks and headed to Dachun’s house.

When Dachun’s father, Zhou Zhicheng, saw him, he quickly came out.

“Oh, Yimin, you’re being way too polite! Who brings their own food to a wedding banquet? That’s like slapping your brother Zhicheng in the face!”

Even as he said this, he was clearly delighted. Though he had prepared and managed to get two chickens, that was the only decent dish on the table. The main staple was just going to be cornbread.

Now, with the cured ducks and rice, they could switch to white rice and add another good dish—much more presentable.

He was beyond grateful.

Zhou Yimin chuckled. “Brother Zhicheng, I won’t give a monetary gift then. Oh, by the way, I still need some lumber at home to make furniture. Have Dachun bring over a few logs when he has time.”

“Of course, that’s nothing! Come inside and sit.” Zhou Zhicheng took the ducks and rice.

Lumber? That was the one thing his family had in abundance!

He knew full well that Yimin was just giving him a way to save face. Now, instead of looking like they had accepted charity, it seemed like a trade—lumber for food.

Otherwise, how would others see them? If guests had to bring their own food to his son’s wedding banquet, that would sound awful!

When Zhou Yimin entered, he noticed two elderly people he didn’t recognize.

“Sixteenth Uncle, these are my grandparents,” Dachun’s younger brother introduced.

It had taken all his effort—coaxing, persuading, and even applying some pressure—to finally convince the elderly couple to move in with them.

“Grandma, Grandpa, this is—”

The two elders hadn’t met Zhou Yimin before, but they had heard of him.

The hand-pump well he set up had become well-known even in neighboring villages. On top of that, since moving in, they had frequently heard their grandson mention him.

Most importantly, their family’s food had all been traded from him.

So, they greeted Zhou Yimin warmly and respectfully, not putting on any airs of seniority. Of course, they weren’t the type to act high and mighty to begin with.