Chef Hua-Chapter 689 - 364 Epilogue_2

At dusk, a light rain fell again, making the weather even colder. There were hardly any people walking in the village when suddenly, the sound of hoofbeats approached from the west, heading straight to the eastern side of the village.

Meng Yuhuai, soaked by the raindrops and with his hair drenched, rushed to the gate of the Meng Family backyard. He led his horse to the stable behind the house and tied it beside the old black horse, then strode into the threshold.

The front yard was silent, with both Meng Laoniang and Hua Xiaomai absent, and intermittent bursts of rich chicken soup aroma wafting from the kitchen.

"Finally back, huh? You’ve been gone for over twenty days this time, did everything go smoothly?"

Qin Dasa came from under the porch to greet him, handing him a long towel to wipe the raindrops from his outer robe.

Three years ago, when Hua Xiaomai had her second child and was unable to care for both, they had hired a wet nurse—this very Qin Dasa. Recognizing her competence and helpfulness in all matters, they decided to keep her in the family. Her husband went to work at Daoxiang Garden doing miscellaneous tasks and guarding the place at night.

"I can do it myself."

Meng Yuhuai smiled at Qin Dasa and took the towel from her hands, bending over to wipe the hem of his robe, and casually asked, "Where are Xiaomai and my mother? And what about Little Walnut?"

Unexpectedly, Qin Dasa immediately waved her hands in a cryptic manner.

"You don’t want to ask. Today was another huge fuss, no one could calm them down. Your mother was so angry she complained of liver pain and refused to eat, hiding in her room and refusing to come out!"

Meng Yuhuai understood and shook his head helplessly.

His mother was in robust health; she wouldn’t truly have liver pain; she was clearly just throwing a fit with Hua Xiaomai!

"I’ll go have a look."

Leaving these words, he walked toward the backyard, barely crossing through the corner gate when he spotted Little Walnut, looking disheartened, kneeling under the flower shed.

The almost six-year-old boy looked exactly like him when he was a child, robust and clever, but his stubborn expression—who did he get that from?

Dressed like a puffy cotton bundle, Little Walnut knelt there pouting. The flower shed above was covered with a layer of oilcloth preventing any rain from falling through, and under his knees was a soft cushion—although punished, protection was well placed.

"What have you done this time?"

Meng Yuhuai, both amused and frustrated, stepped forward and frowned down at him.

Before he could finish speaking, a crisp voice came from inside the house.

"Daddy!"

The next moment, a plump little figure burst out of the house, charging towards him with short legs, and hugged his legs tightly: "Daddy, you’re back! Mommy said you’d be back today, and she didn’t lie to me!"

Meng Yuhuai, initially wanting to sternly question Little Walnut, couldn’t keep up his stern facade. He bent down, scooped up his chubby little girl, securing her with one hand over her head, pressing his cheek against hers: "Youzi is good, did you miss Daddy?"

Then turning towards the doorway, he smiled, "Chengzi, why aren’t you coming over?"

At the door stood another little girl, identical in age, appearance, and dress to the one in his arms, but not as lively, clinging to the doorway, shyly saying, "If I went with Youzi, Daddy, you wouldn’t be able to hold us both."

"Who says?"

Meng Yuhuai walked over quickly and scooped up Chengzi as well: "Daddy is strong enough, both are my girls, naturally, I should carry both. Let me see... hmm, not seeing you for over twenty days, you both have become even more radiant. Walking outside, Daddy would hardly recognize you!"

The two little girls were delighted, giggling loudly. Little Walnut glanced over with a tilted head, his mouth pouting enough to hang a bottle, still silent.

Hua Xiaomai came out of the house, smiling at Meng Yuhuai and motioning with her hand, "Don’t stand in the rain; careful you’ll catch a cold. Youzi, Chengzi, why don’t you go inside? Yuhuai, you should come in too and change your clothes."

Chengzi obediently responded, slipping down from Meng Yuhuai’s arms. Youzi, reluctant to leave, planted a kiss on Meng Yuhuai’s cheek before bouncing into the house.

Meng Yuhuai’s whole heart was filled with satisfaction, following his two little girls inside. In the front yard, Qin Dasa had prepared a pot of boiling water. Hua Xiaomai then sent him off to the bathhouse for a wash, digging out a set of dry clothes for him to change into.

On this occasion, Meng Yuhuai had traveled far because Lianshun Escort Agency had undertaken a large silver escort transaction. The client, concerned, had insisted that he personally make the journey to Lingxiu Prefecture.