Shen Xiaoyan and the others exchanged glances. Didn't they just send the remaining 900 boxes yesterday? They sold out this quickly?
Regardless of their surprise, they quickly asked someone to invite Lu Taobao in.
Little did they know, as soon as Zheng Wei finished speaking, Lu Taobao had already entered.
"You've come at just the right time. You're in for a treat." Lu Taobao entered the room, greeted Zheng Wei and Shen Xiaoyan, and his eyes immediately fixed on the table, unable to move.
In fact, Lu Taobao himself found it strange. By rights, the food at Shen Xiaoyan's home was just ordinary fare, not any delicacies.
Yet, even when dining at grand restaurants, he had never felt this eager.
Shen Xiaoyan was unaware of Lu Taobao's confusion. If she had known, she would have proudly declared that it was because the water used to irrigate the vegetables and cook the rice at her home was all infused with immortal spring water, so how could it not be delicious?
"You haven't eaten yet? Then it's perfect, sit down and eat with us." Zheng Wei said with a smile to Lu Taobao.
"Go get a pair of chopsticks and a bowl," Shen Xiaoyan instructed Huo Fen, who was standing outside.
Huo Fen acknowledged and left, returning shortly with bowls and chopsticks.
Seeing the table full of food, Lu Taobao's appetite was whetted, and he didn't know which dish to pick up first.
"Eat, eat, what are you staring at? It won't taste good if it gets cold," Shen Xiaoyan urged in a low voice as she saw Lu Taobao holding his chopsticks motionless.
"Eat, eat, I'm eating now." Lu Taobao chuckled a few times, then picked up a piece of braised pork and put it in his mouth.
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, then opened them and began to chew heartily.
For the next while, all one could see was Lu Taobao's chopsticks darting rapidly across the table, leaving nothing behind wherever they went.
Half an hour later, Shen Xiaoyan put down her chopsticks and said to Huo Fen, who had already finished eating and returned to stand outside, "Go ask Aunt Qu to make another soup, and make it quick."
"Yes," Huo Fen replied, bowed, and hurried towards the kitchen.
"Sister-in-law, how did you know I hadn't eaten enough? You even specially asked for soup for me. You're so thoughtful." Lu Taobao patted his belly and grinned foolishly at Shen Xiaoyan, sighing inwardly, "I'm not full. It's too little."
"You're overthinking it. I'm not full," Shen Xiaoyan said, glancing at Lu Taobao with a displeased tone.
"At home, do you always not get enough to eat?" Yue Qingxin looked at Lu Taobao with a hint of pity. He had eaten so much and still said he wasn't full; how long had he been starving?
"No, I don't eat this much at home." Lu Taobao looked genuinely innocent. Their family wasn't so poor that they couldn't afford to eat.
"Then Brother Taobao, why do you look like you haven't eaten in three days?" Shen Xiaoming asked curiously, blinking his big eyes at Lu Taobao.
Just as Lu Taobao was left speechless by their questions, Huo Fen walked in with a pot of soup. Behind her followed Madam Qu, holding flaky pastries in her hand.
"We happened to have some old chicken soup simmering, and this dough was freshly made, so I made some flaky pastries to send over as well," Madam Qu said as she placed the pastries on the table.
"Aunt Qu's culinary skills are getting better and better. This old chicken soup smells wonderful for miles around," Lu Taobao exclaimed after taking a deep breath, smacking his lips in admiration.
Madam Qu thanked Lu Taobao for his praise, then proceeded to serve each of them a bowl of old chicken soup before retreating with Huo Fen.
This old chicken soup was prepared daily. Sometimes it was added to dishes, and sometimes it was purely for supplementing their bodies.
Whether it was Shen Xiaoyan and Yue Qingxin, who had recently given birth, or Shen Xiaoming, who was growing, or Zheng Wei and Sima Han, who had busy days, they all loved a bowl of hot old chicken soup.
The old chicken soup was enriched with red dates and shiitake mushrooms. The red dates were sweet, the shiitake mushrooms were tender, and combined with the unique savoriness of the old chicken soup and the flavor enhancement from the immortal spring water, a mouthful was so delicious it made one want to swallow their tongue.
After taking a sip, Lu Taobao stopped talking, almost burying his head in the bowl. After finishing one bowl, he served himself another.
With the second bowl placed in front of him, Lu Taobao no longer ate ravenously. He followed Zheng Wei and the others' example and picked up a flaky pastry to eat.
The method for making the flaky pastries was, naturally, taught to Madam Qu by Shen Xiaoyan. It had to be praised; Madam Qu had a great talent for cooking. Even for things she had never seen or tasted before, as long as Shen Xiaoyan explained it to her once, she could almost make it.
For some more complex dishes, a single demonstration from Shen Xiaoyan was enough for her to replicate it with about ninety percent accuracy, and by the second attempt, she could make it as delicious as Shen Xiaoyan's.
Therefore, as a foodie, Shen Xiaoyan could still enjoy all sorts of delicious food from her previous life even if she didn't cook herself; there was nothing more fortunate than this.
By the time everyone finished their meal, the pot of old chicken soup had been completely consumed.
Huo Fen and Madam Qu tidied up the bowls and chopsticks together, while Shen Xiaoyan and Yue Qingxin got up to check on the children.
The remaining Zheng Wei and Sima Han sat aside for tea, while Lu Taobao seemed to have lost all his bones, slumped on the wooden chair, his hand constantly stroking his belly.
When Shen Xiaoyan returned, she saw this scene.
"No wonder, oh dear me, tsk tsk." Shen Xiaoyan glanced at Lu Taobao, understandingly shaking her head with a smile.
Seeing Shen Xiaoyan's peculiar expression and tone, Lu Taobao straightened up a little and asked, "No wonder what?"
"No wonder you can't find a wife. With you like this, you'd scare any woman to death. It would be a miracle if you could get married," Shen Xiaoyan said.
Lu Taobao heard this and almost thought his ears were deceiving him.
Had he heard correctly? Shen Xiaoyan said he couldn't get married?
"Sister-in-law, you mustn't underestimate me. I'm not married because I don't want to get married yet. A man of ambition aims for the four corners of the world. I want to achieve great things and make a name for myself before considering marriage," Lu Taobao explained.
"Are you saying we're not ambitious?" Zheng Wei narrowed his eyes, a hidden glint flashing deep within them.
Hearing Zheng Wei's voice, Lu Taobao knew he had spoken incorrectly.
How could he forget that Zheng Wei was only a year older than him, yet he had been married for two years?
"No, brother. Ah, sister-in-law is right. I eat too much, no woman would want to marry me." After saying this, Lu Taobao lowered his head, looking utterly dejected.
"Alright, stop joking. Tell us, why have you come at this time?" Zheng Wei swept him a glance and turned to the main business.
Lu Taobao then remembered why he had come today. He immediately sat up straight and said to them, "My father sent me this time."
Shen Xiaoyan and the others looked at each other in confusion but remained silent, waiting for Lu Taobao to continue.
"My father said that since the body powder is selling so well, it should be launched in other places too."
Upon hearing Lu Taobao's words, Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei exchanged a look. Did he mean that the body powder had market potential and they were going to launch it in all the Lu family's pharmacies?