Chapter 2029

The Wade family next door had been preparing their New Year's Eve dinner since noon. Ingredients were piled high on the kitchen counter. Charlie Wade, the family's best cook, oversaw the preparations. Jacob Wilson helped chop the dumpling filling. All four family members pitched in, creating a warm and harmonious atmosphere. As dusk settled, dish after dish was placed on the table.

Meanwhile, in Villa A04, Gena and the three women were also busy in their kitchen. Besides preparing noodles and dumpling filling, they bought a chicken, a fish, two pounds of ribs, and made several meat and vegetable dishes. Gena felt blessed to be living in such a nice villa, so she also purchased an incense burner, incense, and an inexpensive Buddha statue.

Before dinner, Gena, Samantha, and Yadira knelt before the Buddha. Holding three incense sticks, Gena prayed devoutly, “Buddha, who saves people from suffering, thank you for blessing us three unfortunate sisters, allowing us to live in such a wonderful villa and enjoy a life beyond our dreams. We will work hard and never be lazy. Please bless us with an even better life!” Samantha and Yadira, positioned on either side, followed suit, offering their own prayers: “Buddha, who saves suffering and distress, please bless us!” They then kowtowed three times.

After inserting the incense sticks into the burner, Gena declared, “Let’s go, sisters, it’s time for dinner!” “All right!” they responded in unison.

Unbeknownst to them, Wendy and Lady Wilson had been observing from the stairwell, drawn by the enticing aroma of food. Despite Lady Wilson's intention to save their leftover food from the previous day for New Year's Eve, hunger overcame them, and they consumed everything before nightfall. They were still starving.

Seeing the three women enjoying a plentiful meal, Lady Wilson and Wendy's hunger intensified. Whispering to Lady Wilson, Wendy asked, “Grandmother, do you think they’ll leave any leftovers?”

Lady Wilson shook her head, swallowing hard, “I don’t know, I hope so…”

Wendy lamented, “Even two ribs and a bowl of rice would be enough. I’m afraid they won’t leave anything…” Tears welled up in her eyes.

Lady Wilson, gazing at the incense burner before the Buddha statue, said resolutely, “Don’t worry, Wendy. See that incense burner? It's filled with rice! Tonight, when they’re asleep, we’ll use that rice to make porridge!”