Indeed, as the lady of the house said, it is not easy to make a decent love knot.

Although the grass stems are flexible, they can still break if too much force is used. After breaking three stems by accident, Shen Youying finally mastered the trick and managed to weave one completely.

The hostess looked at it and praised her for her skillful hands and beautiful weaving.

The one in Shen Youying's hand was woven according to Xue Shen's measurements. She smiled and looked at it for a long time before handing it to Danzhu to put away, and then continued weaving her own.

Since the goal was to bring good fortune, the couple's love rope could only be woven from the same love grass. Therefore, Shen Youying was even more careful when weaving the other one.

Once she finished weaving, she breathed a sigh of relief: "All done."

She placed the two love knots together, looping the smaller one around the larger one. She smiled gently, pursed her lips, carefully put the two love knots into her purse, and then got up to go back.

The time spent weaving the love rope passed by unnoticed, and when Shen Youying got up, she realized that it was already dark.

When he returned, Xue Shen had just finished painting. He laid the paper out to dry and looked at Shen Youying, whose cheeks were flushed: "Where did you go to play? Why are you only coming back now?"

Shen Youying didn't want to tell him now, so she said, "The day after tomorrow is New Year's Eve. I went to buy some ingredients from the farmers and chatted with them for a while."

Xue Shen said, "I asked Wang Deshun to collect some wild game from the hunters in the mountains. I'll go over there later and see if there's anything we want to eat, then have the kitchen prepare it."

They brought plenty of manpower and supplies to spend the New Year in the village this time.

Shen Youying hummed in agreement. After the painting dried and was put away, she and Xue Shen went to the kitchen to select wild game.

*

Two days passed in the blink of an eye, and it was New Year's Eve.

On New Year's Eve, the kitchen was bustling with activity early in the morning, preparing all sorts of ingredients. Although there were only two people in the household, all the necessary dishes still had to be prepared.

After the kitchen had prepared all the ingredients by category in the morning, Shen Youying changed into clothes that were easier to move in and went to the kitchen in the afternoon.

In previous years, she would occasionally cook one or two dishes on New Year's Eve. After all, the Shen family was a large family, and she couldn't possibly cook for everyone.

But this year it's just her and Xue Shen, so she wants to cook a New Year's Eve dinner herself.

The ingredients were all prepared in advance by the kitchen. Shen Youying didn't find it difficult to cook, and with Bai Luodanzhu helping to add firewood and pass the ingredients, she was able to cook several dishes at a leisurely pace.

However, the earthen stove in the village was no match for that in the royal palace. The firewood burned too brightly, and the smoke couldn't escape in time, so Shen Youying's little face was all red from the smoke.

She plated the stir-fried dishes, beads of sweat dripping from her temples. Without turning around, she called out to Danzhu, "Danzhu, wipe the sweat from my face."

On the other side, Danzhu said "Eh," and then a hand holding a handkerchief reached out and gently wiped away the beads of sweat that had slid down her cheek.

Shen Youying, unaware of anything amiss, glanced at the soup beside her and naturally instructed, "Bring me the red dates."

Another hand reached out from the side, with slender fingers steadily holding a blue and white porcelain plate containing washed red dates.

Shen Youying was taken aback, turned around to look, and her eyes immediately curved into a smile: "Why are you here?"

Xue Shen said, "Wang Deshun said you were personally preparing the New Year's Eve dinner, so I came to see if there was anything I could help with."

Shen Youying glanced at him, handed him a fan, and said, "Then you keep an eye on the heat of the soup and don't let the fire below get too high."

Xue Shen readily accepted the task and obediently stood guard in front of the pot of soup, fanning the fire when it got too small and stopping it when it got too big.

The servants who were busy nearby had never seen him act like this before, so they all slowed down their movements. While they were busy, they couldn't help but secretly glance at Xue Shen, who was staring at Tang with a serious expression in the corner.

On the other side, Bai Luo and Dan Zhu exchanged glances, their faces full of smiles.

It seems that the girls' good intentions were not in vain.

*

Shen Youying personally prepared several main dishes. After she was almost done, she asked the kitchen staff to keep an eye on the remaining soups for her, as she needed to take a bath and change her clothes first.

She was covered in the smell of cooking oil in the kitchen, so while taking a bath, she asked Danzhu to bring her some perfume to dissolve in the water. She carefully washed away the smell of cooking oil before changing her clothes and getting ready.

Because it was New Year's Eve and the weather in Longquan Village was warm, she specially chose a light red dress. The red strapless top was tucked into a pleated skirt embroidered with butterflies, and a dark green ribbon hung down to the hem. Over this, she wore a matching dark green wide-sleeved long robe. Her hair was adorned with gold ornaments, making her look incredibly wealthy and charming.

While she was getting ready, the kitchen began bringing out the dishes. Xue Shen, having changed into clean clothes, was also waiting for her.

Shen Youying slowly approached, sat down next to him, and then announced the start of the banquet.

The kitchen prepared a large table of dishes according to the usual portions, but the two of them were just doing it for good luck and couldn't eat much. Xue Shen ate two bowls of rice with the dishes Shen Youying had made. Seeing that she had already put down her chopsticks, he rinsed his mouth and washed his hands, and then invited her, "I discovered yesterday that there's a hot spring pool in front with a very beautiful night view. Zhao Zhao, would you like to go and see it together?"

Although Shen Youying was somewhat puzzled as to what beautiful scenery could be found in the dark, she still nodded in agreement.

The remaining untouched dishes were given to the servants, and New Year's bonuses were distributed. Shen Youying even gave Danzhu and Bailuo a holiday, and went out with Xue Shen carrying lanterns.

The two did not bring any servants with them, only two guards standing at a distance to protect them.

Once they reached a secluded spot, Xue Shen abandoned the wheelchair, took the lantern from her hand, and led her to a lush meadow.

Shen Youying grew increasingly puzzled as she walked, but couldn't help asking, "What beautiful scenery is there here?"

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