Chapter 106

On the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month, Mu Jin chopped two pounds of pork belly early in the morning, mixed it with some batter, and fried a lot of meatballs.

There were four chickens and three ducks left in the house. Zhou Lin sharpened his knife and prepared to slaughter two chickens and one duck.

Scald the chicken feathers with boiling water to remove them.

There were still unformed eggs inside the hen's belly. The gizzard was carefully cut open to clean out the dirt inside.

Zhou Lin was busy slaughtering chickens and ducks outside the yard, and he also cleaned up the fish that Bai Qiqiu had sent over a couple of days ago.

After scraping off the fish scales and rinsing away the internal organs and black membrane, I picked out a few thin hemp ropes and threaded them through the fish gills.

Carp of similar size hung neatly on the clothesline.

Mu Jin and Wen Zhaoran were busy in the kitchen, cutting the remaining pork belly into cubes, washing it clean, and putting it in a pot to stew.

Inside the stove, a small fire simmered slowly, and the broth gradually turned white.

In the afternoon, the three of them cleaned the house inside and out and put everything away neatly.

The stove was scrubbed clean, and the firewood that Zhou Lin had chopped was neatly arranged in a corner next to the stove.

Mu Jin put the broom into the woodshed, and Wen Zhaoran followed her in, handing her a still-warm fried meatball.

"Brother, you must be hungry after working so hard. Have something to eat."

Mu Jin's stomach was indeed rumbling, so she took the food and finished it in two bites.

"Eat less, or you'll overeat."

Wen Zhaoran kept frying meatballs in his hand all day while doing chores, and Mu Jin was really worried that he would eat too much and hurt himself.

Wen Zhaoran finished the meatball in her hand and said with a smile, "The last one, I'm not eating anymore."

Mu Jin sighed and chuckled, then took out three small baskets made of sorghum stalks that she had left at home.

It is adorned with two hibiscus flowers, small and exquisite.

Hibiscus is used to make pastries and dried fruits for the New Year.

I carefully wiped the sunflower seeds, walnuts, acorns, and dried persimmons that someone had given me in the autumn.

Once everything is decorated, the kitchen looks much more festive.

On New Year's Eve, after breakfast, Mujin mixed a large bowl of fine flour, soaked dried locust flowers and dried green beans, chopped them, and mixed them with minced pork to make the filling.

At noon, a large pot of white steamed buns was steamed.

The steamed buns were fresh out of the steamer, soft and fragrant. Even though Mu Jin didn't have a big appetite, she ate three or four large meat buns.

Needless to say, Zhou Lin ate five buns at the very least, and seven at the very least. In just a few bites, a bun was gone.

In the afternoon, Zhou Lin took out the Spring Festival couplets he had bought from town from the house.

In the bowl beside her, there was a small bowl of paste prepared by Mu Jin, still steaming.

Mu Jin also bought some small red lanterns and gently hung them on the withered peach tree branches.

The entire courtyard instantly turned red, and the festive atmosphere of the New Year became even stronger.

Mu Jin smiled and admired the scene for a while before returning to the kitchen to continue her work.

In Mujia Village, dumplings are an indispensable part of every festival.

Two baskets of dumplings, I'd estimate around 150.

There was still some filling left in the bowl. Mujin carefully scraped it with chopsticks and finished wrapping the last one.

After finishing making the dumplings, Mu Jin finally felt relieved, having accomplished a major task.

After resting for a while, Mu Jin got busy again, with Wen Zhaoran helping out to prepare the New Year's Eve dinner.

This was their first New Year's Eve dinner after they separated, so it couldn't be taken lightly. Mu Jin put in a tremendous amount of effort.

Stir-fried chicken, stewed duck, stewed fish, braised pork, cabbage and meatball soup, a large plate of dumplings and a large basket of steamed buns, as well as a small plate of pastries, dried fruits, and candied fruits.

Mu Jin took a jar of wine out of the cupboard and smiled at Zhou Lin, saying, "It's New Year's Eve today, so drink as much as you want."

As she spoke, she poured him a large cup of sake.

The aroma of wine filled the air as the three clinked glasses, while the sound of firecrackers occasionally drifted in from outside.

Hibiscus's eyebrows curved, and her eyes were full of joy.

"We've worked hard all year and reaped a bountiful harvest. If we all work together again next year, our family's life will surely become even more prosperous!"

Zhou Lin laughed and clinked glasses with Mu Jin.

Wen Zhaoran smiled and said, "Next year, when the wooden house is finished, eldest brother and brother-in-law, you should try your best to give the family a chubby baby, and life will be even more lively."

Upon hearing this, Mu Jin blushed and glanced at Zhou Lin.

The couple smiled at each other, and Mu Jin said gently, "Okay."

The food bowls of Night Owl and Fatty Yellow were filled with meat and bones, as well as two or three steaming dumplings.

Over the past year, the family members have worked hard, and the little ones at home have also been busy.

The owl guards the house and occasionally catches a wild rabbit or pheasant to take home.

Since Fatty Huang came to our house, there have been far fewer mice.

They were all hardworking and meritorious members of the family, and during the New Year, Mu Jin and Zhou Lin would certainly not mistreat them.

The three clinked glasses, and the village's wealthy family set off fireworks, which bloomed into dazzling flowers in the sky.

After the three of them finished their New Year's Eve dinner, they cleaned up the kitchen.

Mu Jin gave Wen Zhaoran a New Year's gift of sixteen coins, not much, but a token of her good wishes and blessings.

We're on night watch tonight and haven't slept yet. We were thinking of playing mahjong to pass the time, but one of us is missing.

Just then, Bai Qiqiu's voice came from outside the door.

"Brother, brother-in-law, I've come to wish you a Happy New Year early."

Mu Jin's eyes lit up, and she hurriedly got up and walked to the courtyard gate.

The wooden door opened. "Why are you here at this hour? Have you eaten?"

Mu Zhaoye, carrying a roast chicken, said with a smile, "It's just Qi Qiu and me at home, so it's too lonely. I've come to bother you, Brother Lin."

"Don't bother me, come in quickly, it's strangely cold outside."

Mu Jin was all smiles; with so many people in the house, it was truly much more lively.

The group chatted, ate sunflower seeds, and played mahjong, thoroughly enjoying themselves.

Zhou Lin wasn't having much luck at cards, so he sat obediently next to Mu Jin and helped her with the cards.

Looking out the window, he saw that it was getting late and suddenly remembered that he hadn't put the wealth-gathering stick at the door yet to block it.

He quickly went out, took an oil lamp, went to the woodshed, picked up a few thick wooden sticks, and blocked all the doors in the house, big and small.

"Bang! Brother, I ran into Brother Li on my way back from town today."

Bai Qiqiu and Mu Zhaoye were putting up Spring Festival couplets at the carpenter's shop in town today. They met at the village entrance on their way back.

Mu Jin drew a card. "How does Brother Li look?"

Bai Qiqiu thought for a moment, "He was dressed much better than usual, in a new cotton-padded coat and pants, and his face was washed clean and tender. He sat obediently at Uncle Fengnian's door."

Mu Jin watched the cards for a while, then played a tile of the same suit. Upon hearing this, she smiled and said, "That's good. I was thinking of going to see him in a couple of days."

"Uncle Qin is here too. I don't know where he bought the candied hawthorns. He's chatting and laughing with Li-ge'er. It seems like they get along quite well."

Mu Jin breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, even though he hadn't taken over Wang Li's business because he was thinking of his own family.

I always felt a little guilty, but now that I hear he's doing well, I can finally relax a bit.

Wen Zhaoran held the warm, chubby baby in her arms, feeling indignant on Wang Li's behalf.

"What kind of father and stepfather are you? You've raised them for so long, you'd develop feelings for them even if they were cats or dogs. How can you just abandon your own child like that?"

Bai Qiqiu played a card and said upon hearing this, "Alas, there are still many people who dislike good-natured young men, let alone young man Li who has mental deficiencies."

"I think the old couple in the Wang family deliberately delayed seeing a doctor when Li Ge'er was seriously ill. If it were a son, they would have been frantic with worry as soon as he developed a fever."

Wen Zhaoran angrily won the hand.

Zhou Lin put away the last wooden stick in the kitchen, picked up the oil lamp and came back. When he opened the door, a gust of cold wind blew in.

"Close it quickly, it's strangely cold."

Zhou Lin turned around and closed the door tightly. "Is this game over? Who won?"

Mu Jin smiled and said, "Zhao Ran, he had a really good run of luck today."

Wen Zhaoran raised an eyebrow smugly.

Wang Li stopped talking, and the group started chatting about other things again.

As the fight progressed, the group inevitably grew tired.

Before long, it was late at night, and Mu Jin rekindled the fire in the stove.

The water in the pot was boiling, and the room was filled with heat.

As soon as Zhou Lin lit the firecrackers and the sound of firecrackers filled the air, Mu Jin quickly put a basket of round, plump dumplings into the pot.

Bai Qiqiu and Mu Zhaoye went home early. Mu Jin and the others quickly ate a few bites of dumplings, left the rest to warm in the pot, and went back to their room to sleep.

Zhou Linjin slept for about two hours before getting up.

Although Mu Jin was still a little tired, she still got up early, afraid that someone would come to visit her family for the New Year and laugh at them for being lazy.

As the last batch of dumplings was put into the pot, firecrackers went off, and Wen Zhaoran, still sleepy, got out of bed.

Mu Zhou and Mu Bai came over early in the morning to offer their New Year's greetings, and then quickly brought Wen Zhaoran back to the Mu family.

Mu Jin and Zhou Lin smiled and gave them the New Year's money they were supposed to receive.

After eating a few bites of breakfast, Mu Jin and Zhou Lin carried a bamboo basket containing two bowls of dumplings and a bowl of meatballs back to the Zhou family home.

The Zhou family was much more lively than the other two families. The younger generation of the Zhou family came together to wish Zhou Wushi and Zhou Laosan a Happy New Year.

Mu Jin left a bowl of dumplings for Zhou Wu's family. After paying her New Year's respects at home, she ignored Zhou Wu's expression and hurriedly went with Zhou Lin to Zhou's grandfather's place.

The remaining bowl of dumplings and meatballs was naturally meant for Zhou's grandparents.

After kowtowing and offering New Year's greetings, the younger generation of the Zhou family gathered together to chat about everything under the sun, including the harvest.

Zhou Fengnian and Zhou Chuxue brought Wang Li over.

Mu Jin smiled and said, "Uncle, Uncle, Happy New Year! I wish you both a Happy New Year."

Zhou Chuxue was wearing a blue-printed cotton coat, her eyebrows and eyes curved.

"Happy New Year, Brother Jin."

"Uncle, today is the Lunar New Year, a day for family reunion. Why did you bring an outsider with you?"

Bai Jin was wearing a light green cotton coat today, making the young man look incredibly delicate.

After hearing about Wang Li's story, he felt very dislike for this silly boy, Wang Li.

They felt that only Zhou Fengnian, a complete fool, would be so stupid as to be made a fool of by the Wang family.

Now we still have to support this clueless, foolish boy.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chuxue's smile faded slightly.

"Fourth brother, what are you saying? Brother Li is Uncle Fengnian's adopted brother. According to seniority, we should call him Uncle. How can he be an outsider?"

Bai Jin scoffed lightly, "What kind of uncle is he? I don't have a stupid uncle."

Wang Li pouted with a wronged expression. Although he couldn't understand many words, he had always been hit with stones and called a silly boy since he was a child.

He knew perfectly well that Bai Jin was cursing him and saying bad things about him.

"It's the New Year, Fourth Brother, you'd better watch your mouth."

After Mu Jin finished speaking, she pulled Wang Li along, her expression softening.

"Brother Li, come on, let's go play over there. This place is full of foul breath."

After saying that, before Bai Jin could get angry, Zhou Chuxue and Wang Li left without even looking at him.