Time flies, and it's already the 20th of the twelfth lunar month. Xu Han has been busy every day lately, thinking of ways to make snacks, just waiting for Yunhua and Zhao Yunyun to come back for the New Year.

Xu Han, who has always loved lively occasions, is busy every day, but she is happy despite her busy schedule, and the smile on her face never stops.

Since arriving here, every Chinese New Year has been quiet and deserted. The first year, there were only Xu Han and Lu Chuan, and they couldn't even find enough people to play cards.

Later, the Taoist priest and Grandpa Zhao came, and the New Year was a little more lively. Then, we had a child, but it was just a temporary novelty, and the New Year was still very boring.

Xu Han was overjoyed when she heard that Yunhua and Zhao Yunyun were coming back for the Chinese New Year.

Just like when we were kids, we looked forward to relatives coming to visit. The whole family gathered together in a lively atmosphere, chatting and laughing.

Xu Han is now experiencing the feeling of her childhood again, and she looks forward to the arrival of the two of them every day.

Early that morning, after finishing breakfast, Xu Han began to plan what food she had in her space.

The walnuts, pine nuts, chestnuts, and other nuts that Xu Han picked some time ago have all been processed and put into her space.

These are all snacks during the Chinese New Year; everyone can have a handful and eat some wherever they go.

Xu Han not only prepared these, but also potato chips and dried sweet potatoes. In addition, there were various pastries, cookies, bread and the like. The oven at home had been running non-stop for a while, baking things every day.

Xu Han also used the fruit and vegetable powder she had made before to make many cookies in different colors. They looked so beautiful that it was hard to bear eating them.

I checked and found that the nuts and snacks are already there, and there are also some in the fruit space. I can just take some out as needed. There's no need to prepare anything extra.

After thinking about it, there was one more thing I didn't have, and that was, of course, candy.

Candy is something that appears almost whenever there is a happy occasion, and it is indispensable in the home during the Chinese New Year.

Thinking of this, Xu Han immediately got up to find Lu Chuan and asked him to help make a few smaller molds so she could try making some candy herself later.

After listening, Lu Chuan asked, "How big does this mold need to be? Are there any requirements?"

"Smaller ones, just a little bigger than your thumb, can be circles, triangles, hearts, stars, the more the better."

Lu Chuan had made these shapes before when he was making cookie cutters; they're very simple and can be done in a short time.

"Don't forget to make more, otherwise the candies won't hold their shape without a mold."

Oh, and I also need some small sticks to stick on the candies so I can hold them in my hands and eat them without getting my hands sticky.

"Okay, I got it. Would a thinner stick be okay?"

"Yes, it should be about the same thickness as wheat straw. By the way, can we use rice straw directly? Is it easy to break?"

Lu Chuan thought for a moment and replied, "It can be used, as long as it's not deliberately broken."

Xu Han thought for a moment and said, "Let's forget about that. Straw stalks are easy to break. The two kids will definitely eat them when we make them, and it would be troublesome if they accidentally ate them. Let's use small wooden sticks instead. They can't bite them anyway."

"Alright, I'll have the Taoist priest and the others come over and help us. It'll be done in no time."

"Okay, you guys do it, I'll go prepare the materials."

After Xu Han finished speaking, she went into the kitchen. Since she was going to make candy, she would definitely have to make fruit-flavored candy.

Xu Han first took out all kinds of fruits from her space, including grapes, strawberries, cherries, apricots, pomegranates, and so on.

Then crush all the fruits directly into juice without adding a drop of water. Filter the juice and set it aside in a small bowl for later use.

Next, take out a very small pot from home, place it on the brazier, add a little water to the small pot, then add rock sugar that is half the amount of water, and start heating.

You can shake the pot occasionally during heating, but there is no need to stir.

After the rock sugar melts, continue heating until the rock sugar starts to bubble, then pour the strawberry juice into the pot and continue heating.

Gently shake the bottom of the pot during heating to allow the juice and rock sugar to fully blend. This will result in candies with a stronger and more even fruit flavor.

As the sugar syrup thickens, many small bubbles will appear again.

At this point, dip chopsticks into the syrup, then dip them in cold water; the syrup will solidify.

Xu Han tasted it and found it tasted the same as the candy she had eaten in her previous life—sweet and sour, and crunchy with every bite.

However, the fruit flavor is a bit weaker, since they are all made from natural ingredients without any added coloring or food additives, so the taste is definitely not as good as the fruit candies I ate in my previous life.

Seeing this, Xu Han took the pot off the stove, then used a small spoon to carefully put the candies into the mold, inserted small wooden sticks into the molds, and then left them outside for a while to set.

Fortunately, the temperature is relatively low in winter, making it easier for the candy to set. If it were summer, with such high temperatures and no refrigerator, it might not be possible to make it.

After making the strawberry flavor, Xu Han then made some other flavors.

However, as they made the candies, they ran out of molds and had no choice but to put them away temporarily, waiting for Lu Chuan and the others to make new molds or remove the fuzz from the candies they had just made before continuing to use them.

Xu Han added some warm water to the sugar syrup at the bottom of the pot to dissolve it, turning it into a sweet and sour syrup again, but the fruit flavor was weaker and it wasn't as sweet.

"Mu'er, come and try the sweet soup your mother made, is it delicious?"

Seeing this, Mu'er thought her mother had made something delicious again, and she quickly ran over.

Seeing her mother hand her a cup of red water, not knowing what it was, she picked it up and drank it.

"Is it good?"

Upon hearing this, Mu'er smacked her lips and said, "It tastes the same as jam water, but it's sweeter."

Lu Chuan also poured himself a glass. "I think the jam water tastes better, it's sweet and sour. This one is a bit bland, but it's not bad either, it's suitable for everyday drinking."

Xu Han also tried it, but immediately lost interest. Too much water had been added, and the taste was indeed not very good; it was bland.

"Forget it, let's not drink it. If you want to drink it, add some chrysanthemum flowers. The taste is indeed a bit bland, and apart from a little sweetness, it's almost like plain water."

Grandpa Zhao walked in upon hearing this, laughing and saying, "Hahaha, you're starting to complain yourself. I'll try it and see what it tastes like."