Chapter 32

The light of dawn pierced through the darkness, the east was turning white, and a rooster from somewhere was crowing non-stop. Lin Shuge originally wanted to sleep in, but he woke up early on the first day of the holiday.

He heard the roosters crowing in the distance, so he simply got up and made breakfast. Tomorrow is New Year's Eve, which is already the Chinese New Year. Today he went out with Ayuan and Axuan to buy New Year's goods.

The family went out after finishing breakfast. They were considered late. Some farmers who lived far away came to the county town early, either carrying their loads or pushing carts to sell local specialties. Most of the families came out as a family to buy New Year's goods.

The streets and alleys were filled with the strong atmosphere of the New Year. Many shops hung up red lanterns, and some even had red couplets posted. It seemed that the scholar's business was good.

Lin Shuge took out the list he had written last night and compared them one by one.

Part of his monthly salary was in the form of rice, so his family had enough food, but they were short of oil, salt, sauce and vinegar, so they had to purchase some.

Lin Shuge arrived at an unlucky time. The grain and oil store was crowded and there was no place to step. The three siblings had to go to the next street. On the way, they met a hunter pushing his prey for sale. The meat looked very fresh.

Lin Shuge bought a pheasant and a rabbit. It was cold in winter and the prey was frozen hard, so he was not afraid of blood flowing everywhere when holding it in his hands.

He went to the butcher's shop and bought five pounds of meat and five pounds of ribs. Pork can be fried into meat sauce, which tastes delicious whether it is put in pancakes or fried with vegetables.

Stew another pot of spare ribs, and the whole family can sit together and chat while eating the ribs, so staying up on New Year’s Eve will not be boring.

When it comes to staying up all night to celebrate the New Year, nuts are definitely indispensable. Lin Shuge went to the dried fruit store and bought some chestnuts, walnuts, raisins and almonds, just enough to make a plate.

The boss strongly recommended his preserved fruits, saying that they were all made from fresh fruits that were dried in the sun. When Lin Shuge heard this, he bought some of each.

Apricots and persimmons are produced in the northwest. Lin Shuge gave one to each of his brother and sister-in-law, and tried a piece of apricot himself. It was sour and sweet and delicious that he couldn't help but buy some more.

Seeing that he was generous, the boss lowered the price on his own initiative, and everyone was very satisfied for a while.

When I came out of the dried fruit shop, I looked up and saw dark clouds turning into ink, as if it was going to snow heavily. It was still sunny in the morning, but not long after, the sky suddenly changed.

Lin Shuge asked the twins to carry the things back first, and he would buy the rest.

After working for a long time, he finally finished shopping and returned home before it snowed. There was a warm kang and a stove in the main room. Lin Shuge asked his younger brother and sister-in-law to fry dried fruits. The raw melon seeds tasted better after frying.

He went to the kitchen to prepare all kinds of food for the New Year. A few days ago, he made fermented glutinous rice. Rice and wine yeast were sealed for a few days and it became a sweet and delicious fermented glutinous rice. It is sweet and delicious to drink with water. Adding eggs and white fungus to make white fungus fermented glutinous rice soup is also delicious and healthy.

When he opened the jar, he could already smell the sweet aroma of the fermented grain. He dipped a spoonful with his chopsticks and tasted it. It was sweet and sour and delicious. He actually succeeded on his first try.

He called out to Lin Qingyuan outside the door, and Lin Qingyuan ran in soon, wearing shoes on his shoulders, "Brother, what's wrong?"

Seeing that he was not wearing an outer robe, Lin Shuge scolded him, "Why don't you wear an outer robe when you go out? Be careful not to catch a cold or you won't be able to eat during the New Year."

Lin Qingyuan stuck out his tongue. "I'm wearing a cashmere sweater underneath, so I'm not cold at all. Big brother, tell me, what do you want me to do?"

Lin Shuge sighed deeply that the child had grown up and was not obedient. In the past, he always did what he said.

He turned around and made two bowls of fermented glutinous rice. "It's freshly made. You and Xuan can taste it first."

"Is it finally done? I wanted to open it up a few days ago, but you wouldn't let me."

Lin Shuge slapped him hard, "I told you not to open it casually. If you keep opening it, it will turn sour."

"No, I only saw it once," he said, covering his forehead. He was afraid that Lin Shuge would scold him, so he said first, "Brother, I'll take it away."

After saying that, he ran away with the fermented glutinous rice.

Lin Shuge smiled helplessly and thought: It’s also good to be lively and cheerful.

He put on an apron and started frying fried cakes.

He added water to the wheat flour and stirred it into a dough, then rolled them into round cakes with a rolling pin, leaving a hole in the middle for ventilation, and finally fried them in a pan.

The fried cake turns golden yellow as soon as it enters the pan, and turns brown after frying for a while, then it can be taken out of the pan.

Lin Shuge estimated the appetite of several people and fried more than twenty pancakes, which would be enough for the New Year holidays.

After frying the oil cakes, start frying the fruits. Knead the dough, roll it into long strips with your hands, put several strips together, and use chopsticks to make a flower shape to successfully complete the process.

The next step is the same process as frying oil cakes. After a while, the basin is piled with oil cakes and fruits.

Lin Shuge couldn't help but break off a small piece and put it in his mouth. Well, it was delicious when it was freshly fried, with a crispy outer skin and golden inside. He specially added fennel to it, making it taste mellow and delicious.

Putting the fried pancake aside, a hand suddenly stretched out from behind. Lin Shuge pretended to be angry, gently slapped the thief's hand away, and said fiercely: "Don't eat it secretly."

Lin Qingyuan said aggrievedly: "Brother, what did you do? I can smell it in the room. It smells so good."

"Fried pancakes and fruits. Are the melon seeds fried?" Lin Shuge asked.

"It's ready. I smelled the fragrance and came over to see what you made." He sniffed, like the Dalmatian that Lin Shuge used to stroll downstairs of the dormitory building in modern times.

Lin Shuge picked out some fried cakes and various fruits for him, "Go ahead, share them with A-Xuan. Oh, by the way, if you two are free, peel the walnuts for me."

Lin Qingyuan couldn't wait to break off a piece and put it in his mouth, "Hmm? It's delicious. Got it, Axuan and I will finish it in a while."

Lin Shuge looked at his anxious look and shook his head. What should he do next?

It’s all Ayuan’s fault. I forgot everything after he interrupted me.

Oh yes, we have to stew the ribs first so we can eat them together in the evening.

He put the chopped ribs into the pot, added onions, ginger and garlic and blanched them. After blanching, he washed away the floating foam, put them back into the pot, added ingredients and continued to stew. He had already wrapped the ingredients in gauze, and added various spices such as pepper and cinnamon to it, which was the best way to remove the fishy smell and add flavor.

The Lin family's kitchen has always had two pots. He moved them over and asked the craftsmen to make them into the original style.

One pot is used to stew the ribs, and the other pot is used for stir-frying.

The main room was warm, so he went to the flowerpot and put a few heads of garlic. Unexpectedly, garlic sprouts of more than ten centimeters grew out, which was just right for cutting and cooking.

You can make fried eggs with garlic sprouts and twice-cooked pork with garlic sprouts.

When Lin Xuan came in with walnuts, he had already cooked two dishes.

"Brother, the walnuts are peeled."

"Well, just put it on the chopping board."

"Brother, is there anything I can do?" Lin Xuan asked.

Lin Shuge said softly: "It's OK for the eldest brother to come, and the children can just play during the New Year."

"Brother, I'm not a child." Lin Xuan said seriously.

Seeing her serious look, Lin Shuge stopped joking and said, "Then Xuan, help bring the dishes over."

Lin Xuan nodded, "Brother, today is such a rich feast." She tilted her head back, her almond-shaped eyes slightly opened, clear as water, like a young animal.

And he said he was not a child.

Lin Shuge took the opportunity to ruffle her hair and said, "Tomorrow will be even better. Let's go and eat."

Entering the main room, Lin Qingyuan was adding fuel to the fire for the stewed spareribs. Seeing the two of them coming in, he put down the fire tongs and smiled, "Is the meal ready?"

Lin Shuge put the vegetables and rice on the table and said, "Ayuan, come and eat. Let me see if the pork ribs are ready."

He opened it and took a look. Some of the meat and bones had been separated from the stew. He poked it with chopsticks and found the meat was soft and tender, just cooked. He would each eat a few pieces tonight and save the rest for tomorrow night. It would not go bad in the low temperature of winter.

He took out a few and said to the twins, "Eat some ribs first, so you can gain some meat."

Lin Qingyuan took one first and started chewing it. His eyes lit up instantly. He couldn't talk with food in his mouth, so he could only anxiously point at the ribs and tell his brother and sister to eat quickly.

Woohoo, it’s so delicious.

Lin Xuan glared at him. Big brother hasn’t eaten yet.

Lin Shuge quickly put one in Lin Xuan's bowl and said, "There are still a lot in the pot. If it's not enough, take more."

He smiled and took one for himself, starting to chew it directly. Both the bones and the meat exuded fragrance, and the mellow aroma of the meat came in his mouth. With a light bite, the meat immediately separated from the bones. The meat was soft and rotten, and the taste of the spices did not overpower the taste, but instead made the taste of the meat more intense. Take another bite, and the gravy instantly flows into your mouth. The meat is delicious and juicy, and the taste is really good.

It seems that the ribs were cooked successfully this time.

Lin Qingyuan ate several sticks in a row, still staring at them eagerly. Lin Shuge said with a smile, "There are still vegetables and fried pancakes left to eat. Save some for later use. If you eat too much at night, you will have indigestion."

Only then did Lin Qingyuan put down his restless hands and picked up a piece of twice-cooked pork, huh? This one is delicious too.

Lin Shuge broke off half a pancake for him and said, "Eat half of it to fill your stomach," and handed the other half to Lin Xuan, who had been eating without saying a word.

Lin Xuan took it and said, "Thank you, brother. Let's have another meal of spare ribs tomorrow."

She is calmer and more sensible than her twin brother, and she rarely makes requests, which shows that she really likes to eat. How could Lin Shuge not agree?

"Okay, I'll let you guys have a good meal tomorrow night at the New Year's Eve dinner."

Before Lin Xuan could say anything, Lin Qingyuan immediately cheered and jumped for joy. It turned out that eating meat really brought a stronger sense of happiness.

Lin Shuge raised his eyes, and a very faint smile flashed in his eyes.

"Brother, you're still laughing. If you hadn't become the clerk and the county magistrate this year, how could we eat meat every day?" Not to mention eating meat almost every day, the three brothers and sisters were still worried about their debts during the Chinese New Year last year. How could they have such a comfortable life?

Lin Shuge also thought about his life when he first came here, which was just struggling to make ends meet. He finally became a Lingshi and his life became better.

He shook his head, thinking back now it seemed like a lifetime ago.

"Why think so much? Just come and help me wash the dishes after you finish eating." Almost all the kitchen utensils have been used today, and it is really difficult to clean up by one person.

The three of them were chatting and laughing as they cleaned up, and when they came out after finishing, it was already dark.

Lin Shuge sent his brother and sister-in-law to bed, and then he washed up and went to bed. After a busy day, he was happy just lying on the warm kang.

Tomorrow is New Year's Eve. I wonder if Zhongxuan will write to me.