Seven or eight years are coming to an end, and tomorrow is New Year's Eve.
This is the first Spring Festival that Bao Ni and her friends have settled in Beijing. Unfortunately, Gu Ye is not home!
As a military leader, he wanted to stay in the unit to arrange work, comfort the soldiers, and share their joy.
Bonnie thought of them as unsung heroes behind the lights of countless homes, while they, the military wives, were a group of people standing behind the heroes, unseen by anyone.
Even if the heroes are gone, we still have to eat.
When they got up in the morning, Bonnie was in charge, Sanqi was the head chef, Liujiu was the second chef, Xuanyu was the kitchen helper, and Xuanyi was the general helper.
Bonnie took out red paper and asked Xuanyu to write the couplets first. His calligraphy was quite good.
Sanqi was in the kitchen researching what dish to make. The ingredients were plentiful, including chicken, duck, fish, meat, abalone, and sea cucumber, all of which had been soaked and prepared.
There were also some vegetables, including a bunch of chives that Bao Ni bought from Dayang Village yesterday. They grew the chive roots themselves in their house, and although the quantity was small, the price was high.
Sanqi held a pen and paper, muttering to himself as he wrote down the dishes for the New Year's Eve dinner.
"Braised pork belly, braised fish, spicy chicken, braised spare ribs, braised sea cucumber with scallions, steamed abalone, stir-fried eggs with chives, cold dishes, braised dried bamboo shoots, and spicy stir-fried oysters."
Ten dishes represent perfection, with fish and meat, symbolizing abundance year after year.
Sanqi presented the menu and then sought opinions from others.
"No objections, the head chef has the final say."
Bonnie couldn't cook it herself, but she fully supported the chef's decision.
"We have no objections, we'll listen to Sanqi's opinion."
No one else had any objections, since their own cooking skills weren't that great either.
"Sanqi, I'm going to chop the chicken. Do you want big pieces or small pieces? And the ribs, longer or shorter pieces..."
Bonnie looked at Sanqi, waiting for the chef to give the order.
The requirements for Sanqi (a traditional Chinese medicine) are quite strict: the ribs must be chopped into pieces the length of a hand, the chicken must be chopped into dice-sized pieces, and the pork belly must be cut into small pieces of roughly the same size...
Liu Jiu was assigned to cut meat, Xuan Yi to scrape fish scales, and Bao Ni to stew meat. After a while, clanging sounds came from the kitchen. San Qi wandered around the kitchen with his hands behind his back.
"Mom, the chicken pieces are a bit too big. You can't make spicy chicken with such large pieces."
Sister, your meat isn't cut evenly, and the plating doesn't look good. Brother Xuanyi, you didn't scrape the fish scales off properly, and you need to clean the gills too..."
As Gu Xuanyu wrote couplets in the living room, he secretly rejoiced that he still had a skill; otherwise, he would have ended up working for Sanqi, which would have been too difficult.
At this moment, Bonnie realized something: at any time, you need to have a skill; otherwise, you can only be ordered around and criticized.
Chef Sanqi looked at the busy crowd with satisfaction, then poured himself a glass of soda, his throat dry from talking.
Once all the ingredients were ready, the kitchen helpers stepped back, and the head chef began cooking.
Bonnie's kitchen has two pots. The rice is already steamed, and Sanqi is starting to stew the vegetables.
Around 69 people started putting up couplets. Bonnie was helping out in the kitchen. Her son was a minor and considered a child laborer, so he needed a guardian.
Panax notoginseng is handled with ease in frying, stir-frying, and cooking, and its aroma wafts from the kitchen, making one's mouth water.
After all ten dishes were prepared, Liu Jiu and the others were in charge of setting the table, while Bao Ni was in charge of cleaning. Fortunately, her daughter San Qi was a clean person and tidied up as she cooked, so her workload was not heavy.
Ten dishes, all delicious and visually appealing!
Bonnie picked up her glass, which contained soda; she had to have a drink before the meal.
"First of all, thank you to our head chef, Sanqi, for making so many delicious dishes."
"Thanks!"
As soon as Bonnie finished speaking, the other children joined in by saying thank you.
Sanqi was a little proud, wanting to laugh but afraid of ruining her image.
"Secondly, we should thank ourselves, as we also contributed."
Finally, I wish those who remain at their posts peace and happiness!
May you be safe and happy!
This was a blessing for Gu Ye, who was absent. Bonnie and the children downed their sodas.
"start!"
"Happy New Year!"
With delicious food in front of them, the children didn't care about anything else; they had been starving all day.
Bonnie also put Gu Ye out of her mind for the time being; she had to try the Sanqi feast.
We didn't finish any of the ten dishes; we were just too full to eat anymore.
"Let me digest my food for a while, then we'll make dumplings tonight."
Bonnie plans to put a few coins in the dumplings and see who will find them.
Many hands make light work, and in no time the table was cleared and the dishes were washed.
"You guys go out and go play with your friends. I'll knead the dough and chop the dumpling filling in a bit."
Bonnie dried her hands and sent the children out to play.
"We'll stay home with you and won't go out."
Sanqi didn't want his mother to be home alone, especially since his father wasn't home during the Chinese New Year.
"I don't need you to accompany me. Get out of here and calm down."
Bonnie patted Sanqi's head; her son was always so thoughtful.
"Let's go out and play for a while, and we'll make dumplings when we get back tonight."
Gu Xuanyu knew that his second aunt didn't need them to stay home with her; she would miss his second uncle more.
The children got dressed, and someone outside was already calling them.
The children went out, and the room suddenly became quiet.
Bonnie sat on the sofa, wondering what Gu Ye was doing.
"Ringling..."
The phone rang, and Bonnie picked it up. "Honey, did you miss me?"
Gu Ye's voice came over, and Bao Ni was secretly delighted.
"miss you."
Gu Ye was stunned for a moment; his wife rarely expressed her longing for him so directly.
"I miss you too. How many dishes did you have for dinner?"
"Ten of them, made with Panax notoginseng, perfect in every way, and they taste amazing. It's a pity you didn't get to try them."
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