Chapter 97 Hard-earned harvest
She likes cleanliness and usually takes a hot bath once every three days. Chen Yi doesn't want to waste hot water, so he always waits for her to finish before taking another bath. The man who used to take a bath less than once a month now takes a bath frequently and likes cleanliness.
The water used for bathing is not wasted, it can be scooped out and used for washing clothes in the winter.
Shen Yi pushed open the bathroom door, and a wave of hot air hit him in the face. He felt that all the pores on his body were opened.
After closing the door, he quickly took off his clothes, rinsed twice in the shower, then used soap to scrub himself carefully from head to toe. After rinsing off the foam, he stepped into the bathtub.
Su Tai was cooking in the kitchen across the wall. When she heard the sound of water, she couldn't help but smile and chat with him, "I made two trips today. How much did you earn in total?"
"I estimate it to be twelve or thirteen taels, wife. In just two or three months, we should have earned about two hundred taels!" Shen Yi opened his eyes, waiting for Su Tai's answer.
Su Tai was amused, her voice even tinged with laughter, "Make a bold guess! We made over 180 taels from selling fireworks and firecrackers, plus the materials and fish, how could it be only 200 taels? A conservative estimate is more than 250 taels!"
Shen Yi splashed water excitedly, "Great! I can take a good rest for two months and continue working in the spring."
Living like this, with trusted family around me and not having to worry about making a living, really seems like a dream.
After he took a comfortable hot bath, changed into clean clothes and walked out of the bathroom, he found that it was almost dusk.
In the bright sunshine, people in every household replace the old charms with new ones.
He couldn't see the situation of other families outside the high walls, but the curling smoke floating above the village showed the lively reunion of every household.
Chen Yi took a deep breath and gathered the clothes in the dirty laundry bin beside the door. While Su Tai was cooking, he washed them with water from the bathtub. There was no need to hang them outside, just hang them on the wooden pole in the bathroom. They would freeze tomorrow, and he would break the frost and shake it off, and they would be dry.
After he finished all this, Su Tai also put tonight's New Year's Eve dinner on the table.
Braised pork, stewed chicken, steamed fish, mushroom and pork ribs soup, stir-fried vegetables, fragrant scallion oil fried meat patties, and a large plate of pork and cabbage dumplings.
In order to have a good meaning, Su Tai specially made two bowls of noodles, and on the side there were the big flower steamed buns given by Han and the steamed buns she specially steamed.
Shen Yi's eyes widened, "Wife, you are so amazing! This is the first time I have eaten such a sumptuous meal during the Chinese New Year since I was a child!"
Su Tai smiled, "How did you celebrate the New Year in the past?"
Shen Yi sat down and said as if nothing had happened, "When I was a child, I depended on my mother for everything. Our family had nothing except that little piece of land. My mother lived frugally and cooked me a bowl of thick dumplings and an egg during the Chinese New Year. She had saved them for a long time and was reluctant to eat them.
Later, when my mother passed away, my second uncle and my second aunt asked me to go over and eat with them. But my second uncle's family was not well off, and he had two cousins to support, so it was good enough for us to be able to eat some meat during the New Year.
I remember the best meal I had was a pheasant, which my two cousins and I picked up at the foot of the mountain. Later, when I grew up and didn’t want to trouble my uncle and aunt, I ate at home by myself. At most, I would have a bowl of dumpling soup and an egg, just like before. ”
Su Tai felt sad when she heard this, and hurried over to hug Shen Yi, "Don't worry, I'll be here with you from now on. We'll make a big table of delicious food every New Year and spend it happily."
"Yes!" Shen Yi nodded heavily and said, "I'll go get the firecrackers. Let's set off a string of firecrackers before eating."
"good!"
Maybe it was their family that started it first, and then other people in the village started setting off firecrackers one after another.
Su Tai and Shen Yi looked at each other and raised their soup bowls. "Others raise their glasses, but we raise our bowls! Let's celebrate our first New Year together. We will celebrate this day every year from now on!"
"Okay! We will grow old together and celebrate every New Year together!" Shen Yi picked up the bowl, clinked it with his cup, and drank it all in one gulp.
He had just taken a bite of the braised pork when three puppies came over following the smell.
Su Tai tried to get them some meat scraps. Seeing that the puppies were enjoying the meal, she smiled bitterly and said, "It looks like it will cost a lot of money to feed them meat in the future!"
Shen Yi didn't care, "Don't worry, the older dogs in the village run all over the mountains. I'll take them into the mountains in the spring and let them find food on their own. Only dogs raised in this way will be powerful. Otherwise, how can they guard the house?"
"That's right." Su Tai breathed a sigh of relief and stopped worrying about it.
After the young couple had their New Year’s Eve dinner, they set off fireworks in the yard, big fireworks and small fireworks, one after another, as if they were free.
Many families in the village bought small fireworks, but few bought big fireworks. After all, these things are too expensive and most people can't afford them.
Shen Yi and Su Tai setting off large fireworks can be considered a benefit to the villagers.
While the young couple was having a great time, the atmosphere in Dongmen Village seemed a little strange.
Su Chunlin's family had just finished their reunion dinner when Su Chunsen's family returned exhausted.
This time, not only Su Chunsen and Su Chuan came, but also Wan and Su Chuan's wife Cuilan came.
Han saw Cuilan's slightly bulging belly and immediately congratulated Wan, "Sister-in-law, you will have a grandson next year. Congratulations. It's cold outside. Come in quickly. I'll get you some food."
With that said, Han rushed into the kitchen.
The three Wan family members were all carrying things, except Cuilan, who was empty-handed. She didn't even look at anyone when she entered the room. She just asked Suchuan in dissatisfaction, "Where are we staying tonight? I'm exhausted after sitting all day!"
Su Chunlin's expression changed slightly.
Ruan Xiaoyu hurried forward to help them get their things. "The rooms in our house have just been cleaned, and the bedding is all new. There are rooms in the front and back yards. Sister-in-law can live wherever she wants."
Cuilan finally gave Ruan Xiaoyu a look as if giving alms, and continued, "The front yard is so noisy, so of course I should live in the back yard! Oh, by the way, I am serving the eldest young master's wife in the mansion, and my food, clothing and daily necessities are the best among the maids. I can't get used to sleeping on a bad bed!
Also, there must be a charcoal fire in the room. It's so cold, I can't catch a cold!"
Ruan Xiaoyu looked bewildered.
Wan glared at Cuilan fiercely, then smiled gently at Ruan Xiaoyu, "Just take us to the backyard, and we'll take care of the rest ourselves."
"Okay." Ruan Xiaoyu hurriedly led them away.
As soon as the person left, Su Zhan couldn't help but complain: "Dad, what kind of girl did my cousin marry? If you don't know, you would think she is a lady from a wealthy family!"
Su Ming nodded wildly.
Su Chunlin looked towards the backyard from time to time, his brows furrowed, and he was lost in thought.
After a while, Ruan Xiaoyu came back alone.
Su Zhan hurriedly asked, "Does that woman dislike our family?"
Ruan Xiaoyu breathed a sigh of relief, but before she could say anything, everyone heard a noise coming from the backyard.
"It's so simple here, there's nothing here. I just can't understand why you came back? Are you bored?" Cuilan cursed at Su Chuan.
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