Xiao Yunying returned home; it was nearly dusk.
Luo Xin ran over and hugged her leg: "Mom, Xin'er's hair is dry."
"Okay, Mother will comb Xin'er's hair."
Xin'er is small, and long-term malnutrition has caused her hair to become dry, yellow, soft, and thin.
I managed to tie two small flower buds with the newly bought red ribbon and then stuck two tiny velvet flowers on them.
The smallest velvet flower was still a bit too big for Luo Xin, so she had to use a hair tie to secure it.
"Alright, let Mom see whose beautiful little baby this is."
Xin'er tilted her little head: "This is my pretty mother's pretty little baby."
"Ha ha ha ha."
The mother and daughter laughed and played for a while. Xiao Yunying saw that Luo Chen and the other two had already packed their bath supplies: "Xin'er, play by yourself for a while. Mom will go cook."
"Mother, are you going to make meat?"
"Yes, Xin'er, do you want to eat?"
"think."
"Mother will make this for Xin'er, and we'll have meat for dinner tonight."
Luo Li sat on the threshold, pouting as she watched this scene, seemingly lost in thought.
A strange emotion took hold of him, making him a little unhappy.
Xiao Yunying went into the kitchen, thinking about what to do tonight.
Luo Chen and Luo Yang dried their hair, tied it up again, and went to fetch water. Xin'er, bored, ran up to Luo Li:
"Third brother, Mother gave me a bath today."
Luo Li sat on the doorstep: "I took a shower too."
It was just that my older brother washed it.
"My mom washed my hair, and she used fragrant bubbles to wash it for me. Smell it, my hair smells so good."
Luo Li glanced at her younger sister with a pang of sadness: "I used it too. Smell it, it smells good too."
My brother washed it too.
Luo Xin sat down next to Luo Li: "My mother washed my hair and combed it for me. She was so gentle, it felt so good I almost fell asleep. Look how pretty the little flower on my head is!"
Luo Li said dryly, "It looks good."
The older brother combed his hair with such force that he almost ripped his head off, and the hair tie was made of old strips of cloth.
"My mom bought it for me."
The small wooden stick in Luo Li's hand snapped in two with a "snap".
"She's not our mother, she's our stepmother."
Luo Xin didn't understand: "What is a stepmother? Isn't a stepmother a mother?"
"Ah Li!"
Luo Yang returned first, carrying a bucket of water: "Don't tell your little sister these things."
The two little figures got up and made way for him. As Luo Yang stepped over the threshold, he whispered, "Think about what Grandma Yang said today."
Luo Li gave an "oh" and lowered her head without saying anything.
He didn't mean to speak ill of that woman; he just... just...
I can't explain why, but I feel even worse.
Luo Yang poured water into the kitchen water tank, watching Xiao Yunying skillfully process various ingredients.
Do you need my help?
"Need not."
He handed him the oil paper wrapped around the candied hawthorns: "I forgot to buy the candied hawthorns that Xin'er wanted. You guys eat them. There's only one pot at home, so the rice won't be ready for a while. When your older brother comes back, we'll tell him he doesn't need to carry water anymore. That'll be enough. I'll carry water with you tomorrow."
Luo Yang took the water, and just as he was leaving, Luo Chen returned and poured the water into the water vat in the yard.
"Big brother, she said there's enough water, we'll get more tomorrow, and we can have candied hawthorns. Dinner won't be ready until later."
"Candied hawthorn?"
Luo Chen was in a daze; she really had brought them delicious food.
Luo Xin toddled over to Xiao Yunying's side: "Mom, have some candied hawthorn."
Xiao Yunying smiled and took a bite: "So sweet."
Then, I couldn't help but let my eye twitch.
It wasn't coated with much sugar, so it wasn't crispy, and some of it had melted.
It was a bit sour for her.
"It's time to eat soon. You can't eat too much, okay? Eat two balls, and your brother will wrap up the rest for you to eat tomorrow."
"good."
Luo Xin fed her mother one, then left satisfied.
Luo Li stared at the candied hawthorn in her hand, hesitating to take a bite.
Luo Xin took a bite, her little face scrunched up from the sourness, she chewed with her tiny teeth, and then took another bite.
"Third brother, why aren't you eating?"
Luo Yang said softly, "Go if you want to."
Luo Li walked slowly and deliberately to Xiao Yunying's side, like a rusty robot, and held up a candied hawthorn like Luo Xin: "You, you can have one."
Xiao Yunying paused for a moment, then opened her mouth and took a bite: "Thanks, you too. Don't eat too much, save some for tomorrow. There's meat tonight, save room for meat."
"good."
Luo Li turned and ran away shyly, all the unfamiliar unpleasantness she had felt earlier vanishing.
Xiao Yunying smiled and shook her head. Even the fiercest wolf cub longs for maternal love.
Alright, let her warm their stomachs first, then their hearts.
While they were out of the kitchen, I put the small jars that had been drying in the supermarket, and with a thought, I packed up all the seasonings and put them back on the stove.
Take out two more potatoes and some side dishes.
The fire in the stove hadn't gone out yet, so a few more pieces of firewood were added.
Once the pot was hot, put the five-pound piece of pork with skin on into the pot and swirl it around a few times to scald off any remaining pig hair.
Take it out, wash it with clean water, and cut it into pieces the size of mahjong tiles.
Put water in a pot, and once it boils, cook the pork with skin on for a while. Then take it out, wash it to remove impurities, and drain the water.
Wash the pot clean, pour in a little oil, add rock sugar, star anise, bay leaves, and cinnamon, stir-fry until fragrant, add the meat, stir-fry a few times, then add appropriate amounts of dark soy sauce, chicken essence, cooking wine, salt, and a little aged vinegar. Add ginger slices and scallion segments, then add water and simmer.
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