Fu Yucheng was squatting in the yard chopping wood when he heard Xiaolan's words. He straightened up and laughed, "Your second aunt's skills are such that she can embroider anything, not just rabbits, but even a phoenix."
He neatly stacked the chopped firewood. "Once your second aunt makes you a bib, I'll weave you a bamboo basket shaped like a rabbit, and it'll be a perfect match."
Xiao Lan clapped her hands excitedly: "Really? That's great! I'm going to carry a bamboo basket and go play with Nian An every day."
Song Yushuang carried the fish ball soup out of the kitchen and, upon hearing this, laughed and said, "You two, with your back-and-forth banter, have filled up Jianhua's schedule with work."
She placed the soup bowl on the stone table, saying, "Eat it while it's hot, the fish balls won't be fresh and tender when they get cold."
Jiang Jianhua came out of the house, holding a small jacket in his hand: "Nian'an, put on the jacket quickly, don't catch a cold. This fish ball soup is delicious, you should drink more."
Nian'an had just finished a bowl of soup when she pulled Fu Yuanshan and ran into the yard, calling out, "Car, car."
Fu Yuanshan laughed and said, "You want your second uncle to make you a little wooden cart, right? I'll make it after I finish chopping this pile of firewood. I guarantee it will be even better than the little wooden horse from last time."
Nian'an immediately stopped and helped Fu Yuanshan gather firewood with her little hands. Although she gathered it haphazardly, she learned to do it quite well.
After Jiang Jianhua finished cleaning up the dishes, he sat under the eaves and made small shoes for Nian'an.
She picked up the sole of the shoe and compared it to Nian'an's foot, then changed to a thicker thread: "The sole needs to be stitched more tightly so it will be warm to wear in winter."
Song Yushuang sat beside her picking vegetables, looking at the needle and thread in her hands: "Your stitches are even better than an embroiderer's. Once the shoes are finished, we'll match Nian'an with the tiger-head hat that Zhou Desheng's wife gave her. She'll look just like a little tiger."
Fu Yucheng came back from the field carrying a large winter melon: "This winter melon was given to me by Aunt Zhang. She said we should make winter melon meatball soup to give Nian'an a change of pace."
He placed the winter melon on the stone table. "Aunt Zhang asked if Nian'an's fish ball soup was delicious. I said it was even more fragrant than the ones in the restaurants in town. She said she wanted to come and learn how to make it tomorrow."
Jiang Jianhua said with a smile, "You're welcome anytime. I'll teach her step by step."
As the midday sun grew hotter, Jiang Jianhua went to the well to fetch water and saw Xiaolan squatting in the yard watching Nian'an play with a small wooden car.
"Xiao Lan, would you like to try some of my dried pumpkin?" Jiang Jianhua said with a smile. "It was dried yesterday, and it's sweet."
Xiao Lan nodded quickly: "Yes! Auntie's dried pumpkin is the best."
Jiang Jianhua took a small bag of dried pumpkin from the house and handed it to Xiaolan: "Eat slowly, don't choke."
Nian'an saw the dried pumpkin in Xiaolan's hand and clamored to eat it too. Fu Yuanshan picked up a piece and fed it to him: "This child, he wants to eat everything he sees."
He patted Nian'an's head and said, "This afternoon, your second uncle will take you to the back mountain to pick wild dates. They're even sweeter than dried pumpkin."
Nian'an immediately clapped her hands and shouted, "Dates, pick them!"
In the afternoon, Fu Yuanshan indeed took Nian'an to the back mountain.
Nian'an held the wild dates in her little hands, her mouth turning bright red as she ate them, looking like a little squirrel.
Fu Yuanshan picked a basket full of wild dates and also dug up some wild vegetables: "These wild vegetables will be stir-fried tonight, they're very refreshing."
Nian'an held up a wild jujube and put it into Fu Yuanshan's mouth: "Second Uncle, it's sweet."
Fu Yuanshan smiled and opened his mouth to catch it: "So sweet, our Nian'an is so sensible."
Jiang Jianhua was busy at home making a bib for Xiaolan. On the red fabric, she had already embroidered a little rabbit with snow-white fur and long ears, making it exceptionally cute.
“This rabbit is so lifelike,” Song Yushuang leaned over to look, “it’s even more beautiful than a painting.”
Jiang Jianhua said with a smile, "After I finish embroidering this one, I'll embroider a tiger one for Nian'an, which will match his tiger-head shoes perfectly."
In the evening, Fu Yucheng returned from town, carrying a paper bag: "I bought some rock sugar for Nian'an to stew with wild jujubes to make a lung-nourishing soup."
He handed the rock sugar to Jiang Jianhua, saying, "Aunt Zhang said she's coming tomorrow to learn how to make fish balls, so you'd better teach her properly."
Jiang Jianhua nodded: "I'll write down the steps now, so I don't forget them later."
At dinner time, the kitchen was filled with the aroma of stir-fried wild vegetables and meat, as well as a pot of wild jujube soup.
Nian'an sat on a small stool, scooping up jujube soup with a spoon, spitting the jujube pits all over the floor.
Fu Yuanshan picked out the date pits for him: "This child, he doesn't care about anything when he starts eating."
Nian'an raised her spoon and fed the jujube soup to Fu Yuanshan's mouth: "Second Uncle, drink."
Fu Yuanshan smiled and opened his mouth to catch it: "It's so sweet, thank you Nian'an."
After dinner, the family sat in the courtyard to enjoy the cool evening air. Fu Yuanshan fanned himself with a palm-leaf fan, the lotus flowers on the fan appearing and disappearing faintly in the moonlight.
Jiang Jianhua took out the finished rabbit bib and handed it to Xiaolan: "Take a look and see if you like it? The rabbit's eyes are embroidered with black beads, they're sparkly."
Xiao Lan took the bib and jumped for joy: "I love it! I love it so much! Thank you, Second Aunt!"
Nian'an looked at Xiaolan's new bellyband and also clamored for one.
Jiang Jianhua said with a smile, "Your tiger bib will be finished tomorrow, and it will be even prettier than this."
Nian'an immediately quieted down, touching her red cloth bib with her little hands, waiting for her new bib tomorrow.
Moonlight spilled into the courtyard, and the locust leaves rustled, as if telling the story of these ordinary yet happy days.
Song Yushuang leaned back in her rocking chair, watching the children playing, her heart filled with joy.
She knew that such days would continue, like the moonlight in the locust tree courtyard, gentle and lingering, illuminating every ordinary moment.
Xiao Lan held the rabbit bib and spun around in the yard. The moonlight stretched her shadow long, and the white rabbit on the red cloth seemed to come alive, gently hopping in the halo of light.
"I'll go back now and show it to my mother," she skipped and hopped toward the door, then suddenly stopped and turned back. "Second Aunt, can I bring my new bamboo basket to collect wild dates tomorrow?"
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