Nian'an mumbled, "Grandma, it looks good, wear it."
Song Yushuang smiled and tied the purse to his lapel. The red string was tied in a knot around his small body, and the tiger pattern was placed right on his chest, making it look especially festive.
"Our Nian'an looks so adorable with the purse on." She gently pinched Nian'an's cheek, her eyes full of affection.
After tidying up his needlework, Jiang Jianhua walked over and looked at Nian'an's purse. He smiled and said, "Your craftsmanship is truly impeccable. This tiger is so lifelike, even more exquisite than the jewelry sold in city shops."
Song Yushuang smiled and waved her hand: "It's just embroidery, as long as it makes Nian'an feel festive."
She then looked at the fabric in Jiang Jianhua's hand, "How's the tailoring of your little jacket coming along? Do you want me to sew a few stitches for you?"
“You don’t need to do it,” Jiang Jianhua said quickly. “I can do it myself. You can rest and play with Nian’an. This fabric is soft. I plan to sew a round neck so that it will be easy for Nian’an to put on and take off.”
She picked up the fabric and held it up against Nian'an. "Look, the size is just right. Once it's sewn up, I'll embroider a small locust flower on the cuff. It will look even better then."
Fu Yuanshan carried the repaired wooden stool out of the house and placed it under the eaves: "Now that this stool is repaired, Nian'an can sit on it to eat and play with toys."
He walked over to Nian'an, gently picked him up and placed him on the stool, "Let's see if it's stable?"
Nian'an sat on the stool, her little hands gripping the edge, and swayed her body with a smile. The stool remained steady, which made everyone laugh.
In the afternoon, the sun was shining warmly, and Fu Yucheng suggested going to the back mountain to pick some wild hawthorns, which could be used to make hawthorn cakes or hawthorn water, a sweet and sour drink that would cut through the richness of the food.
Song Yushuang carried Nian'an, with Jiang Jianhua and Fu Yuanshan following behind. The group chatted and laughed as they walked towards the back of the mountain.
The wild grass on both sides of the mountain road was a tender green, and occasionally a few unknown wildflowers could be seen. Nian'an lay in Song Yushuang's arms, pointing curiously at the flowers and grass by the roadside, making "ee-ya" sounds all the time.
When we arrived at the hawthorn trees on the back hill, the bright red wild hawthorns hung all over the branches, like strings of small lanterns.
Fu Yucheng stood on tiptoe to pick a bunch and handed it to Nian'an: "Be careful, don't prick your hand."
Nian'an took the hawthorn, picked one up and put it in her mouth. It was so sour that she squinted her eyes, but she couldn't bear to spit it out, which made everyone laugh.
Song Yushuang said with a smile, "These hawthorns are too sour. They need to be pickled with sugar at home for a few days before they taste good."
After picking a full basket of hawthorns, the group strolled back slowly.
As they passed by the stream, Fu Yuanshan stopped and pointed to the small fish in the water: "Nian'an, look, there are small fish swimming in the water."
Nian'an lay on the bank of the stream, his little hand reaching into the water. The little fish swam away in fright, but he laughed with extra joy.
Jiang Jianhua said with a smile, "When the weather gets warmer, we'll bring Nian'an to play in the stream; it'll definitely be more lively then."
Back home, Song Yushuang poured the hawthorns into a basin, washed them with water, and then picked out a few plump ones to pickle in a porcelain jar with white sugar: "These pickled hawthorns will be ready for Nian'an to eat in a few days when she's craving them. We'll make hawthorn cakes with the rest and share some with our neighbors."
Jiang Jianhua quickly helped by removing the pits from the hawthorns and chopping them, while Fu Yucheng tended the fire in the kitchen to prepare hawthorn puree.
For dinner, Fu Yucheng made pumpkin porridge, which Nian'an loves, and also stir-fried a plate of green pepper and potato shreds, which was light and refreshing.
Nian'an sat on a small stool, drinking porridge with a small spoon. Although some spilled, she ate with great care.
Song Yushuang sat beside him, wiping his mouth from time to time: "Our Nian'an is becoming more and more capable; he can even feed himself now."
At night, after Nian'an fell asleep, Song Yushuang and Jiang Jianhua sat under the oil lamp, one sewing a purse and the other making a short jacket.
Yun Tangyin leaned against the headboard, watching them busy themselves, and said with a smile, "Mom, Second Sister-in-law, don't stay up too late, get some rest early."
"Almost done," Song Yu said, her hands moving swiftly with needle and thread. "This purse will be finished after embroidering a tassel. And Jianhua's jacket should be almost sewn up too, right?"
Jiang Jianhua nodded, his hands moving swiftly with needle and thread: "Hmm, only the locust blossoms on the cuffs are left. Once they're finished, it'll be perfect. How do you think these little locust blossoms are embroidered?"
She held up the fabric, and the little locust flowers on the cuffs were lifelike, with pale yellow petals and tender green sepals, exceptionally delicate.
Song Yushuang smiled and said, "It looks really good. Jianhua, your skills are getting better and better."
The next morning, Jiang Jianhua gave Nian'an the little jacket he had made. It was made of light pink fabric with small locust flowers embroidered on the cuffs. Nian'an looked like a little dumpling in it, and she was extremely cute.
Fu Yucheng said with a smile, "Our Nian'an looks even more handsome in his new clothes. Come on, Dad will take you to the yard to play on the little rocking horse."
Nian'an happily ran out with Fu Yucheng, the hem of her jacket fluttering gently in the wind.
Around noon, Aunt Zhang came over carrying a basket of freshly steamed buns: "I steamed some multigrain buns, I'm bringing some for you to try, they're more filling than white flour buns."
Looking at Nian'an in her new clothes, she smiled and said, "This child looks so good in her new clothes, just like a doll in a New Year's painting."
Song Yushuang took the steamed bun and said with a smile, "Thank you, Aunt Zhang, you always think of us so much."
At lunchtime, everyone sat around the table, eating multigrain steamed buns, accompanied by shredded green peppers and potatoes and egg drop soup—simple yet exceptionally delicious.
Nian'an sat on a small stool, happily munching on a steamed bun, occasionally taking a sip of egg drop soup, her little face full of satisfaction.
After the meal, when Song Yushuang was clearing away the dishes, she found Nian'an squatting under the locust tree in the yard, her little hands digging at the soil, fiddling with something.
She went over to take a look and found that Nian'an was playing with the pebbles that Fu Yuanshan had dug up that morning. She had arranged the pebbles into small piles and was muttering to herself.
"You little rascal, you're so serious even when playing with pebbles." Song Yushuang smiled and squatted down to pick up the pebbles that had rolled far away. "Be careful not to get your little hands dirty, you'll have to wash them for dinner later."
Nian'an looked up at Song Yushuang and held up a smooth white pebble: "Grandma, it's beautiful."
Song Yushuang took the pebble and felt its smoothness. "These pebbles are from the stream behind the mountain. They've been washed by the water for many years to become so round. Tomorrow, I'll have your second uncle take you to the stream to collect some more and string them into a bracelet for you, okay?"
Nian'an nodded quickly, her eyes shining like the stars in the sky.
When Jiang Jianhua came out after washing the clothes, he saw the grandfather and grandson playing with pebbles and said with a smile, "Nian'an is learning to count. I saw him count once for each pebble he placed. Although he couldn't count properly, he didn't make any mistakes."
Song Yushuang looked at Nian'an with surprise: "Really? Our Nian'an can count now? Quick, count for Grandma again."
Nian'an picked up the pebbles and laid them out on the ground one by one, counting indistinctly, "One, two, three..."
Although his voice wasn't loud, he was extremely earnest, which made both of them laugh.
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