Fu Yucheng looked at the neatly arranged lining and handkerchiefs in the wooden box, his fingertips gently brushing along the locust flower pattern on the lid: "Once it's coated with varnish, this wooden box will be even more durable, making it convenient for Second Sister-in-law to store needles and thread or small items in the future."
He suddenly remembered something, turned around and walked into the house, "I'll find another piece of red velvet to put at the bottom of the box, it'll be soft and won't hurt my sister-in-law's things."
Holding the wooden box, Yun Tangyin watched Fu Yucheng's busy figure, her heart filled with warmth.
The branches of the old locust tree outside the courtyard swayed in the setting sun. Some of the snow had melted, revealing the dark brown trunk, as if it were hoping for the spring breeze to arrive soon.
She lowered her head and touched her lower abdomen, saying softly, "Child, your second uncle and aunt will be back in early March. Then we can eat shepherd's purse dumplings together and watch your aunt embroider."
As soon as she finished speaking, the little one in her belly moved slightly, as if responding to her words.
After finishing the last section of the scarf, Aunt Zhang put the yarn ball into her cloth bag, picked up the scarf and looked at it against the setting sun: "This color matches the locust flower pattern perfectly."
She folded the scarf and put it into Yun Tangyin's wooden box. "When she comes back, we'll sew a tassel on this scarf together, using light yellow silk thread, to make it look even more exquisite."
Zhou Desheng's wife brought out a bowl of sweet potato porridge. Steam rose from the rough porcelain bowl, and the sweet aroma mixed with the soft and glutinous scent of sweet potatoes filled the courtyard: "The porridge is ready. Quickly let the children drink it. After they finish, we can help dry the radishes."
She handed the bowl to Xiaolan, saying, "Lan, drink more. Drying radishes this afternoon will be hard work, so don't go hungry."
Xiao Lan held the bowl, took a big gulp of porridge, and her eyes crinkled with sweetness: "Auntie's sweet potato porridge is so sweet! It's even better than my mom's! When Second Aunt comes back, I'm going to let her try it too and say that this is the taste of our family."
Zhou Ming and Zhou Liang also came over, holding their bowls and slurping their drinks, their little mouths stuffed full, making it hard for them to speak clearly.
Fu Yucheng found some red velvet cloth, carefully laid it on the bottom of the wooden box, and sewed the edges with a fine needle: "Do you think this makes it softer?"
He handed the wooden box to Yun Tangyin, saying, "Second sister-in-law would be very touched if she knew how much effort we put into this."
Yun Tangyin nodded and put the scarf knitted by Aunt Zhang into the wooden box as well: "It's good to put the scarf in too, so I can give it to her when she comes back. She'll be pleasantly surprised when she opens the box."
At dinner time, the kitchen was filled with the aroma of stir-fried dried radish. It was made by Zhou Desheng's wife using dried radish that had been dried last year, with some chili and minced garlic added. It was so delicious that it made people's mouths water.
Zhou Desheng, holding his wine bowl, took a sip and laughed, "This dried radish is stir-fried to perfection! When Yuanshan comes back, I can drink three big bowls of wine with him while eating this dried radish!"
Fu Yucheng put a piece of stir-fried dried radish into Yun Tangyin's bowl: "Eat less spicy food, just taste it. If you want more, I'll ask my sister-in-law to make you a non-spicy version tomorrow."
Yun Tangyin took a bite of the dried radish, which was crisp and salty: "It's so delicious, even more appetizing than the pickles you buy in the city. When my second sister-in-law comes back, we'll teach her how to make it and let her take some to the city so she can stir-fry it whenever she wants."
At night, Fu Yucheng placed the wooden box on the cabinet beside the kang (a heated brick bed), and by the light of the oil lamp, he polished the edges of the box again, afraid that any splinters might scratch someone.
Yun Tangyin leaned against him, looking at the locust flowers on the wooden box, and suddenly remembered the scene last year when Jiang Jianhua taught her to embroider locust flowers: "Last year, my second sister-in-law taught me to embroider locust flowers. She said that the stitches should follow the lines of the petals so that the embroidery would look natural."
She picked up a needle and thread and gestured on the cloth. "When she comes back, I want to learn how to embroider butterflies from her and embroider them on the children's blankets. They'll look beautiful."
Fu Yucheng held her hand and put the needle and thread back into the sewing basket: "Stop working so hard, be careful not to hurt your eyes."
He added a piece of coal to the stove, and the flames flickered. "Tomorrow I'll go to the back mountain to see if I can dig up some winter bamboo shoots. Winter bamboo shoots are delicious when stewed with meat. I'll give you some to nourish your body, and I'll also leave some for my second sister-in-law. She used to love eating winter bamboo shoots."
The next morning, Fu Yucheng carried a small hoe and walked towards the back mountain, his footprints leaving deep marks in the snow.
In the bamboo forest behind the mountain, snow weighed down the bamboo branches. He carefully peeled away the snow and looked for traces of winter bamboo shoots at the base of the bamboo.
Before long, three plump winter bamboo shoots were dug out, wrapped in brown bamboo shoot skins, looking very fresh.
“Now we can make stewed meat for Yinyin,” Fu Yucheng put the winter bamboo shoots into the bamboo basket and picked some fresh bamboo leaves. “Wrapping the winter bamboo shoots in bamboo leaves before stewing will add a touch of bamboo fragrance, and the taste will definitely be better.”
On his way back, he picked up some smooth pebbles by the stream, thinking of making slingshots for the children so that they could play with them when Fu Yuanshan returned.
When she got home, Yun Tangyin was drying radishes with Aunt Zhang. The bamboo rack was covered with cut radishes, which shone with a light yellow light in the sunlight.
"You're back! Did you find any winter bamboo shoots?" Yun Tangyin greeted her, her eyes lighting up as she looked at the bamboo basket filled with winter bamboo shoots. "These winter bamboo shoots are so big! They'll definitely taste delicious stewed with meat!"
Fu Yucheng placed the bamboo shoots on the stone table, took out some pebbles and handed them to Xiaolan: "Lan, these stones are smooth. Ask your Uncle Fu to make slingshots for you. When your second uncle comes back, we'll take you to the back mountain to hunt birds."
Xiao Lan took the stone and jumped up with a smile: "Great! Thank you, Brother Fu! I'm going to make the slingshot really pretty so I can play with Uncle when he comes back!"
Looking at the winter bamboo shoots, Aunt Zhang smiled and said, "I'll go to town to buy some meat. We'll stew the winter bamboo shoots for lunch so Yinyin can have some nourishment."
She stuffed some money into her pocket, "and I'll buy some red dates too. They'll make the soup more nourishing, and the kids will love them."
Around noon, the kitchen was filled with the aroma of stewed pork with winter bamboo shoots. The sweetness of the bamboo shoots mixed with the oily fragrance of the pork made one's mouth water.
Fu Yucheng brought out a pot; the winter bamboo shoots inside were stewed until tender, and the aroma of meat filled the air: "Try it, how's the stewed winter bamboo shoots?"
Yun Tangyin picked up a piece of winter bamboo shoot, took a bite, and squinted her eyes at the deliciousness: "It's so delicious! It's even better than the ones in city restaurants! Your cooking skills are getting better and better."
Aunt Zhang nodded in agreement: "Yes, this winter bamboo shoot stew with meat is really delicious. When Yuanshan and Jianhua come back, we'll stew it again so they can try it too."
After the meal, Fu Yucheng began making slingshots for the children, using mulberry branches from the back mountain. The branches were just the right thickness and were polished smooth and round.
He tied rubber bands to both ends of the slingshot and made a slingshot pouch out of cloth: "Try it and see if it fits your hand."
Xiao Lan took the slingshot, aimed at the old locust tree in the yard, and with a "thud," the stone landed on the trunk, making the children cheer.
Yun Tangyin sat under the eaves, continuing to sew a small quilt for the child. On the light pink floral fabric, she embroidered a small locust flower, the stitches fine and delicate, exuding tenderness.
Aunt Zhang sat to the side, sewing tassels onto a scarf. The light yellow silk thread twirled in her hands, and soon she had sewn out beautiful tassels.
Zhou Desheng's wife was sorting through the shepherd's purse dumplings frozen in the cellar, dividing them into small portions and wrapping them in oil paper: "This way, when Yuanshan and Jianhua come back, they can cook them whenever they want to eat them, without having to go through the trouble of wrapping them anymore."
She added some sweet potatoes and potatoes to the cellar, saying, "These keep well, so when there are fewer vegetables in the spring, I can make some delicious food for the children."
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