The two footprints left two deep marks on the snow on the courtyard gate. Fu Yucheng suddenly stopped and stuffed an oil paper package into Yun Tangyin's pocket.
“I just bought it at the supply and marketing cooperative,” he said, his voice a little muffled, his ears still red. “Sesame candy, the kind you loved to eat when you were little.”
The oil paper package softened from the warmth of my body, and the aroma of sesame mixed with the crispness of the snow spread out, as if I had returned to the twelfth lunar month many years ago.
Back then, he would always hide under the old locust tree at the alley entrance, watching her happily smile as she clutched sesame candy, the red ribbon on her braid fluttering like a small flame in the wind.
Yun Tangyin pinched out a piece of sesame candy. The glistening sugar threads stretched long in the sunlight. As the sweet aroma wafted over her nose, she suddenly laughed out loud: "You still remember? I thought you had long forgotten."
Fu Yucheng took the candy she handed him, and the crisp sound of his teeth crushing the candy shell, mixed with the sound of his footsteps on the snow, was particularly clear in the quiet alley.
“I remember all the foods you like to eat,” he suddenly turned his head, the snowflakes on his eyelashes glistening in the sunlight, “just like you always remember what I like to eat and what I don’t.”
When the courtyard gate was pushed open, the rabbit in the bamboo cage was peering out from under the bars. When it saw the white flour bag in Fu Yucheng's hand, it suddenly stood up.
Yun Tangyin threw a piece of cabbage into the steamer and said with a smile, "This dough is for steaming buns, so you can't eat it."
The rabbit, however, carried a cabbage to the edge of the cage and rubbed its forehead against her fingers. The snow on its fur had melted, leaving it damp like a ball of cotton.
When Fu Yucheng poured the flour into the vat, Song Yushuang was squatting in front of the chicken coop counting eggs, her sleeves covered in grass clippings.
“I’ve saved up six in total,” she said, handing one to Yun Tangyin. “They’re freshly made and still warm. I’ll cook you a soft-boiled egg.”
It felt heavy in my palm, with a few chicken feathers stuck to the shell and a faint smell of chicken droppings. It wasn't overpowering, but it had the freshest, most vibrant smell of everyday life.
Just as Yun Tangyin put the eggs into the pot, Xiao Lan ran in carrying a red lantern with a red ribbon wrapped around its bamboo frame.
“My mother made this,” she said, hanging the lantern on the lintel. She stood on tiptoe for a long time, and the snow from her braids fell all over her cotton-padded coat. “She said that hanging red lanterns can ward off evil spirits. We’ll light candles on the Little New Year’s Day. This is for you.”
Fu Yucheng reached out and took the lantern, quickly fixing it to the lintel. The red silk fluttered in the wind, like a flower blooming in the snow.
“Sister-in-law, look at the tassel on my lantern,” Xiaolan said, tugging at the tassel at the bottom of the lantern. “It’s tied with the pink thread you gave me, isn’t it pretty?”
Yun Tangyin touched the knot on the tassel and suddenly remembered the ball of pink thread she had given Xiaolan a few days ago.
Originally intended for embroidering the tassels of a tiger-head hat, the little girl used them sparingly and cleverly wove a small peach blossom onto the lantern tassels, showing her dedication.
“They look even better than the ones sold at the market,” she said, stuffing a handful of sunflower seeds into Xiaolan’s pocket. “They’re freshly picked, salty and savory. You can share them with your friends.”
As the sun climbed to its zenith, Yu Xia brought in a bowl of eight-treasure porridge, a glossy film of brown sugar forming on the surface.
“My mother said that pregnant women should eat more whole grains,” she said, placing a bowl on the stove. Seeing the red lantern above the door, she suddenly clapped her hands and laughed, “These lanterns are so well made!”
Yun Tangyin slipped a piece of sesame candy into her hand: "I just bought it. Try it. It's sweeter than the ones from the supply and marketing cooperative last year."
Yu Xia chewed on her candy and peered into the yard. She saw Fu Yucheng hanging cured meat under the eaves. His military green cotton-padded coat was billowing in the wind, making him look like an eagle spreading its wings.
When Fu Yucheng turned around, he was holding a string of dried chilies, red like a ball of fire. He smiled and explained to Yu Xia, "Zhou Desheng's wife gave them to me. She said they're for good luck. Do you have any cured meat, brother? Share a piece with me."
Just then, Aunt Li lifted the curtain and came in carrying a child. The child was clutching a piece of sesame candy, with candy residue sticking all over his face.
“I just heard you talking in the yard,” she said, placing a piece of coarse cloth on the table. “My husband bought this from town to make you a mattress; it’s softer than cotton.”
Suddenly, the child pointed at Yun Tangyin's belly and laughed, giggling uncontrollably.
"This rascal," Aunt Li flicked the child's nose, "knows to ask your aunt for candy."
Yun Tangyin slipped a cloth tiger into the child's hand. It was the one Xiao Lan had given her a few days ago, and now she had added a gold trim, making it look even more spirited.
"Let him grab it and play with it, and give him a handful of candy too. He's just received some new New Year's gifts." She stuffed a bowl of eight-treasure porridge into Aunt Li's hand. "My sister-in-law just brought this over. You should have a taste too."
While drinking her porridge, Aunt Li suddenly said, "The regiment said they're holding a New Year's market tomorrow, and they'll be selling floral fabrics. Why don't you go and buy a piece to keep?"
Fu Yucheng was hammering nails into the wall, intending to hang the New Year's picture he had just received, when he heard this and asked, "I'll go after training tomorrow. What pattern do you want?"
Yun Tangyin picked out a blue thread and threaded it onto the embroidery hoop: "It should have small floral patterns, a light blue background, and look refreshing."
She suddenly remembered something, "Oh right, let's get some for Mom too. She said a few days ago that she wanted to make a new coat. It's almost the end of the year, so it's time to make her some new clothes."
The snow started falling again in the evening. Fu Yucheng was frying meatballs in front of the stove, oil splattering onto his apron.
Yun Tangyin sat beside her, shelling peanuts. The red skins fell into the bamboo basket, piling up like a small mountain.
"The market will definitely be lively tomorrow," she said, tossing a peanut into the oil. "I heard that Sister Li snatched a bag of brown sugar and ran away without even taking off her cotton shoes when she came back."
Fu Yucheng scooped up the fried meatballs, their golden, round shapes rolling in the strainer. "I'll go queue up early, and I guarantee I'll get the floral fabric back for you."
At night, Yun Tangyin pasted the paper-cut window decorations onto the window, the paste seeping into the red paper and leaving faint marks.
The silhouette of a chubby baby holding a carp flickers under the light, as if it has come to life.
Fu Yucheng spread a new quilt on the kang (a heated brick bed), the coarse cloth rubbing against his skin, warm from the sun.
“The cloth that Aunt Li gave me is really soft,” he patted the mattress. “It would definitely be soft and comfortable to make a mattress.”
Yun Tangyin responded, supporting her waist as she slowly lay down. She closed her eyes, her nose rubbing against the scent of soap on the mattress, just as she was about to rest when her hand suddenly touched something hard.
When I took it out, I saw it was the silver lock, which had somehow slipped off my neck and was now pressed against the kang mat.
“Look,” she said, holding the silver lock up to the light, “the patterns on the lock have become even shinier.”
This is the one that Song Yushuang gave her.
Yun Tangyin has quite a few silver locks in her possession, but she finds this one particularly precious and has never taken it off since she put it around her neck.
Because Song Yushuang said that it was passed down to her by her mother, and now she has given it to Yun Tangyin...
When the child is born, Yun Tangyin will tell the child the origin of the silver lock.
This is what inheritance is all about.
Fu Yucheng leaned closer to look, his fingertips tracing the four characters "Long Life and a Hundred Years," and suddenly lowered his head to plant a gentle kiss on her forehead.
“After the baby is born,” he said, his voice a little hoarse as he nestled in her hair, “I’ll apply to be transferred to logistics and make fried meatballs and locust flower cakes for you every day. I’ll do whatever you want.”
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