As the sun began to set, Zhou Desheng's wife arrived carrying a red cloth bag. Inside the bag were two bolts of new cloth, one bright red and the other sapphire blue, which shone dazzlingly in the snow.
"Yinyin, look at this cloth!" She lifted the cloth bundle, her eyes full of joy. "I asked a relative at the town's supply and marketing cooperative to leave this for me. I'm going to make a new cotton-padded jacket for the child for the New Year. Red is festive, and blue is dirt-resistant. Which one do you think is more suitable?"
Yun Tangyin put down the tiger-head shoes, her fingertips touching the fabric. The fine cotton threads wove soft patterns and carried the unique fragrance of new cloth.
“This fabric is really nice,” she said, looking up and smiling, her eyes shining. “The red one will be used for the outer layer of a cotton-padded jacket, and the blue one for the lining of a lined jacket. The child will definitely be warm wearing it.”
Zhou Desheng's wife stuffed a pair of scissors into her hand, saying, "My mother said you're good at tailoring. You can cut the scissors to match the baby's size first, and I'll come and help sew them tomorrow. Let's finish making them for the baby before the New Year."
Fu Yucheng brought out freshly roasted melon seeds from the kitchen. The golden melon seeds were coated with salt and placed in a rough porcelain bowl. They tasted salty and delicious when cracked open.
"Sister-in-law, have a taste," he said, handing her the bowl. "I learned to roast melon seeds from Aunt Zhang, but I didn't control the heat well, so they're a little burnt. Don't mind."
Zhou Desheng's wife grabbed a handful and started cracking them open, shaking her head with a smile: "How could I complain? They're much better than what my husband roasts. Last time he roasted sunflower seeds until they turned into charcoal and said he could use them as firewood."
After Xiaolan finished weaving the side of the bamboo basket, she came over, grabbed a handful of melon seeds, and squatted down by the rabbit cage, cracking them open while watching the rabbits.
Snowball came closer, its little nose rubbing against her palm, as if it also wanted to eat sunflower seeds. "You can't have these," Xiaolan poked its nose, "The shells are too hard, you'll hurt your teeth if you eat them."
She took a piece of dried carrot from her pocket and placed it in her palm. Snowball immediately came over, chewing quickly with its three-lobed mouth, its little tail sweeping fine marks on the snow.
Before we knew it, it was the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month. Red lanterns were hung on the old locust tree in the courtyard. Fu Yucheng wove the frames with bamboo strips, and Yun Tangyin cut out red paper lampshades. When the lanterns were lit, the warm red light reflected off the snow, as if coating the courtyard with a layer of sugar.
Zhou Desheng brought his two sons to help put up Spring Festival couplets. The older one was called Zhou Ming and the younger one was called Zhou Liang. They were both wearing newly made blue cotton-padded jackets and were jumping around the lanterns.
"Uncle Fu, this lantern is so beautiful!" Zhou Ming craned his neck and reached out to touch the lantern tassel, but Fu Yucheng quickly stopped him: "Be careful, don't fall. There are candles inside the lantern, it's not good to get burned."
Zhou Liang squatted by the rabbit cage, looking at the rabbits curiously: "Uncle Fu, do rabbits get to eat good food during the New Year?"
Fu Yucheng nodded with a smile: "Of course, we prepared soybeans and sweet potatoes for them, and they taste even better than usual."
Yun Tangyin was busy steaming New Year's buns in the kitchen. The white dough rose up and became fluffy. She kneaded them into round buns, dotted them with red dots, and arranged them in the steamer like little lanterns lined up in a row.
Zhou Desheng's wife came to help chop the dumpling filling, a mixture of cabbage and pork. She chopped it with a loud "thump thump," and the aroma filled the whole yard.
“Yinyin, your steamed buns have risen really well this year,” she added a piece of coal to the stove. “They’re even fluffier than mine. I’ll have to learn how to make dough from you later.”
Fu Yucheng, along with Zhou Ming and Zhou Liang, were shoveling snow in the yard. The shovels made a "crunching" sound as they shoveled into the snow.
Zhou Ming was too weak to shovel the snow, so he used his hands to scoop it up and build a snowman. Zhou Liang helped by passing him snowballs. In no time, they had built a crooked snowman and even stuck a carrot in it for a nose.
"Uncle Fu, look at the snowman we built!" Zhou Ming grabbed Fu Yucheng's hand and shouted excitedly. Fu Yucheng smiled and nodded: "It's really beautiful, even more impressive than the snowman in the town park."
On New Year's Eve, the sound of firecrackers came from the alley entrance, one after another, like a handful of broken gold scattered in the courtyard.
Fu Yucheng brought the cooked dumplings to the table. The plump white dumplings were steaming hot. When you bit into one, the cabbage and pork filling inside was oozing oil, so delicious that it made your eyes squint.
Yun Tangyin picked up a dumpling for Xiaolan: "Try it, your brother Fu made these, they have more pleats than mine." Xiaolan took a bite of the dumpling and smiled contentedly: "It's so delicious, even better than my mother's!"
After the meal, Fu Yucheng took out the New Year's money he had prepared for the children, wrapped it in red paper, and handed it to Zhou Ming, Zhou Liang, and Xiao Lan.
"This is your New Year's money," Song Yushuang said with a smile, handing out a portion as well. "Take it to buy candy during the New Year, and may it bless you with peace and safety in the coming year."
Zhou Ming took the New Year's money and carefully put it in his pocket: "Thank you! I'm going to save it to buy firecrackers so I can set them off with my brother tomorrow!"
On the morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year, Yun Tangyin put on a newly made blue cotton-padded jacket, which Fu Yucheng had promised to make for her at the beginning of spring. The stitches were fine and the jacket fit her perfectly.
Fu Yucheng was wearing a military uniform, which, although old, was clean. The two of them stood at the gate of the courtyard, wishing the neighbors a Happy New Year.
Aunt Zhang came to visit, carrying a cloth bag filled with freshly steamed rice cakes, their sweet aroma mingling with the fragrance of rice: "Sister Yushuang, I've come to wish you a Happy New Year. These rice cakes are steamed by me; they're sticky and gooey, symbolizing rising higher and higher each year."
Xiao Lan, wearing a newly made floral cotton-padded jacket, skipped and hopped as she came to wish everyone a Happy New Year. In her hand, she held a cloth doll, a little rabbit she had made for her child, with crooked ears, yet it exuded cuteness.
"Sister-in-law, Brother Fu, Happy New Year!" She handed the doll to Yun Tangyin. "This is something I made for my little brother. It's not very pretty, but it's my way of showing my love."
Yun Tangyin took the doll and said with a smile, "It's so pretty, little brother will definitely like it. Thank you, Lan girl."
Zhou Desheng came to pay New Year's respects with his wife and two sons, carrying a bottle of wine and a bag of pastries for Fu Yucheng.
"Brother Fu, sister-in-law, Happy New Year!" Zhou Desheng placed some pastries on the table. "These are peach shortbreads I bought in town. You two can try them when you have time. My two boys kept asking for some, but I didn't leave any for them."
Zhou Ming and Zhou Liang circled the rabbit cage, feeding the rabbit some soybeans. Watching the rabbit eat with relish, the two brothers smiled especially happily.
By the time the sun reached the bamboo tips, the courtyard was already full of neighbors. Aunt Zhang was chatting with Zhou Desheng's wife, while Song Yushuang and Yu Xia sat nearby, eating melon seeds.
Fu Yucheng was playing chess with Zhou Desheng, Xiao Lan was grooming a rabbit with Zhou Ming and Zhou Liang, and Yun Tangyin was sitting under the eaves, holding a tiger-head shoe she had embroidered for her child. The sunlight shone on her, warming her like a piece of melting candy.
The little one in her belly suddenly kicked, as gently as a locust leaf falling on her heart, and Yun Tangyin couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Such a year, full of life and warmth, is the best year she can imagine.
She looked up at the scene in the courtyard. Red lanterns swayed gently in the wind, snow melted slowly in the sunlight, the laughter of neighbors drifted through the courtyard, and rabbits leisurely ate soybeans in their cages. Everything was so peaceful and beautiful.
Fu Yucheng seemed to notice her gaze, looked up and smiled at her, his eyes full of tenderness. Yun Tangyin smiled back at him, feeling reassured.
With him here, with the children here, and with so many kind neighbors, the year will get better and warmer year by year.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com