Shen Jia went home with the saxaul buns and Polygonum flower candy that he made himself and bought from the stall, both of his hands were heavy with things.
Now that it is the end of the year, my grandfather Chen Yan has temporarily stopped his teaching activities. Every day when he has nothing to do, he goes to the fields with his second uncle and brother to observe the growth of the wheat seedlings.
But today, when she returned home, she unexpectedly saw three people sitting under the eaves, a pot of tea in front of them, chatting about everything.
She happened to have bought some fresh food outside, so she quickened her pace and walked over to the three of them. The textbooks made a "crunching" sound on the snow.
"Grandfather, how are you? Why are you three out here today listening to the wind and watching the snow? It's going to get cold if you stay out here for too long."
This is some northern snack I just bought, especially the Polygonum flower candy. I took a bite and it tasted really good.
After saying that, he put what he had in his hand on the table and motioned the three of them to try it quickly.
Chen Yan put down the teacup in his hand. The steam from the tea dissipated in the icy snow. He looked at the serious Shen Jia and said with a smile:
"How come you're back so early today, you're such a busy man? I heard your tofu workshop is about to open. Have you chosen a date?"
"Not yet, I just came back from downstairs, and the main thing is that the things inside are not ready yet.
If everything is ready, I will come back to see you, Grandfather. I think the opening date you chose last time was a good one. Otherwise, how could we have achieved such rapid success in such a short time?"
With Shen Jia's deliberately coquettish voice, she looked at her grandfather without any confusion.
Who in this world doesn’t like to hear nice words?
Chen Yan was no exception, unable to stop smiling. He kept stroking his beard with his right hand, "Hahahahaha! If that's the case, then Grandfather, please choose an auspicious day next time."
The other two were also infected by the conversation between the grandfather and grandson, especially Chen Ci. It was the first time he saw someone acting like a spoiled child and seeking favors in front of his serious grandfather.
After a lively moment, Shen Jia returned to the kitchen and watched his parents making a mess inside. Now their head chef was clearly Father Shen.
“Cough cough cough!”
Shen Jia couldn't help but cough outside, reminding the two people inside that someone was coming in. She didn't mind seeing her mother wiping her father's sweat, but she didn't know whether the reserved ancients could accept being seen by outsiders?
Sure enough, Mother Shen quickly put down the handkerchief in her hand, looked at the person who came, and shouted happily: "Jia Niang, you are back."
"Yes, I went to look something up today. Anyway, I haven't had much to do lately, so I thought I'd go home. I wonder what delicious food Daddy is going to make today?"
Hearing Shen Jia mention him, Shen Yu's frown instantly relaxed, "Hey! These are the recipes you gave me before. I studied them and decided to have a pot with my family since it's snowing today.
I bought this mutton specially this morning, it's very fresh."
Mutton hotpot immediately came to Shen Jia's mind, but it was a pity that there was no sesame sauce, otherwise it would definitely taste better.
However, she changed her mind and walked to the corner of the kitchen, looking at the jar inside. "That's perfect, then I'll try the pickled cabbage I made earlier and cook it together in the pot. It will definitely taste more delicious."
In addition to making some and keeping them in the shop, Shen Jia also made some and kept them at home. Sauerkraut is a rare delicacy in winter.
The freshly slaughtered mutton had no smell of mutton and was full of freshness and fragrance. Paired with the pickled cabbage prepared by Shen Jia, the Shen family members were sweating and steaming all over in the winter.
Paired with locally brewed white wine, since most girls can't drink much, they also drink the local specialty jujube wine. After taking a sip, the body immediately warms up.
Shen Jia felt that today's jujube wine had a very light taste, and the local variety of sand dates was sweeter.
Shen Hao and Shen Han drank fine wine and ate hot pot. The heat on their faces lingered for a long time. They started chatting excitedly, and the table was filled with their voices.
Sure enough, the whole family got up late the next day.
Moreover, the temperature dropped significantly, and Shen Jia almost felt that the air he exhaled could freeze instantly.
When Shen Jia, Fuqiu and Shen Hao arrived at the shop, the peddler who came to pick up the tofu and the waiter from Huicuilou had already packed their things and left, leaving only the last person still packing things.
As soon as I arrived, I saw Yang Ze, the youngest son of the Yang family, picking up a pen and paper to record the last account.
He looked at the three people who had hurried over without panicking, and his hands did not stop moving. Instead, Yang Shu beside him hurried over to explain:
"Boss, I'm so sorry. You guys didn't show up when the time came today, and people outside were urging us to come, so I took the initiative to hand over the things first.
Don't worry, my youngest son has been to school for a few days, so common words are no problem for him. If there are any mistakes or omissions in the account book today, we are willing to take responsibility."
Originally, Yang Ze looked frail, but who would have thought he was actually a scholar? Such a person would also be willing to sell himself. This person immediately raised a big question mark in Shen Jia's mind.
Fuqiu looked at Yang Ze and saw that he just took the new paper and pen in the room to write, and she felt relieved. She thought that this man had actually gone to the counter to steal the account book.
Now she is the person who manages the accounts in the store. Seeing this, she quickly walked to Yang Ze and looked at the shaking characters. He was indeed a beginner. There were no mistakes in the strokes, but the characters were not up to standard.
However, the content recorded by Yang Ze was actually the same as what the young lady had given her. Fuqiu's eyes flashed with a light and she asked:
"How do you know that the content should be memorized like this?"
The sudden approach of the female voice startled Yang Ze. Looking at the person who came, he felt that he was doing a good thing for the shop, but his heart sank and he said seriously:
"I have previously seen some of the contents of Miss Chen's notes. Due to the urgency of the matter, I used the shop's paper and pen. The money spent will be supplemented by my own monthly salary."
"It seems you have a very good memory. You can even remember everything I accidentally revealed."
"Yes, I'm sorry."
He had indeed done something wrong. Yang Ze felt his face getting hot. Doing such a sneaky thing was definitely not what a gentleman does.
He really let his teacher down, and his face was full of regret and pain.
Seeing this, Fuqiu thought she had done something terrible to humiliate him, and quickly replied, "This isn't entirely your fault; it's also because I wasn't careful enough.
Of course, you're part of our shop, so seeing the contents of the account book isn't a big deal. What I want to ask is, how many years of education did you have?
If you are truly a promising talent, the boss will definitely not let you, a pearl, be left in the dust. In our shop, as long as you are loyal and capable, your future is determined by yourself."
This is what Fuqiu has learned from being with Shen Jia for so long. As long as you discover the strengths of others and make use of them, you can create more money for yourself.
Shen Jia, who understood the situation, also walked over to the two of them and comforted them, "Don't be nervous. Just like Fuqiu said, I'm not a black-hearted owner. As long as you don't do anything detrimental to the shop, this can be overlooked."
Seeing that the two people's expressions did not seem to be fake, Yang Ze raised his hot face and replied:
"I studied in the village for a year and learned the Three Character Classic and the Thousand Character Classic, but I only knew a few simple characters.
What I wrote on paper today is all based on my memory. My handwriting is worse than that of a three-year-old child. I hope you don’t mind.
Looking at the crooked words written on it, Shen Jia also knew that he had studied in a village for a year, which was already a good performance.
Faced with such a talented person, she certainly didn't want to bury him. She stared at her uncle behind her with a pair of expectant eyes, and the meaning was self-evident.
Faced with Shen Jia's request, Shen Hao himself would never refuse once, so he agreed to teach Yang Ze to read and write in his spare time.
Upon hearing this, Yang Shu, who was standing nearby, quickly pulled the unresponsive Yang Ze and knelt on the snow together, shouting, "Thank you, Boss, for your great kindness!"
Three bangs and bangs left their marks on the snow.
However, after staying in the yard for a few minutes, Shen Jia felt the biting cold and quickly invited everyone to go into the house to warm up by the fire.
The temperature drop came without any warning, and the daily demand for tofu also decreased, especially for Li Qin and his group. If the tofu was not kept warm properly, it would have become frozen by the time they arrived at the village.
If Shen Jia had a thermometer, he would have found that the temperature dropped by more than ten degrees Celsius overnight, which has reached the standard of what is called a cold wave in modern times.
Sure enough, two days later, Shen Jia heard from the people that a fight had broken out on the border.
It is said that the Huns were at their wit's end due to the cold weather, so they tore up the contract they had signed before and suddenly attacked and captured two small towns on the border.
The Yan family army has gone to block the way. This is the worst news this winter. It is also the first time that Shen Jia feels that the war is so close to him.
Fortunately, they are located in the south-central part of the entire northern border, and it should take some time for them to reach here. Moreover, their family is not allowed to leave the northern border without an imperial decree.
If the north is lost and the Huns come here, they will have no choice but to fight to the death.
Life still has to go on, and news of the border war continues to come. There is no bad news for the time being. The people of Ning'an Town welcome their new year in such anxious days.
The shop had already announced in advance that they would be closed on Chinese New Year's Day, and all the tofu that needed to be processed had been sold out.
Of course, it is more meaningful to celebrate the New Year when the whole family is together and having a lively time. So Shen Jia did not invite the Yang family to celebrate the New Year together, but let them spend the New Year in the shop.
Anyway, there are all kinds of things in there, and Shen Jia also gave out red envelopes, so it is not difficult to buy some good food.
Of course, the Chinese New Year should be celebrated with joy. Every household hangs red lanterns and puts up couplets and door gods.
Because of the impact of the war, some people are still buying New Year's goods that they prepared in advance.
The Shen family sat around the dining table early, looking at the steaming pot in the center. The last time they had the mutton pot paired with sauerkraut, the whole family fell in love with the taste, so of course they had to have it again during the Chinese New Year.
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