Chapter 70 A Promise Is Made
Yi County is more than 90 li away from Zijing Pass. Although it is not a residential area for military families and ordinary people are allowed to settle there, because it is close to the border, ordinary people are still unwilling to live there if they have a choice.
The thought flashed through Xie Wanniang's mind. Before she could think about whether she should go, or the pros and cons, she subconsciously frowned and asked Jiang Yuan, "Do you want to go to the border?"
Jiang Yuan nodded, "If you are spotted by someone you know, we can move up the schedule."
Xie Wanniang was taken aback, then slowly smiled and said, "No, if you take me away, I'm afraid my eccentric grandmother and father will sue you in court for 'abducting a respectable woman'."
Jiang Yuan's mind worked quickly. "You have 'amnesia' and can't remember your family. Since I saved you, I naturally have to take responsibility for you to the end."
Realizing belatedly what he had said, Jiang Yuan blushed uncontrollably.
He turned his head away, trying to hide his flushed face, but Xie Wanniang noticed his red neck and ears.
Xie Wanniang felt a mix of bitterness and tenderness in her heart. She smiled slightly and said, "Then it's settled. You have to take full responsibility for me."
Jiang Yuan turned his head sharply, his clear eyes filled with disbelief as he carefully traced Xie Wanniang's smiling face.
Xie Wanniang felt a little nervous, but her face remained calm. "What, are you going to back out?"
Jiang Yuan shook his head vigorously, "No, I didn't."
Realizing belatedly his eagerness and loss of composure, Jiang Yuan adjusted his expression and tone somewhat embarrassedly, "I...I'm willing."
Xie Wanniang couldn't help but chuckle. This was the first time she had ever seen such a clear change in expression or felt such a strong emotional fluctuation in Jiang Yuan.
Extending her light tan right hand, Xie Wanniang said gently, "Then it's a deal."
Jiang Yuan was stunned for a moment before he reacted. He straightened his posture, and with an extremely serious expression, raised his right hand and gave Xie Wanniang a light high five. "It's a deal."
No one knew that on this special day of bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new, in Hao Yu's slightly dim kitchen, which was filled with an old-fashioned atmosphere, the two young people, with only heaven and earth as witnesses, made a very subtle promise to each other to weather the storms and advance and retreat together in the days to come.
***
After a quick dinner before it got dark, Xie Wanniang and the others started making dumplings.
The dumpling wrappers are made of pure white flour, and the filling is the most common classic combination here—pork and cabbage, which symbolizes the gathering of wealth and abundance every year, bringing good luck.
After kneading the dough and mixing the filling, Xie Wanniang washed six copper coins, six red dates, and eighteen peanuts. These would also be wrapped in the dumplings later, serving as a surprise "hidden ingredient" in the dumpling filling.
Copper coins symbolize "good fortune in the new year," red dates symbolize "sweet life" and "early birth of a son," and peanuts, also known as "longevity fruit," symbolize "immortality" and health and longevity.
Besides these most commonly used surprise "hidden" items, some families also use sugar cubes or red bean paste instead of red dates, and pine nuts instead of peanuts.
When Xie Wanniang lived in modern times, there were even some mischievous people who would add whole sour plums, as well as chili peppers, mustard, Sichuan peppercorns, garlic cloves, and ginger to the dumpling filling.
Of course, Xie Wanniang always disliked such pranks. She not only disliked others playing tricks on her in this way, but she would never play tricks on others in this way either.
Born an orphan, she grew up in hardship, sometimes hungry and sometimes full. For her, food was incredibly precious, and being able to eat her fill was something to be grateful for. She couldn't bring herself to use food as a tool for pranks, nor could she be so cruel.
After making dumplings with Jiang Yuan, Xie Wanniang went back to her room to change into a new dress.
Jiang Yuan, Hao Yu, and Xiao Yang also changed into the new clothes that Xie Wanniang had made for them. The four of them sat down in the main room with smiles on their faces, bathed in the dim light of the oil lamp, chatting idly while occasionally taking out some snacks to eat.
For Jiang Yuan, Hao Yu, and Xiao Yang, this was the most abundant, delicious, and joyful New Year they had experienced in recent years.
For Xie Wanniang, this was the New Year with the fewest people she had ever met in her life.
When she was a child, she lived with her mother in a Taoist temple. There were many female Taoist priests there who had nowhere else to go. There were quite a few of them, but they all had their own hardships and were very poor. They did not celebrate the New Year with joy.
When they returned to the Xie family, her adoptive parents would try their best to make the New Year celebration more festive and grand. They would prepare a lot of New Year's goods and always have all the direct descendants gather together at the ancestral home to celebrate the New Year.
However, it was still a time of war. Although Tang County was not affected by the civil war among the warlords because it was close to the border, the foreign tribes in the north took the opportunity to move south. The border army was isolated and helpless, unable to defend itself effectively.
In addition, natural disasters and man-made calamities occasionally occurred during this period, so people's lives were not easy.
The Xie family, a prominent clan for generations, was no exception; each member faced their own hardships and difficulties.
Therefore, as the backbone of the Xie clan's direct line, the current clan head and clan head's wife, her adoptive parents not only had to take care of their large family, but also had to deal with clan disputes from time to time and lend a helping hand to clan members when they encountered difficulties.
Such situations requiring their manpower and effort not only arise unexpectedly on ordinary days, but also erupt in waves every Chinese New Year, adding a unique liveliness to the Xie family's holiday.
Xie Wanniang disliked the kind of lively atmosphere that meant conflict and trouble. Compared to the noisy New Year's atmosphere in the Xie family, she preferred the joy and warmth of spending New Year's Eve with Jiang Yuan and the other two this year.
Xie Wanniang picked up a frozen pear, tore off a small piece of its skin, and then put her mouth to it, slurping up the sweet pear juice.
This is one of her favorite fruits, and Jiang Yuan prepared a lot of it and kept it at home because she liked to eat it.
Besides this, Xie Wanniang also loves to eat candied hawthorn. Not the modern kind made with a variety of ingredients such as grapes, oranges, strawberries, and cherry tomatoes, but the basic version made with hawthorn and rock sugar.
Hao Yu and Jiang Yuan don't like sour food, but because Xie Wanniang likes it, Jiang Yuan always brings back two skewers whenever he goes to town and meets a vendor selling candied hawthorns, to share with her and Xiao Yang.
Xie Wanniang ate to her heart's content, but Jiang Yuan was often pointed at and gossiped about by the villagers because of her.
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