Chapter 69 Dinner Menu Haircut
After Christmas, New Year's Day will come soon. Miya Chiri only rested for two days before immediately starting to prepare for the New Year. Tenriko reluctantly followed Kuroi Misato away, as she also had her own New Year's things to do.
Only the two older girls, Miya Chiri and Ieiri Naoko, were left at home to prepare for the New Year. First up was cleaning. She didn't know the local custom of when to do the main cleaning, but once she got started, she thoroughly swept the house from top to bottom, inside and out. Since the chimney couldn't be cleaned from the inside, she even cleaned the outside using a ladder.
The children are responsible for cleaning the floors, tables, chairs and vases in the house. Any place they can reach is their responsibility.
Ieiri Naoko took a rag and slowly wiped the windows and door frames that a child couldn't reach even with a stool. Miya Chiri lifted the screen window to wash it outside. Ieiri Naoko felt cold watching her: "Do we have to wash it outside? Wouldn't it be better to wash it in the bathroom with hot water?"
Gong Zhili: "I bury them in the snow and sweep them over twice with a broom, and they'll be clean."
Ieiri Naoko put down the rag and said, "I want to play too."
Gong Zhili: "It's not a joke."
Ieiri Naoko: "Stop it, you obviously want to play in the snow."
She and Gong Zhili stood in the snow, scrubbing the screen windows with a broom, when she suddenly thought, "Have you written your New Year's card yet?"
Gong Zhili: "Ah? New Year's card?"
Ieiri Naoko glanced at her and sighed, "Forget it, let's talk about it next year. A New Year's card sent now won't arrive by New Year's Day."
Maybe there was no custom of sending New Year's cards where Zhili lived before.
"But maybe Haibara and the others will send it to you," Ieiri Shoko said. "Is there a post office in the village?"
Gong Zhili: "Mail is sent to the school's mailroom. People in the village send and receive mail there."
They cleaned the window screens and then went to clean the kitchen.
Cleaning the kitchen is more difficult than other places. Gong Zhili simply put on an apron, dust cap, mask, and gloves, took a steel wool and detergent, and started scrubbing the grease.
After being busy in the kitchen all day, the children had to go to the convenience store for their meals, but they liked it very much. After all, no matter how delicious the food at home is, sometimes they would want to try something less healthy. Gong Zhili welcomed this, as she also wanted to eat bento occasionally.
The results of a busy day were gratifying. All the cabinets in the kitchen were sparkling, the bluestone floor had never looked so new, and the stone stove was also cleaned very well.
Ieiri Naoko opened the lid of the wooden barrel containing the wood ash and asked, "You have been collecting this ash for a long time. Is there any use for it?"
Gong Zhili: "Wood ash has many uses and is used in many places. At the beginning, I even thought of using it as a cleaning agent..."
At that time, I really thought I had come to a very deadly place.
Ieiri Shoko: "Ah, is it similar to the soap-making process?"
Gong Zhili: "Well, but I didn't think of such a troublesome method at the time. The simplest cleaning method is to soak wood ash in water to clarify it, and then use the clarified water to wash the body..."
Ieiri Naoko was silent for a moment: "Is it so difficult?"
Gong Zhili waved his hand: "Just in case."
The next day, Gong Zhili received several New Year's cards from the school's logistics teacher.
Nanami Kento, Haibara Yu, Geto Suguru, Tenchi Riko, and Kuroi Misato all sent New Year's cards, expressing their gratitude for her care and concern last year and asking for her guidance in the new year. Even Mr. Noctua, whom she had only met once, sent one. As she read through them, she exclaimed, "So that's how you write a New Year's card. Do you have to write one to everyone you know?"
This year, Ieiri Shoko had no plans to go home for the New Year. She had already told her family to go on vacation to Hawaii, and she was determined to stay in the village. She sat on the kotatsu, reading a book, and said, "I don't have to write everything. Look, I haven't written anything about Gojo, have I?"
Gong Zhili flipped through it and said, "Oh, right? Why didn't he write? Didn't he write to you either?"
Ieiri Shoko had already said that this year's New Year's cards would be sent to Miya Chiri, so she also had a few similar New Year's cards. As for other seniors who didn't know about this, I'd like to ask them to send their New Year's cards to her hometown instead.
Hearing Gong Zhili's doubts, she said, "Gojo said it would be too troublesome for his family to write a New Year's card, so he didn't write one."
Gong Zhili: "That makes sense. He is the eldest young master after all."
Ieiri Naoko smiled silently: "Or maybe he finds it troublesome."
Gong Zhili flipped through the pages for a while, then thought again, "Grandpa Itadori will be here on New Year's Eve. Do you think it's me who will give the red envelope to Hisahito on New Year's Day, or will it be Grandpa Itadori?"
Ieiri Shoko: "Think about it the other way around. If you gave red envelopes to everyone else and only Hisahito didn't receive yours, wouldn't he be very frustrated?"
Gong Zhili: "Ah, that's true."
She continued to look through the New Year's cards, a hint of hesitation showing on her face.
Ieiri Naoko simply put down the book and asked, "What do you want to say?"
Gong Zhili: "Why don't you come to see Hui, Mr. Shen'er?"
Ieiri Shoko said, "As for him...let me ask first, what is your initial impression of him?"
Gong Zhili: "Very strong, very dangerous, and has a bad temper."
Ieiri Shoko: "Your initial impression is correct. Let me tell you more about his past."
She talked about Fuhuheishen's past, including how he was born into a Zen family, how he was abandoned by his family for more than ten years despite being a god and a curse-bound being, and how he later met his wife, started a family, and his wife's death, etc.
Miya Chiri listened quietly. She learned more about Fushiguro Shier and did not comment on his experience. She asked, "Did Gojo also tell you these things?"
Ieiri Shoko: "Ah...mostly, yes."
Gong Zhili sighed: "Okay, let's not talk about this for now. Anyway, if he wants Hui back in the future, I won't give it to him."
Ieiri Glass: "Don't you respect your child's opinion?"
Gong Zhili: "That's going to have to wait until he reaches adulthood."
Ieiri Shoko: "I don't think you need to worry about that... Fushiguro Jyouji is a horse racing enthusiast and often has very little money. He wouldn't even be able to raise a child."
Gong Zhili: "...Is that so?"
She put away the New Year's card, picked up the red envelope she had prepared a few days ago, and asked, "How much do you usually receive in red envelopes?"
Ieiri Naoko recalls: "A thousand yuan...right? I used to be happy just having a thousand yuan in my pocket."
Gong Zhili nodded, then took out a pack of Fukuzawa Yukichi notes and began stuffing them into the red envelope one by one.
Ieiri Naoko sighed: "The kids will be so happy that they will go crazy."
Gong Zhili also sighed: "I don't think so. They have a very low desire to spend money. Usually they are satisfied with buying snacks and toys. Do they not know how to spend money?"
Ieiri Glass: "Aren't all children like this?"
Gong Zhili recalled what she would do after getting money when she was a child: first buy her favorite snacks and toys, and then buy a lot of firecrackers - these holiday-limited items can be considered high-priced items in the apocalyptic territory, so she always felt that her pocket money was not enough.
Thinking of firecrackers, she asked, "Do you set off fireworks or firecrackers during the New Year?"
Ieiri Glass: "Only incense sticks, fireworks and small
There are things like spinning fireworks, but those are only for summer, right? There aren't any fireworks for New Year's, either. Of course, local festivals might have fireworks displays. "Those aren't very common, though."
Gong Zhili was disappointed: "Then the New Year will not be lively at all?"
Ieiri Naoko gave her an idea: "You can stock up on some small fireworks next summer and use them during the New Year."
She also hopes that Gong Zhili can feel some sense of integration and happiness in the New Year.
Gong Zhili leaned on the table a little disappointedly and muttered: "Is that so..."
Ieiri Naoko looked at her for a while, took out his cell phone and started sending messages.
There is much more to the New Year than just this. She put away her lucky money and went to the kitchen to prepare New Year's dishes.
Ieiri Shoko only had a vague understanding of the New Year's "Osechi Ryori" and could not give a clear recipe. Miya Chiri frowned at the mention of cold dishes and asked, "Why do we eat cold food in winter?"
Ieiri Naoko searched online for the answer and read it to her: "It's mainly so that housewives who work all year round can have three days of rest, so they have to eat cold food during these few days..."
Gong Zhili was speechless. She didn't comment on the division of labor and distorted customs in some families in this country. She only said, "If you don't want to cook, then make extra for the New Year's Eve dinner and eat the leftovers for the next few days. It's better to heat it up than to eat it cold."
They used to do this during the New Year. It wasn't much trouble and they could still have a rest.
Ieiri Nozomi had no objection, after all, she was the one waiting to eat.
She has been planning the menu for the New Year's dinner these past two days, and is also planning to go to the other side of the lake to dig a hole for fishing. There must be fish in the New Year's dinner!
The village chief gave her a kadomatsu and a mirror cake and left. When Ieiri Shoko saw these two things, she couldn't stop laughing.
Gong Zhili placed the door pine by the door as the village chief had instructed, and then stacked the rice cakes and oranges on top of them, wondering, "What are you laughing at?"
Ieiri Naoko's laughter died down, and her tone rose. "Both of these things are related to 'welcoming the gods' and 'worshipping the gods,' but as a 'shrine maiden,' you actually need outsiders to help you prepare these things. And your village chief didn't say anything, just gave you the things and left. Isn't that interesting?"
Gong Zhili laughed for a while when he heard this and also found it very interesting.
After cleaning up the house inside and out, Gong Zhili put the house design drawings aside and began to ask the children what kind of meal they would like to have during the New Year.
The living room was cozy in the evening. Some family members gathered around the fireplace, while others huddled on the sofa, discussing what else to prepare for the New Year, with the New Year's dinner being the most important one.
Yujin asked, "Can it only be a feast? I want to eat cherry radish."
Tsu Miki was helpless: "You are full now, Your Highness, your head can only hold pickles."
The cherry radish pickled by Gong Zhili is refreshing and delicious after a meal.
"Cherry radish, sure. It's nice to have some after dinner," Gong Zhili said. "But we need to think of something delicious even when we're full. I rarely make the same dishes twice, so if there's anything you'd like to try again, please let me know."
Her recipes, coupled with a rich variety of seasonal ingredients and a wide variety of spices, mean that you won’t get tired of eating any of the dishes over and over again.
Mimiko hesitated for a moment and said, "I want to eat taro cakes."
Nanako nodded vigorously: "Exactly, exactly the same thing that Chiri-neeji made for us the first time!"
Gong Zhili smiled, wrote the name of the taro cake on a piece of paper, and said, "If you want to eat chicken or duck, that's fine too. The chicks and ducklings have already hatched, haven't they? If we don't eat some of them, the meat will get tough."
Hisahito's eyes began to circle: "So many things..."
Megumi Fushiguro looked at everyone and said, "I want to eat shrimp tempura."
Tsumeki was a little nervous: "Does the family still have shrimp in winter?"
Gong Zhili touched her chin and said, "As for frozen shrimps, yes, we have them." When she bought the freezer, she also bought a lot of frozen food just for this occasion.
Ieiri Naoko raised her hand: "I want to eat the candied food you made once before...what was it?"
Gong Zhili: "Candied sweet potatoes, no problem. We really need to eat the sweet potatoes quickly."
Nanako: "Braised pork!"
Gong Zhili: "Ah... you thought of sweet dishes right away? Never mind. Hmm, I'll add a dish of garlic pork."
Yujin: "Then I want to eat chestnuts!"
Gong Zhili: "Okay, roasted chicken with chestnuts. Speaking of dry goods at home, let's have the old duck and bamboo shoot soup."
She wrote quickly, and soon she had written eighteen dishes from cold appetizers to desserts.
When Ieiri Naoko took the menu, she gasped. "So many dishes, including fried food, and several large dishes. Are you going to stay in the kitchen all day on New Year's Eve? Is there anything I can do to help?"
Gong Zhili affirmed: "Of course the New Year's dinner is prepared by the whole family together, no one is allowed to be lazy!"
The children were very excited and begged Naoko to read the menu. As Naoko read, she asked, "There are already so many dishes. Do we still need to make dumplings? Isn't that too much?"
Gong Zhili insisted: "It's New Year's, so it doesn't matter if there are more dishes. The dumplings can be made in advance."
She stretched and said, "Okay, I'm going to take you to the village to get your hair cut tomorrow, so go to bed."
Some children's hair in the front is too long and needs to be trimmed.
The next day.
Gong Zhili first sent the children to the only barber shop in the village, asked Jialiu Gaozi to accompany them, and she herself took a fishing rod and tools for drilling holes to go fishing on the lake.
After she brought the big fish she caught home, processed it and froze it, Ieiri Nozomi came back with a group of children.
"How's the haircut going?" Gong Zhili lifted the thick curtain in the living room. "Let me see..."
Megumi Fushiguro and Yuji Itadori, who were originally depressed, immediately hid behind Nozomi Ieiri.
"Oh? Did it fail?" Gong Zhili looked at the three girls carefully and found that their hair was normal, neater and more tidy than before the cut. It seemed that the hairdresser's skills were not bad?
Ieiri Naoko spread her hands and said, "Their hair was too messy, so the barber simply cut their hair short."
Gong Zhili said to the two boys, "That can't be helped. As long as your hair isn't too short, it's not considered a failure—"
Yuji Itadori poked his head out: "Really?"
When Gong Zhili saw it at first glance, she almost burst out laughing: the barber really cut all the sticky hair short. After blow-drying, Yuji's hair looked like a furry pink fruit.
She tried hard to suppress her laughter and said, "It's okay. Children's hair grows very fast, and it's furry and warm."
Fushiguro Megumi also walked out slowly and whispered, "My old hair is also very warm."
Seeing his round black furry head, Gong Zhili couldn't help laughing out loud.
The two boys hid away in grief and anger until dinner time, when Gong Zhili stood outside the study and apologized to them sincerely, and only then did he coax them into silence.
"It feels really good, though," Miyajima said, stroking Megumi Fushiguro's head. "It's so soft."
Megumi Fushiguro ate her meal angrily and decided to ignore her sister Chiri for the time being.
Yuji Itadori recovered quickly, as long as Chiri Miya praised him. Chiri's smile meant that she liked him!
He finished a big bowl of soup and shook his head in satisfaction.
Ieiri Naoko breathed a sigh of relief: "You must have a way. I really can't do anything with children."
In fact, she also thought it was cute, but she didn't dare say it in front of the child.
When Itadori Yasuke saw his grandson's round head coming over to play, the corner of his eye twitched. The barbers he had previously used were all veterans who had worked nearby for many years. The barbers in this village didn't seem to be very skilled...
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The author has something to say: Now I have gradually found the trick to concentrate, that is, don't get angry when working during the day, and your attention will be focused at night. This is the wisdom of workers~
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