Chapter 60: Rich to the point of overflowing with oil
Zhang Hongying laughed: "You don't have that saying?"
Wen Wan shook her head blankly. She was too embarrassed to say that she had never done these things at home.
Lu Dongping had to be on duty today, so he left after breakfast. No one urged Lu Donglin to write today, so he completely let himself go. He called Lu Dongfu, and he got a gray sandbag from somewhere and started playing in the yard.
Wen Wan was also dragged over, and together with Lu Chun'e, there were four people in total. The older and younger children were in groups of two, and it was very lively.
Wen Wan followed them and played with sandbags for a while. She was sweating warmly and didn't feel cold even though there was no sun.
However, she had never played so crazily before and was a little overwhelmed, so the sandbag group disbanded after a while.
Lu Donglin and Lu Dongfu ran away with slingshots.
Zhang Hongying asked Lu Chun'e to pick up some oil-dregs buns and send them to the next door, so that she could take a look and see what was prepared over there so that she would have a better idea.
Lu Chun'e came back trotting a short while later, with a smile on her face. She came in with the bowl she had brought out, and her voice had already entered the house before she even entered: "Mom, my aunt's family steamed some sugar-coated horns, and they gave me this big bowl."
Lu Minghai's family also had a rich New Year's celebration this year. Not only did they steam mixed flour buns, they also steamed tofu and mixed buns, and sugar buns.
The sugar buns steamed by people in Ganling are different from the dumplings. They are semi-circular, with pleats on the edges, made with leavened dough, and are round and plump.
Lu Dongcheng is in the army, and many of the tickets he has are special supplies, which are not common in this mountain area.
During the Chinese New Year, we not only have brown sugar, but also peanuts and other snacks.
Gao Xiulan peeled it, fried it in a pan, chopped it up with a knife, added some brown sugar and wrapped it in sugar. It tasted fragrant and sweet when she took a bite.
Zhang Hongying said, "Your aunt is just too polite. Have you thanked her?"
Lu Chun'e nodded: "Of course I said thank you."
Zhang Hongying asked her, "Have you seen what they have done?"
Lu Chun'e answered her in detail, "We've dug some spinach from the field and blanched it, mixing it with the ash and making a cold dish. The bacon is already cooked, and the spareribs and radish cocoons are stewing in the pot. We've fished out the fat and said we'll start stir-frying it soon." Then she asked, "Mom, if we're adding more food, what should we cook? Sister Wenwan bought some meat and pig's trotters yesterday."
"You definitely can't cook pork trotters today." It's not that she's stingy. After all, it was bought by Wen Wan. There are six people on their side, seven people in the old family, and more than a dozen people in total. So there's not enough chopsticks for each person to eat with one pork trotter.
"How can I give the whole family what your sister Wenwan bought? I have to save it and cook it tomorrow when there are people in the house. She can eat more."
Lu Chun'e asked, "Where's the meat?"
"Didn't your sister Wen Wan buy that too? Aren't you all craving dumplings? Your brother brought back some white flour. Knead some tomorrow morning and make meat dumplings. Our whole family is getting a great deal on it. How could we give it over there?"
After saying that, he suddenly remembered and warned Lu Chun'e: "Don't tell anyone about Wen Wan buying meat, and don't tell your aunt. Whether Lu Donglin knows about it or not, tell him later and don't let him tell anyone about it."
Lu Chun'e nodded: "I know, I will remind him later."
"Mom, what are we going to do later?"
Zhang Hongying said, "Whatever we have at home, your aunt's side has it. We've already cooked some bacon and radish cocoons in the pot. We'll cut them up and fry them up later. There are also eggs. We usually don't eat them, but if we cook a little and cut them up, they'll be a great side dish for wine. Didn't your brother also buy half a pound of peanuts yesterday? If you have nothing to do now, go peel them and I'll stir-fry them in the pot later. They'll go even better with wine."
"That's all that's enough. No other year has been as busy as this one."
Lu Chun'e's face and eyes were full of smiles. This was the first time in her life that she had celebrated such a prosperous New Year.
Zhang Hongying poured the sugar buns that Lu Chun'e had brought into the basket to free up the bowl, then turned around and called out to Wen Wan, "These buns are still warm. Wen Wan, stop busying yourself. Wash your hands and come over to eat one while it's still hot. It's getting late."
Wen Wan shook her head: "It's not time to eat yet, let's eat together when it's time."
Zhang Hongying didn't try to persuade her any further. "I'm a straightforward person. I don't beat around the bush or try to persuade people. When I tell you to eat, I really mean it. I'm not just pretending. Dinner will probably be a little late tonight. If you don't eat now, you'll be hungry later."
Wen Wan waved her hand indifferently: "I'm hungry, so of course I won't be polite. Just wait a little longer and I'll just have a little bite. I won't go to Uncle Minghai's house with you." It was New Year's Day, and she was living with Lu Dongping's family. It would be fine for her to just have a meal there, but why would she go to Lu Minghai's house?
Zhang Hongying said, "That can't be possible. It's the New Year's Eve dinner. What would it look like if you were eating alone? Don't be embarrassed. Everyone has their first meeting. The first time is awkward, but the second time is familiar. Gradually, things will get better. Don't be embarrassed."
Wen Wan was really embarrassed.
Zhang Hongying swiftly prepared the evening's dishes, and while busy, she told Wen Wan about family matters: "I'm telling you this from the heart. Dongping's grandfather and mother-in-law passed away early, and his uncle was only fifteen or sixteen at the time, with the remaining two even younger. Poor thing, he suffered so much to grow up. His uncle was the eldest, so he had to take care of his younger brother, and the three of them had to find a way to survive together. Later, when they were older, Dongping's aunt came into the house, and life slowly got back to normal. His aunt was alone, having to take care of the family and the three brothers. She cooked for four people, washed clothes for four people, and even made a pair of shoes for each person, never showing favoritism.
Decades have passed in a flash. In other families, brothers have each started their own families, and there are bound to be bumps and bruises, but we don’t have that in our family.”
"When I came to this family, Dongping's father said that without his elder brother, without him, Lu Mingjiang, he wouldn't ask for his father's care and support in the future, but we must have a mutual relationship in this life, and the brotherhood must never be broken."
Wen Wan said, "In our family, there's only my dad, and no other uncles. Well, my grandmother has three uncles, and my mom is the youngest. Anyway, all the uncles love my mom and are very good to me. And the brothers and sisters from my uncle's family are also very good. We have never argued or fought, and they are all very good to me."
She rarely talked about her family, so Zhang Hongying took the opportunity to ask her, "How many brothers and sisters do you have?"
"I'm the only one. My dad told me that I was born with a difficult labor. My mom put a lot of effort into giving birth to me. Then her health started to deteriorate, and so did mine. My dad said that he only had the means to support me and my mom. He couldn't support more than that, so he didn't want any more."
Zhang Hongying glanced at her several times. She was a little thinner, but her little face was rosy and she still looked a little plump. She didn't look like she was in poor health.
"You're the only one here. How could your parents bear to let you leave home and come to such a remote place like ours?"
Wen Wan paused slightly as she held the sign. "The country has called for educated youth to go to the countryside, and my age just meets the requirement. My dad is a soldier, and he believes that we should lead by example and be proactive and conscious in everything we do, so I signed up."
Zhang Hongying sighed, "I'm uneducated and don't understand any profound principles, but these educated youth went to the countryside to suffer. What have you city kids ever done at home? Can you tell the difference between leeks and wheat seedlings? And you come here to farm? Really? If you have education, you should do what educated people do. How can educated people do farming well?"
Wen Wan ignored her words, smiled, and went back to her busy work: "Of course you can't do it. If you can't do it, then learn it! If you can recognize the characters and learn the knowledge well, then you can learn to farm well. Farming is like studying, it's also a kind of knowledge. Just study hard and that's all."
As they were talking, the aroma of the meat in the pot could be smelled slowly. Lu Donglin ran in from outside, sweating profusely, holding a ball of fur in his hand: "Sister, Sister Wenwan, look, this is good stuff!"
"You're so impatient! Can you please walk properly? What are you busy with?" Zhang Hongying yelled at him, but he didn't react at all. He ran straight to Wen Wan, holding a furry gray rabbit the size of a fist in his hand.
Wen Wan's eyes lit up: "Rabbit! Did you catch it?"
"Brother Dongfu and I caught two together. We split them up, but the old rabbit got away and we weren't able to catch it."
"You are so good at catching rabbits."
Wen Wan stopped knitting, stuffed the wool into her pocket, and took the rabbit from him.
Lu Donglin handed it to her carefully: "Go slowly, this thing feels full moon, its legs are very strong, it kicks people! There are several of them in total, I almost got a stitch in the side chasing them before I caught this one."
Wen Wan had never seen this before. She was so fond of it that she refused to let go. Lu Chun'e ran into the house and found an old cloth band as thick as a chopstick. She tied it around the rabbit's neck and then passed it through its armpits. "This way, it will definitely not be able to escape."
Wen Wan asked: "Is this easy to raise?" I want to raise it. It's so furry and cute.
"Isn't it difficult to raise wild things like this?"
Zhang Hongying said, "I've raised chickens and pigs before, but I've never raised rabbits, whether domestic or wild. But I heard that these wild animals are very wild and may be difficult to raise. At least if you feed them, they will eat, then there is a possibility."
Wen Wan stood up and said, "Then I'll give it a try. I'll get some leaves for it to eat and see if it eats them."
Having said that, he ran out following Lu Dongping.
Zhang Hongying shook her head: "You're a grown-up girl, but you're still acting like a child."
As he spoke, Lu Mingjiang came back from outside.
Zhang Hongying asked him, "Didn't you say you didn't want to work today? Why haven't you been seen since breakfast?"
Lu Mingjiang sat down by the fire pit and said, "I went around the team. Isn't Dongping going to build a house? I asked my elder brother, and he said that potatoes should be planted after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. So we have to plow the land and carry manure in advance. We still have a few days to spare. After tomorrow, when we are not busy, we will empty the things in the shed and knock down the wall first. When there is nothing to do, dig the soil for the wall and let it soak. When the busy season of the first half of the year is almost over, we can find time to tamp the soil."
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