Chapter 246 Jin Nian, we all need to work hard!
Aunt Niu got up early to prepare the New Year's Eve dinner.
Sheng An arrived at the kitchen, and before she even stepped inside, she smelled a rich aroma of braised meat.
Aunt Niu, with her back to the door, was not seen, but her voice was heard first: "It smells so good! Aunt Niu, is the braised sheep's head ready?"
Aunt Niu turned around and glanced at Sheng An, her already stern face becoming even colder: "The kitchen is smoky, what are you doing here?"
Sheng An smiled and said, "Of course I'm here to help you. With so many people eating the New Year's Eve dinner, how can I let you do all the work by yourself?"
As she spoke, she glanced around the kitchen and saw that all the ingredients had been washed and chopped, ready to be cooked into delicious dishes.
Sheng An didn't stand on ceremony with Aunt Niu and took the spatula from her hand: "Today is the New Year, and my husband and two brothers must be homesick. If they can eat dishes from their hometown, they should be in a better mood."
Aunt Niu frowned even more: "You shouldn't overexert yourself right now."
Sheng An's smile widened: "I'm not that delicate."
As the doctor said, her pregnancy was going well and she had no discomfort.
There is no nausea or dry heaving, only a slight increase in drowsiness compared to before.
This was also due to the dry and cold climate in the capital, which forced her to prefer staying warm in bed rather than spending all day by the fire pit.
Looking at the young woman smiling brightly at her, Aunt Niu looked away and picked up another soup spoon: "Do whatever you want, I can't be bothered with you."
As she spoke, she walked to the stove, lifted the lid of the bubbling soup pot, stirred it a few times with a ladle, and squinted to see how the chicken soup was cooking.
Sheng An smiled, nodded to the person sitting in front of the stove and tending the fire, signaling him to start the fire and get busy.
Aunt Niu didn't just stand by and watch; she lit another stove, called Uncle Fu in to light the fire, and busied herself at the stove as well.
With two people cooking, they were both very efficient, and in just half an hour, a sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner was ready.
Looking at the dishes laid out on the cutting board, Uncle Fu said with a smile, "We're in for a treat today."
Soon, the steaming dishes were served on the table.
The elderly people from Uncle Fu and Aunt Niu's houses sat at one table, while Sheng An and his three companions sat at another.
The guards were given extra money to book three tables at a nearby restaurant for them to eat at in rotation, and two of the tables were already occupied.
Seeing the several authentic Qingzhou dishes on the table, Fang Qingzhou and Ye Yunhua's eyes welled up with tears, and they solemnly thanked Sheng An: "Thank you for your hard work, sister-in-law."
Sheng An waved his hand: "It's just a matter of helping out. Aunt Niu does all the washing and chopping by herself, which keeps her very busy."
After hearing this, Fang Qingzhou and Ye Yunhua thanked Aunt Niu again.
Aunt Niu's expressionless face stiffened, and her voice became somewhat dry: "You're welcome."
She wanted to say that it was her duty, and the day after they moved in, they gave her a sum of hard-earned money that other cooks would envy.
Aunt Niu thought this to herself, but couldn't say it out loud.
Seeing this, Sheng An couldn't help but chuckle to himself.
Aunt Niu glanced at her, or rather, glared at her.
Sheng An immediately stopped himself and urged everyone, "Eat it while it's hot, it won't taste good when it's cold."
Everyone laughed and agreed, those who had chopsticks took chopsticks, and those who had wine jugs took wine jugs.
Fang Qingzhou specially brought out the fine wine he had brought from Qingzhou and placed a jar on the table for Sheng Bo and the others. Then, bypassing Sheng An, he personally poured wine for Xu Jinnian and Ye Yunhua, and filled his own wine glass.
Fang Qingzhou and Ye Yunhua were the first to raise their glasses and congratulate the couple sitting opposite them: "This toast is to congratulate Mingyu and your wife."
Sheng An picked up a teacup filled with water and stood up with Xu Jinnian to return the toast: "Thank you."
This was the first time the group had spent the Lunar New Year away from home, and also the first time they had shared a New Year's Eve dinner together. Therefore, they all tacitly suppressed their longing for their relatives in Qingzhou and happily drank and ate, praising Sheng An and Aunt Niu's cooking skills.
Aunt Niu's cooking skills are average, but this braised sheep's head she made was incredibly delicious, with perfect color, aroma, and taste.
The mutton head was so fragrant and tender that it was infused with flavor, leaving a lingering aroma on the palate. Sheng An was amazed by its deliciousness.
She whispered to Xu Jinnian, "Once I successfully learn how to make this braised sheep's head, I won't be afraid to crave it anymore."
Xu Jinnian picked up a handkerchief to wipe the sauce from his wife's mouth and added a piece of mutton head meat to her bowl: "You're so good at this, you'll learn it quickly."
Sheng An was quite pleased with the man's praise. She cut the mutton head meat in her bowl in half, picked up one half and put it in his bowl: "A couple of bites like this is enough."
Xu Jinnian didn't say anything, but kept putting more of her favorite dishes into her bowl.
Several braziers of charcoal were placed in the house. The New Year's Eve dinner lasted a long time, and there were not many leftovers at the end.
Sheng An was also a little full, and lazily leaned back in her chair, not wanting to move.
Just then, Uncle Fu in the courtyard shouted, "It's snowing!"
Sheng An's spirits lifted, and he quickly went to the corridor. Sure enough, he saw snowflakes falling one after another, forming tiny white flowers that were visible to the naked eye on the dark ground.
This was the first snow she had seen since arriving in the capital.
Uncle Fu looked at the sky, feeling both happy and worried: "This snow will probably last for a few days. It won't delay the spring planting next year, but I'm afraid the snow will be too heavy and collapse the houses."
Since the beginning of winter, Beijing has seen few rain or snow events, and the water levels in rivers and ponds are less than half of what they were in previous years.
If this snowfall lasts for two more days, it will alleviate the spring drought next year.
However, every cloud has a silver lining. Every time there is heavy snow, some houses will inevitably collapse under the weight of the snow, making the already impoverished people suffer even more, and there is even the possibility of death.
After hearing this, Sheng An asked, "Wouldn't the government take care of this?"
Uncle Fu shook his head: "There were too many collapsed houses, so the government had to step in to provide disaster relief."
It means that dozens or even hundreds of houses collapsed, and the affected people could only accept their misfortune.
Uncle Fu remembered that many years ago, a snow disaster forced thousands of victims to flee to the city for refuge. It took more than ten days of wrangling in the court before the government finally stepped in to resettle the victims.
Ordinary people are easy to fool. As long as they are fed enough to keep them from starving, they will obediently take the relief grain back to their hometowns and endure hardship.
Unable to endure it any longer, they had no choice but to sell their children to survive.
After every natural disaster, the happiest people are the children. A bag of grain can be exchanged for a young girl, who can then be trained and sold for several times the price.
After hearing what Uncle Fu said, Sheng An fell silent.
In a prosperous city like the capital, when a small-scale disaster occurs, the victims can only suffer on their own, while on the other side, there is peace and prosperity.
This is very unfair.
It is ironic that the disaster victims pay large amounts of land tax every year, yet when they fall into dire straits, they can only rely on themselves for salvation.
Xu Jinnian noticed that Sheng An was in a bad mood and silently held her somewhat cold hand: "It's cold outside, don't get cold."
Sheng An took a deep breath, greeted Uncle Fu, and then walked with Xu Jinnian along the covered walkway towards their residence.
Halfway there, she stopped, looked down and touched her belly, then looked up at the man: "Jin Nian, we both need to work hard."
Work hard to earn money, study hard, and strive to reach higher places so that you can create a better living environment for your child and let him grow up healthy and happy.
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