Chapter 115 Eating Dumplings
Huo Zheng wiped them clean from time to time, his eyes full of smiles.
After chopping a small pile of firewood, the master gave each of the two children a freshly steamed sugar triangle.
"Hold this sweet treat to replenish your energy."
Leilei and Yaoyao held the warm sugar triangles and followed Huo Zheng back, their mouths sweet and their hearts warm.
After everything was packed up, the family prepared to go home.
Yao Yao clutched the sugar triangle in her little hand, not daring to take more than a few bites the whole way. As soon as she saw her mother, she ran up to Lu Mingyue and stuffed the sugar triangle into her hand: "Mom, this is sweet, I saved half for you."
Lu Mingyue took the sugar triangle, which still held the warmth of the child's body, and took a bite. The sweet and sticky red bean paste melted in her mouth, and her heart felt sweet as well.
"Thank you, honey, that's so sweet."
When he got home, Huo Zheng hung up his coat, rubbed his hands together, and said with a smile, "I asked the cafeteria staff today, and they're making cabbage and pork dumplings. Do you think we should eat at home or go to the cafeteria to get some?"
Lu Mingyue thought for a moment and said, "Let's make it ourselves. Homemade tastes better. By the way, you don't need to go to the military camp today, right?"
"I'm not going. There's nothing else to do today except clear snow."
Now that the work was finished and it was getting late, the leaders told everyone to come back and rest early.
"Okay, we still have some meat from the few days ago. How about we make a lotus root and pork dumpling, and also a three-delicacy dumpling?"
Leilei's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he jumped up and said, "Okay, I can chop the filling. Last time Mom made dumplings, I even helped chop the cabbage!"
Yao Yao tugged at Lu Mingyue's clothes and said, "I want to help Mom make dumplings too."
Lu Mingyue smiled and nodded, then turned to the kitchen to boil water, preparing to wash the children's faces and warm them up.
As evening fell, Lu Mingyue put on an apron and busied herself in the kitchen.
First, grate the lotus root into thin shreds, chop it into small pieces, mix it with ground pork with a good balance of lean and fat, sprinkle with chopped green onions and minced ginger, and the aroma of oil mixed with the fragrance of lotus root will fill your nostrils.
On the other side, the soaked glass noodles are chopped and mixed with dried shrimp, chopped eggs and a little chives, and the fresh aroma of the three-delicacy filling is released.
Huo Zhengjin was very strong, so the task of kneading the dough and rolling out the wrappers was entrusted to him.
He washed his hands and sat down at the counter, deftly rolling out the dough with the rolling pin, quickly piling up round dumpling wrappers.
Leilei and Yaoyao also came over and started making dumplings like the adults.
After a long period of practice, the brother and sister's dumplings turned out quite well; at least they didn't give away any flaws.
Huo Zheng looked very satisfied, finally he didn't have to eat porridge with dumpling skins anymore.
Once the water boils, add the dumplings; the two types of dumplings will tumble and roll around in the pot.
In no time, the table was filled with plates of dumplings.
The family sat around the table, dipping their food in vinegar and minced garlic, their noses sweating as they ate.
Huo Zheng picked up a lotus root dumpling for Yao Yao and put a three-delicacy dumpling into Lu Mingyue's bowl: "Homemade dumplings are the best."
"I only like the dumplings that my parents make."
Leilei stuffed two into his mouth in one go.
As the little guy gets older, his appetite increases, and he's grown quite a bit taller.
After finishing her meal and clearing the table, Lu Mingyue carried the remaining dumplings to the vat in the corner of the yard.
She laid a layer of dry straw at the bottom of the vat, placed the dumplings in one by one, and then covered it with a thick cotton cloth.
This is an old method used by islanders to store frozen goods. When it gets cold and they want to eat them, they can take them out and cook them while they are still fresh.
Inside the house, Huo Zheng was squatting by the stove roasting oranges.
He placed the oranges on the stove wall, turning them over from time to time. The orange peels gradually charred, emitting a faint sweet aroma.
Lei Lei and Yao Yao lay on the side watching intently. Yao Yao couldn't resist reaching out to touch it, but Huo Zheng gently patted the back of her hand: "Don't rush, it'll be sweeter when it's soft."
Once the oranges were roasted until their skins were wrinkled, Huo Zheng peeled them and distributed them to the children.
The warm orange segments were sweet with a hint of caramel flavor. Yao Yao took a small bite and mumbled, "It tastes better than a raw orange."
Lu Mingyue wiped her hands as she entered the house, and Huo Zheng immediately handed her a slice: "It's freshly baked, you should try it too."
The family sat around the stove, holding warm oranges in their hands. Huo Zheng mentioned that the team would deliver some more coal to the family compound the next day to help them get through the winter.
Leilei chimed in, saying he wanted to help move the coal, and Yaoyao nodded in agreement.
The next day, just as dawn broke, the sound of a coal delivery truck's bell could be heard outside the courtyard.
Huo Zheng woke up Lei Lei, and the father and son put on thick coats, picked up a carrying pole, and went outside.
The coal deliveryman was unloading shiny black honeycomb briquettes at the alley entrance, and Huo Zheng carried two stacks of coal home.
Leilei followed his father's example, carrying two pieces in a small basket. Although he staggered a bit, he refused to let Huo Zheng help him.
"Dad, I can do it!" He gritted his teeth and moved forward, his little face turning red, and sweat quickly beaded on his forehead.
Inside the house, Lu Mingyue was putting frozen dumplings into a pot.
Yao Yao stood by the stove, carrying a small stool, and helped add cold water to the pot: "Mommy, when are brother and daddy coming back? The dumplings are almost cooked."
Lu Mingyue stirred the dumplings in the pot and said with a smile, "Almost done, let's clean up the corner where we put the coal first."
The mother and daughter moved the clutter in the corner together, and Lu Mingyue swept the ground clean with a broom and laid a layer of tarpaulin on it so that the coal would not get wet from the rain and snow and would be easy to take.
Just after they finished tidying up, Huo Zheng and Lei Lei carried the last stack of coal into the house.
Lu Mingyue quickly handed over towels for the father and son to wipe their sweat, and then ladled the cooked dumplings into a bowl.
There were also some leftover dumplings from last night, which Lu Mingyue made into pan-fried dumplings, and they were equally popular.
While eating, Leilei said, "Mom, I helped Dad carry ten pieces of coal today!"
Huo Zheng patted his head, picked up a dumpling and took a bite: "Our Leilei has grown up and can help with chores at home now."
While they were having breakfast, a familiar greeting came from the courtyard gate. Qin Lie walked in with his wife and children, carrying half a bag of freshly roasted sunflower seeds.
"Huo Zheng, Mingyue, come over for a visit while the weather's nice." He put the melon seeds on the table and pulled the child to sit down on the edge of the kang (heated brick bed).
The troops weren't on heavy duty, and he happened to be off today. He figured he might as well come out and chat with everyone since he was just going to be bored at home anyway.
"With only a few days left until the Chinese New Year, is your family planning to go back to Beijing to visit relatives?"
Qin Lie rubbed his hands together and asked, "My family is thinking about booking tickets. There will be a lot of people before the holiday, so we need to prepare the tickets and New Year's goods in advance."
Upon hearing this, Huo Zheng put down his chopsticks and frowned slightly: "I was just thinking about this too, but there's a lot going on in the team at the end of the year, so I haven't finalized my return date yet."
Lu Mingyue poured Xia Xiaofang a cup of hot water and continued, "It's cold in Beijing too. If we go back, we need to make two thick cotton-padded coats for the children in advance. But we have to wait for Huo Zheng to make the arrangements so as not to delay our work."
Xia Xiaofang nodded in agreement: "That's right, we military dependents all have to follow the rhythm of the unit. If you set a date, you can keep each other company."
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