Chapter 206: Returning Home in the Snow, Warming Up the Hearth with Love
The wooden door of the guesthouse creaked in the north wind, and the red lanterns hanging from the lintel swayed in the wind, casting a warm red light. Inside, however, the building was bustling with activity. The charcoal fire burned brightly, scorching the brick floor. The servants from the tenement were gathered around a table, settling accounts. The clacking of abacus beads mingled with the aroma of cooking wafting from the kitchen, filling the air with the scent of life.
Liu Qing was wearing a navy blue short coat, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He was bending over to seal a newly arrived jar of wine, his knuckles stained with wine. He looked up and saw the figure at the door. His eyes lit up, and he stood up and smiled, "Xiaoyanzi! Ziwei! Why are you here?"
Xiaoyanzi was wrapped in a camel-colored cloak, the fur on the edge of the hood dusted with snow. She took off her hood, revealing a pair of sparkling eyes, and brushed off the snow. "Come and have some free food! I heard Brother Liu made mutton soup today?" Behind her, Ziwei, wearing a moon-white cotton-padded jacket and holding a food box, smiled and nodded. "I just came out of the palace and brought some snacks from the imperial kitchen for Jinsuo."
Jinsuo came out from the inner room. She had her hair in twin buns and wore an indigo apron with a little flour on it. She took the food box and smiled widely. "Princess Ziwei really loves me!" She opened the food box, revealing several exquisite pastries. "Come in and sit down. I just baked some jujube paste cakes. They're still hot."
It was even warmer in the warm room. Pots of green plants lined the shelves against the wall, and daffodils were in full bloom on the windowsill. Little Swallow plopped down on the edge of the kang, picked up a piece of jujube paste cake, and stuffed it into her mouth, mumbling, "Jinsuo's cooking is getting better and better. It's even more delicious than the ones in the imperial kitchen!"
Ziwei sat beside her, picked up a handkerchief and wiped the cake crumbs from the corner of her mouth. She said softly, "Eat slowly. No one's going to snatch it from you." She looked at Liu Qing and asked, "How's the hotel business lately? Have the rumors outside had any impact?"
Liu Qing walked towards the kitchen, his voice booming, "Don't worry! Our hotel relies on authenticity. Our guests value the taste, so why would they be swayed by a few gossips?" He brought out a large bowl of milky white mutton soup, sprinkled with emerald green chopped green onions. "Drink it while it's hot to drive away the cold."
Xiaoyanzi took the soup bowl, blew on the hot steam, and took a big sip. The warmth spread in her stomach, and she smacked her lips. "Delicious! Brother Liu, your cooking skills are good enough to make you a royal chef in the palace!"
"Don't," Liu Qing smiled and waved his hands. "How can I be as comfortable in the palace as I am in the guesthouse?" He glanced at Jinsuo with a smile in his eyes. "Besides, Jinsuo is still waiting for me to cook for her for the rest of her life."
Jinsuo blushed and reached out to twist his arm: "What nonsense are you talking about!" She turned around and ran to the kitchen, her ears red.
Xiaoyanzi was watching from the side and laughed so hard that she poked Ziwei: "Look at those two, they're so affectionate!"
Ziwei smiled and shook her head. Just as she was about to speak, Ertai came in, supporting Liuhong. Liuhong was wrapped in a pink cloak and holding a large stuffed tiger doll. The doll was a majestic tiger with gleaming black glass beads. As soon as she entered, she yelled, "I'm freezing! Ertai, why did you buy this? It's so heavy!"
Ertai was wearing a royal blue cotton robe and a melon-shaped hat. He was carrying a basket of sugar paintings. He smiled and said, "Didn't you say yesterday that you liked tiger-head puppets? I just bought this sugar painting at the temple fair. It's in the dragon shape you like." He handed the sugar painting to Liu Hong, "Try it quickly. It hasn't melted yet."
Liu Hong thought it was troublesome, but still took the sugar painting and took a small bite. The sweet malt aroma spread in her mouth. She glared at Ertai and said, "You are so sweet!" But the corners of her mouth were raised high.
"Wow, boom! This tiger-head puppet is so majestic!" Little Mosquito ran out from the inner room and came to Liu Hong, wanting to touch it but not daring to. "It's even more majestic than the lion puppet I saw last time!"
Xiao Dengzi also followed out, holding a copy of Journey to the West, and said with a smile: "If this puppet were alive, it would definitely be able to defeat demons and monsters like Sun Wukong!"
"Go away, stop making trouble." Xiaoyanzi smiled and pushed Xiaowenzi away. "Liuhong, this doll is really beautiful. How much did you buy it for?"
"Who said I bought it?" Ertai raised his chin proudly. "I asked the embroidery master to make this for me. It's one of a kind!" He looked at Liu Hong with sparkling eyes. "Do you like it?"
Liu Hong hugged the doll, buried her face in its furry ears, and said in a muffled voice, "It's okay."
Everyone laughed, and the atmosphere in the warm room became even more lively. Ziwei looked at the laughter in the room, and the sadness in her heart completely dissipated. She whispered to Xiaoyanzi, "It's great to have them here."
Xiaoyanzi nodded vigorously and drank a mouthful of mutton soup: "That's right! No matter how many bad things happen outside, we are together as a family, and we are not afraid of anything!"
As they were talking, Yongqi and Erkang came in, a chill on their bodies. As soon as Yongqi entered, he looked at Xiaoyanzi. She was drinking from the bowl of soup, with some chopped green onions on the corner of her mouth. He couldn't help but walk over and wipe it off for her: "Drink slowly, be careful of the heat."
Xiaoyanzi blushed and handed the bowl of soup to him: "You drink too."
Yongqi took the bowl, took a sip, and smiled: "Hmm, it smells really good."
Erkang walked over to Ziwei and took out a small box from his sleeve pocket. Inside was a jade hairpin with a plum blossom carved on the head. "I just passed by a jade shop and saw that this hairpin suits you, so I bought it." He picked up the hairpin and gently inserted it into Ziwei's bun. "It's cold, don't keep thinking about embroidering things, it's tiring your eyes."
Ziwei touched the jade hairpin in her hair. The jade was soft and smooth, and her heart was warmed. "I know. Don't run to the palace so often. It's snowing heavily outside."
"It's okay," Erkang smiled and sat down. "It's worth the distance to be able to see you."
Seeing that everyone was gathered, Xiaodiao moved a small stool and sat in the middle. He cleared his throat and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, would you like to listen to a piece of Journey to the West? Today we're going to tell you about Sun Wukong borrowing the palm-leaf fan three times. It's guaranteed to be exciting!"
"I want to listen!" Little Swallow clapped her hands. "I love to hear Sun Wukong wield his golden cudgel the most!"
The little stool picked up the gavel on the table and banged it, then said in a loud voice, "It is said that the flames on Flaming Mountain were raging, and Tang Sanzang and his disciples were blocked, so Sun Wukong had no choice but to borrow the palm-leaf fan..." He spoke vividly, sometimes imitating Sun Wukong's boldness, sometimes imitating Princess Iron Fan's coquettishness, drawing cheers from the crowd. The little bugs beside him imitated the monkey's calls, "squeaking", making everyone laugh.
In the warm room, the aroma of mutton soup, the sweet fragrance of jujube paste cakes, and the laughter of the crowd blended together, and the wind and snow outside the window seemed to be blocked out. Ziwei looked at Xiaoyanzi beside her, laughing so hard, looked at Erkang's gentle profile, looked at Liuqing and Jinsuo busy in the kitchen, and looked at Ertai's serious look as he peeled oranges for Liuhong, and her heart suddenly felt at ease.
Rumors might still be floating around inside and outside the palace walls, but as long as she had these people around her, this warmth, no matter how cold the wind and snow, no matter how difficult the road, she could walk through it with a smile. She looked down at the half-finished purse she had embroidered. The mandarin ducks on it were nestled together, the stitches were delicate and full of love, just like everyone in the warm room at this moment, their hearts connected and warm.
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