After lunch, Li Qin moved to her younger brother's yard.
They've already started chatting while preparing the New Year's Eve dinner.
This year, Wang Jun and Li Qiaoyun joined the family, and her cousin has already invited them to come home for the Chinese New Year.
"Hey, Qiu Nan, how are we going to sit this year? Two tables in the living room?"
"Why set up two tables? After you left, I asked Zhu Wen to make all the tables for us. They're in the pavilion."
"Hey, my wife is definitely my wife. She did a great job. I was just thinking of moving the table."
"Alright, stop joking around. Go and kill that chicken in the yard."
Ding Qiunan laughed and pushed her husband out of the kitchen.
As it turned out, Jia Dong had already killed the chicken and was just waiting for the water on the stove to boil so he could pluck its feathers.
"Xiao Chu, could you get rid of that fish in the pool?"
"Okay, sis, I'll get right on it."
"Junzi"
"I'm here, sis."
"Peel the potato."
"Okay!"
"Wenxuan"
"Auntie has arrived."
"Go to the kitchen and chop the meat."
"OK"
Li Qin acted like a steward, assigning tasks to the idle people.
"Jiadong, where's your dad?"
"Mom, Dad just took Hao Hao out."
"Hey, that old man, he runs away as soon as we start working."
"Aunt, what are you waiting for? I'm here."
"Is the child asleep, Yueyue?"
"Yes, I've put it on the bed."
"Did you plug your ears? Don't let the noise of the cannons outside startle the child."
"It's all packed up."
"That's good. Take those vegetables in the basin on the ground and wash them clean."
"OK"
"Mom, the water on the stove is boiling." Xiao Juan came out through the small door, carrying a kettle in her hand.
"Give this to Jiadong. He's just finished plucking chicken feathers. We'll make another pot of it later; it'll be useful."
"Okay, Mom."
"Juan'er, bring over the pot of braised meat and aspic that we just finished cooking in the kitchen later."
"good"
Seeing that the work was almost done, Li Qin pulled up a small stool and sat down under the eaves, picking up the chives that were on the ground and starting to pick them.
"Qiu Nan"
"What's wrong, sis? I'm in the kitchen."
"I just wanted to ask, are your parents sure they're not coming? It's so lively here."
“I asked them a few days ago, and they said they didn’t want to come and that they would spend the New Year with them.”
"Tell me, these old couple are really something. It's so lively during the New Year with so many people around. Why don't they send someone to pick them up? They can eat what they made in a couple of days. It's cold and they won't spoil."
Ding Qiunan came out of the kitchen, clearly somewhat tempted.
"Alright, I'll finish preparing the fish and then I'll go get them. If you want, bring them all over with you." Li Chu, who was cleaning the fish, looked up at his wife.
"Xiao Chu, stop preparing the fish for now and go pick them up. I reckon they're probably preparing for their New Year's Eve dinner right now. Go early so they don't have to work, and just bring them over."
"Okay, I'll go now."
Without hesitation, Li Chu threw the fish he had just gutted back into the basin, washed his hands, and went inside to put on his coat.
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"Wenxuan, where are your car keys? I'll have more room in your car."
"It's right there on my coffee table."
Ding Qiunan stood at the kitchen doorway, pursed her lips, smiled slightly, and turned to go back into the kitchen to continue working.
Li Chu drove his car all the way to the grain bureau's residential compound.
The gatekeeper had already recognized him. He peeked out and saw that it was him in the car, so he came out of the guardhouse and opened the big iron gate.
"Director Li, you've come to see your father-in-law!"
"Ah, I want to bring them to my place for the New Year. Come on, Lao Liu, get ready."
Two packs of cigarettes flew out of the car, and the gatekeeper, Old Liu, hurriedly caught them.
"Director Li..."
Before he could even speak, the car had already started moving in, with only one hand sticking out of the window and waving twice.
He glanced down at the two packs of Hongmei cigarettes in his hand, then looked up at the back of the car, muttering to himself, "Hey, serves him right for being such a high-ranking official, not to mention making so much money."
Every time Li Chu came over, he would give him or his colleague a pack or two of cigarettes, which made the two security guards more efficient at opening the gate when they saw his car than when they saw the bureau chief's car.
In the past, there were coal sheds built in front of the residential buildings, and each family would have one. They would store honeycomb briquettes and other miscellaneous items inside. Later, they stopped calling them coal sheds and started calling them carports. The function of the sheds changed because everyone started using gas and no longer needed to buy honeycomb briquettes.
At the entrance of the grain bureau's residential compound, it's rare to see people selling honeycomb briquettes from their carts anymore; they all know that gas has been supplied here.
However, people will still buy them. Before the heating season starts each year, and for a period of time after the heating is turned off, it is still quite cold, and families with elderly people or children will still light a stove.
Having a stove at home is actually quite convenient. You can boil a kettle of water on it and have hot water whenever you want, especially in winter. Before going to bed at night, you can seal the stove and put a kettle of water on it, so you can have hot water when you wash up in the morning, which is quite comfortable.
Many people are reluctant to use a gas stove specifically for boiling water for washing.
Not to mention putting a steamed bun on top and baking it; in an era when snacks were scarce, that was a favorite for many children.
The building where Ding's mother and her family live is a bit further apart from the building in front of it. There is not only a coal shed downstairs, but also a small garden where many people play every day.
It's fortunate that there are few cars now, otherwise the yard would be completely blocked by cars.
After parking the car, Li Chu rushed upstairs to the second floor and knocked on the door. Even from outside, they could hear Ding Ma's loud voice directing Jianguo to open the door.
"Brother-in-law? When did you get back?"
"You just got back last night, are you all home yet?"
"Yes, everyone's here. Come in, brother-in-law."
As soon as he entered, the room became lively.
Everyone knew he was away on a business trip, and it was already past the 28th or 29th of the twelfth lunar month when he still hadn't returned. Everyone thought he wouldn't be able to come back for the Chinese New Year this year, but unexpectedly he did manage to make it back.
"Mom, stop fussing. Pack your things and come to my place for the New Year."
Upon hearing his son-in-law's words, Mr. Ding beamed with joy.
In previous years, the whole family would be together for the Spring Festival, making it very lively. This year, it's just the five of them, and the house feels much quieter. The old man has lost all interest in celebrating the New Year.
"Why would I go to your place? Look at all the things I've prepared here."
"Mom, put all these on the balcony, open the window a crack, they won't get cold. Come on, we're all waiting for you."
"Jianguo, Nana, go back and pack your things, get ready to leave. Don't dawdle, we're waiting for you to come and get some work done."
Li Chu's dismissive attitude left them looking at each other in bewilderment, but this decision had to be made by Ding Ma.
"Sigh~ Let's go then. Xiao Na, just get Kai Kai dressed in his new clothes and grab a jacket. The same goes for you guys. Don't take too much stuff. You'll be back in two days."
"Okay, Mom."
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