It must be said that Sheng Xikang has a good eye for talent.
The house he bought is in a very nice location in Xicheng District. It's a well-organized two-courtyard house with more than ten rooms. Everything inside and out is very well-maintained, and the exterior walls have been repainted.
All the furniture in the house was custom-made by a carpenter according to Wu Yuhua's wishes.
Everyday necessities were all purchased by Wu Yuhua accompanying Sheng Xikang, and the home was decorated quite warmly.
However, Sheng Xikang lives alone and is too lazy to cook.
I eat out in the morning, have lunch at the company cafeteria, and usually eat out with Wu Yuhua in the evening, or I go to Wu's house for a meal.
So, as soon as Sheng Liancheng and Zhang Shuzhen arrived, they quickly went to buy all kinds of kitchen utensils and started cooking at home.
When Sheng Xiping and his sister arrived home, Zhang Shuzhen and Sheng Yunfang were in the kitchen making dumplings.
Sheng Yunfang started her winter vacation a few days earlier this year, so she took the train directly to the capital to meet up with her parents.
Upon learning that Sheng Xiping and the others had arrived home today, the mother and daughter decided to cook something delicious to treat them.
"Dad, Mom, we're back."
The brother and sister got out of the car at the gate, carrying their things and quickly entered the courtyard. As they passed through the hanging flower gate, Sheng Yunfei shouted loudly.
"You're finally back. Your dad has been pacing around the house since this morning, constantly talking about you two, wondering when you'll be home. Come on in, come on in."
Zhang Shuzhen and the others, their hands still covered in flour, came out when they heard the commotion.
“We’re having dumplings tonight. Your dad and I brought some sauerkraut from home, so we’re making sauerkraut dumplings.”
"When you get home, we'll make dumplings with celery and eleutherococcus filling."
When Sheng Liancheng and his wife came to the capital this time, they brought quite a lot of things with them.
We brought mushrooms, wood ear fungus, dried vegetables, and even several stalks of pickled cabbage, all so that the children could enjoy authentic hometown flavors.
"Oh, Mom, how did you know I was craving this? All this year while I was away, the thing I missed most was my mom's dumplings."
Sheng Xiping laughed as soon as he heard that. Just thinking about sauerkraut dumplings made his mouth water.
The people and food of your hometown are truly unforgettable, no matter where you go.
This is why Sheng Xiping insisted on going home to develop his career. No matter how good it is outside, or how much money he makes, it's not home.
His home is in Northeast China, and he can't shake his accent or leave his homeland. Even if Northeast China gradually declines and never regains its former glory, in Sheng Xiping's heart, that is where his roots are.
“It’s alright, your mom chopped a lot of filling today, so you can eat as much as you want tonight, there’s plenty.” Sheng Liancheng grinned from the side.
“Okay, then I’ll eat as much as I want tonight.” Sheng Xiping said with a smile as he stepped into the house.
Inside the room, two square tables were pushed together, and on the tables were a cutting board, a lid, a basin, and a filling basin.
The dumplings had already filled a tray and were placed on the stool next to it. There was a pile of dough balls and several rolled-out dumpling wrappers on the work surface.
Upon seeing this, Sheng Xiping and Sheng Yunfei immediately put down their things, washed their hands, and came over to help make dumplings.
The family sat around the table, chatting and laughing while their hands kept busy, and soon another curtain was wrapped up.
With many hands make light work. Before Sheng Xikang even returned, all three trays of dumplings were already wrapped. Zhang Shuzhen and her two daughters quickly went to the kitchen to boil water and prepare to cook the dumplings.
The use of kang (heated brick beds) was banned in the main urban area of the capital many years ago, so cooking here is different from that in Northeast China. There are no large iron pots; most people use coal stoves or kerosene stoves.
As living conditions have improved, some people also use coal gas, which is liquefied petroleum gas.
This is a newly purchased house by Sheng Xikang, for his upcoming wedding. Everything was bought according to the latest trends, so they used gas cylinders.
If you're stir-frying vegetables, you usually put the wok on the gas stove; if you're steaming buns or something, you put a large aluminum slow cooker on it.
Zhang Shuzhen had heard that the gas stove could explode if not handled properly, so she was extremely careful when lighting it, and managed to get it on with great difficulty.
Then fill the large pot with water and heat it on the coal stove.
While working, Zhang Shuzhen kept muttering, "This thing really can't compare to our big iron pot from Northeast China. It's such a hassle to make anything with it."
I don't like sleeping on that bed either; it's not warm enough. I'll have to get them two of those leather rugs and stuff I've saved up at home, so they can use them to keep out the cold and damp.
Zhang Shuzhen had slept on a kang (heated brick bed) her whole life, so how could she get used to sleeping on a bed? She felt uncomfortable all over.
"How do you sleep in your school dorms? Aren't you uncomfortable?" Zhang Shuzhen asked her daughter while working.
"It was definitely not something I was used to at first, but I got used to it gradually."
Anyway, when the humid season comes, the house is really uncomfortable; the bedding gets damp.
Sheng Yunfang and Sheng Yunfei exchanged a glance and smiled.
Zhang Shuzhen bought this stew pot here; it's quite big, but it's not big enough to cook all those dumplings, so it has to be cooked in two pots.
Zhang Shuzhen estimated that Sheng Xikang would be home soon after get off work, and just then the water in the pot boiled, so she cooked a half bowl of water first.
When Sheng Xikang entered the room, the first batch had already been scooped out and taken inside, while the remaining half batch had just been put into the pot.
As soon as Sheng Xikang entered the main house, he saw his father and eldest brother sitting inside watching TV.
This TV was shipped from the south by Sheng Xiping a few days ago; it's also a 17-inch color TV.
Sheng Xiping said that this is just for now, and he will get Sheng Xikang a bigger color TV before his wedding next year.
When getting married, everything needs to be new.
Upon seeing his younger brother, Sheng Xiping quickly invited him to sit down, and the two brothers chatted for a few minutes.
It was simply a question to ask if Sheng Xikang had made all the necessary preparations for his engagement.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
