The eldest grandson of the Sheng family celebrated his one-month birthday, and a banquet was held. People who were on good terms with him from the forest farm all came one after another.
Around 11 o'clock, Liu Changde and his wife, along with the brothers Liu Yujiang and Liu Yuhe, and the Qi family from the alkali field, also arrived.
Fortunately, the east room of the Sheng family was spacious, with one and a half rooms, so when many people came, they could sit on the kang (a heated brick bed).
It was a rare occasion for everyone to get together during the Lunar New Year, and the atmosphere was exceptionally lively with everyone chatting and laughing.
Sheng Xinhua woke up around nine o'clock and played with his grandparents for almost two hours. Now he's a little sleepy and started to whine.
When Zhou Qinglan saw this, she knew her son was going to sleep, so she carried him back to the west room, changed his diaper, fed him, and put a diaper on him to lull him to sleep.
After her grandson fell asleep, Wang Chunxiu asked her daughter to stay and watch him while she went to the kitchen to wash her hands and help Zhang Shuzhen with her chores.
“My dear in-law, is there anything else that needs to be done? Just tell me, and I’ll take care of it.”
"Oh, no need, it's almost done. There are just a few eggplant fritters and pieces of meat left to fry. They'll be ready soon."
"Go inside and rest. You don't need to do anything."
"It's a rare occasion for our in-laws to come over, how can we let them cook?" Zhang Shuzhen said with a smile as she stood in front of the stove, putting eggplant slices into a ladle.
Wang Chunxiu wandered around for a while, but it seemed there was really nothing she could help with.
"My dear in-law, you're really efficient! Several tables of food, and you've got everything ready so quickly."
"Oh, really? We started preparing yesterday. Everything that needed to be stewed or fried was already done. Today we just need to add some more ingredients and stir-fry it again. It's simple."
"My dear in-law, please come inside. The outer room is filled with fumes, it's quite pungent."
Zhang Shuzhen had to be careful while frying things, so she didn't have the energy to chat with Wang Chunxiu.
Wang Chunxiu realized what was happening and had no choice but to go back to the west room to be with her daughter and grandson.
Zhang Shuzhen quickly fried out the eggplant fritters and meat slices.
At this point, only a few stir-fried dishes remain. These dishes shouldn't be stir-fried too early; it's best to serve them as soon as they're cooked.
Just then, Sheng Xiping led his younger brother and friends out to borrow tables, bowls, plates, and other household items.
So Sheng Xiping and his brothers set up the table, while Sheng Yunfei and Sheng Yunfang washed the dishes and then served the food into the house.
There were quite a few people visiting today. We set up a table on each of the north and south kang beds in the east room, and another table was placed in the middle of the aisle for people to stand on.
Then a table was set up on the kang (heated brick bed) in the west room, and another table was set up on the floor, making a total of five tables, and everyone was seated.
For today's full moon celebration, Zhang Shuzhen went to great lengths, painstakingly preparing a table full of delicious dishes.
Stewed river fish, stewed pheasant with hazel mushrooms and vermicelli, braised pork with potatoes, sauerkraut with braised pork belly, fried eggplant fritters, sweet and sour pork slices, stir-fried venison, pork skin jelly, braised pork hock, and a platter of sausage and pork liver.
There were exactly ten dishes, no more, no less—perfect in every way. And they were mostly hearty dishes; there weren't many vegetables.
"Well, we were short on time and couldn't cook more dishes, so please make do with what we have. There's plenty left in the pot, just add more if you need more."
As the last dish was served, Zhang Shuzhen smiled and addressed everyone.
"Oh, sister-in-law, you call this just making do? We don't even eat this well during Chinese New Year." Everyone laughed when they heard this.
That's the truth. In the entire Qianchuan Forest Farm, there really isn't anyone living a better life than the Sheng family.
The key is that they raised a good and capable son. These things can't be bought with money.
"Sister-in-law, you've been busy all day, you must be tired. Come sit down and eat." Wang Jiachuan invited Zhang Shuzhen.
"No rush, you guys eat first, I'll go to the west room and join Chunhong and the others."
Lao Sheng, Xi Ping, you two stay here and keep everyone company with a drink. There's plenty of alcohol tonight, drink as much as you like.
Zhang Shuzhen came out of the east room with a smile, added some water to the pot, put on the steamer rack, and put the steamed buns that she had picked up from the outer storeroom in advance into the pot to heat them up.
After finishing all that, Zhang Shuzhen took off her apron, went to the west room, sat down next to Tao Chunhong, and invited everyone to eat.
During the Spring Festival, relatives and friends gather together, enjoying delicious food and drinks. Everyone chats and laughs, making it a very lively occasion.
"Sister-in-law, your little grandson is so adorable. With so many of us talking, he's sleeping so soundly, not moving at all. It's wonderful."
Tao Chunhong turned her head and glanced into the rocking cart at the end of the kang (a heated brick bed), saying with envy.
There are three strange things in Northeast China, one of which is raising children by hanging them up, referring to children sleeping in cradles.
The cradle, which locals also call a rocking cradle, is usually made of birch wood with slightly upturned ends. Ropes are attached to the top, and it is hung from the roof beam.
When the child cries, I gently rock the stroller and hum a few songs.
In the past, the environment in Northeast China was harsh and there were many wild animals. Wolves would even dare to enter the village in broad daylight.
If a woman had any chores during the day, she would put her child in a cradle to prevent them from being harmed by wild animals.
The rocking chair that Sheng Xinhua uses is quite old. I think it was made by Sheng Liancheng back when Sheng Yunfang and Sheng Yunfei were around.
Because they were twin sisters, the tubing was made a little wider than usual so that the two children could lie down comfortably. Later, Sheng Xitai also used this tubing.
After Sheng Xinhua was born, Sheng Xiping found the cradle, cleaned it up, and hung it on the roof beam.
Of course, this is a new house for the Sheng family, the bricks and tiles are very sturdy, and the windows are sealed in winter.
Besides, there aren't that many wild animals anymore, let alone ones that would enter the village.
It's mainly for the convenience of soothing children, especially today when we had guests. We burned a lot of firewood in both stoves to cook, and the kang (heated brick bed) was so hot it burned our bottoms.
In this situation, you can't put the child on the kang (heated brick bed), otherwise you might spank the child's bottom, causing the child to suffer a lot with a bright red bottom.
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
