Gu Wei noticed that in addition to some leftovers from yesterday, they had also cooked frozen dumplings with sauerkraut and pork.
Gu Jianguo asked Gu Hongjie to set off a string of firecrackers in the yard before the group began to eat breakfast.
As the meal was drawing to a close, before the table had even been cleared away, Li Guizhi brought in a large tin ladle from the kitchen.
Several frozen pears and persimmons floating in the water had a thin layer of ice on their surface.
"Look at my memory, I forgot to take these frozen pears and persimmons out to thaw yesterday."
Gu Wei laughed, "Grandma, it's not too late to take it out now. I've just had two drinks in a row, and I'm feeling a bit hot. I'd like something cold."
"After drinking, eating something cold is the best thing to do. It helps with hangovers and cools you down," Gu Jianguo said with a smile.
Gu Wei picked a medium-sized frozen pear, knocked off the ice, bit through the black skin, and sipped the cool, sweet pear juice. He squinted his eyes in satisfaction.
Gu Jianguo and Gu Hongjie prefer to eat frozen persimmons.
The father and son each took one and started eating.
Only Li Guizhi, who was afraid of the cold, did not eat.
He kept tidying up the table, one trip at a time.
The three of them devoured a whole ladleful of frozen pears and persimmons, and still weren't satisfied.
Later, Gu Hongjie also went to the large vat in the warehouse and brought back a few ice creams without any packaging.
The ice cream in the forest area now is different from the popsicles in summer; it's half again as wide and also more expensive.
It has a white color and a milky taste with a unique fragrance.
This is a basket woven from plastic strips that Gu Jianguo bought from the state-owned popsicle factory.
Decades later, we won't be able to eat it anymore, even if we want to.
Gu Wei ate two ice creams in a row, feeling incredibly cool, but at the same time, sitting on the heated kang, the contrast between the ice and the fire was also quite enjoyable.
Around 9 o'clock, the Zhao family and the Jin family arrived at the house together.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the first thing people say when they meet is always, "Happy New Year!"
After everyone was ushered inside, they took off their shoes and sat on the kang (heated brick bed) to warm up.
The conversation then revolved around last night's Spring Festival Gala.
"The previous two sessions were great, and this year I finally have a TV at home, so I thought I'd enjoy watching something, but what a piece of junk they put together!"
"The neighbors who come to my house to watch TV all say that Ulabatu is in a mess..."
"Only Ma Sanli's crosstalk and Chen Peisi and Zhu Shimao's sketches are good."
"What kind of talk was that actress who came back from abroad? Give it back to you..."
"..."
As Gu Wei listened to their complaints, he realized that the eyes of the masses were indeed discerning; if something was ugly, it was ugly.
Afterwards, many viewers will write letters to criticize them.
Zhao Dajiang suddenly remembered something, "By the way, Xiao Jie, did you win the commemorative ticket?"
Gu Wei, like everyone else, looked at Gu Hongjie, wanting to see how he would respond.
After a night, Gu Hongjie was no longer so disappointed and frustrated. He shook his head and said, "We didn't win, and Xiao Hang didn't win either. But we can go to the bank to exchange them for aluminum commemorative medals."
Zhao Zhengyuan quickly reassured her, "That's great, it's very memorable. I doubt many of your classmates have one."
Gu Hongjie's smile widened. "That's for sure."
After chatting and laughing for a while, everyone finally got to know each other.
The two pregnant women, Zhao Zhengying and Yao Shulan, remained on the kang (heated brick bed) in the east room.
Both of their mothers-in-law went to the kitchen to help Gu Jianguo and his wife.
Gu Weize went to the west room with Zhao Dajiang and the others, set up a table, and started playing three against one.
There were also people watching the cards and serving tea nearby.
Just as the card game was in full swing, the three dogs in the yard suddenly started barking.
Gu Hongjie, who was sitting next to Gu Wei, immediately got up and ran out.
In no time at all, he came in with several people.
It turned out to be Li Bin and his family of four who had come.
They didn't come empty-handed either, bringing quite a few things to visit.
"Brother Gu, Happy New Year."
Happy Chinese New Year.
Gu Wei also greeted Li's mother, Li Qiang, and Li Tong.
Li's mother felt both embarrassed and frightened about the arson attack on her shop.
If anything were to happen to the second son and Zhou Kai, no one would be able to have a good New Year.
“Gu Wei, when my second son went home that day, I told him about what happened! Don’t worry, such a mistake will never happen again.”
Gu Wei was immediately helpless. "Aunt Li, this is not Binzi's fault. Don't talk about him anymore."
“Why can’t you blame him! You can’t be too embarrassed to criticize him just because we’re close. If he did something wrong, you should speak up!” Li’s mother moved her lips, actually really wanting to ask about what happened next, but she was afraid that bringing it up during the New Year would spoil the mood.
Gu Wei noticed that Li's mother was hesitant to speak, and naturally guessed what she was thinking.
To be honest, he didn't want to dwell on the unpleasant things during this joyous moment.
"Okay, Aunt Li, I will definitely do it next time. You should also go and warm up on the east kang (heated brick bed) so you can watch TV."
Li's mother understood what was going on and, relieved, readily agreed, saying, "Alright, then we'll go over there."
Later, Zhou Kai and Liang Weibing also came to my house to offer New Year's greetings.
Naturally, it was another round of greetings and chatting.
Seeing that there were so many people standing or sitting, Gu Wei set up a mahjong table in the living room to disperse the crowd.
Suddenly, all the rooms in the house were bustling with activity.
Coupled with the sizzling sounds of stir-frying coming from the kitchen from time to time, it was filled with a strong sense of home cooking.
Because there were many people, and a lot of dishes were being prepared, both stoves in Gu Wei's house were put to use.
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