With only two days left until Chinese New Year, Yu Qian was called by her mother to deliver New Year's gifts to Liu's parents. They would definitely have to eat there. Since she was alone at home, she could finally take care of her space properly.
After locking the door, Liu Yun entered the space. In the past half month, Liu Yun had only entered the space once, and she hurriedly grabbed a rabbit and a duck before leaving.
Looking at the nests she had made, filled with eggs and newly hatched chicks, Liu Yun felt a great sense of accomplishment. Looking at the green vegetables, her mouth watered. She had only seen cabbage as a green vegetable for the past two weeks, and she was really craving it. Since Yu Qianhe wouldn't be back for lunch, she decided to stir-fry some first.
First, tidy up the shelves and put some of the dried vegetables, mushrooms, wood ear fungus, and dried chili peppers that can be taken out into the cupboard. In particular, take two pounds of boiled peanuts with salt, three pounds of air-dried peanuts, and five pounds of sunflower seeds, although these sunflower seeds still need to be roasted.
Take two more chickens, two ducks, and two rabbits, tie them together in a burlap sack, and throw them into the woodpile. As usual, fill the egg basket.
I took another burlap sack, tied up the two rabbits and two ducks, put them on the bicycle, and then locked the door and rode off.
A couple of days ago, I heard from Liu Jing that her brother-in-law was coming back today, so I went to deliver some things to him. When I arrived at the entrance of the textile factory, it was the same old man.
"Grandpa, is Xiao Zhihua here? He's coming back from driving today."
"They came back today? Then they should be out soon."
"Okay, thank you, sir."
Sure enough, it didn't take long for Xiao Zhihua to come out with bags and packages.
"Brother-in-law, over here."
"Xiaoyun, what brings you here?"
Liu Yun handed over the sack, saying, "This, this is for my sister. I have something to do, so I'll be going now!"
After saying that, Liu Yun got on her bicycle and rode away.
Arriving at the department store, she didn't really need to buy anything, but since she planned to learn how to sew, she bought two pieces of fabric, along with some pastries and candies. Luckily, she saw apples in the grocery store, but there was a limit of two pounds per person, so she immediately bought two pounds.
Since we were at the grocery store, we had to buy something. They had dried black fungus, so we took that. They also had mushrooms, but in the end, we bought some dried bean curd sticks and konjac.
When Liu Yun got home, Yu Qianhe wasn't back yet, so she tidied up the things and prepared the dishes for dinner. Before she finished, Yu Qianhe returned.
Why are you carrying so much stuff?
"They were all given to you by your eldest sister."
Upon opening it, I found a cured chicken and a piece of cured pork.
"I'm getting ready to cook dinner. I'll take those things to my parents tomorrow! They need to bring some things when they go there for New Year's Eve dinner. I'll know how much money your family usually gives for lucky money and New Year's greetings, so I can prepare in advance."
"Everyone is treated equally, one yuan per person."
"OK."
First, start steaming the rice. Today, I'm using sweet potato rice instead.
I cut a third of the meat I bought today and soaked it with a handful of dried white chilies.
The first dish today was stir-fried pork with dried chili peppers, but Yu Qianhe's fire was a bit too high today, so it got a little burnt. The burnt pan needs to be cleaned.
There are no modern faucets or basins here, making it a hassle to wash the pots every time.
There's a covered bucket next to the stove. I lift the lid, use a ladle to scoop water into the pot, and using a cloth as a pad, tilt the pot by one handle and quickly scrub it with a brush. Then, using two cloths as padding, I lift the pot and pour the water into another bucket. That's why there are so many buckets at home. A water purifier bucket and a swill bucket—you can't be without either!
Washing pots with a wood-fired stove is a real hassle. Liu Yun often forgets to wrap the pot handles with a cloth, which often results in her hands getting burned.
I scooped two more ladles of water into the pot, waited for it to boil, then cracked two eggs in and scrambled them to make egg drop soup. The soup was too bland with just eggs, so I added some of my mother's pickled mustard greens. With the pickled mustard greens in the egg drop soup, there was no need to add salt. The simple soup, which could be made in a short time, was ready.
Boil water in a pot, and when the fire goes out naturally after the meal, the water will be hot enough for Yu Qianhe to use for washing the dishes.
Take out the rice bowl from the other pot, add water to the pot so I can take a shower later; I've been running around all day and I'm filthy.
The two of them, one dish and one soup, made a perfect meal. Just as they were about to eat, there was a knock at the door. They exchanged a glance and pretended not to hear it. From initial helplessness to now ignoring it, they had adapted very well in less than a week.
After taking a shower, Liu Yun suddenly wanted to tease Yu Qianhe. She quickly dried herself off, unlatched the door, and pulled out one of Yu Qianhe's shirts from the closet to put on.
"Qianhe, could you pour me some water?"
"She's here." Yu Qianhe pushed open the door and saw his wife wearing his shirt, baggy and oversized, obscuring her figure. But last night, he had traced her beauty with his palm; those lines, hidden beneath the shirt, only fueled his fantasies. Her exposed legs were dazzlingly white. The sight made Yu Qianhe's heart race.
After confirming that he had seen it, Liu Yun quickly got into bed. Even though it hadn't rained or snowed in the past two days, the temperature was only a few degrees. Playing around is fine, but she wouldn't joke about her health.
Feeling agitated, Yu Qianhe emptied the water, locked the door, turned off the light, and went inside. He lay down and reached out to grab Liu Yun, only to find nothing. Liu Yun sensed his movement and immediately rolled away.
"Stop fooling around!" she whispered sternly. "I'm so tired after running around all day. I'm going to sleep." Then she fell fast asleep.
Seeing that his wife was already asleep, Yu Qian could only lie silently on the bed and count sheep.
The next morning, Liu Yun, having had a good night's sleep, suddenly had a craving for dumpling soup. She'd only tried this northern dish once in college when her northern roommate introduced her to it, and she'd loved it ever since. She didn't know why, but now she suddenly wanted some. She thought she'd have some flour at home, so she decided to make some.
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