In the evening, Li Qiulan stewed a pot of cabbage and kelp with oil, and also made a pile of cold dried shrimps. The whole family enjoyed the meal very happily.
The next day was New Year's Eve. After eating the noodles rolled by Li Qiulan early in the morning, he secretly offered sacrifices to his ancestors. In the past, he could burn paper and incense to his ancestors, but now the weather does not allow that. He could only offer some delicious food, and then wait until the evening to offer a bowl of dumplings and kowtow to his ancestors.
Of course, Bai Ruozhen was the chef for the New Year's Eve dinner. The family had long known about Bai Ruozhen's cooking skills. Bai Ruoyun and Bai Lishan didn't even leave the house early in the morning, waiting for Bai Ruozhen to start cooking.
However, it was not until after four o'clock in the afternoon that Bai Ruozhen started cooking. The ribs were fresh, and the pork and dried fish were also soaked. After more than an hour of work, six dishes were placed on the Bai family's table, and they were all hard dishes.
Bai Ruoyun and Bai Lishan were so happy that they stared at the table with their mouths wide open and their mouths almost drooling.
"Okay, today is New Year's Eve, let me say a few words." Bai Jiansheng is the head of the family, so he specially poured a glass of wine. Not only him, but also Bai Liqiang, Li Qiulan and Bai Ruozhen were served with wine. Only Bai Ruoyun and Bai Liqiang each had a bowl of boiled water.
Bai Jiansheng said, "A lot has happened this year. Zhenzhen went to the countryside, got engaged, and your eldest sister also went to the countryside. Now we don't know how to celebrate the New Year in a foreign land. Let's put it aside for now. Although our family is not complete today, it is rare. After all, your second sister will get married in the summer after the New Year. Next year's New Year will make us one less person in the family."
"Dad, there won't be any less." Bai Ruozhen smiled and looked at Bai Liqiang, "Let Liqiang find a girlfriend and bring him a wife. Maybe we can have two more."
Bai Liqiang was stunned. "How can there be two?"
Bai Ruozhen burst out laughing, and Bai Ruoyun hurriedly explained, "The new sister-in-law got pregnant as soon as she entered the house."
Bai Liqiang choked and almost spit out his wine.
But Bai Jiansheng was very happy to hear this, "I hope Liqiang can bring a wife back."
Bai Liqiang, who was always thick-skinned, actually blushed. Li Qiulan quickly tried to smooth things over for her son, "Don't worry, don't worry. He's only seventeen. Who would think he's as eager to get married as your second sister?"
Bai Ruozhen curled his lips, "You said before that you would marry my dad when you were seventeen."
"You kid." Li Qiulan tapped her with chopsticks, "You're even teasing your parents."
Bai Ruozhen dodged and picked up the wine glass, "I wish our family will get better and better in the new year."
Bai Jiansheng and his wife, along with Bai Liqiang, quickly picked up their wine glasses. Bai Ruoyun and Bai Lishan, not to be outdone, also picked up their bowls. After clinking glasses, Bai Ruozhen took a sip. It turned out that this Jiugui Liquor tasted really good.
After the lively New Year's Eve dinner, there were still some dishes left on the table, which was a rare sight in the Bai family. Li Qiulan said happily, "The fact that there are leftovers from the New Year's Eve dinner means that we will all have enough to eat in the new year."
The wish is beautiful and it sounds like nothing is impossible.
After the meal, Li Qiulan made bread dumplings, and Bai Ruozhen prepared the fillings. One had celery and meat, and the other had cabbage and meat with dried shrimps. He made two kinds of dumplings with two different fillings. He would be wealthy all year round and be diligent and hardworking.
There was no sound of firecrackers outside, and if it weren't for the occasional sound of children playing outside, it seemed that the New Year atmosphere was not there.
The Bai family was relatively well-off, especially since Gu Changqing had brought plenty of supplies with him, allowing them to have a good New Year's celebration. Some families facing hard times might even eat the same thing they usually eat today, and their children might not even get a piece of meat. Bai Ruozhen and Li Qiulan were wrapping dumplings, looking at Bai Ruoyun who was staring at them eagerly and saying, "Aren't you going out to play?"
Bai Ruoyun shook her head. "I'm not going out. I'll make dumplings with you guys."
Bai Ruozhen smiled. What's the point of accompanying them to make dumplings? To put it bluntly, he just wanted to wait to eat the dumplings. However, the dumplings were not put into the pot until after eleven o'clock, and they had to be offered to the ancestors first after they were out of the pot. It would probably be after twelve o'clock when they could eat them.
Glancing at his watch, it was only a little after eight, so Bai Ruozhen said, "Just take Lishan out to play. I'll come find you guys when it's time to make dumplings."
"Not lying?" Bai Ruoyun said.
Bai Ruozhen shook his head, "Don't lie, liars are like puppies."
Bai Ruoyun curled her lips and said, "How childish." But she still stood up and went out to play with Bai Lishan.
After dinner, Bai Jiansheng took Bai Liqiang to visit relatives. At this time, only Bai Ruozhen and Li Qiulan were left at home. Li Qiulan quickly pinched the dumplings and sighed, "I don't know how your eldest sister spent the New Year."
Bai Ruozhen didn't say anything. She felt bad whenever she heard Bai Ruoxin's name. Naturally, she hoped that she would never come back. However, no matter what, Bai Ruoxin was still her mother's daughter. She could live her whole life without seeing Bai Ruoxin, but her mother would definitely not let her go. So she just pretended not to hear it.
"I heard Guizhou is incredibly poor, and your eldest sister's temper..." Li Qiulan wanted to complain, but seeing her second daughter's expression was calm and she had no intention of continuing the conversation, she stopped talking. "Don't resent her. She's like that now anyway."
Bai Ruozhen put the dumplings down and looked at Li Qiulan, "Mom, do you think I'm wrong to resent her? Did I tell her to go there? If I wasn't lucky enough to be assigned to Xiahe Village and lucky enough to meet Brother Changqing, where do you think I would have gone? Would I have gone to Guizhou as well? If I had gone to Guizhou and my eldest sister had stayed in the city forever, Mom, can you still say this?"
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