This year, when Lin Heng wrote couplets for his family, he not only used the finest red paper, but also used gold ink to write them.
It was soon the 26th day of the twelfth lunar month, and it started snowing outside again.
"Wife, do you want to go shopping today and see if there is anything rare?"
After breakfast, Lin Heng looked at Xiulan and asked.
The only market days before Chinese New Year are today and the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month.
"Let's wait until the 29th. You will definitely go to town to settle your accounts that day. Let's go shopping then."
Xiulan thought for a moment and said.
"Well, that's good." Lin Heng nodded, feeling a little bored at home.
"You have nothing to do anyway, why not go to Hongfeng Mountain and catch two fish? We'll make some dumplings and freeze them." Seeing that Lin Heng was fine, Xiulan said again.
"Okay, it's time to eat the fish, and make some fish balls at the same time." Lin Heng nodded.
After saying that, he got up and went out with the milk. He didn't drive, but just walked there.
When they arrived at Hongfeng Mountain, Father Lin heard that Lin Heng wanted to kill the fish, and he stood up and said with a smile: "Come on, I will help you."
When the father and son arrived at the mountain stream, although the water was not frozen, the stones at their feet that were splashed with water droplets were covered with two centimeters thick white ice.
"The fish has lost a pound or two, but it's still alive and kicking."
Father Lin said while holding a long scoop net.
“It shouldn’t have lost that much weight.” Lin Heng shook his head, took a scoop net, aimed at a big grass carp and scooped it up.
But he didn't expect that these fish were quite agile and jumped away in an instant.
"Come on, let's do it together!" Father Lin also took action on the other side.
With the cooperation of both sides, they caught two big grass carp in a short while.
There were nine grass carps and one silver carp in total. Lin Heng was planning to eat chopped pepper fish head during the Chinese New Year, so he didn't catch the silver carp.
The two men caught the fish and killed it right by the stream, cleaned it, and threw the internal organs to the dog that came over to eat.
Some of the dogs on Hongfeng Mountain are tied up, while others are allowed to roam free.
"Dad, you and my mom can come over too and help. We'll have delicious dumplings for lunch."
After killing the fish, Lin Heng carried it and talked as he walked.
"That's fine. I'll go see how the bacon in the old house is doing." Father Lin nodded.
Smoking bacon requires the smoke and temperature of burning wood. Neither Hongfeng Mountain nor the new house where Lin Heng lives now meets these conditions. Only the open stove in the old house is suitable.
Therefore, all the bacon that needed to be smoked was placed there, and Lin Heng was responsible for adding acorns and sawdust for smoking.
"It should be almost smoked. I take care of it every day." Lin Heng replied. This year, he not only smoked bacon, but also a ham.
After returning to the house to warm up, the four of them put out the fire and returned to the village.
Lin Hengxian and his father went to check on the bacon and lit the fire to continue smoking it.
The bacon is now a beautiful bright red color, and it can be smoked until the Chinese New Year.
"Let me take a look at the house over here, you go back first." Father Lin said after lighting the fire.
"Okay." Lin Heng nodded in agreement, and after returning, he helped Xiulan to process the fish.
They made two kinds of dumplings today, one with pork and green onion filling, and the other with fish, pork and leek filling.
Fish alone is not tasty, it needs some pork belly to make it delicious.
After a busy morning, the family finally finished wrapping the dumplings. In addition to dumplings, Lin Heng also made some hand-made fish balls for the children.
By noon, the snow outside had turned the ground and trees all white, leaving only one color between the sky and the earth.
Inside the house, hot dumplings were served on the table. After being drowned in vinegar soup and put into the mouth, the taste needed no further description and everyone felt the most wonderful taste.
It's not just the taste of the dumplings themselves, but also the emotions that a family feels after working together for a whole morning to make them.
"Leave some for frying when you freeze it. I want to eat fried dumplings now."
After finishing the dumplings in the bowl, Lin Heng looked at Xiulan and said.
The fried dumplings are golden and crispy on the outside and taste indescribably delicious. They were one of my favorite foods during the Chinese New Year when I was a child.
Xiulan nodded and said, "I thought so too. Fried dumplings are not ordinary."
Lin Heng nodded, put the bowl down and took out some oranges to share with everyone. In the afternoon, Xiulan and the others made dumplings with the remaining fillings and asked their parents to take some home. They froze some of the rest and fried some in the evening.
While Xiulan and the others were making dumplings, Lin Heng got a sieve and went to the yard to catch birds. After he prepared the bamboo sieve, he hid behind the door with Xiaoxia.
"Here it comes, Dad!"
After a while, Xiaoxia grabbed Lin Heng's hand and shouted excitedly.
"Don't be anxious. You can't eat hot tofu in a hurry. We need to be patient in doing things. One bird will go in this time, and more will come later." Lin Heng said with a smile.
After a while, two more birds flew in, and Xiaoxia became even more excited, but Lin Heng still did not move. He waited until two more birds flew in, making a total of five birds, before he suddenly pulled the rope, and immediately the five birds were trapped underneath.
"Okay, okay, Dad, you are so awesome!!" Xiaoxia shook Lin Heng's arm excitedly, then ran towards the yard.
The two sons were playing with toy cars. When they saw what was happening, they ran out curiously. When they saw the bird under the cage, they all cheered for joy.
"Don't uncover them. I'll catch them and put them in a cage for you to see." Lin Heng walked over and said to them.
Then he took a cardboard and reached in to turn the bamboo sieve upside down, and put the birds one by one into a small birdcage belonging to the editor-in-chief.
This bird cage was made by Liu Xiancun from the village for the children. In addition, he also made two bamboo baskets for draining water, both of which were given away free of charge.
His house was buried by a landslide, and Lin Heng lent him dozens of dollars. Lin Heng had not asked for repayment in the past two years, but he still remembered it. He came to his house with his own bamboo weavings to explain the situation and asked Lin Heng to give him another year.
These bamboo weavings were given as a gift, and they said they were very embarrassed. Of course, Lin Heng didn't take it seriously, so he didn't worry, but this attitude made him feel comfortable, unlike some Dongzi who was a grandson when he borrowed money and became a grandfather when he paid back the money.
"Let me see!" Xiaoxia held the bird cage and looked at the birds inside curiously. Luming and Du Heng also chirped and wanted to watch from the side.
Lin Heng sat down, drank a sip of water and looked at the children. On the other side, his parents and Xiulan Caiyun played poker. The four of them were having a great time playing square buckle.
The children were not satisfied with watching the birds for a while, so they wanted to catch them themselves. After working for more than an hour, they caught two and even set off firecrackers when they opened the sieve.
"Dad, catch me two more!"
Xiaoxia ran over and acted coquettishly in Lin Heng's arms.
Lin Heng pointed at the bird cage not far away and said with a smile: "If you don't watch it, Jin Bao will eat your bird."
The big golden cat curled up on the chair was staring at the birdcage, and its golden eyes moved as the bird moved.
"Jinbao, don't eat!" Xiaoxia ran over and tried to carry Jinbao somewhere else, but Jinbao was too heavy for her to hold, so she had to let her two younger brothers watch the birdcage.
But Lin Heng finally didn't agree to her request, saying that he couldn't raise too many, so he just played with them for a while and then let them go.
Soon it was evening, and they made some more dumplings and ate them here, and then Lin's father and mother Caiyun returned to Hongfeng Mountain.
Lin Heng went to light up the fireplace in the bedroom in advance. After Xiulan fried the dumplings, he brought them to the bedroom together with dried sweet potatoes, persimmon cakes, melon seeds and apples.
The living room was relatively large, but even with the fireplace it was not as warm as the bedroom. They took the things to the bedroom. Lin Heng and Xiulan went to the back mountain to feed Kun Kun and the cows and then went home.
"Xiulan, wait a minute!" Lin Heng called his wife, waited for her to stop, and threw a small lump of snow into her neck.
"Oh my, you're going to die!" Xiulan screamed, grabbed a lump of snow and rushed towards Lin Heng, "Let me give it back, or you're done for!"
"No!" Lin Heng shook his head and smiled.
Xiulan chased him and he ran away, and soon they caught up to a fruit tree on the back hill. Then Lin Heng kicked the tree and ran away quickly. Xiulan was drenched in snow again, and there were a lot of snow falling around her neck.
"I'll count to three. If you don't come back, you'll have to sleep outside today!" Xiulan held up three fingers with a stern face.
Lin Heng was well aware of her tricks, and not only did he not repent, he also threw a snowball at her, hitting her in the chest.
"Okay, very good!" Xiulan grabbed two big snowballs and chased after Lin Heng angrily.
An inevitable snowball fight broke out. However, Lin Heng might have gotten too carried away and suddenly slipped while running. He thought to himself that something was wrong, but when he got up, it was too late as Xiulan had caught up with him and grabbed him.
After making sure that Lin Heng didn't fall, she smiled cruelly: "Run, keep running?"
Lin Heng grabbed her hand and begged for mercy: "Wife, I was wrong, I was really wrong."
“Ah…bingbingbing…”
However, the next moment Lin Heng screamed. Xiulan ruthlessly stuffed the snowball into his neck, and put her two red frozen hands into his clothes, freezing them mercilessly.
"Hehe, if you do it again next time, you'll be dead!" Xiulan laughed triumphantly.
"I'm going to be frozen to death. You're murdering your husband!"
As Lin Heng spoke, he also put his hand into Xiulan's waist. Xiulan dodged and pinched the flesh on his waist with her small hand: "Still not being honest, are you?"
"I was so wrong." Lin Heng didn't dare to resist anymore.
But Xiulan was furious. She took Xue and beat him up severely before letting go.
"Let's go home now, we're even now!" Xiulan said with a proud smile.
Lin Heng said with a bitter face: "I have suffered a great loss and was bullied by you. I will go to Lushui County to file a complaint during the New Year."
Xiulan smiled and said, "Then I will learn from Laozi Shudaoshan and let you know what bullying is."
The practice of counting to three is not unique to Sichuan and Chongqing. Many women in these places also use it, but it is most famous in Sichuan and Chongqing.
Lin Heng was about to speak when he saw his daughter running to the back hill. Xiaoxia tilted her head and asked, "Dad, are you guys having a snowball fight?"
"No, no, Dad fell down." Lin Heng waved his hands quickly. If Xiaoxia knew that they were having a snowball fight, she would definitely join in excitedly.
"Let's go back to the house quickly." Xiulan said, then brushed the snow off Lin Heng's body and pulled him into the house.
After entering the house, she and Lin Heng went to the fireplace to warm themselves by the fire. This way, Lin Heng could no longer try to freeze her.
Lin Heng no longer had this idea. It was enough that he was punished by Xiulan just now. Flirting is fun but you can't do it too much.
It got dark early and the evening was still long, so they sat around the fireplace and played.
Xiaoxia was reading a children's book by herself. Thanks to Lin Heng's guidance since childhood, she had developed an interest in books from the bottom of her heart and was reading the children's book for learning to read by herself.
Although she did not go to school, she had learned Chinese pinyin long ago. She now knows four to five hundred characters and can write nearly a hundred of them.
She has been nurtured subtly since childhood and doesn't need anyone to urge her. She has her own internal motivation and is very happy every time she learns a new word.
Xiaoxia also has a hobby, which is being a teacher and teaching her two younger brothers. The three of them have a lot of fun.
Lin Heng and Xiulan were watching from the side and would only speak up when help was needed.
Lin Heng and Xiulan were playing Gobang or reading books respectively.
At first Xiulan felt it was a little strange what Lin Heng did, but after getting used to it she found it very interesting and very good.
They quietly improve and educate their children at home, which is much more interesting than those who play cards and chat.
"Dad, I want to play Go with you!"
Xiaoxia didn't want to read anymore after a while. She thought her brother was too stupid. He couldn't teach her and always interrupted her.
"Sure." Lin Heng agreed with a smile.
He doesn't push his children to study all day long. It's okay to study a little and then play, as long as the habit is cultivated. They can play when they want.
While playing games, there are also foods to eat. Whether it is fried dumplings or dried persimmons and sweet potatoes roasted over the fire, they are all very delicious.
Lin Heng also likes to roast the Polygonatum odoratum that has been steamed and dried nine times before being softened. It has a bitter but sweet taste and a unique flavor.
"You should have some too, so that we can stay healthy." Lin Heng handed a piece to Xiulan and said with a smile.
There are still too many wonderful things in the world that we have not experienced, and you can only feel them if you keep your body healthy.
"The Polygonatum sibiricum you dug last time has not been processed yet. I will process it for you some other day." Xiulan said while eating.
"I would have forgotten it if you hadn't mentioned it." Lin Heng then remembered this matter.
They played around the fireplace until after nine o'clock before they took a break. Lin Heng read stories to the children and put them to sleep.
Because of the difference in education, he read fairy tales to his sons first and then read novels to Xiaoxia.
After the children rested, Xiulan made the bed, then changed into a set of red underwear and lay down to rest. Her figure now was also very iconic. Although she was slender and beautiful, she was also well-proportioned with a curvy figure.
She is 1.68 meters tall, with thin legs, waist and a big frame, so even if she is pregnant with twins, there are not many marks left on her belly.
With years of persistent exercise and good care, my belly is just slightly bulging normally, and the curves are very good.
"Come and warm my bed."
Lin Heng said while lying on the bed. He wanted to use his cold hands to cool her big white bun, but unfortunately his hands were warm.
“Here it comes!”
Xiulan blinked, turned off the light, got into bed and came into Lin Heng's arms.
(End of this chapter)
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