On the fifteenth day of July, Li Yuemei went to her cousin's house to help early in the morning. Several aunts who arrived earlier discussed it and decided to go to the town together to buy vegetables and cook. After calculating the expenses, each family would share the cost equally.
My uncle's family raised chickens and ducks, so they could just kill their own. My aunt's eldest daughter-in-law went to the backyard and caught a chicken and a duck. Zhao Shiwen took them and went to the side to slaughter them. My cousin's wife went to the kitchen and got two small bowls, added appropriate amount of water and a little salt, and stirred them evenly. She would use them to collect the chicken blood and duck blood later.
The chickens and ducks were slaughtered, and those who were free squatted in the yard to pluck the chicken and duck feathers. The people who went to buy vegetables also came back. Li Yuemei and her friends bought pork belly and a pair of pig's trotters, as well as snacks and fruits. They didn't need to buy any side dishes since they already had them at home.
Stewed pig's trotters with soybeans is Li Yuemei's specialty. She soaked the soybeans when she came here early in the morning and now starts to process the pig's trotters.
A large pot was set up in the yard, firewood burning underneath. Li Yuemei took a piece of firewood and burned the pig's hair. Then she washed the pig's trotters, chopped them into small pieces, and blanched them in the pot. The other women were busy washing vegetables and chopping meat.
On the Zhao family's side, Lin Yan and his family were in no hurry to go out. The younger generation would basically be of no help if they went there, and could only stare at each other. Rather than going there too early and being embarrassed, it would be better for them to stay at home.
He wanted to feed the chickens and pigs at home, but Yu Ge'er took over the job. He wanted to wash clothes, but Zhao Shiyun forced him to rest in the yard. Lin Yan helplessly grabbed a peach and started to eat it, while watching Zhao Shiyun draw water from the well and wash clothes on the steps.
"Why don't you use a stick to hit it? You'll tear the clothes with that much strength." Lin Yan reminded him. Zhao Shiyun obediently took the washing stick beside him and started hitting it.
He washed his own and Lin Yan's clothes, his mother washed his father's clothes, and Yu Ge'er washed his own clothes. Before they got married, Zhao Shiyun sometimes washed his own clothes and sometimes Li Yuemei or Yu Ge'er helped wash them. The whole family was used to it.
After washing the clothes, it was almost time, so Lin Yan and the other two headed to his uncle's house. There were almost no people along the way, as everyone was celebrating the festival at home. Smoke rose from every household, and the whole village was filled with the aroma of chicken and duck.
Those who live close to their relatives will go out later like Lin Yan and his friends, while those who live far away will rush to visit their relatives early in the morning. The Ghost Festival is a major festival here, and those who work away from home will rush back to celebrate the festival.
Arriving at his uncle's house, Lin Yan watched as the aunts each attended to their duties. Li Yuemei's stewed pig's trotters with soybeans was almost finished and would be ready after a while. The men moved the large table into the yard and arranged the chairs.
The dishes began to be served: pig's trotters stewed with soybeans, boiled chicken, boiled duck, pork belly with garlic sprouts, mustard soup, and stir-fried eggplant. Two large tables were filled, one for the men and one for the women and boys. Everyone sat around and started to eat in a lively atmosphere.
Yu Ge'er was quick to grab a small chicken drumstick for Lin Yan and eat one himself. The other children in the family also grabbed a chicken drumstick or duck leg and started eating. The family didn't have to be so restrained when eating together, so Lin Yan was able to relax and grab whatever he wanted to eat. In a short while, he was half full. He slowed down, scooped some soup into the half-remaining bowl of rice, and drank it slowly. He listened to the aunts chatting about the village.
It was all about who was getting married, who was getting married, and who had children. Lin Yan listened with gusto. He finished his bowl of soup and rice, then scooped up a spoonful of soybeans and chewed them slowly. The children were full quickly. After a few of them finished eating, they clamored to go play. The adults told them to wash their hands and faces before going out. They obediently scooped up water to wash their hands and faces, then ran out happily.
Seeing Lin Yan's bulging belly, the cousin's wife asked, "Brother Yan is more than four months pregnant, right? Why is his belly so big?"
None of the relatives knew about Lin Yan's twins, and Lin Yan and his family didn't plan to tell anyone for the time being. Zhao Shiyun specifically told Li Yuemei and Zhao Qiming about this, so Lin Yan smiled awkwardly and said that he ate too much, so he gained weight.
My cousin's wife smiled and said, "You eat so well! Unlike me, when I was pregnant with Yuanyuan, I couldn't eat anything and lost a lot of weight. When Yuanyuan was born, I looked like a little chick."
Everyone else at the table laughed when they heard this. "Yuanyuan isn't thin now. He must have been well fed later."
My cousin's wife was proud of him, but she said, "He's just like his father. He eats two big bowls of rice in one meal. I'm really afraid he's too full."
"He's growing now, so being able to eat is a blessing."
"Yeah, that's right." My cousin's wife couldn't stop smiling.
Lin Yan had no desire to talk. He picked up the soybeans one by one with his chopsticks. After eating the last one, he wanted to scoop another spoonful, but found that all the soybeans had been eaten. Lin Yan put down his chopsticks, looking like he was listening to everyone chatting, but in fact he was staring at the food on the table in a daze.
[I’m so sleepy…] Lin Yan yawned slightly and raised his hand to quietly wipe away the tears that seeped from the corners of his eyes.
After Yu Ge'er had eaten his fill, he moved his chair next to Lin Yan and chatted with him in a low voice.
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