After the Little New Year, both the educated youth compound and the production brigade were busy.
Early in the morning of the 26th, the brigade leader started banging gongs all over the village again.
Today is the day the village is slaughtering a pig and distributing the meat, and the game hunted by the hunting team recently will also be distributed to everyone today.
The two sisters had tidied up the house early and prepared most of their things, but they still hadn't gotten up when the gong sounded.
Chen Shuning dared not watch pig slaughtering, but Chen Jiandang was very interested, so as soon as the gong sounded, the boy sat up with a start.
She hastily threw on her clothes and ran outside, but Chen Shuning called her back in time, telling her to just wait to collect her share and then come back, and that she wouldn't go over there herself.
After Chen Jiandang left, Chen Shuning, who had already been woken up, decided not to go back to sleep. He got up, emptied the ashes from the stove, and relit the fire.
My family loves to eat things like donkey rolls and glutinous rice cakes, especially Chen Jiandang, who really enjoys glutinous rice cakes.
So every year around this time, Qin Yalan would make some and freeze them outside, so she could take them out and steam them whenever she wanted to eat them during the first month of the lunar calendar.
Since there was nothing much to do today, Chen Shuning decided to do some cooking, as the temperature outside had already reached minus thirty or forty degrees Celsius.
The outside was like a giant refrigerator. Because of this, Chen Shuning bought three small jars and placed them in the woodshed, specifically for storing frozen goods.
Of course, this is only because it's inconvenient for Chen Jiandang to be here; otherwise, even the best refrigerator wouldn't have as much space as hers, which can directly preserve food.
Fortunately, that kid will be home soon. This year, her brother and older sister are both going home for the Chinese New Year, and neither of them has been home for several years.
Chen Jiandang missed them both, but in the end, he was closer to Chen Shuning, who had raised him since childhood.
I felt that it would be too pitiful if his second sister was alone all alone during the New Year, since it was the first time she had been away from home.
So she insisted on spending the New Year with Chen Shuning before going back. It's cold in northern Xinjiang, and there's basically no work to do there in winter, so her older sister could stay at home for a while longer.
However, his brother's holiday was short, and he had to leave for Haishi on the eighth day of the Lunar New Year. So Chen Jiandang decided to set off for the second day of the Lunar New Year. After deducting the time spent on the train, he could spend two more days with his brother when he got home.
So these past few days, Chen Shuning has been making all sorts of different dishes for Chen Jiandang that he likes to eat.
Just as Chen Shuning finished mixing the glutinous rice flour and wheat flour in the correct proportions, she heard a series of loud squeals from outside, which startled her so much that she almost knocked over the basin in her hand.
Qingshan Brigade raised a total of fifteen pigs this year, and handed over eight and seven, all of which will be slaughtered and distributed today.
Hearing those piercing screams, Chen Shuning felt his heart couldn't take it anymore.
He hurriedly put down his work and planned to go inside to hide until the team finished slaughtering the pig before he could continue working.
As soon as Chen Shuning stood up, she saw a green figure through the small kitchen window.
Thinking of that possibility, Chen Shuning hurriedly ran towards the door.
I opened the door and saw that familiar person standing outside.
He Chaoyang last visited when Qin Yalan left, which was over a month ago. Chen Shuning really missed him.
Chen Shuning was not a native of the 1960s, and she didn't have the demureness and reserve that young women of that era had, who were too shy to hold hands in public after getting married.
So as soon as she saw the person, she rushed over and hugged He Chaoyang's waist, complaining in a wronged tone, "Didn't the letter say you were especially busy lately? I thought you wouldn't be able to come before the New Year."
Although He Chaoyang was too busy to keep up, he never stopped sending letters. Apart from things that couldn't be said due to principles and discipline, he almost reported to Chen Shuning every day in his letters what he ate.
The letter Chen Shuning received a few days ago said that the army has been very busy lately and they might not even have time to come before the New Year. Chen Shuning was disappointed and upset for several days because of this!
These days, who wouldn't be pleasantly surprised to see someone?
This was the first time He Chaoyang had felt Chen Shuning's enthusiasm. Although he was pleasantly surprised, he was a little overwhelmed. Hearing the little girl's slightly aggrieved tone, he felt a pang of sympathy.
I wanted to reach out and hug the little girl to comfort her, but unfortunately, both my hands were carrying things, so I couldn't free my hands.
He could only explain softly, "I had an urgent mission a while ago, and I thought I wouldn't be able to come back before the New Year. But the mission went very smoothly, so I rushed back to spend the New Year with you."
Although He Chaoyang spoke lightly, their mission this time was anything but easy.
A dozen days ago, their unit received an urgent mission, saying that a spy who had infiltrated the central government had stolen important intelligence. By the time the spy was discovered, he had already fled to the Daqingshan Mountains and was preparing to escape the country through the Daqingshan Mountains.
Because they received the news relatively late, they had already planned to disguise themselves and travel abroad to pursue the fugitive.
Unexpectedly, the group was trapped in the mountains due to the recent heavy snow. They had planned to wait for the snow to subside before crossing the border, but they were unexpectedly blocked in a cave by He Chaoyang and his group who were chasing them through the snowstorm.
It was precisely because he didn't chase her across the border that He Chaoyang was able to return early to spend the New Year with Chen Shuning.
Even if He Chaoyang didn't say it, Chen Shuning knew how dangerous He Chaoyang's job was, so no matter what, it was good that he came back safely.
Looking up at He Chaoyang, whose nose was red from the cold, Chen Shuning realized that the two of them were still standing outside, so she quickly took a step back.
He tapped his head and said, "Look, I was so happy that I forgot to invite you inside. Brother He, you must have been freezing on the way here. Come in and warm up."
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