On the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, people usually steam buns. Chen Shuning had already started the dough last night and left it at the end of the kang (a heated brick bed) to ferment. It should be almost ready by now.
Seeing that He Chaoyang and Chen Jiandang were both busy, Chen Shuning decided to go back and steam the buns first. So she only chatted briefly with Gu Xinyi before saying goodbye and going back to her room to cook.
I eat steamed buns for breakfast, and then stew some cabbage and frozen tofu to make do.
Having not gotten up to make breakfast for the two of them for two days in a row, Chen Shuning felt really bad. Since Chen Jiandang had been sleeping at He Chaoyang's place for the past few days, she decided to secretly put an alarm clock under her pillow tonight, just like she used to when she went to work.
After several months of practice, Chen Shuning's cooking skills have become quite good. Before long, the steamed buns were in the pot, and the cabbage and frozen tofu were stewed in another pot.
Thinking about how she now has family to celebrate the New Year with, unlike in her previous life when she was all alone after her grandmother passed away.
Back then, what she feared most was the Spring Festival and other holidays. Seeing other families reunited and having a lively time, she was all alone. At that time, she was too lazy to even get out of bed, let alone cook anything delicious.
She didn't want to see those lively scenes because at this time of year she would especially miss her deceased relatives.
Although she still misses them now, she has the company of her family and loved ones, so she is not lonely this year.
Thinking that there should be some festive atmosphere during the New Year, Chen Shuning scooped up some flour, cracked in a few eggs, added sugar, and kneaded a bowl of dough for fried dough twists. She set it aside to rest and then started preparing the meat that she had set aside yesterday.
Chen Shuning and He Chaoyang had already discussed it last night. Neither of them needed the money from selling the meat, so they didn't want to sell any of the wild boar meat.
Anyway, the winters here are long and cold, so the meat can be stored for a while. Plus, wild boar meat is quite lean, so Chen Shuning plans to make some pork jerky or pork jowl and send some home and to the He family after the New Year.
So when freezing the meat last night, Chen Shuning set aside all the lean meat, keeping the hindquarters and thigh meat for making dried meat, and using the tenderloin to make jerky.
First, cut the hindquarters and thigh meat into strips of suitable thickness. While the two people at home were still away, I secretly took out the marinade from my space and marinated the meat.
Pork jerky is much simpler. Just mince the pork tenderloin, add honey, fish sauce, egg white and a little pepper, mix well and marinate for half an hour before baking.
Just as Chen Shuning finished marinating the meat, He Chaoyang and Chen Jiandang entered the room.
As soon as Chen Jiandang entered the room, he scooped up some cold water from the water tank and drank it. By the time Chen Shuning saw him, the boy had already drunk more than half a ladle.
Enraged, Chen Shuning grabbed a rolling pin and started hitting Chen Jiandang's buttocks, yelling, "You brat, how many times have I told you not to drink cold water? You're not allowed to drink cold water! What if you get a stomachache during the New Year?"
Although Chen Shuning was angry, he didn't dare to use force.
Chen Jiandang knew that his sister was doing this for his own good, so he wasn't angry when he was hit. After putting the water ladle back, he said with a smile, "It's okay, sister. I'm perfectly healthy. I drink cold water like this at home all the time, and nothing happens to me."
"But sister, the water from your well is really delicious. It has a subtle sweetness, much better than the water back home."
Chen Shuning felt a little guilty when this was mentioned, because there was indeed something wrong with the water in her vat; she had secretly added spiritual spring water to it.
Chen Shuning only added a small bowl of water to the tank. His original intention was to secretly help Chen Jiandang improve his health, but he didn't expect the kid to be so quick-witted.
She only added a tiny bit, and the kid actually tasted the sweetness in it.
In fact, Chen Shuning's behavior was typical of someone who had a guilty conscience, because the water source in their brigade was spring water from Daqingshan Mountain, and it did taste sweeter than the water in his hometown.
Chen Jiandang never dreamed that just because his sense of taste was slightly more sensitive than others, he would pay such a heavy price.
His sister, instead of ordering around her own boyfriend, bullied him, the kid.
His sister pointed at the food in the pot and said, "Chen Jiandang, hurry up and wash your hands and serve the rice and vegetables. There's a lot of work to do today, so finish eating quickly so you can help me make twisted dough sticks."
Upon hearing that he was to make twisted dough sticks, Chen Jiandang's face immediately fell. He was the kind of person who couldn't sit still; he wouldn't be afraid to do things like fetching water or chopping wood.
But he really didn't like making twisted dough sticks. Qin Yalan had to fry twisted dough sticks every year because men are strong and can make the twisted dough sticks thin and even. So, making twisted dough sticks was basically the job of Chen's father and Chen Jiandang.
If anyone were to ask Chen Jiandang now what he regrets most in his life, he would definitely say that he learned how to make twisted dough sticks.
He Chaoyang, who was standing to the side, couldn't stand it anymore. He quickly picked up the thermos and poured in hot water, saying, "Come and wash your hands quickly. Didn't you say you were hungry this morning? Eat quickly so you can get back to work. After we're done here, I'll take you to see that persimmon tree in the afternoon."
Upon hearing that he could still go into the mountains, Chen Jiandang immediately perked up.
When Chen Shuning heard that the two were going to go into the mountains, he asked with some disapproval, "We have so much meat at home that we can't finish it all, why do we still want to go into the mountains?"
He Chaoyang, who had just washed his hands and was helping Chen Shuning serve food, explained with a smile: "Yesterday when I went up the mountain, I saw a wild persimmon tree with quite a few persimmons on it. I was planning to pick some on my way down, but I encountered a wild boar in the mountains and didn't have time to pick any on my way down."
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