That evening, the four girlfriends, who hadn't had dinner together in a long time, laughed and joked until late into the night before finally stopping.
Chen Shuning brought tender lamb chops and her usual small charcoal stove and a basket of charcoal, explaining that only slow simmering over a low flame could produce a delicious lamb soup.
Wang Chunni and Xu Laidi stewed a pot of sauerkraut and pork belly, and also steamed a large pot of pure white steamed buns.
Gu Xinyi brought fragrant braised pork and her homemade hawthorn wine.
In order to have a meal with her girlfriends, Gu Xinyi didn't even care about her two dining partners. She made a pot of meat sauce and left a bundle of noodles. Without even cooking them for the two of them, she hurriedly took the prepared food to Wang Chunni's place.
They did leave a plate of braised pork for the two of them, so it wasn't too heartless of them.
Today, they chose to have a meal at Wang Chunni's house. This way, while cooking, they could also burn firewood in the house. Otherwise, the two girls would always be reluctant to burn firewood, and the house would get so cold at night that it would be almost like an icebox.
Because of this, Chen Shuning and Gu Xinyi, as if by telepathy, each brought some firewood with them.
After all, gathering firewood is no easy task for two girls. Even though they have been working hard from dawn till dusk, they haven't saved up much firewood yet, and they still need to be careful with it if they want to burn it all winter.
There was a reason why Shen Dayang, who was engaged to Wang Chunni, hadn't come to help the two gather firewood.
Since Wang Chunni and Shen Dayang got engaged, Shen Baogen and his wife had discussed with their sons that they would separate the family property as soon as the two got married. Of course, this was not because the two old people had any objections to Wang Chunni, but because they wanted to separate the family property as soon as the new daughter-in-law entered the family.
Rather, the elderly couple were wise enough to understand that their children, once grown up and started their own families, would have their own thoughts and priorities, and would prioritize their own families when faced with problems.
Rather than forcing a family to live together, causing numerous disputes and growing increasingly estranged, it's better to separate the family early on, allowing everyone to focus their energy on their own little family.
In this way, not only will family conflicts be reduced significantly, but the bond between brothers and sisters-in-law may actually become deeper and more harmonious.
It is precisely for this reason that Shen Dayang has been busy building his own little family since the end of the autumn harvest.
From the very beginning of building the house, although it was built with the help of several brothers, the subsequent work included tidying up the courtyard, storing firewood, and planting fruit trees in the backyard.
Shen Dayang did everything quietly on his own because he knew that Wang Chunni and Xu Laidi had a good relationship, and that Wang Chunni was worried that Xu Laidi wouldn't have enough firewood to burn all winter.
So Shen Dayang let Wang Chunni help Xu Laidi gather firewood. As for the work on his own side, Shen Dayang didn't ask Wang Chunni to leave Xu Laidi alone and work with him for his own family.
Therefore, although Shen Dayang did not help Wang Chunni in storing enough firewood for her good friend Xu Laidi during the winter, he expressed his full understanding and support.
Today, Wang Chunni and Xu Laidi were only able to take a day off because of the heavy snow and wind outside.
Several girls sat on the warm kang (a heated brick bed), eating, drinking, chatting, and laughing, creating a very lively atmosphere.
Zhou Jihong, who lived only one room away from them, originally thought that even if it was just out of politeness, the people in the other room, who shared a kitchen with Wang Chunni and Xu Laidi, should also come and invite her to join the party.
For this reason, she had even prepared her humble words and the dishes she planned to bring.
However, to Zhou Jihong's dismay, no one came over to invite her until night fell and it was completely dark.
This made Zhou Jihong extremely angry, but she was powerless to do anything about it.
Whether she was angry or not, the four people in the room didn't care and continued to eat, drink, and chat as they pleased.
However, having become accustomed to communal living, the group knew it was best not to be too boisterous. So, even though their gathering wasn't over by 7 or 8 o'clock, they all consciously kept their voices down.
The four of them ate and drank until late into the night before parting ways. The two large bottles of hawthorn wine that Gu Xinyi had brought were all finished by the four of them, so after returning to their rooms, they all fell asleep in a daze.
Chen Shuning went to sleep without even washing his face, completely forgetting that his father had a lot of work to do the next day.
The next morning, several of Uncle Yang's older brothers came to help Chen Shuning pull the soaked glutinous rice, which woke up the hungover Chen Shuning.
Because she went to bed too late yesterday, Chen Shuning didn't even have time to eat breakfast before rushing to the Yang family's house. Making rice cakes is quite strenuous work, and she made a lot this year, so it wouldn't be good to trouble them all.
Just as Chen Shuning left, Wang Chunni was also woken up by the postman. It turned out that her parents in Beijing had sent her a money order and a package.
Because the package was too big, the postman only delivered the parcel slip; she still had to go to the post office in town to pick up the contents herself.
Wang Chunni's wedding date was set for December 12th. Wang Chunni secretly told the others that this date was an auspicious day that Wan Guihua had secretly consulted a fortune teller to calculate.
With the wedding date drawing ever closer, Wang Chunni's parents should arrive in a day or two.
Unlike Fang Qing's parents, the Wang family couple were wholeheartedly devoted to their daughter! Before she even arrived, the dowry prepared for Wang Chunni had already been delivered.
Wang Chunni, who had received the remittance slips and parcel slips from her parents well in advance, felt as sweet as if she had drunk honey, despite her hangover headache.
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