But this year is special, and even so, Xu Han still doesn't want to let it pass by in a muddle.
“Okay, I remember you also bought red paper and stuff. Let’s decorate the house together tomorrow! We can’t miss the New Year’s atmosphere,” Lu Chuan suggested.
In fact, Lu Chuan himself hasn't experienced the feeling of Chinese New Year for many years. He's always alone, and since he's the only one who's hungry, it doesn't matter whether it's a holiday or not.
Lu Chuan was also thinking that he wouldn't be alone this year; with his wife by his side, he would definitely have a good New Year.
After deciding on the menu for tomorrow, the two tidied up and prepared to rest, as they had a lot to do tomorrow!
The next morning, Xu Han didn't stay in bed late. She got up early and cooked some meat in the morning. She washed some of the marinated salted chicken, beef, and salted duck, and then boiled them directly to eat.
Lu Chuan was in charge of cleaning the meat, while Xu Han prepared the side dishes for dinner.
First, wash the necessary green vegetables thoroughly. In ancient times, there were no other green vegetables besides cabbage and radishes.
Unlike in modern times, when greenhouse vegetables are available year-round and can be bought whenever you want.
These vegetables would be quite a rarity in an ordinary household. Luckily, Xu Han has a spatial ability, otherwise she really wouldn't be able to eat them!
Take out some cucumbers, green beans, tomatoes, celery, cauliflower, and the like.
Of course, various types of mushrooms are also essential, especially delicious ones like termite mushrooms, matsutake mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, and chanterelle mushrooms.
Of course, they couldn't forget about the various kinds of meat they usually stocked up on; they stir-fried what needed to be stir-fried and braised what needed to be braised. The two of them had a clear division of labor, and they were quite fast.
Lu Chuan put the meat in the pot to cook, while Xu Han was washing the vegetables and asked Lu Chuan to chop the meat into pieces so it could be cooked in a little while.
By noon, the meat was cooked, and Xu Han used the large iron pot outside to cook a big pot of spicy lamb head and trotters.
The flavor is incredibly strong and fragrant. The aroma comes out as soon as the ingredients are added, making your mouth water. You might even want to curse while preparing it, as your mouth is already watering before it's even done.
After the two ate a little something, Xu Han immediately began preparing the New Year's Eve dinner.
White-cut chicken, white-cut duck, salted beef, chicken stew with mushrooms, braised fish, spicy rabbit, stir-fried beef, braised mutton, dry-fried potatoes, dry-pot cauliflower, spicy lamb trotters, cucumber salad, peanuts and edamame, green bean salad, braised duck parts, tomato salad, and many other dishes.
The table was filled with a total of 20 dishes: eight cold dishes and twelve hot dishes.
After everything was finished, before it got dark, Xu Han and Lu started putting up couplets and cutting paper-cuts, making the house look especially festive.
Add to that the cured meat and sausages hanging from the rafters, and the festive atmosphere of the New Year is instantly created.
After everything was prepared, Xu Han took out the fruit wine she had brewed earlier from the storeroom, along with some nuts, peanuts, pine nuts, walnuts, and other snacks and tea, making it a truly sumptuous feast.
After everything was prepared, I cooked some dumplings. Dumplings are a must-eat on New Year's Eve and various festivals, so I definitely couldn't forget them.
After setting all the food on the table and paying respects to Lu's parents, the two began to eat.
Looking at the table full of food, Xu Han couldn't help but sigh and said, "I've been busy all day preparing so much food. There's definitely more than we can eat. It's a bit too lonely with just the two of us."
“Once the disaster year is over, if you find it too quiet, we can have more children, or we can move to the county town.”
"Let's stay here! I prefer life here. Oh dear! Why bring this up? It's New Year's Eve, even if it's just the two of us, we should still have a good time." Xu Han quickly changed the subject.
After saying that, he raised his glass and began drinking with Lu Chuan. They ate their New Year's Eve dinner very early, while it was still light out.
After eating for about an hour, both of them were full, and then they chatted while eating pine nuts.
Xu Han suddenly remembered that there was still one thing she hadn't done!
Every year on New Year's Eve, Xu Han's mother would put garlic and spinach into a bucket, as if it had some kind of symbolic meaning.
However, Xu Han couldn't remember clearly, so she followed her mother's example and put garlic and spinach into the bucket.
She went back to her room and stayed there. Eventually, she got so bored that she took out a Go board and started playing Go with Lu Chuan.
"Haha, I won again!" Xu Han clapped her hands triumphantly.
“Let’s play one more round. I’ve already learned it,” Lu Chuan continued.
After several rounds, Xu Han was the one with a bitter face.
"I'm not playing anymore, I'm not playing anymore. You always win, it's so boring," Xu Han said angrily.
What else is fun? Mahjong or poker, it's not fun to play with just two people! It's more fun with more people.
The two were so bored that they stayed up until after 11 p.m. before finally succumbing to sleepiness and falling asleep.
The next morning, Lu Chuan got up to cook dumplings, while Xu Han continued to sleep, only to get up after lying down for a short while.
After the dumplings were cooked, they offered a small sacrifice to Lu's parents before the two of them began to eat.
Xu Han and Lu Chuan's family have the same custom: they eat dumplings on the first day of the Lunar New Year, and then go to pay New Year's visits after eating dumplings.
However, the two lived deep in the mountains, with no neighbors on either side, so they couldn't visit each other for the New Year.
So after eating dumplings, there wasn't much to do. The first day of the Lunar New Year is a day when you can't work, symbolizing a year of leisure and enjoyment.
You can't pour water or sweep the floor, because you might sweep away your wealth. There are so many rules! You also can't use needles, thread, or scissors before the fifth day of the Lunar New Year.
The two were bored with nothing to do. They were always busy, and suddenly being idle and not allowed to work made them feel uncomfortable.
She looked here and touched there. Finally, Lu Chuan took out a brush and paper and began to teach Xu Han to write calligraphy.
Xu Han had learned a little bit before, but it was when she was in school, and she had almost forgotten it all. When she picked up a pen again, her writing was crooked and messy.
Finally, with Lu Chuan's guidance, I wrote something passable, but at least others could understand it.
The two spent the entire afternoon practicing calligraphy, finally getting through this difficult day.
In the evening, Xu Han poured all the leftovers from yesterday together, heated them up, and ate them. She felt they tasted even better than when they were freshly cooked!
When Xu Han was little, when her family, neighbors, and relatives held banquets, the leftover dishes were mixed together, and each household was given some leftovers. It tasted even better than the whole table of food!
After dinner, even Lu Chuan thought it was delicious, with a unique flavor that other dishes didn't have.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
