True to her word, Chen's mother sent the money over the next day, giving Su Xia 50 yuan directly.
Su Xia's lips twitched as she held the huge sum of money in her hand—50 yuan. In the eyes of the villagers, that was a fortune for buying New Year's goods.
“These old arms and legs of yours can’t go. Look at you, if you go, you’ll just leave it to the eldest son!” Mother Chen touched her nose.
As for the tickets needed, hehe -- there's no way around it, the eldest family has to fill the gap themselves.
Su Xia.....
It seems she not only runs errands, but also has to provide some supplies.
Chen's mother hummed a tune and happily went home to rest. There was no work to do at home now; Su Xia did all the cooking and New Year's preparations. She really only needed to lie down and rest.
Su Xia....
You're so relaxed!
As soon as Chen's mother left, Erbao ran over and asked, "Mom, when are we going to the county town?"
"What are you doing?" Su Xia glanced at him.
"Hehe...I see you're tired, so I'll come along and help you carry your things!" Erbao said, feeling really considerate.
Unfortunately, Su Xia didn't give her a chance, pushing her aside and saying, "With you here, I'm only tired!"
Erbao froze, then cried out in disbelief, "Mother...?"
"If you shout again, there will be no dinner tonight!" Su Xia threatened directly, really not wanting to waste words.
Erbao finally shut up, only looking at his older brother and sister who had been mocking him, and felt embarrassed.
Su Xia spent two days making 130 dumplings and 300 buns from all the fermented dough.
The fillings are divided into sauerkraut with pork cracklings, sauerkraut with pork, cabbage with pork cracklings, and cabbage with pork.
Lamb and radish, beef and radish, and as for chives and eggs, that can only be eaten on New Year's Day.
Su Xia looked at a pot of lush green chives next to the coal stove.
There was also a pot of green onions next to it, which added a splash of color to the room.
After the dumplings were frozen, Su Xia made 50 dumplings, 20 douzi, half a piece of cured meat, and a whole cured chicken, and made them all.
I went to tell the children, "I'm going to town to buy things. You all stay home and behave!"
Xiao Bao and Xiao Niu Niu nodded immediately, Er Bao was still disappointed, and Da Bao was fearless.
"Niu Niu, Mom, let her go!"
"Hmm, I might not be back tonight, so I'll leave the cooking to you!"
"I know, Mom. I can do even the simplest things!" Niu Niu didn't worry about it. Besides, Mom made so many dumplings; it was so easy to just heat them up and boil them.
Su Xia nodded and went to tell Chen's mother.
"Alright, you can let him go then. By the way, did you bring the baby for the eldest son?" The old mother was still thinking about this son.
Su Xia nodded. "I brought it!"
"Okay, I guess you've been missing your eldest son too. You can stay for one day or even two!" Chen's mother said, and then chuckled to herself.
Su Xia... Don't think she didn't see it.
Taking advantage of the good weather outside, Su Xia packed her things, fully equipped herself, and rode her bicycle towards the county town.
After Su Xia left, the children in the family, as if released from their cages, started running around the room.
"Haha... Big brother, hurry up, second brother, catch up with them!" Little Bao, sitting on Big Bao's shoulders, turned around and saw his second brother, laughing heartily...
"Alright, hold on tight, let's speed things up!"
Ha ha.....
"Sister, your hair doesn't look good, can you comb it again?" The little girl was also busy, insisting that Niu Niu comb her hair.
Less than an hour later, she came over and asked, "Sister, do you want two braids?"
Niu Niu helped again, and an hour later, she saw her younger sister coming over.
Niu Niu's lips twitched as she looked up at the rooftop...
"Sis, hurry up, get that bun hairstyle, and put that hair clip back on!"
Why....
Su Xia didn't know how the children would get along after she left; she just hoped they wouldn't cry.
The road wasn't cold at all; cycling in the dead of winter is a new kind of exercise, in a way.
When Su Xia arrived in the county town, it was almost 11 o'clock. She went straight home. It had been almost 20 days since she had returned, and she didn't know how she was doing.
"Eh...? This is Su girl?"
Su Xia was taken aback and looked over. It turned out that Sister-in-law Qiao had two unpleasant encounters before, but since last year, she had started to greet Su Xia on her own initiative.
"Sister-in-law, are you going out like this?"
"Yes, Xiaolian gave birth! Let's go see!" The voice was excited; without a doubt, it was a boy.
Su Xia smiled and said, "Okay, then you go ahead and get busy!"
"Alright...!" Aunt Qiao watched helplessly as Su Xia went inside and disappeared from sight, then slapped her thigh in frustration.
"Seriously, why are you walking so fast?"
"Can't even borrow two tickets! Bah..." He smacked Su Xia's front door and then hurriedly left.
Su Xia was completely unaware of the situation. She took the key and opened the door. The room was filled with cold air, which made her shiver.
Anyway, I'm not going back tonight, and I'm not in a hurry to buy anything. I'll just light the fireplace and heat up the kang (heated brick bed).
Half an hour later, Su Xia sat in the warm living room, drank a cup of hot water, and all her fatigue vanished.
The house is still the same as before. Niu Niu's room hasn't been moved at all, and neither have Da Bao and Er Bao's. Even the kitchen stove and burner haven't been used, so the room is practically a refrigerator.
After drinking the hot water, Su Xia didn't want to rest and started cleaning the room. After all, it was the New Year, so she had to clean up the dust and grime.
All the sheets and duvet covers were taken off, but no new ones were changed. The next time I come back will be after the New Year, so there's no need for them to collect dust.
All the rooms were prepared, except for their room, which was then cleaned.
Su Xia started washing things, taking out the washing machine and battery as usual, and soon the bathroom began to hum.
I set up clotheslines in the living room and kitchen, and hung the washed items out to dry one by one. I checked the grains; there were still ten jin of cornmeal and three jin of wheat flour.
I took out all the wheat flour and two pounds of cornmeal, kneaded the dough, and let it rise. I wanted to steam some buns before I left.
There were still plenty of side dishes, 3 jin of rice, and 2 jin of millet. Su Xia didn't touch these, as they were enough for Chen Jianguo to eat until the holiday.
I went to the cellar and took a cabbage, a radish, and a few potatoes and sweet potatoes. I found a lot of firewood in the woodshed, which must have been provided by Chen Jianguo.
Su Xia went back and made a stir-fried potato dish with vinegar, boiled 20 dumplings, put them in a bowl, and really wanted to go visit the old lady.
Grandma Dou was stunned for a moment, not expecting Su Xia to be there, and it took her a long time to come to her senses.
"Why are you back?" The voice was filled with surprise.
"I came back to buy some things, and it's a good opportunity to go home and visit!" Su Xia carried the things and helped the old man back into the house, where she found it much warmer.
There was a bucket in the kitchen specifically for storing coal, and three bundles of firewood.
The coal stove in the bedroom was burning brightly, and the room was very clean; it must have been cleaned.
"I cooked dumplings for you, prepared some vegetables, and this cured pork belly. You can steam it or stir-fry it!"
The old lady started eating dumplings, nodding in agreement. At her age, she was just happy to have something to eat; there was no need to be shy.
Su Xia didn't go back until she finished eating. "Xiaxia, don't worry about me. Jianguo comes over every two days to help me fetch water and firewood!"
Old Mrs. Dou's cloudy eyes no longer held the initial aloofness, only the weariness of age. Su Xia nodded.
"Let him do it, otherwise all that food was wasted!"
Ha ha....
The old lady laughed, and it was the first time she had ever laughed like this.
Su Xia returned home and, without thinking much, dressed herself and decided to take advantage of the time she still had to buy some New Year's goods, leaving the rest for her husband to buy together tomorrow.
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