Before they knew it, it was New Year's Eve. The Qian family grandfather and grandson came to celebrate with them, saying that what they ate was not important, the most important thing was to have a lively atmosphere.
Lately, it's just the two of them living together, and the old man is getting really bored.
"You guys don't know, this kid can go a whole day without farting twice. The house is so quiet it's like nobody's home. I'm so frustrated!"
Feeling stifled, he could only frequently go up the mountain to visit his wife.
Qian Youfu felt a little awkward. When had he not spoken? It's just that sometimes two men really don't have much to talk about; what do they say when there's nothing to say?
Grandpa complained every day that he was boring, saying that Pear Blossom would definitely not be able to stand his personality after he got married in three years.
How could I not be able to stand it? Even if he doesn't speak, Pear Blossom will. When they're together, Pear Blossom is incredibly talkative, and there's never a dull moment.
It's nothing like when he was with his grandfather, when he would wait for him to speak, and the old man would wait for him to speak, staring at each other with wide eyes, his disdain for him barely concealed.
"Then come over to our house for a visit whenever you have time, and go back when it's time to eat."
The old man is getting on in years; he can't eat vegetarian food every day like them.
"Okay, I'll come here more often when I have time. This kid is driving me crazy. Big Tree, let's play a couple of rounds later." Besides going up the mountain, the only thing we can talk about is our parrot at home, which makes me sad just thinking about it.
"Okay, two plates, please."
On New Year's Eve, the kitchen staff racked their brains to prepare this New Year's Eve dinner.
They managed to prepare over a dozen plates of vegetarian dishes in various ways, which looked quite impressive and appetizing at first glance.
"The kitchen had a tough time today."
Zhao Dashu also enjoyed watching it; although it was all vegetarian, it was very beautiful.
"A reward of two taels of silver will be given to each kitchen worker."
"Thank you, sir!"
Fried meatballs, eight-treasure tofu soup, braised mushrooms, sweet and sour shredded radish, stir-fried winter bamboo shoots... a variety of dishes, with festive colors, red and green, making it look lively.
Old Master Qian stroked his beard and said with a smile, "Not bad, not bad. Although it's a vegetarian feast, the scale is no less impressive than a meat feast. The kitchen has really put in a lot of effort."
"Grandpa Qian, please try this vegetarian chicken. It's steamed repeatedly with tofu skin and mushroom sauce. It's a bit chewy and very flavorful."
Xiao Lei served the two children some of their favorite fried meatballs and sweet and sour shredded radish, while Zhao Dashu couldn't wait to reach for the "braised mushrooms" dish that looked most like meat.
………………
The New Year was very quiet at Zhao Dayong's house. Li Shi was lying on the kang (a heated brick bed) with a sore back. Da Zhu Zi stayed in his room and didn't come out. San Zhu Zi didn't come home until the evening of the 29th. He went straight to sleep as soon as he got home and didn't leave the house all day. No one knew what he was doing outside, he was so tired.
Zhao Dayong is good at everything except cooking. These past few days, he's only been able to have a hot meal thanks to his daughter's family.
But all she could do was cook the food until it was just done; the taste was, to put it mildly, terrible.
Today is great, the second son's family came back, carrying half a basket of eggs and a pound of sugar.
Since Li was unable to move, the kitchen was naturally left to Guo, with a maid assisting her.
The most lively places in a house are the kitchen and the two-pillar room.
The sisters-in-law chatted and laughed happily. After cleaning his own room and the main room, Erzhuzi left the rest of the room and went inside to play with the children.
Zhao Dayong was the last to come out and put up the new couplets on the door.
"Look at them all," Li Shi scolded, lying on the kang (heated brick bed). "The children have all come back, but none of them came in to see their grandparents. Now that they're back, they're hiding in their rooms, even locking the door when they go out. Who are they trying to keep away from?"
Locking the door from the inside and then locking the children inside when adults leave the house—what else is that if not to keep them safe?
Would they really harm their own grandchildren?
What the couple did was really too much.
"Alright, stop talking. You know why the child is like this. He's been scared by this awful thing."
Ms. Li felt it was very difficult. Every time she told her husband that she wouldn't take care of the children and only cared about herself, she couldn't do it.
How could she possibly not care about her own flesh and blood?
She might only let go if everyone in the family, like Erzhuzi's, lived happily and could still make money.
"Alright, stop talking. Your son is concerned about his reputation now. Don't talk about him in front of outsiders, and even if you need something from him, don't do it in front of him."
"Hmph, I'd have to be his grandson for him? There's no future for him. Let him do whatever he wants, I don't care if he dies."
Knowing that the old man was just saying things out of anger, Li didn't argue with him.
"Why won't my back get better? It hurts so much when I walk."
"Didn't the doctor say that it's cold and he'll recover slowly, and that he should rest a little longer? That beast, he can do anything to anyone. If you ask me, we should kick him out. Only when he suffers will he know how good home is."
We've been too good to him; he's become less and less like a human being.
"What nonsense are you spouting? Stop talking, or the whole village will know why I got hurt if Erzhuzi and his wife hear you."
"He did it, so why is he afraid of what people will say?"
"Shut up. Don't you know why your son has become like this? It's all because of the Pan family's affair. To be frank, you can't blame him entirely. He's listened to so much gossip these past few years."
"It's just that I can't get a woman pregnant, it's not like it's impossible..." Mrs. Li blushed, "Why are those people so gossipy and vulgar? Can't they have any decency?"
"Ha, how is he being immoral? If he hadn't provoked the Pan family, everyone would have known. He's bad himself but won't let anyone talk about it. Not to mention the distant places, do you know what they're saying about him in Pan Family Village? They all say that his inability to have children is retribution, he's so wicked."
Li didn't want to argue with the old man about these things.
"Stop talking. Go out and see if there's anything you can help with. Don't let the Guo family do whatever they want while I'm not around."
"How can you use it? It's just for cooking New Year's Eve dinner."
Li urged, "Go and take a look quickly, don't waste the fine grains. I plan to sell them in the county town after the New Year and exchange them for coarse grains."
"There's no meat left today, how about we have some plain flour dumplings?"
“If you’re not going, I’m going,” Li said, even more anxiously. “I said you’re not allowed to eat it, and that’s final. How much white flour does the whole family eat? After they leave, I’ll make something else for you and Dazhu.”
Zhao Dayong reluctantly got up. As a father-in-law, there were some things he couldn't say, but his wife was still unreasonable and kept pressuring him.
"Go, go, go now! Are you satisfied now?"
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