Chapter 71 Celebrating the New Year with Chicken, Duck, Fish and Meat

The Gregorian New Year has just passed, and the Laba Festival is just around the corner. After Laba, the New Year is just around the corner. The Year of the Tiger is almost over, and we will soon usher in a brand new year.

The night before, Grandma soaked peanuts, red dates, glutinous rice, walnuts, red dates, and other ingredients. The next day, she got up before dawn to cook porridge because she wanted Dad to bring it to Mom and Sister Cuihua to try.

"Oh, Mom, they're making porridge today too. It's Laba Festival, everyone on the street is making porridge, so you don't need to bring any for them."

“They are who they are. This is what Mom made. It tastes like home. Your wife has worked hard, and Cuihua has had a tough time too. Everyone in this family has to do their part to make things better. Mom thinks about them, and they think about the family. This is a good thing. It’s mutual. I put sugar in it. It’s very sweet. Take it over quickly. If it gets cold, reheat it. Eat it quickly so you can get on your way.”

Grandma got up at four in the morning for this pot of porridge. Dad couldn't bear to refuse, and he felt sorry for her taking care of the family. He ate breakfast with a lot of emotion, then took the eggs that Grandma had cooked for them and rode away on his tricycle.

Xiao Jiu slept in the warehouse, where it wasn't cold at all, so she woke up early. Their room was right next to the kitchen, so she heard everything the mother and son were saying.

Beyond being deeply moved, this story truly reflects the reality of most Chinese families.

Mothers like Cao Amei are not unheard of, but encountering one is simply the worst luck imaginable.

Since she couldn't sleep anyway, she got dressed and got up by herself. Her grandmother was shocked to see her.

"Oh my goodness, why are you up? Aren't you cold? Come on, come inside and sleep a little longer. Look, it's starting to snow again."

The sky has been overcast for the past few days, and the snow has been falling and melting, not yet thick enough to create a thick blanket of white snow, but the temperature has dropped sharply and it's very cold.

She got up without a hat or scarf. As soon as her grandmother saw her run out, she quickly hugged her and the two of them snuggled together in the warm kitchen.

"My sweetie, can you smell the delicious food? Are you hungry? How about I get you a bowl of porridge?"

The obedient little girl shook her head: "Let's have porridge together, Grandma. Can I have a sweet potato instead?"

When Grandma cooked porridge, she also steamed sweet potatoes. Because she was worried that everyone wouldn't have enough to eat, she kept sweet potatoes and potatoes on hand almost every day.

"Today's food is sweet potato, it's so dry it'll make you choke. You can eat this first, and I'll boil some water for you to drink later."

Little Jiu nodded obediently. Grandma quickly replaced the kettle with a kettle and moved the charcoal fire from the stove to the next stove to keep the porridge warm and cook it until it was softer.

Xiao Jiu held the slightly cooled sweet potato, slowly peeled off the skin, and placed it by the edge of the stove. This could be used to feed the chickens and ducks. She didn't like to eat it, so she didn't throw it away.

When the flesh inside the sweet potato was revealed, it looked so soft and chewy that it would be hard to swallow. Taking a small bite, it was sweet and chewy, and she smiled happily at her grandmother.

"tasty!"

"Your child is really easy to raise. It's a pity she can't drink goat's milk for the next few months. Once she gives birth to lambs in the spring, we'll have milk to drink again."

"Grandma, please don't give the lambs away, okay? Let's raise them together. I'm not afraid of getting tired; I'll cut grass for them!"

Grandma patted her head: "Okay, that's fine, but we can't keep it all. We have to give half to the other party. After mating, it has to be divided equally. Let's see how many sheep the mother sheep has. If it's an even number, we'll keep half. The ewe is getting old, and it's time to find you a companion."

Grandma noticed that since the children and adults in the family started drinking goat milk, they were not only healthier but also rarely got sick. So she felt that the goat, as an important member of the family, had made a great contribution. One goat is a goat, and raising more is also raising them. If you want to raise them, then raise them. If you can't finish the goat milk, then put it out at the door to sell. In the end, it won't go to waste.

As for the Niu family, whom she offended because of the goat milk, Grandma scoffed and said, "It's not a big deal to offend those kinds of people. It's better to never have anything to do with them again!"

Unbeknownst to them, once the seeds of hatred are sown, they are like time bombs that could explode at any moment.

Once everyone is up, and Xiao Jiu has eaten sweet potatoes and drunk boiled water, then enjoy a bowl of sweet Laba porridge. That's when the true meaning of this festival is revealed.

Grandma also said, "I'll make you sesame seed cakes for lunch. It's a tradition to eat cakes on Laba Festival. I'll also stir-fry some shredded potatoes for you. The mung bean sprouts I sprouted a few days ago are ready, so I'll stir-fry some more mung bean sprouts, pickle some spicy cabbage and shredded radish. You can eat them together; they'll definitely be delicious."

The mung beans in their family were planted by their grandmother under the trees and in the nooks and crannies. The harvest was very poor, just enough to last through the winter.

The red beans were bought by my father because his family didn't grow them. Considering that they would be making bean buns for the New Year, he took advantage of the good weather and bought some.

Around the 20th of the twelfth lunar month, my brothers started their winter vacation one after another. My parents' snack shop managed to stay open until New Year's Eve, which can be considered as persevering until the last day.

Since my father had already bought all the New Year's goods for the family while shopping for ingredients in the streets and alleys, there was no need to buy any more New Year's goods. So my father and mother insisted on staying until the last shop closed.

The patients' families at the hospital said with regret, "Since you're closed, we'll have to eat at the hospital. You have no idea how bad their food is. When are you planning to reopen? You'd better open soon! For the same price, it's really better to eat at your place. It's more affordable and tastes better!"

Because this food street is located near the hospital, it provides great convenience for patients and their families. In particular, their wontons are light and easy to eat, making them a top choice for patients.

This year, my father bought half a pig, ten large carp, ten chickens, ducks and geese in total, and five catties of eggs. We already have vegetables at home, so he didn't buy anything else. With this kind of scale, it's definitely the kind of treatment only a wealthy family would have!

Cuihua had sighed in front of her two younger sisters more than once.

"In the past, I didn't even dare to dream of eating white flour dumplings during the Chinese New Year, let alone meat. It was only after coming here that I started to live like a human being!"

Zhao Di and Pan Di thought the same thing.

"I used to see my grandparents eating white flour dumplings while we ate black flour and cabbage. You only know how bitter it was after you've experienced it yourself."

"The funny thing is, we ground that flour, we earned it, but in the end, we couldn't even eat it ourselves. Everyone would have complaints, and no one could get over that hurdle, right? Sister, back then you led us away without looking back. Looking back now, it really was the best thing you ever did in your life."

Now that the three sisters can live with their little sister in the Tao family, it feels like a dream. When Cuihua heard this, she couldn't help but think of her other sisters.

“Actually, I really want to bring them home, but as long as our household registration issue isn’t resolved and we’re still living in that home, there’s no way to bring them back. Plus, we’d have to give them benefits; we can’t let them support us for so many years for nothing. Besides, who knows how much money our mother secretly pocketed back then? Do you think we can just ask for it? We can’t earn money and stand on our own two feet, so there’s no way we can bring them all home!”