Chapter 291 Laba Festival

"These are plastic bags, the kind you only find in big cities. I saw some in the things my older brother and sister sent back. They're convenient to use and quite sturdy, so I brought them over for you to use. I've already tested them, and they can easily carry five pounds. These are only two or three pounds, so they won't leak."

She knew such questions would arise, and thought that if they didn't ask, she would just brush it off; if they did ask, she would give a brief explanation.

After all, this thing was only introduced in the mid-to-late 1960s and only became popular in the 1980s.

If she used those grain bags from the warehouse to pack the grain, they would have writing on them, which would be difficult to handle. Cloth bags were too expensive for her to deliver.

After thinking it over, I still think this is the most suitable. After all, she doesn't use it often, so it's not unreasonable for her to take it out and use it occasionally.

She did not say anything about the origin of the refined white rice and other grains.

Ye Zhen, having worked for several years, noticed that Ye Zhen didn't give a direct answer, so she changed the subject.

"How could I accept this? This rice is so good, you should keep it for yourself."

Xiao Jiu shook her head. "Sister Zhen, you take it. To be honest, my second sister couldn't have gotten this job without you guys."

Ye Zhen thought it wouldn't be appropriate to keep arguing back and forth like this, so she simply accepted it with a smile.

"Okay, when you have time, come over to our house for a meal with your sister. Don't worry about her work, I'll help her get back to things."

After Xiao Jiu thanked Ye Zhen repeatedly, Ye Zhen rode her bicycle back to the family compound before Xiao Jiu rode away.

Around 8:30, she returned to the vicinity of the school, retrieved her bicycle, spoke kindly to the old man guarding the gate, grabbed a handful of peanuts, and he readily let her into the school.

Since evening self-study didn't end until 9:30, Xiao Jiu was too lazy to go back to class, so she went directly to the dormitory supervisor for a key to open the door and go in.

She had a leave slip approved by her teacher, so it was very convenient for her to come and go.

After Tang Cuiju was settled, with only a few days left before the exam, Xiao Jiu completely focused on her studies.

Everyone says that once Laba Festival is over, the New Year is just around the corner. I was so busy helping Tang Cuiju move and pack that I even missed Laba Festival.

If she hadn't glanced at the calendar, she wouldn't have known that today was Laba Festival. She then went into the warehouse and cooked a small pot of simple Laba porridge.

The main problem is that some beans (red beans and kidney beans) won't cook through if they aren't soaked beforehand, so she can only choose beans that are easier to cook.

For example, there are eight relatively easy-to-cook ingredients such as corn kernels, glutinous rice, red dates, peanuts, goji berries, longan, yam, and chestnut kernels.

Simmer it in a clay pot over low heat. When get out of class is almost over, add a handful of rock sugar to make the broth thicker. Then, take the pot out and place it on the table in the dormitory.

A dozen minutes later, my roommate returned, and the temperature had dropped to a level where it was just drinkable.

As soon as Mingxia, Weiwei, and Pengjuan entered the house, they smelled a special aroma and were stunned when they saw the casserole on the table.

"Oh my god, why did you bring the pot back?"

Xiao Jiu grinned and said, "Today is Laba Festival, have you forgotten? Come on, let's have a drink together and go to sleep warm and cozy."

Peng Juan and Mingxia quickly brought up all the water bottles in the dormitory.

"Get some hot water first, otherwise it will be gone in a while. You guys eat first, don't wait for us."

There's nothing more comforting than soaking your feet in the dead of winter.

While they were at it, Xiao Jiu used a wooden spoon she took out from the warehouse to divide a small pot of eight-treasure porridge into four portions and serve them into each person's lunchbox.

As soon as the group of people who had fetched water returned, she quickly waved her hand.

"Close the door, close the door. The temperature is just right now. We'll wash the pot when no one's around."

"You're such a genius, Xiaotao." As soon as I opened the lunchbox, I smelled a soft, sweet aroma.

The three of them were so excited that they didn't know what to do. Since they didn't have spoons, they chose to drink directly from their lunchboxes.

One bite, and your mouth is filled with a sweet and chewy texture. As you chew each ingredient carefully, you can taste different flavors.

It was fragrant, sweet, and warm, not only relieving their fatigue and hunger but also allowing them to truly experience the happiness of eating Laba porridge.

"You might not believe it, but this is the best Laba porridge I've ever eaten in my life."

Peng Juan's emotional words were immediately echoed by Gao Mingxia and Pang Weiwei.

"Don't worry, it's not just you, it's the same for us. What are these round things? They look like they're wrapped in a layer of meat on the outside and have a hard, dark shell inside."

Xiao Jiu glanced at them and said, "Those are dried longan, and the yellow ones that taste like sweet potatoes are chestnuts."

"What are those white, oval-shaped pieces that are soft and chewy?"

"Oh, those are yam slices,"

"And what's this red one that bursts with juice when you bite into it?"

Goji berries are a type of medicinal herb.

...

After Xiao Jiu patiently finished explaining, everyone had already drunk more than half of the wine, occasionally letting out a sigh.

"It's so sweet and delicious, Little Peach, thank you for giving us the most complete Laba Festival."

After finishing the porridge, Mingxia and Peng Juan washed the dishes, Weiwei wiped the table, and poured hot water into Xiaojiu's toothbrush cup and water basin.

"Come on, let's wash up. We'll come back and soak our feet in a bit."

They were the only two people brushing their teeth in the dorm, so they didn't call the other two. It just so happened that they had just finished washing the pots and lunchboxes and came back.

"Hurry up and go, there aren't many people around right now. I felt a cool, refreshing touch on my face when I was outside, I wonder if it's going to snow."

Upon hearing that it was going to snow, Xiao Jiu picked up her basin and went outside. She deliberately looked up at the dark sky and found that there wasn't a single star. Moreover, cold particles were indeed falling on her face from time to time, which startled her.

"It really did snow!"

No one expected that the snow would fall so heavily on the night of Laba Festival, and the temperature dropped sharply when we went to sleep that night.

The next day, no one wanted to get out of bed, but just then the dormitory supervisor started calling out.

"No morning self-study today. Finish breakfast before 7 o'clock and assemble on the playground. All teachers and students will shovel snow. Do you hear me? I'll repeat it again."

When the teacher spoke, you could clearly hear the crunching sound of footsteps on the snow, and the light outside was noticeably brighter this morning, so it was undoubtedly a vast expanse of white.

"It seems this snowfall is quite heavy, to the point that all the teachers and students have to shovel snow."

Mingxia had just poked her head out when she gasped in cold air: "Oh my, it's so cold!"

Xiao Jiu thought of the silk quilts and mattresses that had been placed in the Weng family's rented room yesterday; those had been salvaged from the staff dormitory.

She had aired the quilt for many days, and the sheets and duvet covers had all been washed. She certainly wouldn't use them herself, but at least in this kind of weather, Sister Cuiju could take them over and cover herself with her not-so-thick quilt to keep out the cold.

The staff dormitory was full of silk quilts. She put aside the ones that looked relatively new and clean, and planned to wash the slightly dirty ones when she had time. In today's world of scarcity, they might be able to be used as mattresses or something. It would be a waste to throw them away.

Yesterday, before she left, she asked Sister Ye Zhen to help her find some defective cloth and cotton that didn't require cloth coupons.

Such good stuff can only be obtained by people in textile factories. As long as they can get their hands on it, price is not an issue.

She gave Tang Cuihua one-third of the cloth coupons in her hand, but she couldn't find any cotton coupons no matter how many times she looked at them.

Taking advantage of the Chinese New Year, let's see if we can make a couple more sets of clothes for the elderly people in the family.

That day I went to the department store and saw two woolen vests from Northwest China; they looked like high-quality items.

Upon inquiry, it was discovered that not only was a single ration coupon required, but also cloth coupons and wool coupons.

She'd never seen a wool coupon in her entire life; what use was a cloth coupon?

After this snowfall, I wonder if her elderly parents' cotton shoes will keep them warm.

No one expected that the snow would fall on and off until the weekend.

The deepest snow outdoors has reached above the knees and up to the groin.

Every morning, you can hear the sounds of snow removal and shoveling on the roof.

Because of the snow, the temperature in the classroom kept dropping, and many students were sneezing and had runny noses from the cold.

Xiao Jiu didn't care about manners; she not only put on a knitted hat but also the gloves her mother had knitted for her.

I have to stomp my feet from time to time to keep my hands and feet from getting stiff. After class, I absolutely have to go for a run, otherwise my body will be so stiff that I'll question my existence.

School doesn't give us a weekend off because we have exams the following week, and then we'll have a break after the exams.

Unexpectedly, before she even left the school, Tang Cuiju came to visit her and brought her some hot steamed buns.

Ten in total: "Keep them and eat them slowly. Before you eat them, try to boil them. Don't eat them cold."

Xiao Jiu couldn't wait to take a bite: "Wow, it's filled with cabbage, tofu, and glass noodles!"

"I only bought tofu; the rest was what you saved for me," he said. The noodles were black, made from a mixture of sweet potato, sorghum, and wheat flour.

The texture was okay, not too coarse, but the dough probably didn't rise very well because of the weather.

"Mmm, it's delicious, sis. How are you? Did you get used to it today?"

“I’ve gotten used to it. I work from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., and then from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., eight hours a day. If I need to work overtime occasionally, I get overtime pay. It’s much better than toiling in the fields. Now I use my evenings to study. The kerosene lamp you bought has come in handy.”

"Isn't there electricity? Why are you using an oil lamp? I even bought you candles!"

"Electric light isn't bright enough, candles are too wasteful and burn too quickly, and oil lamps just illuminate the area around the book perfectly. This is the most reliable one."

"By the way, where did you get the pickled vegetables you left for me? They're really delicious. I don't cook dinner tonight; steamed buns and pickled vegetables are just right."

Xiao Jiu immediately got angry, "It's so cold, sister, you should at least make some soup! How can you eat pickled vegetables and steamed buns every day?"

“I’ll make some soup in the morning, but I won’t eat it in the evening because I can’t hold it in. I usually eat two meals a day at home. I only eat this because I’m studying too late at night and I can’t hold it in anymore. I asked around and found out that although my food ration has been transferred, I won’t be able to receive the rations until next month.”

For someone like Cuiju, who changed her household registration from rural to urban, there were many connections involved. That's why Xiaojiu was so generous in giving Aunt Cao a few extra kilograms of grain. To be honest, it was just a matter of timing. In a peaceful and prosperous era, no matter how much money and grain you give, they might not be able to get it done.