sinovels Chapter 1498: Interesting Things Before the New Year (Happy New Year to Everyone)
Chapter 1498: Interesting Things Before the New Year (Happy New Year to Everyone)
Chapter 1498: Interesting Things Before the New Year (Happy New Year to Everyone)
As soon as the door of Zhao's house was opened, a cloud of smoke and oil fumes hit us in the face.
In front of the stove, Wang Meilan was scooping meatballs out of the pot with a pair of long chopsticks carved from elm wood in one hand and a strainer in the other.
Seeing Zhao Jun and the others coming back, Wang Meilan freed up her hands from her busy schedule, waved at them, and signaled them to go into the house quickly.
The doors of the east room were closed, and the doors of the west room were also closed, obviously because they were afraid that the noise would disturb Wang Meilan.
Zhao Jun and Zhang Yuanmin followed him to the east room, but as soon as Zhao Youcai opened the door, the west room was filled with smoke. Zhao Jun turned around and followed Yang Yufeng and Xiao Lingdang to the east room.
After entertaining the guests, the Wang and Lin families did not come over.
As soon as Zhao Jun entered the east room, he saw a table on the ground. The old lady, Jin Xiaomei, Lin Xue, and Li Tongyun were wrapping spring rolls around the table.
This spring roll is made with steamed thin pancake skin to wrap the filling, which can be red bean paste or vegetable filling.
There is no need to explain the red bean paste filling, it is just boiled and mashed red beans.
The vegetable filling is shredded carrots, shredded fungus, and vermicelli, but the difference from the dumpling filling is that these vegetables are not mixed together, but need to be added to the pastry one by one.
On the kang table, there was a large enamel plate with fried dough twists piled on it.
Just then, a dark shadow rushed into the east room, almost causing Zhao Hong and Zhao Na to scream out.
Zhao Jun grabbed the little black bear's hind legs. The little black bear, who had been taught a lesson today, did not dare to cry out and allowed Zhao Jun to pick it up and throw it back to the west room.
This little thing also joined in the eating and drinking in the afternoon. At first no one paid much attention to it. Zhao Na and Zhao Na even thought it was quite fun. The two sisters kept tearing twisted dough sticks for it.
Keep feeding until the little black bear farts!
After eating the greasy food, the little black bear almost suffocated Zhao Na, who was closest to it.
Then, the little black bear was driven out. But the fried dough twist was too attractive to the little black bear, as he had never eaten such delicious food in his ancestors.
So, whenever there was a chance, the little black bear would jump out.
At first, it ran towards Wang Meilan who was blasting things, hugged Wang Meilan's thigh and acted cute, but ended up getting beaten by Wang Meilan.
The little black bear who was beaten didn't dare to provoke Wang Meilan anymore, but he always wanted to run to the east room.
Just now, Zhao Youcai opened the door of the west room and Zhao Jun opened the door of the east room, so it found an opportunity.
When Zhao Jun, who had sent the little black bear back, turned around, he saw Wang Meilan waving at him.
Zhao Jun took two steps and took the large plate of fried meatballs from Wang Meilan.
Zhao Jun carried the plate into the east room and put it on the kang table. The four little girls gathered around him.
Today they all ate pig-killing dishes, but no one's pig-killing dishes were as good as the one arranged by the Zhao family yesterday, so the adults and children ate normally, which was in sharp contrast to those outsiders who were eating with great enthusiasm.
Two days of butchering pigs made people feel a little sick. Although Wang Meilan's meatballs were fried, they were different from the meatballs of yesterday. Today's meatballs were vegetarian.
Carrots, green radishes, both kinds of shredded radishes and batter are kneaded into balls and put into the oil pan.
To make this, the radish must be cut into very fine pieces, otherwise it will not form into meatballs.
Wang Meilan in the outer room continued to work hard and started frying spring rolls.
After frying the spring rolls, Wang Meilan fried the spring roll rings.
As for the ring-making thing, some people make it with leavened dough, while others make it with semi-lean dough.
Wang Meilan made leavened dough rings, adding eggs and sugar when kneading the dough.
Roll the fermented dough into a thin sheet, then cut it horizontally and diagonally to make diamond-shaped pieces, and then make a cut in the middle of each diamond-shaped piece.
There are single and double rings. Wang Meilan made a double ring, which is to stack two diamond-shaped pieces together, then fold up one of the sharp angles, let it pass through the opening in the middle, and then gently pull it, and the ring is done.
When fried in a pan, it expands and becomes crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. It is a rare delicious snack these days.
After frying the collars, fry the knife fish last because the oil from frying the knife fish can only be used to cook fish later.
As a full pot of fried knife fish was served on the table, the east and west rooms and outer rooms of the Zhao family were filled with laughter again.
……
The next day, February 1988, 2, was the 13th day of the twelfth lunar month.
Today is the day that the Li family slaughters pigs. Zhao Youcai got up early in the morning and fed the dogs and pigs.
The pigs were not fed in the past few days, but today after the Li family slaughtered the New Year pig, there was still one left in the pen.
This black pig has been hungry for three days. If it continues to be hungry, it will not survive until the New Year.
When Zhao Jun got up, Wang Meilan was stewing tofu and frying dry food in the outer room.
According to custom, tofu is stewed on the 25th and meat is cut on the 26th.
This year was quite busy, so Wang Meilan didn't make tofu, but went to the tofu shop to buy large tofu. As for cutting meat, there was no need to do that.
But Wang Meilan didn't want to skip the ritual of killing the New Year's rooster on the 27th.
"Son." Wang Meilan called Zhao Jun and said, "Shall we kill a few chickens?"
"Oh my!" Hearing Wang Meilan's words, Zhao Jun sighed and said, "Oh my god, we have only two chickens left. Shouldn't we keep them to lay eggs in the spring?"
"That's not a problem." Wang Meilan said with a smile, "Let's go out and buy some."
"Go buy it outside..." Zhao Jun heard this and looked at Wang Meilan and said, "Go to Xishan Village?"
"Ah!" Wang Meilan nodded and said with a smile, "Let's give them a little more money. I'm happy to let them earn it."
Zhao Jun's mouth twitched when he heard Wang Meilan's words. At this time, where can I buy chickens?
In fact, killing the New Year rooster on the 27th is not suitable for Zhao Jun's family.
The temperature here in winter is too low, and chickens won't grow no matter how much you feed them, and they still need to be taken care of. So here, chickens are usually killed in the twelfth lunar month. Some people even kill chickens and geese as soon as it snows heavily.
The Chinese New Year is coming soon. Most families with chickens have hens, which they keep for laying eggs in the spring. There are only one or two roosters, which are kept for breeding next year.
"Okay then." Zhao Jun thought for a moment and said, "Then I'll see. After I finish helping my uncle Li's family today, I'll go to Xishan Village to catch chickens."
Since Wang Meilan said she could pay a high price, then this matter would be easy to handle. The people in Xishantun would definitely not bear to see Grandma Zhao go without chicken to eat during the New Year.
It was past seven o'clock and the guests from the Li family who were coming to eat the pig-killing meal had not arrived yet, but the diners from the Zhao family had arrived first.
Wang Qiang and Lin Xiangshun each carried a sack filled with leftover pork from their dinner party yesterday.
Their two families were not as extravagant as the Zhao family, and both had half a pork left.
The two families together had as much as one pig. In addition, Jin Xiaomei said yesterday afternoon that after her family hosted a dinner party today, they would also bring over the remaining pork.
By this calculation, it was one and a half pigs. Wang Meilan closed her eyes, pointed to the north window, and said, "Let's keep the pig at the back and kill it on the second day of the second lunar month."
On the second day of the second month, the dragon raises its head, and there is a custom of eating pig heads.
"Go to the side!" Zhao Youcai quit first. He raised his hand and said, "I'll raise the pigs later. I still have to feed the pigs every day!"
"Oh, second brother." Before Wang Meilan could speak, Xing San spoke first, and he persuaded Zhao Youcai, "If you don't want to feed him, I will."
Zhao Youcai looked at Xing San helplessly, and at this time Zhao Jun said: "Dad, do we have to get Little Bear and Black Fatty back?"
After such a long time, the little bear has already left the confinement period.
Zhao Jun let it be raised in Xie's home. One reason was that the little bear had been injured many times over the years while hunting with Huang Gui, so he took the opportunity to let it recuperate.
Another thing is that if the little bear comes back, it can't go into the house and has to live in the kennel outside. But Heipang Renma couldn't stand the severe cold, so he survived until now.
Recently, Little Bear couldn't stay in the house any longer and kept trying to get out by the door. Black Fatty, who had grown up a little, became more active and less dependent on Little Bear.
Recently, Heipang has been getting along well with Qinghu, who was recovering from an injury in the same room. Zhao Jun felt that the time had come and planned to take Heipang home and let him hang out with the little lynx and the little black bear.
"Then let's get it back." After Zhao Youcai said this, he suddenly remembered something and asked hurriedly, "Is the tiger okay now?"
Among these dogs, Zhao Youcai was most proud of Erhei, but the one he valued most was Qing Lao Hu.
Although the old green tiger is not as strong as before, its scent is still as good as before, and its hunting experience is extremely rich.
The key is that Qing Lao Hu can pass on his skills and experience to his companions, which is crucial for Zhao Baotou who is determined to develop the dog gang.
"The tiger is fine now." The person who spoke was not Zhao Jun, but Lin Xue. As soon as she arrived in Yong'an Village, she became the Zhao Family Gang's full-time veterinarian.
Lin Xue cared about her own people, so she gave Qing Lao Hu anti-inflammatory injections every day, which helped Qing Lao Hu recover from his injuries quickly.
"What about Sihong?" Zhao Youcai asked. Lin Xue probably didn't hear clearly, and immediately retorted: "Brother-in-law, I said there was nothing wrong, how could he still die?"
Zhao Youcai was startled for a moment, then reacted and said hurriedly: "Who said death? I said four reds!"
"Ah, that red dog?" Lin Xue said, looking at Zhao Jun and others around him, and said with a smile: "Don't we all call it Bald Tail?"
"What bald tail?" Zhao Youcai said angrily, "That's my Sihong."
"What's Four Reds?" Wang Meilan laughed and said, "It's not as good as Bald Tail."
Zhao Youcai gave Wang Meilan a fierce look. Seeing this, Lin Xue hurriedly said to Zhao Youcai, "Brother-in-law, the dog is almost done."
"Okay." Zhao Youcai stood up, looked out the window, pointed at the west wall, and said, "I have nothing to do this afternoon, so I'll build a doghouse over there."
After the green tiger came, he lived in the little bear's den.
When Bald Tail arrived, Zhao Youcai built a nest for it. But Bald Tail didn't stay there for a night and went to live on the kang at Jie's house.
Now that the little bear, the green tiger and the bald tail are all returning, all that’s missing is a doghouse.
"Why are you still making such a fuss?" Wang Meilan said, "You can decide which dog to give it to first and keep it in Sister Sun's yard for a while. Isn't there a doghouse in her backyard?"
There is no room left in the courtyards of both Zhao and Li families, so why move back?
According to Wang Meilan's suggestion, they would first get two dogs and leave the remaining one in the backyard of the Xie family. When Zhao Jun got married and moved to his new home, there would be dog kennels and terraced sheds there, which could accommodate 40 or 50 dogs.
"No!" Zhao Youcai refused without hesitation, saying, "You have to let it go even if you can't!"
Of the three dogs, Little Bear must follow Black Fat back. As for Green Tiger, Zhao Youcai wanted to have a good relationship with it, so he had to come back too.
As for the new red dog Bald Tail, Zhao Youcai wanted to breed it with Dahong in the yard. Although Dahong is not ready yet, we need to communicate and build relationships in advance.
After hearing what Zhao Youcai said, Wang Meilan glanced at him and said nothing more.
"Yuanmin." Zhao Youcai looked at Zhang Yuanmin and said, "You have to do this job."
"Right, uncle." Zhang Yuanmin, who was recognized, immediately stood up and said, "You guys should take care of the work for me this afternoon, and I will finish it in a few minutes."
"Look, we still need to help the people!" Zhao Youcai said, taking out the Hongtashan cigarette that Chu Anmin gave him from his pocket, taking out one and handing it to Zhang Yuanmin.
"Oh." Zhang Yuanmin looked flattered. He took the cigarette with both hands, then straightened his body and said, "Uncle, this time you just look at me!"
After saying this, Zhang Yuanmin quickly turned his head left and right to observe the expressions of the people around him.
As long as it doesn't involve going up the mountain, no one cares what Zhang Yuanmin says.
Besides, no one can compare to Zhang Yuanmin in doing these housework, so let him say whatever he wants.
Seeing that Zhao Jun and his men had no reaction, Zhang Yuanmin quickly said, "I can do this job well!"
As soon as Zhang Yuanmin appeared, Zhao Jun and others' faces changed, but Zhang Yuanmin just felt refreshed and extremely comfortable all over his body.
"Brother-in-law, why don't you just forget it." At this time, Wang Qiang said to Zhao Youcai, "After the aid worker said this, the doghouse he built has no place to live. Don't let it collapse again and hit our dog."
"Hahaha..." Everyone laughed. Zhang Yuanmin said hurriedly, "What are you saying, uncle? You can't!"
The laughter died down, and Li Baoyu, who was sitting at the door, stood up and said to Zhao Jun: "Brother, I'll drive the car away."
"Oh, go ahead and open it." Zhao Jun responded, and Li Baoyu walked out of the house.
"Where is my brother going?" Li Tongyun asked curiously. Li Ruhai curled his lips and said, "He went to pick up his father-in-law."
"Ah?" Li Tongyun was startled and said, "It's only a few steps away, and you still drive to pick me up?"
"Just be a bitch." As Li Ruhai spoke, he put his hands into his sleeves, crossed his legs that were hanging outside the kang, and raised them slightly, like a typical rural woman pulling his wife's tongue, and said, "I don't know how to behave this guy."
After saying this, Li Ruhai looked at Jin Xiaomei and said, "Mom, if you ask me, your son is someone else's to support."
"I'm happy to!" Jin Xiaomei glared at Li Ruhai. Actually, Li Ruhai had behaved quite well in the past two days, but when Jin Xiaomei saw his current state, she got angry and said, "Why doesn't your brother make me angry? Won't you make me angry to death one day?"
Everyone laughed, and Jin Xiaomei joked, "Like what we saw on TV the other day, I probably owe this kid something."
Everyone laughed again, but Li Ruhai said, "Mom, you owed me anyway."
"What do I owe you?" Jin Xiaomei's smile faded, and she asked Li Ruhai, "I gave birth to you and raised you up. Do you owe me something? Or do I owe you something?"
"You owe me!" Li Ruhai said this confidently, "You almost poisoned me to death that year, have you forgotten?"
When Li Ruhai said this, Li Dazhi's family and Xing San who joined later were all stunned, while the others burst into laughter.
"What's going on?" Xing San pulled Zhao Jun and asked. After hanging out with this group of people for a long time, the old man became much more lively.
"I had diarrhea that year." How could anyone tell him about this? Li Ruhai ignored Jin Xiaomei's objections and said, "My mother made me some painkillers."
After hearing what Li Ruhai said, Lin Xue blurted out, "That thing works well."
Doctors all agree that painkillers and canned yellow peaches can cure all diseases in Northeast China.
"Yeah, it works." Li Ruhai said sarcastically, "I won't have diarrhea after I eat it."
After saying this, Li Ruhai changed the subject and said, "She fed me eight, just fed them to me."
"Ha ha ha ha……"
Happy New Year to all my brothers
(End of this chapter)