Wang Ying had something in mind, but she did not rush to talk to Tian Youfu about it.
After all, winter still had some time to go. Once spring arrived, she planned to invite Tian Youfu over to see the pigs she raised. At that time, it would be natural to bring up the subject.
Wang Ying wasn’t a saint. She simply thought that raising pigs in such a scattered way—one household here, another there—wasn’t very efficient. The pigs were unevenly raised, much like how Wang Yongshun and his wife managed it, with only one or two pigs each year.
It would be better to propose to Tian Youfu that they allocate some of the pigs to others for raising, so that everyone could work more easily.
Ideally, the pigs would be raised better, and that way they could have more pork once a year. Right now, receiving pork twice a year was too much of a hassle for Wang Ying.
No matter how good rabbit or fish meat was, it couldn’t replace pork!
On the afternoon of New Year’s Eve, every household started bustling with activity. Even the poorest families had to eat something good on this day.
If you didn’t have a good meal on New Year’s Eve, you’d have to struggle through the whole next year.
Wang Ying was no exception. She sent rabbit meat, which Xu Shuang had helped prepare, to Cheng Shufen and Cheng Yu, immediately lifting their spirits for the New Year.
Cheng Shufen didn’t know how to thank Wang Ying and quickly gave her a hand-stitched handkerchief she had been working on in the past few days.
“This handkerchief was accidentally brought with me, and I only had a little bit of thread left. Don’t mind it, and I also wish you and Xu Shuang will have a son soon.”
Wang Ying was surprised when she took the handkerchief. It felt smooth to the touch, and one glance made it clear that it was made from fine material. The embroidery was done with only two colors of silk thread—red and silver-white—and yet, it was not at all dull. The two goldfish on the beige handkerchief looked lifelike.
Cheng Shufen felt a little awkward, worried that Wang Ying might not appreciate such a small, modest gift.
“I used to learn embroidery when I performed in opera. Later, I embroidered my own costumes. My skills are not very good…”
But Wang Ying didn’t think so. She immediately realized that this handkerchief was far better than the one she had once bought in Suzhou for a few hundred.
“I really like it,” Wang Ying praised. “Teacher Cheng, you’re amazing.”
Not only could she sing opera, but she could also embroider—someone like her would definitely be a master in the future.
Cheng Shufen: “This is just a small thing.”
Wang Ying, being from the North in her previous life, had always liked delicate items from the southern Jiangnan region. She lovingly held the handkerchief, like a treasure.
Xu Shuang and Old Lady Xu were busy in the kitchen. Wang Ying entered and showed them the handkerchief.
Xu Shuang didn’t understand, but seeing how much Wang Ying liked it, she also praised it. “It’s really beautiful.”
Old Lady Xu was envious, saying, “The embroidery is very good. Look at how fine the threads are.”
Wang Ying didn’t understand embroidery, but Old Lady Xu was knowledgeable and had seen many things in her life.
Wang Ying leaned in to show her the details, and Old Lady Xu became even more interested. “I’ve seen this kind of embroidery before. A long time ago, when I worked for a family, the young girl there learned it from a female teacher who came from the South. She studied for several years, but even her skills weren’t as good as this.”
Seeing Old Lady Xu’s admiration, Wang Ying casually asked, “Does Mother want to learn?”
Old Lady Xu hesitated. “When that teacher was around, I also learned a little from her, but she mainly taught young ladies, so I only picked up a small bit.”
Wang Ying remembered that Old Lady Xu had quietly embroidered a few flowers on the cotton jacket she had made for her, and she had also added a border of fluff to the cotton slippers she made. It seemed Old Lady Xu had some interest in embroidery.
She thought for a moment and said, “If you want to learn, I can mention it to Teacher Cheng.”
Old Lady Xu quickly waved her hand. She had only said it casually and didn’t want to trouble her daughter-in-law. The eldest son’s business was already enough of a burden, and she didn’t want to add more to her daughter-in-law’s plate.
Wang Ying said, “It’s not that serious. Teacher Cheng came to help with the reform; she’s not here to serve time. If I get too busy and can’t take care of things, I’ll need you to help deliver things to them. If you want to learn, just take your materials with you and don’t leave them behind. Don’t stay too long either. You can just say you’re checking on things for me, and the things in your hands will help pass the time. Who’s going to say anything?”
Wang Ying’s suggestion made Old Lady Xu feel more at ease.
She really did like to embroider. Back when she worked in a large household with her husband, he could hang out in the kitchen drinking wine, but she was stuck doing laundry as the housemaid. Her days were very monotonous.
Embroidery had been a way for her to pass the time, and it was something she enjoyed.
However, in the countryside, where everyone was more concerned with having clothes to wear, no one really cared about embroidery patterns.
Since Wang Ying had come up with the idea, Old Lady Xu agreed, “I won’t go too often. After spring comes, I’ll go once.”
Wang Ying was thinking that after a while, she would talk to Cheng Shufen about it. She believed Cheng Shufen wouldn’t refuse. Cheng Yu could still go out occasionally for a stroll, but since Cheng Shufen arrived, she hadn’t really left the house. It wasn’t good for her to stay indoors for too long without seeing anyone.
Wang Ying knew very well that many people who were sent down to the countryside couldn’t handle it—not only because the environment was poor, but also because of the disdain they faced. Many of them were prominent figures in the past, but once they were sent to the countryside, no one cared about them. The emotional shock from this disparity could be overwhelming.
If Cheng Shufen could at least engage in some embroidery with Old Lady Xu, it would help her pass the time.
Xu Shuang let his wife and mother take charge, and after the two of them had agreed on things, he interrupted, asking, “What filling are we having for dumplings tonight?”
Old Lady Xu didn’t mind, but she was puzzled. Aren’t dumplings usually just a few types of fillings? Pork with cabbage, pork with sauerkraut, pork with leeks, and pork with radishes. Vegetarian dumplings were usually made with chives and eggs, but there were no eggs in season, so they couldn’t make those.
Wang Ying, excited, asked, “What about making sauerkraut fish filling?”
Old Lady Xu: “Sauerkraut fish? Can you use sauerkraut fish as a filling?”
Wang Ying nodded eagerly. “Sauerkraut fish dumplings would be delicious…”
Thinking of the sauerkraut fish dumplings she had eaten in her previous life, Wang Ying started to drool.
“It would be even better if you added some chili for a sour and spicy flavor!”
Xu Shuang didn’t dismiss Wang Ying’s wild idea. After thinking for a moment, he agreed, “Alright, let’s make pork and cabbage dumplings and also make some sauerkraut fish ones.”
Wang Ying didn’t like pork and radish fillings, so she decided to stick with pork and cabbage, and the sauerkraut fish would be for the other batch.
Old Lady Xu wasn’t one of those elderly people who were suspicious of the younger generation’s wild ideas; instead, she was very curious. “I’ve never had a filling like that before. Let’s make more, and we can try a few dumplings with that filling.”
As Xu Shuang prepared the New Year’s Eve dinner, Wang Ying and Old Lady Xu weren’t idle either. The two of them chatted while helping with the preparations.
Although Wang Ying hadn’t shown her skills in the kitchen, Xu Shuang had a rough idea of her abilities. Back when Wang Ying lived alone, she would rather buy ready-made food than cook regular meals, so her cooking skills were pretty basic.
That’s why Wang Ying was assigned simple tasks like peeling garlic and peanuts.
Old Lady Xu, who was a bit stronger, helped with kneading the dough.
The three of them worked together in the kitchen. Xu Shuang sliced the fish and carefully removed the bones, leaving the fish to marinate with seasoning. He then stir-fried the sauerkraut with chili peppers to release its aroma, and briefly blanched the fish in hot water before stir-frying it together with the sauerkraut. The resulting filling had a strong sour, spicy, and numbing flavor, with chunks of white fish clearly visible.
For the “yuanbao” dumplings, they wrapped dozens of them at once. Halfway through, Old Lady Xu slapped her forehead. “I forgot to put a coin inside a few of them!”
Old Lady Xu grabbed three one-cent coins, washed them, boiled them in hot water, and then placed them inside some of the dumplings.
“Let’s see who gets the coins this year; whoever finds them will have good luck and prosperity for the whole year.”
Wang Ying was determined, her eyes locked on those dumplings with the coins inside, as if she was trying to memorize what they looked like.
Xu Shuang couldn’t help but laugh.
Wang Ying was really trying to save money. These days, she wasn’t spending much, but as soon as the New Year started, buying thin clothes alone would be a major expense. She didn’t want to go without. With only over 300 yuan on hand, how long would that last?
She still needed to find a way to save more money!
As evening approached, someone knocked on the door again. Old Lady Xu became anxious when she heard the knock.
The last time someone showed up was when they were preparing to have hot pot, and that ruined their meal. The time before that, it was on Little New Year’s Eve, and Wang Ying had to stay up all night.
Now, it was the New Year’s Eve dinner again, and if someone interrupted once more, she wasn’t sure if she could handle it!
Wang Ying also felt uneasy as she went to open the door. When she saw Da Ya, she was startled.
“What’s wrong? Is your mother not feeling well?”
Wang Ying thought it couldn’t be, since she had just visited Qian Juhua and her daughter the day before, checked on them, and even prescribed medicine. It couldn’t be that something had happened again now!
Could it be that her mother-in-law had caused trouble during New Year’s dinner again?
Da Ya shook her head, a rare look of joy on her face.
“My mother and sister are both fine. I’ve come to bring you some food! Sister, thank you!”
Wang Ying immediately relaxed, patting the little girl’s head. “Sister has enough food. Take it back with you.”
This family had enough of their own troubles, with the sick ones and the young ones. She felt uncomfortable accepting food from them.
But Da Ya bit her lip, said nothing, and quickly dropped the paper package before running off so fast that Wang Ying couldn’t catch up!
Wang Ying could only shout after her a few times, “Slow down!”
She returned to the kitchen with the paper package. When Old Lady Xu saw that she was fine, she finally felt relieved. Heaven knows, when she heard Da Ya’s voice earlier, she was worried. It wasn’t that she was afraid, but because she felt sorry for Qian Juhua and her daughter.
But she also felt sorry for her daughter-in-law.
With all these trips back and forth, how could she stand it?
Old Lady Xu thought to herself that she needed to ask the village leader soon. The village still hadn’t found a woman leader to take care of these matters. This was clearly something the woman leader should manage.
Wang Ying handed the paper package to Xu Shuang. When he opened it, there was a large raw chicken drumstick inside.
Wang Ying felt a little awkward. The gift was a bit too much.
But Old Lady Xu urged Wang Ying to accept it without worry. “Juhua is a strong woman, but she’s not foolish. Those two chickens her family raised, when they divide the property, there’s bound to be an argument over who gets them. She might as well take advantage of this time before the division and eat the chickens now…”
Wang Ying slapped her forehead. She hadn’t thought of that!
Didn’t Qian Juhua’s family have two chickens?
Although she wasn’t in good health and it would be better to keep the chickens for eggs, if the property division caused a conflict, it was better to eat the chickens now for the meat. That way, she could build up her health and, come spring, raise some chicks.
Looking at the large chicken drumstick, Wang Ying started to crave braised chicken.
They had already used half a chicken to make spicy stir-fried chicken, for which Xu Shuang had specially traded for some chili peppers.
Now, with this large drumstick, Wang Ying couldn’t help but reminisce about the food she had enjoyed in her previous life.
Xu Shuang listened to the general idea of the recipe and readily agreed without hesitation, “Alright, we’ll have more dishes tonight, how about making it tomorrow?”
Wang Ying nodded in agreement. The main event for tonight was the dumplings, but the Huang Men Chicken definitely couldn’t go with dumplings; Huang Men Chicken was meant to be paired with rice!
It would be perfect to eat tomorrow!
After some busy work, Xu Shuang gradually brought the dishes to the table. The spicy stir-fried chicken was made with red dried chilies, coating the chicken chunks that had been deep-fried in oil. The pieces of chicken were submerged in a red glow, fragrant and spicy.
Rabbit meat was cooked into dry-fried rabbit meat strips, where the air-dried rabbit meat was shredded into thin strips and stir-fried with dried potatoes. There was also a sweet and sour fish, with the tail propped up, and Xu Shuang had placed a hawthorn fruit in the fish’s mouth, making it look quite festive.
After making the dumplings with pork, there was still a lump of leftover pork, which Xu Shuang used to make braised pork. She added all the leftover yellow wine at home, without adding any water, making the pork tender and flavorful.
In addition to the meat dishes, Xu Shuang also prepared a few vegetarian dishes, bringing the total to four meat dishes and four vegetarian dishes, making it a full meal with eight dishes.
The three of them sat at the table, and the full table made everyone happy.
Xu Laotai poured herself some yellow wine and spoke a few auspicious words to Wang Ying. Wang Ying and Xu Shuang also spoke a few words to Xu Laotai. Although there were only a few people, the atmosphere was still warm and lively.
The meal began, and Wang Ying picked up a piece of braised pork. She was about to cry—it tasted just right!
She had a sweet tooth, so Xu Shuang had added more sugar, and the braised pork was especially rich and flavorful. The fat melted in her mouth, and the gravy was thick and savory.
After tasting the sweet and sour fish, though it had been frozen, the meat was still fresh and tender, and the sweet and sour flavor was just perfect.
The spicy stir-fried chicken was so spicy that she was panting, and the chicken, after being deep-fried, tasted crispy and fragrant.
The dish Wang Ying was most looking forward to, the sauerkraut fish dumplings, did not disappoint. The sour flavor mixed with a slight spiciness, and the taste of the sauerkraut stimulated her senses, while the fish was tender and blended with the sour aroma, highlighting the freshness.
Xu Laotai was very surprised: “These dumplings are delicious!”
They were not greasy at all, the sauerkraut’s aroma was rich, and the fish was tender.
While eating, Wang Ying suddenly cried out and spat something out of her mouth.
A shiny one-cent coin appeared in her bowl.
Xu Laotai laughed: “Looks like Ying’er will have good luck next year.”
As she was speaking, she also cried out, and a one-cent coin appeared in her bowl too.
Wang Ying laughed: “We’ll all have good luck together!”
The last one was still in Xu Shuang’s bowl. The two of them stared at it, and Xu Shuang slowly picked one out of the bowl: “Here.”
Wang Ying didn’t believe it: “You haven’t eaten yet!”
Xu Shuang handed the dumpling to her: “You eat it for me.”
Wang Ying tried to resist but couldn’t. She took a bite, and sure enough, there was another coin.
Xu Laotai laughed: “Alright, alright, we’ll all have good luck!”
The son and daughter-in-law, as long as they have good luck, it’s a good year for everyone.
By the end of the meal, the sauerkraut fish dumplings were all gone, but there were still some pork dumplings left uncooked.
Xu Shuang placed the pork dumplings in flour: “We’ll eat these tomorrow morning for the firecracker breakfast.”
Wang Ying rubbed her full stomach and asked: “Firecracker breakfast?”
Xu Shuang explained: “On the morning of the first day of the New Year, people in the village light firecrackers at the village entrance. Our village calls it the firecracker breakfast.”
In Kuaishan Village, due to heavy snow on the mountains, setting off firecrackers wasn’t as casual as it seemed, especially after Tian Youfu took charge. He had clearly stated that every year, the village would set off a string of firecrackers at the entrance, marking the New Year for the entire village. Other families should avoid setting off their own.
Anyway, since everyone was poor, they were happy to join in. Setting off firecrackers at the village entrance was considered for the whole village! It meant good fortune for the year, so they didn’t need to spend extra money on fireworks.
Xu Shuang added: “Tomorrow morning, we’ll eat dumplings, and then we’ll have Huang Men Chicken for lunch.”
After the meal, Xu Laotai took the uncooked dumplings for tomorrow and left, taking two steamed sauerkraut fish buns as well.
Wang Ying said: “Our mother is getting older; she probably likes stronger flavors. After the New Year, we’ll go up the mountain to catch some fish and make more sauerkraut fish.”
Xu Shuang nodded in agreement.
After cleaning up, Wang Ying closed the door tightly and then placed the original parents’ photo on the table. The photos at this time were small, nowhere near the size of five or seven-inch ones. Even group photos were usually only about two inches.
Wang Ying placed the original parents’ photo and quietly added a childhood photo of the original owner with her mother.
She placed the pig’s head she received on the altar and knelt on a mat.
She prayed in her heart for the original owner and the original owner’s mother, kneeling sincerely for a while. When she got up, Xu Shuang knelt down immediately.
Xu Shuang didn’t speak, but closed her eyes and kowtowed twice.
After the kowtows and offering the incense, Wang Ying took down the photos and carefully cleaned up the traces.
At this time, such actions were not allowed since they were considered feudal superstition, so Wang Ying had initially said the pig’s head was meant for drinking, not for offering.
After drinking a little yellow wine during the meal, Wang Ying felt the aftereffects of the alcohol, and she felt a bit dizzy.
Xu Shuang seemed fine, and helped Wang Ying change clothes and wash her feet. Outside the window, the snow started falling again. The two of them snuggled under a blanket and went to bed early.
