Translated by Serena Love

LF: editor~

In the twelfth lunar month, there was a cold winter wind outside the house, but the inside was warm and peaceful.

Zhao Lanxiang was sweating after she ate and couldn't help but take off her coat. She drank the red grain wine brought by Tang Qing, and the clear and fragrant white wine with the red oily hot pot. Soon she was overwhelmed.

She sipped her milk to prevent a hangover, and said with a smile, "I hope the days will be more prosperous next year!"

Tang Qing said, "Hopefully we will be able to eat meat and drink together next year as well!"

Zhou Jiazhen said, "I hope the brigade will have a good harvest next year!"

He Songbai hesitated for a while before he lifted his coarse porcelain bowl and clinked their bowls one by one, "I hope... next year will go well."

Sister He smiled and said, "Next year...the family is in good health."

Everyone couldn't help but hope for next year, and Zhao Lanxiang also silently made a wish in her heart: 'I hope everything goes well for He Songbai.'

The big bottle of wine brought by Tang Qing was high in concentration. The few women only touched a little, and he was not stingy with the rest. He directly filled his cup and He Songbai's.

He showed his white teeth and persuaded him to drink. "Drink more!"

At the end of the pork miscellaneous meat hot pot, everyone ate until their mouths were greasy, and their stomachs were full. There was a stack of bones piled high on the table, and they even fished out the bones out of the soup base and gnawed the bone marrow clean.

Tang Qing could only drink a fair amount of wine, but he drank a small bottle and fell flat on the table. His white face pressed the table until it made out a shallow trace.

Zhou Jiazhen and Sister He cleaned up the mess after dinner. They couldn't help but shake their heads when they saw this Tang Qing drunk like this.

Zhou Jiazhen said, "Jiang Li went back. Probably he was not too happy in his heart."

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Sister He smiled and did not speak.

After sending Zhou Jiazhen away, she returned to the house with a pile of fabrics. Li Dali had finished his dinner. He ate pork belly noodles stewed in bone broth. The noodles were boiled with a few drops of oil, and there was a pork trotter lying on the noodles.

His stomach was full, and the dinner was very rich.

He said, "Done eating?"

He Songye nodded, picked up the needle and thread under the kerosene lamp to sew up the clothes quietly and meticulously. Li Dali leaned against the bed, sewing zippers and buttons with both hands.

His hands were used to heavy farm work and full of hard and thick calluses. But when doing this meticulous work, there was no ambiguity. During this period of rehabilitation, he could only sit down and spend a whole day sewing clothes, hoping that he can have some effect instead of being a burden.

He quickly sewed the zippers and the buttons again.

"Come here and rest early."

He told her.

He Songye finished the work in her hands quickly, turned off the oil lamp, and walked to the bed in the dark. She fell into the warm and strong embrace of her husband.

Li Dali kissed her and touched her face, saying, "Don't be so tired, I will help you sew clothes from now on."

He Songye hugged his neck and rubbed his stubbly chin slightly.

Her nose was full of this strong man's smell. His body was hot and strong. Although He Songye looked after the cattle of the brigade every day, she also hastened to make clothes. Made one set a day, which gave them one yuan of fee. The days were not tired at all, and she felt more and more fulfilled. She touched her husband's sturdy body, and her heart becomes sweeter.

He will get better soon!

After the eighth day, the days were bland and leisurely. Zhao Lanxiang took the time to make Chinese New Year cakes and gift box cakes. These things were all in short supply a year ago, and the supply and marketing cooperatives could not sell enough.

Whether it's a peasant who had been poor for a whole year, or a city dweller who lived in a fashion, they don't care about a couple of cents before the New Year. Everyone must buy cakes and sweets for visiting relatives and friends. When they brought back this kind of "high-end" pastry, they would have a face. The people who were walking with a few pieces of snacks bought from the supply and marketing agency could walk with their chin held high.

Taking advantage of this period without any farming work, Zhao Lanxiang made little cakes for ten consecutive days. She made 30 pounds a day and earned her pocket money before going home.

Liang Tiezhu came to take her food every day after finishing his guard duty for the pig farm. Zhao Lanxiang worked hard and had also made him earn a lot.

He wiped his sweat and said happily, "Our pastries are very easy to sell. However, it was too hard to make by yourself, and you also did it every night."

Zhao Lanxiang said with a smile, "I didn't do any work during the day. After I finished, I took a nap and rest."

Three days before New Year's Eve, she finally steamed a basket full of rice cakes. She pressed them into shapes and sprinkled them with sesame seeds. She left ten pounds for the He family to eat slowly, ten pounds for Liang Tiezhu, and ten pounds for Li Zhong. The rice cakes were made in the "Su" style and were sweetened with sweet-scented Osmanthus. It could be stored in a cold day for a long time and would not go bad. For eating, you could smear it with oil and sauce, and you could fry it.

Zhao Lanxiang said, "I heard Brother Bai said many pigs had been slaughtered on the farm?"

Liang Tiezhu nodded.

"They didn't pay much attention to raising pigs before. In order to kill pigs every day, big pigs and small pigs were mixed together. Now Brother Bai changed the feed this time and divided the pigs into pens. The amount of feed was different for each pen. The little pigs soon grew up and could even reach a hundred kilograms. However, the price of pork was so high this time, so Brother Bai said it would be better to kill it earlier and make a fortune before the new year."

Zhao Lanxiang reminded him, "Be careful in everything and pay attention to safety."

Liang Tiezhu's ears had been tired of hearing these words. Not only Zhao Lanxiang who said this, but his mother also said it all day.

He responded, "You also be careful when you go home."

Two days before the New Year's Eve, Zhao Lanxiang packed up her luggage and prepared to leave. She waited and waited before leaving, but could not wait for He Songbai. Both Zhou Jiazhen and Tang Qing came to send her and made her pack up faster.

She knew that he was busy killing pigs these few days, and only he and another pig killer supported the whole pig farm. It was very hard. She thought for a while and quickly wrote a short letter and left it under the vase.

The sky was turning bright, and He Songbai had just finished his work. He hurried back from the farm in sweat. He stood in front of the girlfriend's door and knew that the room was empty without knocking the door.

Because the lamp in the room was off.

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He rubbed his growing hair anxiously, pushed the door into the girl's room, and laid down on her cold bed, which still full of her scent.

He Songbai suddenly jumped up and slammed shut the door with his hand. He rode his bike to the intersection of River Child village.

He felt the cold wind for a few miles, and under the severe cold, he quietly put down his bicycle.

He hid amongst the dry reeds and showed his white teeth to the woman who was leaning against the window and holding her cheeks.

Zhao Lanxiang accidentally looked at the man who was hiding in the distance. She couldn't see his face clearly, but her heartstring was suddenly shocked. Her heart felt sweet and sour.

Her eyes were hot and astringent, and there was an impulse to cry.

...

After a long day and night drive, Zhao Lanxiang returned to her home in the cold weather.

Little Huzi looked like a fat ball and happily jumped to hug his sister's waist.

Zhao Lanxiang endured the big suddenly-striking meatball and hugged his small waist that was too fat to hold.

"You're mischievous. What will I do if I can't catch you? This is not allowed in the future!"

Little Huzi smoothly hugged her sister's neck, "Sister, what shall we eat tonight?"

Zhao Lanxiang couldn't help but laugh. "You haven't seen me in such a long time, and only thinking about eating?"

Little Huzi looked at her and shook his head violently. "Mum is about to ruin the delicious food."

He pointed to the smoking kitchen. Zhao Lanxiang quickly put down her brother and walked quickly into the kitchen. She saw the smoky fish in Feng Lian's pan, and hurriedly lifted the lid and pinched the fish that had been half-cooked and was sticky.

"Let me do it."

Feng Lian wiped her sweat as if she was frightened.

"Your dad always thinks about the squirrel mandarin fish you made and waiting for you to come back. I just tried to make it..."

Zhao Lanxiang couldn't help but laugh, "You are a teacher. You should go and prepare lessons. I'll cook New Year's Eve dinner."

She hurried home, and it was already New Year's Eve. Feng Lian finally went to the black market to buy a fish at a high price, but it was messed up.

Zhao Lanxiang took the frozen pork from her box, which her man especially left for her. Although the ice that was wrapped tightly with oil paper already half-melted, the meat was still good. In addition, there were two pounds of sausages, bacon, and dried loach.

She led little Huzi to the black market and bought two pounds of pork bones at an outrageous price.

Then, half a pound of seasonal vegetables.

Five pieces of live fish.

Live prawns, two yuan per pound.

Little Huzi stared at his sister carrying a large basket of loot home, and took four potatoes and threw them on the basket.

"This is also necessary, cannot be missed!"

Zhao Lanxiang thought about the black market, which would be closed during the Spring Festival. First, she planned to buy some important food and run a few more trips. She put the four potatoes back, and patted little Huzi's head while whispered,

"Good boy, let's buy it next time, OK? Sister will buy you a small bag of it."

Little Huzi believed her and followed his sister home with a fat fish on his hand. Next, they went to the black market again, but they changed their clothes. They bought food and rode their bicycles, and disappeared into the deep alleyway.

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After Zhao Lanxiang got the booty, she felt a sense of comfort in her heart. This is the significance of earning money. She can buy whatever she wanted regardless of the price.

She kept all the food in the shade.

On New Year's Eve, Zhao Lanxiang made a sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner, and both parents were very happy. Little Huzi sucked a shrimp head with a hand of oil.

Zhao Yongqing couldn't look directly at her daughter's blatant "big shopping" and secretly asked her after dinner, "Did your uncle subsidize you privately?"

"You tell me, I'll give it back when I see him."

Zhao Lanxiang shook her head and said bluntly, "No, this is the money I made myself."

Zhao Yongqing suddenly understand, suddenly lowered his head and stared at his daughter, his face had a complex expression.

"You......"

"You dare to think big since you were young."

He pulled his daughter into the room and asked her carefully what she did and how.

In accordance with the principle of not making her father worried during the Chinese New Year, Zhao Lanxiang only briefly told him about selling snacks.

Zhao Yongqing thought long and hard. His sharp eyebrows frowned deeply, and looked at his daughter. Finally he said, "Your dad... I... When I was in college, I had a stalemate with your grandfather. He cut off my cost of living so poorly that I can't eat. So I secretly re-sold a few bags of grain in order to earn some living expenses for myself. But the classmates I did it with are still squatting in prison."

He sighed and disagreed that his daughter took the risk for this little money. He thought about taking out the money in his pocket and stuffing it into his daughter's hand.

"Listen to Dad, don't do it in the future."

Zhao Lanxiang didn't want his money. She seemed surprised, and thoughtfully said, "You couldn't figure out the situation at that time and used the wrong method."

"In the past six years or so, the Red Soldiers had been so fierce. Dad dared to speculate, but they didn't catch you and only catch them? But now... Look around, do you notice anything?"

"The current situation is different from the past."

Zhao Lanxiang said faintly. Her beautiful face showed a firm and confident expression.

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