20demayo Chapter 228 Village Life (2)
Chapter 228 Village Life (2)
The house faces south and the outer layer of the earthen brick wall is covered with a gray-colored sealing layer mixed with limestone, clay, sand and other materials. The roof is covered with rows of tiles.
There is a wooden window on the sunny side of each room. The windows are all open, and the warm and soft golden sunlight shines in, casting patches of yellow halos on the walls and furniture.
The overall look is spacious and bright.
"Next spring, I can plant some of my favorite fruit trees in the front yard, and I can also clear two plots of land to grow some onions and green vegetables so they can be easily picked when I want to eat them." Chen Yuzhen pointed to several locations and explained where to plant fruit trees and where to plant vegetables.
Xia Qingyue nodded after hearing this. She looked out the window and saw that every corner of the house was spotlessly clean.
This means that the Li family had already cleaned the house earlier.
After entering the main hall, Chen Yuzhen took her to visit each room.
The main sleeping room is fully furnished with a large bed covered with crease-free bedding folded neatly, a thick quilt in the middle, a pair of pillows, and bedding in a festive red color.
There is a bedside table on each side of the bed, and two wardrobes are placed side by side on the inner wall.
There is a dressing table near the head of the bed from the wardrobe. A mirror is embedded in the center of the table. On the table are a pair of mahogany combs and a wooden box more than ten inches long. There are two round stools underneath.
The earthen stove and counter in the kitchen have also been built, and there are kitchen cabinets, vegetable baskets, chopping boards, knives, wooden racks for washbasins, red wedding scarves and other items. There are two doors connected to the kitchen, one in the northwest corner, which is the bathroom, and the other on the east side, which is the toilet.
After the visit, one can see from the many details everywhere how much effort the Li family put into building this home.
Xia Qingyue was so moved that her eyes were sore. She turned her back and quietly wiped away her tears.
After looking at the houses, they returned to the Li family. Chen Yuzhen took Xia Qingyue's hand with a happy smile and went to the main house. She opened the cabinet and took out the wedding dress.
"I made it a few days ago. There's still time to modify it. Try it on and see if it fits."
Chen Yuzhen went out first and closed the door, leaving Xia Qingyue to change clothes alone in the room.
Xia Qingyue took off her cloak and down clothes and tried on the wedding dress wearing only her underwear. After putting it on, she raised her hands and bent over. It didn't feel tight or uncomfortable, but it wasn't loose either, just right.
The last time she came, she had seen the upper part of the wedding dress, but today she saw the entire set. It was fitted at the waist, and the hem was a bit like a pleated skirt, reaching the ankles and not dragging on the ground. The fabric was light and textured, and swayed gently with movement, like a fiery red butterfly flapping its wings about to fly.
"Auntie, I'm done." She liked the wedding dress very much, and there was obvious joy in her voice.
Chen Yuzhen, who was outside the door, opened the door and came in, then closed the door. Since she came in, her eyes have been on Xia Qingyue.
She circled around Xia Qingyue to see if the size was right, and the more she looked, the happier her face became.
"That's perfect. When Zhibai comes back, let him try it too."
After trying on the wedding dresses, Xia Qingyue and Chen Yuzhen went to the kitchen to prepare the ingredients for the hot pot in the evening. The former used lard, chili peppers and other ingredients to stir-fry the hot pot base, while the latter killed a chicken and washed the vegetables.
After the chicken soup had been simmering for more than two quarters of an hour, Han Zhibai and Li Benfu returned with three buckets of fish, a bucket of snails, river clams, and several river clams.
"It was Zhibai who led us to change the cages in several places along the river before we caught these fish. Weikang and the others are waiting for the next catch, so they will have to wait a while before they can come back."
Li Benfu was holding two buckets of fish, one bucket each for big and small ones. The big ones weighed three or four pounds, and there were five of them. Most of the small ones were as long as chopsticks, and some were as long as a palm.
He bent down and picked up another bucket, which contained five large fish that had been killed. "The fish for tonight have been killed and washed by the river. Zhibai, wash your hands and sit down for a while. I'll take care of the fish."
Han Zhibai was about to say that he would take care of the fish, but Chen Yuzhen, who had put a piece of firewood into the stove, stood up and patted her hands covered in dust, "Zhibai, come with me and try on the wedding dress to see if it fits you."
Xia Qingyue had just come back from picking some wild onions from the fields in the yard. As soon as she walked in, her eyes met Han Zhibai's.
"Qingyue just tried them and they all fit!" said Chen Yuzhen.
Xia Qingyue reacted, tightened her grip on the basket, and whispered to him, "You can try it too."
He raised his lips and smiled: "Okay!"
After washing his hands, Han Zhibai followed Chen Yuzhen.
As soon as they left, Li Benfu, who was standing by the counter preparing the fish, said, "Qingyue, Zhibai said that fish balls can also be eaten hot. How about I chop some fish paste to make some fish balls and slice some fish?"
His voice drew Xia Qingyue's attention back to the door, where she was watching Han Zhibai leave. She smiled and said, "Okay, let's mix the fish skin with the cooked black fungus."
After a while, Han Zhibai returned to the kitchen.
Perhaps it was a telepathy, Xia Qingyue, who was sitting in front of the stove and burning a fire, suddenly turned around and looked over, and the two of them looked at each other.
She saw a faint blush on his face, and his ears and neck were red as if dripping blood.
After trying on the wedding dress, Han Zhibai stood there, feeling a little at a loss. His heart was beating wildly in his chest, each beat louder than the last, echoing in his ears.
Chen Yuzhen walked in and didn't notice anything unusual. She said briskly, "Zhibai's outfit is also suitable. It's just right!"
Xia Qingyue and Han Zhibai heard it and looked at each other at the same time. Their clear eyes were filled with nervous joy and their faces turned red.
While the others were still here, Li Benfu and his wife discussed the details of tomorrow's wedding with them.
After the discussion, it was dark outside. Two small stoves were brought to the two tables in the kitchen. Red-burning charcoal was added and the dishes were cooked in a double-pot. One side was spicy and the other side was chicken soup with mushrooms.
Everything was ready. Xia Qingyue prepared the cold fish skin and black fungus salad and a big bowl of dipping sauce. The pot was almost boiling when Li Weikang and the others came back.
When they got home, they each said that the last batch of fish cages only caught three big fish, and the rest were small fish, snails and river shrimps.
They washed their hands and walked into the main room, smelling the fragrance. Both pots were boiling and the room was filled with hot steam.
"Everyone can drink the soup to warm up their bodies first. If there is not enough soup, add more. If you want to eat any dishes, use the chopsticks specially used for adding dishes. Eating anything picked up with chopsticks used for holding raw meat will cause diarrhea."
Xia Qingyue demonstrated to them several times how to blanch the vegetables. "It's actually very simple. Just cook them while you eat them, and dip them in the sauce when they're cooked."
After hearing this, they understood.
People at two tables began to eat lively. After a while, everyone felt hot and their faces turned red. They took off their thick clothes and changed into thin ones.
Everyone in the Li family ate a lot during the dinner and said that hotpot was both delicious and convenient.
There will be a wedding tomorrow, so after dinner, they hurried to clean up, boil hot water for washing and soaking their feet, and then go back to their rooms to sleep.
Xia Qingyue and Chen Yuzhen slept in the main house of the Li family.
Lying down on the bed, Xia Qingyue let out a light breath, already having a premonition that she would not be able to sleep tonight.