Birthday

Auntie Liu had prepared most of the dishes, with only a few left to cook tomorrow. Seeing that it was getting late, Auntie Liu prepared to take Liu Zhuang back home. Fang Zeng looked at the dishes made by Auntie Liu, and the taste and color were excellent. He knew that Auntie Liu had put a lot of effort into it, so he had to keep Auntie Liu at home for dinner before leaving.

The days were short in winter, and Auntie Liu didn’t want to stay at Fang’s house for dinner. Fang Zeng couldn’t keep them, so he cut a piece of beef and put it in a basket on the mule cart, preparing to take them out when he sent them home, otherwise they would definitely not accept them. Fang Zhiyuan had a good time with Liu Zhuang, and he was a little reluctant to see Liu Zhuang leave.

He took some tangerines and sand apples to Fang Zeng, and quietly told Fang Zeng to leave them for Liu Zhuang. Fang Zhiyuan and Fang Zeng, the uncle and nephew, had already seen that Auntie Liu would not ask for things for no reason.  

If he gave it now, he would definitely be beaten back. It would be better to send them home and take it away directly, so that they would not be able to send the things back.

Auntie Liu and Liu Zhuang followed Fang Zeng’s mule cart and left. Fang Zhiyuan looked at the mule cart going away. He didn’t know why, but he suddenly felt a little empty. He shook his head and went to the kitchen to find the crystal hoof made by Auntie Liu. He picked a piece and ate it to satisfy his hunger. Then he made meatball soup and cooked rice. He would have dinner when his uncle came back.

When Fang Zeng came back, it was just getting dark. Seeing the oil lamp on in the house, he knew that his nephew was waiting for him to eat. He quickly drove the mule cart to the house. Sure enough, Fang Zhiyuan had just packed the things he would need tomorrow.

 Fang Zeng saw that the pot had not been boiled yet, and said to Fang Zhiyuan: “Huzi, didn’t uncle say that he would be back late and asked you to eat first? Don’t wait for uncle to eat in the future. You can’t stand being hungry when you are growing up, otherwise it will be bad if you don’t grow tall.” After saying that, he quickly washed his hands and set the table.

Fang Zhiyuan stopped what he was doing and followed the dishes, saying: “Uncle, it’s okay. There are so many foods at home, It’s not delicious for me to eat alone, it’s better to wait for uncle to eat together.”

Hearing what his nephew said, Fang Zeng felt a little warm in his heart. The child was thinking about him, and he smiled: “You little brat, you are just playing tricks on uncle. Come, eat quickly, Auntie Liu’s cooking skills are beyond doubt, he also made small crispy meat today, saying that it was made especially for you. This thing is loved by children.”

Fang Zeng and Fang Zhiyuan ate and drank enough with the dishes made by Auntie Liu, plus meatball soup. Thinking of tomorrow’s banquet, the uncle and nephew washed and rested, resting their energy to be in good spirits to entertain the guests.

The next day, Fang Zeng got up at the crowing of the rooster. Although he had bought the ingredients yesterday, he had to pick up Auntie Liu to make longevity noodles for Fang Zhiyuan’s breakfast this morning. It was too late if he got up late.

When Fang Zhiyuan got up, Auntie Liu had already made longevity noodles. The thin noodles were paired with fragrant chicken soup, sprinkled with chopped green onions with chicken shreds and beef on top. It looked so appetizing and salivating. Fang Zhiyuan looked at the longevity noodles in front of him and secretly sipped his saliva.

Auntie Liu and the others didn’t eat breakfast either. They also had noodles, but there was no chicken shreds and beef. Fang Zhiyuan was embarrassed to eat alone, so he divided the chicken shreds and beef in the bowl among everyone. In the end, Auntie Liu had to cut a lot of beef and chicken shreds for Fang Zhiyuan, and walked out with the bowl to eat. Fang Zeng had already eaten a few mouthfuls, so Fang Zhiyuan had to pull Liu Zhuang, who had not had time to leave, to eat beef and shredded chicken together.

There were not many people coming. Lin Cheng’s family came the earliest, and they also wanted to help. Lin Xin’s family and Lin Zheng’s family also came quickly. They didn’t know if Fang Zeng was too generous during this period. Lin Xin’s family and Lin Zheng’s family jointly made a new set of clothes for Fang Zhiyuan, while Lin Cheng’s family made two pairs of shoes with thousand-layer soles for Fang Zeng.

Fang Zeng happily accepted it. This was to make his nephew look good, so he naturally would not refuse. Then came eight or nine men in the village who were good friends with Fang Zeng. Then, Fang Zeng’s senior brother Liu Jia came with his family. When Fang Zeng saw them, he quickly took Fang Zhiyuan to meet them.

The Liu family is in their thirties this year and has a boy and a ger. The boy is seventeen this year and is going to get married after the Chinese New Year. His name is Liu Li. The ger is thirteen this year and his name is Liu Qiu. 

 It was also the first time that Fang Zeng saw his senior brother’s two children. In previous years, the Liu family never brought their children and family members to the New Year, fearing that Auntie Lin would give them New Year’s money.

Liu Li was different from his father Liu Jia. He looked gentle without any rough temperament. After asking, he learned that he had studied in a private school for a few years. Although he did not pass the imperial examination, he was now an accountant in a shop in the town. He was going to marry the son of the shopkeeper, who was quite capable.

Liu Qiu looked more like auntie, very pretty, and although he looked a little shy, he was also quite demure. Fang Zeng praised his senior brother again and again, making Liu Jia and his fulang blush with joy. He also praised Fang Zhiyuan for a while, and gave him a piece of cloth as a birthday gift to give Fang Zeng face.

Then Shopkeeper Chen and Third Chen also came. They came in their own cars and brought things with them. Since Shopkeeper Chen was the owner of the largest restaurant in town, and Third Chen’s grocery store was also somewhat famous in town, Liu Li knew about it. He looked up to his junior brother.

The men had two tables, and the boys and children had one table. Fang Zhiyuan sat at his uncle’s table because he was the birthday boy. Lin Cheng, Lin Xin, Shopkeeper Chen, Third Chen, Liu Jia, and Liu Li were at one table. Lin Zheng, as Fang Zeng’s good brother, was arranged to accompany the guests at another table.

The gers table was headed by Lin Cheng’s fulang. Everyone squeezed together and all went to the table to eat. When the dishes were served, seeing eight meat dishes and two vegetables, Lin Cheng’s fulang was amazed. Fang Zeng had spent a lot of money on this, with chicken, duck, fish and meat, which was really impressive. The men’s table also looked very good, and they all liked to eat meat. After trying the taste, even Shopkeeper Chen said it was authentic. Fang Zeng was quite popular, and of course Auntie Liu was praised by everyone.

Some people thought that Chen was the owner of the largest restaurant in town, and it was not easy for him to say “good”. Auntie Liu was good at cooking, and it would be good to ask him to do things in the future. It would be decent to spend some money. Isn’t it for farmers to earn face?

Since cooking at Fang’s house, Auntie Liu has gained some reputation in Lin Village, and many people ask him to cook. Of course, this is all later.

Fang Zhiyuan was displayed to everyone by his uncle like a lucky doll. Everyone praised Fang Zeng for having a good nephew, saying that he was smart, sensible, capable, and all the good things. No one would be blind enough to spread those unfilial and disobedient words about Fang Zhiyuan.

The guests and hosts had a great meal. Liu Li also made friends with Shopkeeper Chen and Third Chen, and made an appointment to visit the town in the future. Lin Cheng was also very happy that his nephew was living a prosperous life. Although he didn’t say it, he still regretted introducing Fang Sheng to Li Fu, which harmed his nephew and made Fang Zhiyuan lose his own mother.

 Seeing Fang Zeng and Fang Zhiyuan’s prosperous life, he could feel a little relieved. That was why he asked his son to support Fang Zeng no matter how bad the rumors about Fang Zhiyuan were. Other villages couldn’t control it, but they couldn’t let the people in their own village bully the uncle and nephew.

After the meal, everyone talked to the host and dispersed. Only a few ger from Lin Cheng’s family were left to help Auntie Liu clean up the dishes. Some of these were borrowed from others, so they washed them and returned them. Liu Zhuang was quick and diligent in his work. Seeing Lin Cheng’s praise, he said to Auntie Liu: “Auntie Liu, your grandson is really good and fast in his work. Even a proper adult may not be able to compare with him. You are so lucky.”

Auntie Liu was happy that her grandson was praised. Liu Zhuang was born in a bad family, but he was diligent and capable. If he had such a reputation, it would be an advantage when he talked about others in the future.  

Auntie Liu said, “Brother Lin, you can’t praise him like that. How can a child deserve such praise? He is just diligent. He is filial and can’t bear to see me suffer. He has helped me since he was a child. Practice makes perfect. If you do it more, you will naturally be able to do it well. Brother, you are lucky. Your grandson is smart, your son is filial, and even your son’s husband is close to you. I’m afraid there are not many such blessings in the whole village.” 

Lin Cheng’s fulang was happy to be praised. They had a better impression of Auntie Liu and Liu Zhuang. They also knew that they depended on each other for survival. They thought that if the villagers did things in the future, they could introduce them. Auntie Liu had good skills and was a good person. If she could help, she would help. Who wouldn’t encounter difficulties? 

Fang Zhiyuan followed his uncle to send all the guests away and took a good rest this time. To be honest, pretending to be a child used to be an intellectual job, but now it is a physical job. His face was stiff from smiling for an afternoon.  After stretching his body, he ran to the kitchen, asked for a cup of hot water, and then brought another cup to his uncle.

Preparing a banquet was too tiring, even a strong man like Fang Zeng could not bear it. After receiving the hot water handed over by his nephew, Fang Zeng breathed a sigh of relief.

Of the three tables of dishes, half of the dishes on Fang Zhiyuan’s table were eaten, and the others were almost finished. It was just that the dishes needed to be washed. Fortunately, it was convenient to boil hot water. While a few gers talked, they washed them in a short time. Most of the people here belonged to Lin Cheng’s family, so it was very convenient to let them take them back directly. Fang Zeng brought a bowl of meat to each family as a token of his appreciation, he couldn’t return them empty-handed.

Auntie Liu was the last to leave. Fang Zeng gave her two hundred wen and twenty dried persimmons, which was also a reward for Auntie Liu’s hard work for his family. Auntie Liu happily accepted it, knowing that he was satisfied with her work. If the host was happy to give more money, it would be wedding money, and this money was earned based on ability.

 While there was still sunlight, Fang Zeng sent the two grandparents back home.

Two days later, Lin Cheng’s family slaughtered a pig and invited Fang Zeng to eat the slaughtering dishes. Unlike the pigs Fang Zeng’s family bought, the pigs raised by farmers themselves, if not sold to their own family, they would generally invite their friends to eat the slaughtering dishes. Of course, if they could afford to slaughter a pig, they were considered a well to do family in the village, and they were quite respectable.

Lin Cheng’s family was the host, and as Lin Cheng’s nephew, Fang Zeng was also one of the invited people. Fang Zeng got up early that day to help, but Da Zhuang and Xiao Zhuang were sent to Fang’s house to play with Fang Zhiyuan, so as not to be scared by the slaughtering of pigs early in the morning.

Da Zhuang and Xiao Zhuang already regarded the Fang house as their second home, and they were very comfortable. Fang Zeng loved these children and never said anything to them. They were also much more lively in Fang’s house, and Fang Zhiyuan seemed to have endless delicious food, so they also liked to follow Fang Zhiyuan around.

 By the time the three of them went to eat, the Lin family had already made six tables of pig-killing dishes. Lin Cheng had been the head of the village for many years, and his popularity was really not comparable to Fang Zeng, who was a single family in Lin Village. For the pig-killing dish alone, more than half of the families in the village came. Each family sent one man to eat. If the whole family came, the pig would almost be left here.

However, Lin Cheng would only be happy, which showed that he had a high prestige in the village and everyone would give him face.

Today was the day when Lin Cheng’s family killed a pig, so naturally they had to invite Lin Shuang’s family to eat. Lin Shuang came after the pig-killing dishes were cooked. Her husband Zhao Qin looked like a strong farmer who could talk and do things well. But Fang Zhiyuan learned from Da Zhuang’s complaints that Lin Shuang had cheated his brother’s money to buy a mule. Although it was Lin Shuang who did it, if Zhao Qin really understood the situation and had some backbone, he should not have followed Lin Shuang in doing so.  

Zhao Qin is probably also a person who likes to take advantage, but Lin Shuang always takes the lead in everything, so he hides behind and pretends to be a good person.

Lin Xin’s fulang and Lin Zheng’s fulang don’t look at Lin Shuang in the eye. Lin Cheng’s fulang knows that the second family and the eldest family doesn’t like Lin Shuang, but he has no choice. He clearly brought a letter to his ger, asking him to come over earlier to help, which would also ease some of the conflicts in the early days. He also gave Lin Shuang some money privately, asking him to buy some food for Da Zhuang and Xiao Zhuang, which was also to save face for him and Lin Xin and Lin Zheng. But looking at Lin Shuang who didn’t come until noon, Lin Cheng’s fulang could only play dumb.

The main dish of the pig-killing dish is pork stewed with pickle vegetables. On a table and a basin, there are pork bones, pig blood and some pig offal. It is affordable and delicious. Since the end of the year, everyone has eaten at the west and east families, and they have also eaten alternately. After eating, they still talk about which family has the most meat, which family has the most authentic pickle vegetables, and which family has more bones.

 Fang Zhiyuan, Da Zhuang and Xiao Zhuang were not qualified to sit at the table, so they ate in the kitchen with the group of gers from Lin Cheng’s family. Fang Zhiyuan was a guest, so Lin Cheng’s family specially served him a bowl of pig-killing dishes. The staple food was coarse grains mixed with white rice. Da Zhuang and Xiao Zhuang ate with Fang Zhiyuan. The three of them didn’t need the adults to take care of them, and they could eat well by themselves.

Fang Zhiyuan finally met Da Pang, the cousin that Da Zhuang and Xiao Zhuang particularly disliked. He looked like his name, only six years old, but he was fat and chubby, and he ate almost as much as the three of them. The three of them ate a bowl of butchered pig dishes, and Da Pang ate a bowl by himself.

When he ate slaughtering dishes, he would pick out the meat from the dish, and never eat the pickled cabbage. Lin Shuang also kept picking out the pork from their plate, and his eyebrows were about to be tucked up when he saw Lin Xin’s fulang. There were not only their family at the table, but also the gers who came to help. Lin Shuang picked out all the meat without caring, and made them eat bones, internal organs and pickled cabbage, which was too rude.