"Hey, there's only one day a year like this, Su Mo and I will have a drink."
Unable to stop him, Jiang Jianhuan could only give Su Mo a look, and he nodded, signaling her with his eyes that she could rest assured.
After finishing the meal, half of the bottle of wine was gone. Jiang Xin, feeling exhausted, was helped to his room by Yi Qingxue to rest. Jiang Jianhuan looked at Su Mo beside him.
"well enough?"
"It's nothing." He shook his head, but closed his eyes and rubbed his temples.
"You should go and rest too." Jiang Jianhuan helped him up and walked him towards his room.
Jiang Jianhuan's bedroom was at the very end. Opening the window, there was a field outside, and in the distance, you could see the persimmon tree between the field ridges. Now, all the leaves had fallen, and the rough gray branches stretched out boldly.
The sheets were all new, and the furniture was spotless. Su Mo lay down on the bed, and Jiang Jianhuan spread out a blanket for him.
"You get some sleep, I'll go outside and help tidy up," she said softly. Su Mo, with her eyes closed, mumbled a reply.
I slept particularly soundly that night, and when I woke up it was already evening. I could vaguely hear the distant shouts of children coming from outside the window.
Su Mo stared at the ceiling, and after a few seconds, she remembered where she was.
Following the sound he had heard earlier, he sat up and looked outside. Sure enough, at the end of the field, three or five children were running and playing. A breeze was blowing in through the window, carrying the unique chill of winter.
It was dusk, and the golden rays of the setting sun bathed the vast, harvested rice fields. The winter sunlight was exceptionally gentle, soft and warm. It was like the final shot of a movie, the last recorded moment.
He stretched, and the bright sunshine caught his eye.
When Su Mo pushed open the door and went out, she saw Jiang Jianhuan and her mother sitting under the eaves, peeling chestnuts head to head, chatting and laughing.
Two old hens walked past his feet, heads held high and chests puffed out. A big yellow dog lazily curled up beside him, while Wangcai stubbornly stretched out its paw to provoke it. A string of big red peppers hung on the wall.
"Little Su is awake! Is anything bothering you?" Yi Qingxue saw him first and greeted him, standing up from the small stool and walking towards him.
"There's still warm water in the kitchen. How about I make you a cup of honey? It'll be a little less sweet, just enough to soothe your throat."
"No need, Auntie, I can do it myself." Su Mo quickly refused, but Yi Qingxue went straight into the kitchen. He was about to follow her when Jiang Jianhuan called him back.
"It's okay, come help me peel chestnuts."
Su Mo gave up and sat down on the small stool that Yi Qingxue had just been sitting on. Jiang Jianhuan peeled a shell in his hand and asked.
"Did you sleep well?"
"Yeah, I was woken up by some kids outside," Su Mo replied, lowering her eyes as she peeled the peel along with her.
There were still a little more than half left in the small wooden basin in front of me, and a third of the yellow chestnuts were in the small white porcelain bowl next to it. They were round and plump, and looked very nice.
“They’re all kids from the neighborhood; this is the perfect time for them to come out and play,” Jiang Jianhuan explained. Su Mo glanced at her and asked.
What dishes can you make with chestnuts?
"Chestnut braised chicken," Jiang Jianhuan said. "It's a fat old hen that my mom raised herself."
Looking at the two old hens strutting around not far away, Su Mo seemed to foresee their future fate.
Yi Qingxue made him a cup of honey water, which Su Mo drank in one gulp. His dry throat was soothed considerably, and the three of them quickly finished peeling the whole bowl of chestnuts.
The braised chicken with chestnuts for dinner was delicious, somewhat like his mother's cooking. Su Mo thought that all home-cooked dishes in the world probably taste the same.
The next morning, I was awakened by the sound of firecrackers, a crackling and popping sound rarely heard in the city. For the past few years, Su Mo had spent several Spring Festivals quietly and uneventfully, which had all passed by unnoticed.
In his memory, there were only frozen dumplings, noodles, and a dining table full of vegetables, but he was the only one facing an empty table.
The entire city was like a huge ghost town. During the Spring Festival, the supermarkets, which were usually crowded with people, were empty and quiet. Su Mo could go shopping alone without worry. Even the roads, which were usually congested, seemed particularly desolate and lonely.
Most people returned to their hometowns or went home, and there were very few people like him who had nowhere to go.
Jiang Jianhuan, who was in his arms, was also woken up. She nuzzled against his shoulder a couple of times and slowly opened her eyes.
"Good morning." She leaned on Su Mo's shoulder, her eyes still sleepy, her voice so soft it was almost a whisper.
"Good morning." Su Mo kissed her forehead.
The countryside was filled with the festive atmosphere of the New Year. Early in the morning, the two of them helped clean the house, put up bright red couplets, and burn incense to worship.
Meat was simmering in a pot in the kitchen, bubbling away, and the aroma filled the whole house.
After a busy day, we finally got to eat our New Year's Eve dinner. The drink was a large bottle of Coca-Cola, just like its TV commercial advertised, where relatives and friends would gather around the table and clink glasses together on Chinese New Year's Day.
Cheers, Happy New Year!
Under the bright, warm light, Su Mo and Jiang Jianhuan smiled at each other.
Chapter 66
At night, children set off fireworks outside. They held a flame in their hand, lit it with trembling hands, and then smoke rose from the top. A moment later, with a "whoosh," the firework shot into the sky and exploded, displaying a dazzling array of colors against the night sky.
Jiang Jianhuan and Su Mo stood side by side under the eaves, watching children running around in the rice paddies with sparklers, covering their ears with one hand to light the triangular firework tubes standing on the ground, playing and laughing carefree amidst the distant sounds of firecrackers.
"We also bought fireworks at home, would you like to go play with them?" Yi Qingxue poured out some water and asked when she saw the two of them.
"Ah, Mom, why did you buy this?" Jiang Jianhuan said, but her body followed her inside.
"What if you want to play when you come back?"
“We’re not children anymore…” Jiang Jianhuan said, looking at Su Mo with an unconscious expectation in her eyes.
"Auntie, where are the fireworks? Let's go get them." Su Mo pressed Jiang Jianhuan's shoulder and made the decision directly.
They bought a wide variety of fireworks, including large barrels of square fireworks, small triangular cold fireworks, long sticks of small firecrackers to hold in their hands, and small sparklers.