Siheyuan: Relieve stress and relieve worries

Chapter 1114 The Yan family borrows meat
Before the New Year's Eve dinner, the Yan family father and son came to Wang Zhan's house. Wang Zhan didn't know why Yan Bugui would come to his door, but out of respect for Yan Jiekuang, he would give Yan Bugui a chance to explain.

Yan Bugui saw Wang Zhan looking at him and said, "Wang Zhan, hello. We've dealt with each other a few times. I know I was greedy in the past and caused you a lot of trouble. I apologize to you and hope you can forgive me. I know I was wrong. I was too greedy, and I will definitely change that."

Wang Zhan was quite surprised. He hadn't expected Yan Bugui to adopt such a humble attitude from the start. Wang Zhan wasn't a petty person. Since the matter was over and the Yan family had been punished, Wang Zhan waved his hand and said, "I should call you Uncle Yan, just like Jie Kuang did. Those things are in the past, so let's not mention them again. Although Yan Jie Kuang is young, he's a good friend of mine. You must have something to say since you've come here today. Just say it."

“Sigh, I had no choice. I guess Xiao San has already told you about my situation in that compound, so I won’t repeat it. Today is New Year’s Eve, you know. A while ago, I organized the eldest brother’s wedding. I used up all the receipts I could, and it cost a lot of money. I’ve been working mostly as a cleaner for the past few years, earning only 18.5 yuan a month, and I still have to support this whole family. So this eldest brother’s wedding has really taken a toll on me.” Yan Bugui said with a worried look on his face.

Yan Jiekuang saw that his father had said all that, and he didn't want his father to say anything more to ask for help. As a son, he should take responsibility at this time.

He immediately picked up where his father left off, saying, "Brother Zhan, to be honest, my dad went to the Yongding River to break the ice and fish early this morning, but he didn't catch anything. Our family's expenses have been quite high this year. Today, we only have a dozen kilograms of cornmeal and some stored cabbage. But we can't skip the New Year, so I'm asking you to lend me some ingredients. Don't worry, I'll definitely pay you back once the New Year is over."

Wang Zhan took out a pack of Peony cigarettes from his pocket. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at Yan Bugui. When Wang Zhan took out the cigarettes, Yan Bugui's eyes lit up for a moment, but then returned to normal.

Wang Zhan took out a cigarette and handed it to Yan Bugui, saying, "Uncle Yan, have a smoke. It's the New Year, and there's no hurdle we can't overcome. But you know, there are only two of us in my family, and we don't have much prepared. So, you and your son can have some water and a smoke here. I'll go to the backyard and see what I can get. I'll try my best."

Yan Bugui took the cigarette and then said to Yan Jiekuang, "You stay here with your father. I'll go check the backyard. Oh, and keep an eye on the gate. I didn't close it. Wang Li went to Er Ya's place and hasn't come back yet, but I think she'll be back soon."

Yan Jiekuang nodded, and Wang Zhan returned to the backyard. As he walked, he thought about what he should bring to the Yan family. When he got to the kitchen, he looked around at the ingredients and finally decided to take out a chicken and a pound of pork. He also took some of the vegetables he grew himself, filled a large bag, and then turned and walked towards the main hall.

Entering the main room, Wang Li was there, chattering excitedly to Yan Jiekuang about setting off firecrackers. Yan Jiekuang listened quietly with a look of utter despair on his face. His father was still sitting opposite him; otherwise, he would have run away long ago.

Wang Zhan handed the bag to Yan Bugui, who quickly stood up and took it. Wang Zhan said, "Uncle Yan, as you know, I only got some food because I'm a family member of a martyr. Some of my parents' comrades sent over, but we don't have much at home. Please bear with us if it's not enough."

Yan Bugui thanked him repeatedly, took the bag, opened it, and his eyes widened in surprise. He said, "So much! There's even pork! What, what should we do?"

“Take it. You don’t need to rush to return it. The harvest is bad this year, and things are hard to buy. When the harvest is better, you can treat my sister and me to a meal. Those vegetables are homegrown and don’t cost much. Just keep them,” Wang Zhan said.

The Yan father and son knew it was almost noon, especially Yan Jiekuang, who wanted to get rid of Wang Li's boasting as soon as possible. He quickly said, "Then, Brother Zhan, thank you. It's New Year's Eve this year, so we won't keep you any longer. We'll take our leave now. Thank you again, Brother Zhan." With that, Yan Jiekuang bowed to Wang Zhan.

Wang Zhan waved his hand and said, "No need, no need, alright, hurry home and prepare the New Year's Eve dinner, I won't keep you any longer." The brother and sister saw the two off at the gate, watching them walk away into the alley before returning to the courtyard. Wang Zhan asked his sister if Zhang Erya would come later. Wang Li said very confidently that she would not.

Wang Zhan immediately closed the door and bolted it shut.

The Wang family's New Year's Eve dinner was very lavish. Even Wang Li, after learning about it, kept saying that her brother was being a bit wasteful, since there were only the two of them in the family.

Wang Zhan said, "This is nothing. I haven't even made sixteen dishes yet. It's a pity that we're out of seafood and dried goods at home, otherwise, we might actually be able to make them."

Wang Li was helping her brother in the kitchen. The ginseng chicken soup was the final main dish, which Wang Li knew. The soup had been simmering since yesterday afternoon, and later the heat was turned down. Wang Zhan also sealed it to prevent the smell from escaping. She didn't know how the dish was doing.

The four cold dishes are: honey-glazed lotus root, almond cucumber, sugar-coated persimmon, and honey-glazed char siu.
The four hot dishes are beef with oyster sauce, stir-fried mutton with scallions, steamed pork belly with rice flour, and braised pork hock.
The two vegetable dishes were shrimp and bok choy and stir-fried green beans;
The fish was squirrel-shaped mandarin fish, the soup was ginseng chicken soup, and the jujube cake and osmanthus cake made a few days ago were served as noodles. Wang Zhan also specially prepared fruit wine for his sister, while he opened a bottle of Moutai for himself.

A large round table was set out, and Wang Zhan took a string of 500 firecrackers and walked into the yard. He took the cigarette he was smoking out of his mouth, lit it, and threw it into the yard. Instantly, the firecrackers exploded with deafening noise. Wang Li stood beside him, covering her ears, her face full of joy.

After the firecrackers were finished, the two went into the main room. Wang Zhan sat in the middle, and Wang Li sat to his right. The two siblings looked at each other, and Wang Li said, "What, do you want to say a few more words?"

"Haha, what are you saying? It's just the two of us, let's eat." Wang Zhan picked up his chopsticks and headed straight for the beef.

Wang Li also started eating, commenting on her brother's cooking as she ate, saying only two words: "Delicious."

Of the two of them, Wang Li eats more than the other. Wang Zhan isn't unable to eat; in fact, he could eat as much as he wants, but his constitution dictates that he doesn't really need to.

Wang Zhan then prepared some vegetables for his sister and they chatted about the future. Wang Li occasionally inquired about her brother's job, to which Wang Zhan replied that they could only let things take their course and that things would work out in the end.

The Wang siblings finished their New Year's Eve dinner in just over an hour, which was really convenient with fewer people.

(End of this chapter)