Chapter 253 Wheat Ear-Shaped Dumplings
The 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month is also known as the Little New Year.

On this day, it is necessary to worship the Kitchen God, which is one of the most important customs of the Little New Year. The Kitchen God is sent to heaven to report the good and bad deeds of the family to the Jade Emperor.

Early in the morning, Mrs. He and her aunts cleaned up the kitchen and pasted a picture of the Kitchen God on one corner of the stove. They also placed offerings such as candy and sugar melons, hoping that the Kitchen God would "do good things in heaven and bring good fortune back to the palace."

Xu Qingmeng was alone in her previous life and rarely celebrated holidays. However, as a food blogger, she was very familiar with the customs of various places. On the Little New Year, people in different places eat dumplings.

In her previous life, Xu Qingmeng had come across a post that said in the North, people always eat dumplings on holidays.

Although Fucheng is not the northernmost city, in the original owner's memory, the tradition here is to eat dumplings.

"Sister-in-law, I want to eat meat," Yun Sheng said, looking at Xu Qingmeng.

Mrs. He looked at her and said with a smile, "When have you ever wrapped anything that isn't meat? Have you ever wrapped anything vegetarian?"

"But you always make it with chives and pork, I just want to eat pure meat." Yun Sheng pouted and said.

Mrs. He glanced at her and tapped her on the head. "What's wrong with me doing all the work, but you're making me eat what I like?"

Xu Qingmeng didn't seem to have any particular preference for this. She then asked Gu Yunyi and Xinting. Gu Yunyi, being a carnivore, preferred pure meat, while Xinting was indifferent and thought both were fine.

However, Mr. Shen was also celebrating the Lunar New Year with them. Xu Qingmeng asked Gu Yunyi, "Where is Mr. Shen? Where is he from? What kind of dumplings does he usually eat?"

Gu Yunyi thought for a moment, then said, "I really don't know. I've only heard you mention that your hometown is east of the capital. Should I go ask now?"

Xu Qingmeng rolled her eyes at him. Really? He doesn't even know anything about being her husband.

Madam He said, "Go and ask. After all, this is the first time the gentleman has celebrated the Lunar New Year with us."

"Well, if that doesn't work, we'll prepare several different kinds of fillings," Xu Qingmeng said.

Gu Yunyi then headed to Elm Street.

I'm finally free today, and I won't be as busy later on, so I can finally have a good rest. Recently, Yun Sheng and Yun Mo have been complaining that they haven't had their sister-in-law feed them in a long time.

Since the two little ones have been very well-behaved lately, Xu Qingmeng thought of making them some different kinds of dumplings.

Xu Qingmeng mixed a bowl of dough with spinach juice, and also mixed some regular dough. In addition to these two, she also mixed red dough with red yeast rice powder.

The filling was prepared first, with chives and pork, which was He's favorite.

Just as they were getting ready, Gu Yunyi returned, accompanied by Mr. Shen, who was carrying two pieces of meat, one mutton and one beef.

“There were people selling them at the door this morning. They looked very fresh. And with the Lunar New Year approaching, I thought you could make them, so I bought a lot of each kind.”

Xu Qingmeng looked at the meat in Gu Yunyi's hand; it was indeed quite fresh, and there was a considerable amount of it.

“The mutton and beef are very fresh. Does the gentleman have any preferred ways of cooking them?” Xu Qingmeng asked.

"Anything is fine. I really don't know much about food. You're a good cook, so whatever you make will be delicious."

"Alright, we can each take a portion and make mutton and beef dumplings. We can cut up the rest and have hot pot tonight. I imagine you haven't tried it before, sir. It'll be perfect for you and Yunyi to have a couple of drinks to warm up tonight." As the New Year approaches, the weather is exceptionally cold. Although it's not snowing anymore, you can still see white mist when you breathe on it.

Mr. Shen was indeed quite interested in hot pot, but since he had come to Fucheng, he hadn't tried it yet. Of course, he was too embarrassed to say so, so he simply nodded and said, "Sure!"

"Wife, do we still have any radishes at home?" Gu Yunyi asked.

radish?

Then, glancing at Mr. Shen, she said, "Sir, do you like radish dumplings?"

Mr. Shen thought for a moment, then shook his head: "I haven't eaten it for many years, and I can't remember what it tastes like anymore."

Xu Qingmeng then understood that it wasn't about whether the food was delicious or not; it was simply that Mr. Shen was homesick!

Radishes are not a precious commodity, so we always keep some at home. Plus, everyone loves pickled vegetables, so radishes are a must-have.

Soon, Xu Qingmeng also prepared the radish filling.

There were four kinds of fillings in total. Xu Qingmeng was in charge of the fillings, while Xinting and the three cooks were in charge of wrapping them.

Xinting is skillful and quick with her hands. Xu Qingmeng taught her how to wrap a wheat ear dumpling, and Xinting learned it after watching it only once.

He's hands are rather clumsy, but fortunately, they can still take shape, though not very attractive.

Yun Sheng, watching from the side, asked, "Mom, these buns you made are so ugly! Can I choose not to eat them later?"

"Hmph, you want to eat it, but it depends on whether I want to give it to you or not? You brat, you're starting to look down on your old lady."

"Second brother, you be my witness. Mother just said she doesn't want to give me any! I'm going to count them carefully later."

"Hey, I think you're just asking for a beating."

Everyone was laughing and having a good time. After a while, Fang Ziheng carried Xiao Yuanbao and Hui Niang followed behind him as they walked towards the kitchen.

"Oh, you've all wrapped up your things? Does that mean I'm late?" Hui Niang said with a smile.

She casually placed the venison she had brought on the cutting board and said, "Ziheng got this venison from somewhere, but we've never eaten it before. My mother thought it was the Little New Year today, so she used it to make dumplings, and then cut half of it and brought it to you."

Xu Qingmeng had never actually eaten venison before. After all, in modern times, deer are nationally protected animals, let alone being used to make dumplings.

However, the venison that Hui Niang brought was very fresh. Although Xu Qingmeng had never eaten or cooked it before, she figured it was pretty much the same. She first soaked it to remove the blood, then chopped it up and mixed it into a filling.

He felt a little embarrassed to receive such a large piece of venison, and quickly said, "We also have several kinds of fillings today, as well as mutton and beef that Mr. Shen brought. You can try them after we cook them. Mengniang also made different kinds of dumpling wrappers, which Xiaoyuanbao will definitely like."

Xu Qingmeng noticed He Shi's embarrassment and said to Hui Niang, "Today is the Little New Year. Let's invite Aunt and Uncle over for hot pot tonight. It's the middle of winter, and we can also warm up a pot of wine. It will be very warm to eat like this."

"In that case, we won't be cooking tonight!" Hui Niang was overjoyed to hear that they could have dinner at the Gu family's house. She then moved a stool and sat down next to them to chat. Xiao Yuanbao and Yun Sheng went to play, while Fang Ziheng went to talk to Gu Yunyi and Mr. Shen.


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