【Quick Wear】My Years as a Mother-in-law

The year draws to a close, a new year begins, the stars and frost pass by, and the world never stops.

It seems that the Chinese New Year is here in the blink of an eye.

A new year brings new hope, at least for the five people from Lu University.

Life without beatings or scolding, without hunger or cold, without having to worry every day, turns out to be so comfortable.

Compared to pork, people in Beijing prefer mutton. There are mutton soup stalls or shops every few steps on the street. Each shop has its own flavor. The most expensive bowl costs thirty cents, and a little pepper is added to it. Pepper is as precious as gold, so mutton soup is so expensive. The flatbreads in this shop are also a must-try. When eaten alone, they are crispy and covered with sesame seeds. When soaked in mutton soup, they are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. When Yun Xi doesn't want to cook, she likes to buy ten flatbreads and take a bowl of mutton soup from this shop back home. After returning home, she adds water and cooks it to share.

A bowl of pepper mutton soup in the middle of winter will warm you up all over.

In order to eat her fill during the New Year, Yun Xi spent ten strings of cash to buy a slaughtered sheep and brought it home to freeze for the New Year. She also gritted her teeth and bought two taels of pepper, a small amount costing eight hundred coins.

Where can I find the eight hundred bushels of pepper, and who has the twelve rows of gold hairpins?

Both pepper and beautiful women are pursued by the powerful and wealthy, which shows the status of pepper.

A sheep weighs more than 100 pounds. Four sheep bones and two pounds of mutton were given to the Zhao family to taste. There was still a lot left for their own family. It is said that some shops can keep a set of sheep bones for several years. I remember when I was a child, an older sister who married out gave her parents a whole set of sheep bones during the New Year, and people talked about it for many days.

Yun Xi couldn't do it. She felt that a lamb bone would lose its flavor after being boiled for three days.

On the 23rd, sugar melons stick to the heart. On the 23rd of the lunar year, Yun Xi worships the Kitchen God. She prepares the best incense and sugar melons, hoping that the Kitchen God will have a sweet mouth, that the heavens will not complain about her, and that she will say more good things about her. May the Yun family be safe and auspicious in the coming year.

After the worship, the house begins to clean up, dust off the floor and put on new cloth to get rid of bad luck and welcome good fortune.

There were many rooms and the task was heavy, so everyone worked together and was busy all day. The cobwebs on the walls, the garbage in the corners, the dust on the beams, etc. were all cleaned up. Lu Er didn't dare to make trouble or act like a demon that day, because the broom in Yun Xi's hand was not to be trifled with.

The children had never experienced the Chinese New Year properly and didn't know the rules. During the New Year, Yun Xi put down her brush and took charge of the stove, frying a lot of delicious food. In the evening, they drank mutton soup and ate steamed buns. She cut two pounds of frozen, hard mutton into thin slices and added two pounds of it. It was a really delicious meal.

The next day, the blacksmith shop was closed, and Zhao's mother sent two large grass carps.

"It's the end of the year, and the blacksmith's shop owner gave out two large grass carps as a holiday gift to everyone. Grandma got six, so I'll give you two to try."

"Not bad, boss."

Yun Xi took it and said, "A fish costs three cents per pound at the market. I'll eat one during the Chinese New Year and the other for Yuanxiao."

"What's good about it? Before Deping De'an went to the shop, the children's father only earned 600 coins a month. No blacksmith shop in the capital paid such low wages." Zhao's mother complained, "My two children apprenticed there for two years, learned everything, and only got 200 coins a month. I don't even want to talk about it. Others not only receive gifts but also bonuses during the New Year and other festivals, but my family has never received any bonuses."

Yun Xi agreed with her and said, "Why are you still working for such a stingy boss?"

"Hey, isn't this the child's father who got guidance from someone? That person is stubborn and refuses to leave after helping for so many years. But I definitely won't let Deping and De'an keep doing this forever. They've only learned Chinese characters from you for a few months and already recognize over a thousand. Wait for them to study for another six months and then find a new job."

At the end, Zhao's mother laughed.

"Thank you for this."

"It's not worth it. I can't read many words. How can I find a job like this?" Yun Xi looked at her.

Zhao's mother: "Why? You want to find a job?"

"Not really. I earn enough to spend. Occasionally I bring books home to copy, which also earns me a little. If your three children want to copy books, they can come to me."

Having a good neighbor, Yun Xi doesn't mind helping out a little more.

If you think good and do good, you will be rewarded. There is a city wall to the west of her house, so naturally she has to be nice to her neighbor to the east.

Mother Zhao became interested. "That's great. Are there any requirements for copying the book?"

"You bring your own brushes, ink, paper, and inkstone. The reward for a book is about 200 wen to one tael of silver, depending on the thickness of the book. After deducting the cost of brushes, ink, paper, and inkstone, it's quite profitable." Yun Xi explained, "If you can draw pictures, you can get even more."

Movable type printing already existed in this era, but it didn't seem to be very popular, probably because of the knowledge barrier. Copying books was quite common and the remuneration was high.

"That's so lucrative! Just copying two books a month can earn you a few hundred wen! Wow, I don't even want my children to find jobs anymore." Zhao's mother exclaimed, "So studying can make so much money? No wonder every family wants their children to learn to read and write."

"I still need to find a stable job. I earn about 800 wen a month by copying books in my spare time. Unfortunately, I can't draw. If I could, I could get paid more." Yun Xi felt that she needed to learn some skills. "Is there a master who teaches calligraphy and painting nearby? I want to learn from him."

Mother Zhao was a little shocked. "Ah? Madam Yun, you're already thirty-three, and you still want to learn from a master?"

Yun Xi didn't care. "What's the big deal about age? If you want to learn, just learn."

Mother Zhao's expression was complicated. "I haven't heard of anyone nearby looking to take in apprentices to learn painting. However, a few streets south, there's a man selling Spring Festival couplets and door gods who's looking for apprentices. I think he's doing something similar to painting."

"That's sculpture, not painting."

Yun Xi was not in a hurry and decided to search slowly.

On New Year's Eve, Yun Xi paid homage to the original owner's parents, and then prepared eight dishes, a soup, and dumplings. The family sat at the table in rare harmony to eat. The large table of delicious food attracted the children's attention, and they couldn't stop eating.

Eat, eat more, and don’t go back to your biological parents’ house and tell them about me.

She didn't let her stay up after dinner because she had something big to do tonight.

"Go to bed, everyone. Be alert at night. There are a lot of people setting off firecrackers outside, which can easily cause fires." Yun Xi watched Lu Er finish washing the dishes obediently, then turned around and went back to the house.

The sound of firecrackers could be heard from time to time in the city, making it very lively. It was also true that fires were prone to occur. The firefighters were the busiest at this time of year, and the city always had to take precautions against fires once or twice every year.

It was almost ten o'clock and the two children were already asleep. Yun Xi got dressed and walked out of the yard, peeking into the alley. The dark night was silent and her figure gradually disappeared into the darkness without anyone noticing.

Yun Xi walked all the way to East City and first went to Yuan Renbo's Mansion to ask Wei about the situation.

The distressed concierge became alert, "Madame Wei? Do you have something to do with her?"

Yun Xi's heart skipped a beat. "What? Is she not here? I'm her friend."

"No, she's dead. Poisoned." The concierge thought it was nothing to be ashamed of. "A rat had bitten a piece of steamed bun, and Madam Wei couldn't bear to throw it away. She ate it, and it's gone. The coroner checked and found residual rat poison on the bun."

"Love! Madam Wei has bad luck."