Chapter 105: New Year’s Shopping and the Big Cleanup

Chapter 105: Chapter 105: New Year’s Shopping and the Big Cleanup

With Ji Huan and Dabao moving into their new home, the Hu Family’s business was also put on hold.

The younger students at the academy were all on holiday; only those who were to take the county-level examination next year were kept behind by their teachers.

Without exception, all the students who were singled out by the teachers for special cultivation shared one common trait: they were so dedicated they would forget to eat and sleep.

It was inevitable that the breakfast business would be affected, so Widow Xie thought they might as well just close up shop. It would be a good chance to let the children rest and also to do some New Year’s shopping.

Widow Xie wanted Ji Huan and Dabao to celebrate the New Year with the Hu Family, but after some thought, Ji Huan declined. She and Dabao had finally gotten a home that was truly their own, and she wanted to spend their first New Year in it.

However, the two families did their New Year’s shopping together.

Widow Xie figured that after building the house, Ji Huan likely had no money left for New Year’s shopping, so she wanted to give her a share of the profits from the hot and spicy soup stall. But Ji Huan was well aware of the Hu Family’s financial situation, and besides, she wasn’t short on money herself at the moment, so she insisted they could discuss profit-sharing next year.

Typically, New Year’s preparations began twenty days before the year’s end. From the Laba Festival all the way to New Year’s Eve, the villagers were ceaselessly busy. Their two families were getting a late start, so they dared not delay any further. After resting for just two days, they pulled a flatbed cart to the large market in town.

The market in the twelfth lunar month was much livelier than usual.

First, there were vendors selling cured meats and ingredients for the Laba porridge, such as walnuts, dates, dried persimmons, and chestnuts. There was also all sorts of wild game and festive snacks.

After the tenth day of the month, vendors started selling images of door gods, New Year’s paintings, gold and silver foil, paper-cuts for windows, and so on.

After the twentieth, they began selling melon-shaped candy, sweet cakes, glutinous rice cakes, Guandong candy, and roasted soybeans—all in preparation for the offering to the Kitchen God.

After the twenty-fifth, things like sesame-coated tangerines and pine and cypress branches were sold in preparation for New Year’s Eve.

The market was overflowing with a dazzling array of goods, and prices had naturally risen. That’s why the saying goes that in the twelfth month, everything costs more.

Ji Huan had listed all the New Year’s goods she needed on a slip of paper.

Fish and meat were essential, as were firecrackers and images of door gods. As for the couplets, she bought red paper, planning to write them herself when she got back.

She also bought lanterns for Dabao, Dacheng, Ximei, and the others, as well as melon seeds, peanuts, pastries, and candy. During the New Year, it was customary for rural families to visit one another, so they needed snacks on hand to serve both adults and children.

As for staples like rice, flour, grain, and oil, she had already stocked up on plenty at the beginning of the month and didn’t plan to buy more.

The market was packed shoulder-to-shoulder. Once the initial novelty wore off, Ji Huan bought what she needed and absolutely refused to squeeze any deeper into the crowd. When she looked over at Dabao, he had long since gone rigid on the cart, tense as a little stone.

The Hu Family was large and had a lot more to buy. They were all in high spirits, mainly because Dacheng, Ximei, Xiao’an, and Hua loved the lively atmosphere.

Ji Huan let them know she was leaving and took Dabao to the entrance of the town to wait.

Just as they reached the head of the street, a horse came galloping toward them at full speed. Terrified, Ji Huan threw her arms around Dabao to shield him. The horse brushed right past, nearly knocking them both over.

Once she had her balance back, she turned to look. The road was in chaos, with pedestrians and goods knocked down and scattered about. The horse, however, hadn’t even slowed, vanishing around a corner without a backward glance.

Shouts and curses filled the air. After her initial wave of anger subsided, Ji Huan’s brow slowly furrowed.

’Just now, I got a glimpse of him... He didn’t look like an ordinary traveler. He looked more like a court courier. And judging by the direction he was headed, wasn’t that toward the military barracks...?’

When the Hu Family finished their shopping and met them at the town entrance, Widow Xie noticed Ji Huan’s expression was a little off and asked her what was wrong.

Ji Huan shook her head. ’My suspicions aren’t confirmed, so it wouldn’t be right to spread rumors. It would only make everyone panic, and we probably wouldn’t even be able to enjoy the New Year.’

However, she suggested going back to buy more grain and insisted that the Hu Family do the same.

Although Widow Xie and Hu Liang felt it was unnecessary to buy more grain since they had already stocked up, they were used to listening to Ji Huan. Besides, one could never have too much grain, and it wouldn’t spoil, so they agreed to her suggestion.

With their New Year’s shopping complete, the next day was the Little New Year.

On this day, custom dictated an offering to the Kitchen God. There was a folk saying, "Men do not worship the moon; women do not make offerings to the stove." Therefore, the right to perform the stove offering was limited to men.

Although Ji Huan scoffed at this rule, she also had no interest in waiting on gods and ghosts, so she simply prepared a bowl of melon-shaped candy for Dabao and told him to go make the offering to the Stove God.

When Dabao didn’t return after a little while, she went to the kitchen to check, but the bowl of candy was gone too.

Ji Huan planted her hands on her hips and marched straight to the backyard.

The backyard’s side gate was open. Around the corner, just outside the yard, a boy and a dog were squatting, facing each other. Between them sat an empty bowl, licked sparklingly clean.

Clearly, the entire bowl of candy had ended up in Dahuang’s stomach.

"Da... bao."

Usually, when Ji Huan enunciated each word so deliberately, it meant someone was in for it.

Dabao’s ears twitched.

Dahuang barked twice at Ji Huan, glanced at Dabao, then back at Ji Huan, before turning tail and running off.

Dabao slowly got to his feet and turned to face Ji Huan. He kept his head bowed, eyes fixed on the ground, putting on a pitiful, withdrawn act.

But he couldn’t fool Ji Huan this time!

Ji Huan was practically fuming, smoke coming out of her ears.

’This little traitor, Dabao! I told him to give it to the Kitchen God, and he served it to his little playmate instead.’

’Fine, whatever. But the crucial part is that his playmate is a thankless little beast! Does it even know whose food it just ate? How dare it bark at me?’

"You..." Ji Huan poked Dabao’s forehead. "Dahuang eats his fill and then acts like he doesn’t know me. You get inside and wash that bowl. The next time you feed him directly from a bowl, you can just start sharing one with him. Do you hear me?"

Dabao mumbled an "mhm," obediently turned to pick up the bowl, and let Ji Huan lead him back into the kitchen. Once there, he simply stared at her with his big, wide eyes.

He didn’t know how to wash dishes.

’...’ ’Why do I feel like I just dug a hole for myself?’

Ji Huan took the bowl from him and gave his little cheek an exasperated pinch. "I’ll show you how it’s done this time. But if there’s a next time... hmph, hmph..."

After giving Dabao a lesson on chores, she prepared another bowl of candy and had him take it for the offering. This time, thankfully, there were no mishaps.

After the offering to the Kitchen God came the great house-cleaning, colloquially known as the "New Year’s Sweep."

This practice of "bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new" involved not only cleaning the house from top to bottom, but also washing oneself thoroughly. The idea was to wash away all the bad luck of the past year, making way for good fortune in the year to come.

Ji Huan took advantage of the midday warmth to heat water. She bathed Dabao first, bundling him up in his quilt, before it was finally her turn.

Even with the heated brick bed, they were both still shivering, and it took a long while for them to feel warm again.

The house had only recently been built and the furniture was all new. With so few belongings, there were no cobwebs or dust to speak of, so she just gave the courtyard a symbolic sweeping.

As a punishment for Dabao, Ji Huan folded a small cloth into a triangular kerchief and tied it on his head. Then she handed him a broom taller than he was and assigned him the backyard.

Ji Huan secretly followed to watch. She saw him moving around the yard like a little snail, hugging the broom and grunting with effort. He looked less like he was sweeping and more like he was trying to draw a talisman on the ground.

Ji Huan clutched her stomach, almost doubling over with laughter.

Dabao heard her laughter and turned his head to look at her, his little kerchief-wrapped face wearing an innocent and utterly baffled expression.

"PFFT-HAHAHA..."

Ji Huan laughed even harder.