Chapter 140

Chapter 140

Write Spring Festival couplets?

He Xiang looked at Xu Yuqing in disbelief. Was she joking?

Doesn't she know what kind of situation I'm in?

He wanted to speak openly and directly, but as soon as he opened his mouth, his voice suddenly went hoarse.

How should he say it? That his handwriting looks like a dog's scratchings?

The belated feeling of embarrassment instantly made his eyes redden.

In the past, when he didn't want to go to school, he wasn't spared ridicule, but he had never felt this embarrassed before. But now, looking at Xu Yuqing's clear and gentle gaze, he felt ashamed.

He pursed his lips, lowered his head, and stuffed a bun into his mouth, his eyes downcast and vacant.

Xu Yuqing didn't notice his mood and sat down to take a sip of water. Xie Junli finished tidying up the room and sat down, skillfully peeling an egg.

He placed the smooth egg in Xu Yuqing's bowl, where it spun twice before stopping. Xu Yuqing picked up the egg and took a bite, then with her other hand, she picked up the remaining egg in the bowl. "Eat quickly, why are you only eating buns?"

"Um." He Xiang responded softly and took the egg.

His reaction was too strange, clearly noticed by both Xu Yuqing and Xie Junli.

Xu Yuqing and Xie Junli exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with confusion.

What's going on? He wasn't like this just now.

Just as Xie Junli was about to ask, Xu Yuqing silenced him with a slap on the back of his hand. She had an egg in her mouth, thinking about what to say.

After a long while, she finally gathered her thoughts. "What's wrong with you?"

Yes, after all that thinking, those were the only four words she could come up with—simple yet conveying a hint of concern without being intrusive.

He Xiang paused mid-bite, not saying a word, still looking down, silent.

Seeing this, Xu Yuqing and Xie Junli exchanged another glance and decided not to pressure him, quietly changing the subject.

"What can we write for the Spring Festival couplets later?"

Xu Yuqing stroked her chin, keeping an eye on He Xiang's movements.

This time, He Xiang didn't move, swallowing the bun whole. "I'll go chop firewood."

Xie Junli frowned, already having a plan. "We have enough firewood; I chopped it last night. Sit down."

...

"Oh." He Xiang responded, slightly awkwardly, and sat back down.

Xie Junli said nothing, finishing his breakfast quickly and gulping down a large glass of water.

Seeing this, Xu Yuqing also sped up, quickly clearing the table and bringing out the prepared red paper.

She said they would write couplets, but the formal ones were given to a company commander who had practiced calligraphy since childhood. She brought a piece of meat along.

Most of the couplets in this Military District were written by him.

The remaining red paper was a whim of Xu Yuqing's, wanting to experience the feeling of writing couplets.

The brush, ink, paper, and inkstone were all casual. She laid the red paper on the table, and Xie Junli took the brush from Xu Yuqing, looking at her. "What should we write?"

Xu Yuqing stroked her chin, unsure. "Let's write 'Fu.'"

'Fu' is the simplest and easiest to write.

Apart from that, Xu Yuqing took a pair of scissors and cut a strip of red paper, about four or five centimeters wide, and then cut it shorter, taking a small square. She picked up the brush.

"Look, 'Fu.'" Xu Yuqing wasn't very skilled with the brush, but she managed to write it neatly, feeling somewhat proud.

The tiny 'Fu,' about the size of a palm, pleased Xu Yuqing immensely.

He Xiang was also curious. Sitting on the chair, he watched the two of them writing playfully, gradually letting go of his burden.

After Xu Yuqing finished one 'Fu,' she cut another piece and wrote another one. With the previous experience, this one was noticeably better than the first.

Xie Junli finished writing a large 'Fu,' put down the brush, and held it up to dry. It was average, recognizable, and fairly neat.

Noticing He Xiang's slightly interested gaze, he handed him a piece of red paper. "Give it a try?"

He Xiang pursed his lips, nodded, and took the brush. The brush wasn't good; the tip was already frayed, but it was He Xiang's first time holding one.

It was soft and hard to control.

His hand trembled involuntarily as he clumsily wrote a 'Fu.' It was crooked and uneven.

He dropped the brush in frustration, wanting to hide it, but Xu Yuqing had already seen it.

So did Xie Junli. He Xiang was mortified, his face turning red, wishing he hadn't written it at all.

However, no one said anything negative. The other two continued writing their own, admiring their work before putting it aside.

Xu Yuqing was almost done with the red paper when she noticed He Xiang had only written one. She looked over. "He Xiang, write one more. At least you need two for your home."

"Ah, oh." He Xiang responded, confused, picking up the brush again and writing another one. This one turned out much better.

At least it looks like a character for "blessing," and it’s not crooked.

Xu Yuqing gradually relaxed. She had already finished writing and planned to make some paste. "Why don’t we stick them up today? Shouldn’t we be able to put up the Spring Festival couplets on the twenty-ninth?"

Mainly, she wanted to participate. On New Year's Eve, she would definitely be too busy preparing the New Year’s Eve dinner to help.

If they did it today, she could watch the process.

Naturally, Xie Junli agreed to Xu Yuqing’s suggestion. "Yes, let’s do it today."

Great! Xu Yuqing happily got up and went to the kitchen, taking out a small amount of white rice. The paste should be made from glutinous rice, but since they didn’t have any, she had to use white rice instead.

She took out a small mortar and pestle, which was very useful. She placed the rice in it and pounded it a few times until the white rice was crushed.

Xu Yuqing exerted herself to grind the white rice into powder. She poured water into a pot and waited for it to boil. After it boiled thoroughly, she added the rice powder and simmered it over low heat.

Midway through, she added a bit more water to prevent it from drying out.

Outside the kitchen, it was quiet except for the sound of tidying up. Neither Xie Junli nor He Xiang were talkative, and Xu Yuqing was used to this silence.

"Junli! Bring in what I wrote; I want to stick it on the stove!"

With the current campaign against old customs, although they were allowed to put up couplets, they were not permitted to worship the Kitchen God. Xu Yuqing didn’t bother with these rituals anyway. She wouldn’t know how to do them either. Writing a small "blessing" character and sticking it on the stove was her way of thanking the kitchen.

The warm rice paste came out of the pot. Xu Yuqing took a spoon, scooped out a little bit, blew on it to cool it down, and first stuck a "blessing" character by the stove. "Thank you for your hard work. I hope you continue to serve us well in the new year."

Next, she stuck them on the stove and the small stool that was always by the fire... After sticking all the "blessing" characters she had written, Xu Yuqing happily stopped. The originally monotonous kitchen instantly felt festive with the addition of red decorations.

"Alright, you go and stick them."

"Okay."

Xie Junli took the bowl and went to the front door with He Xiang. They stuck the couplets on both sides of the main entrance and a "blessing" character on the back of the door, upside down.

Xu Yuqing watched from behind, hands clasped behind her back. Xie Junli worked quickly, applying the paste thinly and evenly, and stuck them up swiftly.

He Xiang held the bowl, watching Xie Junli’s movements.

Xie Junli had almost finished sticking the "blessing" characters he had written, placing one on the back of each door. There were two left. "I’ll go for a moment and be right back."

Xu Yuqing nodded. "Alright, you can eat when you get back."

"Okay."

Xie Junli acknowledged and asked He Xiang to hold the bowl while he fetched the remaining red paper from the dining table. Two of those were written by He Xiang.

"Let’s go."

"Oh."

He Xiang didn’t argue and obediently followed behind.

Xie Junli first went to the company commander’s house. Although it was initially agreed to pick them up on New Year’s Eve, several days had passed, and they should be ready by now.

Taking a detour, he saw someone at the gate. Xie Junli walked over with He Xiang. "Commander Wu."

In the courtyard, there was a large wooden table that looked homemade and a bit rough. As he entered, Commander Wu, who was about to start writing, brightened up upon seeing him. "Commander Xie! I’ll get yours right away!"

He hurriedly put down his brush, and no one complained. Some even greeted Xie Junli.

"Commander Xie, you’re here to pick them up too. My wife couldn’t wait until tomorrow and has been nagging Commander Wu, so he hasn’t even had breakfast properly."

He rubbed his head, slightly annoyed. Who would be in a good mood so early in the morning?

Xie Junli nodded calmly without joining in the complaints. Commander Wu soon returned with two rolls of red paper.

"Commander Xie, this is the big set, and this is the small set."

"Thanks, appreciate it."

Huh, Commander Wu recalled the meat Xie Junli had given him, still savoring its taste. How could he feel it was troublesome? He shook his head. "It’s nothing, Commander Xie. You’re the one who works hard."

With the items in hand, Xie Junli handed them to He Xiang. "I’ll be going now. Don’t want to disturb you."

"Sure thing, sure thing!"

Commander Wu nodded, watching Xie Junli stride away. He envied him a bit. If he had such a salary, he wouldn’t be writing couplets during the New Year. He smiled, thinking of his son’s dowry, and returned to his work.

He Xiang thought they would head back after getting the couplets, feeling puzzled. With one hand holding the paste and the other the red paper, he had no free hands. In contrast, Xie Junli’s hands were empty and relaxed.

At the crossroads, Xie Junli turned left, causing He Xiang to pause. "We’re going the wrong way!"

"No, we’re not."

Xie Junli said calmly, walking briskly without waiting for He Xiang.

This path made He Xiang’s eyes light up as he caught up with Xie Junli.

Sure enough, they stopped at the He family’s dilapidated door, which He Xiang had repaired himself so it no longer looked like it might fall apart. A lock hung on the door. Xie Junli stood there, waiting for He Xiang to open it.

"At least take the things while you wait for me to open the door!"

He Xiang said exasperatedly, wondering how he could find his keys with both hands full.

Xie Junli took the bowl from him and watched as he fished out his keys from his inner pocket. It was clear the pocket was cluttered, and a few coins fell out along with the keys.

He Xiang had also gotten used to it. He picked up the couplets and opened the door. Although the inside was still rundown, it was much cleaner, and the snow had been swept. Xie Junli put down the bowl. "Let's put them up."

"Okay." He Xiang responded, looking at the couplets in his hand. Putting up couplets—this hadn't been done in this house for a very long time.

The last time was when his father was still alive.

Looking at Xie Junli, he shyly managed to say, "Thanks."

Xie Junli was taken aback, then understood what he meant and smiled. "Don't thank me; thank your aunt. It was her reminder."