Chapter 210: The End of Happy Days

Chapter 210: The End of Happy Days

When Dunhuang welcomed its second heavy snowfall, it coincided with the New Year's Eve celebrations. Due to this unfeeling snow, much of the festive atmosphere was lost.

The strong northern wind howled, making it impossible for anyone to stand outside. Except for the vegetable vendors who relied on sales to get through the New Year, most had packed up their stalls, not daring to stand in the cold and freeze.

Without the usual cries of street hawkers, the entire city became eerily quiet.

"We won’t go back to the city for the New Year this year," Zhao Xiping said, watching the snow fall. He figured the houses in Qianhusuo had been uninhabited for too long, lacking the warmth of human habitation, and were too cold. It was warmer at the guest house.

"We're also not going out for New Year's Eve this year. The snow is ankle-deep," Sui Yu said.

Zhao Xiping had no objections. After a few moments of silence, he turned around and said, "The heavy snow is beneficial. When it melts, the desert won’t be arid, and when you all leave the pass, you won’t encounter sandstorms."

Sui Yu paused for a moment, then walked back into the room, not wanting to discuss this depressing matter.

But Zhao Xiping didn’t let her off the hook. With Xiaozai playing in the storage room of the west kitchen, it was convenient to talk now that he wasn’t around.

"Before you leave, talk to Xiaozai properly. He understands more and more now, and he can understand everything you say," he squatted down and took her hand. "During the spring planting, I'll take him to the fields to sow wheat seeds. You tell him that you'll be back when it's time to harvest the wheat."

"Alright," Sui Yu replied softly, holding his hand in return. "I'll have to trouble you again."

"I'm happy to do it," Zhao Xiping chuckled.

Sui Yu lowered her gaze, worried about how Xiaozai would cry when she left.

Despite her worries, the days continued to pass.

The heavy snow stopped on New Year's Eve. Sui Yu didn’t let anyone clear the tables and chairs from the teahouse. She arranged for Gan Da and Gan Er to place eight torches in the ground in the open area of the teahouse. That evening, everyone gathered to eat the New Year's Eve dinner together.

For this New Year's Eve dinner, the caravans contributed money and effort. Those who weren’t afraid of getting dirty went into the pigpen to catch pigs; those skilled at scraping pig hair handled it, and experienced escorts rolled up their sleeves to roast pig heads.

They slaughtered the New Year pigs, bought live sheep, and everyone was busy chasing chickens in the snow.

Several children, loving the excitement, insisted on running in the snow, and when they fell, they rolled around in it.

Zhao Xiping grabbed a stick and chased after them. Xiaozai wasn’t afraid of him but dragged Da Zhuang along as they ran, screaming as they went.

Sui Liang grabbed Xiaozai and held him down, shouting, "Brother-in-law, I've held him down. Come and spank him."

"No," Xiaozai struggled.

Zhao Xiping approached with the stick in hand. Seeing his father getting closer, Xiaozai realized it was time to be afraid and screamed, "Dad, don't hit."

Sui Liang held him firmly.

The surrounding merchants watched, leisurely enjoying the spectacle. Some even egged him on, saying, "If you don’t spank him, he won’t respect you in the future."

Caught in a dilemma, Zhao Xiping hesitated about whether to spank him. He glared at Sui Liang, thinking, "Isn’t this just stirring up trouble?"

Sui Liang grinned cheerfully, pulling at Xiaozai's pants and asking, "Should we pull down his pants to spank him? He’s wearing thick clothes; if we don’t take them off, it won’t hurt as much."

"Uncle is bad," Xiaozai struggled again, seeing his father getting closer, and shouted for his mother.

Sui Yu stood at the door, out of Xiaozai's sight, and nodded in Zhao Xiping's direction. If they didn’t spank him this time, he would dare to roll in the snow again.

Zhao Xiping opened his palm and lightly slapped Xiaozai’s bottom three times. As soon as he pulled back his hand, Sui Liang added another slap.

"Wa—" Xiaozai started crying.

Ashui looked dejected. Anxiously rubbing her hands, she stood by the wall. She was the oldest among the children and the one they listened to. It was she who had led them out to play in the snow. Because Xiaozai had been beaten but she hadn't, she felt both awkward and uncomfortable.

Xiaozai, sniffling, went to find his mother. Zhao Xiping, carrying a club, followed him. Fearing another beating, Xiaozai ran away.

The snow was deep, and he tripped, falling flat on his face, mouth full of snow. Zhao Xiping picked him up and strode into the house.

"Scatter, scatter," Sui Liang clapped his hands and pointed at Ashui. "Go find your father to get a beating."

Ashui nodded glumly.

Huaniu and Da Zhuang, pale-faced, made their way to the western kitchen. Seeing that all the masters had entered the storage room, they stood under the eaves, waiting.

As Xiaozai's crying subsided, Sui Yu took off his shoes and placed them near the fire to dry. His woolen pants were also wet. She slapped his legs. "If you catch a cold, you'll suffer. And you still dare to cry? Your father didn't spank you hard enough."

As she smacked and scolded, Xiaozai realized he was wrong and stopped crying, silently chewing on his fingers.

"I'll fetch him a pair of pants," Zhao Xiping said, getting up to leave.

"Don't change his pants; let him freeze," Sui Yu glared at him.

Xiaozai pouted and tried to offer a kiss to appease her.

Sui Yu pressed him down with a stern face. "If you roll in the snow again, I'll beat you with a big stick until your bottom is sore."

"I won't roll again," Xiaozai shook his head.

Zhao Xiping brought the pants, and Sui Yu changed him into dry ones, hanging the wet pants around his neck. She then had Zhao Mingguang sit by the fire to dry his own pants.

Sui Liang pulled Huaniu and Da Zhuang inside too, making them sit by the fire to avoid catching cold.

Outside, everyone was busy preparing the New Year's Eve dinner, but inside the storage room, it was quiet. The three children sat silently, staring at the flames.

Sui Yu left again after attending to something. With no adults in the room, Huaniu and Da Zhuang took Xiaozai's pants to dry by the stove, each holding a pant leg over the fire.

Hearing footsteps approach, they quickly hung the half-dried pants back around Xiaozai's neck.

Sui Yu peeked in. "Are Huaniu and Da Zhuang's shoes wet? If they are, take them off and dry them by the fire."

She left again.

After a while, Zhao's father and mother came in to warm themselves by the fire. Seeing their gloomy grandson, Zhao's father clicked his tongue. "Got a spanking, huh?"

Xiaozai ignored him.

"Not respecting your elders? I'll have your father spank you again."

Xiaozai turned his back on him.

"Enough, don't tease him. It's New Year's. Do you want to make him cry again?" Zhao's mother intervened. She too took off her shoes to warm her feet. Life here was truly comfortable, with an endless supply of firewood. They could keep the stove burning without worrying about wasting fuel, staying warm throughout the winter.

After about the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, Xiaozai recovered from his emotions and perked up again. Hearing his father's voice outside, he yelled loudly.

"What a thick-skinned child," Zhao's father said. "Already forgot the spanking he just got?"

Xiaozai, annoyed, disliked this "mosquito grandfather." Looking around, he had Da Zhuang bring him a reed pipe, which he blew into the fire.

Hehe, as long as he didn't blow it at people, his parents wouldn't scold him.

Just as Zhao's father was about to leave, Zhao Xiping pushed the door open. "Go eat. You guys go ahead so you don't get in the way."

"Dad, carry me." The little one let go of the flute.

Zhao Xiping removed the pants hanging around his neck and scooped him up in one swift motion.

Huaniu followed behind, feeling jealous, as her father had never hugged her.

Outside, the little one seized the opportunity to give his father a kiss on the cheek. "Now he won’t be angry anymore, right?"

Zhao Xiping ignored him.

The little one shouted in a drawn-out voice.

"Acting like a little girl, still knows how to be spoiled." A passing merchant laughed.

Zhao Xiping smiled, and the little one giggled happily when he saw it.

Twenty-seven tables were set up in the teahouse, each with the same dishes: two bowls of pork stew, two bowls of chicken stewed with dried vegetables, one bowl of sour fish soup, two bowls of lamb and radish soup, two bowls of braised meat noodle cakes, one bowl of bean sprouts stir-fried with eggs, and two bowls of baked cakes and buns, making a total of twelve dishes. Sui Yu charged twenty coins per person.

All ten guest rooms were fully booked, with a total of five hundred and seventy-three people. For this New Year’s Eve dinner, Sui Yu collected over eleven thousand coins. The New Year’s pig was free, and the chicken, bean sprouts, and sour vegetables didn’t cost anything. Only the fish and lamb cost three thousand five hundred coins.

"Mom, I want that." The little one pointed to the pig intestines in the pork stew.

The pork stew was made by Sui Yu, with pig intestines, lungs, heart, liver, and pork all braised. After braising and stewing, there was no fresh pork's bloody taste.

The pig intestines were soft, but the little one couldn’t eat too much. Sui Yu put two pieces on his plate and added two slices of blood pudding for him to eat.

Zhao Xiping picked a piece of fish belly meat to feed his son, advising, "Chew slowly. Are your eyes tired? Don’t stare into the basin; watch your own bowl."

"On New Year's, why are you scolding him? It's New Year's, don't scold the child. He’s only two years old; he doesn’t know any better." Zhao's mother scolded Third Son.

"I wasn’t scolding him." Zhao Xiping took a cake and handed it to Sui Yu, asking, "Do you want some? The cake is getting cold."

"I won’t eat it. With so many dishes, why would I need cake?" Sui Yu scooped a spoonful of lamb into a bowl and gave the little one a piece.

All the guests had big appetites. Except for a few tables of drinkers, everyone else was eating with their heads down, as if they were in a rush. From the time the dishes were served until the last bit of food was eaten, it took less time than burning a stick of incense.

The dishes were cleared away, and the tables and chairs were moved aside. Zhang Shun led people in bringing in five sheep for the evening’s roast of lamb and pork ribs.

"Jade Merchant, is this included in the meal price?" Someone asked.

"Yes, I bought eight sheep, stewed three, and these five are for roasting tonight."

"I thought it was just the one meal. Jade Merchant, you’re really generous. I'll stay here next time I come."

Sui Yu smiled, "That's my plan. Everyone, I'd like to ask you a favor. As you can see, there aren't many performances arranged here at the teahouse, and I don't have many capable people. You all travel widely and have seen much. In the future, if you encounter any distressed performers, whether they sing, play the pipa, do acrobatics, etc., as long as they're not too expensive, I'll pay to hire them."

She was relying on these merchants; otherwise, if she wanted to get some performers at a bargain, Sui Yu would have to rely on luck, and who knows how long that might take.

"The next time I go out of the pass, I'll bring you a singing performer." A Han Chinese-looking merchant said.

"There's a blind old man in our village who does sound imitations. I'll ask him when I go back to see if he's willing to come." A merchant at another table said.

"That’s great. When you all come again, I won’t charge you for accommodation." Sui Yu happily agreed.

A Hu merchant who brought Hu Ji had drunk some wine and was a bit tipsy. Seeing the atmosphere was good, he had Hu Ji perform a dance on stage.

With music and dance, meat and wine, all the merchants present were delighted, clapping their hands and watching the beautiful dancer on stage, having a wonderful time.

Zhao Xiping carried the little one out, and Sui Yu arranged for Zhang Shun and Qingshan to keep an eye inside. She also followed them out.

Zhao Xiping enjoyed peace and quiet, and since it was too cold outside, the family had to go inside. But Zhao Xiaozai had eaten too much and was constantly burping. Sui Yu added another thick jacket for him and took him out for a walk to aid digestion.

"Let's make snowmen," Sui Yu suddenly got excited.

"Your son was scolded this afternoon for playing in the snow, and now you want to play again?" Zhao Xiping stood still.

"Adults don't get scolded for playing in the snow, but kids do," Sui Yu, being stubborn, went inside and brought out the leather gloves she had made for Zhao Xiping—three pairs, old and new, just enough for the family.

The snow in front of the house was already cleared, but there was still snow by the river. However, the wind was too strong, so Zhao Xiping shoveled the snow to the front door, scoop by scoop, while Sui Yu and Xiaozai crouched on the ground, rolling snowballs.

By the time the lamb was cooked, four snowmen, three large and one small, lined up neatly by the wall.

"This is me, this is Mom, this is Dad, and this is Uncle," Xiaozai, his face wrapped in a soft cloth, spoke in a muffled, nasal voice. He was delighted as he looked at the four snowmen of varying heights.

"From now on, we’ll make four each year," Zhao Xiping said.

"Maybe five, or even six next time," Sui Yu laughed and pounced on him.

Zhao Xiping cleared his throat and said, "Maybe I'll make two more after all."

"No hurry," Sui Yu pulled him. "We can make them when they get here."

"Who?" Xiaozai asked.

No one responded, but he didn’t mind. He grabbed a handful of snow with his oversized gloves and threw it up, shouting loudly, "It's snowing—"

The snowmen stood outside the yard for a month, and as they began to melt, Sui Yu's departure drew near.