"Uncle, are there many people in the army in the capital?" Sun Dahai also wanted to find some helpers for his family's business.
"Not many. In our division, there seem to be only four people from the capital, all gathered into one regiment."
"Who is the other between you, Uncle Tang and my uncle?" Sun Dahai asked.
Bruce Lee and Tang Tian were silent for a while, and Bruce Lee said: "He has died. He is from the Second Battalion, and we usually have a very good relationship. His parents are still alive, and he has a younger brother and younger sister. Tang Tian and I made an agreement
Now, we will go take care of their house together. After lunch, we will go to his house to have a look."
"Today is New Year's Eve. Isn't it not right for you to go to someone else's house now? Has the obituary been published?"
"It's been distributed. It should have been distributed to his home by the end of last year."
"What Dahai said makes sense. It's not a good idea for you to go today. You have a good idea, to fulfill your filial piety to your fallen comrades. But think about it again, they have finally smoothed away their sorrow and are ready to continue living. This big
People celebrating the New Year, if you go there, won’t it remind people of their sacrificed family members again?” Cao Yong said.
"Yes, yes." Cao Yue also responded.
Bruce Lee and Tang Tian thought about it and agreed to Sun Dahai's suggestion.
"After the beginning of spring, the army will organize the families of fallen comrades to go to the army station and attend a collective funeral. Your uncle may be busy with this now. Let's accompany his family back to the army then."
I can't drink any more wine.
When we talked about Chen Feng and the comrades who died, the atmosphere at the dinner table became solemn and no longer as lively as it was at the beginning.
Seeing this, Cao Yong said to Bruce Lee: "Brother Xiaolong, it's getting late. Today is New Year's Eve. You and Tang Tian have transferred their jobs and returned to the capital, but you haven't gone home to see your parents yet. I'll see you off. We'll see you another day."
Let’s have a nice chat.”
Li Cuifeng had already prepared a package of New Year's goods for Tang Tian, which Bruce Lee didn't need. Chef Cao brought the New Year's goods from Grandpa's house to the North China Building in the morning, and brothers Li Jian and Li Liang took a car into the city and took them back.
Tang Tian's home was not far away, in the east of the city. Cao Yong pushed his bicycle, helped them carry their luggage, and took them to the bus station.
After they left, the two aunts came in and out and began to sell goods to the neighbors. The two grandmothers and Li Cuifeng and Sun Dahai posted window grilles, couplets, and hung lanterns to decorate the New Year atmosphere.
It was getting dark gradually.
The Liang sisters are here and are playing games with Sun Dahe and Sun Yuanyuan.
Chef Cao is also back. In this era, it is not popular to have New Year’s Eve dinner outside. Chef Cao’s Huabei Building gets off work at 5 p.m.
In the kitchen, Chef Cao and Sun Dahai were preparing the New Year's Eve dinner. Li Cuifeng and Sun Weihong were helping. Others couldn't help if they wanted to. The kitchen was so big that they couldn't fit in.
Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Sun Yuanyuan took her brother and ran to open the door.
"Oh, grandpa is here. Grandpa, this is my brother Sun Dahe. Dahe calls him grandpa."
Hearing Sun Yuanyuan's cry, Chef Cao and Sun Dahai put down their work and went out to welcome Mr. Huang's arrival.
Mr. Huang walked in with a cheerful smile. He held a child in one hand, followed by a middle-aged man carrying several bottles of wine tied together.
"Hello, Mr. Huang."
"Grandpa, you are here."
Everyone came out and said hello to Mr. Huang.
"I'm here. Happy New Year to everyone!" Huang Lao's eyes were dazzled.
"There are still many people here, it's lively, and it looks like celebrating the New Year." Mr. Huang patted Sun Dahai on the head.
"That's why I invite you to come to my house for New Year's Eve dinner. This place is small this year, but when we move back to our old house next year, it will be spacious."
"It's a pity that I won't be here next year during the Spring Festival." Chef Cao couldn't help but feel a little sad thinking about going to Xiangjiang to settle down next year.
"Hello, Mr. Huang! Dad, if you want to come back for the New Year, it's just a ticket. It's not like we don't have the conditions. If you want to come back, who can stop you?" Cao Yong comforted Chef Cao.
"Hello, Master Ye."
Sun Dahai greeted Master Ye who followed Mr. Huang in. He was the driver assigned to Mr. Huang by the Ministry of Agriculture. He was an old automobile soldier who had just retired from the army the year before last. His family was still in his hometown and he was the only one in the capital.
"Hai Dahai, happy New Year. I'm also coming to your house for New Year's Eve dinner today."
"Welcome, then the house will be more lively."
Sun Dahai met him once at Mr. Huang's place. That time Mr. Huang wanted to send all the New Year's benefits to Sun Dahai's family.
After Huang Lao was rehabilitated, his salary was restored. Before re-arranging his work, it was under the responsibility of the Government Affairs Bureau. The bureau also prepared Huang Lao's New Year benefits. Because Taizong wanted to start a pilot project as soon as possible, Huang Lao's work years ago
It was arranged. People have already gone to the ministry, and the Ministry of Agriculture has temporarily prepared a new year's supply for Mr. Huang. In this way, Mr. Huang has two new year's supplies.
The New Year's goods are also simple, just chicken, fish, meat, eggs, shrimp, rice, flour, oil, and vegetables. The Ministry of Agriculture's portion is particularly generous, after all, these things are related to the Ministry of Agriculture.
Mr. Huang lived alone in the ministry's guest house and had no need for anything, so he called Sun Dahai and asked Master Ye to drive him home.
Sun Dahai thought for a while and took only vegetables, fish and shrimps, because these could not be bought in the market even if he had money. Sun Dahai hinted to Mr. Huang that he gave the remaining New Year's goods to his new secretary Xiao Yan. Xiao
Yan has already settled in the capital, bringing his family with him. Huang Lao simply asked him to go home after work today to celebrate the New Year, while he took his driver, Master Ye, who was also the same person, to Sun Dahai's house to join in the fun.
Now that everyone is here, let’s get started.
The dining hall has been prepared for a long time. There are many people today, so all the dishes are cooked in double portions and served from both sides of the long table so that everyone can reach them.
The cold dishes were served first: beef in soy sauce, braised pig's trotters, spicy fish skin, vinegar sting head, crystal pork skin jelly, sweet-scented osmanthus glutinous rice and lotus root, coir raincoat cucumber, and preserved egg tofu.
Then came the hot dishes: braised wild large yellow croaker, braised large prawns, soft-fried tenderloin, fried lamb with green onions, steamed lion head, roasted chicken wings with chestnuts, stir-fried beans, lettuce in oyster sauce, garlic romaine lettuce, and stir-fried cabbage with mushrooms.
This is the menu for the New Year’s Eve dinner that Chef Cao and Sun Dahai have discussed, with eight cold and ten hot dishes, just for the sake of celebration.
Pork ribs and kelp soup are also simmering on the fire. Dessert is the specialty of the two grandmothers, red bean paste rice cake and egg yolk crisp.
Needless to say, the staple food of the New Year's Eve dinner must be dumplings. However, the dumplings are ready now and have not been wrapped yet. After finishing the dishes, everyone will make dumplings together. They have prepared several types of dumpling fillings: pork and cabbage
, fish, leek, mutton and radish, as well as three vegetarian dishes made of eggs, fungus, carrots and mushrooms.
The New Year's Eve dinner has begun.
Everyone invited Mr. Huang to give a congratulatory speech, but Mr. Huang couldn't refuse and stood up.
"Today is the last day of the Gengshen Year. First of all, I would like to thank Sun Dahai, a child, for his kind invitation, allowing me to attend the Sun and Cao family's New Year's Eve dinner."
"Grandpa, there's me too. I've invited you too." Sun Yuanyuan was afraid that others would forget her.
"Okay, okay, I'd also like to thank my little friend Sun Yuanyuan. This is the first time in so many years that I feel the warmth of home."
Speaking of this, Mr. Huang's eyes turned red and his voice was choked with sobs.
When Sun Dahai saw this, he yelled: "Grandpa, please register your residence here. This will be your home at any time from now on."
Cao Yue and Sun Yuanyuan were nearby, cheering loudly and clapping the table. Sun Dahe didn't know why, so he also clapped with them.
Mr. Huang gave Sun Dahai a kind look and continued: "Okay, let's forget about the past. Here, I wish the country prosperity and the people's democracy."
As he said that, he picked up the wine glass: "Come, let us pick up the wine glass and wish us all good health, progress in work and study, a happy family, and all the best in the new year! Cheers~!"
Amidst the crackling firecrackers outside, everyone drank the wine or drinks in their glasses.
Sun Dahai also secretly drank his first glass of wine after his rebirth.